July 17, 2013

The Dogs of Rome: A Commissario Alec Blume Novel by Conor Fitzgerald, copyright 2010, published  by Bloomsbury USA

This is the July 2013 Mystery Book Group pick.

The name Dogs of Rome seems apt as the mystery seems to center around illegal dog fighting.  It’s all illegal isn’t it?  If not, it should be.  But I digress.  Apparently this Alec Blume (an American expatriate) is a recurring character in Mr. Fitzgerald’s books.  This in itself is a mystery as Alec Blume has no redeeming qualities whatsoever.  None.  Nada.  Nyet.

First, Alec Blume HATES dogs.  So much so that when he is watching a tape of an illegal dog fight, Alec “felt like punching the air and saying ‘Fuck yeah!’  Now that’s what dogs are for.”  Strike one Mr. Blume, I am an animal lover.

Secondly, he is so fixated on getting laid that his bumbling advances towards one woman causes him to dig through his wallet for his card and thereby loosing losing a valuable piece of evidence which he had carefully stored in there.  Strike two!  Well I feel like a dork for that misspelling and the fact that G. had to point it out to me.

Thirdly, on his way to arrest the murderer (did I mention there was a murder in this book?  Just a murder.  Singular.  Yawn), as he piddles around with elevators and calling for backup, the suspect pops on down the stairs and escapes.  Strike three dumbass!

I read other reviews that called Alec Blume “human”.  Only if you spell human D-U-M-A-S-S!

This evening’s movie was All Superheroes Must Die (2011), written by Jason Trost, Directed by Jason Trost and starring Jason Trost.

I think I’m spotting a trend here. . . .

Plot:  Four Super Heroes find themselves abducted and stripped of their powers by their Arch Nemesis and are forced to compete in a series of challenges in order to save an abandoned town full of kidnapped innocent civilians.

IMDb gives it 2 stars and Amazon gives it 3.  Me, I give it 4, maybe even 4-and-a-half.  This film was startlingly good and yet slightly disappointing at the same time (mostly at the end).   If you love the darkness and angst in The Watchmen, watch this film.  If you saw The Watchmen only to see Dr. Manhattan’s sizable blue penis, then Deep Throat might be more your style.