chau rules

Clumsily written, predicable and actually a bit boring, 8 April 2013

Having never read Stephen Leather before I was intrigued by a chance to sample his work in this free short story.

Recommended to me as a result of my previous purchase history including the beautiful Inspector Chen novels from Qiu Xianolou I decided to see if this was to be a new novelist to explore and add to my reading list.

The story itself was pretty non-eventful, standard bbc saturday night murder by numbers stuff but what struck me most was the extremely clumsy dialogue and near painful way in which the characters interacted. I can't help feeling this one snuck past the editor's desk when he/she was nursing a rather bad hangover.

I hope this is not… Read more

Fascinating - a unique insight from a remarkable man, 19 Sep 2011

This book grips from the beginning as it launches with a dramatic recounting of Mao's death and the tumultuous events that followed. However Dr. Li's text is no less fascinating or gripping as it covers less dramatic moments, the accounts of Mao's political maneuvering and their many personal discussions provide a wealth of intrigue. It is quite a remarkable achievement that Dr. Li is able to provide such a detailed account of events given that the author destroyed his initial notes in China for fear they would be discovered.

While immersed in this book I felt that I was privy to the inner-most workings of government in China during the rule of Mao. Of course Dr. Li is only one… Read more

Fantastic cinematography and action in this enjoyable film, 21 Aug 2010

This film is very enjoyable and features decently developed characters with charisma and style and mixed in with great comic book action. The fight scenes are jaw dropping, and some of the camera work is inspired and very visually impressive - the mass fight at a sushi bar stands out as a beautifully orchestrated spectacle and must rival any display or dance or acrobatics that has been captured on camera. The picture looks tremendous in high definition and this only complements the great use of colours that this visual feast provides. Donnie Yen's martial artistry is especially spectactular in this film but the film works well as a rounded adventure with great fight scenes. Recommended!