Ninja News, July Movie Preview, and Ninjas on Vacation!

Not to be confused with Ninjas on Ice.

Ninja News!

Special treat – I’ve interviewed my buddy Jamie Gibbs of Mithril Wisdom over at the A to Z Blog today! Every other Wednesday is a challenge participant feature and Jamie’s theme for the Challenge rocked!

Today is the launch day for Laura Eno’s next book, Wraith, Book Two of the Carriena Oracles!

Someone wants them dead. Another wants them captured. No one can be trusted. Secrets, lies, and revelations await Raven and Mikael as their search for Mikael's missing friend leads them to Wraith, a mysterious moon owned by Jeffrey Hamilton, cybernetics genius and Ben's creator. How much of the Oracle's technology does Hamilton possess and where did it come from?

Raven's nightmares from the past threaten her sanity, while Mikael's guilt slowly consumes him. Ben's in more danger than anyone as they race to find the answers to uncertain questions—questions which could lead to death for them all.

Available for only .99 on AmazonUS, AmazonUK, Nook, and Smashwords.

As a bonus you can download the first book, Raven, for free Wednesday only! CLICK HERE and enter the code PU65D.

Morgan Shamy, Cassie Mae, Leigh Covington, and Mark Koopmans are hosting the What If Fairy Tale Madness Blogfest in August! Visit any of their sites to sign up.

Cherie Reich’s new book, Women of Foxwick, is available now and for one week only, it’s just 99 cents. Congratulations, Cherie!

Carol Kilgore at Under the Tiki Hut is hosting another contest this week – are you Team Frozen or Team Rocks?

Thanks to everyone who Championed my buddy Andrew Leon last week in the Star Wars Blogathon – he won!!! Congratulations, Andrew.

Don’t forget that since the next posting of the Insecure Writer’s Support Group falls on the USA’s Fourth of July holiday, we will be posting on either Tuesday OR Wednesday of that week.

And starting Friday, I will be on vacation for four days! Yes, I gave up a chance to appear at Fandom Fest to spend time with my wife. I’ll be checking email and my blog, but otherwise I’ve promised her no Internet. I’ll return Tuesday with my post for the IWSG.

July Movies

Here are the upcoming releases for July. As always, descriptions courtesy of the IMDB. Snarky comments by me.

3 -

The Amazing Spider-Man
Peter Parker finds a clue that might help him understand why his parents disappeared when he was young. His path puts him on a collision course with Dr. Curt Connors, his father's former partner.
Director: Marc Webb
Stars: Andrew Garfield, Emma Stone, Rhys Ifans, Denis Leary, Martin Sheen

Did we need a reboot this soon? Heck no! But it is getting good reviews…

6 -

Savages
Pot growers Ben and Chon face off against the Mexican drug cartel who kidnapped their shared girlfriend.
Director: Oliver Stone
Stars: Aaron Johnson, Taylor Kitsch, Blake Lively, Benicio Del Toro, John Travolta

Stone is hit or miss, but for Kitsch’s sake, hope this is a hit, or the dude may never act again.

13 -

Ice Age: Continental Drift
Manny, Diego, and Sid embark upon another adventure after their continent is set adrift. Using an iceberg as a ship, they encounter sea creatures and battle pirates as they explore a new world.
Directors: Steve Martino | Mike Thurmeier
Stars: Ray Romano, Denis Leary, John Leguizamo, Peter Dinklage

The third film is one of the top grossing films of all time. No idea why. But according to my wife, we are not missing this one. Stupid Scrat movie…

20 -

The Dark Knight Rises
Eight years after Batman took the fall for Two Face's crimes, a new terrorist leader, Bane overwhelms Gotham's finest, and the Dark Knight resurfaces to protect a city that brands him an enemy.
Director: Christopher Nolan
Stars: Christian Bale, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Gary Oldman, Michael Caine

After The Avengers this the next most anticipated film of the summer. Nolan can do no wrong – this movie will rock!

27 -

The Watch
Suburban dads who form a neighborhood watch group as a way to get out of their day-to-day family routines find themselves defending the Earth from an alien invasion.
Director: Akiva Schaffer
Stars: Ben Stiller, Vince Vaughn, Jonah Hill, Billy Crudup

Could easily suck. I usually don’t like this type of film, but the previews were funny.

Any new books strike your fancy? Or blogfests? Ready for the next IWSG posting next Tuesday/Wednesday? Any movies strike your interest? Don’t forget to visit Jamie at the A to Z blog. And do you think I need a vacation?

July Movie Preview Already?

That’s right – the year is half over! Now prepare for another month of living in a cool movie theater.

All descriptions courtesy of the IMDB. Snarky comments provided by me.

Today – June 29

Transformers: Dark of the Moon
Director: Michael Bay
Stars: Shia LaBeouf, Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, Tyrese Gibson
The Plot: Against the backdrop of the space race between the U.S.S.R. and the USA, the alliance between Sam Witwicky (LaBeouf) and Optimus Prime is put to the test against a common enemy: Shockwave.
This was scheduled to come out July 1, but they bumped it up a few days. Critics say special effects are amazing but there’s no character development. Hello! It’s Transformers. Soon as I get off work, I’m off to see it in 3D!

July 8

Ironclad
Director: Jonathan English
Stars: Paul Giamatti, Jason Flemyng, Brian Cox
The Plot: In 13th-century England, a small group of Knights Templar fight to defend Rochester Castle against the tyrannical King John (Paul Giamatti)
Could be way cool, but I bet it will be difficult to find in theaters.

Horrible Bosses
Director: Seth Gordon
Stars: Jason Bateman, Charlie Day, Jason Sudeikis
The Plot: Three friends (Jason Bateman, Charlie Day, and Jason Sudeikis) make a pact to rid the world of their respective bosses.
Okay, this one caught my attention with the line about Bateman street racing his Prius – “I don’t win much.”


July 15

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part II
Director: David Yates
Stars: Daniel Radcliffe, Emma Watson, Rupert Grint
The Plot: The end begins as Harry, Ron, and Hermione return to Hogwarts to find and destroy the final horcruxes. But when Voldemort finds out about their mission, the battle we've all known has been coming -- Harry vs. Voldemort -- looms large on the horizon. And who will triumph?
Like we don’t know how it ends! Maybe this will be the first Potter movie to cross the billion dollar mark. Just please tell me Harry does more than run…

July 22

Captain America: The First Avenger
Director: Joe Johnston
Stars: Chris Evans, Hugo Weaving, Samuel L. Jackson
The Plot: After being deemed unfit for military service during WWII, Steve Rogers (Evans) volunteers for a top secret research project that turns him into Captain America, the Sentinel of Liberty -- a superhero dedicated to defending America's ideals. His first mission: to combat the Nazi propaganda effort headed by Johann Schmidt (Weaving), also known as the Red Skull.
Marvel’s been hitting home runs lately and this one should be no different.

July 29

Cowboys and Aliens
Director: Jon Favreau
Stars: Daniel Craig, Harrison Ford, Olivia Wilde
The Plot: In Silver City, Arizona, Apache Indians and Western settlers must lay their differences aside when an alien spaceship crash lands in their city.
Wicked cool! Tell me, what boy hasn’t wanted to see cowboys fight aliens? Besides, Olivia Wilde is hot. Which is good, because Daniel Craig stole Rachel Weisz.

Attack the Block
Director: Joe Cornish
Stars: John Boyega, Jodie Whittaker, Alex Esmail
The Plot: Moses (John Boyega) and the rest of his teen gang look to protect Wyndham Tower -- their housing estate -- from an alien invasion.
Hard to say, but the buzz for this film is good.


So, what are you seeing this month?