I Am Number 4... british men are just so sexy! :)

I Am Number 4 directed by D.J. Caruso stars the young and sexy (and also fellow Aries) Alex Pettyfer, Timothy Olyphant, Teresa Palmer and Dianna Agron. While this movie was hyped up to be the next Twilight type of film, I just didn't see or feel that. The soundtrack was pretty awesome but the film fell a little short for me.

Storyline:

Extraordinary teen John Smith (Pettyfer) is a fugitive on the run from ruthless enemies. He's forced to change his identity and move from town to town with his guardian Henri (Olyphant). This lifestyle means that John is always the new kid with no ties to his past. In the small Ohio town he now calls home, John encounters unexpected, life-changing events-his first love (Agron), powerful new abilities and a connection to the others who share his incredible destiny.

The action sequences in this film were pretty fantastic. When the magic hand of Michael (please marry me and make me the happiest woman alive!) Bay is involved, you're bound to have some over the top action that will leave you hanging onto your seats. When you add the incredible cinematography of Guillermo Navarro (From Dusk Till Dawn, Spawn, Hellboy and the upcoming Twilight Breaking Dawn to name a few) you can expect the high octane punch that is sure to come. I have to also point out that this film had one of the best "girl" fighting I have seen in a very very long time. All I will say is watch out for Number 6. ;) So action wise this movie was spot on, story wise....eh leaves much to be desired.

With quiet a few story line holes, the magic movie hair that never falls out of place (tacky!) and crucial plot twists that are never explained (or in a few spots completely brushed over) you do leave the film with a mix of emotions. I like to have a good balance of story line and action in my films, the scales are tipped heavy to one side in this one. I Am Number 4 makes you wonder how the next film will be and only hope that it's going to get better as the series progresses.

So over all it's a fun action flick that will hold you over to the end, leaves a lot to be desired but still worth seeing. :)

Getting 3 and 1/2 energy charged Sheep.

KD

Born into Fire

Born into Fire by authors KyAnn Waters and Tarah Scott is a story that follows Kenna, a fire elemental and Erion, an elemental of wind. (Elementals are people who control and are one with their element) The story starts out pretty spicy and totally brings the heat all the way through. You've got elementals and dragons fighting, well intended but misguided men (like most men are lol), head strong seductive women and intense *clears throat* love scenes. ;)

Kenna is an up and coming glass artist prepping for her first big show. She has always had a natural talent for controlling fire and being able to work with its heat. Little does she know, she is about to become one with the flames and all the trouble that comes with it.

Erion is a tall, dark, and sizzlingly handsome Arts dealer that became an air elemental a long time ago. His past has weighted heavily on his shoulders, guilt and regrets have shaped his life for a very long time. Erion finds himself inexplicably drawn to the lovely artist's fire and try as he might, starts to fall for our heroine. He's willing to do anything to protect Kenna while she comes into her own element, (a very vulnerable time for all elementals) and help fan her flames if you know what I mean. *nudge-nudge, wink-wink* :)

With danger lurking around every corner, Erion is forced to make some life changing decisions that could destroy those close to him. Fighting for love is always dirty business. A few exciting plot twists and a bunch of hot and heavy romance will took me for a fun ride. I hope this series continues I look forward to seeing the rest of the elemental's across the globe!

Giving this book 3 and 1/2 fire wielding sheep.

KD

Our Oscar Picks! P.S. James Franco will you marry me?!

WIth the Oscars coming up this weekend Amber, Richard and I thought it would be a blaaaast to each take a stab at who WE thought the awards should go to. Hope you enjoy. :) Make sure to leave a comment with your pics below!

LEADING ACTOR

Javier Bardem in “Biutiful”

Jeff Bridges in “True Grit”--AC--RL

Jesse Eisenberg in “The Social Network”

Colin Firth in “The King’s Speech”--KD

James Franco in “127 Hours”

SUPPORTING ACTOR

Christian Bale in “The Fighter”--KD

John Hawkes in “Winter’s Bone”

Jeremy Renner in “The Town”

Mark Ruffalo in “The Kids Are All Right”--AC

Geoffrey Rush in “The King’s Speech”--RL

LEADING ACTRESS

Annette Bening in “The Kids Are All Right”

Nicole Kidman in “Rabbit Hole”

Jennifer Lawrence in “Winter’s Bone”--KD

Natalie Portman in “Black Swan”--AC--RL

Michelle Williams in “Blue Valentine”

SUPPORTING ACTRESS

Amy Adams in “The Fighter”--AC

Helena Bonham Carter in "The King's Speech"

Melissa Leo in “The Fighter”

Hailee Steinfeld in “True Grit”--RL--KD

Jacki Weaver in “Animal Kingdom”

CINEMATOGRAPHY

“Black Swan”--AC--RL

“Inception”-KD

“The King’s Speech”

“The Social Network”

“True Grit”

COSTUME DESIGN

“Alice in Wonderland”--AC--RL--KD

“I Am Love”

“The King’s Speech”

“The Tempest”

“True Grit”

DIRECTING

“Black Swan”

“The Fighter”--KD

“The King’s Speech”--AC

“The Social Network”--RL

“True Grit”

DOCUMENTARY FEATURE

“Exit through the Gift Shop”--AC

“Gasland”

“Inside Job”--RL

“Restrepo”--KD

“Waste Land”

DOCUMENTARY SHORT

“Killing in the Name”

“Poster Girl”--RL

“Strangers No More”

“Sun Come Up”--KD

“The Warriors of Qiugang”--AC

FILM EDITING

“Black Swan”--AC--RL

“The Fighter”

“The King’s Speech”--KD

“127 Hours”

“The Social Network”

MAKEUP

“Barney’s Version”

“The Way Back”

“The Wolfman”--AC--RL--KD

ORIGINAL SCORE

“How to Train Your Dragon”

“Inception”--KD

“The King’s Speech”

“127 Hours”--AC

“The Social Network”--RL

ORIGINAL SONG

“Coming Home” from “Country Strong”

“I See the Light” from “Tangled”--KD

“If I Rise” from “127 Hours”--AC--RL

“We Belong Together” from “Toy Story 3”

ANIMATED SHORT FILM

“Day & Night”--KD

“The Gruffalo”

“Let’s Pollute”--RL

“The Lost Thing”--AC

“Madagascar, carnet de voyage (Madagascar, a Journey Diary)”

LIVE ACTION SHORT FILM

“The Confession”

“The Crush”--AC

“God of Love”--KD

“Na Wewe”

“Wish 143”--RL

SOUND EDITING

“Inception”

“Toy Story 3”

“Tron: Legacy”--AC--RL--KD

“True Grit”

“Unstoppable”

SOUND MIXING

“Inception”--KD

“The King’s Speech”--RL

“Salt”--AC

“The Social Network”

“True Grit”

VISUAL EFFECTS

“Inception”--AC--RL--KD

“Iron Man 2”

“Alice in Wonderland”

“Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1”

“Hereafter”

ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

“127 Hours”

“The Social Network”--AC

“Toy Story 3”

“True Grit”

“Winter’s Bone”--RL--KD

ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

“Another Year”

“The Fighter”--KD

“Inception”

“The Kids Are All Right”--AC--RL

“The King’s Speech”

ANIMATED FEATURE

“How to Train Your Dragon”--AC--KD

“The Illusionist”

“Toy Story 3”--RL

BEST PICTURE

“Black Swan”--AC--RL

“The Fighter”

“Inception”

“The Kids Are All Right”

“The King’s Speech”--KD

“127 Hours”

“The Social Network”

“Toy Story 3”

“True Grit”

“Winter’s Bone”

Interview with author Gini Koch. Take 2

***Today the ladies of I Smell Sheep bring you another hit from author and friend Gini Koch. We love her books and spunky outgoing personality. If you missed the first interview make sure to check that out below or in the Interviews tab at the top. As always Gini holds nothing back, the laughs start now. One last thing. You may notice in the Rapid Fire round we don't ask the Coke or Pepsi question. This is because Gini is a COKE fan (the right drink) choosing good over evil. Enjoy!***

Florida. Kennedy Space Center. 2 Sheep and 1 Gator meet…..again

Katie: I LOVED Alien Tango, loved it. LOVED IT. Have I said that yet?
Yes. And yet, hearing that never gets old for some reason…
Katie: lol Anyway tell me a little bit about how you came up with the concept for the second story.
Wow, you know, I don’t remember now. LOL. I basically thought about where the characters would be in 5-6 months from when Kitty joined the A-Cs and rolled it from there. I can say that the major plot point I thought Alien Tango was going to turn on didn’t materialize at all. I’m saving it for a later book. I’m glad it didn’t, by the way -- the way the books have progressed is a lot better without that original “big deal” I’d come up with and it’ll work a lot better in the book I now have it planned for. And, no, not saying what it is, or what book I plan to use it in. ‘Cause that’s how I roll.

Amber: How does it feel to have two major books out, (besides the short stories)? Is it more hectic than just the one or have you gotten the swing of all this fame?
LOL, I don’t know that I’m all that famous. I don’t FEEL famous. Though, I have to admit, having fans, especially the awesome ones that are my fans, is a pretty wonderful thing. It’s definitely hectic. Right now, I’m promoting Alien Tango, still promoting Touched by an Alien, promoting pre-orders for Alien in the Family (pre-orders MATTER tremendously these days -- please, please, pre-order the books you’re eagerly looking forward to), promoting both anthologies my Anita Ensal stories are in (Boondocks Fantasy and Love and Rockets), writing Alien Diplomacy, thinking about Alien vs. Alien, and working on The Creation Agent (my online, serialized novel). That’s a lot of “stuff” going on, and yeah, it requires a lot. I do think I’m getting better at it all, especially balancing the promo stuff with the writing of new books. It’s all a learning process, and the journey is usually most of the fun, so I don’t mind. Who needs sleep, right?
Amber: Ummm… I do. Lol. You should see me when I go too long without sleep. Loopy is a good description. Haha. You handle this fabulously
Aw, thanks! It helps that I’m a night owl.

Katie: I need to find a storage closet asap! lol. I am seeing a common theme here Gini and I am starting to think someone in this room has a little bit of real life experience with romance in random places.
*cough* No idea why you’d think that. No idea at all. Next question, please?
Katie: Uh huh….alright we can move on….for now….

Amber: With your Alien series becoming such a hit, are you going to start focusing more on them and cutting back on writing the short stories under your pen name?

No. I’m a writer. It’s what I do. I also have more than one pen name. LOL. I’m never joking when I say it’s a party in my mind. I never want to say no to a short story -- you never know who will want to publish it, what other ideas it might spark, and so on. It’s all time planning and scheduling and self-discipline. Sometimes I do better with those than others, but I worked from home for over a decade when I was in Corporate America, and I learned how to be a steward of my time and get everything done, right and on time. It’s no different now, it’s just ALL me, which is rather cool.

Katie: Kitty's making more friends in Alien Tango but I have a feeling betrayal is on the horizon. Any hints?
Which characters were you thinking of as potential betrayers, or is this just a betrayal in general question? I mean, betrayal is always on the horizon for Centaurion Division, but I’m willing to share on some of the characters. (But only some. LOL) Katie: ACE stands out as the number one suspect…not sure why but I could see him flipping the script on everyone. It never ceases to amaze me, how people interpret what you write. I know it happens all the time, to every author out there, but I find it interesting. I’m saying that because of all the characters that readers have asked or suggested might be betrayers down the line, NONE of them are lined up on that side of the house for me. That’s not to say that down the road things couldn’t change, but no one suggested as a double agent is, in fact, a bad guy, at least to my current plan or knowledge. :-D In terms of ACE specifically, ACE would never willingly do anything to harm Kitty or Gower.

Amber: I know that there are still a few more books to come out in this series, but when you have finished this series do you know what new series you want to start? Have you had any dreams lately for new ideas?
I’m hoping there are a lot more books to come. DAW has bought through Book 6, but I have through Book 12 mapped out (as much as I map) and I have at least 4-8 more storylines in my head after that. Which is pretty much how I think, series-wise -- I write one, and the next several sort of line up for me, so I can see where things are likely to go. Again, I’m a writer. I already have other novels/series starts that my agent’s shopping. I don’t talk about anything until it’s sold, because I think it’s both bad luck and stupid, since written and sold are not the same thing. And, I always have dreams that spark new ideas. Or new ideas that come to me in the shower, while I’m driving, while I’m watching TV or movies. The ideas never stop. It’s choosing where to put them that’s the issue for me, not the getting of the ideas. It’s a good problem to have.

Katie: Where can fans find you in the coming months? What tours or signings do you have coming up?
Here’s the list as it stands today: Signing in the Mysterious Galaxy booth and doing panels at the Tucson Festival of Books in Tucson, AZ March 12 & 13 In the PA/NJ/NY area from April 9-21 (more deets on that trip will be finalized soon, but I don’t have exact dates for signings and such while I’m Back East yet) LepreCon in Tempe, AZ May 6-8 The Queen Creek Writer’s Group on June 14 Comic-Con San Diego July 20-27 World Fantasy Con, San Diego, October 27-30 I think I’m forgetting some. LOL More things are coming but I’m waiting for some to finalize before I announce.

Amber: I know that you are already getting a huge following from the Alien series, me being the #1 fan lol, how has all this popularity changed your life? Are the paparazzi knocking down your door yet? Lol. But in all seriousness, is it what you expected or different?
I’m honestly nowhere big enough to have any kind of “fame” issues, including paparazzi, LOL. But I never really expected to get fans so fast, and that’s still the best part of all of this. To have people who love my books as much as I do and who are not related to me or my agent or editor is a gift. So I’d say that any changes are all positive ones.

Katie: Have you checked out Steven Tyler on American Idol yet? LOL. No, but I plan to. I’m not into reality shows all that much, but with one of my main men on, I’m going to have to break down and watch. Right now, though, deadlines are more demanding than anything else, so they get first dibs on all my time (other than 1 hour a week for Castle, and potentially a 2nd hour a week for White Collar).
Katie: I LOVE Castle too. Did you know he was the actor in Firefly?! I am just getting into that series so it was news to me. lol
LOL, girl, where have you BEEN? Of course I knew that! He was also the big bad Caleb in the last season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. He was also in Dr. Horrible’s Sing Along Blog. I could keep on listing Nathan’s credits, but I think you get the idea. I’m a huge Firefly/Serenity fan, too.

Amber: What are you looking forward to most with the new books? Putting the characters into new and interesting situations and seeing how they handle, adapt and change to them. I like forcing the characters to keep on growing, to not allow them, or myself, to get complacent. Fortunately, evil’s always willing to rear its fugly head.

Katie: If you could have a dinner with anyone in the world who would it be and why? I’d like to have a dinner party with Steven Tyler, Joe Perry, Nathan Fillion, Ben Affleck, Billy Zane, Dennis Quaid, Matt Bomer, Chris Evans, Ryan Reynolds, Hugh Jackman, Wesley Snipes and Kurt Russell. And seriously, does ANYone need to ask why? LOL Okay, other than that I think all of them are totally hot, I also think all of them are very interesting. I love their work, but I also think they’ve made interesting (and sometimes bad) choices in their lives, and I think they’d all be fascinating to dine with. To me, that line up would be the dinner party of the century. If I could only be one on one, though, I’d pick Kevin Smith.
Katie: WOW I am going to meet him at WonderCon in San Fran this April. I say "going to" because it WILL happen. lol. But why Smith? I missed his panels at Comic-Con last year and was really disappointed. Hoping to catch at least one this year. As for why Kevin Smith, I really love his movies. Dogma is one of my all time favorite movies, I like the majority of the Smith oeuvre, and he routinely features Ben Affleck, so, really, what’s not to love? I’d like time with him because I think I’d learn a lot from him and it would just be very cool.

Amber: What is your favorite Angelina Jolie movie?? Me and Angie are pretty tight so I gotta throw a little publicity her way… lol. Oooh, that’s tough. I don’t know that I can pick just one. I love both Tomb Raider movies, and I also love Wanted. And, I know, poor Angie just doesn’t get enough press, does she?
Amber: Lol. You can never have enough publicity. Plus she’s brilliant. I mean seriously, who doesn’t want to talk about Angie?? LOL

Katie: In the nursery rhyme "Hey Diddle Diddle" how the heck did a dish and spoon grow legs and run away?
They were actually aliens from the Cloud Nebula.
Katie:…well then. That explains everything!

*Bonanza theme music plays* And now on to our famous Rapid fire round of questions. Gini as always will choose her own answers, lol, so let's see how she does this time. Ready??? Go!

Katie: vacation in Australia or India
Australia

Amber: 70’s or 80’s Both, the 90’s, the 00’s, and right now. The other decades have good stuff in them, too. I’m an equal opportunity girl, but honestly, I like to move forward more than hang back.

Katie: Swiss or Cheddar Brie
Katie: AND this is why I love you. Marry me now Gini! *gets down on one knee* Leave the husband and take my hand Gini! lol
Gosh, this is so sudden. Lemme ponder.

Amber: Roller skating or Ice skating
Ice skating
Katie: Angelina or Jennifer
Team Jolie all the way, baby!
Katie: AND now I take it back! The wedding is off! lol Kidding.
Amber: Katie, you are seriously lacking in good taste. Angie is awesome! Lol.

Amber: French fries or Onion Rings
Hush puppies

Katie: Transformers or Smurfs Transformers (and Voltron)
Katie: Okay. Wedding back on baby!

Amber: Gummy Bears or Gummy Worms
Hot Tamales

Katie: Close Encounters of the Third Kind or Signs
Galaxy Quest
Katie: "Look! I have one job on this ship! It's stupid but I'm going to do it, Okay?!" lol love that movie
“What are you grinning about?” “I’m just jazzed about being on the show, man.” I LOVE that movie.

Amber: Starbucks or Seattle’s Best
Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf

Katie: Elephant or Kangaroo
Lion


Thank you so much Gini! We have had a blast doing this interview with you, as per usual. Lol.
Me too! It’s always a blast hanging with my Sheep Gang!
Amber: We can’t wait to get our hands on the next book and see what new adventures Kitty will take us on! Next time we decide to do a girls night we should probably forego the strippers…. I don’t know about you but I got a little distracted. Lol.
Geez, you bring in a whole complement of A-Cs to do a strip tease and they complain…

And now on to the PRIZES!!! One lucky winner is going to walk away with the fabulous Sheepish Tango t-shirt our love muffin Richard created. So make sure to get in a valid entry to be counted! In the comments below enter these two things:

1. Your Email address
2. What one thing should every good alligator wrestler have on them at all times?

Contest ends March 6th at Midnight. Good luck and let the sheep go wild!

Larissa Ione Contest Winner!

First of all we at I Smell Sheep would like to thank all participants in this contest. We were completely and utterly unprepared for the 80+ entries that we got! I honestly thought that Katie's head was going to explode out of sheer excitement. (thankfully it didn't!)

I decided to follow the prescribed method of selection and drew four finalists from a box of names. The four finalists turned out to be:

Helena
Alisha (MyNeedToRead)
Lesha Holt
Sam

With the names in hand I walked them over to our virtual voting committee and let them figure out who's taking home the prize pack. Here is the resulting debate:

Round 1

Helena : 7
Alisha (MyNeedToRead) : 5
Sam : 5
Lesha Holt : 3
Nobody got a majority! The floor is open for debate!
Dick champions Helena calling upon voters from the NorthWest to consider Helena's greatness
Chris champions Alisha (MyNeedToRead) calling upon Male voters to consider Alisha (MyNeedToRead)'s mettle
Melissa champions Sam calling upon Female voters to consider Sam's awesomeness
Nicole champions Lesha Holt calling upon Female voters to consider Lesha Holt's worthyness


Round 2

Lesha Holt : 8
Alisha (MyNeedToRead) : 5
Sam : 4
Helena : 3
Nobody got a majority! The floor is open for debate!
Donna champions Lesha Holt calling upon Female voters to consider Lesha Holt's sweetness
Dale champions Alisha (MyNeedToRead) calling upon Young voters to consider Alisha (MyNeedToRead)'s mettle
Melissa champions Sam calling upon Young voters to consider Sam's mettle
Nicole champions Helena calling upon voters from the SouthWest to consider Helena's greatness


Round 3

Alisha (MyNeedToRead) : 7
Lesha Holt : 7
Sam : 3
Helena : 3
Nobody got a majority! The floor is open for debate!
Harry champions Alisha (MyNeedToRead) calling upon Male voters to consider Alisha (MyNeedToRead)'s awesomeness
Jennifer champions Lesha Holt calling upon Female voters to consider Lesha Holt's sweetness
Donna champions Sam calling upon Female voters to consider Sam's awesomeness
Vauhn champions Helena calling upon voters from the NorthWest to consider Helena's mettle


Round 4

Lesha Holt : 12
Helena : 5
Alisha (MyNeedToRead) : 2
Sam : 1
The winner is: Lesha Holt in 4 rounds!

Our Dr. Marutachi wanted to point out the contents of this X-Ray image...



Congratulations, Lesha Holt!

Katie will be contacting you soon to request delivery info!