en-US Sun, 02 Jan 2022 16:03:12 -0800 60 144 41 /images/layout/goodreads_logo_144.jpg 39863456 The over-the-top memoir of a real-life mobster-turned-actor who helped make The Godfather a reality, and his story of life on the edge between danger and glamour.

Gianni Russo was a handsome 25-year-old mobster with no acting experience when he walked onto the set of The Godfather and entered Hollywood history. He played Carlo Rizzi, the husband of Connie Corleone, who set her brother Sonny--played by James Caan--up for a hit. Russo didn't have to act--he knew the mob inside and out: from his childhood in Little Italy, where Mafia legend Frank Costello took him under his wing, to acting as a messenger for New Orleans mob boss Carlos Marcello during the Kennedy assassination, to having to go on the lam after shooting and killing a member of the Colombian drug cartel in his Vegas club.

Along the way, Russo befriended Frank Sinatra, who became his son's godfather, and Marlon Brando, who mentored his career as an actor after trying to get Francis Ford Coppola to fire him from The Godfather. Russo had passionate affairs with Marilyn Monroe, Liza Minelli, and scores of other celebrities. He went on to star in The Godfather: Parts I and II, Seabiscuit, Any Given Sunday and Rush Hour 2, among many other films, and also acted as producer on several. Hollywood Godfather is his no-holds-barred account of a life lived on the edge. It is a story filled with violence, glamour, sex--and fun.]]> 304 Gianni Russo 1250181399 Christopher 0 read-in-2021 3.92 2019
author: Gianni Russo
name: Christopher
average rating: 3.92
book published: 2019
rating: 0
read at: 2022/01/02
date added: 2022/01/02
shelves: read-in-2021
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]]> 11389457 This is the only screenwriting guide by two guys who have actually done it (instead of some schmuck who just gives lectures about screenwriting at the airport Marriott); “These guys are proof that with no training and little education, ANYONE can make it as a screenwriter� (Paul Rudd).Robert Ben Garant and Thomas Lennon’s movies have made over a billion dollars at the box office—and now they show you how to do it yourself! This book is full of secret insider information about how to conquer the Hollywood studio how to write, pitch, structure, and get drunk with the best of them. Well…maybe not the best of them, but certainly the most successful. (If you’re aiming to win an Oscar, this is not the book for you!) But if you can type a little, and can read and speak English—then you too can start turning your words into stacks of money! This is the only screenwriting book you will ever need (because all other ones pretty much suck). In these pages, Garant and Lennon provide the kind of priceless tips you won’t find anywhere else, -The art of pitching -Getting your foot in the door -Taking notes from movie stars -How to get fired and rehired -How to get credit and royalties! And most what to buy with the huge piles of money you’re going to make! Writing Movies for Fun and Profit will take you through the highs and lows of life as a professional screenwriter. From the highs of hugging Gisele Bündchen and getting kung fu punched by Jackie Chan to the soul-crushing lows of Fully Loaded. Read this book and you’ll have everything you need to make your first billion the old-fashioned way—by “selling out� in show business! A portion of the authors� proceeds from this book are being contributed to the USO of Metropolitan Washington, a private, nonprofit organization dedicated to serving active duty military members and their families in the greater Washington, DC, region.]]> 338 Robert Ben Garant Christopher 4 read-in-2021 3.93 2011
author: Robert Ben Garant
name: Christopher
average rating: 3.93
book published: 2011
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2021/12/24
shelves: read-in-2021
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]]> 56663329 336 Lee Child 1984818503 Christopher 3 read-in-2021 3.62 2021
author: Lee Child
name: Christopher
average rating: 3.62
book published: 2021
rating: 3
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date added: 2021/12/24
shelves: read-in-2021
review:

]]> 53916157 The new novel from Harlan Coben, #1 New York Times bestselling author and creator of The Stranger on Netflix.

From a #1 New York Times bestselling author comes this thrilling story that shows what happens when a dead man's secrets fall into the hands of vigilante antihero—drawing him down a dangerous road.

Over twenty years ago, the heiress Patricia Lockwood was abducted during a robbery of her family's estate, then locked inside an isolated cabin for months. Patricia escaped, but so did her captors � and the items stolen from her family were never recovered.

Until now. On the Upper West Side, a recluse is found murdered in his penthouse apartment, alongside two objects of note: a stolen Vermeer painting and a leather suitcase bearing the initials WHL3. For the first time in years, the authorities have a lead � not only on Patricia's kidnapping, but also on another FBI cold case � with the suitcase and painting both pointing them toward one man.

Windsor Horne Lockwood III � or Win, as his few friends call him � doesn't know how his suitcase and his family's stolen painting ended up with a dead man. But his interest is piqued, especially when the FBI tells him that the man who kidnapped his cousin was also behind an act of domestic terrorism � and that the conspirators may still be at large. The two cases have baffled the FBI for decades, but Win has three things the FBI doesn't: a personal connection to the case; an ungodly fortune; and his own unique brand of justice.]]> 375 Harlan Coben 1538748215 Christopher 3 read-in-2021 3.95 2021
author: Harlan Coben
name: Christopher
average rating: 3.95
book published: 2021
rating: 3
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date added: 2021/12/24
shelves: read-in-2021
review:

]]> 44285661 272 Rick Ross 1488053634 Christopher 3 read-in-2021 4.01 2019
author: Rick Ross
name: Christopher
average rating: 4.01
book published: 2019
rating: 3
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date added: 2021/12/24
shelves: read-in-2021
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]]> 420321 240 50 Cent 0743488040 Christopher 3 read-in-2021 3.96 2005
author: 50 Cent
name: Christopher
average rating: 3.96
book published: 2005
rating: 3
read at:
date added: 2021/12/24
shelves: read-in-2021
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]]> 53073195 A USA TODAY BESTSELLER

In this thrilling sequel to the New York Times bestselling novella by Stephen King and award-winning author Richard Chizmar, an adult Gwendy is summoned back to Castle Rock after the mysterious reappearance of the button box.

Something evil has swept into the small Maine town of Castle Rock on the heels of the latest winter storm. Sheriff Norris Ridgewick and his team are desperately searching for two missing girls, but time is running out.

In Washington, DC, thirty-seven-year-old Gwendy Peterson couldn’t be more different from the self-conscious teenaged girl who once spent a summer running up Castle Rock’s Suicide Stairs. That same summer, she had been entrusted—or some might say cursed—with the extraordinary button box by Richard Farris, the mysterious stranger in the black suit. The seductive and powerful box offered Gwendy small gifts in exchange for its care and feeding until Farris eventually returned, promising the young girl she’d never see the box again.

One day, though, the button box suddenly reappears but this time, without Richard Farris to explain why, or what she’s supposed to do with it. Between this and the troubling disappearances back in Castle Rock, Gwendy decides to return home. She just might be able to help rescue the missing girls and stop a dangerous madman before he does something ghastly.

With breathtaking and lyrical prose, Gwendy’s Magic Feather explores whether our lives are controlled by fate or the choices we make and what price we sometimes have to pay. Prepare to return again to Stephen King’s Castle Rock, the sleepy little town built on a bedrock of deep, dark secrets, just as it’s about to awaken from its quiet slumber once more.]]> 223 Richard Chizmar 1982139730 Christopher 0 read-in-2021 4.17 2019
author: Richard Chizmar
name: Christopher
average rating: 4.17
book published: 2019
rating: 0
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date added: 2021/08/29
shelves: read-in-2021
review:

]]> 22208253
Seen by tens of billions worldwide, these are the unforgettable Onion Magazine covers that altered the course of human history and radically redefined your trivial life anew every weekend. Profound philosophical questions, the thoughts of leading cultural luminaries, harsh truths of existence, remorseless personal attacks -- you will encounter full-color graphical representations of all of these within this handsome volume. Whether you are a connoisseur of pretty pictures or are new to looking at images, The Onion The Iconic Covers that Transformed an Undeserving World is sure to give you, the feebleminded consumer, far more pleasure than you have any earthly right to experience.]]> 272 The Onion 0316256455 Christopher 0 read-in-2021 3.77 2014
author: The Onion
name: Christopher
average rating: 3.77
book published: 2014
rating: 0
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date added: 2021/06/28
shelves: read-in-2021
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]]> 6596 The Four Agreements, don Miguel Ruiz reveals the source of self-limiting beliefs that rob us of joy and create needless suffering. Based on ancient Toltec wisdom, the Four Agreements offer a powerful code of conduct that can rapidly transform our lives to a new experience of freedom, true happiness, and love. The Four Agreements are: Be Impeccable With Your Word, Don't Take Anything Personally, Don't Make Assumptions, Always Do Your Best.]]> 152 Miguel Ruiz 1878424505 Christopher 3 read-in-2021 4.20 1997
author: Miguel Ruiz
name: Christopher
average rating: 4.20
book published: 1997
rating: 3
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date added: 2021/06/28
shelves: read-in-2021
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]]> 51053653
But there’s nothing pleasant about the place.

In broad daylight Reacher spots a hapless soul walking into an ambush. “It was four against one� . . . so Reacher intervenes, with his own trademark brand of conflict resolution.

The man he saves is Rusty Rutherford, an unassuming IT manager, recently fired after a cyberattack locked up the town’s data, records, information . . . and secrets. Rutherford wants to stay put, look innocent, and clear his name.

Reacher is intrigued. There’s more to the story. The bad guys who jumped Rutherford are part of something serious and deadly, involving a conspiracy, a cover-up, and murder—all centered on a mousy little guy in a coffee-stained shirt who has no idea what he’s up against.

Rule one: if you don’t know the trouble you’re in, keep Reacher by your side.]]> 386 Lee Child 1984818473 Christopher 4 read-in-2021 3.99 2020
author: Lee Child
name: Christopher
average rating: 3.99
book published: 2020
rating: 4
read at:
date added: 2021/06/28
shelves: read-in-2021
review:

]]> 12067
People have been predicting the end of the world almost from its very beginning, so it’s only natural to be sceptical when a new date is set for Judgement Day. This time though, the armies of Good and Evil really do appear to be massing. The four Bikers of the Apocalypse are hitting the road. But both the angels and demons � well, one fast-living demon and a somewhat fussy angel � would quite like the Rapture not to happen.

And someone seems to have misplaced the Antichrist…]]> 491 Terry Pratchett Christopher 5 read-in-2021 4.27 1990
author: Terry Pratchett
name: Christopher
average rating: 4.27
book published: 1990
rating: 5
read at: 2021/04/19
date added: 2021/05/07
shelves: read-in-2021
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]]> 54798175
Later is Stephen King at his finest, a terrifying and touching story of innocence lost and the trials that test our sense of right and wrong. With echoes of King's classic novel It, Later is a powerful, haunting, unforgettable exploration of what it takes to stand up to evil in all the faces it wears.]]> 248 Stephen King Christopher 0 read-in-2021 3.99 2021
author: Stephen King
name: Christopher
average rating: 3.99
book published: 2021
rating: 0
read at: 2021/03/16
date added: 2021/03/16
shelves: read-in-2021
review:

]]> 19380 Candide is the story of a gentle man who, though pummeled and slapped in every direction by fate, clings desperately to the belief that he lives in "the best of all possible worlds." On the surface a witty, bantering tale, this eighteenth-century classic is actually a savage, satiric thrust at the philosophical optimism that proclaims that all disaster and human suffering is part of a benevolent cosmic plan. Fast, funny, often outrageous, the French philosopher's immortal narrative takes Candide around the world to discover that � contrary to the teachings of his distinguished tutor Dr. Pangloss � all is not always for the best. Alive with wit, brilliance, and graceful storytelling, Candide has become Voltaire's most celebrated work.]]> 129 Voltaire 0486266893 Christopher 5 read-in-2021 3.76 1759
author: Voltaire
name: Christopher
average rating: 3.76
book published: 1759
rating: 5
read at: 2021/01/27
date added: 2021/01/27
shelves: read-in-2021
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]]> 15783514
Forty years earlier, a man committed suicide in a stolen car at this farm at the end of the road. Like a fuse on a firework, his death lit a touchpaper and resonated in unimaginable ways. The darkness was unleashed, something scary and thoroughly incomprehensible to a little boy. And Lettie—magical, comforting, wise beyond her years—promised to protect him, no matter what.

A groundbreaking work from a master, The Ocean at the End of the Lane is told with a rare understanding of all that makes us human, and shows the power of stories to reveal and shelter us from the darkness inside and out. It is a stirring, terrifying, and elegiac fable as delicate as a butterfly's wing and as menacing as a knife in the dark.]]> 181 Neil Gaiman 0062255657 Christopher 5 read-in-2021 4.00 2013
author: Neil Gaiman
name: Christopher
average rating: 4.00
book published: 2013
rating: 5
read at: 2021/01/26
date added: 2021/01/26
shelves: read-in-2021
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]]> 2213661
There are dangers and adventures for Bod in the graveyard: the strange and terrible menace of the Sleer; a gravestone entrance to a desert that leads to the city of ghouls; friendship with a witch, and so much more.

But it is in the land of the living that real danger lurks, for it is there that the man Jack lives and he has already killed Bod's family.

A deliciously dark masterwork by bestselling author Neil Gaiman, with illustrations by award-winning Dave McKean.]]> 312 Neil Gaiman 0060530928 Christopher 5 read-in-2021 4.15 2008
author: Neil Gaiman
name: Christopher
average rating: 4.15
book published: 2008
rating: 5
read at: 2021/01/25
date added: 2021/01/25
shelves: read-in-2021
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]]> 30221471
The comic genius behind the Fletch and Flynn books, Gregory Mcdonald also penned the two brilliant kidnapping novels appearing here for the first time in three decades � and the first time ever in a single volume. Two precocious eight-year-old boys…two teams of kidnappers, in way over their heads…two opportunities for mayhem, danger, and the trenchant social satire no crime writer has ever delivered like Mcdonald.]]> 446 Gregory McDonald 178565182X Christopher 5 read-in-2021 3.34 1980
author: Gregory McDonald
name: Christopher
average rating: 3.34
book published: 1980
rating: 5
read at: 2021/01/21
date added: 2021/01/22
shelves: read-in-2021
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]]> 49098281
Stephanie and Patrick are recently married, with new-born twins. While Stephanie struggles with the disorienting effects of sleep deprivation, there’s one thing she knows for certain � she has everything she ever wanted.

Then a woman from his past arrives and makes a shocking accusation about his first wife. He always claimed her death was an accident � but she says it was murder.

He insists he’s innocent, that this is nothing but a blackmail attempt. But is Patrick telling the truth? Or has Stephanie made a terrible mistake?

How will it end?]]> 352 Shari Lapena 1787632997 Christopher 4 read-in-2021 3.75 2020
author: Shari Lapena
name: Christopher
average rating: 3.75
book published: 2020
rating: 4
read at: 2021/01/17
date added: 2021/01/18
shelves: read-in-2021
review:

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