"The Life Cycle of the Common Octopus" by Emma Knight (2025)

"A large part of her wished she could stop caring about whatever it was that had come between her dad and Lennox.  Why this fixation on a past that wasn't even hers?  But she knew why.  She could see how easy it would be to relive her parents' lives without quite choosing to, the way a toboggan finds its way into the pre-compressed path of whoever went before.  She wanted to better understand the route they had taken, so she didn't fall into it by mistake."

Emma Knight is a Canadian author with only this novel to her credit.  Before turning to the writing of fiction she was a journalist and co-writer of cookbooks.  There's talk of The Life Cycle of the Common Octopus being adapted into a television series by MGM Television, but that series is far from being realized at the time of writing.

In the book Pen (short of "Penelope") ventures to Scotland to study abroad.  After doing so she forges a relationship with the Lennox family, a group of erstwhile aristocrats living in a restored castle.  She is immediately attracted to the Lennox's young son, Sasha, but her and Sasha's feelings for one another are undermined by both Pen's father's past dealings with the Lennoxes and family secrets on both sides.

What's a young, sexually inexperienced Canadian girl to do?  Well, if you've read as many of these "chick lit"-type books as I have, you'll know that yes, Pen and Sasha eventually hook up, and yes, all of the family secrets are brought to light in the concluding chapters of this novel.

Just don't ask me what the octopus present in the title is supposed to symbolize.  I'm still not entirely sure.  The Margot character attempts to explain that during her and Pen's outing at the aquarium, but it seems a feeble metaphor, and one not entirely connected to the narrative.

The Life Cycle of the Common Octopus is a clumsily written book by a first time author.  As such I'd give it a passing grade, but only passing.  It resembles any number of similar books now on the market, and the author needs to either increase her output or start taking serious chances if she wants to avoid drowning in a sea of literary mediocrity.

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(Japanese) Spider-Man (1978-1979) 2

"Spider Strings!"

"Spider Machine GP7!"

"Marveller!"

"Change Leopardon!"

Yes, it's time for another round of the Japanese Spider-man TV show, my lowkey sexual obsession with "Amazoness" continuing unabated.

This entry brings me up to 28 episodes out of 41.  That's all I could find on YouTube.  I'd love to watch the remaining 13 episodes, but alas, I couldn't find them online.  

(I even tried searching by スパイダーマン! )

Episode 15

Spider-man helps a boy with a heart condition.  Not much happens in this episode, even if Spider-man FINALLY figures out Amazoness' secret identity as the editor of his girlfriend's newspaper.

Episode 16

Professor Monster and his Iron Cross Army try to blow up a dam AND flood the city of Tokyo with gas that they plan on igniting afterward.  The Iron Cross Army be gangsta like that.

And that's one tough dog.  Not only does it walk off two bullets, but it later falls off the side of a damn and fights off several henchmen.

Not sure what the boy was doing in the mountains in the first place.  Maybe looking for his dad?  But how would he know where his dad was?

Episode 17

A pro wrestler wants to become "the strongest one there is," and ends up getting turned into a "machine bem" that resembles the Thing.

Episode 18

Spider-man helps a boy bullied by classmates while the Iron Cross Army, for inexplicable reasons, commits a series of extremely low level crimes across the Tokyo area.  Can't help but feel sorry for the mom accused of stealing 5 million yen.  That was a low blow, Amazoness, even for you!

And how many boys had fathers killed in car accidents in late 70s Japan?  Judging by this show it was A LOT.

Episode 19

Definitely one of the weirder ones.  I'd put this alongside the cat demon episode.  Spider-man meets an alien boy with mind powers who takes him to a secret village in the mountains where the locals (who can all fly) are planning to sacrifice the boy's sister to a monster in a lake.  Amazoness gets a new outfit in this one, and I'm not a fan of the new look.  Maybe they thought she was too drab in earlier episodes?

Episode 20

Funny how you bad guys keep running into Takuya, isn't it?  It's almost as if he's... Spider-man?

In this one the Iron Cross Army kidnaps a girl (so much kidnapping!) who might have the power of precognition. 

Episode 21

This is one of the more random ones.  An Interpol guy gets caught spying on the Iron Cross Army, and Spider-man helps him escape their clutches.  But why not carry the guy once he's injured?  Isn't Spider-man strong enough?  And why bother to commandeer the helicopter if they weren't going to escape in it?  And why not take the guy directly to the hospital, so he could see his son another day?

Episode 22

One of Professor Monster's more skeletal henchmen goes around stealing people's blood for his boss.  In the midst of that Spider-man rescues a blind little girl.  Can you guess who the little girl's father is?

Episode 23

Watch your back, Takuya, some dude's buying your girlfriend presents behind your back!

Shortly thereafter Takuya stumbles upon - I kid you not - a private club where people gamble on rabbit races, chick races and spider fights.  Go figure.  Was that really a thing in Japan at the time?  I kind of doubt it.

It should be noted that at this point in the series Spider-man not only has a spider sense but also X-ray vision and the completely inexplicable ability to know when someone's trying to contact him.  By this point his powers are pretty much all over the place.

And naturally the "sorceress" running the club turns out to be one of Professor Monster's Machine Bem.  She resembles a lower grade Mysterio.

Episode 24

Spider-man meets A BOY WHO THROWS COCKROACHES ON PEOPLE and who at one point PUTS A COCKROACH IN ANOTHER BOY'S MOUTH.  Yeah, if you enjoy that kind of weirdness this show is for you!

And as you'd expect the machine bem at the end is a cockroach.  Why wouldn't it be a cockroach?  Of course it's a cockroach!!

Episode 25

A former jewel thief is tortured to death by the Iron Cross Army, and they create clone (?) to trick the thief's son into divulging the location of a hidden gem.  But as you'd expect Spider-man shows up, and so much for the missing gem, the Iron Cross Army and their giant crab monster.

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I'll be adding to this as I go along.  The movies below are ranked from "best" to "worst."

1. Vacancy (2007)

I'm pretty sure I'd seen this before.  Not 100% sure, but it did seem familiar.

Kate Beckinsale and Luke Wilson star as an estranged couple trapped in a motel room by psychopaths, with Frank Whaley doing a nice turn as the motel's manager.  It will probably remind you of a hundred other noir/suspense films but the script was watertight and the director clearly put a lot of thought into what he was doing.

2. Shrooms (2007)

Mushroom tourism?  Is that a thing?  And would Americans really journey all the way over to Ireland for that purpose?  I haven't done enough drugs to answer those questions.  Maaaaybe?

As you'd expect they venture into the Irish woods for their mushroom excursion.  And no, their trip is not a good one.

For the record I've ingested a hallucinogenic substance exactly one time, and I have absolutely no desire to repeat the experience.  What I felt and saw during that extremely unpleasant evening long ago I have no desire to ever feel or see again.

3. The House Bunny (2008)

I was prepared to hate this gender-flipped update of Revenge of the Nerds, but as it turns out it's very funny.  Anna Faris shows both great promise and great comedic timing in the lead role, and her costar Emma Stone was, in 2008, on the cusp of a storied career in film.

Fun Fact: Beverly D'Angelo is in this.

4. The Burrowers (2008)

Underground dwellers menace settlers in the Dakota Territories.  As Westerns go it's a slow burn, but I liked it a lot.  Reminded me of Bone Tomahawk.

5. Hancock (2008)

I hadn't seen this since it first ran in theaters, and I'd have to say that it's improved a bit with age.  In 2008 most of us were measuring Hancock against films such as Batman Begins, The Dark Knight or even the first Iron Man, and Hancock definitely suffered by comparison.  This said, it's definitely not a bad film and it did try to do something new with the genre.

Fun Fact 1: Before Will Smith took on the lead role, Dave Chappelle was almost cast as Hancock.

Fun Fact 2: The original draft of the script was vastly different from the finished product.  It was a dark, harrowing account of a young boy helping an alcoholic (and suicidal) superhero.  Some of those who read it likened it to Leaving Las Vegas.

6. Superhero Movie (2008)

This parody missed it by that much, didn't it?  It came out the same year as both Iron Man and The Incredible Hulk, but at the time no one knew just how BIG the MCU was going to become.

As it is Superhero Movie mostly riffs on Sam Raimi's Spider-Man trilogy.  Some of the X-men and Fantastic Four characters are in it too, and they're even referenced by name.

It's a mildly funny movie.  If they'd only waited a couple years they would have had a lot more material to work from.

7. Fool's Gold (2008)

Matthew McConaughey and Kate Hudson trade on their collective sex appeal in this story of sunken treasure off the Florida coast.  Critics hated it, and it didn't make a great deal of money, but it passes by pleasantly enough.

I have to say, however, that the subplot involving Donald Sutherland and his (extremely attractive) daughter is far more interesting than the Spanish gold, McConaughey's faltering marriage, or whatever's going on with Kevin Hart and his goons.  Sutherland steals every scene he's in, and the actress playing his daughter is so hot she manages to make even Kate Hudson look average.

8. Blood and Bone (2009)

Hats off to guys like Michael Jai White and Scott Adkins.  They've burrowed into a very, very specific niche from which they're not likely to emerge.  Super buff martial arts guys in love with complicated fight choreography and practical effects are an endangered species, and conservation efforts are underway.

Blood and Bone is like two thirds of a decent 80s action spectacle separated by a mediocre second third which most won't pay any attention to.  For the record White is a decent actor, and his nemesis in Blood and Bone, Eamonn Walker, is an even better actor, but yeah, that middle part wasn't doing either of them any favors.

9. Ghosts of Girlfriends Past (2009)

Matthew McConaughey and Jennifer Garner star in this update of A Christmas Carol.  If it wasn't for Michael Douglas and Emma Stone this movie would be a lot worse than it is, but given their presence in the cast it's better than it has any right to be.

10. What Happens in Vegas (2008)

Cameron Diaz and Ashton Kutcher get hitched after a night out on the town in Sin City.  It's dumb, it's borderline offensive, but it does muster up a few funny scenes and bits of dialogue.  Critics hated this one too, but it went on to make a lot of money regardless.

Fun Fact: Zach Galliafanakis is in this for a few minutes.  He'd appear in the first Hangover the following year.

11. The Red Baron (2008)

One of the most expensive German films ever made and also one of German cinema's biggest disasters.  Audiences in Germany really weren't feeling the positive spin put on Germany's role in the Great War, and The Red Baron wasn't well received internationally either.  I will say that the aerial battles are amazing, even though the story's a bit thin and the characters are less than engaging.

12. Dead Mary (2007)

Lower budget Canadian film that's a cross between Evil Dead and The Thing.  The cinematography is better than the weak script and indecisive direction deserved.  The first half is promising, but the second half either fails to demonstrate its internal logic or the characters abandon this internal logic entirely.

13. Paul Blart: Mall Cop (2009)

This movie was a struggle.  Not once during its hour and a half runtime did I laugh.  Not once was I touched by any emotions resembling mirth.  Not once was my interest piqued or my attention arrested.

But of course this movie wasn't made for me.  It was made for schlubbier, more downtrodden guys still convinced they can net a hot girl who's wildly out of their league.  It was made for persons under the age of eighteen and over the age of twelve.  It was perhaps also made for members of foreign communities who don't share my sense of humor.  Whoever falls into this movie's target demographic, I hereby shake you warmly by the hand and congratulate you on discovering and embracing Kevin James, an actor's whose popularity I've never understood.

As for myself I'll be elsewhere, watching other things.  Paul Blart: Mall Cop 2?  I think not!

14. Static (2008)

Three dumbasses put chips into their brains and develop psychic powers.  Man, this TV movie just crawls by.

15. In the Spider's Web (2007)

Lance Henriksen cashes a modest check while the rest of the cast - to one extent or another - f&*ks around with spiders and finds out.  The CGI in this TV movie has not aged well.

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"A Memory Called Empire" by Arkady Martine (2019)

"'I appreciate the promptness with which Lsel answered my request,' Eight Loop said.  'It is admirable; that kind of cooperation will only help your people in the future.  I suggest you stick to it.'"

Arkady Martine is the pen name used by AnnaLinden Weller, a science fiction writer and academic specializing in the Byzantine Empire.  She lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

A Memory Called Empire was Martine's first novel.  It was followed in 2021 by A Desolation Called Peace, a sequel to her first book.  Both books won the Hugo Award for Best Novel, with A Desolation Called Peace also winning the Locus Award in the same category.

A Memory Called Empire is a murder mystery set against a background of court intrigue and intergalactic conquest.  Its protagonist is Mahit, an ambassador sent to the heart of the Teixcalaan Empire to represent Lsel, the space station on the outskirts of this empire.  Residents of Lsel are in possession of a semi-secret "imago technology" which allows several personalities to inhabit the same body.

A Memory Called Empire reminded me of both Frank Herbert's Dune series and the recently reviewed Ninefox Gambit.  The parallels between the Dune novels (minus the messianism) and A Memory Called Empire will be obvious, but these parallels might simply be a function of the larger histories which underpin both books.  Dune and its many sequels were, in many ways, very Islamic books, while A Memory Called Empire invokes the glory of Byzantium (or Constantinople) at its height.

The resemblance to Ninefox Gambit relates to the two books' plots.  In both books a female protagonist carries a male personality around in her consciousness, and in both books the female protagonists are elevated to the highest circles of power, where they must fall upon their own resources and training to survive.  Where Ninefox Gambit is more focused on the military aspects of empire, A Memory Called Empire is more concerned with the political aspects.  Both books work, even if A Memory Called Empire is a decidedly less visceral affair, trained more on the vagaries of courtly life and ambitious individuals seeking royal favor.

Ninefox Gambit resonated with me a lot more.  A Memory Called Empire is an excellently written book by an author with an impressive command of words, but it's very slow in parts, and could have used more sex and violence to keep the reader invested.  As it is it's a little too cerebral for its own good.

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