Taste of Cyn

The School For Good And Evil And Expectations

By Cynthia Sax on December 2, 2022

Warning – I’m talking about the Netflix movie – The School For Good And Evil – in this post. There will be some (mild) spoilers. If you haven’t yet watched this movie, you might wish to skip this discussion.

The Dear Wonderful Hubby and I watched The School For Good And Evil on Netflix. This fairy tale magical academy movie was based on the book by Soman Chainani and we quite enjoyed it. It was light and fun and had a girl power message.

It also does a brilliant job at using our expectations to create plot twists.

Sophie and Agatha are best friends. But they seem more different than similar.

Agatha wears all black. She loves her cat and her potion-creating mom. She has all the makings of the stereotypical witch in the fairy tales.

Sophie dresses in bright, happy colors. She’s a gifted seamstress and she dreams of being the princess she resembles.

When they’re transported to the School for Good and Evil, we assume Sophie will be placed in the good school and Agatha (whom I LOVE) will be placed in the evil school.

But the exact opposite happens. They are placed, they believe, in the ‘wrong’ schools, becoming instant and obvious outcasts.

I thought this was superbly done and I was extremely inspired by it.

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Grin And Bare Him

This cyborg will be the warrior his female requires.

Cyborgs are designed to fight. That is their primary purpose and 98.2356 percent of the manufactured warriors enjoy battle. Tremendously.

Grin, a K model, is one of the rare exceptions. When he escaped his cruel creators, he set down his sword and allocated his processors to less violent pursuits. He projects he’s left his war-waging planet rotations behind him forever.

Then he meets his beautiful, beguiling female, the one being he’s destined to protect, to claim, to love for all eternity, and his plans for peace are completely decimated.

Mohini needs a ship.

She has a dangerous mission to complete and the first step in that assignment is arranging transport to an enemy-controlled planet. The vessel she has set her sights on is guarded by the sexiest cyborg she’s ever seen.

To gain access to his ship, Mohini is prepared to kiss, caress, seduce the muscular male. The mission is her focus. The pleasure she experiences will merely be a bonus.

A female has to do what a female has to do to save the universe.

Grin And Bare Him is a Cyborg SciFi Romance set in a dark, gritty, sometimes-violent universe.
It features a humanoid female undertaking a dangerous mission, a cyborg intent on keeping her alive, and an enemy with enough firepower to blow up an entire sector.

Buy Now:

Amazon US:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B09ZCWMSDV

Amazon UK:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B09ZCWMSDV

Amazon AUS:
https://www.amazon.com.au/gp/product/B09ZCWMSDV

Apple Books:
https://books.apple.com/us/book/grin-and-bare-him/id1622100495

B&N:
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/grin-and-bare-him-cynthia-sax/1141413965

Kobo:
https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/grin-and-bare-him

Smashwords:
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1145153

Topics: Movie Reviews | Comments Off on The School For Good And Evil And Expectations

The Old Guard And Minor Characters

By Cynthia Sax on November 21, 2020

The Dear Wonderful Hubby and I watched The Old Guard last night on Netflix.

We both really enjoyed this movie. It was action-packed yet emotional, had a message of finding hope in a dark world that really appealed to me, especially in these pandemic times. I could easily relate to Andy (played by Charlize Theron), a warrior who has seen too much and is weary of everyone’s sh*t. (grins) Nile (played by KiKi Layne), was convincing as the brand new addition to the team.

But the characters who stole my heart, who really made the movie wonderful for me were Joe (played by Marwan Kenzari) and Nicky (played by Luca Marinelli). They have a M/M romance subplot that would make any romance reader super happy.

The declaration of love scene was one of the best I’ve ever seen on screen. It inspires me to ramp up my own scenes. Their how-I-met story was adorable and fresh and so very appropriate for two warriors. The brief scenes of tenderness, the cuddles, the glances, the speaking without words, melted my heart. There was a protectiveness in them worthy of any romance novel alpha. Their relationship was SO well done.

I feel no shame about watching the movie mostly for them. Just as I don’t mind it when reading buddies tell me they read Warlord’s Return for Kralj and Dita. Every character is different and we will, of course, be drawn to some characters more than others.

IMHO…this is one of the many reasons why storytellers include minor characters in their stories.

Oh and if you love minor characters and would like to see more stories or shows or movies about them, tell the writers/other creators. I’ve written many extra scenes and snippets and even a novella or two because reading buddies have requested more time with certain characters.

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Warlord’s Return

Ariq is a barbarian warrior seeking a war.

He locates that battle when he meets Xareni.

* * *

Ariq is one of Chamele’s top warriors. A genetic predisposition to fighting, paired with intensive training and experience, has honed the scarred male into an effective killing machine. He loves war, can’t live without combat.

The Succession Wars, however, have finally ended and the Chamele sector is now at peace. Seeking excitement and purpose, the barbarian warrior accompanies his Second to the Refuge, an outlaw settlement on Carinae E. He hopes to locate the battle he’s been craving there.

Ariq finds that conflict and more when he meets his fated mate.

Xareni owes the Ruler of the Refuge a favor. That’s the only reason she has returned to the settlement. She doesn’t like crowds or structures or a certain barbarian warrior who insists on following her everywhere. It doesn’t matter that there’s a connection between them, that he makes her burn with desire, that he looks at her with heat in his dark eyes.

She’s a monster and monsters don’t need anyone.

* * *

Warlord’s Return is a STANDALONE Alien Barbarian SciFi Romance featuring a determined barbarian warrior, an equally resolute human female, and an eyeball-eating mini dragon.

Buy Today:

Amazon US:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B08FTJY7P1

Amazon UK:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B08FTJY7P1

Amazon AUS:

https://www.amazon.com.au/gp/product/B08FTJY7P1

Apple Books:

https://books.apple.com/us/book/warlords-return/id1527631786

B&N:

https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/warlords-return-cynthia-sax/1137482152

Kobo: