Baggage Claim And Numerous Love Interests
Warning: This post assumes you’ve watched Baggage Claim (the 2013 movie starring Paula Patton) or have read the book (written by David E. Talbert). There will be spoilers.
The Dear Wonderful Hubby and I watched Baggage Claim recently. I was in the mood for something light and fun and this romantic comedy was certainly that. The movie had some issues but I treated it as fantasy and thoroughly enjoyed it.
I found Baggage Claim especially fun because we’re introduced to a variety of love interests for the heroine. They represented a range of romance hero types – the good-with-his-hands small business owner, the singer, the politician, the billionaire. They are all good looking in their own way and all fairly wealthy (because very few of us fantasize about being broke a$$ – grins).
If you read contemporary romance, you know immediately which man she’ll choose. The movie follows romance guidelines. The hero is not much of a mystery.
And that’s a good thing because I liked one of the men more than I liked the hero. That’s a risk with introducing numerous possible love interests. We might get attached to the wrong being and find the ending of the movie or book or other work not as satisfying.
In the case of Baggage Claim, that didn’t happen because the hero was obvious. He WAS a nice guy, very sweet and patient and so very much in love with the heroine. I merely thought the other man was a bit more interesting (but then I like Kralj, the hero from Dark Thoughts, and he likes to eat his enemies so my judgment might be lacking – laughs).
***
Subscribe To My Newsletter: http://cynthiasax.com/newsletter/
Under Strain
A damaged cyborg warrior is hunted by a peace-loving human female.
***
Strain is severely malfunctioning. The D Model cyborg was the sole survivor after a horrific decision was made by his cruel manufacturers. He hates all humans, and when he attacks one who is under his cyborg leader’s protection, he is reprimanded, stripped of his weapons, and told to watch and not actively participate in the next mission.
That mission takes place on a small remote planet. Its lush terrain should only be inhabited by the cyborgs they were sent to rescue, but Strain senses another presence on the surface. She is watching him, tracking him, hunting him.
A fully operational cyborg would end her lifespan.
Strain wants to claim her. Forever.
Kamyelle is the only one left of her kind. Warriors have killed the other nonviolent human inhabitants of her planet. She survived…barely…by hiding in the trees, observing her enemies, and covering herself with lifeform scan-concealing mud.
When a handsome, gray-skinned, brilliant-blue-eyed male arrives, surrounded by weapon-carrying warriors, she has to save him. Warriors harm and they kill. That is what they do.
She won’t allow them to hurt Strain.
***
Under Strain is a STANDALONE Cyborg SciFi Romance set in a dark, gritty, sometimes-violent universe.
It features a broken warrior, a human female who thinks he’s perfect, and velociraptor-like dinosaurs who view them both as light, tasty snacks.
Buy Now:
Amazon US:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08R322L7S
Amazon UK:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B08R322L7S
Amazon AUS:
https://www.amazon.com.au/dp/B08R322L7S
Apple Books:
https://books.apple.com/us/book/under-strain/id1545957749
B&N:
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/under-strain-cynthia-sax/1138505613
Kobo:
https://www.kobo.com/us/en/ebook/under-strain
Smashwords:
https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/10602
Topics: Movie Reviews | Comments Off on Baggage Claim And Numerous Love Interests
Why I Love Just Wright
I watched Just Wright for the gazillionth time this weekend. It’s one of my favorite RomComs, a feel good movie about a curvy physical therapist who falls in love with the hunky basketball player she’s helping to recover from a career-threatening injury.
Yes, it is a fantasy (why would a top basketball player listen to his jealous girlfriend and hire an unknown physical therapist?) but the characters, especially Leslie (played by Queen Latifah), spoke to me. I could relate to her. I felt her pain.
Leslie meets Scott, the hero before he’s injured (Scott is played by the yummy Common – who was very nice to me when I met him at the Consumer Electronics Show years ago). There’s immediate chemistry between them but she’s so accustomed to being the ‘friend’, the woman guys like but don’t lust after, she doesn’t take it seriously.
When Morgan (played by Paula Patton), her good looking, size nothing friend, goes after Scott and lands him, Leslie steps aside. She hasn’t known Scott for very long and she simply assumes she doesn’t have a chance with him.
Because that is what many of us curvy girls do. We assume that handsome, super fit, super nice guys want the more socially acceptable size nothing women (in the case of Scott and my Dear Wonderful Hubby, that isn’t true). And when we step aside, the men usually see this as a sign we’re not truly interested in them and they DO walk away.
Which is exactly what Scott does in this movie.
And Leslie merely shrugs her shoulders and moves on. I love that she isn’t the bitter perma-single curvy girl. She knows (what she believes is) her place in the world and she’s okay with that.
Leslie is also aware of her own worth. She knows she can get a man tomorrow. She is waiting for THE man, the man who will capture her heart.
And our girl has her own life to live. She has a house that she’s constantly fixing up, a job that she loves, and she’s a dedicated basketball fan. She doesn’t need Scott. She wants him. There’s a big difference between the two.
I thought the love triangle was handled well and semi-realistically. Scott made some frustrating choices but I understood why he made them. He maintained his nice guy status throughout those choices.
I loved how Leslie was devastated during the dark moment but she didn’t crumble. She went on with her life, focusing on her career. I cheered when she questioned the hero after he came to his senses. She doesn’t blindly forgive him.
There were some silly moments (her rolling in his bed) and some WTF moments (her job situation at the end of the movies – that is definitely a conflict) but, overall, I really enjoyed this movie…which is why I watched it for the gazillionth time (grins).
Subscribe To My Release Day Newsletter: http://tasteofcyn.com/2014/05/28/newsletter/
He wants one night. I want forever.
Hit it and quit it—that’s Smoke Sheridan’s relationship philosophy. The tall, dark, and dangerous club owner never spends more than one night with any woman. He seduces the broken-hearted, leaving them with smiles on their faces and a sexual confidence other men can’t resist.
I need his services.
My boyfriend of four years dumped me because I’m a lousy lay. Smoke can help me win him back, teach me how to make my man writhe in ecstasy. I’ll show him such bliss, he’ll bellow my name in the dark of the night, want me with an all-consuming desire.
This sounds like a great plan. Except I see the loneliness in Smoke’s eyes, feel the wistfulness in his touch, experience the wanting in his embrace. The player isn’t as shallow as he appears.
And I’ve never been good at letting go.
One And Done contains inappropriate humor, very bad pickup lines, a BBW heroine who doesn’t know what she’s doing and a player who thinks he does.
This is a standalone story.
Buy Now:
On Amazon US: https://www.amazon.com/One-Done-Cynthia-Sax-ebook/dp/B01FOVMF70
On Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/One-Done-Cynthia-Sax-ebook/dp/B01FOVMF70
On ARe: https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-oneanddone-2040641-340.html
On Barnes & Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/one-and-done-cynthia-sax/1123809444
On Kobo: https://store.kobobooks.com/en-us/ebook/one-and-done-1
Topics: Guest Post | Comments Off on Why I Love Just Wright
