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Mark @ Carstairs Considers (2353 KP) rated Until Depths Do Us Part in Books
Sep 11, 2024 (Updated Sep 11, 2024)
Sailing Away with a Dead Bride
When her nephew needs a last-minute location for his Thanksgiving wedding, Charlotte reluctantly offers the private residence ship she’s just learned her late husband bought a cabin on. Charlotte and her sister, Jane, aren’t sure about this wedding, but they are trying to be supportive for their nephew. However, their first night at sea, someone kills the bride, and their nephew becomes the obvious suspect. Can the sisters figure out what really happened?
I’d been wanting to try this author’s books for a while, and I’m glad I did. This book handled the tricky job of backstory and mystery set up well, and I was pulled into the story from the beginning. I did feel the interactions with one character got repetitive, but overall, the plot kept me engaged as Charlotte kept finding out more things that might have played into the murder. The solution was perfectly logical when we got there. We met the majority of characters at once, so I had a harder time keeping them all straight, but I did by the end. That doesn’t apply to Charlotte and Jane, who are great main characters. I enjoyed the fantasy of cruising, yet the murder is played seriously. I’m looking forward to booking another cruise with this series soon.
I’d been wanting to try this author’s books for a while, and I’m glad I did. This book handled the tricky job of backstory and mystery set up well, and I was pulled into the story from the beginning. I did feel the interactions with one character got repetitive, but overall, the plot kept me engaged as Charlotte kept finding out more things that might have played into the murder. The solution was perfectly logical when we got there. We met the majority of characters at once, so I had a harder time keeping them all straight, but I did by the end. That doesn’t apply to Charlotte and Jane, who are great main characters. I enjoyed the fantasy of cruising, yet the murder is played seriously. I’m looking forward to booking another cruise with this series soon.

Trudi (4 KP) rated Four weddings and a fiasco in Books
Jan 26, 2018
Nice heart warming story
Romantic comedies are not my usual read but I felt like a change. And I'm very glad I gave it a try, it was a very easy read as it was full of good scene setting description character build ups and an interesting back story too. Well worth the read, even if you're not a romcom reader.
The story is about Katy who is a wedding photographer with her own business who was left struggling after a family betrayal. Katy learns to trust and eventually love again. There are ups and downs that keep you glued to the book from beginning to end!
The story is about Katy who is a wedding photographer with her own business who was left struggling after a family betrayal. Katy learns to trust and eventually love again. There are ups and downs that keep you glued to the book from beginning to end!

Allison Knapp (118 KP) rated Imagine Me & You (2006) in Movies
Jan 20, 2019
Charming performances by Piper Parabo (Coyote Ugly), Lena Heady, and Anthony Michael Head (Buffy the Vampire Slayer) (2 more)
A LGBTQ movie before the time of legal gay marriage
Witty humor and inspiring chemistry
A film just slightly ahead of its time
Contains spoilers, click to show
A woman falls in love with another woman at her wedding reception. As they try their best to fight their love, it becomes so much clearer that despite her husband is a good man, he doesn't hold her whole heart, proving that love can be found in the most unexpected ways.

Awix (3310 KP) rated The Holy Mountain (Der Heilige Berg) (1926) in Movies
Nov 11, 2019
Mountainous melodrama couples a rather corny, obscurely allegorical plot to some stunning visuals to reasonably engaging effect. A dancer (Riefenstahl) is drawn to the Alps, where she falls in love with an engineer; confusion and jealousy lead to jeopardy, stoic heroism, and ultimately tragedy.
I found the dramatic elements of the film to be rather hard going, and Riefenstahl's dancing, rather than evoking desire, just reminded me of a drunk woman trying to start a fight at a wedding reception. However, there are some fantastic compositions and the mountains still look awesome nearly a century on; the film may feel a bit pretentious but its imagery remains powerful.
I found the dramatic elements of the film to be rather hard going, and Riefenstahl's dancing, rather than evoking desire, just reminded me of a drunk woman trying to start a fight at a wedding reception. However, there are some fantastic compositions and the mountains still look awesome nearly a century on; the film may feel a bit pretentious but its imagery remains powerful.

Ian Parr (9 KP) rated Wild Tales (2014) in Movies
Nov 18, 2019
"Six stories are told in this movie, and all are entertaining and enjoyable. However, because these are short stories, I found some ended too soon, left me wanting more, to find out what happened next, and one or two had disappointing endings. The pick of the stories are 'El más fuerte', about a road rage incident that escalates and the last story, 'Hasta que la muerte nos separe', about a wedding that goes very very badly! I would have liked some connection between each story, like a character appearing in each, but as it is it still comes highly recommended."
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Leanne Crabtree (480 KP) rated Sweet Filthy Boy (Wild Seasons, #1) in Books
Jan 6, 2021
Contains spoilers, click to show
I finally finished it!
That makes it sound bad, but it wasn't, it was actually pretty good--it just took me 11 days to read. I just have to be in a particular mood to read erotica.
3 star for the erotica/sex scenes/dirty talk/play acting
5 star for the romance/trips around Paris/sexual tension
Eventual 4 star rating
It still has the usual hot and heavy Christina Lauren style to it but I didn't enjoy this as much as Beautiful Bastard. Maybe it was the wedding. I wasn't expecting that to happen and it threw me for a loop completely.
That makes it sound bad, but it wasn't, it was actually pretty good--it just took me 11 days to read. I just have to be in a particular mood to read erotica.
3 star for the erotica/sex scenes/dirty talk/play acting
5 star for the romance/trips around Paris/sexual tension
Eventual 4 star rating
It still has the usual hot and heavy Christina Lauren style to it but I didn't enjoy this as much as Beautiful Bastard. Maybe it was the wedding. I wasn't expecting that to happen and it threw me for a loop completely.

Dean (6927 KP) rated Murder Mystery 2 (2023) in Movies
Apr 1, 2023
Ok follow up
A follow up to @Murder Mystery (2019) that doesn't seem to have had much publicity. Just popped up on Top picks this week.
Much the same formula as before our detective couple are invited to a wedding on a remote island, perfect setting for a murder or not?
Didn't really make great use of the remote island setting and less of a Murder Mystery this time round with more action. Still very fun scenes nearly all with the main couple on screen. Maybe not as lavish as the first but still a fun film.
Much the same formula as before our detective couple are invited to a wedding on a remote island, perfect setting for a murder or not?
Didn't really make great use of the remote island setting and less of a Murder Mystery this time round with more action. Still very fun scenes nearly all with the main couple on screen. Maybe not as lavish as the first but still a fun film.

Carma (21 KP) rated Saving Samantha: A Single Dad Romance (The Redwood Billionaires Series Book 1) in Books
Jun 17, 2019
Samantha is looking forward to her wedding day, the day all her dreams will come true. The morning of dawns with a missing groom and a Dear Jane letter explaining how the groom fell in love
with the best man. Samantha decides to go on her honeymoon to the mountains of Colorado by herself to get away and regroup. A hike in the woods one day to clear her head, quickly turns into a nightmare.
Weston hasnt yet come to terms with the loss of his wife 4 years ago. He was a horrible husband and father, fueled by the need for making more money and growing his family business into something bigger and bigger. He realized too late just how much he was giving up each and every day. After his loss, he moved with his son to the mountains of Colorado. Cheryl had always talked about moving there to just get away and back to their family roots. He felt as if he owed that too her for the very least. One day while exercising his horses in a rainstorm he comes across and unconscious woman in the woods. He brings her home and they nurse her back to health.
Samantha wakes up in a house in the woods after getting lost in the woods. A man, his son and housekeeper wait on her hand and foot and she is starting to feel a little more normal. They invite her to spend the night and she happily accepts hoping to come out on the other side of this nightmare.
Weston and Samantha find themselves interested in each other but not really knowing where the other one stands. Weston knows she was just left on her wedding day and she sees he is still wearing his wedding ring. Can they have and honest talk with one another and lay all their cards on the table?
I enjoyed this novel, as I have from the other novels Ive read by the author. There are some parts I felt are a little lacking of content but words to just have words to count. Aside from that the story moves well and the flow is satisfying, 4 stars.
Weston hasnt yet come to terms with the loss of his wife 4 years ago. He was a horrible husband and father, fueled by the need for making more money and growing his family business into something bigger and bigger. He realized too late just how much he was giving up each and every day. After his loss, he moved with his son to the mountains of Colorado. Cheryl had always talked about moving there to just get away and back to their family roots. He felt as if he owed that too her for the very least. One day while exercising his horses in a rainstorm he comes across and unconscious woman in the woods. He brings her home and they nurse her back to health.
Samantha wakes up in a house in the woods after getting lost in the woods. A man, his son and housekeeper wait on her hand and foot and she is starting to feel a little more normal. They invite her to spend the night and she happily accepts hoping to come out on the other side of this nightmare.
Weston and Samantha find themselves interested in each other but not really knowing where the other one stands. Weston knows she was just left on her wedding day and she sees he is still wearing his wedding ring. Can they have and honest talk with one another and lay all their cards on the table?
I enjoyed this novel, as I have from the other novels Ive read by the author. There are some parts I felt are a little lacking of content but words to just have words to count. Aside from that the story moves well and the flow is satisfying, 4 stars.

Butch Vig recommended track In The Sun by Joseph Arthur in Come to Where I'm From by Joseph Arthur in Music (curated)

Lenard (726 KP) rated Blinded by the Light (2019) in Movies
Sep 2, 2019
It's a Sin
1987 Luton, UK: New wave rules the radio, Margaret Thatcher controls the country which is leading to closed factories and people losing their jobs, and Pakistanis are moving into neighbors which the "white" majority resents (when people are losing their jobs, it is easier to blame the "others" moving in instead of the government whose policies have led to these losses). But I digress. Ravi is trapped between two cultures, his Pakistani family and the culture he grows up in in Luton. One day at his school, he meets a Sikh student who gives him two cassettes by Bruce Springsteen and he meets a writing teacher who encourages him to write what he knows. Like the culture clash in his soul, his heart is consumed by these Springsteen songs and expressing his feelings through writing. As is wont in these films, his parents and town learn to accept him and his obvious talent.
Two things struck me about the film. The first is the costume for the father. With the exception of the wedding party which I will discuss in my second, the father is dressed in a dress shirt, tie, and slacks, sometimes a sportcoat. This is the traditional outfit of a 1st generation immigrant. Even though he works in a factory manufacturing cars, he still goes to work or out in public dressed like a successful businessman/financial advisor. There is a belief that in order to achieve success, you must dress as though you have already attained that success. The second is the connection to Bend It Like Beckham, Chadha's previous film, which had a lot more success in the US. There is the best friend's parent who accepts the protagonist quicker than their own. But I am talking about the wedding party scene. In both films, the family is having a wedding party and the protagonist has to leave because there is something urgent that they need to do (play in a soccer game, buy tickets to a Springsteen concert). Family members assist the protagonist to get away without the parents noticing and in each case conflict ensues that brings a feeling of abandonment from the immediate family.
Two things struck me about the film. The first is the costume for the father. With the exception of the wedding party which I will discuss in my second, the father is dressed in a dress shirt, tie, and slacks, sometimes a sportcoat. This is the traditional outfit of a 1st generation immigrant. Even though he works in a factory manufacturing cars, he still goes to work or out in public dressed like a successful businessman/financial advisor. There is a belief that in order to achieve success, you must dress as though you have already attained that success. The second is the connection to Bend It Like Beckham, Chadha's previous film, which had a lot more success in the US. There is the best friend's parent who accepts the protagonist quicker than their own. But I am talking about the wedding party scene. In both films, the family is having a wedding party and the protagonist has to leave because there is something urgent that they need to do (play in a soccer game, buy tickets to a Springsteen concert). Family members assist the protagonist to get away without the parents noticing and in each case conflict ensues that brings a feeling of abandonment from the immediate family.