A BJ Review: Chyna Doll (Horizons #4) by Mickie B. Ashling

Rating:  3 stars out of 5

ChynaDollLGChyna, an intersexed male raised as a girl, is struggling with identity issues as she enters adolescence. She finds herself suddenly attracted to her brother Chip’s friend, Luca. Luca, who has grown up with two gay Dads, struggles with his own sexual identity when he finds himself torn between an attraction to Chip and his twin sister, Chyna. .

While the cover and blurb made me think this book concentrated on the relationship of Luca and Chyna, that’s only partially true. A large section of the book concerns the somewhat troubled relationship of Luca’s two Dads, Grier and Lil. This is definitely not a young adult book, since the sex between the two older characters is quite kinky and includes such tantalizing bits as diamond tipped penal plugs, sounding and men who like wearing lacy women’s undies. So a small warning: don’t go into this thinking it focusing only on young adults and their issues. That is not the case.

Chyna’s sexual identity issues were exacerbated by the deplorable way Chyna’s parents handled her upbringing, lied to her and others, and kept from her so many things that could have made it easier on her. Heartbreaking to read about such betrayal from those entrusted with such responsibility.

This book covers some intense and interesting issues pretty thoroughly and from various angles. The ending wasn’t cut and dried but and all tied up sweet, which felt right. But it left me cheering for Luca and feeling hopeful for a HEA for him and Chyna.

This story had excellent potential, but ultimately fell short for me. The writing style varied from extremely readable to parts an info dump of telling. In addition, I found it jarring when we move totally away from the main characters and focus exclusively on the vacationing gay parents and their issues for the space of quite a few characters in the middle of the book. At that point, I’d invested myself in the story of Chyna and Luca and had to resist the deviation to skim forward. Finally, the large number of POVs characters sometimes felt a bit like head hopping and make it hard for me to anchor to any of them long enough to develop a rapport.

Cover Artist: Anne Cain.A lovely cover that portrays two of the main characters close to the way I’d pictured them. This cover gives the impression that these two are the only focus of this story, when actually there’s almost equal focus on Luca’s gay parent’s relationship. In that respect, the cover misleads.

Sales Links:    Dreamspinner Press      All Romance (ARe)       Amazon     Buy It Here

Book Details:  

ebook, 320 pages
Published February 23rd 2015 by Dreamspinner Press
(first published February 23rd 2014)
ISBN139781632167323
edition languageEnglish
seriesHorizons #4

Horizons series includes the following:

  • Horizons (Horizons, #1)
  • Taste (Horizons, #2)
  • Daddio (Horizons, #3)
  • Chyna Doll (Horizons, #4)

A Stella Review: Loving the Astrophysicist (Astrophysicist #1&2) by T.N. Tarrant

Rating 4 stars out of 5

Loving An Absent Minded Astrophysicist coverAt twenty-three, Dr. Liam McGregor is a well-respected astrophysicist, astrobiologist, and geologist. With no family, few friends, and no romantic prospects, he’s used to being alone. Focusing on his various scientific projects and taking care of his decidedly unusual cat help keep the loneliness at bay.

Jareth Manning is starting life over—new town, new job—after the loss of his husband. The last thing he expects is for the most absentminded, and beautiful, man he’s ever seen to take up residence in his heart. Nor did he expect to find himself a willingly humble slave to Her Imperial Highness, Empress the Cat.

But Jareth has learned that love doesn’t come around often and to hold on to it when it does. Jareth is willing to be patient if Liam is willing to take a risk after being burned before. They just have to survive Liam’s past returning.  

Eight years after Liam and Jareth marry, they want a child. Things don’t go well when they try to adopt, with terrible accusations thrown at Jareth. After recovering, they proceed with a private adoption, bringing home a beautiful little girl, Carinae. Then things get ugly, endangering not only Liam’s life, but Carinae’s.

How cute is a cat on a leash! Her Imperial Highness sure is amazing.

This book is a second edition and basically put together the two previous books in the Astrophysicist series by T.N. Tarrant. It’s a really sweet book with great MCs and some valuable second ones. I loved the plot too.

In the first part we meet Dr Liam McGregor, a twenty-three years old astrophysicist, geologist and astrobiologist, simply known as the absentminded astrophysicist. After being attacked by a colleague, he is soon rescued by Jareth, the new head of the security in the institute Liam works at. Where Liam is a chubby geek, Jareth is sexy and handsome. How can someone as the strong guard be attracted to the sweet Liam? But Jareth is determined to court him and show him he can be trusted.

“I think you’re beautiful, Liam.”

“How can you think so? I’m fat, scarred, and almost constantly bruised because I can’t even keep an eye on where I’m going, or I fall all over myself when I try to,” Liam objected. “Nobody has ever really wanted me,” he whispered.

Jareth knew only time would show Liam he was serious about wanting him. “You are perfect as you are, Liam. I thought you were absolutely breathtaking the day I met you, and I still think so. […]I was paying a lot of attention to you.” Liam obviously didn’t believe what he was saying. “But why?”

“I have no idea, Liam.” Jareth tipped Liam’s chin up so he could look into Liam’s eyes. […]“To be honest, I don’t really care why. I just know that I find you beautiful and sexy as hell, and one of these days, I want to strip you down and lick you from head to toe, front and back, and have you do the same to me, tangled up together until we can’t sort out who’s where.”

In the second part we find them after being together for eight years, planning on becoming parents. It will be a really hard journey, full of hurts, crisis, accusations, and fears. At the end it will be so worthwhile to get Carinae in their life.

I liked Liam and Jareth, I especially loved how Jareth is a positive characters. After suffering the loss of his husband, he went through dark times and started drinking. Thanks to his family who saved him, now he’s going on with his life and he’s ready for a new love. He’s protective and sympathetic with Liam and his world.

Son of two genius parents, Liam had an incredible and really bad youth, he was stabbed almost to death by his mother cause she couldn’t stand him for being smarter than her, with his father as witness. Liam lives for and in his work, he’s pretty much lonely, apart from his cat Empress and the sweet Aimee. He’s not used to be loved cause a lot of people took advantage of his great mind, just used him.

I put this book in my comfort list, a beautiful list to me. First of all it means that I’m surely going to reread Loving an Absentminded Astrophysicist.  I really loved it, it was an emotional reading but at the same time all the bad things were faced with lightness and positivity. So this is definitely a book to reread when I need a hope glimmering in a dark moment. So happy to have met Liam and Jareth and really well done, TN!

Cover Art by Bree Archer. What can I say about it? I’m a sucker for children, so I honestly can admit I even have read the blurb before requesting the ARC. I saw the cover and I had to read it. So if the aim of a cover is to catch the reader’s eye before the story, this cover to me is a winner, so sweet cute aww.

Sales Links: Dreamspinner Press    All Romance (ARe)    Amazon         Buy It Here

Book Details:

ebook, 226 pages
Published February 20th 2015 by Dreamspinner Press
ISBN139781632164773
edition languageEnglish
Author Website: http://tntarrant.blogspot.com/
seriesAstrophysicist #1-2

 

 

Join Us for Release Day for Eric Gober’s Out of Order

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It’s Release Day for Out of Order by Eric Gober

Publisher: Wayward Ink Publishing

Synopsis

After bombing a job interview, Trent wants to get to the airport and fly home. But high up in a San Francisco skyscraper, he stumbles upon Rob, an old crush who mysteriously vanished from his life. Little does Trent know he’s about to be broadsided. In a moment, Rob will make a startling confession, old feelings for him will reignite, and the city’s worst disaster in decades will erupt around them. Can the two survive the deadly shaking? Or will they perish in the shattered, blacked-out city?

*originally published in the Stranded anthology

out of order

Book Details:

  • Author: Eric Gober
  • Length: short story
  • Genre: M/M, gay romance, contemporary

Buy links

Excerpt

Rob emerged from the hallway wearing an Oakland A’s baseball cap.

I didn’t know you were a baseball fan.

I’m not much of one, really, just supporting the home team. Iím going to a World Series party after our drinks.

You live in Oakland?

Yep. He came and stood very close to me and pointed. South of Calís clock tower, near Rockridge BART Station, so I take a train into the city for this project.

So many trees. It must be pretty there.

I like it.

Does Chris live with you?

He shook his head. We split up.

I’m sorry.

Me too.

Well, if you ask me, it’s Chrisís loss, not yours.

Trent, what I meant was I’m sorry I wasn’t completely honest with you in Arizona.î He looked at me as if I knew what he was talking about.

What do you mean?

Chris was my boyfriend, not girlfriend.

As I gazed into his handsome green eyes, comprehending his revelation, a crust around my heart ruptured, and feelings Iíd stored for him rippled through me. I felt the office sway as I tried to steady myself.

Then my knees buckled and everything shook.

Plate glass quavered. Lobby chairs lurched. Kaleidoscopic serigraphs rattled and fell off walls. Fluorescent light tubes popped from fixtures and shattered around us. A big beige computer monitor flew from the reception counter and exploded on the parquet floor.

Rob seized my arm and tugged me under the counter. The ground vibrated beneath my hands and knees, and the ceiling cracked so hard I feared it was caving and rubble from floors above would bury us. Something hissed, and I felt drops soaking my suit. I looked up. The fire sprinklers were on. Rob grabbed me and pulled me close, and I shut my eyes and nestled against him hard. If I were going to die, at least I’d be in the arms of someone I’d loved.

About the author

Eric’s fiction often explores complications and entanglements in romance. His debut novel, Secrets of the Other Side, won three Reader Views literary awards, including Best Fiction Book of the Year. Described by critics as an emotional journey of love, loss, and self discoveryî and ìan incredible coming-of-age story, the novel chronicles one gay youthís quest for love and happiness during the tumultuous eighties and nineties.

His short stories have appeared in numerous anthologies, including Encore, A Likely Story, Stranded, First Time for Everything, and Best Gay Romance 2014. He earned his MFA in creative writing from Wichita State University.

Eric grew up in Las Vegas, Nevada, and has lived in Arizona, Kansas, and the San Francisco Bay Area. Today he makes his home in Los Angeles, where he enjoys trail running, spending time with friends, and working on new short stories and his next novel.

Social links

Website: www.ericgober.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GoberEric
Twitter: https://twitter.com/gobereric
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6964936.Eric_Gober

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A MelanieM Review: Midnight Run (ALPHAS #10) by Bailey Bradford

Rating: 1.5 stars out of 5

Always the lone wolf, never the mate…

Midnight Run coverBlurb from ARe: Alpha Jack Herman used to have a pack, but he’s been alone for a long time. When he catches a whiff of another shifter encroaching on his preferred hunting grounds, he’s determined to put a stop to that immediately. There’s only room for one wolf in Jack’s territory—Jack.

Captured as a pup, Malakai is a shifter, but he’s neither wolf nor alpha. What he is, is scared, exhausted, starving, and close to giving up. Hunted by a predator, Malakai fears his newly found freedom is about to come to a violent and abrupt end.

Instead, he finds himself in the arms of a man strong enough to do whatever he must to take care of Malakai.

For the want of an editor a book was lost, along with continuity, and any semblance of logic and order.  Color me amazed and totally perplexed.  Rarely have I come across so many mistakes and lack of attention to details and storyline as I encountered here.  Midnight Run by Bailey Bradford is part of the Alpha collection of stories published by All Romance/OmniLit Books. Or is it self-published by authors through All Romance, not sure how that works?  No matter, I’m just not sure where it or this story or the blame falls because its issues are many.

I’m not even going to bother with my own synopsis.  Why bother when so little care and effort was put into publishing this story?  Instead of going on and on about all the issues I found in this story, I’m just going to list a few of them, that should be telling enough.

Here goes with a little bit of set up.  Malakai is an artic fox captured as a young shifter (a pup) in animal form while out on a run with his family in the wilds of Alaska.  So far so good.  He spends years in that animal form in a cage as a couple’s sort of “show-n-tell” wild animal pet.  He escapes after years of being confined as a fox in a cage (he should be close to feral) and is hunted/found by a wolf shifter.  Now let the errors begin:

Malakai has never really been outside his cage in years yet he is able to:

1.  Claw his way out of a concrete and heavily fenced cage even though he is starving and in poor condition.

2.  On the run in a park, Malakai is able to work the  restroom  stall door latches (so he can hide from a wolf in a stall) in the men’s room in a park lavatory.  I known adults who find those latches confusing or broken to the point of not being able to use them.  Plus how is a stall going to hide him?  Rarely are those restroom stalls totally enclosed or have sides that go to the ground. That costs money that park systems don’t have.  Just saying.

3. Malakai informs Jack that he has never worn clothes before and yet he puts on and buttons a shirt, zip up pants (both without help) and ties a shoe with only one rapid demonstration of how the laces go together. No learning curve here with buttons or zippers, no fumbling or figuring things out. Uh. No, that doesn’t reason out any way you look at it.  And don’t get me started on putting on shoes and wearing them for the first time if you have never done it before.

4. Malakai has no problem walking around in human form even though most of his years have been spent as a fox.   I’m pretty sure he might have some issues with balance, muscles and muscle tone, etc but no.

5. Malakai is emaciated to the point of starving, his bones are clearly visible. So what does Jack feed him? Tons of bacon and pancakes and more bacon. If Malakai had really been a fox or dog, you’d be cleaning up the rooms for weeks to come after feeding a starved animal all that rich food. I have read similar scenes in other stories and the authors take care to show that characters in such condition are eased back into eating and not cooked multiple breakfasts ala Burger King. They made the situation feel authentic. Clearly that didn’t happen here.

6.  Malakai informs Jack he’s a virgin (well, yes, he’s been caged most of his life) and knows nothing about sexuality (including whether he’s gay or not) so of course Jack has sex with him immediately and starts to talk about BDSM and spanking.  A sort of “I’m Jack, we’re going to have sex” fast tracked sex component that is definitely not sexy.

7.  It’s especially not sexy given that Malakai is emaciated, ignorant of human lifestyles and customs, and  basically a kid mentally.  Oh, and he is also traumatized because of the situation he escaped from.  *shakes head*

Enough already.

I could keep going on but why?  The whole story is like this.  There is also no continuity in back history and as it is part of an ongoing series, no effort has been made to pull in any details or history to the other couples and characters that come and go throughout the story.  I think you’re supposed to know who they are and how they fit in with Jack, but that lack of knowledge is probably one of this story’s lesser problems.

And finally, although an editor with an enormous red pencil could fix some of these mistakes, that fact that there is no connection, no electricity between Jack and Malakai dooms this story from the start.  On every level, Midnight Run is a pass.

I am familiar with Bailey Bradford and, generally, her stories are imaginative, her characters compelling, and, actions and events make a sort of sense, even with the supernatural elements involved.  None of that happens here and I’m at a loss as to why.   If you are a Bailey Bradford fan, I leave the decision to read this story up to you, but for the rest of the readers, look elsewhere for your shifters in love and HEA.

Cover art is not credited, probably a blessing.

Sales Link:  Available only at All Romance (ARe)

Book Details:

ebook, 50 pages

Published February 10th 2015 by OmniLit / All Romance eBooks, LLC
ISBN139781936387878
urlhttp://www.allromance.com
seriesALPHAS #10

A Stella Review: Bratty Angel by Chris T. Kat

Rating: 4 stars out of 5

A bratty angel…

Bratty Angel coverFirst Patrick is accosted by a hellhound with a yen for fries and ketchup. Then he encounters a beautiful, but bratty, angel who doesn’t seem to understand the concept of ‘no’… or personal space. Not to mention he demands Patrick pleasure him, which Patrick refuses to do. So why does Patrick feel a connection to this unruly seraphim? And why can’t he forget him?

Two weeks later, the brat is back, making more demands. But Patrick makes it clear he doesn’t do demands. That should be the end of it, right? Or not… Maybe there’s more to this bratty angel than meets the eye. If Patrick has the patience to get past his bratty ways.

A bratty angel with a hellhound as pet!

Forget everything you know about angels and hellhounds. Chris T Kat rewrote all the rules, showing us an hellhound scared of a little cat and an angel specialized in pouting.

In a world where the humans and the supernaturals aren’t separated anymore, Patrick is been trapped in his human form for twenty-three years. Now he is escaping from a creature, a hellhound hungry for his fries with ketchup. King Kong is the “pet” of a beautiful naked angel with no name, an arrogant and spoiled brat, who demands a reward since he rescued Patrick from his (not scary at all) hellhound. Does a blowjob work? Patrick can’t believe Angel’s request and leave him, but the sparkle is already on. They meet again after two weeks when Angel goes to Patrick’s home with the same request. Used to get what he wants, even with spells, Angel doesn’t know otherwise, he can only demand and order.

“I swear if you’re going to use the phrase I demand of you or even just the word demand one more time, I’ll put you over my knee.”

Angel gazed at him in confusion. “Why would you do that? Is that a good position for me to be in to receive my reward?”

After spending the last twenty-three years mourning the loss of his lover, Patrick is intrigued by this angel, naive about the human world. But the bratty-angel is not so bratty at the end.

I’ve  read other books by this author and I’m a huge fan of her works, especially her writing style.  I simply love how she writes. This little story was no exception, funny and easy to read but well done.

The author created an intricate world of angel, demons and hellhounds. Of course this incredible world could be better explained in more pages, this story is really short, just 47 pages.  But I loved how everything developed and was explained at the end, I wasn’t left with questions or doubts. Still we got a lot of details that I’m sure didn’t get enough space.

Be ready for a little surprise at the end, totally unexpected but very welcome. Now I’m just hoping for more.

Cover art by Latrisha Waters. This cover didn’t win me. I’m not sure I like the choice of the colors and the wings don’t seem real.

Sales Links: eXtasy Books    Amazon             Buy It Here

BOOK DETAILS

Published February 15th 2015 by eXtasy books
ebook, 47 pages
ISBN13 9781487402327
Edition language English

 

A Stella Review: Moment of Truth (Moments in Time #2) by Karen Stivali

Rating: 4 stars out of 5

MomentofTruth large cover (1) (1)Collin expected to spend another summer fixing cars and working at the college pizzeria. Instead, he’s living in a beach house on Fire Island, waiting tables at a hip seaside restaurant and, for the first time since he and Tanner got together, they can publicly be known as boyfriends. Being “out” takes some getting used to, but with the help of new and old friends, Collin is happier than he ever imagined. And more in love. But newfound freedom brings unexpected challenges, and when friends get flirty, old insecurities arise. Moments of doubt and jealousy threaten their happiness, and Collin and Tanner must confront the truth or risk losing it all.

In Moment of Truth we meet Collin and Tanner three months after the beginning of their relationship. They are going to spend the summer in Fire Island working in a restaurant and on their relationship too. In fact this is the first time they’ll be together in front of other people. No one know they are a couple apart from Collin’s mum (remember the disaster at the hospital?) and Tanner’s parents which are really great. Collin is still afraid of not being accepted, but he’s tired of trying to forget who he really is and pretending he’s straight. Now he has Tanner and it’s time to start fighting for his love openly.

“The date.”

“That was the best day of my life.”

“Why?” I needed to know why he thought it was so important.

He pushed my hair back, away from my face, and held it there with both hands. “Because that’s the day that you and I became us.”

I’m sure my heart was actually still in my chest, but it felt like it was in my stomach, in my throat, ready to burst out of me altogether.

I loved this second book, not as much as the first one cause I found it a little less emotional. Nonetheless I felt Moment of Truth so realistic, in the MCs’ insecurities about each other and most of all in Collin, who is struggling with his fears and he’s finally able to tell Tanner his feelings.

So there will going to be some misunderstandings, a lot of jealousy but not too much angst. In all, Moment of Truth is a quick and light read. It’s also a book about first times, a lot of them, first tattoo, first kiss on public, first sex. Oh I forgot… first manscaping, don’t miss it, it was funny and sexy!

Another well written, sweet book, I’m so waiting for the last one. Most of all I’m curious about the possibility of developing related stories with MCs some of the second characters of Moment of Truth in it. I’d really like it cause I feel a couple of these guys totally deserve to be known better.

I love this series and these guys but as I already said in the Moment of Impact review, I’m still not sure if the choice of publish three separates novellas is the right one. I hope to have a final opinion at the end of the series. So this is the reason I still can’t give it more than 4 stars.

Cover art by Anna Sikorska. Nothing to say about it but I preferred the cover of Moment In Time, maybe cause the model was more interesting LOL

Sales Links:     Dreamspinner Press    All Romance (ARe)         Amazon   Buy It Here

Book Details:

Published March 4th 2015 by Dreamspinner Press
ebook, 130 pages
ISBN13 9781632166500
Edition language English
Series: Moment in Time #2

Moments in Time series in the order they were written and should be read:

Moment of Impact (Moments In Time, #1)

Moment of Truth (Moments In Time #2)

 

 

In the Book Spotlight: Strangers in the Night By: Jaycee Edward and Helena Stone (interviews and contest)

STRW In The Spotlight Header

Strangers in the Night
By: Jaycee Edward and Helena Stone
Published by Dreamspinner Press
Release Date: March 11, 2015

StrangersintheNightFS

A Mini Author Q & A with Helena and Jaycee!

Q.  Given the choice of anyone in the world, whom would you want as a dinner guest?

Helena: Stephen Fry. The man is smart, knowledgeable about an endless amount of subjects, and hilariously funny. I imagine an evening spend with Stephen Fry would be enlightening, mentally stimulating and ultimately uplifting. For me there are few (if any) things more sexy than an intelligent conversation. Stephen Fry may well be the personification of ‘smart’.

Jaycee: Hmm. This is a tough one because lately I’ve been saying I’d love to meet Harry Styles’ mom. But after telling her what a lovely job she did in such a short amount of time, I’d be out of things to say, so I’m going to say Tiffany Reisz. I met her briefly at a book signing and have tweeted with her often enough to know she’d be entertaining as heck and I wouldn’t have to be the one to keep the conversation going.

Helena: And now you have me imagining a dinner party with you, Stephen Fry and Tiffany Reisz. That may well be the ultimate date.

Jaycee: Stephen Fry might not think so, but, heck, I’m game.

Q.  Would you like to be famous? In what way?

Helena: No, I would not want to be famous. At least not if the definition of famous includes being recognised when going about your everyday life, having your appearance as well as every single word you say scrutinized and the whole world feeling it has the right to have an opinion about you and vent it. On the other hand, you won’t hear me complaining if I were known as someone who writes entertaining and memorable books (well, a girl can dream, can’t she?)

Jaycee: Nope. Wildly successful would be okay, though. ;o)
Q.  Before making a telephone call, do you ever rehearse what you are going to say? Why?

Helena: I detest making phone calls. I’d rather make a 20 mile round trip in my car to speak to someone face to face than call them. Therefore yes, I will rehearse what I’m going to say during almost every phone call I have to make and probably won’t punch in the numbers until I have procrastinated for as long as I can possibly get away with. Unless of course I can get someone else to make the call for me.

Jaycee: Never. But then I worked in an office environment for 35 years. I spent more hours with a phone plastered to my head than not. For once, Helena and I differ – I’d much rather talk to someone on the phone than in person. That way I can roll my eyes and make faces without them knowing it!  Plus, there’s a certain satisfaction of slamming down the receiver after an especially frustrating conversation. Did I mention I did tech support? LOL!

Book Tour Banner

Now let’s find out more about the short story, Strangers In the Night

STRW Author BookSynopsis

When Army veteran, Slade, stumbles upon an isolated cottage on a cold, dark, night, the young man finds more than just the shelter he’s seeking.

Former club Dominant Callum is surprised to find a handsome stranger knocking at his door but invites him in despite his reservations. A nightmare reveals Slade’s deep-seated emotional issues, and Callum knows he needs to get creative if he’s going to help Slade leave the past behind.

Neither man is prepared for the feelings Slade’s introduction into the world of BDSM will unleash, and thirty-six hours will either be enough to bind them, or they will remain forever strangers in the night.

Length: 51 pages
Series: Strangers #1

Book Links:
• Goodreads
Dreamspinner Press (DSP)
All Romance (ARe)
Amazon UK
• Amazon US
Barnes & Noble (B&N)
Beam Ebooks
Google Play

STRW Author Bio and Contacts

About the Authors….

Helena Stone:Helena Stone Author Photo

Helena Stone can’t remember a life before words and reading. After growing up in a household where no holiday or festivity was complete without at least one new book, it’s hardly surprising she now owns more books than shelf space while her Kindle is about to explode.

The urge to write came as a surprise. The realisation that people might enjoy her words was a shock to say the least. Now that the writing bug has well and truly taken hold, Helena can no longer imagine not sharing the characters in her head and heart with the rest of the world.

Having left the hustle and bustle of Amsterdam for the peace and quiet of the Irish Country side she divides her time between reading, writing, long and often wet walks with the dog, her part-time job in a library, a grown-up daughter and her ever loving and patient husband.

Helena Stone can be found in the following places: Twitter, Facebook, Website, Pinterest, Goodreads, or by email.

Jaycee Edward:Jaycee Author Image

Jaycee Edward is no longer seventeen years old but don’t tell her that. She’s actually a tad older and lives in northeast Ohio with her handsome husband and one, big gorgeous dog. She has two grown stepdaughters and is proud to be the ultra-cool Nana to two amazingly incredible grand-teens. Jaycee loves pistol shooting and is has earned her Bar 7 Sharpshooter status in the Winchester/NRA Marksmanship Qualification Program and hopes to someday reach the level of Expert Marksman. She is the token liberal and constant source of fascination to the other members at her gun range. Jaycee knows way too much about the inner workings of Walt Disney World and anything related to One Direction. She’d love to pull you into the rabbit hole with her. All you have to do is ask. Find her there or contact her through social media.

You can find Jaycee Edward in the following locations: her website, Facebook, Facebook Fan Page, Twitter, Google+, Goodreads, TSU, Ello, or Tumblr.

STRW Spotlight Contest Header

Contest: Must be 18 years of age or older to enter. Rafflecopter link and prizes provided by Indigo Marketing and Design and the authors.

Giveaway Details:  Jaycee and Helena have kindly donated a $25 Amazon gift card to one lucky winner! Enter through the Rafflecopter for your chance to win.

Contest Begins: March 11, 2015
Contest Ends: March 21, 2015

Rafflecopter Code:
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Tour Schedule:
March 11 – Joyfully Jay
March 12 – M/M Good Book Reviews
March 13 – The Novel Approach
March 14 – Sinfully Sexy
March 15 – Fallen Angel Reviews
March 16 – 3 Chicks After Dark
March 17 – Love Bytes
March 18 – Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words
March 19 – Prism Book Alliance
March 20 – JP Barnaby

A PaulB Review: Broken Bridges by Cheyenne Meadows

Rating: 3.5 stars out of 5

Broken Bridges coverWhen wolf shifter Detective Dax Steel discovers a serial killer is targeting bear shifters, he worries about his ex lover Adin. As he hunts for the killer, Dax is bound to protect his former flame. Will this new attention bring the two back together, drive them further apart or separate them forever?

Dax Steel is detective who is investigating a series of homicides that have occurred over the last three days. Being a wolf shifter, he recognizes each of the victims as a bear shifter. When he comes across the latest victim, Dax is relieved that it is not his ex lover Adin. Looking for any connections between the victims, Dax decides to pay his ex lover a visit.

Adin is a bear shifter who works for the parks services. As a bear shifter, his personality aligns with his creature. A loner as most bear shifters, he still cannot get past his relationship with Dax. When Dax shows up one day, it both excites and irritates him. Worried that there might be someone who is after his kind, he offers to help Dax with his investigation.

However, when Dax goes alpha wolf protector with Adin, he bristles. He reminds Dax that he is a bear shifter and can take care of himself. While the two once again reconnect, the very issues that drove them apart the first time threaten do so again. However, Dax is worries that this time it might be a permanent separation if he does not catch the serial killer in time.

I enjoyed this book a great deal. The sex scenes are hot throughout the novel. I enjoyed how the author used the alpha wolf and loner bear personalities to explain how what seemed to be a perfect match somehow fell apart when they first met. The murder mystery being used as the catalyst to bring these two lovers together again worked for me in this instance. I would like to see a sequel to this novel to see if they could work on another case together, but would be satisfied if this did not happen.

The mystery itself was well developed for a short novel. There were enough clues and red herrings to keep the reader entertained. The conclusion of the mystery was plausible without it being revealed completely until near the end of the case.

If you enjoy romance with your mystery, I would recommend this charming short novel.

The cover art by Posh Gosh shows both Dax and Adin in both their human form (in the background) and in their shifted form (in the fore). It is a gorgeous cover and the tag line “Will a second chance at love come too late?” perfectly sums up the story.

Sales Links:   Totally Bound Books     All Romance (ARe)    Amazon    Buy It Here

Book Details
Ebook, 89 pages
Published by Totally Bound December 2014
ISBN: 978-1-78430-346-1

A Stella Review: Here For You by Skylar M. Cates

Rating: 5 stars out of 5

Here for You by Skylar M. Cates coverLife is a thread connecting us. One pull and it all unravels. 

Cole Gannon arrives in the seaside town of Ocean Vista to work as a bartender and finally find a place to belong.  Determined to make a home for himself, Cole lives happily with his four colorful roommates, whom he considers brothers. The only problem is Cole’s attraction to Ian Stark—a guy all wrong for him. He wishes he didn’t keep running into the sexy lawyer.

  Ian knows Cole is attracted to him, but the younger man keeps him at arm’s length. It only makes Ian more determined to be with Cole and learn all his secrets. But while Ian has built a successful law practice, he hasn’t done too well with relationships.  

When a sudden and devastating tragedy occurs, it shatters Cole’s world and throws Cole and Ian together in unexpected ways. In an instant, everything between them changes forever.

I’m an emotional person, I know, but this book really wrecked my heart. I cried almost through all of it. I’ll try to not talk much about the plot cause I don’t want to give away any little detail that could spoil your reading. I have read other books by Skylar M. Cates and I can say I have always loved them.  I like her writing style, it’s easy to read even when the subject isn’t easy at all, but to me Here For You was something else for different reasons.

As I already said it’s really emotional, not just for the tragedy that occur in it, but in the background created for some of the  characters or in the way Cole is working hard to make a family of his own, where his blood family was a failure. Reading about this strong need he has and seeing him insecure and scared of losing the most important people in his life when everything was crushing down, was what left had me sobbing and gasping for breath. I love Cole, he’s caring and so strong, but the change (he and his friends have to face) is so irreversible it’s not easy not let go.  Its not just the fear of failure but hoping that  everyone will help him to continue and try to put together all the broken pieces his family has became.

I found the first thirty pages (more or less) really slow, because the author focused her writing on the secondary characters, introducing them very well.  We see nothing about the MCs together. In fact this is a choral book, obviously required in a story like this. I was able to know a lot about Cole and Ian’s pasts, I got to meet the second characters and feel how they hurt, each one in a different way. I fell for them as I fell for the sweet Cole and the protective and too perfect Ian.

Most of all, Here For You is Cole and Ian’s story, they are hot together and perfect for each other. Cole is taking care of himself since he was a little boy but when he meet Ian and once he stop running away from him, Cole discovers Ian can be his anchor, the one who can take care of him.

From the beginning I had the strong feeling this was going to be a part of a new series, there are all the premises of a great series, I already can see one couple having its beautiful and troubled story (I hope!).

This is the kind of book I like to read. It has already a place in my best of 2015. Highly highly recommended!!

Cover art by AngstyG. This artist is slowly becoming one of my favorite. I love this cover, has something magical and sweet.

Sales Links:   Dreamspinner Press     All Romance (ARe)       Amazon     Buy It Here

Book Details:
Published February 27th 2015 by Dreamspinner Press
ebook, 234 pages
ISBN13 9781632168139
Edition language English
Series: Sunshine and Happiness #1

 

In Our Book Spotlight: Fighting Fangs by Lisa Oliver (excerpt and contest)

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Fighting Fangs (Bound and Bonded #4) by Lisa Oliver
Release Date: February, 2015
Goodreads Link

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Lisa Oliver’s supernaturals are here in Fighting Fangs, the fourth book in her Bound and Bonded series.  Love your shapeshifters bound up with bondage?  Check out Fighting Fangs’ synopsis and excerpt below and don’t forget to enter the contest for your own copy of Fighting Fangs (Bound and Bonded #4) by Lisa Oliver

STRW Author Bio and Contacts

About Lisa Oliver

Lisa Oliver had been writing non-fiction books for years when visions of half dressed, buff men started invading her dreams. Unable to resist the lure of her stories, Lisa decided to switch to fiction books, and now stories about her men clamor to get out from under her fingertips.

When Lisa is not writing, she is usually reading with a cup of tea always at hand. Her grown children and grandchildren sometimes try and pry her away from the computer and have found that the best way to do it, is to promise her chocolate. Lisa will do anything for chocolate.

Lisa loves to hear from her readers and other writers. You can friend her on Facebook here, or email her directly at yoursintuitively@gmail.com.

Where to find the author:
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/lisaoliverauthor
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/wisecrone333
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest/lisaoliver79
Lisa’s Blog – http://www.supernaturalsmut.com

 

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Publisher: Oliver Group Publications
Cover Artist: Lisa Oliver

Sales Links: Amazon  AllRomance (ARe)  Smashwords

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STRW Author BookSynopsis

Ace is on a mission. On the run from his old pack, the enforcer is determined that cat shifter Teric must die. In his head it’s the only way he can regain his place in the Washington pack and the Bound and Bonded club. In an effort to meet his needs for Domination in the human world, Ace visits Whips, a predominantly human BDSM club and gets the shock of his life.

Devin is a five hundred year old vampire who has been searching for his one and only for the longest time. Working as a house sub at Whips was fine until one Master over steps his boundaries and Devin is left with time on his hands. Deciding on a whim to track down the delicious wolf shifter he had smelled at the club, Devin soon tracks down Ace…and then promptly wishes he hadn’t. Ace is a wolfist and refuses to accept Devin as his mate.

Misunderstandings are just one hurdle these two need to overcome, if they are ever to have their HEA. The enforcers from the Washington Pack are still looking for Ace, and when they find him it might prove the end for both Devin and Ace.

Warnings; this is a gay erotic romance about a wolf shifter and a vampire. The book includes graphic sex scenes between men, BDSM elements and coarse language.
Categories: BDSM, Erotica, Fiction, Gay Fiction, M/M Romance, Paranormal, Romance

STRW Spotlight Book Excerpt

“This is not a scene. Not this time. This is us, together. Mate. Amatus. No rules. No restrictions. Just two men who will be together for a lifetime.”

Devin’s eyes flashed a brilliant red, the sight almost shocking Ace with its intensity and then it was gone just as quickly.

“I want that,” Devin said softly, as his hands came up from where they had been resting on the bed and gripped Ace’s biceps. “I want that a lot,” his voice finishing on a growl that set Ace’s wolf on edge as though not sure whether to challenge or submit. But that growl left Ace in no doubt that the man underneath him was as much a predator as he was.

Pages or Words: 38,000 words

 

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Contest:   Must be 18 years of age or older to enter.  Rafflecopter link and prizes provided by Pride Promotions. Enter to win a Rafflecopter Prize: E-copy of Fighting Fangs.

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