Category: Book Reviews

In the Spotlight: Leaning Into a Wish (Leaning Into Series #5) by Lane Hayes (excerpt and giveaway)

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LEANING INTO A WISH

LEANING INTO SERIES, BOOK 5

LANE HAYES

M/M ROMANCE

RELEASE DATE: 11.20.17

Leaning Into A Wish Cover

COVER DESIGN: Reese Dante

BLURB

Ryan Haskell loves everything about the wine business. He’s fortunate to work at one of the most prestigious wineries in Napa Valley doing something he enjoys with the people who are like family to him. But he could do without the good-natured intern slash former jock with the wicked grin who always seems to be in the way. Ryan isn’t sure why the new guy is under his skin when everyone else loves him. Thankfully he’ll be gone after the holidays.

Danny Meyers can’t believe his luck when he lands an internship at Conrad Winery. It’s the perfect temporary gig to wrap up his graduate studies. He’s left his dreams of tennis stardom on the court to focus on a new career and a new life. However, he didn’t count on the spark of attraction he feels for his prickly co-worker. When their tentative friendship blossoms into something more than either man counted on, they may have to change direction and lean into a holiday wish.

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EXCERPT

“Nothing. Um…I need a few minutes to get ready,” I said. I didn’t bother moving. I still felt sluggish and half-asleep. I needed more caffeine before I could even think about swinging a racket.

“Take your time. The courts are empty. We’re good. Sit back, fuel up, and tell me about Batman, Nutella, and whatever else cranks your chain.” He snickered at my blank stare then added, “I’m just shootin’ the shit here, Ry. Just tell me about yourself. What came first…wine, music, or the Caped Crusader?”

“The Caped Crusader, of course,” I scoffed without heat. “I went through a strong Batman phase when I was a kid followed by my teenage music years. The wine phase came in college, but I still love all three. And Nutella.”

Danny let out an amused huff and sat back to observe me. God only knew what he saw. My curly hair had a tendency to do its own thing in the morning. No doubt it was wild. The stretched out, ancient concert tee, black boxer briefs, and bare feet screamed geeky bachelor louder than my superhero art.

“That’s cool. You know what you like and you stick with it. Seems like a good trait.”

“Thanks.” I studied him over the rim of my coffee cup then took a sip and set it on the table again. “What about you? What are you into besides wine and tennis?”

“Beer and football,” he quipped.

I lifted my brow inquisitively. “Honestly, that’s what I thought. You look like you’d be at home in a country bar guzzling brews with a bunch of beefy former jocks who hung up their shoulder pads for cowboy hats.”

“Damn, boy. You’ve got me all figured out, don’t you?” he asked irritably before reaching over to tug at my wayward curls. “Guzzle that there coffee, slick, and let’s get ourselves a court.”

The boxers with T-shirt combo surely did nothing to enhance my diva-esque moment but that couldn’t be helped, I mused as I rolled my eyes and stood. “I’ll be out shortly.”

Danny snickered in response. “Just hurry it up. If you aren’t out here in five minutes or less, I’m coming in there.”

“Is that a threat or a promise?”

“It’s whatever you want it to be, Ry.”

The low timbre of his voice sounded sexy as hell. Thankfully, my brain intervened before I made a fool of myself and offered him something he didn’t want. It was a close call. Closer than it should have been. Shit. I needed more coffee.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Lane Hayes is grateful to finally be doing what she loves best. Writing full-time! It’s no secret Lane loves a good romance novel. An avid reader from an early age, she has always been drawn to well-told love story with beautifully written characters. These days she prefers the leading roles to both be men. Lane discovered the M/M genre a few years ago and was instantly hooked. Her debut novel was a 2013 Rainbow Award finalist and subsequent books have received Honorable Mentions, and were winners in the 2016 Rainbow Awards. She loves red wine, chocolate and travel (in no particular order). Lane lives in Southern California with her amazing husband in an almost empty nest.

Website: https://lanehayes.wordpress.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100008562883399

Twitter: https://twitter.com/LaneHayes3

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/7125719.Lane_Hayes

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/LaneHayesauthor

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Blog Tour – His Taken Omega (Mountain Shifters #11) by L.C. Davis

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Title: His Taken Omega (Mountain Shifters #11)

Author: L.C. Davis

Publisher: Self-Published

Cover Artist: Wolf Conan

Release Date: December 3, 2017

Length: 70 000 words/260 pages

Genre/s: M/M shifter Mpreg romance

His Taken Omega is a standalone story within the Mountain Shifter universe.

 

 Blurb

Nicholas wants nothing to do with omegas, and Avery has already signed a contract binding him to another Alpha. Fate has other plans for them both.

As the omega spokesman for the infamous Futurus Initiative, Avery Callahan is a controversial figure who’s used to being envied, occasionally despised and always the center of attention. His kidnapping at the hands of the twisted omega at the helm of the radical anti-Futurus group known as Epsilon shook his perfect world to the core, and Avery’s abnormally conventional parents no longer know what to do with him. In a last-ditch effort to save their son’s reputation—and his engagement to a prestigious politician—the Callahans send him to the small, idyllic pack of Southbend for some much-needed rest and recovery.

When Avery arrives in Southbend, he finds the Meyer household anything but welcoming and he immediately clashes with the rakishly reluctant head of the household. Nicholas might be a brilliant lawyer with good looks and charm in abundance, but he makes no secret of the fact that Avery is persona non-grata in his pack. How is Avery supposed to heal his own wounds when an Alpha who looks at every omega with disdain makes him question everything, including his participation in the breeding program he’s devoted his life to promoting?

~

Nicholas has it all on the surface—rising-star status as an attorney with his own practice, a sizable inheritance and the option of going home with any omega he chooses at the end of the night—but beneath the mask of his status, he hides a secret that makes him feel unworthy of the title of Alpha. Past abuse has left him with a deep-seated revulsion towards omegas, the very class of shifter he’s supposed to crave. He uses work and meaningless flings with other Alphas and betas to distract himself from the family life he

doesn’t believe he deserves, but in the wake of his estranged father’s death, Nicholas is called home to take on a role he never wanted.

Forced to give up his high-profile career and take the reins of his family’s pack, Nicholas finds himself wholly unprepared to fill the shoes of the man he hated. Because fate isn’t cruel enough, the Spirits choose this moment to send him his destined mate—a charming yet infuriatingly stubborn omega he can never love or even claim. At least, that’s what he thinks until he realizes that the very traits that repel him from other omegas draw him to Avery in a way he finds as bewildering as it is intoxicating.

Excerpt 2

“Well,” Nicholas said, coming to a stop in the middle of the town square. “This is the great metropolis of Southbend. What do you think?”

“I think it’s lovely,” Avery said, hesitating. “And very, very rural.”

“It is certainly that.” Nicholas grinned. “Should we head back? You must be tired after your trip.”

“I am,” Avery admitted, falling into step beside him. “Guess I am here to relax.”

“That’s what I heard.”

“What else have you heard?”

Nicholas wasn’t sure how to respond. Avery gave him a knowing look.

“You can be honest. You won’t hurt my feelings.”

“It’s nothing bad, if that’s what you’re thinking.”

“I guess that depends on whether you consider the public face of the Futurus Initiative having a nervous breakdown in the middle of a fundraiser to be a bad thing.”

“Everyone knows what you went through. You’re a hero. If they’d judge you for that, they’re not worth the time.”

“It’s been three months,” Avery murmured.

“Three months is barely enough time to enjoy summer break, let alone get over being kidnapped.”

“Maybe you can tell my parents that. They’re convinced I’m irreparably broken.”

“You don’t look broken to me.” Nicholas pretended to look the omega over for damage. “Maybe a small dent right here,” he said, poking the dimple on Avery’s cheek that deepened when he smiled.

“Either way, it looks like I’m stuck here until I can convince my parents of that.”

“That makes two of us. For what it’s worth, it’ll be nice to have the company.”

Another lie, but at least this one was for a worthy cause. It wasn’t Avery’s fault that an Alpha with an irrational aversion to omegas—or at least intimacy with one—had imprinted on him.

Avery was there to recover, not to find a mate when he already had one. The more Nicholas reminded himself of that, the better. His aversion had kept him single into his early thirties, so surely he could manage to control the hormones and irrational impulses for the few weeks Avery would be staying with them. Once he went back, both of their problems would be solved. Avery could go back to his life as the Futurus golden boy, and Nicholas could sleep a little easier knowing that he wasn’t going to imprint on the next omega who walked into his office looking for help.

In the meantime, he just had to fight the urge to commit the greatest sin of his profession: telling the truth.

 

Buy Links ~ Available on KU

Amazon  US

Amazon UK

Amazon US  Series Link

Amazon UK  Series Link

 

Goodreads

Goodreads Series Link

 

About the Author

 L.C. Davis is an MM romance author with a passion for LGBT representation.

His series include The Mountain Shifters, Queer Magick and Kingdom of Night.

Blog/Website

 

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BLOG TOUR SCHEDULE

 

December 6

Lily G Blunt  

Megan’s Media Melange  

December 7

Stories That Make You Smile INTERVIEW

MM Midnight Cafe    REVIEW

December 8

Wicked Faerie’s Tales and Reviews 

MM Good Book Reviews  REVIEW 

December 9

Love Unchained Book Reviews  

Valerie Ullmer | Romance Author    REVIEW

Land of the Book Fairies  REVIEW  

December 10

Diverse Reader   REVIEW

Bayou Book Junkie  REVIEW  

Noteworthy Book Reviews    REVIEW

Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words  

The Blogger Girls    INTERVIEW

Tangents and Tissues   REVIEW

December 13

Queer Sci Fi  

 

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Release Blitz for Ruby Moone’s The Mistletoe Kiss ( giveaway)

 

Buy Links: Amazon US | Amazon UK
 
Length: 26,600 words
 
Publisher: JMS Books
 
Blurb


By 1816, widowed bookseller Lawrence Fenton has spent a lonely lifetime hiding who he is. He has convinced himself his feelings for his far too young, gorgeous, but troubled assistant Christy Shaw are nothing more than pride in his protégé and concern for his plight.

Christy’s life involves walking fine lines: one between his mother and his abusive stepfather, one where he must keep his needs hidden, and hardest of all, one where he must keep his feelings for his serious employer to himself.

Lame since birth, Lawrence cannot imagine anyone wanting him, least of all Christy. But when Christy’s life threatens to spiral out of control, Lawrence steps in. Then Christy’s emotions spill over into a kiss under the mistletoe at Christmas. Will Lawrence be able to face the long-buried truth about himself and keep Christy by his side?


 

Author Bio
 

Ruby lives in Lancashire in the northwest of England. All through school she was told she would never get anywhere if she didn’t stop daydreaming. Eventually it occurred to her to write down the daydreams, and voilà! The beautiful men in her head came to life. Ruby writes historical and contemporary gay romance but has a definite weakness for handsome men in billowing white shirts, breeches, and cravats. Oh, and she loves tea. Lots of tea.



Facebook – Ruby Moone
Twitter – @RubyMooneWriter
Website and Blog – www.rubymoone.com
Email ñ rubymoone@gmail.com

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Blog Tour Snow Falling by Davidson King (excerpt and giveaway)

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SNOW FALLING

DAVIDSON KING

M/M ROMANTIC SUSPENSE

RELEASE DATE: 11.28.17

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COVER DESIGN: Morningstar Ashley/ Five Star Designs

COVER PHOTO: Stock Photo

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BLURB

After running from a past destined to kill him, Snow has been hiding on the streets.

Tell nobody your name.

Tell nobody your secrets.

Trust nobody!

These are the rules of the streets.

His entire life changes when he saves an eight-year-old boy from a violent end.

Christopher Manos is one of the most powerful crime bosses in the country.

Don’t ask anyone to do something you aren’t willing to do yourself.

Secrets can get you killed.

Trust nobody!

These are the rules he lives by.

When his eight-year-old nephew disappears, he never expects the boy’s savior to end up being his own.

A man with a dangerous past and a man with a dangerous future find love amidst murder and mayhem. But with Snow’s life being threatened at every turn, will Christopher’s best be enough to prevent Snow Falling?

Snow Falling Teaser 1

EXCERPT

“Why do you want to know my real name? It’s a name that no longer matters. The day my feet hit the pavement, I was no longer that guy.” I hated that this subject kept coming up.

“I will find out. I have to.”

This was so frustrating. “Why? Why’s it matter?”

“In my line of work, I need to know everything. The more I know, the easier it is to keep my people, my family, and myself safe.”

“I’m not a threat, but if you feel I am, then let me go. I never asked to be here, you haven’t given me a choice. I’ve been tossed plenty of times and each time, I land on my feet.” It was a challenge. A part of me wanted him to let me go so I could sever ties and have the choice taken from me. Another part wanted him to beg me to stay. That need to feel wanted and needed was quickly becoming a problem.

“You’re not a prisoner here. But you and I both know you don’t want to leave, so let’s not do this song and dance.” Christopher approached me. “You said your mother was a nurse. Did you realize you told me?”

“I knew.” Being in a daze never made me unaware. Being unaware was deadly. “It was harmless knowledge. There are millions of nurses all over the world.”

“My mother was a model. It’s how my father met her. They were together from the first day they laid eyes on each other. She passed when I was ten but I remember something she told me once.” He shifted his feet, the show of uncertainty making him seem vulnerable. I wondered if many people got to see this side of him. Was I special?

“What did she tell you?”

“It sounds silly now that I think about it, but in your case, it’s true.” His eyes bored into mine. “We are like a glass. You can have a glass for years, decades even. It will serve its purpose, being filled and drained over and over. Then one day, someone will come along and be a little too hard on it and a tiny crack will form. That fissure will weaken the glass. Every bump and bang. Every mouth that touches it or hand that grips it will contribute to its inevitable shatter.” He stepped closer. “But in its time, it will serve its purpose and when it’s a million pieces of glass, someone will come along and pick it up. They will decide if it should be thrown away or if it’s worth saving.” A tiny smile played on his beautiful lips. “You’re cracked a bit. You feel weakened, but Snow, I think even if you had a million cracks or were a pile of shattered pieces on the floor, you’d be worth saving.”

“Or I’d be trash.” I got what Christopher was saying and it was poetic and poignant, but it wasn’t me. “I’ve been called trash plenty of times. No one looked at my imperfections and thought I was a future mosaic. They looked at me and saw a mess.”

“Until now.”

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Davidson King, always had a hope that someday her daydreams would become real-life stories. As a child, you would often find her in her own world, thinking up the most insane situations. It may have taken her awhile, but she made her dream come true with her first published work, Snow Falling.

When she’s not writing you can find her blogging away on Diverse Reader, her review and promotional site. She managed to wrangle herself a husband who matched her crazy and they hatched three wonderful children.

If you were to ask her what gave her the courage to finally publish, she’d tell you it was her amazing family and friends. Support is vital in all things and when you’re afraid of your dreams, it will be your cheering section that will lift you up.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DavidsonKingAuthor/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/DavidsonKing11

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/davidsonkingauthor/?hl=en

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/17286464.Davidson_King

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A MelanieM Review: Deep Edge (Harrisburg Railers #3) by RJ Scott & VL Locey

Rating: 4.75 stars out of 5

One man’s passion, another man’s lies. Can love fix even the darkest of hearts.

Trent Hanson is a figure skating phenom adored by millions around the world. His whole life has been dedicated to the sport he loves even when the sport – and his own family – have turned against him. From the playground to the Olympics to his parent’s living room, Trent has fought against bullies and homophobes to be the out and proud gay man he is. But the constant fighting has left Trent tired, lonely, and skittish. All those fears will have to be shelved though when he’s hired to spend the summer working with the Harrisburg Railers ice hockey team. Who would have guessed that the man fate has decided to pair him off with is Dieter Lehmann, all-around sex god and a man who seems to have everything to prove and doesn’t care who he hurts to get what he wants.

Dieter has spent too many years languishing in the minors and a secret addiction to prescription painkillers means his career is in a downward spiral. His ex is blackmailing him and he’s close to walking away from it all. But when he’s called up in the run for the Stanley Cup to cover injuries he has a taste of what it’s like playing in the NHL and he realizes that a place on the Railers roster is what he wants more than anything. More than listening to his heart, and even more than caring for the infuriating figure skater who gets under his skin. When he crosses the line to get what he wants, he knows he has lost his way. He has to change, but is it too late for both his career and any chance he might have at love?

I’ve fallen in love with this series about the Harrisburg Railers hockey players and the men they love. It has built out from the core couple upcoming hockey star, Tennant Rowe of the famed Rowe Brothers and Coach Jared Madsen (Changing Lines (Harrisburg Railers #1).  Their coming out and romance launched the team into LGBT acceptance and brought in Layton Foxx, the professional to help the Railers with the couple’s coming out to the public and the NHL.  He also found romance within the team, although that’s still a secret (First Season (Harrisburg Railers #2).

And with each story, the characters background has become a little more complicated, and perhaps even layered over with tones of isolation, denial, and abuse. Never does that come more abundantly clear than with Dieter Lehmann, a complex hockey player who’s looking at his last chance  to be the man and player he wants…if he just doesn’t screw it up as he has in the past.  Dieter has been on the edge of our consciousnesses for the last two stories, a vivid irritant of a man who had to come up to be seen.  What a story RJ Scott and VL Locey has for him.

It includes flamboyant, smokey eyed Trent Hanson, a figure skater with his own huge demons to fight.  A tiny powerhouse come to film a reality series amongst the “hockey apes” as he calls them.  Loaded with preconceptions left over from an awful highschool loaded with jocks who bullied him mercilessly, the authors do a beautiful job, first by making this man real and authentic with his story, skating history, and ethnicity (love his grandmother the snippy pumpkin).

So while you could think this is just an opposites attract story, it also includes much  deeper, more serious  layers that speak to addictions, recovery, and therapy.  And does so in a realistic and even gritty manner at times.  For tackling all that, plus the romance, and the continuing overall series arc and pulling them off to a grand effect? Deep Edge (Harrisburg Railers #3) by RJ Scott & VL Locey is a story that’s close to perfect.  Truly with each story this series just keeps getting better and better.  I can’t wait for Poke Check (Stan’s story), to arrive.  

If you love contemporary romance, check out RJ Scott and VL Locey’s Harrisburg Railer’s series.  The writing is great, you’ll love the characters and the plots and there’s more stories to come!  I highly recommend them all.

Cover art by Meredith Russell. Unfortunately not a fan of this cover.  That’s definitely not my idea of Trent Hanson.  Looks like he has two black  eyes instead of the perfectly applied eyeliner he’s known for.  Beautiful and delicate?  Uh no.

Sales Links:

Amazon US | Amazon UK | KOBO | Barnes & Noble | Smashwords 

Book Details:

Kindle Edition, 1st edition, 181 pages
Published December 1st 2017 by Love Lane Books Ltd

An Alisa Review: Once Bitten (A Darker Hollow #2) by Shannon West and T.S. McKinney

Rating:  4 stars out of 5

 

When Mason comes back to Dark Hollows, he doesn’t quite get the homecoming he’d hoped for.

 

Mason, who has become something not quite wolf and not quite vampire, has new powers of his own that he’s still trying to figure out, not to mention a complicated relationship with his new mates. He knows his brother Jax will be shocked to find out he’s still alive, and he’d expected some resistance to his new mates, Finn and Valerian, but not the open hostility he meets when they arrive.

 

The Dark Hollow alphas, Marco and Cade, are not at all pleased to have another alpha like Finn in their territory. And as for the beautiful vampire, Valerian, only Mason’s sudden display of his startling new powers forces an uneasy and tentative truce among them. Meanwhile Mason is still struggling to forgive Finn and Valerian for what they did to him in the past, and his mates are growing impatient for him to make a decision about their lives together.

 

The sudden reappearance of an ancient, evil vampire named Cassius makes the entire pack hyper-vigilant and uneasy. When Mason and Finn discover the creature is Valerian’s sire, they fear Cassius’s influence over him.

 

Betrayal, infighting, and even some romance. The next rousing adventure in Dark Hollows is here.

 

I enjoyed this story.  Mason is working towards forgiving Finn and Valerian and the way they are treated when they arrive at Mason’s home and the events thru the story brings them together more.  However, I am unsure how far after the last story this one takes place.

 

These men all need to learn to open up to each other and trust them with their secrets.  I could see their feelings for each other even if they have trouble voicing those feelings.  Most of this story is seeing confrontations between Mason, his mates and his previous pack and I’m not sure how much of it helped the story; it just made many of the alpha’s seem like jerks that they couldn’t even recognize Mason let alone welcome someone different.  I was left wanting more, I look forward to seeing how they will adapt and grow their relationship.

 

The cover art by E Keith is great and follows the style of the first book.

 

Sales Links: Painted Hearts Publishing | Amazon

 

Book Details:

ebook, 188 pages

Published: September 4, 2017 by Painted Hearts Publishing

Edition Language: English

Series: A Darker Hollow #2