Category: Book Reviews

A MelanieM Review: The One That I Want (The One That I Want, #1) by R.J. Jones

Rating: 3.5 stars out of 5

The One That I Want coverJason escapes into the magic of a Broadway play every weekend. Musicals always have a happy ending and for a few hours he can believe there’s a happy ending waiting for him, too. When the tall drink of water who works on the top floor of Jason’s building, wants to take him on a date, Jason is surprised. After all, Jason is awkward and skinny, and sees himself as a boring accountant, while Paul is tall, dark, and incredibly hot.

Despite Jason’s reservations, Paul and Jason start dating and attending the shows Jason adores. But if Paul likes musicals as much as Jason, why does he always doze off? Is Paul leading a double life? Does he have a wife tucked away somewhere?

Jason knows Paul is hiding something and when the secrets come out, Jason finds his fantasy comes to life, right there on the stage.

R.J. Jones has written a toe tapping, head swinging little romance in The One That I Want.  At 41 pages, its a quick and happy musical that exists in a Kindle instead of on stage.  You  can almost hear the singing and dancing as the pages go by and Jason and Paul resolve their miscommunications and work through their issues to become the couple you know they are meant to be.

The story is light-hearted, pretty much angst free and like the kiss that seals the romance and their love, this story rolls out happily, quickly and in a manner that will remind you of the best of the old romantic comedy musical.  Don’t be surprised if you find yourself humming along by the end of the story.  Luckily, this is to be followed by another short story, Hopelessly Devoted (The One That I Want, #2).  Read them together for a throughly delightful afternoon!

Sales Links:  Wayward Ink |  ARe | Amazon | Buy It Here

Cover art is perfect for the story and tone.  Just loved it.

Book Details:

ebook, 41 pages
Published October 9th 2015 by Wayward Ink
edition languageEnglish
seriesThe One That I Want #1

Barb, A Zany Old Lady Review: Boyfriend Forever (Boyfriend #2) by Diana DeRicci

Rating: 3.5 stars out of 5

Boyfriend Forever coverSeven years after leaving his boyfriend Jayden, Nash Vargas has reached his emotional limit.  Not because he’s left Jayden behind, but because his sister, whom he loves more than he’d ever have imagined possible, is dying from cancer, and Nash will be left to raise her nine-year-old daughter, Lupe, alone.

After Jayden sent him off to finish his degree, Nash did very well in college and rolled right into a master’s degree program, but his sister had problems with a deadbeat father, and Nash seemed to be the only family member willing to help.  He moved in with her and Lupe, and when they were stunned by her diagnosis of cancer, he became caretaker for both of them.  Now, operating on barely any sleep, Nash is caring for Lupe while trying to make his sister’s last days comfortable.

In the meantime, contrary to the advice of his friends, Jayden hasn’t moved forward. He’s never forgotten Nash, nor given up hope for his return. However, with all of Nash’s moves, Jayden doesn’t know where he is and no longer has his phone number.  Could Jayden find it if he searched hard enough? Yes, but he figures Nash has moved on, and he refuses to go begging.

Two stubborn men = one messed-up relationship = good plot bunny.

Fortunately, Nash’s cousin Bill and his partner Tim know where Nash is, and they plan to bring both men together at their own wedding, having separately asked both Nash and Jayden to be their best men. But even before that happens, Nash’s sister dies, and Bill and Tim convince him to bring Lupe back to Arbor Heights and move in with them.

I’m sure anyone reading this review can now guess that Jayden and Nash do get back together, but the fun is watching them fumble and bumble along.  Neither has had a relationship since they broke up because they considered each other the love of their lives.  I found this a bit hard to believe on an intellectual level. After all, young men in their twenties and thirties going seven years without even having casual sex feels a bit farfetched, but the romantic in me was happy to hear it.

I finished book one, Boyfriend for the Weekend, about six weeks ago.  I loved them in that story and was happy to find out there was a sequel.  However, when I read the blurb, I felt very disappointed that the men had lost touch, seven years had already gone by, and they were still not together, so I put off reading the sequel.  I shouldn’t have done that.  This book was a very satisfying ending to the series.  The men were as charming and sweet as before, with an added layer of maturity and experience to make their lives as a couple that much richer.

I recommend this to those who have read the first book. I would not recommend this as a standalone as it’s setup as a continuation of the first.  It’s a sweet contemporary romance with two likeable characters who finally move forward on the road to their HEA.

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Cover art by Melody Pond depicts the torsos of two casually dressed men, with arms around each other, in the top panel of the cover, with a script-style title across the center and a scenic view of the mountains across the lower panel. Closely linked to the style of the cover of the first book, this one shows the men in light-colored casual wear more indicative of men comfortable with each other as is the case in this story.

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

Book Details:

Kindle Edition, 101 pages
Published September 20th 2015 by MLR Press
ASINB015NHSXSU
edition languageEnglish
Boyfriend Series

Boyfriend For The Weekend (Boyfriend #1)
Boyfriend Forever (Boyfriend #2)

Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words Author Discovery: BJ on Author Alessandra Hazard

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Author Spotlight: Alessandra Hazard

Alessandra Hazard is a relatively new self-published writer. Her well-written series centers on “Straight Guys” who discover or come to terms with their sexuality as adults and there is most often some trauma and angst along the way. If that’s not something that interests you in books, then this series may not be for you.

The series begins with a novella called Straight Boy in which handsome young straight guy Sage finds himself in prison for a DUI and attracting a lot of attention from the other inmates. Fearing that he may not survive his one-year sentence alive, he accepts an offer of protection from his cellmate, Xavier. The price for that protection is his body. I love prison stories and this was an excellent one, so the author had me roped in right from the start.

She followed that first novella up with four additional novels (so far) all of which spin off with characters in a prior book. I’ve read all of her books in the series to date and not a single one has disappointed me yet! In fact, every single book has been consistently enjoyable—between four and five stars for me. There are very few series that I purchase the next book within a few days of it coming out, but this is one of those.

So what do I enjoy about them? Let’s see. All of them are well-written, well-edited and have excellent pacing. Plus they are smoking, sizzling hot. Building up sexual tension that’s off the charts seems to be this author’s forte! And heck yeah, that’s one of things that draws me to this series so much. It’s absolutely delicious.

Hazard can even make me enjoy things I’m normally not a big fan of. For instance, book two, Just a Bit Obsessed, featured some threesome action. I wasn’t sure how much I’d enjoy the m/f/m element, but it almost immediately morphed m/m/f. And once Pandora’s box was opened for Alexander, things really heated up.

Hazard has given us age, racial, social diversity; she’d give us spoiled brats, sports stars, codependency, grouches, hurt/comfort, snarkiness, enemies-to-lovers, and lots more in this series. But in ever single book she makes me feel the characters connection, makes me feel that they belong together, makes me root for them even when I’m annoyed with them.

The latest in the series, Just a Bit Wrong, even adds in a bit of BDSM twist with some sexy hot spanking action going on. The seeds that were planted in that book for book five have me chomping at the bit for the next installment!

I’m also eager to see where this author might venture once she finishes up this series, because I’ll definitely be check it out. Ms. Hazard has made me a fan.

Author Media Links:

Website: http://www.alessandrahazard.com/
Goodreads Author Page: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/9222070.Alessandra_Hazard

Series Review Links:
Straight Boy (Straight Guys #.05)
Just a Bit Twisted (Straight Guys #1)
Just a Bit Obsessed (Straight Guys #2)
Just a Bit Unhealthy (Straight Guys #3)
Just a Bit Wrong (Straight Guys #4)

 

Straight Boy coverJust A Bit Wrong Coverjust a bit twisted coverJust a Bit Obsessed Cover

 

Release Day Blitz – Secret of the Manor by Taylin Clavelli (excerpt)

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 Secret of the Manor by Taylin Clavelli
 Publisher: Wayward Ink Publishing

Blurb

Warren Blake is an accountant at the pinnacle of his career. After accepting a new position he decides to settle in the scenic Cotswold village of Walmsley Hackett.  A village with a colourful history of myth, old wives tales and mystery.

One morning during his train ride into work, Warren notices a small quaint church which he becomes enchanted with. Curiousity compels him to find the church and when he finally does, he discovers an unmarked grave in the corner. Feeling sorry for its occupant, Warren becomes a frequent visitor.

Little does he know that the young man inside the coffin needs a champion and Warren is chosen.

What follows involves a ghostly medieval joust, witchcraft, love, and Warren risking his life.

Secret of the Manor Cover

Buy Links: WIP | Amazon US | Amazon UK | Amazon AU | Amazon DE | ARe

Excerpt

DURING THE previous summer, midway through the building process, Warren had found a local stables and indulged his love of horses. The facility had both indoor and outdoor schools, a field full of jumps, and a cross-country course. Warren chose the place not only because of its impressive amenities, but because he immediately struck a chord with its aging owner, Carl. He and Carl rode together often. Their friendship developed during Sunday-afternoon rides through the vales and hills of the Cotswolds.

It was during one of the pair’s lollops into luxurious green canopies and winding trails that Warren first spotted a small church spire. But it was in the distance, and was soon out of sight. Even then, Warren was intrigued. Sadly, they never rode close enough for it to be anything but an image veiled by trees and for one reason or another he never asked about it.

Often, he and Carl didn’t talk at all when they rode together. They simply enjoyed the relaxing, mind-clearing experience of milling around the countryside on horseback. Short of the odd bird flying out of a hedge and scaring the bejesus out of them, or a rabbit making a dash for cover, riding was a time of compatible solitude, away from the rat race.

When Carl was in the mood to talk he regaled Warren with the origins of Walmsley Hackett. And when Carl spoke Warren stayed quiet, enamoured with his stories.

As it turned out, the 1800s was nowhere near the start of Cheltenham life. Unearthed historical finds suggested several villages in the Cotswolds dated back to Roman times, long before the Saxons, Vikings, and mediaeval Normans.

The historical tales were of varying believability. Carl often rolled his eyes while he glossed over the fables he considered ludicrous. Among those were stories of a jousting competition reenacted during the summer solstice. It was believed to take place in a field on the village border, and Carl had never met anyone who’d seen it. Other stories told of winged fairies in the woods during spring and a Roman army on the march.

Genre: Gay romance, mystery, paranormal, adventure
Length: Novel

About the author

Taylin Clavelli lives in the United Kingdom, about 15 miles south of Birmingham, and a short journey from the world famous Cadbury’s Chocolate factory. She’s married with children and loves her family with all her heart.

Her love of books has been a long standing affair, with Taylin liking nothing better than to lose herself in an imaginary world.

Until she met Lily Velden, she never considered trying her hand at writing. However, after talking ideas, Lily encouraged her to put pen to paper—or rather, fingers to keyboard. Since, with a few virtual kicks in the right place, she hasn’t stopped. Her confidence eventually led to her writing an original work for submission.

Her first published work was Boys, Toys, and Carpet Fitters, developed for the Dreamspinner Press Anthology – Don’t Try This At Home.

Now she absolutely adores immersing herself into the characters she creates, and transferring the pictures in her brain to paper, finding it liberating, therapeutic, and wonderful.

Outside of writing, her interests include; martial arts (she’s a 2nd Degree Black Belt in Taekwon-do), horse-riding, all of which facilitates her love of a wide variety of movies. Her action heroes include Jet Li and Tony Jaa—finding the dedication these men have for their art combined with their skill both amazing and a privilege to watch. If pressed, she’ll admit to thinking that the screen entrance of Johnny Depp as Captain Jack Sparrow in the Pirates of the Caribbean – Curse of the Black Pearl, and Shadowfax in LOTR, to be the greatest screen entrances ever. Her all-time favorite movies are Star Wars and Lord of the Rings.

The simple things in life that make her day, putting a smile on her face are:

Laughter – especially that of her children.

The smell of lasagna cooking – it makes her mouth salivate.

The dawn chorus – no symphony ever written can beat the waking greetings of the birds.

Social links:

Website: http://www.taylinclavelli.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100005234535413
Twitter: https://twitter.com/taylinclavelli

A Free Dreamer Review: Song of the Navigator by Astrid Amara (Double Review*)

Rating: 5 stars out of 5 ★★★★★

Worst Possible Birthday: Being sold into slavery by none other than your lover.

Song of the NavigatorTover Duke’s rare ability to move anything instantly across light-years of space makes him a powerful, valuable asset to the Harmony Corporation, and a rock star among the people of the colonies. His life is luxurious. Safe. Routine.

He has his pick of casual hookups passing through Dadelus-Kaku Station. His one brush with danger of any kind—the only bright spot in his otherwise boring life—is Cruz Arcadio, a dark-haired, hard-bodied engineer whose physical prowess hints he’s something much more.

When a terrorist abducts Tover, hurling him into a world of torture, exploitation and betrayal, it’s with shattering disbelief that he realizes his kidnapper is none other than Cruz. As Tover struggles to find the courage to escape his bondage, he begins to understand the only way to free his body, his mind—and his heart—is to trust the one man who showed him that everything about his once-perfect life was a lie.

Warning: This story contains descriptions of extreme violence and assault. It also contains graphic sexual depictions. It also has a lot of birds. And pirate movies from the future. And romance.

 I didn’t read the blurb all that carefully and thus went into this expecting something much lighter. Song of the Navigator is definitely not light. At times, it’s very dark and violent. The slavery here is real. Tover really does get tortured and there’s no redeeming the slavers. I was positively surprised, to be honest.

Cruz sells Tover into slavery. To me, that seemed like something you can’t possibly forgive anybody and thus a credible romance between Cruz and Tover seemed completely impossible to me. The author works with that expectation. Tover is furious with Cruz, hates him, even, and spends a lot of time thinking about how he’ll kill the man he once loved. I was right there with Tover, absolutely hating Cruz. There is no excuse for betraying anybody like this, even a casual hook-up. But Astrid Amara managed to convince me, and Tover, to slowly forgive and understand Cruz. It took time and there was a lot of hurt for a very long time, but it worked out eventually. That was incredibly well done. Somehow, I went from hating Cruz to really liking and understanding him.

Tover was instantly likeable and I found it very easy to relate to him throughout the many things he experiences. At first, he’s carefree, a bit superficial and also quite vain. He’s cocky and self-assured, which is to be expected. Improvisational navigators are revered. There’s even a bunch of people who think he’s a god. That’s the world he’s lived in since he was a little child. But then he gets kidnapped and sold into slavery. He’s tortured and treated like a tool. Suddenly his world comes crashing down and Tover changes. What follows is some really excellent character building.

The world the author created in this book was intriguing, with lots of creative ideas and enough world building to satisfy even me. The world building was cleverly woven into the plot, without any info dumping whatsoever.

The plot was addicting and full of surprising twists and turns. The end was unexpected and very satisfying. Overall I just absolutely loved Song of the Navigator. If you’re looking for some good sci-fi with real world building and don’t mind a bit (or a lot) of violence, then I’m sure you’ll love this. If you’re looking for a fluffy romance with a dash of sci-fi, however, keep looking. This is not the book for you.

Personally, I’ll definitely check out the author’s other works. Astrid Amara has some serious world building skills.

Cover: The cover by Kanaxa is great. The dark brownish red somehow really fits the tone of the story.

Sales Links:  ARe | Amazon | Buy It Here

Book details:

Kindle Edition, 224 pages
Published May 26th 2015 by Samhain Publishing, Ltd.
ASINB00SB49GJ8
urlhttp://astridamara.com/portfolio/navigator/
*Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words Note: This is the 2nd Review of this Book: When F. D. said she finished reading this story and wanted to write a review, I knew that BJ had already read and written her review which we posted here.  But I was curious, how would F. D. view Astrid Amara and this story?  Too dark?  I should have known better.  Consider this a double recommendation for this amazing author and novel.

Barb, A Zany Old Lady Review: Rain Shadow (Bluewater Bay #10) by L.A. Witt

Rating: 3.5 stars out of 5

Rain Shadow coverNot realizing he was gay until well into his marriage and after the birth of his two children, Jeremy Rose and his wife stayed together through multiple counseling sessions until it got to the point where Jeremy realized he was not only keeping himself from experiencing life as a gay man, he was keeping his wife from finding a love of her own.  Despite having teens who might be hurt, the two divorced, and Jeremy’s worst fears were realized—his children hated him and didn’t want him in their lives.  Not sure if he was running away or running toward a better future, he took a job as Anna Maxwell’s security guard in Bluewater Bay, Washington.

When he meets a cute older man while accompanying Anna and her lover, Leigh, to an eagle-watching expedition, he’s intrigued, but fails to get the man’s contact information.  Shocked when he later sees the man at the counseling practice Anna and Leigh attend to repair their deteriorating relationship, he decides to pursue a date, aka one-night stand, with Scott Fletcher.  Scott is also a counselor, but not the one Anna is seeing. It bothers Jeremy that Scott is a counselor because he’s never had any good experience with counseling, but it doesn’t bother him enough to keep him out of Scott’s pants and the two have their one-night stand and many more afterward.

Over time, their “fuck buddy” relationship grows and changes but neither wants to acknowledge that out loud.  They’ve gone to dinner, on picnic and weekend outings, and even to a weekend retreat at a B&B, and yet they refuse to acknowledge that they’ve become more to each other than they planned.  To add to Scott’s problems with having a relationship with Jeremy, he’s got a phobia about dating cops since his life partner, a cop, was killed twenty years before.  Between Jeremy being a “cop,” aka security guard, and Scott being a counselor, there’s not much hope of compromise for these two.

Can the two overcome these issues? Do they even want to try?  And what happens when Jeremy’s daughter backs him into a corner and blasts him with her hatred of him leaving them and living so far away? There’s quite a bit of angst involved in this story of two men who struggle with their past issues while trying to come to terms with their present attraction.

I really liked Scott who was the epitome of the older man, with salt-and-pepper hair, and a mature down-to-earth attitude.  His opinions were clearly stated, and he held his tongue when he really wanted to get in there and tell Jeremy what to do.  He was also sweetly vulnerable in his worries about something happening to Jeremy.  However, Jeremy was a different matter for me.  I liked him but I never really warmed to him as a good character.  He probably meant well but he was stubborn in his views of counselors and the benefits of counseling, and he let his kids and his ex-wife manage all their meetings and therefore all of the negative outcomes, which he then spun his wheels about over and over again.  The chemistry didn’t click for me between the two, despite how much I wanted it to.

I can’t quite put my finger on why this story fell flat for me.  It may have been that I couldn’t get into Jeremy’s character, but there was something about it that felt repetitive to others I’ve read by this author.  If you had given me an audiobook and didn’t tell me the title or the author, I would have known it was written by L.A. Witt. The style of writing, the words used, the sex scenes—I felt like I had already been there and done that.  So, overall, though I liked the story, I really can’t rate it higher than 3.5 stars.

If you like Bluewater Bay series, by all means, read this.  Otherwise, I’d only recommend it to those who like a contemporary romance between older men, one of whom spins his wheels in self-inflicted angst and makes poor choices up to the end when he finally allows the light bulb to go off so that he and his partner can work toward their HEA.   

~~~~

Cover Art by LC Chase depicts the two MCs: one a shorter man with salt & pepper hair and wearing a suit, the other a muscular man complete with T-shirt, jeans, leather jacket and shades over his eyes.  It’s an attractive cover and represents the MCs very well.

Sales Links:  Riptide Publishing | ARe | Amazon | Buy It Here

Book Details:

ebook, 192 pages
Published October 19th 2015 by Riptide Publishing
ISBN 1626493669 (ISBN13: 9781626493667)
edition languageEnglish
seriesBluewater Bay #10

Bluewater Bay series goodreads page

Dive Back Into the Supernatural with Melissa Grave’s Tainted Heart (author interview, excerpt and giveaway)

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Tainted Heart (Mi Corazón Sangrante #2) by Melissa Graves
Release Date: November 5, 2015

Goodreads Link
Publisher: Interlude Press
Cover Artist: RJ Shepherd, Buckeyegrrl Designs

Today I’m very lucky to be interviewing Melissa Graves author of Tainted Heart.  Hi Melissa, thank you for agreeing to this interview. Tell us a little about yourself, your background, and your current book.

Tainted Heart is an urban paranormal story with themes of political intrigue and a heavy dose of erotica. The two main characters—a gay couple comprised of a human doctor who treats vampires and ends up falling for one, and the vampire he loves, a young, socially outcast man who was put through hell in high school—bring a variety of human and vampire experiences to the page. Brian, the doctor, comes from privilege and wants to make the world a better place, for vampires and humans alike. Kyle, the vampire, struggles to move on from his past and find a way to grow and give back on his own terms—unlike Brian, his love for the world he lives in is still somewhat conditional.
• How difficult was it to get into the main character’s head?

It’s actually surprisingly easy. I have a little of both Brian and Kyle in me. I love Brian’s optimism and determination to affect positive change. His energy and the faith that it creates is inspiring. But sadly, most of the time, I’m Kyle—trying to shake off the chains of persistent, youthful pessimism, far too wrapped up in memories and doubt to see the world as a work in progress instead of a system of oppressive stumbling blocks. One does much to balance out the other. In the first book, we get more of the shiny, new relationship trappings, so the differences between them aren’t highlighted. In Tainted Heart, we get to see them struggle as a couple for the first time—so readers will get some realism to contrast the first time romance theme in Bleeding Heart.
• Is this book a standalone or do you plan on visiting it again?

Tainted Heart is the second book in the Mi Corazon Sangrante trilogy. Bleeding Heart, the first book, was an introduction. Tainted Heart is the meat of the story of Brian and Kyle, how they struggle and settle with themselves, their responsibilities, and others. The third and final book will hopefully leave readers with a solid sense of completion and a good idea of how the rest of the characters’ lives will play out. I definitely want to provide satisfactory closure—I hate when book series go on and on with little to no clear purpose and leave the reader wondering why this thing is still happening.
• Why did you choose to write M/M stories?

It wasn’t so much a choice as a quest. I grew up obsessed with romance novels with neat plots and heart-pounding tension that led to explicit erotica. There was little chance of finding that in combination with sci-fi/fantasy/paranormal themes, but I looked! Through Anne Rice and Buffy, I sweated and swooned, but never found quite what I was looking for—a story about two imperfect men falling for each other and trying to figure themselves out while balancing the pressures of responsibility and settling down. A story not centered entirely around coming out or homophobia—those stories are vital, but not what I wanted to find when I went looking for fictional escape—but rather the struggle that results when two people from very different backgrounds try to create a life together.
• Where do you find your inspiration?

Anne Rice’s work has always been hugely influential for me. Her prose, humor, and the way she embraces every facet of human (and vampire!) nature is incredibly satisfying for me. There is a brutal honesty as well as an almost melancholy acceptance of life in her work that I find very truthful. Shows like Buffy and Angel played a role in the development of my style, as well as the Sookie Stackhouse books, which have a deliciously out there humor and a camp that’s refreshingly modern. L.J. Smith churned out some excellent young adult paranormal series that combine the supernatural with growing up experiences (romantic and otherwise) that I found very enjoyable. Anything that combines sarcasm, sex, and a hint of gloom is right up my alley.

For the Mi Corazon Sangrante series, I aimed for a variety of these elements. I wanted the characters to be relatable but not necessarily stereotypical. I wanted there to be humor even in darker moments. I wanted people to root for them, but not because they were perfect. I wanted them to be the kind of guys you might imagine having for neighbors. I wanted their story—and especially their love life—to turn people on. I hope everyone comes to love them the way I have!

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Blurb

A year after meeting and falling for the young, mysterious vampire, Dr. Brian Preston is now living and working side-by-side with Kyle Hayes for the agency guiding vampire-human relations at a secret underground facility. As the couple adapts to the demands of Brian’s career tending to vampires, Kyle’s return to school and the needs of their evolving relationship, a dangerous conspiracy puts everyone they know and everything they have been working for in danger. The sequel to 2014’s Bleeding Heart, Tainted Heart is Book Two in the Mi Corazón Sangrante series.

 

Excerpt

When it gets dark, he texts Brian that he’s going to be out late, and avails himself of not one but three vampire-human nightclubs set along a dense strip of Chicago nightlife. Going alone to places like this always attracts immediate attention, and he isn’t surprised when he has to pry both humans and vampires off of himself. But he doesn’t mind—the blood from the center is humming in his veins, and that buzz takes on a new dimension every time that he swallows a thimbleful of blood from a donor, which he does at least a dozen times over the course of the evening. When he’s more relaxed, he allows bodies against his own, dancing with strangers until strobe lights become normal and everything outside is too dim and still.

The blood changes the world around him. Every color, every sound and every source of light takes on a life of its own.

He loses track of how many donors he pays. All he knows is he’s spent all of the pocket money that Brian gave him for the weekend.

He feels like a bloated tick. He’s been away too long. Brian. He has to get back to Brian.

Pages or Words: 294 pages
 Categories: Erotica, Fiction, Gay Fiction, M/M Romance, Paranormal, Romance, Thriller, Urban Fantasy

Buy the book:

store.interludepress.com;

Book Depository: http://www.bookdepository.com/?a_aid=InterludePress;

Indiebound: http://www.indiebound.org/book/978-1-941530-52-8?aff=InterludePress

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Meet the author:

A veteran writer of fan fiction with thousands of followers, Melissa Graves wrote her first story at age thirteen, and by age sixteen had met her future husband in an online vampire fiction chat room. A fan of science fiction and fantasy, she has a degree in anthropology and a passion for good chocolate, amateur erotica and fan worlds that celebrate diversity. She is mother to two cats.

Bleeding Heart, book one of the Mi Corazón Sangrante series, was her debut novel for Interlude Press.

Where to find the author:

Connect with Melissa at msmelissagraves.com, on Twitter at twitter.com/msmelissagraves, on Goodreads at goodreads.com/melissagraves and on Facebook at facebook.com/msmelissagraves.

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Tour Dates & Stops:

Final

Giveaway

Enter to win a Rafflecopter Prize: $25 Grand Prize plus five multi-format eBook editions of Tainted Heart. Link and prizes provided by the author and Pride Promotions.  Must be 18 or older to enter. 

 

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Contemporary Book Spotlight: Flesh Market by Kate Lowell (Author Guest blog, excerpt, giveaway)

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Flesh Market by Kate Lowell
 Release Date: November 10, 2015

Goodreads Link
Publisher: Loose ID
Cover Artist: April Martinez

Hi, I’m Kate Lowell! Thanks for joining me on the Flesh Market tour, or what I’ve come to call “The blog tour that will forever make you question your view of the world around you”. I know it did that for me. Tons of research that went into this book. So many books, so many articles, and over the course of the tour, I’m going to share some of that research, and some of my sources with you. (Please be gentle—it was extremely difficult to condense all that info down to a reasonable sized blog post for each topic. I could have gone on ad nauseum—and honestly, some of the reading was nauseating.) One lucky winner will get to choose any one book from the ones I’ve highlighted through the tour, and I’ll send it to them. (Caveat: I won’t necessarily send the cheapest version of a book, but I do need to keep my pocketbook in mind. And some books may only be available used, or in electronic format. We’ll talk when you win.  )

Post 4 – Starting Your Career as an FBI agent
Once an agent graduated through the grueling 5 month training at Quantico, they are assigned to their first field office. Early in their training, new agents are asked to rank the 56 FBI field offices in order of preference. Agents find out which office they’ll be going to in their 6th week of training, to give them time to make arrangements for housing, and to allow any family that will be accompanying them to make arrangements for jobs, schools, etc. On average, a student ends up in their 5th preference—which isn’t to say you should put your favorite in slot 5; the 5th is just an average, and some get their first, and some get their 10th, or 20th, or 50th.
It used to be that agents would spend the first three years of their career in one field office, then be transferred to another. In 2004, a regulation was enacted that required new agents to go to a smaller field office for their first placement, before they could move to a large office. This was in the interest of creating a well rounded agent with investigative skills in a number of areas, who could then specialize after transfer to a larger center. (Also, the new agents complained a lot about the cost of living in some of these big cities on new agent’s wages. 🙂 )In recent years, this policy has changed, as the cost of financing these required transfers became too high. Now, it’s entirely possible for an agent to stay in one field office for their entire career, though many don’t. In a larger field office, they may specialize in criminal investigations, counterterrorism, cyber investigations or international work, among other options. After three years in an investigative position, they may apply for the Hostage Rescue Team, or may set their sights on advancement and promotion within the Bureau.
Agents may also spend time out of country, in various consulate positions, though they generally need to have some experience as an FBI agent, and an appropriate background for the posting, before they would be.
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Blurb

Special Agent Leo Gale is up a creek. A year and a half of deep cover is about to go up in flames. He needs help – something, someone to salvage the operation and save the lives of untold numbers of trafficked teenagers.

But he wasn’t expecting the partner they sent, or his own gut-punch of a response to the man.

Julian worked hard for that FBI Honors Internship. It was supposed to be a foot in the door. He’d never expected it to catapult him into the middle of a major undercover operation. Yet here he is, sleeping on a filthy mattress and using every trick in the book to avoid torture—and worse. He’s never felt so scared, or so alive, in his entire life, and he’s not sure if it’s the danger, or Leo, that’s making his heart race.

There’s no time to think about it, though. The operation is heating up, and Leo and Julian are running out of time and options. As choices become more difficult, they must find a way to take the traffickers down, or risk becoming just another set of organs for sale.

 

 

Excerpt

Inside the bathroom, DeGraff peered behind the door and moved an OUT OF SERVICE FOR CLEANING sign from the back to the front.

Julian was at the sink at the far end of the room, staring into the mirror with water dripping off his face. DeGraff stepped into one of the stalls, and Leo went to wash his hands at one of the other sinks. Julian glanced up at him, then tore off some paper towel and wiped his face dry. He tossed the towel in the overflowing garbage can and slunk past Leo with all the angsty self-consciousness of a hormonal teenager.

Leo wished he had time to appreciate the performance, but he had a job to do. As Julian passed him, Leo spun and grabbed him from behind, pinning Julian’s arms to his side and covering his mouth. Julian made a startled noise, muffled by Leo’s hand, and began to thrash. He kicked Leo painfully in the shin, but by then DeGraff was out of the stall and had jabbed his syringe into Julian’s shoulder. Leo fought the young man down to the floor while DeGraff stood watch by the bathroom door. Five tense minutes later, Julian was completely spaced out, limp as a rag in Leo’s arms.

Pages or Words: 75,000 words (pre-edits).
 Categories: Contemporary, Crime Fiction, Fiction, Gay Fiction, M/M Romance, Romance, Thriller

RC

Buy the book: Loose id

 

 

 

Meet the author:

Kate lives on the east coast of Canada, in an old farmhouse in the middle of nowhere. She has one horse now, who still has medical issues, and three cats, all of which still have mental issues. She still refuses to get a dog, because who knows what would be wrong with it?

Kate loves to read and write. She also likes playing with computers and is going back to school to do a programming degree, just for giggles. Or the opportunity to take over the world. (Oh, who are we kidding? Think of all the work that would mean.) She also likes pictures of pretty men and keeps many of them on her computer. (The pictures, not the men.) She would dearly love a cabana boy to mow her lawn and maybe rub her shoulders after a long day of making men fall in love with each other, then cackling evilly and raining frustration and danger on them.

Where to find the author:

 


BannerTemplate Tour Dates & Stops:

3-Nov: Jessie G. Books, KathyMac Reviews

4-Nov: BFD Book Blog,

5-Nov: Scattered Thoughts & Rogue Words, MM Good Book Reviews

6-Nov: The Blogger Girls, Sinfully Addicted to All Male Romance

9-Nov: Cheekypee Reads and Reviews

11-Nov: Divine Magazine, Hearts on Fire, QUEERcentric Books

12-Nov: Kimi-Chan, Love Bytes, Havan Fellows

13-Nov: Happily Ever Chapter, Bayou Book Junkie

16-Nov: Inked Rainbow Reads

17-Nov: Elisa – My Reviews and Ramblings, My Fiction Nook

 

FinalGiveaway

Enter to win a Rafflecopter Prize: E-book copy of one of the recommended reads Kate used in her research for Flesh Market.  Must be 18 years of age or older to enter.  Link and prizes provided by the author and Pride Promotions.

a Rafflecopter giveaway
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