A Barb the Zany Old Lady Release Day Review: Heated Beat Bundle (Heated Beat #1-2) by Garrett Leigh

Rating: 3.75 stars out of 5

BOOK ONE: My Mate Jack by Garrett Leigh

Teen best friends Will and Jake have shared everything together for as long as they can remember, and Will has loved Jack from the moment he realized he was attracted to men. But not only is Jack straight, he’s not staying in the area after they graduate high school. Jack is taking his love of music on the road, having secured a DJ job in Ibiza, while Will is heading to university to get the degree he needs for his design career.

Just before he leaves though, Will and Jack go further than either of them ever intended, and though Will wants to confess his love for his friend, he lets Jack get away without that conversation but regrets it from the day he goes.

Texts, emails, and one visit to Ibiza accompanied by Will’s female roomies and his boyfriend du jour lead to a further divide between the men and misunderstandings can’t be resolved with the distance they maintain. More texts, and Will thinks there might be a chance for them to get together over the holidays, but Jack doesn’t stay at his parents’ house long enough to fit in a visit to Will, and they’re divided again.

If you like a friends-to-lovers story that is overflowing with angst and miscommunication, this may be the perfect story for you. I enjoyed the characters created by the very talented Garrett Leigh, but I must admit I was a bit lost with the music references, a fact I attribute to my age and lack of interest in music trends. I also get pretty wound up in anxiety when a couple perpetuates misunderstanding by failure to communicate, so this is not one of my favorites from this author, but it was good, nonetheless. I’d give it 3 stars on its own.

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BOOK TWO: Lucky Man by Garrett Leigh

Over ten years have gone by since Will and Jack got together in the first book, and they’re still not living together full time. I found this a bit odd, but the author explains it as the nature of their relationship, so odd or not, it works for them. Jack’s got a place in Nottingham that he shares with Finn McGovern, musician, rock star, and a man who is mentally unstable when his disorder acts up. But that’s not evident when he first meets Danny Jones.

Danny is a vice squad detective, currently leading the investigation into the disappearance, and then murder, of prostitutes. Feeling little more than helpless and hopeless some days, he works extremely long hours, so when his boss forces him to take a day off, he decides to catch some music at a pub he infrequently visits. And there he sees Finn McGovern, not in the persona of the lead singer of the rock band, The Lamps, instead, taking the spotlight with his guitar, playing and singing a variety of songs from multiple decades and multiple genres. When Finn catches his eye across the room, Danny is hooked.

Their relationship is tumultuous from then on, not because of any outright hostility, but because Danny can’t commit the time and energy Finn needs from him to feel safe and loved. Danny knows it, but with his case occupying all his time and more than half of his attention, he starts to wonder if he should commit to Finn. And then Finn shares his secret—his medical disorder—one that can lead him to destroy their relationship and himself if left untreated. That’s not an issue right now as he does get his treatment regularly, but Danny’s reaction is not what Finn hoped for and Finn storms off in a snit.

I enjoyed this story immensely. The author delved deeply into Finn’s personality and his illness and gave good insight to the effect one’s state of mental health can have on every aspect of life. Danny was a difficult character to like, though he wasn’t one I’d outright dislike, he simply was, and because he was so reserved and deadpan, and we spent so much time with him in his professional life, it was difficult to know what was underlying his veneer. Unless, or until, he was with Jack, because that’s when his eyes sparkled, and the smile couldn’t help coming out.

It was a tough story, both on the surface where the murder investigation was going on, and below the surface, where Finn was struggling with his disease, and he and Danny were struggling to cement their fledgling relationship.

We did get to enjoy quite a bit of Jack and his partner, Will, throughout the story, and the balance of the cast of characters was quite diverse and well-developed. If I was planning to rate both stories individually, this one would be at least 4.5 stars.

Getting these two books in a bundle is a treat that should not be missed. Garrett Leigh is an excellent author, and although I didn’t enjoy the first story quite as much as the second, I can definitely recommend this Heated Beat bundle to lovers of MM romance, especially those who enjoy a UK romantic action adventure.

~~~~~~~~~

Cover art by Garrett Leigh is a split photo of two young men. The one of the left can be any of three MCs: Jack, Finn, or Will and the one on the right is definitely Danny.

Sales Links

Bundle/Book Details:

ebook, 240 pages
Published December 5th 2016 by Dreamspinner Press
ISBN139781635331042
Edition LanguageEnglish
SeriesHeated Beat #1-2

A MelanieM Review: Drama Muscle (Nicky and Noah Mystery #2) by Joe Cosentino

Rating: 3.75 stars out of 5

It could be lights out for college theatre professor Nicky Abbondanza. With dead bodybuilders popping up on campus, Nicky, and his favorite colleague/life partner Noah Oliver, must use their drama skills to figure out who is taking down pumped up musclemen in the Physical Education building before it is curtain down for Nicky and Noah. Complicating matters is a visit from Noah’s parents from Wisconsin, and Nicky’s suspicion that Noah may be hiding more than a cut, smooth body.

You will be applauding and shouting Bravo for Joe Cosentino’s fast-paced, side-splittingly funny, edge-of-your-seat entertaining second novel in this delightful series. Curtain up and weights up!

Drama Muscle (Nicky and Noah Mystery #2) by Joe Cosentino is high entertainment. Campy, fun! The snappy dialog flies as fast as the bodies fall. Joe Cosentino takes his couple on a wild, bumpy ride of their lives as Noah’s parents decend on the couple for a visit just as Nicky and Noah are asked to help with a bodybuilders contest that starts to go very wrong. Add to that the fact that Noah is acting very suspicious. But what’s a little or a lot of drama in the lives of these two?

I met these two in the story, Drama Queen, another fast paced fun novel. This takes that up several notches. Nicky and Noah’s relationship is established for one thing and they are debating taking it further (or Noah’s parents are) into marriage. No rest for either man as each is tugged hither and yonder in search for the murderer and things to keep Noah’s parents happily entertained and outdoing their friends back home.

Everything about this story is wonderfully over the top! The murders, the hilarious romances, each scene funny as the body count gets higher. Do you get emotionally invested in the victims? No. Did I mind? No. This is comedy, not drama and I could see it playing out on stage as it flowed across my Kindle. The tale was done and the murderer caught before I blinked and Nicky and Noah had done it again. Treemeadow College was safe until the next murderer arrives.

Need a dose of slapstick and romance in your life (and at the moment who doesn’t)? Make your acquaintance with Nicky and Noah and their Mystery series. You could start here. It certainly works as a stand alone but starting at the beginning is so much fun. Grab up both and read them together. And let the chuckles ensue!

Cover art reminds me of a old time theatre poster and works perfectly.

Sales Links

Lethe Press

Book Details:

Kindle Edition, 175 pages
Published December 30th 2015 by Lethe Press
ASINB019ZQO2I0
Edition LanguageEnglish
SeriesNicky and Noah Mystery #2
Other Editions (2)
Drama Muscle (Nicky and Noah Mystery #2)
Drama Muscle: A Nicky and Noah Mystery

A Barb the Zany Old Lady Releases Day Review: Lost and Found by Rick R. Reed

Rating: 4 stars out of 5

On a bright autumn day, Flynn Marlowe lost his best friend, a beagle named Barley, while out on a hike in Seattle’s Discovery Park.

On a cold winter day, Mac Bowersox found his best friend, a lost, scared, and emaciated beagle, on the streets of Seattle.

Two men. One dog. When Flynn and Mac meet by chance in a park the next summer, there’s a problem—who does Barley really belong to? Flynn wants him back, but he can see that Mac rescued him and loves him just as much as he does. Mac wants to keep the dog, and he can imagine how heartbreaking losing him would be—but that’s just what Flynn experienced.

A “shared custody” compromise might be just the way to work things out. But will the arrangement be successful? Mac and Flynn are willing to try it—and along the way, they just might fall in love.

In a delightful story about two men and their love for one dog, Rick Reed’s love for his real dog, Lilly, comes through loud and clear.

Flynn Marlowe lost his dog, Barley, last fall, and his house has never been home since then, so imagine his shock when he spots Barley as he’s out for a run about eight months later, but Barley is now answering to Hamburger and is accompanied by a gorgeous redhead who also catches Flynn’s eye.

Mac Bowersox took in the near-starved pup last winter when he found him. After checking for a chip and calling around, it was evident he’d been abandoned, so after scarfing down Mac’s burger, Hamburger was christened and taken home to the rooming house where he lives with his elderly landlady. Confronted by Flynn, Mac lies, and despite Barley’s apparent interest in the stranger, Mac adamantly insists the dog can’t be Barley. The moment Flynn turns his back, Mac takes off.

I loved the beginning of the story as both men have found their family member and yet neither is willing to compromise in any way on his custody. Sometimes our pets are all the family we have, and anyone who’s owned a dog knows they give us their whole heart unconditionally.

After he has time for remorse, and when he happens to see Flynn again, Mac decides to do the right thing and give Hamburger up, but then it’s Flynn’s turn for remorse as he can see how traumatized Mac is by giving him up.

There’s a nice compromise on the table, though it proves heartbreaking for both men, and when Mac has a family tragedy, it’s Flynn he turns to for help. Over time, the men have grown closer—a point Barley seems to be quite happy about.

This author never fails to deliver a wonderful story, whether it’s scary, heartbreaking, or heartwarming. A simple concept, with a very interesting twist and turn of events, and wonderful, three-dimensional characters from Mr. Reed makes this one a winner. If you’ve ever had a pet or wanted one, and if you have a soft spot in your heart for men who love animals, I highly encourage you to pick this one up. You won’t be disappointed.

~~~~~~

Cover art by Reese Dante is beautiful and perfect for this story. The characters are exactly the way I pictured them, the dog is perfect, and she even managed to get in a bit of the Washington coastline.

Sales Links

Book Details:

ebook, 200 pages
Expected publication: December 5th 2016 by Dreamspinner Press
ISBN139781634778848
Edition LanguageEnglish

Ashavan Doyon Interview and The Rodeo Knight (Sam’s Cafe Romances #3) by Ashavan Doyon (giveaways)

The Rodeo Knight (Sam’s Cafe Romances #3) by Ashavan Doyon
Dreamspinner Press
Cover art by Bree Archer

Purchase Links

Today we have Ashavan Doyon, author of the recently released The Rodeo Knight here for an interview.

Thank you for having me today here at Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words. I’m happy to be here to promote The Rodeo Knight, which released November 30, and also the first book in the series, The King’s Mate, which has a second edition that was also just released. I’m so lucky, because Dreamspinner Press also released all three novellas in the series as a print only anthology, The Chess Master Chronicles.

Are you a planner or a pantser when writing a story? And why?

I’m a total pantser. Most of the time I’m writing off a vague idea with only one character well defined, everything else flows from that. My problem is that when I’ve planned, my characters always rebel. And planning takes focus, energy, that ends up wasted, because you know your character is going to do x thing, and instead they upend the story and do something totally different. The Rodeo Knight is really the closest I’ve gotten to “planning” a story in a long time, because I sold the pitch for the story in advance at a conference, so I absolutely had to have more than “I’m writing a sequel to A Wounded Promise” — I needed to have some sort of structure. So in addition to Brian, the main character, I wrote the blurb for the story, which also introduced the love interest Sylvester.

Contemporary, supernatural, fantasy, or science fiction narratives or something else? Does any genre draw you more than another when writing it or reading it and why does it do so?

I love writing contemporary. I do some modern fantasy also, and I regularly release chapters of an ongoing modern fantasy serial on my blog. Sometimes when I write fan fiction I’ll go a little further afield. Reading is something else. I grew up on fantasy, and outside of reading in my genre (Sue Brown and Cindy Sutherland are favorites), a lot of what I read is stuff like The Riftwar Saga and The Belgariad. My mom read me The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings as bedtime stories, so I blame her for that.

If you had a character you’ve written you would write differently now at this time in your writing career, who would it be and why?

You know, as an author I try to not read reviews. And I fail spectacularly most of the time. That means I know what people have said about my characters and I struggle a lot with people who want these mostly college aged characters to be something they’re not. I try to write characters who are human and real and feel that way. I often say that my characters tell me what to write and that mostly I’m just reporting. But I’m not perfect. I did go back and change how I wrote Justin for The King’s Mate. In the second edition, he’s a lot more confident and stumbles a lot less, and I think that makes him more consistent with his portrayal in A Wounded Promise, and it also makes the places where he feels broken more stark, because it’s that much more clear that in most of his life he’s doing okay.

One of the things I’ve tried to show in my stories is the range of parental acceptance, from Adam’s father in Gerry’s Lion with his loving acceptance of Gerry as a member of the family to the ultimatum Brian faced as discussed in The Rodeo Knight, to Chris being kicked out by his father when he turned eighteen in I Almost Let You. I think I might look at how I wrote some of the mothers, and maybe adjust that some. But at the same time, I think it’s important, especially now, to remember the proportion of kids who do get kicked out of their homes when they come out, and the epidemic of homelessness in the LGBT youth community. So maybe it’s better to write those stories and let the characters overcome that than pretend that every parent is going to be like Sam.

Can an author have favorites among their characters and do you have them?

I think every author has some favorites. Of my Dreamspinner releases, as much as I love Justin and Sylvester, and I’m proud of how I wrote Brian, I think my favorite is probably Gerry. This was a man in love, a man grieving, and showing the depths of his love through that grief I thought made him a very powerful character.

If you were to be stranded on a small demi-planet, island, or god forbid LaGuardia in a snow storm, what books would you take to read or authors on your comfort list?

I’d pick LaGuardia (so I could charge my kindle) – that way I’d still have access to everything. Stuck on a dessert island? Probably The Lord of the Rings. I’ve been reading it over and over since I was kid and I’m still not sick of it.

How early in your life did you begin writing?

My mom has a ‘swoofs’ fanfic (it was a Smurfs storyline) that I wrote on her portable typewriter when I was about five.

Were you an early reader or were you read to and what childhood books had an impact on you as a child that you remember to this day and why?

I think I mostly answered this. My mom was always told it was good to read to kids and that it didn’t matter what you read. So from the time I was tiny she read us all the books she liked. The Hobbit. The Dragonriders of Pern. Time of the Dark. Those were my bedtime stories. I read The Lord of the Rings on my own in first grade and I never looked back. My classmates would grumble that they couldn’t call me a book worm, book worms were slow. I was a book bird.

If you were writing your life as a romance novel, what would the title be?

I’ve considered sometimes writing the story of how I ended up with my husband as a romance novel, because there’s a lot of ways it would fit. For a title? “I know you probably hate me, but…” It’s the first line from a letter I wrote to my now husband. We had dated briefly when I was in college and for a slew of reasons, it didn’t work and I broke up with him. I decided life wasn’t worth having regrets about, so five years later I wrote him and poured my heart out in a letter. It’s probably the single most important piece of writing I’ve ever done in my life.

Thanks again to Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words for hosting me, and I do hope you’ll check out those new releases. The Rodeo Knight is a particularly fun romp, and The King’s Mate, while it is a second edition, has 11,000 new words, making it almost twice the length of the original story!

I always love to hear from readers, please feel free to contact me, there’s a form to reach me at my website, which is in the contact information below!

Author Bio:

For fifteen years, Ashavan Doyon worked with students in the student affairs office of a liberal arts college. He recently decided to shake things up a little, and is now working in the publications and communications office at the college. During lunch, evenings, and when he can escape the grasp of his husband on weekends, he writes, pounding out words day after day in hopes that his ancient typewriter-trained fingers won’t break the glass on his tablet computer. Ashavan is an avid science fiction and fantasy fan and prefers to write while listening to music that fits the mood of his current story. He has no children, but lavishes attention on his sole remaining fur child, a very elderly pug. A Texan by birth, he currently lives in New England, and frequently complains of the weather.

Ashavan went to school at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, getting his degree in Russian and East European Studies, with a focus in language and literature. He has two incomplete manuscripts from college that he goes back compulsively to fiddle with every so often, but is still not happy with either of them. He still loves fantasy and science fiction and reads constantly in the moments between writing stories.

You can find me online at:

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ashavandoyon.writer

Twitter: https://twitter.com/ashavandoyon

Web: www.ashavandoyon.com

The King’s Mate

2nd Edition

Sam’s Café Romances: Book One

Russell Pine comes to Sam’s Café every morning to enjoy the best coffee in town and to chat with Sam Tesh, the owner, a loyal friend for the past twenty years. When Sam offers him a challenge, Russ reluctantly takes it on, acting as the master opponent in a chess tournament. As the days pass and the hopefuls fall to the chess mastermind one by one, Russ discovers that the contest isn’t the only game being played.

Russ finds himself the focus of a secret courtship through words and pictures left for him to discover each morning. Will a hint of cologne on the paper lead him to his admirer? In a café full of young and beautiful minds, who is looking at the graying chess master?

First Edition published by Dreamspinner Press, June 2013.

Buy link:

The King’s Mate (Dreamspinner): https://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/books/the-kings-mate-by-ashavan-doyon-7831-b

The King’s Mate (Amazon):

https://www.amazon.com/Kings-Mate-Sams-Café-Romances-ebook/dp/B01N8XXY02/

The Chess Master Chronicles (Dreamspinner)

Sam’s Cafe Romances books 1-3, print only:

https://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/books/the-chess-master-chronicles-by-ashavan-doyon-7830-b

The Rodeo Knight

Sam’s Café Romances: Book Three

Struck by amnesia after a car crash, Brian Stouten has been living a life laid out by his family, a heterosexual life that just doesn’t fit. When he learns it was all a lie, he returns to the small college town that’s his only clue to his past. But the town is still unfamiliar, and the man he’d hoped would make all his memories return is on a honeymoon with another man. To add insult to injury, everyone thinks Brian died in the crash. It’s only when an out-of-place cowboy asks to bum a smoke that Brian realizes this trip was meant to be.

Sylvester Thomas has always fought a secret desire, and done it successfully. But when geeky Brian offers him a smoke and a light, a simple brush of hands has Sylvester’s hidden passions burning deep. Did he make a mistake letting Brian walk away?

Buy link:

The Rodeo Knight (Dreamspinner): https://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/books/the-rodeo-knight-by-ashavan-doyon-7832-b

The Rodeo Knight (Amazon):

https://www.amazon.com/Rodeo-Knight-Sams-Café-Romances-ebook/dp/B01N8PT65D/

The Chess Master Chronicles (Dreamspinner)

Sam’s Cafe Romances books 1-3, print only:

https://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/books/the-chess-master-chronicles-by-ashavan-doyon-7830-b

Need a New Series to Love? Check Out the Heated Beat Collection by Garrett Leigh (giveaway)

Heated Beat Collection – Garrett Leigh

Author: Garrett Leigh

Length: My Mate Jack 31,600 words, Lucky Man 43,854 words

Cover Design: Black Jazz Design

Buy Links

My Mate Jack

Amazon US | Amazon UK | Dreamspinner | AllRomance

Lucky Man

Amazon US | Amazon UK | Dreamspinner | AllRomance

Heated Beat Collection Paperback

Dreamspinner

My Mate Jack

Will Barterís been in love with his best mate Jack for as long as he can remember. Theyíve shared everything: love, life, laughs, even Willís first kiss. But Jackís straight, and Willís long-buried infatuation means nothing until their last summer together draws to a close.

Then one night, everything changes, but with Will bound for university in Leeds, and Jack for his dream DJ job in Ibiza, thereís no time to explore their blurred lines. Before long all thatís left are secrets, lies, and misunderstandings.

In the months that follow, anger and hurt overshadow fifteen years of friendship, and Will must dig deep to remember Jack is his mateÖ his best mate, and nothing matters more than that, right?

Lucky Man

As a diehard music fan, a dirty, smoky gig is Vice Squad Detective Danny Jonesís idea of heaven. While watching one of the most popular bands in Northern England, the sight of gorgeous rock star Finn McGovern changes his life forever.

Beneath the tattoos and leather jacket, Finn is kind and sweet, but when he confesses a dark secret to Danny, it tests their fledgling bond. Danny digs deep to accept Finn, but before long, a terrifying trail of death threatens to tear them apart before theyíve even got started.

A monster is killing prostitutes on Dannyís patch, and when a dead girl turns up too close to home, Danny discovers a heartbreaking link between the girl and his bright new life with Finn, a life heíll do anything to protect.

Author Bio

Garrett Leigh is an award-winning British writer and book designer, currently working for Dreamspinner Press, Loose Id, Riptide Publishing, and Fox Love Press.

Garrett’s debut novel, Slide, won Best Bisexual Debut at the 2014 Rainbow Book Awards, and her polyamorous novel, Misfits is a finalist in the 2016 LAMBDA awards.

When not writing, Garrett can generally be found procrastinating on Twitter, cooking up a storm, or sitting on her behind doing as little as possible, all the while shouting at her menagerie of children and animals and attempting to tame her unruly and wonderful FOX.

Garrett is also an award winning cover artist, taking the silver medal at the Benjamin Franklin Book Awards in 2016. She designs for various publishing houses and independent authors at blackjazzdesign.com and co-owns the specialist stock photography company M O O N Stock Photography.

Giveaway

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In the LGBTQIA Release Spotlight: Finding Lizzie by Karma Kingsley

Finding Lizzie by Karma Kingsley
Cover Artist: Natasha Snow

NineStar Press

Purchase It Here at

Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words is happy to have Karma Kingsley here with her author Playlist for Finding Lizzie. Welcome, Karma!

My Playlist by Karma Kingsley

Justin Timberlake’s FutureSex/LoveSound & The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill

When I was in high school, I had a really good, really weird, really quirky friend with a car that she’d named Sophia. And this is not an endorsement, but we used to skip class…A LOT. But we didn’t skip class to get high behind the gym or some other teen-angst afternoon special kind of thing, but we’d hang out in Sophia and listen to Justin Timberlake and Lauryn Hill with a various mix of Michael Jackson albums in there. We were obsessed with those artists. They were our One Direction/Justin Bieber/ whoever else the kids fangirl over these days. And writing Lizzie kind of made me think of this particular era of my life; a time when I was still figuring all of my shit out.

James Arthur & Bibi Bourelly

There’s no deep, significant reason that these two are on the playlist. Their voices are just heaven in my ears, so everything they touch gets put on every playlist.

Let it Happen & Bring Me The Horizon’s That’s the Spirit

I just love these bands, but they’re on the playlist likely because the release dates just synced up with when I was writing. But there is a Let it Happen lyric that I think fits Lizzie’s story pretty perfectly. It’s “The good news is the bad news could be good news if you change your point of view.” Which aside from being true in just life in general, it applies to Lizzie because she’s sort of in this place where she’s left her long term boyfriend, her relationship with her mother is hanging on by a thread and she’s completely lost this life that was comfortable and safe and that didn’t make her take these huge introspective looks at herself. It all sounds pretty awful but then this confident, wild girl walks into her life and takes all of that bad news perspective and flips it on its head…I bet if you give me long enough I could come up with a good BMTH quote that applies too 😉

Hozier & Tegan & Sara

At least one Hozier song makes it onto every playlist I have. Specifically, Jackie & Wilson I think works for Lizzie and Kerra. If they ever have kids and their names are Jackie and Wilson, this is the source. And what playlist is complete without a little Sainthood?

Drake & Eminem

Because sometimes I fancy myself a rapper.

About Finding Lizzie

Lizzie doesn’t know what she wants from life, but she’s sure it’s not the attention of her suffocating boyfriend, RJ. A chance encounter with a group of women on the day of the local Pride parade leads her to meet the wild, free-spirited Kerra. Lizzie begins to realise she’s crazy about Kerra, but how can she come out in a small town where prejudice is rife and even her own mother thinks being a lesbian is wrong? Can Lizzie find herself without losing everything else in the process?

Genre: Contemporary
Sex Content: N/A
Pairing: FF
Orientation: Bisexual, Lesbian
Identity: Cis
Length: Long Novel
Words: 106100
Pages: 213

Purchase Links:

NineStar Press: http://ninestarpress.com/product/finding-lizzie/
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01MTP8MBY
All Romance eBooks: https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-findinglizzie-2179099-149.html
Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/686153

COUPON CODE: Get 20% off preorder on NineStar Press website with coupon code “preorder”

* (Good until release day)

Excerpt

The warm metal stung her arms as she slid down the length of the car to sit on the pavement. The instant need to sulk overtook her as she let herself obsess over her life choices, hating each and every one that had led her to the middle of who knows where, waiting for a man she didn’t want to see.

She let herself wade in her misery, listening only to the sounds of her own sorrow. She didn’t even hear the Jeep when it pulled up next to her.

“Hey hot-stuff, show us what you got!” a voice shouted from the backseat of the Jeep as someone tossed a necklace of rainbow beads at her. Elizabeth attempted to back away, her flight instincts kicking in almost immediately, but the two-ton car behind her blocked her path.

“Excuse me?” She squinted her eyes against the sunlight, searching the Jeep full of women for the culprit that was throwing plastic jewelry at her.

“Oh, are you not with the parade?” the woman behind the wheel asked her. She seemed genuinely confused as she scratched at the orange bandanna covering her forehead.

“Parade?” Elizabeth shook her head in apprehension.

A woman squashed in the middle of all the others stood up, grabbing hold of one of the bars connected to the roof of the Jeep. “Excuse these crazy ladies. We thought you were part of Pride. We didn’t mean to throw things at you for no reason.”

The woman smiled at her and Elizabeth felt her blood heat up. She was probably the most beautiful woman Elizabeth had ever seen and her smile made everything in Elizabeth’s life seem a little less tragic.

“Are you okay, love?” Elizabeth realized she’d been staring at the woman for an abnormally long time without saying anything.

“Yeah. Um…my car broke down.” Elizabeth pointed lamely at her car, as she fought against the dumbfounded stupor that smile had sent her into.

The woman jumped across all the ladies in the Jeep and landed in front of Elizabeth. It was the fastest, smoothest transaction of movement she’d ever seen and she had to will herself not to gasp in awe.

“I’ll take a look for you.” She opened the front door to the car and stopped short. “I think you’re just out of gas.”

Elizabeth watched her every move, unable to tear her eyes away. “Oh, umm…yeah, I know. That’s what I meant. My car umm…ran out of gas.” She fidgeted uncontrollably as she babbled on like an idiot.

“You sure you’re okay?” She took a step forward and Elizabeth unconsciously took one backwards, keeping the distance between them.

“I think you make her nervous.” One of the girls in the Jeep howled as the others erupted in giggles.

The woman looked back at the cackling group of her friends. She straightened her necktie as she took another step forward, the gesture seeming to make her even more attractive. Elizabeth swallowed hard but she wouldn’t allow herself to take another step away. “Is it true? Do I make you nervous?” The woman raised an eyebrow, making Elizabeth’s heart beat double-time.

“N-no. I’m not gay.” Elizabeth mentally scolded herself for her unorthodox reaction.

A smile spread across the woman’s face. “Sure you aren’t.” She gave Elizabeth a wink before returning to her friends in the Jeep. “We’re headed into the city to grab some drinks. You want to come along? We could grab some gas while we’re out there.”

Elizabeth looked down at her phone. “My boy…” She stopped, rethinking what she was about to say. “I have someone coming to get me.”

“Baby, it’s Pride. It’ll be hours before anyone makes it through the city to this side of town,” the purple-and-orange-clad driver shouted at her.

“Yeah, come on, come with us,” another voice from inside the Jeep called out to her.

“Come with us. Come with us,” they all chanted at her, making her laugh as they continued in unison.

She held her hands up. “All right, all right. I could use a drink anyways.” She considered her day so far and sighed at the truth in the statement. She could use several drinks.

Author Bio

Karma is a wine-enthusiast, feminist, activist, humanitarian, vegetarian and just all around liberal and that often seeps into her writing. She loves any place with white, white sand and blue, blue water and an endless supply of mo-suffix drinks (Moscato, Mojito, etc.).

Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/Karma_Kingsley

Smashwords author page: https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/karmakingsley

Email: KarmaKingsley@gmail.com

Check out NineStar Press events calendar for information on additional blog stops for Finding Lizzie and other upcoming releases!

Dive Into the Holiday Season with Christmas Stories from RJ Scott (giveaway)

Dive Into the Holiday Season with Christmas Stories from RJ Scott

“It’s the most wonderful time of the year” and I LOVE it! There’s something special about Christmas stories and as you can see, I also love writing them 🙂

In no particular order here they are:


The Christmas Throwaway The Christmas Throwaway, was my first Christmas themed book. Written as a short story for someone who was poorly in J2 fan fiction, I extended it from two thousand short words to over forty and so Ben and Zach were created. The book, a story of a young man thrown out of his house at Christmas for being gay, did really surprisingly well. It was All Romance’s best selling book of 2010 and also spent a lot of time in the top 300 of all romance novels on Amazon. It’s now available in Audio and has been translated into Spanish, Italian, French and now German. I love this little book that could so much. The Road To Frosty Hollow I love the concept of a road trip, particularly when you fall in love on that journey. Add in two men who have known each other a very long time and this is a story written with Meredith Russell that ticks all the boxes for a Christmas Romance.	Jesse’s Christmas This was my second Christmas themed book and spent some time with an old publisher before I was lucky enough to get it back. As soon as I got it back I doubled it in size! The story of someone who doesn’t really like Christmas landing in a town that won an award for best Christmas Town made me smile the entire time I was writing it.I couldn’t fail to love Gabriel who showed Jesse what Christmas could be about and how it is possibleto love again. Snow & Secrets One of my favourite storylines in a romance book at Christmas is the idea of a snowy cabin, enforced isolation, and two men falling in love. Snow, secrets, some danger, one hot tub, Christmas decorations, and family.

New York Christmas Awwww, my boys in New York. I loved writing this book. It started life as a J2 fanfiction twelve days of Christmas type short story. When I rewrote it I wanted to keep that idea of the days before Christmas, although of course the book starts just before Thanksgiving and ends in the New Year. There is also a free short story following on, available at Amber Kell’s blog here Snow In Montana My newest Christmas book, the fourth story in the Montana series is a look at Justin and Adam, alongside a whole new romance between a B list actor and a Sheriff. I love Christmas movies, and this novel is set against the March backdrop for filming Snow In Montana starring The King Of Christmas (TM) Jordan Darby. Meeting Ryan Carter, the local sheriff, is way too tempting for Jordan. How long can he stay in the closet?	Angel In A Book Shop The story of an angel and a man set in a book shop. I mean, how could I not enjoy writing this, it had a bookshop, a man with wings, and an angsty sad hero. Win/Win. It was based loosely on a short I wrote for Dreamspinner way back in 2010 (a bit, not much really, it was supposed to but it kind of grew like topsy and became something else). The short story I had written was my first ever accepted work for publishing and it HAD to be extended and become something else. Texas Christmas Writing the Texas series was a labour of love, and I had to put in a Christmas story for Jack, Riley, and their extended family. There is of course drama with the Campbell-Hayes, including a terrifying car trip home with the Christmas Tree. Add in the boy’s new family and this ends up being a very interesting Christmas for them all.

The Case Of The Sinful Santa End Street Detective Agency Book 4, written with Amber Kell How could we not explore the idea of a Klaus family in this series of books featuring vampires, demons, angels, dragons and one kind of human, along with a cast of many other paranormals? In this book we explored what it must be like born into the Klaus family but not wanting to be a Santa… And and of course, we introduced our very own Angel just to shake things up.	Christmas in the Sun The Sapphire Cay series comes to an end with book 6. I have loved writing this series with my very close friend Meredith Russell and we had to give the boys a Christmas book in 2013. We bought back a wedding planner with OCD decorating tendencies and his sexy Marine, Lucas and Dylan and a stray dog, and gave all of our boys a Christmas Day they wouldn’t forget.

The Journal Of Sanctuary One (Sanctuary book 6) Jake and Sean, with their love/hate relationship stuck in a cabin in the middle of nowhere for Christmas. Of course the Bullen storyline features but mostly this is me ticking ALL of my Christmas boxes. Two men, a cabin, stranded, anger, hate, love, sex and gratuitous use of a running machine. Sighs. I loved writing this book.	Deefur and the Mistletoe Incident A free short story Christmas gift This was part of a huge Christmas Anthology that I pulled together in 2013 featuring some 25 new authors. It is the sequel to Deefur The Dog, featuring a Manny, a widower, a sweet child, and of course a Great Dane called Deefur. This year it is being published with it’s own cover and wont cost you a penny!

Texas Winter (Texas #2) The book that was never supposed to be written… Did you know The Heart Of Texas was supposed to be a stand alone? ROFL… I couldn’t leave it though and so Texas winter was born. Snow doesn’t fall a lot in Texas but this story centers around a freak one-day snowfall. Add in a daughter Riley didn’t know he had and the Campbell-Hayes have their first real Christmas.	The Party – A blog story from six authors Written in 2012… Henry and Jack had thought nothing could ever drive them apart. They were wrong. Three months have passed since Jack had walked out of the home they shared, and Henry had been too stupid to take back the hurtful things he’d said. Both assured by their respective parents that the other would not be present at Henry’s mother’s annual Christmas gathering, they attend. Finding they have been duped into seeing each other, Henry realizes that this may be his only chance to try and make things right. But will he be able to convince Jack to come home?

Author Bio:

RJ Scott is the bestselling gay romance author of over ninety MM romance books. She writes emotional stories of complicated characters, cowboys, millionaire, princes, and the men who get mixed up in their lives. RJ is known for writing books that always end with a happy ever after. She lives just outside London and spends every waking minute she isn’t with family either reading or writing.

RJ also writes MF romance under the name Rozenn Scott.

The last time she had a weekís break from writing she didn’t like it one little bit, and she has yet to meet a bottle of wine she couldnít defeat.

www.rjscott.co.uk/
www.facebook.com/author.rjscott?ref=ts&amp;fref=ts
www.goodreads.com/author/show/3432558.R_J_Scott
twitter.com/Rjscott_author
www.librarything.com/author/scottrj

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Its Time for STRW Flash Fiction Announcements and This Week at Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words

Its Time for STRW Flash Fiction Announcements

First of all, thank you to all who sent in entries to our first ever STRW Flash Fiction Writing Month. We appreciate your participation and all entries will be showcased here. Putting your thoughts and emotions into words and a story can be one of the more daunting challenges you can attempt. We are doubly grateful for those that chose to do so and submitted them here.

Flash Fiction or micro stories are supposed to do what all stories do but in a condensed version. Make us think, move us, connect us to the characters, their loves, lives and worlds. All the stories we received did that beautifully. One made us laugh, several made us sob, one made us shout in recognition of the tumultuous events moved into the realm of science fiction, and and others? Just moving, imaginative and wonderful in their ability to pull at the heart and mind. Here are the stories in the order they were received. Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words cannot thanks these authors enough for their contributions.

STRW Flash Fiction Stories and Authors

Master’s Work by Tod Heil

What Is Left Out By R. R. Angell

Consequences by Andrea Speed

THE SMIRK’S UP By Jenny Tate

Christopher by Ross Common

Magpie King by Leslie Plank

What Weighs Us Down by K.S. Trenten

Sad and Silly Humans by K.S. Trenten

Which brings us to the contest. We loved them all, to us there was no clear winner. If we could, we’d declare them all winners and next year the rules will change. So we thought this year we would let the readers choose. We included a pole below. Vote for your favorite story.

Tod Heil, R.R. Angell, Andrea Speed, Jenny Tate, and Ross Common all have their choice of a $10 gift certificate from Amazon or Dreamspinner Press. Leslie Plank and K.S. Trenten will have a $10 Dreamspinner Press gift certificate as our thanks for their wonderful entries. The authors retain the copyrights to their stories. Stories may not be reprinted or copied without the express permission of the authors.

Now here’s our poll. For all the wonderful stories, visit our Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words Flash Fiction 2016 Page here for all the links. Note! For the readers who vote: We will gift a $10 DSP gift card to a reader (randomly chosen) who has voted. so readers please leave a comment once you have voted so we can pick someone as well as a email address. Vote ends on the Winter Solstice, 12/21 at midnight. The author will get the $25 Amazon gift card.

Our Dreamspinner Advent Calendar Reviews continue this week and all this month. Release Day Reviews are flowing off the days of the calendars as well. Are you looking in anticipation for a certain story? Check below to see if its included in one of our release day reviews. If you are a lover of audiobooks as we are, then check out our audiobook reviews which include a number of holiday stories too. There is so much on our calendar this week that there is something for everyone, from author interviews to RJ Scott’s tour with all her holiday stories! Don’t miss out on a day with us here at Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words!

This Week at Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words

Sunday, December 4:

Its Time for STRW Flash Fiction Announcements and Showcase
Our First Flash Fiction Story
In the LGBTQIA Spotlight: Finding Lizzie by Karma Kingsley (guest post, and excerpt)
RJ Scott’s Christmas Stories Tour and Giveaway

Monday, December 5:

Blog Tour & Giveaway – Operation Better Tomorrow by Brandi Evans
Ashavan Doyon on Not 1 but 2 Story Releases (guest post)
Release Blitz & Review Tour – Heated Beat Series by Garrett Leigh
A Release Day Review of Heated Beat by Garrett Leigh
A Barb the Zany Old Lady Release Day Review: Lost & Found by Rick R. Reed
A MelanieM Review: Drama Queen by Joe Cosentino
A Barb the Zany Old Lady Advent Calendar Day 6: Title Surprise

Tuesday, December 6th:

Release Day Blitz and Giveaway for for Wrapped Together (Portland Heat #5) by Annabeth Albert
Victoria Sue on Five Minutes More (guest post)
In Our Author Spotlight: Julia Talbot on Catching Heir (Dreamspinner Press guest blog)
A MelanieM Release Day Review: Wrapped Together (Portland Heat #5) by Annabeth Albert
A Stella Review: Heartifact by Aisling “Ash” Mancy
An Alisa Advent Calendar Review Day 6: Title Surprise
An Alisa Review: The Perfect Bite by J.D. Walker

Wednesday, December 7th:

Riptide Tour and Giveaway: EJ Russell’s Clickbait
Review Tour – Heated Beat Series (second book) by Garrett Leigh)
Review Tour – Annabelle Jacobs’ A Christmas Kiss
A MelanieM Review: A Christmas Kiss by Annabelle Jacobs
A Stella Advent Calendar Review Day 7: Title Surprise
A Lila Release Day Review: Hell Takes a Holiday By Kiernan Kelly
A MelanieM Release Day Review: The Unlikely Prospect (States of Love) by Lex Chase
A Lila Release Day Review: Cowboys Don’t Come Out by Tara Lain
An Alisa Release Day Review: Seven Minutes by Grace Kilian Delaney

Thursday, December 8th:

Riptide Publishing Tour and Giveaway: AJ Cousin’s Glass Tidings
Once Upon a Time in the Weird West Dreamspinner Steampunk Anthology Tour
Book Blitz and Giveaway – KC Wells’ Saving Jason
In Our Author Spotlight: DSP Author SJD Peterson
An Alisa Advent Calendar Review Day 8: Title Surprise
An Alisa Audiobook Review: Dirty Little Secret (Cabin For Two Series) by Freddy MacKay
A Barb the Zany Old Lady Audiobook Review: Trailer Trash by Marie Sexton and John Solo (Narrator)

Friday, December 9th:

Tara Lain on Writing and Cowboys Don’t Come Out (author guest blog)
Release Blitz Tour and Giveaway: Snow In Montana – RJ Scott
An Alisa Advent Calendar Review Day 9: Title Surprise
A Caryn Release Day Review: September by Robert Winter
An Alisa Audiobook Review: Forbidden Mate (Holland Brothers #4) by Toni Griffin
A Barb the Zany Old Lady Audiobook Review: What Happens at Christmas by Jay Northcote and Mark Steadman (Narrator)
An Alisa Releases Day Review: His Fairy Godfather by Cate Ashwood and Nico Jaye

Saturday, December 10th:

A Stella Advent Calendar Review Day 10: Title Surprise
Cover Reveal and One Day Book Blast: Tarnished Souls by Dev Bentham

Francis Gideon on Trans Characters and the release The Santa Hoax by Francis Gideon

The Santa Hoax by Francis Gideon
Harmony Ink Press
Release: December 1 2016

Sales Link

Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words would like to welcome Francis Gideon here today to talk about their latest release, The Santa Hoax. Welcome, Francis!

Hello everyone! My YA holiday romance The Santa Hoax came out with Harmony Ink Press on December 1st. The story contains several trans characters, including protagonist Julian, and documents some topical trans issues. Though I wrote the first draft of this book in the fall of 2013, the topics I covered seem more relevant than ever.

The story documents Julian’s coming out as he tells people about his identity. As I’ve talked about in other blog posts during this tour, coming out is never simple and often needs to happen more than once. Trans people in particular need to deal with the reality of depending on other people to get their names and pronouns right. Julian suffers with this–at first because he doesn’t tell anyone he’s trans–and then when he deals with transphobia. There’s not *too* much transphobic language in the story (because at its core, it’s really a sweet holiday romance that just happens to be about a trans guy), but the one thing that I wanted to focus on was the infamous bathroom problem.

Enough people here probably remember the bill H2 in North Carolina and how upset it made the trans community. If not, here’s a brief article on its history and what happened. The bathroom problem is something that’s followed trans people around for ages. If you’re trans, what bathroom do you use, and what will people say when you’re in that bathroom? The common theme in most of these debates is that trans women will come into women’s bathroom and attack other women (except that the opposite in real life is usually true). In Julian’s case, he’s a trans guy and only fifteen, so the same fear or judgement doesn’t exactly apply to him, but he’s still threatened and punished in some way for using the bathroom (I don’t want to give too much away about how/why/who) and this makes Julian, along with his friends, seek some kind of resolution and justice. In the story, I created a fake politician in Toronto (where the story is set) who made a similar ruling like North Carolina’s case, and a social media uprising from trans people that rallied against it.

Even though my take on this issue is fictional, there are far too many real-life examples of this kind of systemic transphobia. Even in Canada, yes. I know that Canada is often held up as the pinnacle of all things diverse, especially now after the US election, but we have diversity issues. Everywhere has diversity issues. The world doesn’t seem like it’s made for people who are different–so I’ve always seen my job as a writer to imagine something better. So while I talk a lot about transphobia in this post and it seems like a general downer, I assure you–the book has a happy ending. It’s also about falling in love and being a secret Santa and learning about your friends in a way that is healthy and safe and fun. I’ve included one of the happier holiday scenes of Julian and his friends looking at Christmas lights as an excerpt, so my post isn’t a total bummer. 😉

The Santa Hoax was a joy to write, so I hope it’s a joy to read. Thank you!

Book Blurb

When Julian Gibson realizes he’s transgender, he doesn’t think anything has to change. His parents and friends still call him Julia and think he’s a girl, but so long as Julian can still hang out with his best friend Aiden and read sci-fi novels with his dad, life seems pretty good.

Then high school happens. Aiden ditches him, and a new girl, Maria, keeps cornering him in the girls’ bathroom. A full year after discovering he’s transgender, Julian realizes life changes whether you’re ready for it or not. So Julian makes a deal with himself: if he can tell his secret to three people, it is no longer a hoax. What happens during his slow process of coming out leads Julian down odd pathways of friendship, romance, Christmas shopping, random parties, bad movies, and a realization about why kids still believe in Santa—it’s sometimes better than discovering the truth.

Excerpt

“There you are!” Maria said, eagerly greeting him.

She wore jeggings that clung to her thighs and waist, along with a white coat Julian hadn’t seen before. Josie hung around at her side, wearing pretty much the exact same thing she had earlier, looking up from her phone every so often to verify where they were. She has GPS. How adorable. Davis was by her side, his baseball hat pulled down over his face. The collar of his dark jacket was flipped up in the slight wind and obscured his face.

“Sorry if I’m late,” Julian apologized. “Had to say good-bye to my dad.”

“Nah, you’re fine. Just on time.” Maria linked her arm with Julian’s as they moved toward the sidewalk. “Where are we going now, Josie?”

“Just to the left,” she said, then leaned close to Julian and whispered so only he could hear. “Davis is driving me crazy already. Help.”

“Just focus on the lights,” he said. “And maybe think of drawing a comic or two.”

“Come on,” Maria stated, keeping Julian’s attention on her. “Show me some houses.”

Josie walked ahead of the two of them, Davis by her side. They continued down the block two by two as the sun sank behind the trees. The chill set in almost immediately after, and though the wind whipped at their faces and blew Maria’s hair, she never once complained about being cold. Julian had no idea what he was supposed to do if she was. Do I give her my coat? That was what guys on dates did. But if this was a date—not that it was—then Maria probably saw him as a girl. So Julian was doubly confused and decided to not think about it at all. He pulled the group over into the next subdivision, where they were almost blinded by the first house they saw. Lights lined the roof, crisscrossing and in several different Christmas colors. There were also a few light-up Santas, snowmen, and Christmas stars hanging by the garage.

“Oh, wow. It’s like walking on the surface of the sun,” Josie exclaimed, using a hand to block some of the light.

“Total Griswolds,” Maria commented. “Like that movie Christmas Vacation, you know?”

“Yeah, I guess. Just like that.”

“Their electricity bills must be through the roof,” Josie stated. “No wonder there is global warming.”

“If there is, why is it still so cold?” Davis asked, rubbing his hands together.

Josie began to explain, only getting through a few complex statements before Davis put his hands up. “Okay, fine, fine. I’m wrong. I get it.”

Maria rolled her eyes and then tugged Julian forward. “So is this a house you like? You strike me as someone more subtle.”

“Yeah,” Julian said, grinning. “I walk around a lot, actually. Let me show you a better house.”

After a small walk, Julian stopped them in front of Mr. Stevenson’s house. His blue icicle lights hung over the garage and by his front windows. He also had a floodlight that displayed a small silhouette of a snowman on his garage.

“Okay,” Maria said. “Why do you like this one?”

“It’s not too garish, or even that Christmas or religious oriented.”

“And?” Maria asked, nudging him. “You’re holding out on me.”

“Well, if you think about it, this time of year is really about light, right? All the holidays celebrate light because it’s the darkest time.”

Everyone nodded, so Julian went on. “And this house is usually dark most of the time. Mr. Stevenson used to work at my elementary school, actually. He was the music teacher, but he got sick, and his kids have to take care of him now. But they still put up his lights, and I really like that. I don’t know. The whole thing reminds me of learning to play an instrument in his class. Probably dumb.”

“No, no,” Maria said, squeezing his arm. “Not dumb. What did you play?”

“Piano. I was never that good, though.”

“You probably were, but you’re just shy now. That’s okay,” Maria said, her eyes going back to the house. “I can appreciate this.”

Julian nodded. He wanted to add more about how he had first started playing, but realizing that would involve Aiden, he cut off the thought before it had a chance to catch hold. When Julian heard clicking from a phone, he turned to see Davis in the middle of writing a message, not even listening to what he had just said. That was okay, really. Julian hadn’t really been talking to Davis when he told the story. But as he looked back to find Josie, she was already across the street, taking a picture of a rabbit in the bushes. It had been Maria, and only Maria, who was listening intently to him. When he glanced back over to her, he found her staring at him.

“What?” he asked.

“Nothing,” she said, smiling softly. “Just thanks for telling me. I wouldn’t have known any of that without you.”

“I got a million stories.”

“I’ll bet,” Maria said, then looked past him toward Josie with a sigh. “But we should probably catch up with the group. And I think this street is a dead end, right?”

Author Bio:

Francis Gideon is a writer of m/m romance, but he also dabbles in mystery, fantasy, historical, and paranormal fiction. He has appeared in Gay Flash Fiction, Chelsea Station Poetry, and the Martinus Press anthology To Hell With Dante. He lives in Canada with his partner, reads too many comics books, and drinks too much coffee. Feel free to contact him, especially if you want to talk about horror movies, LGBT poetry, or NBC’s Hannibal. Find him at francisgideon.wordpress.com.

An Ali Review: Painting with Fire (Survivors Find Love #1) by Lissa Kasey

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

Charlie “Wood Chuck” Fox knows his best friend and fellow wildfire firefighter Jessie Row had a major family break up in her past. Charlie has adopted her into his heart and into his huge family and when Jessie gets word her mother has passed away, Charlie fears returning home is going to tear her up.

Bastian Hart’s choice of career as a doll painter has put him at odds with his family. He’s made a sanctuary for himself on the San Juan Island of Friday Harbor, an hour away from his family. He welcomes his aunt Jessie and her friend Charlie into his house as they all prepare for the upcoming funeral. Charlie and Bastian discover a spark of smoldering fire igniting between them, but Charlie is unwilling to push and Bastian hesitant to trust.

They will have to wade through pain, hate, and fear to find their future together.

This was a lovely story about two unlikely men falling in love. When Charlie and Jessie go back to her home town they end up stating with Bastian. Bastian is younger and is a doll maker for a living. He has had an abusive past with his family and he’s very lonely and fragile. The two men are immediately attracted to each other and their relationship is a slow bloom kind of thing. Bastian has some emotional issues he needs to work through and Charlie has the patience to take the time to work through them with him. I enjoyed watching these two fall in love and I liked them as a couple.

I found Bastian’s job really interesting and something I’ve never read in a romance story before. I felt the author did a good job showing us what this profession entails and also uses it to show us facets of Bastien’s personality. I also felt the atmosphere was set well. It was easy to image the town and Bastian’s home.

Overall I really enjoyed this. The main plot was a classic hurt/comfort trope but the author added in enough different things (such as Bastian’s job) to make it feel like a unique story. This is a story I would recommend and I will be looking forward to more books in this series.

The cover art is nice enough but does not really stand out to me.

Sales Links

Book Details:

Kindle Edition, 173 pages

Published December 2nd 2016

ASIN B01MDPH0X0

Edition Language
English Series Survivors Find Love #1

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The Rodeo Knight (Sam’s Cafe Romances #3) by Ashavan Doyon Dreamspinner Press Cover art by Bree Archer

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Heated Beat Collection – Garrett Leigh

Giveaway

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Finding Lizzie by Karma Kingsley Cover Artist: Natasha Snow

NineStar Press

My Playlist by Karma Kingsley

About Finding Lizzie

Excerpt

Author Bio

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Dive Into the Holiday Season with Christmas Stories from RJ Scott

Giveaway

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Its Time for STRW Flash Fiction Announcements

STRW Flash Fiction Stories and Authors

This Week at Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words

Sunday, December 4:

Monday, December 5:

Tuesday, December 6th:

Wednesday, December 7th:

Thursday, December 8th:

Friday, December 9th:

Saturday, December 10th:

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The Santa Hoax by Francis Gideon Harmony Ink Press Release: December 1 2016

Book Blurb

Excerpt

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The Rodeo Knight (Sam’s Cafe Romances #3) by Ashavan Doyon
Dreamspinner Press
Cover art by Bree Archer

Finding Lizzie by Karma Kingsley
Cover Artist: Natasha Snow

The Santa Hoax by Francis Gideon
Harmony Ink Press
Release: December 1 2016