Category: Contemporary fiction

Coffee Sip and Book Break with ‘Sweet’ by Alysia Constantine (author interview, excerpt and giveaway)

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Sweet by Alysia Constantine
 Release Date: February 4, 2016

Goodreads Link:
 Publisher: Interlude Press
Cover Artist: C.B. Messer

Today I’m very lucky to be interviewing Alysia Constantine, author of (Sweet).  Hi, Alysia, thank you for agreeing to this interview. Can you share a little  something about your story with our readers?

  • Tell us about your book.

Sweet is a love story, and also a story about how we tell stories.  I think these two things are related—most of us grow up having heard all manner of fairy tales and love stories, and we build expectations as a result of that, and our real lives don’t quite measure up.  Especially for those of us who are gay—we’re under a lot of pressure to be romantic and fall in fairy-tale love, or else be accused of fulfilling the stereotype about promiscuous gays.  On the surface, Sweet is the story of how two men—Jules, a baker mourning the loss of his husband Andy, and Teddy, a frustrated accountant—meet, how they court through pastry and shared pleasure, and how they fall in love.  But it’s also the story of what we expect from a love story, and from our own lives.  I might call it a self-conscious love story.

  • How difficult was it to get into the main character’s head?

In this story, the chapters shift between being close in POV to Teddy and close to Jules, but the main character is actually the third-person narrator, who occasionally interjects into the narrative to remind us that s/he is telling a story, that everything is an invention.  (To me, much as I hope people get caught up in the story, Sweet is about stories themselves, about narratives, and about how we invest in them.  Most of us get told throughout our childhood—no, throughout our entire lives—called something like “The Natural Inevitability and Superiority of Straightness,” and it’s a narrative in which we come to believe, unless something goes “wrong.” (That’s Freud’s idea, thank you Siggie.))  In my mind, that narrator is actually the main character.  The voice is half Cynical Omniscient and half Fairy Tale Believer, and I think it’s a voice very natural to me, very close to my own.  And, I would wager, a pretty common tone for those of us who’ve grown up gay or queer in a culture that’s generally hostile to anybody who’s not straight.  You get used to living as a pess/optimist: you’re prepared for the worst while hoping for the best.

  • Is this book a standalone or do you plan on visiting it again?

As I see it now, it’s a standalone.  The novel I’m working on next involves circus performers… a very different world!  I’m interested now in thinking about margins and outsiders—the circus really allows for that.  Sweet is about pleasure, to me.  I think I’ve written what asked to be written there.

  • Why did you choose to write M/M stories?

I don’t exclusively write M/M stories—the novel I’m writing now is about women in the circus.  But I am interested in gay/queer stories, and those are the stories I’m more inclined to tell, because those are the stories that are so often silenced now, or are missing from the past, and those are the stories I wished were taught in my English class as a miserable gay teen in the midwest.  Sweet was just naturally a story about two men falling in love—I don’t think the characters could have been anyone other than who they are.  I also felt a bit resistant to putting lesbians on display in a novel, making their lives a thing for consumption (women are always put up for view, lesbians most especially—it seems like men are much more rarely made the object of everyone’s gaze), but I’m past that now.  Not to say it isn’t a very valid critique, but I’m ready to write the stories I wished were there—about queers, no matter the gender.  And I think I’ve found a home for a story about lesbians that isn’t a salacious or voyeuristic home.  Interlude Press has, more than I can say, affected me so deeply—I wish it had been around when I was growing up.

  • Where do you find your inspiration?

For Sweet, I was inspired both by my past as a baker/pastry chef and by thinking about how and why we tell stories, and how powerful it can be to have a story that reflects some part of you.  I was inspired by the narrator’s voice, when it started speaking in my head, because it felt vital to me.  More than just a love story, this was answering back to all the love stories I’d ever read.  I was also inspired by all the good food I’ve eaten, and some really good recipes.  I try to keep myself inspired that delicious way.  I live in NYC, which has so much good and interesting food… I’ve inspired myself a lot.

Blurb

Not every love story is a romance novel.

For Jules Burns, a lonely baker, it is the memory of his deceased husband, Andy. For Teddy Flores, a numbed-to-the-world accountant who accidentally stumbles into his bakery, it is a voyage of discovery into his deep connections to pleasure, to the world, and to his own heart.

Alysia Constantine’s Sweet is also the story of how we tell stories—of what we expect and need from a love story. The narrator is on to you, Reader, and wants to give you a love story that doesn’t always fit the bill. There are ghosts to exorcise, and jobs and money to worry about. Sweet is a love story, but it also reminds us that love is never quite what we expect, nor quite as blissfully easy as we hope.

 

Praise for ‘Sweet’ by Alysia Constantine from Publisher’s Weekly: http://www.publishersweekly.com/978-1-941530-61-0

Pages or Words: 246 pages
 Categories: Contemporary, Fiction, Gay Fiction, M/M Romance, Romance

Excerpt

“Speakerphone.”

“What?”

“Speakerphone. Put me on speaker so you can use your hands. You’re going to need both hands, and I won’t be held responsible for you mucking up your phone. Speaker.”

Teddy set his phone on the counter and switched to the speaker, then stood waiting.

“Hello?” Jules said. “Is this thing on?”

“Sorry,” Teddy said. “I’m still here.”

“It sounded like you’d suddenly disappeared. I was starting to believe in the rapture,” Jules said, and Teddy heard, again, the nervous chuckle.

Their conversation was awkward and full of strange pauses in which there was nothing right to say, and they focused mostly on how awkward and strange it was until Jules told Teddy to dump the almond paste on the counter and start to knead in the sugar.

“I’m doing it, too, along with you,” Jules said.

“I’m not sure whether that makes it more or less weird,” Teddy admitted, dusting everything in front of him with sugar.

“It’s just like giving a back rub,” Jules told him. “Roll gently into the dough with the heel of your hand, lean in with your upper body. Think loving things. Add a little sugar each time—watch for when it’s ready for more. Not too much at once.”

Several moments passed when all that held their connection was a string of huffed and effortful breaths and the soft thump of dough. Teddy felt Jules pressing and leaning forward into his work, felt the small sweat and ache that had begun to announce itself in Jules’s shoulders, felt it when he held his breath as he pushed and then exhaled in a rush as he flipped the dough, felt it all as surely as if Jules’s body were there next to him, as if he might reach to the side and, without glancing over, brush the sugar from Teddy’s forearm, a gesture which might have been, if real, if the result of many long hours spent in the kitchen together, sweet and familiar and unthinking.

“My grandmother and I used to make this,” Jules breathed after a long silence, “when I was little. Mine would always become flowers. She would always make hers into people.”

Teddy understood that he needn’t reply, that Jules was speaking to him, yes, but speaking more into the empty space in which he stood as a witness, talking a story into the evening around him, and he, Teddy, was lucky to be near, to listen in as the story spun itself out of Jules and into the open, open quiet.

When the dough was finished and Jules had interrupted himself to say, “There, mine’s pretty done. I bet yours is done by now, too,” Teddy nodded in agreement—and even though he knew Jules couldn’t see him, he was sure Jules would sense him nodding through some miniscule change in his breathing or the invisible tension between them slackening just the slightest bit. And he did seem to know, because Jules paused and made a satisfied noise that sounded as if all the spring-coiled readiness had slid from his body. “This taste,” Jules sighed, “is like Proust’s madeleine.”

They spent an hour playing with the dough and molding it into shapes they wouldn’t reveal to each other. Teddy felt childish and happy and inept and far too adult all at once as he listened to the rhythmic way Jules breathed and spoke, the way his voice moved in and out of silence, like the advance and retreat of shallow waves that left in their wake little broken treasures on the shore.

Only his fingers moved, fumbling and busy and blind as he listened, his whole self waiting for Jules to tell him the next thing, whatever it might be.

Buy the book:

Meet the author:

Alysia Constantine lives in Brooklyn with her wife, their two dogs, and a cat. When she is not writing, she is a professor at an art college. Before that, she was a baker and cook for a caterer, and before that, she was a poet.

Sweet is her first novel.

Where to find the author:

 


RainBannerTemplateTour Dates & Stops:

4-Feb

Scattered Thoughts & Rogue Words, Book Lovers 4Ever, Hearts on Fire

5-Feb

A.M. Leibowitz, Love Bytes, Bayou Book Junkie

8-Feb

Fangirl Moments and My Two Cents, Divine Magazine, MM Good Book Reviews

9-Feb

Sinfully Addicted to All Male Romance, Kirsty Loves Books, Just Love Romance

10-Feb

Happily Ever Chapter, My Fiction Nook, Havan Fellows

11-Feb

V’s Reads, Kiki’s Kinky Picks, Lee Brazil, Elisa – My Reviews and Ramblings

12-Feb

Jessie G. Books, 3 Chicks After Dark, Book Reviews and More by Kathy

15-Feb

Wicked Faerie’s Tales and Reviews, Three Books Over the Rainbow, BFD Book Blog

16-Feb

Dawn’s Reading Nook, Inked Rainbow Reads

17-Feb

Prism Book Alliance, Up All Night, Read All Day, Molly Lolly, Alpha Book Club

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Giveaway

Enter to win a Rafflecopter Prize: $25 Interlude Press gift card to one winner, e-copies of ‘Sweet’ to five additional winners.  Must be 18 years of age or older to enter. Link and prizes provided by the author and Pride Promotions.
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A Stella Review: Out! (The Shamwell Tales #3) by J.L. Merrow

RATING 4,5 out of 5 stars

Out!When the costs are added up, will love land in the black?

Mark Nugent has spent his life in the closet—at least, the small part of it he hasn’t spent in the office. Divorced when he could no longer deny his sexuality, he’s sworn off his workaholic ways and moved to Shamwell with his headstrong teen daughter to give her a stable home environment.

His resolve to put his love life on hold is severely tested when he joins a local organization and meets a lively yet intense young man who tempts him closer to the closet threshold.

Patrick Owen is an out-and-proud charity worker with strong principles—and a newly discovered weakness for an older man. One snag: Mark is adamant he’s not coming out to his daughter, and Patrick will be damned if he’s going to start a relationship with a lie.

Between Mark’s old-fashioned attitudes and a camp, flirtatious ex-colleague who wants Mark for himself, Patrick wonders if they’ll ever be on the same romantic page. And when Mark’s former career as a tax advisor clashes with Patrick’s social conscience, it could be the one stumbling block they can’t get past.

Ladies and gentlemen, we have another winner from the amazing JL Merrow! She is one of my favorite authors and The Shamwell Tales series is really great. Out! was a great addition to an already well done series. It was engaging and English like all JL’s works.

Out! was a light story, there was really nothing too heavy, making it perfect for a pleasurable reading time. As always the characters were all well defined and enjoyable, but it’s probably the first time with this author, I have to admit that I liked the secondary characters, Lex and David especially, more than Mark and Patrick.  In fact I’d like to beg JL to please, pretty please, write Lex’s story. They deserve it.

What I particularly appreciate in Out! is that I felt everything about the story was real and authentic, in Mark’s struggles with his teenage daughter Fen, in the development of his relationship with Patrick and in their different points of view of important things. The funny dialogues often reflected the ones I have in my RL, so it was easy to empathize with their lives and everyday issues.

I want to highly recommend this story and the whole series, it’s fun, light and easy. Don’t miss it!

Just a note: all books can be read as a standalone.

The COVER ART by Kanaxa is not my favorite of the artist and in the Merrow’s series. Most of all I can’t see my MCs in the model on the cover. But it’s clearly well done.

Sales Links:  Samhain Publishing | All Romance (ARe) | Amazon | Buy It Here

Book Details:

ebook, 322 pages
Published January 19th 2016 by Samhain Publishing
Original TitleOut!
ISBN 1619229935 (ISBN13: 9781619229938)
Edition LanguageEnglish

The Shamwell Tales series – with links to Stella’s reviews:

A Barb the Zany Old Lady Review: Pain Slut (The Subs Club, #2) by J.A. Rock

Rating: 4.5 stars  out of 5

PainSlut_600x900Miles is a pain slut. In fact, he’s the resident authority on pain among members of the Subs Club, a group formed a few months before in “an attempt to give submissives a private place to discuss safety concerns in the kink community.” As the story opens, Miles is participating in a scene with one of his favorite sadists. The scene is explicit and uses medical props so those who are squeamish and not able to read about masochism will be able to test their tolerance early in the story. But for Miles, it’s what he wants and needs, and he’s still suffering the aftereffects (swollen testicles) when there’s an emergency at his business, and he has to go in to take care of it.

He’s dressed in loose-fitting sweats and a T-shirt and slinks in the back door because he doesn’t want anyone to see him. Of course, that’s when the customer at his custom shirt design company spots him. Miles looks up, and up, to the six foot seven inch tall, gorgeous, long-haired, blond man who smiles back at him with shiny, sharp-pointed teeth. And, yes, it turns out his customer, Drix Seger, is a vampyre—a member of a community who believe in feeding on the prana, or life force, of others. He tells Miles he’s a sadist and he likes blood play, but his real kick is in feeding on persons with a really powerful life force.

Miles has met the perfect man for him. Drix is not only a sadist, but he’s willing to train with Miles’s favorite Dom so that he can meet his need for pain. But Miles is in a quandary—he’s just been approved for adoption, and he’s fearful his lifestyle will interfere, causing the agency to turn him down. Staying involved in the Subs Club as they extend their meetings to include community outreach to college campuses and other groups, and staying involved with Drix, knowing he’s risking the adoption with this relationship have Miles’s head spinning. And the more he spins out of control, the more he needs to submit to pain.

At a deeper emotional level, Miles has never learned to share his feelings with others. He keeps them bottled up and rarely shares with his family, his friends in the Subs Club, or even with Drix. He wants to— especially now that he’s beginning to feel so much for Drix, but he can’t seem to force himself to do it. He doesn’t realize it at first, but all of his carefully erected emotional walls are starting to crumble as he learns valuable truths about himself. Can he leave the Subs Club behind? Will he be able to adopt? Can he find his HEA with a vampyre?

I really enjoyed this story for a number of reasons. The author presented sadism and masochism in a straightforward and enlightening way, giving both a definition and demonstrations. Note—this book is not for the faint of heart or those looking for mild BDSM. There’s hardcore sadism in this one.

What I most enjoyed while reading the book was meeting Miles— being treated to a glimpse of his psyche as he moved from a serious playtime pain slut who took control of his scenes to a totally wrecked and blissed-out pain slut whose heart and mind are placed totally in the hands of his sadist, his lover, his man, Drix. Add to that, his insights into his ability to be a good parent, his fears that his inability to make a decision will make him a bad parent and poor role model, and his awakening love for and dependence on Drix, and I was totally wowed.

I recommend this to all lovers of BDSM, and especially to those with an interest in sado-masochism. And if you like a story in which the MC grows and matures and realizes his self-worth over the course of the book, this one is perfect for you.

~~~~~
Cover Art by Kanaxa shows a small surgical knife against a teal blue argyle background. The background, using different colors, is being repeated throughout the series, and a different BDSM-related symbol will be displayed on the cover each time. I like the way the general look of the cover links all the stories in the series.

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

Book Details:

ebook, 320 pages
Published January 30th 2016 by Riptide Publishing
Original TitlePain Slut
ISBN 1626493456 (ISBN13: 9781626493452)
Edition LanguageEnglish

SeriesThe Subs Club #2

Love and Kink Returns When The Sub Club Continues with ‘Pain Slut (The Subs Club #2)’ by J.A. Rock (giveaway)

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Pain Slut (The Subs Club #2) by J.A. Rock
Published by Riptide Publishing
Cover Artist Kanaxa

Read an Excerpt/Purchase a Copy Here

Hi! I’m J.A. Rock, and right now I’m touring the internet talking about my latest release Pain Slut—Book 2 in The Subs Club series. Thanks so much to the blogs that are hosting me on this tour, and be sure to leave comments on the tour posts for a chance to win your choice of two backlist ebooks and a $10 Amazon gift card!

About Pain Slut

Honestly, I’m ready to take a step back from the Subs Club. Making the kink world a safer place for subs is the sort of bandwagon I’d have boarded as an idealist in my early twenties, but now I’m a pragmatist in my late twenties. I prefer to focus on adopting and raising a child.

But unexpected factors inevitably derail my plans. Like Drix Seger—attractive and the first genuine sadist I’ve encountered. If I were not in the process of renouncing my masochistic ways and becoming the normal, responsible potential father the adoption agency wants to see, Drix and I might do well together. But he has a foolish name and belongs to a cult of vampyres, and I am quitting kink. So why does Drix’s infatuation with blood and biting make me so hot I can’t think straight? And why, when he looks at me, does he seem to see something beyond a basket case with a stick up my ass?

Can I start a new phase in my life without leaving part of myself behind? Please send help.

—Miles

About the Subs Club series

After the death of their friend Hal at the hands of an irresponsible dom, submissive friends Dave, Kamen, Miles, and Gould band together to form the Subs Club—an organization seeking to expose dangerous local doms. The club slowly evolves as romances blossom, loyalties are tested, and tensions mount in a community already struggling for unity in the wake of Hal’s death.

From domestic discipline to knife play to fashion paraphilia, and from family drama to new jobs to first loves, the members of the Subs Club explore life’s kinks inside and outside of the bedroom as they attempt to let go of the past and move forward.

This title is part of the The Subs Club Collection collection. Check out the collection discount! – See more at: http://www.riptidepublishing.com/titles/pain-slut

About the Author

J.A. Rock is the author of queer romance and suspense novels, including BY HIS RULES, TAKE THE LONG WAY HOME, and, with Lisa Henry, THE GOOD BOY and WHEN ALL THE WORLD SLEEPS. She holds an MFA in creative writing from the University of Alabama and a BA in theater from Case Western Reserve University. J.A. also writes queer fiction and essays under the name Jill Smith. Raised in Ohio and West Virginia, she now lives in Chicago with her dog, Professor Anne Studebaker.

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Giveaway

Leave a comment for a chance to win your choice of two backlist titles from J.A. Rock and a $10 Amazon gift card. Entries close at midnight, Eastern time, on February 6, 2016. Contest is NOT restricted to U.S. Entries. Thanks for following the tour, and don’t forget to leave your contact info!

TheSubsClub_600x900PainSlut_600x900Manties in a Twist24:7 the Sub Clue

The Subs Club (The Subs Club, #1) with a link to our review, a highly rated novel at Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words

Pain Slut (The Subs Club, #2)  our review to follow

Manties in a Twist (The Subs Club, #3) – a delicious title that’s coming soon….

24/7 (The Subs Club, #4) as is this

An Up Close Look at Lane Hayes’ ‘A Kind of Truth’ (author interview, excerpt and giveaway)

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A Kind of Truth (A Kind Of #1) by Lane Hayes
Release Date: January 8, 2016

Goodreads Link
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Cover Artist: Aaron Anderson

Today I’m very lucky to be interviewing Lane Hayes author of A Kind of Truth. Hi Lane, thank you for agreeing to this interview.

Thank you so much for having me over to talk about my newest release!

  • Is there a character in your books that you can’t stand? (Antagonist for example) And what makes them someone you don’t like?

In A Kind of Truth, there are a couple of antagonists I don’t like, but the one that stands out for me is Will’s mom. She’s horrible. She stands for every fundamental right-winger with tragic tunnel vision. Readers may get the sense she wasn’t always this way, but now she clings to her “moral” choices in order to preserve her own interests. In a reelection year, that sounds awfully familiar, doesn’t it?

  • Are there misconceptions people have about your genre?

Plenty! I think some people don’t like the romance genre on principle. Serious “intellectual” readers scoff and say romance is trash, but mystery, sci-fi and paranormal are “okay”. LGBT romance may be even considered by some as a fetish read, along the same vein as erotica. It’s not up to me to educate the plethora of idiots out there, but I will say this… there is no shame in wanting to write or read beautiful stories with complex characters who grapple with fear and loneliness to find love and hope. There are gorgeous stories by very talented authors in the MM romance genre. I’d hate for a romance lover to miss out due to misconceptions about the genre.

  • Is there message in your novel that you hope readers grasp?

Be true to yourself! And above all, don’ t be afraid to dream big and go for it!

  • How has your writing evolved since your first book?

A Kind of Truth is my eighth published book. I think I’m a more confident writer now than I was when I wrote my first novel, Better Than Good, in 2012. I hadn’t done any serious writing in years at that point so I know the editors at DSP had their hands full! Lol! Confidence in my craft has made me willing to stretch a bit and tackle subjects I wasn’t always comfortable with. I’m definitely still a work in progress, though!

  • One food you don’t care if you never eat it again.

Brussel sprouts. Sorry, but… ew.

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Blurb

Rand O’Malley dreams of superstardom. He hopes to one day sing the blues like a rock god. Moving to New York City and hiring a new manager are steps to make his dreams a reality. But nothing moves as fast as Rand would like, and everyone has opinions, which include he keep certain pieces of himself quiet if he plans on making it in the Big Apple. Like his bisexuality.

Will Sanders is a gifted musician who dazzles Rand with his ability to coax gorgeous notes from an electric guitar one moment and play the piano like a professional the next. He’s a geek, but Rand isn’t concerned about Will’s pressed exterior clashing with his tattoos. His focus is music. Yet there’s something about Will that makes Rand think there’s much more to the quiet college student than he lets on. As Rand’s dreams begin to materialize, he’s forced to reconsider his priorities and find his own kind of truth. One that might include Will.

 

Pages or Words: 82,000 words
 Categories: Bisexual, Contemporary, Erotica, Gay Fiction, Humor, M/M Romance, Romance

Excerpt for A Kind of Truth by Lane Hayes

Watching Will’s face turn pink then red was extraordinarily entertaining. I nudged his elbow playfully and tried to gain control of my smile before it threatened to take over my entire face. When I couldn’t take the building pressure of emotion, I winked at the girls then leaned in and kissed his lips, loving that I took him by surprise. The elevator doors slid open a moment later. Will stepped into the empty corridor and gave me a wide-eyed incredulous stare.

“I cannot believe you just did that.”

“What? Kissed you on an elevator? It’s not like farting, ya know.”

Will huffed a sigh that clearly said he thought I was hopeless before turning to walk down the hall. “I was talking about the underwear comment but yeah, the kissing part was awkward too. No one wants to watch two people going at in a confined space. And besides, we’re supposed to be playing this strictly straight while we’re in public.”

He stopped to unlock the door to the classroom then pushed it open, pausing to give me a perturbed look before he moved inside ahead of me. I barked a quick laugh as I set my guitar on the back table and shrugged my jacket off.

“First of all, that was hardly going at it. It was a peck. You were the one advertising I left my clothes at your place in front of a couple cute girls. And who said anything about playing straight?”

“Were we not in the same room two mornings ago talking about this?”

“We were. In fact, we were naked in your bed. Decidedly un-straight. But the way I remember it, I was one who was holding back the gay while you were the one going for it. But let’s go back to the elevator. I think you purposefully blew my cover back there with those girls. Were you jealous?”

He snorted and rolled his eyes. “You’re unbelievable.”

“Thanks.”

“It wasn’t a compliment,” he quipped as he made his way to the piano.

“Well, the next time you announce you’re holding my underwear hostage in a crowd, all bets are off, baby.” I gave him a lascivious once-over and waggled my eyebrows before tightening the strap on my guitar.

Will chuckled. “I’ll keep that in mind. But I’m pretty sure your tighty-whities never came up. My comment was perfectly innocent. There’s a big difference between hats and underwear.”

“I’m on to you, Will. You wanted those girls to know something’s going on between us. They’re probably talking right now. Bet they’re wondering if we’re in here having sex. Hell, they could be outside that door listening. Maybe we should give ‘em something to talk about.” I made a show of unbuckling my belt and the top button on my 501s. “Is there a camera in this room?”

“Keep your pants on. I’ve got two months left till graduation and I’d prefer not to get kicked out of school, please,” Will said primly, smacking my hand away.

“You won’t get kicked out. I doubt we’d be the first anyway.”

I rezipped my jeans and started to back up, but at the last second, I reached out to cup his chin between my thumb and forefinger. I traced his jaw and let my thumb roam higher to caress his cheekbone just under his glasses. His eyes fluttered shut. I loved the contrast of his fair skin and darker lashes and eyebrows. He was so damn pretty. And those lips. They were sensuous. That was the word. I leaned in and brushed my nose against his. I could feel his breath on my lips. The urge to plunge my tongue inside and take what I was very sure we both wanted was strong, but I waited for his permission.

When he didn’t respond, I let my hand fall to my side and started to pull back. Maybe he really was serious about propriety in the classroom. I wasn’t used to curbing my impulses to suit someone’s else’s sensibilities. I’d spent twenty-five years doing only what I wanted. Screw anyone else. Now here I was, attempting to hide my gay side publicly while trying to follow Will’s lead in private. It felt strange, I thought, just as Will launched himself at me.

I grunted in surprise when he wrapped his arms around my neck and crashed his mouth over mine. He softened the connection and tilted his head as he raked his fingers through my hair. I responded but let him control the tempo. Until he tentatively licked my lips. Fuck, he tasted sweeter than I remembered. Like peppermint candy or hot chocolate. I pulled him flush against my chest and slid my tongue alongside his, twisting and colliding in a passionate fusion. When he gasped for air I pulled back only to have him grind his hips into mine and lick my jaw. He swayed into me with a moan and lost his footing.

“Steady there.”

Will was sexier than he knew, which spelled potential danger for me. It was better to let the music take over for now.

Buy the book: Dreamspinner eBook & Paperback 

 

Meet the Author

Lane Hayes is grateful to finally be doing what she loves best. Writing full-time! It’s no secret Lane loves a good romance novel. An avid reader from an early age, she has always been drawn to well-told love story with beautifully written characters. These days she prefers the leading roles to both be men. Lane discovered the M/M genre a few years ago and was instantly hooked. Her debut novel was a 2013 Rainbow Award finalist and subsequent books have received Honorable Mentions in the 2014 and 2015 Rainbow Awards. She loves red wine, chocolate and travel (in no particular order). Lane lives in Southern California with her amazing husband and the coolest yellow Lab ever in an almost empty nest.

Where to find the author:

 


BannerTemplateTour Dates & Stops:

12-Jan

Prism Book Alliance, KathyMac Reviews, Carly’s Book Reviews, Hearts on Fire

14-Jan

Happily Ever Chapter, Nic Starr, Joyfully Jay, The Novel Approach

19-Jan

Havan Fellows, Three Books Over The Rainbow, Love Bytes

21-Jan

Unquietly Me, Gay Book Reviews,

26-Jan

Bayou Book Junkie, Elisa – My Reviews and Ramblings, Gay Media Reviews, Open Skye Book Reviews

28-Jan

Book Lovers 4Ever, Molly Lolly, Alpha Book Club, Full Moon Dreaming

2-Feb

BFD Book Blog, MM Good Book Reviews, Scattered Thoughts & Rogue Words

4-Feb

Divine Magazine, Book Reviews and More by Kathy, Wicked Faerie’s Tales and Reviews, Inked Rainbow Reads

 Final

 Giveaway

Enter to win a Rafflecopter Prize: $20 gift card from retailer of choice and choice of book from Lane’s backlist.  Must be 18 years of age or older to enter.  Link and prizes provided by the author and Pride Promotions.

 

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The Breakfast Club Series Continues with ‘Second to None’ by Felice Stevens ( excerpt and giveway)

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Second to None

The Breakfast Club, Book 3

Felice Stevens

M/M Romance

Second to None

Cover Designer: Reese Dante

Cover Photo: Stock Photo

Release Date: January 28, 2016

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BLURB:

Nightclub owner Marcus Feldman never met a man he didn’t love, at least for the night. Although his best friends have all found love, Marcus shuns their advice to commit to one man and settle down. His past has taught him monogamy and marriage is for fools, and Marcus is anything but a fool.

Tyler Reiss’s dream of dancing professionally is unexpectedly cut short and replaced by a different kind of love. He trades in his ballet slippers for go go boots, and spends his nights dancing at the hottest gay club in the city. Flirting with the customers for tips is easy, but resisting the dark and sexy Marcus is becoming harder to do with each passing day.

Unforeseen circumstances bring Marcus and Tyler closer and though they give in to their mutual passion, both still struggle to guard their hearts. When crises threaten, Tyler and Marcus find their strength in each other rather than falling apart. Tyler must choose to either run, or stay and fight for the life he wants, while Marcus realizes that love doesn’t mean losing himself and opens his heart, making him a better man in the end.

 

TEASERS

StNTeaser2

 

EXCERPT

“This wasn’t a permanent arrangement; you knew that.” Tyler leaned against the wall. “I can’t impose on you any longer. I’m sure you want your bedroom and your life back.”

“I didn’t mind it last night.” He walked over to Tyler and placed a hand on his neck, stroking him. This he could do. He had no qualms about seducing Tyler to stay with him. The troubling reason why he wanted him there so badly, Marcus pushed to the side for now. Instead, he pulled Tyler close, settling their hips in line, and his cock thickened in his pants. “I’d tell you if I did. Please, come with me to brunch, and we can talk.”

Doubt clouded Tyler’s eyes. “I don’t belong there. Those are your friends, the people you’re closest with.”

“I had my dick inside you twice last night, Tyler. How much closer could we get?”

It took Marcus many minutes of deep, persuasive kisses to rid Tyler of his confusion. When he pulled away though, the ground under his feet reeled, and Marcus needed a moment to compose himself.

They remained standing close; Tyler’s hands rested on his shoulders while he clasped Tyler around his hips. He nuzzled Tyler’s ear, then pleaded with him.

“Come on; you have to help me out here. They’re all coupled up, and the last thing I want is to listen to them be all disgustingly loving and happy.”

An amused glint lit Taylor’s eyes. “And you hate that, huh?”

“Bet that sweet ass of yours I do.” He gave Tyler’s ass a squeeze for effect, and the light in Tyler’s eyes smoldered.

“If you want me to come, you’d better get your hands off my ass.”

Marcus’s lips curved up in a grin as he popped open the button of Tyler’s jeans and drew them down.

“I definitely want you to come; in every way possible,” he said, and sank to his knees, uncaring of how late he might be to meet Zach and Julian.

 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Felice Stevens has always been a romantic at heart. While life is tough, she believes there is a happy ending for everyone. She started reading traditional historical romances as a teenager, then life and law school got in the way. It wasn’t until she picked up a copy of Bertrice Small and became swept away to Queen Elizabeth’s court that her interest in romance novels was renewed.

But somewhere along the way, her reading shifted to stories of men falling in love. Once she picked up her first gay romance, she became so enamored of the character-driven stories and the overwhelming emotion there was no turning back.

Felice lives in New York City with her husband and two children. Her day begins with a lot of caffeine and ends with a glass or two of red wine. Although she practices law, she daydreams of a time when she can sit by a beach and write beautiful stories of men falling in love. Although there is bound to be some angst along the way, a Happily Ever After is always guaranteed.

 

SOCIAL MEDIA LINKS

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The Breakfast Club Series

Beyond the Surface, Book 1

Amazon US: http://amzn.to/1MPImrX

Amazon UK http://amzn.to/1S1zUpD

ARe: http://bit.ly/1PMdRUF

Betting on Forever, Book 2

Amazon US: http://amzn.to/1Px4utJ

Amazon UK: http://amzn.to/1X3tWG7

All Romance: http://bit.ly/1MykS7o

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