Category: Contemporary fiction

Review: Queer Dirty Laundry by Jason Lloyd

Rating: 2.75 stars out of 5

Queer Dirty Laundry Cover“In this nonfiction coming of age mini memoir, Kevin and Jason embark on an adventure to Philadelphia to visit friends and to get into their normal hijinks. Along their journey, they confide in each other the only way best friends can; through laughter, love and pain. They share stories of coming out, first time sexual experiences and dramatic events that changed their lives forever. This hilarious and heartfelt journey through the past can only strengthen their friendship in the present.”..Jason Lloyd

I used the author’s blurb for his story because, honestly, this book is hard to describe in plot or category.   Fiction?  Non-fiction?  Jason Lloyd himself calls his book “creative non-fiction” so anyone’s guess would be accurate. It features Jason Lloyd taking a car trip with his best friend Kevin, aka” Monkey”, on their way to a weekend reunion of sorts with some old friends.   Jason Lloyd uses their road trip as the framework for a succession of personal remembrances and flashbacks into his childhood and early adult years.

It all starts in the Prologue, 40 Minutes After.  Jason and Kevin are in route and a tractor trailer is coming at them head on.  Jason’s life passes before his eyes and the flashbacks begin to….exactly 40 minutes before.

Not exactly a bad beginning but shortly after we find out that this is all so much smoke as the truck misses them and they are back on track to make their rendezvous in Philadelphia.

My issues with this story started almost immediately with the arrival of Kevin at Jason’s place.  His “brazen steps” announce Kevin’s presence like a “herd of elephants”.  Loud, heavy, right? Then Kevin appears and “prances” and “frolics” over to the refrigerator.  So heavy and assertive have given way to light and airy?   The word choices here are enough to flummox Funk & Wagnalls.  Kevin himself is no picnic.  Is Kevin real?  A character?  A real character?  Not sure exactly.  However, he is prone to calling people the “F” word, he is unshaven, wearing old Christmas pajama bottoms, a dirty t-shirt without sleeves as Kevin typically cuts off the stained, smelly armpits rather than wash them.  Offensive thy name is Kevin.  And this is someone the reader (and Jason) will spend the entire book with.  I found Kevin and his nigh constant verbal spouting of derogatory terms and epithets not only irritating but repulsive.  And you are in the car with him and Jason for 150 pages.

As they motor down the road, a conversation between them will bring up a memory which is followed by a flashback into Jason’s past.  Whether it is childhood bullies and the nickname Troll from grade school or remembrances of his closeted years, each segment seems to pop in and out without much effect or depth.  And those events should make an emotional impact on both the reader as well as Jason but that never comes across.

In additional to a jumpy flow to the narrative, the reader is also offered up such insights into Jason’s thoughts like this one:

“Bi was just a slippery dick before Homoville.”

This is Jason remembering how he told people he was bi because he wasn’t ready to come all the way out of the closet . Jason figured bi was more palatable. And yes, I can almost see the cringing from some that this sentence causes.  Jason is the narrator here of his own life and freedom of speech certainly applies.  But I found this offensive and I am certain others will too.  But this is one of the less derogatory sentences to appear here.  The “F” word is so liberally thrown around that I thought I must have been at a anti LGBTQ march.  How you feel about that will let you know whether this is the book for you.

And all along the way, there are just plain odd sentences strewn here and there.  Jason says at one point “his voice can no longer make a signal only dogs can hear..” Uh, you don’t make a signal with your voice, you make a sound, signals being, of course, a sign or gesture.  Jason also believes in “fate, kismet, and serendipity.”  Hmmm, one of these things are not like the others as the saying goes but Jason Lloyd appears unaware of that fact. Here is the quote:

I have always been a firm believer that everything happens for a reason. That just maybe the stars hold our fate. I would like to believe in fate. Serendipity. Kismet. I guess I am like a sappy Hallmark card in that way.”

Well, I can hear Hallmark shuddering now.  I would like to think a rather large red pencil and a determined editor could have fixed some of these problems but   honestly, I just don’t know.  I hate being the person who rains on a new author’s parade so to speak but I can’t see any way around it here.  If you are a friend or fan of Jason Lloyd’s, then pick up a copy and see if you appear inside.  But for all others, wait for the next book from Jason Lloyd to be released and give this one a  pass.

Sales Links:  Smashwords  Barnes & Noble        All Romance eBooks      Amazon

Cover art by Jason Lloyd.  The picture is unfocused.  Is that intentional or not? I suspect not as the type font for the title and the author’s name is blurry too.  Poor quality control cheapens the entire design.

Book Details:

ebook, 150 pages
Published June 12th 2014 by Ginge Publishing
ISBN139781310649332
edition languageEnglish

In Our Author Spotlight: Lee Brazil on Writing, Pulp Friction and Growing Up! (contest)

✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍

Taking Chances CoverOut In The Cold coverCold Feet coverCold Snap

 

 

 

 

 

Lee Brazil’s In from the Cold Series –  Pulp Friction 2014 Elemental Connections!

Lee Brazil stopped by today to talk about Pulp Friction, his series In from the Cold and writing.  He also brought along a terrific contest for you all to enter.  Look out for the details Lee has supplied towards the end of his guest blog.  Good morning, Lee!

Good morning all! Thank you, Melanie, for letting me steal your blog for the day. *sips coffee* For those who don’t know me, I’m Lee Brazil, author of m/m Romance with Breathless Press, Evernight Publishing, Totally Bound and Pulp Friction. It’s Pulp Friction that brings me here today. I’m getting ready to start working on my fifth In From the Cold book of the year, the final single title in the series.

So I thought I’d take a short break and begged Melanie to let me do a giveaway on her blog. She very kindly said yes, and then I realized…That meant I’d have to write a blog post of some sort to go along with the giveaway. Instantly, every idea deserted me. I could almost see the little buggers out the corner of my eye, like will-o-th’-wisps vanishing in droves, sparks dying out and leaving me in darkness, wondering why I do this to myself.

Then a review caught my eye…and reminded me of something. In the Out in the Cold series, Finn has always fancied himself as something of a Prince Charming, a knight in shining armor out to save the downtrodden and rescue the prince. And I thought, what about you?

What did you always want to be? What did you picture yourself as when you were ten?

That’s a kind of complicated question, because I wasn’t very steadfast at the time. I’d watch a great movie and picture myself as a character in it…Say Star Wars. I’m pretty sure that Finn would have been Luke Sky walker. Other people would choose Han Solo. I’m pretty sure that some even wanted to be Darth Vader.

Me? I wanted to be Obi Wan Kenobi.

Watch Star Trek, and people were clamoring to be Kirk, Spock, McCoy even. Not I. Hero of the galaxy? Saving the universe from Klingon oppression through sheer bravado, courage or heart? (Did you ever notice the similarities between Star Trek and the Wizard of Oz? But that’s a different post) I had a slew of favorites from Star Trek…but if you made me choose, and I could be only one? I wanted to be Scotty. Screw the universe, save my ship!

So as an adult, I have been several things. I was a student for what seemed like forever, at the whim of red tape and bureaucracy. I worked retail, and fast food, and even did a stint as a phone operator updating directories. Then I was a teacher, and I learned that Obi Wan hid a lot of his real feelings from us. Teaching is a grand profession, and it was full of moments of sheer exhilaration and joy. BUT… It is also one of THE most frustrating and wearing of professions. So yes, I did sort of fulfill my childhood ambitions to teach, but after fifteen years I retired, somewhat dis-spirited.

Today? I write. I have a hard time sometimes curbing the instinct to “teach” – i.e. write blogs on correct grammar and word usage etc. But I enjoy writing immensely and I think that I wouldn’t have made it here without that fifteen year stop in America’s classrooms.

As for Scotty? Well, my ship is a hundred year old farmhouse and sometimes it seems like keeping it standing is a full time labor of love.

What about you? Who did you think you would be when you grew up?

Leave me a comment here and tell me what you wanted to be when you were ten, and you’ll be entered to win a random drawing for a $10 ARE gift card.
*Contest begins Friday Aug. 15th and ends Friday August 22. One entry per person, winner selected by random number designation and notified via email. (Must provide valid email with comment). Winner will be selected Saturday-Sunday Aug. 23/24 and notified/announced Monday Aug. 25th.

✎✎✎✎✎✎✎✎✎✎✎✎✎✎✎✎✎✎✎✎✎✎✎✎✎✎✎✎✎✎✎

maginifying glass with Take a LookAuthor Name: Lee Brazil
Author Bio:
Somewhere in a small town in up-state New York are a librarian and a second grade teacher to whom I owe my life. That might be a touch dramatic, but it’s nevertheless one hundred percent true.

Because they taught me the joy of reading, of escaping into worlds crafted of words.

Have you ever been nine years old and sure of nothing so much as that you don’t belong? Looked at the world from behind glasses, and wondered why you don’t fit?

Then turn the page and see… there you are, running from Injun Joe in a dark graveyard; there you are fencing with Athos; there you are…beneath the deep blue sea- marveling at exotic creatures with Captain Nemo.

I found myself between the pages of books, and that is why I write now, it’s why I taught English and literature for so many years, and it’s why my house contains more pounds of books than furniture.

If I’d had my way, I’d have been a fencer…or a starship captain, or a lawyer, or a detective solving crimes. But instead, I am a writer, and that’s the best thing in the world to be if you ask me, because as a writer, I can be all those things and more.

If I hadn’t learned to value the stories between the pages, who knows what would have happened? Certainly not college…teaching…or writing.

Author Links:Cold Comfort cover

Author Spotlight: Jason Lloyd on Queer Dirty Laundry, a Character Interview and More (contest)

spotlight on booksQueer Dirty Laundry Cover

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Jason Lloyd is here today to talk about his latest release, Queer Dirty Laundry!  Jason is interviewing his favorite character/person in the book and brought along a contest for you all to enter.  Just leave a comment with your favorite quote or motto, along with an email address where you can be reached.  The person chosen will win an eBook copy of Queer Dirty Laundry.  Must be 18 years of age or older to enter.  Contest ends 8/22.

Jason Lloyd QDL Blog Tour Banner

Queer Dirty Laundry CoverQueer Dirty Laundry Blurb:

What would you do if everything changed in the blink of an eye? Life teaches us that everything happens for a reason. Every good or bad experience, every event, shapes us into the adults we become. We are our pasts and they shape our future.

In this nonfiction coming of age mini memoir, Kevin and Jason embark on an adventure to Philadelphia to visit friends and to get into their normal hijinks. Along their journey, they confide in each other the only way best friends can; through laughter, love and pain. They share stories of coming out, first time sexual experiences and dramatic events that changed their lives forever. This hilarious and heartfelt journey through the past can only strengthen their friendship in the present.

Your best friend knows all your little secrets. They know all your dirty laundry. Can you air it all out? How dirty is your laundry?

✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍

Interview with Knockers from Queer Dirty Laundry

Hello, I’m Jason Lloyd the author of Queer Dirty Laundry. A few weeks ago I asked fans of the book to submit questions they would like Louis Thomas Knock aka Knockers to answer. Knockers is one of my favorite characters in the book (and real life). He was delighted to take part in this. He is mentionedKnockers_20140728_164829000_iOS throughout Queer Dirty Laundry, but the audience doesn’t actually meet him until the last chapter. His chapter is a memorable one though.

You’re a character in Jason Lloyd’s new book Queer Dirty Laundry. What was your reaction when you found out you were going to be in his book? What’s it like to be written about?

I was honored to be included on such an exclusive list. I’ve been written about in the past, but that usually involved a deposition or police report. This time I didn’t need an attorney present.

In Queer Dirty Laundry, Kevin and Jason are on their way to Philadelphia and on their way they each share stories about their first time sexual experiences. What is your first time story?

My grandparents used to send me to a private summer camp growing up. When I was seven, I experimented together with this boy and girl pretty much that whole summer. That is as far as I’m going on that… ha-ha! I’ll never tell!

Jason and Kevin share some embarrassing stories in Queer Dirty Laundry. Can you tell us one about yourself?

I was fooling around with an ex in his car and the next thing we saw were those red and blue flashing lights, followed by a bright spotlight shining directly on us. We had to get dressed and get out of the car. The cops recognized my ex from his high-profile job, which made it even more embarrassing for the both of us. Lesson learned; don’t fool around in a park after dark!

Do you think people were accepting of your sexuality?

I’m very blessed to have a family that supported me and didn’t make me feel different.

How would you describe your friendship with Jason? What’s it like being friends with Jason?

Jason adds a unique dynamic to my social circle. He’s charismatic, funny, loyal and over the top! What first started out as a textual relationship turned into nights of missing underwear and a closet of four right shoes (Why am I always losing the left?). He’s famous for telling me, “Make good decisions.”

What do you most value in your friends?

What I most value in friendship is honesty, loyalty and support. (In that order.)

Do you have any hidden talents you would like to share?

I can move my eyes independently. Ha-ha, it makes me look crazy.

What’s your motto?

Life is a stage and you get only one performance. Make it a good one.

Last question, are you still missing those Burberry boxer briefs from the last chapter?

Ugh, that day! Too many Patron margaritas. I lost my underwear and dignity that day… only one returned.

✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍

Here’s my favorite scene from Queer Dirty Laundry featuring Knockers.

***

Louis Thomas Knock looks amazing. His brown hair is perfectly styled, and he is wearing the latest collection from Burberry, a fitted gray button down shirt and tapered fit dark denim. I stare at him as brown eyes catch the sunlight shining through the restaurant window, making them almost look honey in color.

“Knockers!” I yell out.

“Hello darlings.” Knockers answers back. He gives us air kisses from where he is sitting at our table and when he gets to me, he blows me a kiss as well.

“You look handsome babe,” I say.

“Well, thank you J. You know, I have a taste for luxury and luxury has a taste for me.” Knock playfully winks at me.

“I know. You’re flawlessness is made up of silicone, saline and a perfectly bleached asshole.” I say.

Jelissa and Kevin both laugh.

“Do you actually bleach your asshole?” Kevin asks.

“No.” Knockers laughs. Our server appears and asks him if he wants to order anything. “Just a blood orange margarita, I’m on a liquid diet only this month. Better make it a pitcher.” The server disappears to fetch it.

“You’re gonna regret that in the morning,” I say.

“It’s okay. I’ll just sleep until noon. Look at me, I’m a problem solver,” Knockers confirms.

“Oh and Kev, he may not bleach his asshole, but I’m pretty sure little cartoon birds appear every morning and douche it for him.” I add.

“Just like Snow White! It’s good to have help,” Knockers says.

“I would have pegged him as the Evil Queen,” Kevin adds.

“Oh, that ratchet, dried up hag? Please, I’m the fairest of them all.” Knockers looks into his reflection on his phone screen and says, “My mirror tells me so.”

***Hey gang, what is your favorite quote or motto? Leave it in the comments for a chance to win an ebook copy of my new book Queer Dirty Laundry! One person will be randomly selected from the comments.

I would like to thank Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words for allowing me to share this interview with you. I also would like to thank the fans for submitting the questions and my wonderful publicist Joleen from Parenthetical Author Services for setting up my blog tour. If you need help promoting your work, email Joleen at joleen@parentheticalauthorservices.com.

Jason Lloyd Bio:

Jason Lloyd author picJason Lloyd is the author of hilarious m/m romance featuring an array of interesting characters. Salty Aftertaste (Ginge Publishing, 2013) was his first creative non-fiction novel. It reached Smashwords Top Best Seller list in Gay & Lesbian Fiction and was the #5 best seller in the New Adult genre on All Romance eBooks (ARe).

His second book, Queer Dirty Laundry (Ginge Publishing, 2014), is a creative non-fiction novella and is based on his popular blog by the same name. In 2011, QueerDirtyLaundry.com was nominated for The Best of Gay Philadelphia under Best Gay Website/Blog. Jason’s blog was also in the top ten numerous times on Best Male Blogs.

Jason is currently working on an m/m romance and mystery/suspense fictional novelette series called Filthy Fibbers. Filthy Fibbers is centered on five friends and the scandalous secrets they keep. The book takes place in a small Pennsylvania town called New Hope.

Jason grew up in a small town in Bucks County, Pennsylvania outside of Philadelphia. A majority of his writing takes place in Eastern Pennsylvania including Philadelphia. He currently resides in a small town in Berks County, Pennsylvania.

Social Contacts:

Email | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads and Ask the Author | Website

Queer Dirty Laundry Buy Links:

Amazon | All Romance eBooks | Barnes and Noble | Google Play | iBooks | Smashwords

Review: Wicked Winds (3.5 Elemental Elements Pulp Friction 2014) by Havan Fellows

Rating: 4.75 stars out of 5

Wicked Winds coverWick Templeton and Ned Harris have begun to settle into their relationship after the traumatic events of the past year. So when Ned decides to go west to Arizona to check on an old friend, Wick goes with him. That each man’s past is about to collide in Mountain Shadows, Arizona, is something neither saw coming.

Can Ned’s past break the men apart when Wick’s past pulled them together?  What waits for them and their relationship on top of the mountains of Arizona, and what surprises lie in store for Wick and Ned that will change the way they look at each other forever?

Wick, Wick, Wick. How I love that man!  I  became addicted to him in Havan Fellows’ Wicked Ways series from  Pulp Friction 2013 and now he’s back and I couldn’t be happier.  But this time, it’s Wick who is along for the ride and its Ned’s mission they are on.  Quite a switch up.  And that strange change about of roles continues throughout this story.  What an astonishing group of surprises, no shocks, really, that are in store for us all, characters included.

Ned is there to find an old friend.  Wick is there to figure out how that friend fits into their newly established relationship.  That and check up on Cannon and the problems he has been hearing about from Chance and Rory.  Mountain Shadows is just one violent episode away from a complete meltdown on many fronts and Wick and Ned are there to add flame to the fire.

This is a short story and almost anything I can say about the plot falls into spoiler territory as the shocks start immediately when we find out just who Ned’s friend and partner was.  Didn’t see that one coming.  The implications are huge for all and the guns and knives are out the minute Wick’s opens the doors on his and Ned’s rental car.

Wick and Ned are never good at talking about their relationship, what it means to them and where it’s going.  But that will have to change and it does in an astonishing manner.  The emotional confrontations here are intimate, painful, angry and no amount of scared.  But who comes apart is just as unexpected as the rest of the story.  Fellows’ plot eddies and swirls, with elements from last year’s series intermixing with those of this year’s Elemental Connections.  It works and the mixture proves as explosive and addicting as all the rest.

Will we see them all again?  Not sure because no one is sure what happens next.  Not the characters nor the readers.  And that’s the way I like my mysteries…and my men, uh characters that is.  Rowen and Wicked, what a fabulous duo!  I can’t wait to see what Havan Fellows has in store for them next.  Stay tuned.

Cover art by Laura Harner.  Love it.

Buy Links:             All Romance ebooks (ARe)            Amazon                     Wicked Winds

 Book Details:

Kindle Edition, 84 pages
Published August 6th 2014 by Appleton Publishing Avenue
ASINB00MHVFDPM

The Pulp Friction 2014 series in the order they were written and should be read to understand the characters, events and plot:

Round One:

Firestorm (Fighting Fire: 1)by Laura Harner
Cold Snap (In From the Cold: 1) by Lee Brazil
Blown Away (Whispering Winds: 1) by Havan Fellows
Higher Ground (Earthquake: 1) by TA Webb

Round Two:

Controlled Burn (Fighting Fire #2) by Laura Harner
Cold Comfort (In From the Cold #2) by Lee Brazil
Blown Kisses (Whispering Winds #2) by Havan Fellows
Moving Earth (Earthquake #2) by TA Webb

Round Three:

Backburn (Fighting Fire #3) by Laura Harner
Cold Feet (In From the Cold #3) by Lee Brazil
Blown Hard (Whispering Winds #3) by Havan Fellows
Tremors (Earthquake #3) by T.A. Webb

Round Four:

Flare-up (Fighting Fire #4) by Laura Harner
Out In The Cold (In From the Cold #4) by Lee Brazil
Blown Chance (Whispering Winds #4) by Havan Fellows
Aftershocks (Earthquake #4) by T.A. Webb

Round 3 and 4 Side Stories:

Taking Chances by Lee Brazil (a In From the Cold story)
Wicked Winds by Havan Fellows (PF2014 3.5)

Round Five: to be released

Radiant Burn (Fighting Fire #5) by Laura Harner
Cold Day in Hell (In From the Cold #5) by Lee Brazil
Final Blow (Whispering Winds #5) by Havan Fellows
Terra Firma (Earthquake #5) by T.A. Webb

Sixth Book Series Finale Written by all the Authors
charactersFinn Lorensso

Booking it with Richard Longfellow’s Private Practice! (contest)

✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍

PrivatePracticeBanner300x250

 

 Richard Longfellow has stopped by today on his Private Practice book tour with a contest to enter and an excerpt to heat up your day!

Book Name: Private Practice
Author Name: Richard Longfellow
Author Bio: Richard Longfellow resides in London, Great Britain. He’s tall, dark and handsome and currently unattached. When he’s not tending to his patients, he enjoys stroking cats, films with happy endings and opening the very best champagne, although not necessarily in that order. He has absolutely no connection with the school described in the text and his father never wore a Rolex watch. This is his second novella of quintessentially British, gay erotica.

PrivatePractice3Title:  Private Practice by Richard Longfellow
Cover Artist: 3 Rusted Spoons
Publisher: Dark Hollows Press
Buy Links: Dark Hollows Press
Blurb:

Mark has film star looks, a body to die for and a successful career as a gynecologist, but he’s
lacking something – like a boyfriend, for instance. He’s also a porn star on the side with a
hundred DVDs to his name and a libido to match. Then, along comes a patient who seems all
set to destroy everything. Will he be able to talk his way out of the mess this time? Perhaps
he’ll need to call on divine guidance from Holy Joe, the school chaplain, who already knows
so much about his past…

 

✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍

 

PrivatePracticeBadgeTour Dates: 8/8/14

Tour Stops: Parker Williams, LeAnn’s Book Reviews, Prism Book Alliance, MM Good Book Reviews, Love Bytes, The Hat Party, Scattered Thoughts & Rogue Words, Jade Crystal, Amanda C. Stone, Cate Ashwood, My Fiction Nook, Because Two Men Are Better Than One, Hearts on Fire, 3 Chicks After Dark, Fallen Angel Reviews, Iyana Jenna, Smoocher’s Voice

♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦
Rafflecopter Code: a Rafflecopter giveaway

Contest:  Use the Rafflecopter link provided to enter and for additional contest details.  Must be 18 years of age or older to enter. Rafflecopter Prize: E-book copy of Private Practice.

♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦

Excerpt  NSFW:

The venue for Mark’s screen test was in the swankiest part of Notting Hill and the stucco-fronted house looked straight out of the eponymous romantic comedy. He walked up the steps of the porticoed entrance and just knew there’d be a butler. The guy who answered the door addressed him like a butler, but his topless uniform and knowing smile definitely broke the mould. The ornately-framed pictures lining the stairs hinted at wealth and nubile youths featured prominently; in fact, some were almost three dimensional in their prominence. The sound of talk and laughter trickled down from the first floor.

Following where the noise was coming from, the room Mark entered wasn’t like that of a typical party. Aside from the lavish buffet set out to one side, it looked like a plush home cinema, with reclining chairs arranged in rows and a huge flat screen TV at the end. Curiously, there was a dais to the right of the screen on which a cello stood waiting to be played. Most of the guests were men but there were a few women as well. Mark fleetingly wondered whether he was on the menu for their entertainment.

Someone kissed him on the cheek. “Doc, it’s good to see you again!” Mark was pleased to see it was the irrepressible Steve fully recovered from his operation and looking exceedingly handsome in a tuxedo and bow tie, his rebellious spiked hair complementing his conservative garb.

“Shush! Remember I’m here incognito.” Mark stepped back to inspect his night-time lover. “You look incredible! How come the tuxedo? I thought you’d be entertaining everyone in your jockstrap.”

Steve smiled. “Ah, that might come later, but first I’ve got something more serious to attend to.” He started walking towards the dais. “They’ll call for you when they’re ready,” he said over his shoulder.

Steve walked up to the dais. Mark decided he must be the master of ceremonies in charge of the evening’s delights. Instead, Steve sat down behind the cello and lifted the bow. He smiled at Mark, as if to say, “Hey, this is the real me.” As the prelude of J. S. Bach’s Cello Suite No. 1 cast its spell, the guests stopped talking and moved to the chairs. Mark found himself thinking back to the comment made by his registrar. He wished the bigot could see Steve now: a dancer, porn actor and amazing musician who probably brought more meaning into the world than any third rate surgeon. A tap on Mark’s shoulder brought him back to the here and now.

“They’re ready for you, sir,” said the semi-naked waiter with a wink.

Mark followed the waiter to a corridor on the left just past the buffet. The guests were entranced by Steve’s playing and barely cast him a glance. He was glad he hadn’t eaten anything as butterflies were busy at work in his stomach. An open door with bright lighting beckoned. He’d expected something like a smart bedroom. Instead, it was a sizeable photographic studio with centre stage appropriately given to a super king size bed with black sheets surrounded by all the paraphernalia of filming.

“Hey, posh boy, long time no see,” said someone to Mark’s right.

 

Mark turned to look at the guy. He was the same height as himself and had blond hair that flopped into his eyes. He was grinning broadly. He was also naked and his dick and balls had been freshly shaved.

“Christ! I don’t believe it!” exclaimed Mark. “You’re the one who gave me a blowjob! And you’ve had your tooth fixed!”

The guy ran his tongue sexily across his teeth. “Yeah. That’s one of the perks of this business.”

“So, how long have you been doing porn?”

“Just over a year.” He looked long and hard at Mark. “You know, I sort of wondered whether I’d see you again. I mean, that dick of yours is quite something.”

e cupped Mark’s groin. “Yup, still there.” His own dick was getting more erect by the second. “Mm, I can’t wait…”

Mark looked surprised. “So, it’s us together, then?”

“Of course, darlin’.”

Just then, someone who seemed to be in charge came over to greet Mark.

“I’ll be on the bed waiting for you,” said the naked guy, walking back to the bed with his dick bouncing energetically. Mark realised they still hadn’t exchanged names.

“You must be Mark,” the man said, shaking his hand. “I’m Eduardo and BritSpunk’s jack of all trades and master of none – in other words, Talent Manager and Assistant Director.” He was a bit short but had a nice, engaging smile and was nothing like the sleazy character Mark had imagined. “I see you’ve met Frank. He’s clearly keen to get on with the shoot. But let’s run through some preliminaries first.”

They found a couple of chairs and Eduardo started checking items on a clipboard. “So, Mark, how old are you?”

“Twenty-five.”

“Gay, straight or bi?”

Mark was initially surprised by the question but remembered some guys were gay-for-pay. “Gay, although I’d probably be okay with bi.”

“Excellent. Top or bottom?”

“Both.”

“That’s even better. Flexibility is a big help when we’re casting. Now, what about your dick size? Steve’s a size queen, so it must be big.”

“Nine inches.”

Eduardo raised his eyebrows. “And girth?”

Mark had measured that before he came out as he thought he’d be asked. “Six and a half.”

Eduardo looked surprised. “Really? That’s impressive. Have you done any sort of porn before?”

“No.”

“Finally, do you know your HIV status?”

“Yes, I’m negative. I’ve got my test results if you need them.”

“Fantastic, Mark. I think that’s everything we need for the moment. If you’d like to take your clothes off and join Frank on the bed, we’ll get on with the shoot.”

As Mark was undressing, he could hear Steve’s cello. He found it surreal but also comforting, as the music seemed to bridge one world he knew and another he was just about to discover.

 

Continue reading “Booking it with Richard Longfellow’s Private Practice! (contest)” →

Review: Prevailing Winds (Separate Ways #4) by Laura Harner

Rating: 5 stars out of 5

PrevailingWinds8x12“Please don’t go.”

Words that would haunt Lord Jamie Mainwaring long after he boarded the plane departing Phoenix, Arizona.  After the deaths and destruction of the past events, Jamie feels that leaving is his only recourse, even if it means leaving once more the man he loves, Det. Remy Remington.  Jamie watched Remy’s mouth form those words at the airport as he went through the doors to get on the plane.  But it  was too late for them  and for the love that had followed them across oceans and continents for the last two years.

Brokenhearted and grieving, Remy watches Jamie leave him once more.  But returning home, he finds that Jamie isn’t the only person leaving him.  Toby is confused, shattered and angry…at Remy and the world.  Toby flees his home and safety looking for answers to his past.  What Toby finds in Las Vegas is nothing but trouble,

Fate has a way of pulling Jamie and Remy back together.  Jamie’s is asked to get involved in one more case for the British special agency he used to work for.  Remy leaves home looking for Toby and both paths intersect in Las Vegas where a corrupt prince, the lost boys from London, and Toby are intertwined in a mess of abuse, pain and potential death.   Jamie and Remy must put all their past issues aside and come together to find and rescue Toby before the prince can destroy them all.  Will Remy and Jamie finally prevail and find a future together for them as a family?  Or will the coming storm destroy them once and for all?

Prevailing Winds, the Separate Ways series finale, is that pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, the icing on the cake and the cherries on top of the sundae!  This is the story that is the salve for the wounds left behind by the tumultuous events and anguish of the last three books and I couldn’t be happier.   For three bloody, suspense filled, painfully frustrating stories, Laura Harner has been developing her rollercoaster ride of a relationship between Lord Jamie Mainwaring and Det. Remy Remington.

From the moment they connected in London over missing boys, to the betrayals on the ocean cruise and the devastation of the events in Phoenix, the relationship dynamics between these two has been fascinating to watch as the men connected, fled, reconnected, and separated again and again.  What has made it so endlessly addicting is that we understood why the separations had to happen, the mental and emotional changes each character had to undergo in order to make a relationship (any relationship) work, and all the obstacles that life and their jobs as well as nationalities placed in their paths.  It wasn’t just one thing that kept them apart….but a boatload.  Harner carefully built up wall after wall between these two wonderful characters. Walls made up of Remy and Jamie’s childhood issues and abuse, requirements of their individual jobs, and even personal outlook on long term relationships and ties.  Throughout each story we waited for the barriers to start to fall.  And they would start breaking down, a few bricks here and there.  Only for us to watch the walls firm up again at the end of each story.  Frustrating, authentic, and it made great reading.

And as skillfully as Harner built up those barriers, then she had to slowly and realistically break them down.  And that took time.  And three, no four books to accomplish that because Remy and Jamie are still working on their problems and expectations for each other and a long term partnership well into Prevailing Winds.   This time, its Toby on the run and Remy following in his wake.  And their paths intersect with Jamie on a mission in Las Vegas.

The point of view flows back and forth between Toby and Remy and Jamie.  Toby’s scary predicament is heightened by this format as the danger increases the deeper the investigation goes and the closer the men get to finding Toby.  Gut wrenching at times, the anticipation is overwhelming towards the end as we rush towards the denouement!  Plus there’s not just one, but several here. Loved this part of the story.  In fact, loved it all!  So will you.

The writing is taut, smooth and fluid. The plot’s mechanisms are lovingly orchestrated for maximum excitement and anticipation.  Oh, and for our total satisfaction as well.  But you must read these stories in the order they were written, in order for the character development and situations to make sense.

This is one heck of a series and a great way to end it!  Love the book, love the characters, and Las Vegas was the perfect place to bring it all to a head!

I highly recommend this story and series to all lovers of action, adventure and a long denied romance that finds it’s happily ever after!

 

Buy Links:              All Romance eBooks (ARe)            Amazon    Prevailing Winds 

Cover Art by Laura Harner. This cover is very different in design from the other three but it works great for the story.

Book Details:

Kindle Edition, 198 pages
Published July 23rd 2014 by Hot Corner Press
ASINB00M3AV0YA
edition language English
url http://lauraharner.com/series/separate_ways_series/
seriesSeparate Ways #4

Separate Ways Series in the order they were written and should be read:

Continental Divide by Laura Harner and Lisa Worrell
Oceans Apart (Separate Ways #2) by Laura Harner
Moving Mountains (Separate Ways #3) by Laura Harner
Prevailing Winds (Separate Ways #4) by Laura Harner

Review: Moving Mountains (Separate Ways #3) by Laura Harner

Rating: 4.75 stars out of 5

Moving MountainsLord Jamie Mainwaring isn’t sure what the future holds for him.  The devastating betrayals of the last mission aboard the Caribbean cruise have left him feeling emotionally battered and shaky.  The closer Jamie looked at the events that caused the death of his lover and almost his life, the more deceit he uncovered.  Soon Jamie realizes that he has been manipulated and lied to for most of his life.  Shattered and uncertain, Jamie realizes that there is only one man he can trust and turn to in this web of manipulation and deception….the man he left behind twice, Detective Remy Remington.

Detective Remy Remington and Miguel “Miggy” Rojas  have moved forward in their lives together in Phoenix, Arizona.  Their security business has taken off, and so has their relationship.  Partners in everything, from a business to adopting one of the unfortunate boys from the London mission, Remy and Miggy are happy together.  But all that is about to change.

Remy’s former chief  at the PD is dead, Remy’s name scratched in the dirt by his body.  Miggy was once an addict as was his twin sister.  Now she reappears on their doorstep and trouble is following her.  And on top of all that, Jamie arrives needing support and assistance from Remy, a situation that leaves Miggy unsettled and more than a little jealous.

With so many problems needing investigation and personal issues unsettled, the danger is just beginning for all three and it might just cost them their relationships and their lives.

If you are anything like me and fell in love with all three main characters in the Separate Ways series…Lord Jamie Mainwarring, Det. Remy Remington, and Miggy Rojas…then this is the book that will leave you feeling as devastated as Jamie did at the end of Oceans Apart.  Make no mistake, this is as outstanding a story as it is emotionally wrenching.  And that fact alone will have people hurling their books at walls, howling and bawling buckets here.  Why?  Because Laura Harner puts us and her characters through the proverbial wringer in Moving Mountains, a book you will hate to love.

In Continental Divide and Oceans Apart, we watched the dance of attraction and deep connection that developed between Lord Jamie Mainwaring and Detective Remy Remington.  First in a case in London involving missing young boys and murder in Continental Divide (Separate Ways #1), then on a gay cruise on an ocean liner in Oceans Apart.  On each occasion and mission that brings them together, the timing is off although the attraction remains white hot.  Both characters (and satellite ones) are superbly written.  These are nuanced, layered personas, easy to believe in and even easier to love and connect with.

And with each story, Laura Harner builds our frustration and anxiety over their  relationship and personal obstacles in between them.  One of these “obstacles” is Miguel “Miggy” Rojas.  And old friend of Remy’s, he appears early in the series in need of drying out and support.  Which he gets from Remy.  Theirs is a deep, complicated relationship but the more you see of Miggy the more you come to love him as well.  That’s a nifty feat for a character that by his very presence keeps our two main characters apart.

The tag line of Moving Mountains is “It’s easier to move a mountain than escape the past.”  That is certainly true of the story here.  Harner’s excellent plot has as many layers and complications as its characters.  There are mysteries and murders to solve, connections you will never see coming, and events that will leave you in tears, just devastated at the turn of events.  Yes, parts of this book are hard to experience.  But the choices that Harner makes here as an author are also logical and necessary.  For some fans and readers, that will be their hardest obstacle to overcome with this story and perhaps even the series.

The past certainly comes back to haunt all three characters here and as the sequence of events plays out, Laura Harner is setting the stage for the final story in the Separate Ways series, Prevailing Winds (Separate Ways #4).  As we sail towards the finale, I can say that this has been a moving and memorable voyage.  I have come to love these men through each intricately plotted and beautifully written story.  I have loved and cried with them.  And then cried some more.  And wouldn’t have missed a page of it, even with all the turmoil involved.

If you are new to the series, then please start with Continental Divide to see how these two men meet and separate the first time around.  Then onto to Oceans Apart and here at Moving Mountains.  Then you will be prepared for Prevailing Winds, just like me.  Or at least I hope we will be prepared.  With Laura Harner you never know.  It will be a wonderful rollercoaster, that is for certain.  Consider this story and the series, highly recommended!

Cover art by Laura Harner.  The simple restrained design works beautifully here.

Buy Links:              All Romance eBooks (ARe)                        Amazon                     Moving Mountains

 Book Details:

Kindle Edition, 199 pages
Published October 29th 2013 by Hot Corner Press
ASINB00GAQGH00
edition languageEnglish
seriesSeparate Ways #3

Separate Ways Series in the order they were written and should be read:

Continental Divide by Laura Harner and Lisa Worrell
Oceans Apart (Separate Ways #2) by Laura Harner
Moving Mountains (Separate Ways #3) by Laura Harner
Prevailing Winds (Separate Ways #4) by Laura Harner

Continental Divide coverOceans Apart coverMovingMountains8x12PrevailingWinds8x12

 

On Tour with Laura Harner’s Prevailing Winds (contest)

PWBanner300x250

Love the first 3 books in Laura Harner’s 

Separate Ways Series?  Well, look whose back in 

Prevailing Winds (Separate Ways #4)!!!

Remy and Jamie Have Returned

and

Things Are Hotter Than Ever!

✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍

Laura Harner, a terrific author and STRW favorite, is here with her latest story in her Separate Ways series, Prevailing Winds (Separate Ways #4).  Laura Harner and Pride Promotions have a fabulous tour prize to offer.  A complete set of the Separate Ways series….that’s four books total for your reading enjoyment!!!!

Contest:  To enter to win the complete set of Separate Ways books, you must be 18 years of age or older to enter.  Visit this Rafflecopter link for the entry form and further details!!    The Rafflecopter contest runs from 8/6 – 8/13.

PW600x600Banner Book Name: Prevailing Winds
Author Name: Laura Harner
Cover  artist:  Laura Harner 

Series:  Separate Ways (contemporary m/m)

ContinentalDivde8x12OceansApart8x12MovingMountains8x12PrevailingWinds8x12

 

 

 

 

 

✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍

Author Bio:

Raised in California, Laura likes it hot, which explains why she ended up in Arizona via such diverse places as Japan, Maine, and Florida, and many more places in between. After retiring from the US Navy, she found a niche working for land management agencies, including the National Park Service and the Bureau of Land Management. Though she has held many jobs around the world, her favorite was working and living in Grand Canyon National Park.

Working (and eating) in New Orleans was a close second. You will find many of her books are set against the rich backdrops provided by coastal Louisiana and northern Arizona. When asked how she started writing, Laura tells of waking on Boxing Day a few years ago, with a woman named Elena MacFarland yammering in her dreams, demanding her story be told. Despite never attempting to write fiction before that morning, Laura ignored all of the holiday visitors and the Highland Destiny series was born. She doesn’t believe it was a coincidence that the great grandmother who died when Laura was just a baby was named Elena MacFarland. Destiny does play a hand.

Laura became a full-time writer in 2012, and now she spends her time writing, watching her Arizona Diamondbacks, and working on her very own version of the Willow Springs Ranch in northwestern Arizona. She is a multi-published author of erotic romance, mystery, and urban fantasy and her books can be found at all major online retailers.”

✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍

Author Links. You can  contact/follow Laura Harner at the following links:

✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍

PrevailingWinds8x12Cover Artist: Laura Harner

Publisher: Hot Corner Press

Sales Links:       Amazon           All Romance eBooks (ARe)       Smashwords  iTunes

Prevailing Winds Blurb:

Two years ago, Jamie Mainwaring and Remy Remington had nothing in common except missing boys and a blazing hot mutual distraction. When the case was over, so were they. Although they went their separate ways, life—and death—keep the men connected. After another deadly tragedy touches both their lives, the men say what they believe must be their final goodbyes—only to have their worlds collide once again. This time they end up in Las Vegas, one man for work, the other to try to mend a very personal pain.

Although Jamie and Remy once excelled at mixing business with pleasure—this time, the stakes are much higher—they’ve got forever on the line. When they discover Jamie’s case has an unexpected connection to Remy’s son, they must put everything aside to find Toby before the young man makes a decision that will change all of their lives. One thing is positive, time is running out.

 

✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍

Prevailing Winds Excerpt:

“I don’t know if I can do this, cowboy,” Jamie whispered. Even while his heart was busy trying to put on the brakes, his traitorous hands slid to Remy’s waist. He leaned up to steal another kiss. The slide of slick tongue, the wet heat, familiar taste all insistently telegraphed the same message. This is right.

Jamie arched toward Remy, tugging at his shirt, sliding hands along the hot flesh, pulling him closer. Returning the kiss, Remy made a noise halfway between a groan and a growl, then took a commanding control, forcing his head back, their tongues dancing in an addicting blend of white-hot urgency.

Just like the first time they’d kissed, the effect of Remington’s kiss was like no other. It wasn’t just a kiss, it was an assault on his senses that left his head spinning and his lungs desperate for oxygen. Even his toes tingled. Intense. Passionate. Perfect. They fit together in a way he’d never been able to duplicate with any other man. Yin and Yang. Black and Tan. Fish and Chips. Breaking their kiss, Jamie nearly snorted with laughter.

Immediately, Remy dropped his hands to his sides and took a giant step backward. “I’m sorry, Jamie. I didn’t mean to—” His eyes were heavy, the lush lips swollen from their kisses, the dress shirt untucked and rumpled. Jamie wanted to finish undressing him, to use his mouth to ravish that beautiful body.

Trying to focus, Jamie said, “No—it’s not that. I was thinking—”

“Always dangerous with you,” Remy interrupted.

Jamie laughed again. “Too true. I was thinking about how perfectly our kisses seem to fit together. The things you do to me are like no one else…then I lost the thread.” He repeated his thoughts.

“Like fish and chips? Seriously?” Now Remy was laughing, too. “How do I go from being your best kiss to being compared to a piece of cod?”

Jamie shook his head. “I don’t know. Nerves, maybe?”

Remy nodded. “I’ll go back to my room.”

“No,” Jamie practically shouted. Remy tilted his head and blinked. The man probably thought him mad. Maybe he was.

“Jamie, help me out here. What can’t you do? How can I help?” Remy took Jamie’s hand and started to lead him toward the couch. Jamie tugged him to the bedroom instead.

“I don’t want you to leave, Remy. Really, I don’t. Let’s go to bed.”

“Jamie, you don’t have to do this. In fact—shit, I can’t believe I’m saying this—but I’d rather we not do anything if you’re not sure.”

“That’s just the trouble, Remy. I’m sure I want this.” He used two fingers to point back and forth between them. “What I’m afraid of is what happens afterward. I’m not sure I can…survive watching you walk away again. And God, I’m so sorry. I know it’s way too soon for both of us—too soon after Miggy—too soon for this to be something you can commit to. That’s what scares me.”

Remy pulled Jamie so they both sat on the edge of the bed. Their hips touched, but Remy leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees, the position he always assumed when he needed a bit of self-protection. “I get that. I’m scared, too, you know. It nearly killed me to watch you walk away in Phoenix. And you’re right, it’s too early to search out Elvis and put on wedding bands. But Jamie, I don’t think it’s too soon to say we can try.”

Jamie’s stomach twisted, and his heart thudded erratically. Remy turned his head, and gave him a half smile. “Miggy…his death was ugly, beyond senseless. It was a fucking bomb, set two years ago by that asshole Cortez. And we never knew. We all went about living our lives—never once considering we were running out of time. All of us, Jamie—not just Migs. But here’s the thing…I don’t regret the journey, even if I hate the ending. But I have to wonder, what other time bombs are waiting for us? What regrets would we have if one of us died tomorrow?”

The words released the binds around his heart. As if someone opened the starting gate, Jamie surged forward, knocking Remy back onto the bed with an oomph. Like the crazed man he was beginning to suspect he was, he fumbled until he managed to get Remy’s shirt and slacks open. He was making splendid progress until he was distracted by the warmth of the big hands that slipped under his shirt and the roll of Remy’s hips. Even through their remaining clothes, hard length pressed against hard length.

“Jamie,” Remy said his name like some sort of incantation, weaving a spell with his voice. Jamie cried out when he was flipped over, his back landing on the mattress with a thud, and he was pinned by the weight of Remy’s body. His mouth was plundered as Remy tasted and pulled back before tasting again. So much like their first time.

Breaking their kiss, Remy rose to his knees and tugged his shirt over his head, then stood and gave Jamie a long look. Jamie remembered the taste of those finely pebbled brown nubs, the scrape of the coarse brown chest hair, the heat of the golden skin. Still Remy waited, thumbs hooked inside his waistband, the zipper unfastened, more than a hint of cock showing, since he’d obviously gone commando. Jamie licked his lips and glanced up to meet Remy’s heavy look. Only then did Remy finally let his slacks drop to the floor. Jamie unfastened his own pants, but Remy pushed his hands aside and finished undressing him, adding his clothes to the growing pile. Then they were pressed naked together and Remy’s mouth found his once more.

“Say my name,” he demanded.

Jamie smiled. “Remy,” he mumbled against the warm lips that branded him as claimed. “Remy. Remy.”

“Fuck, Jamie. I love the way you say my name,” Remy whispered.
✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍✍

PWBadgeTour Dates: 8/6/14 Tour Stops: Parker Williams, Cate Ashwood,s,Love Byte Havan Fellows, SA McAuley, MM Good Book Reviews, EE Montgomery, Iyana Jenna, Emotion in Motion, Amanda C. Stone, My Fiction Nook, Lee Brazil, Scattered Thoughts & Rogue Words,  Wake Up Your Wild Side, LeAnn’s Book Reviews,  Jade Crystal, Rainbow Gold ReviewsPrism Book Alliance Fallen Angel Reviews Smoocher’s Voice

Rafflecopter Code: a Rafflecopter giveaway  Contest is for all four books!  Don’t miss out on the chance for the entire series!