Review: Family Man by Heidi Cullinan and Marie Sexton

Rating: 4 stars

Vince Fierro is forty. He comes from a large Italian family who love him and can’t understand why he hasn’t found the right girl yet. After all, Vince has three failed marriages behind him to prove that he is trying. But inside Vince knows the real reason none of his marriages have worked is because he is gay, a fact he has a hard time acknowledging even to himself. When his sister suggests that Vince find out by visiting a gay club in Chicago’s Boystown , he agrees and runs immediately into someone he knows, an encounter that will change both of their lives forever.

Trey Giles is leading a life that would cause anyone else to have a nervous breakdown. Trey is working two jobs in order to finish school, take care of his grandmother, who he lives with and dealing with a mother who refuses to deal with her serious substance abuse problems. Dating is the last thing on his mind until he runs into Vince at the bar. Vince is clearly uncomfortable, from the crowd to the music and when Trey suggests a more quiet jazz bar so they can talk, the night turns into something neither man expected. They talk for hours, Trey agreeing to help Vince become adjusted to the idea of his homosexuality but in truth Vince and Trey find a connection with each other so deep and instantaneous that it leaves them unsure of what step to take next. Vince’s biggest fear is that he will lose his family if he comes out of his closet, but if he doesn’t acknowledge his homosexuality to himself and his family, Vince just might lose the best thing that has ever happened to him, Trey Giles. What will this self proclaimed family man do?

Heidi Cullinan and Marie Sexton are two of my “must read” authors. They never fail to produce a story that will warm your heart and leave you thinking about love in all its combinations. In Family Man, the authors give us an older Italian American who has been so afraid of his own sexuality that he has married three times in the past, each with the same predictable result, divorce. His huge Italian family is pressuring him to date and enter into yet another relationship with a woman and Vince finally realizes that something has to change. At first Vince comes across as almost a stereotype and I had a problem connecting with the character. Vince stubbornly refuses to see that being gay does not lessen him as a man and until he can rid himself of that notion he won’t be able to accept his “gayness”. It takes some time to really see Vince as the complex character he really is and most of that is due to his inner dialogs with himself that almost makes the reader lose patience with him.

The story really takes off when Vince and Trey connect with each other. The story switches pov back and forth between Trey and Vince and it works as we become involved emotionally in their burgeoning relationship. Trey’s situation is especially disheartening and stressful. Overworked, he is trying to provide for his grandmother and deal with his mother who is an alcoholic and drug addict. Cullinan and Sexton realistically portray what it means to live with someone who refuses to deal with their addictions. It is heartrending in its futility and the damage it inflicts on those closest to the addict and the addict themselves is authentic at every level.

Vince’s issues are also examined and given an equally respectful treatment. His fears of losing his large, Italian Catholic family if he comes out as gay are pretty realistic, especially at his age. Vince has spent close to forty years denying his true self and that is a tragedy. It takes time for Vince to visit all the ramifications of his decision and then move forward with his relationship with Trey. I actually found the second half of the book just flies by as events speed up in both Vince and Trey’s lives. It was my favorite part of the book.

Family Man is a wonderfully sweet story of romance and love found when least expecting it. Cullinan and Sexton make a marvelous team and I can’t wait to see what they will come up with next. Pick this up and prepare to meet an Italian family that is hard to forget and two MCs you will grow to love.

Cover art is wonderful, I wish I knew who the artist was to give them credit for this delicious and spot on design.

Review: Natural Predators (Mahu #7) by Neil S. Plakcy

Rating: 5 stars

Honolulu homicide detective Kimo Kanapa’aka and his detective partner Ray Donne are called on one of their most complex case when an abandoned warehouse goes up in flames and in the rubble the remains of a prominent statesman are found. When the cause of death is determined to be murder, Kimo and Ray follow an ever expanding field of clues that stretch from local gyms into the rarified society of Hawaii’s oldest and wealthiest families.

More bodies pile up as the murderer stays just ahead of them, putting their families and themselves in danger. In addition to his case, Kimo’s personal relationship with his partner Mike is under stress as they decide whether or not to go ahead as donors for their lesbian friends and a young runaway makes Kimo and Mike think about being foster parents.

Hawaii is a place of immense beauty , where predators and prey live and die as nature dictates. Under the shinning sun and majestic waves, treacherous events happen even as the ambience lures you in. No one is more aware of the delicate balance than Kimo Kanapa’aka as he races to find the murderer and keep his new found family safe.

Natural Predators is the first book I have read by Neil S. Plakcy and therefore the first book I have read in this series. I started early evening and read right through until 2am in the morning, pausing only to rub my eyes, adjust the light and continue on until I had finished. I had heard wonderful things about this series but still nothing prepared me for the richness and depth of the story and characterizations I found within. It was like going to a nice restaurant only to find out that the restaurant is gourmet, Jose Andres is the chef, and you are sitting at the chef’s table.

Natural Predators is a veritable luau of Hawaiian delights, a banquet of varying aromas, textures, tastes and melodies, something for everyone’s palate. Plakcy’s characters range from low level thugs to runaway teens to high society lawyers and businessman and everything in between. Each character has a defining “voice” consistent with their histories and culture, from traditional haoli conversations to the pidgin dialect heard among those born on Hawaii. Here Kimo and his partner track down two suspects in the case:

“Mr. Campbell. Police. Open up.” We waited, and Ray was about to knock again when the door opened. Larry, a fat Hawaiian guy with dark dreadlocks, stuck his head out. “Hey, Leroy, it’s da kine police,” he said. “Long time no see, bruddas.”

Larry yawned and stepped outside, and big, bald Leroy followed him. “How about your cousin Pika?” Ray asked. “He in there, too?” “Nah, he wen bag two days ago.” “But he was living with you before he left?” I asked. “Sometimes he moi moi wid us, sometimes wid his buddy,” Leroy said.

To Ray’s credit, he seemed to be following the conversation, which meant he was learning our island pidgin. Pika slept at their place sometimes, but had left two days before. “Tacky?” I asked. Larry nodded. “Yeah. Bodybuilder dude. Dumb as two rocks in a box.” That could describe the Campbell brothers, too. “You know where we can find him?” I asked. “Try gym,” Leroy said. “Ho brah, he alla time workin out.”

Picked out of context, it might seem a little jarring but still you can hear the rhythm of the spoken words and in context, you barely notice it so because you have become so accustomed to hearing it throughout the novel. By the end of the story, you will feel as though you have walked the streets of the city and sat and conversed with all types of Hawaiians, The authenticity of elements and locations Plakcy has brought to the story make it that real.

We travel with Kimo and Ray as they traverse from one side of the island to the other, collecting Hawaiian history and geographical facts as we go. From the history of Hawaii’s quest for statehood or independence to the polyglot of cultures that makes up a typical Hawaiian conversation, we are slowly pulled in to the draw of the islands and the rhythm of daily life there. And not once does any of it come across as a regurgitation of a history lesson.

Again Plakcy seamlessly folds in tidbits of Hawaiian sayings and facts, as in this example:

“Just before four, we hopped in the Jeep to meet Frankie. In Honolulu, we don’t use mainland directions like east, west, north and south. Makai is toward the ocean, while mauka means inland, toward the mountains. Diamond Head is in the direction of that extinct volcano, while the opposite is called Ewa, toward a town of the same name.”

Actually I could just keep on with quote after quote, Natural Predators is that terrific, Neil S. Plakcy is that great. His descriptions are vivid, wide ranging and carry with them the tone of a detective familiar with the full spectrum of human society, one that has lost its element to surprise him but manages to deliver an appreciation for life and its special moments no matter the situation. I am in love with all of the characters here.

Natural Predators is a novel not of one plot thread but many, and Plakcy does a remarkable job of not only paying equal attention to every one but also to keep each storyline as strong and rich in texture as all the rest. The murder mysteries have a complex history to them, the foster child element will make you laugh and cry, sometimes together, you will hold your breath as Kimo and his partner Mike work through yet another potential obstacle to happiness with regard to surrogate fatherhood and still read in amazement as Plakcy rolls in more layers much like the tropical habitats that abound in Hawaii. If I thought he would have heard it, I would have stood and applauded upon finishing this story.

So what happens now? Well, hopefully you will go off to buy the book and I am going back to the beginning and start the series from Mahu (Mahu#1). I can’t wait for the ride to begin again, such an E Ticket!

Here are the books in the order they were written:

Mahu (Mahu #1)

Mahu Surfer (Mahu #2)

Mahu Fire (Mahu #3)

Mahu Vice

Mahu Blood

Zero Break

Mahu Men: Mysterious and Erotic Stories

Natural Predators

I can’t find the name of the cover artist but they did a beautiful job, worthy of the story within.

Review of An Unconventional Union (Unconventional #2) by Scotty Cade

Rating: 3.25 stars

After discovering love in An Unconventional Courtship, Kincaid International Corporation’s CEO, Webber Kincaid, and his executive assistant, Tristan Moreau, return home to find that Webber is the subject of an SEC and Department of Justice investigation over Illegal business transactions by his company’s CFO. A CFO who threatens to out the couple unless they cover for his activities. Faced with the ruination of their reputations and that of the company his father built, Webber Kincaid prepares to fight back and help the SEC and Justice Department with their investigations.

But while their business world is chaotic, their personal relationship has never been better now that they have finally admitted they love each other. In face, Webber has proposed and Tristan accepted and a Martha’s Vineyard wedding is now under preparation. As the wedding date gets closer, Tristan knows he has to let go of his past and tell Webber about his family and the secrets he has kept hidden and both men decide to out themselves to Webber’s board of directors and the world. With so many obstacles in front of them, Webber and Tristan must stand together, love intact, to make it through their wedding and their HEA.

I normally love Scotty Cade’s books and found his Mystery of Ruby Lode to be exceptional. So even without reading the first book in this series, I was looking forward to An Unconventional Union. Unfortunately what I found was a book that could almost be divided into two totally different sections each in a different genre. First lets discuss the elements I did like about the story. This is a sweet love story between two men that took two years to develop due to a working relationship and their closeted status. While I did not read the first book, their courtship and accompanying issues are related to the reader in as Tristan remembers how they got together as the beginning of this book so the author gives us the backstory right from the beginning.

We enter the story shortly after Webber has proposed to Tristan and been accepted. The company’s financial problems are already established as well. Cade takes care to show how the men are dealing with all the changes around them as realistically as possible, including the impact on their new relationship and future wedding. I think this section or element of the book is really nicely done. The men are easy to relate to and they express their love easily and in a manner that makes their passion for each other authentic. There is a multitude of “I love you’s” and similar expressions of love but considering their newfound status and approaching nuptials, I find that totally in keeping with the situation.

And at the end of the book, a traumatic event really brings the best out of Scotty Cade as a writer. It is heartwrenching, warm, and concisely told, really outstanding and the best part of this story. I only wish I could say the same about the majority of the book because when you get down to it, perhaps less than half of An Unconventional Union relates to the plot. The other half? That is where my issues with this book come in.

For me, the majority of this story is a verbose, overly descriptive travel article on Martha’s Vineyard and The Inn and Restaurant at Lambert’s Cove. Every part of this is related in a dry lecture guaranteed to make your eyes glaze over and kill any forward motion in the plot. Here are Webber and Tristan on the plane researching the island:

“This site says the first explorer to leave any real account of the island was Bartholomew Gosnold. He landed on the cape first, which he named Cape Cod from the abundance of codfish. Then he sailed southward and landed on a small island about six miles southeast of Gay Head. He named this small island Martha’s Vineyard. The next day he landed on the larger island, and after exploring it and finding luxuriant grape vines, many beautiful ponds and springs, he transferred the name and called it Martha’s Vineyard, in honor of his mother, whose name was Martha.”

More than you probably needed to know, but not too bad. The worse is yet to come, because soon they arrive at The Inn at Lambert’s Cover (which is standing in for the real thing called Lambert’s Cove Inn & Restaurant). From the moment they set foot on the grounds, the reader is given a detailed inventory of each room, including foyers, every knickknack in the library, every…well I will let the book speak for itself:

“From the moment he stepped inside, Tristan saw that the inn was just as the photos and description had portrayed. The foyer and surrounding rooms were decorated in what could only be considered English Country style. It was warm and inviting. To the left was a large parlor done in red, furnished with deep mahogany leather couches and warm red and gold plaid wingback chairs positioned in front of a large fireplace. To the right was a more formal room decorated in royal blue and greens with yet another massive fireplace. Tristan immediately pictured himself and Webber sprawled across that couch with a good book and a scotch in front of a roaring fire. He imagined the wind howling and a foot of snow on the ground and not having a care in the world while being safe and secure with the man he loved. He was snapped out of his daydream as another gentleman joined them.”

And we are just getting started, now onto the bedroom.

“Tristan stepped into the room first and was amazed at what he saw. It was what he would consider a quintessential New England-style room. The ceiling was a little lower than usual, and the room was painted in a warm coppery color with a muted tan and cream-colored striped fabric accented with a cream-colored damask. There was a four-poster bed with a canopy attached to a large ceiling medallion over the center of the bed gently cascading to each bedpost and draping to the floor, puddling at the base. There was a skirted table with two houndstooth plaid oversized wingback chairs and a large antique dresser opposite the bed. At the far end of the room was a bathroom with a deep soaking tub, and directly across was a walk-in closet.”

Now imagine the same attention to detail when describing each foyer, concierge desk and hallway and you should start to see the problem here. But wait, there’s more….

Here is Tristan looking out the bedroom window, they haven’t even made it into the gardens yet:

“Tristan scanned the area outside of their window. Tall trees and hedges surrounded the expansive lawn offering total privacy and seclusion. To the left was a large square lion’s head fountain spitting water into a pool from four different directions. To the right was a white octagon-shaped gazebo with a cedar shake roof housing white wicker furniture with overstuffed cushions, obviously for relaxing and watching the day go by. “It really is beautiful.”

Now to be fair there are some lovely scenes with the couple making love or kissing interspersed between the decorator’s manual but still that is broken up by more of the same:

“They walked in silence along a red brick path, hands still linked together tightly. Tristan turned his head from side to side as he took in the surroundings while he tried to calm his nerves. They passed an herb garden tucked away into a corner of the main house on the right, while on the left they approached a black lion’s head fountain spitting water into a pool nestled into a glorious wall of lilacs at least eight feet tall. Next, they crossed the front of the inn, walked through a white arbor, passed a koi pond, and sauntered across the lawn, finally stopping when they stepped into the gazebo. Webber released his hand and gestured for him to take a seat on the white wicker loveseat. Tristan sat and watched as Webber poured them each another glass of wine and took a seat next to him. ” *head desk*

They can’t even go to dinner without the entire meal being displayed out before you, showing us what a gourmet restaurant should be serving.

“As they walked toward the main house and restaurant, the sounds of Edith Piaf filled the air, reminding Tristan of a brief trip he’d taken to France. Once inside, Sam and Cavan put them at a lovely secluded table in the corner overlooking the pool area. Webber ordered a vintage bottle of Bourgogne Rouge VV “Maison Dieu” Domaine de Bellene, and their night officially began. They started with oysters on the half shell, then as an appetizer Webber ordered grilled white peaches with imported prosciutto, shaved red cabbage, and micro greens, and Tristan ordered steamed mussels in caramelized ginger, green onions, and coconut milk. For entrees, Webber had the seared sea scallops and Tristan horseradish-dusted veal. Sam and Cavan took turns seamlessly stopping by to make sure everything was to their liking, but never lingered long enough to intrude on their privacy. They finished the meals off by sharing a Belgian chocolate molten lava cake and a bottle of Ruffino Moscato d’Asti Italian dessert wine.”

We don’t get descriptions of how the meal tasted, the aroma that wafted off the grilled peaches, nothing to make our mouth water. We simply get a list of foods served, like a sample menu you would show people prior to checking in. For me this was a complete fail in terms of writing. All of these intermable passages describing the Inn’s decor, gardens and restaurant only serves to kill any momentum in the plot that the author had achieved to that point in the story. Webber and Tristan starts to discuss important issues in their relationship and boom, we are back to rows of shrubbery and black wrought iron lions.

We do get a slight break from the Architectural Digest treatment when they return to the city, but when they wed, its back to the Inn and more descriptions of the wedding ceremony and gardens at the Inn that would do a wedding planner proud. Seriously, a wedding planner could use this as a template for an upcoming wedding it is that complete. There is a small drama at the wedding and then back to the city where finally the heart of this story arrives never to leave. It is the final pages of An Unconventional Union that raised this story up to 3.25 stars.

So while I will continue to read Scotty Cade, I will give this series a pass. I love descriptions of places and things when they make sense, are concise, and written with passion. And although I know Mr. Cade must love Martha’s Vineyard as he lives there, none of that comes across in the dense narrative given to us here.

Here are the books in the order they were written for this series so far:

An Unconventional Courtship (Unconventional #1)

An Unconventional Union (Unconventional #2)

Reese Dante’s cover is gorgeous, I love the models and the landscape, perfect for the story within.

Happy St. Patrick’s Day and the Week Ahead in Reviews

sláinte! Happy St. Patrick’s Day. To start your St. Patrick’s Day, here is some great music from Brogan’s Bar in Ennis, Ireland to get you fired up!

Half Irish, half Scottish, I love this day and today the weather has gone along with the program and seems particularly Irish. Overcast, damp, but not too cold, perfect for marching in parades all over the nation.

I have travelled to Ireland several times and found the leaving of it always comes with a crease in my heart, as though even my cells know that we are saying farewell to home. My first time visiting with my high school daughter was both a delightful and revelatory, her feet seeming to find paths that she should not know where there. My nights were filled of dreams of seals and shores and music carried along the winds over gorse covered hills, studded with stone. And on the penultimate day, Heather and I were hiking in a verdant forest, far away from any others or so we thought. And then we heard it, or heard them more accurately. First the sounds of a waterfall, the roar getting louder the closer we got. But what really made that day magical was the sounds of piping coming from high overhead. We craned our necks to see where it came from and finally we found him, standing on a rock ledge, eyes closed, bagpipes swelling as he lost himself in the music he was playing. We listened for a while and then quietly left, rejuevenated and enriched by a magical experience shared before she left for college. One of my finest memories.

So day I hope for the best for all of you, of laughter shared, of love found and family held close. And as this website is, mostly, devoted to books I will leave you with a quote from an Irish author:

“As a writer, I write to see. If I knew how it would end, I wouldn’t write. It’s a process of discovery.”
– Author John McGahern

Here is the week ahead in book reviews:

Monday, March 18: An Unconventional Union by Scotty Cade

Tuesday, March 19: Never A Hero by Marie Sexton

Wed., March 20: Redemption of the Beast by Amylea Lyn

Thursday, March 21: Family Man by Heidi Cullinan

Friday, March 22: Nights in Canaan by Kendall McKenna

Sat., March 23: Natural Predators by Neil Placky

So, that’s the week. Have a safe and wonderful St. Patrick’s Day. Forego the green beer, that’s gross anyway and have a Irish Manhattan, so much better!

Review: Metal Heart by Meredith Shayne

Rating: 4.25 stars

It is 1990 and a local band called King Phoenix is looking for a lead guitarist to round out the band. When 20 year old Scott King shows up to audition, his music and song writing abilities mesh perfectly with the songs and sounds King Phoenix embodies and they welcome him into the group. Scott also bonds closely with their lead singer, Ash Walker. As the rock band evolves from anonymity to fame, Scott and Ash form first a close friendship which turns into a intense, sexual and romantic relationship that lasts for four years. But unlike his other band members, Scott starts to experience stage fright the bigger the venues they play. His coping mechanisms coupled with some bad friends, start Scott on a downward spiral that Ash and the band are first unaware of, then unable to stop. Pressure mounts until the stresses and rumors of Ash leaving the band, cause Scott to implode, ODing on drugs and alcohol. While Scott lies in a coma in the hospital, the band leaves to go on tour without him. There will be no further communication between the band and Scott until 16 years later.

2011, Berry, Australia. Scott King has worked hard since coming out of rehab to become a successful music producer with his own studio. He’s healthy having been clean for 16 years. Scott likes his quiet life, he lives with his twin sister and his niece, he has friends and ex lovers, and is mostly content. His past is safely secured in a box tucked away in a closet in his bedroom, a box that never gets opened lest the past bring out all the old demons he has fought for so long.

Then he gets a phone call from the past, his old band manager, who wants Scott to play at a benefit gig for King Phoenix’s old sound man who is dying of cancer. The benefit is to raise money for his wife and child and Scott is needed to reunite the band. Prodded by his sister and fond memories of their sound man, Scott agrees against his better judgement. But seeing Ash, who wants to take up where they left off, starts to shatter Scott’s self control as does the stage fright that starts to come back. Can Scott handle the stress of seeing the only man he has ever loved under the same conditions that once broke him? Or will this reunion cost Scott everything he has worked so hard to build, including his sobriety.

I love a good rocker book and Metal Heart is terrific. It is my first introduction to Meredith Shayne and I will eagerly check out the rest of her library. Metal Heart has so much to recommend it, including a gritty look at the effect of drugs and alcohol on someone vulnerable enough to let them take over his life. Actually, I think this element of the novel is perhaps the best part of the story, elevating it even over the lovers reunited.

Shayne starts off by giving us the character of Scott King, a naive 20 year old gay musician. A friend and later band manager drags him to audition for a scruffy local band called King Phoenix. Scott is someone who loses himself in his music, from the compositions he writes to the lead guitar he plays. Shayne gives him a vulnerability that shows the reader how open emotionally Scott can be to all things, including love in the form of Ash Walker. I love this character and we watch him grow and struggle over a 16 year period. For Scott, the best part of his life is the early years with Ash, before the band caught on and became famous. Young, impressionable, artistic and happy, those are his defining years. But the stresses of playing to large crowds, as well as hiding their romance and sexuality from all around them, places such a strain on Scott that the cracks start to appear and fissure, and we feel helpless as we watch it happen. The author then goes on to demonstrates how readily available drugs and alcohol allowed musicians and others to cope with the demands of touring and the pressures of fame. The scenes where associates introduce Scott to drugs rings true as does the resulting addiction that others are helpless to derail.

This leads us into discussions of therapy and rehabilitation as well as the fact that once you are an addict, you are always an addict. Shayne is careful to give us an authentic portrayal of someone in the throes of an addiction to someone living the life of a recovered addict. The temptations to succumb to the pressure to use again are always present and Scott is that addict personified. Really, this is just a remarkable characterization.

The character of Ash Walker is one that, while he didn’t quite work his magic on me, will be a favorite of most readers. A little older, Ash is less vulnerable and more savvy than Scott, even at the beginning. And while we never doubt the love he holds for Scott, he comes across as the most secure and ambitious of the two. He wants fame, and is at ease with the pressures that come with it, unlike Scott. And while there is more to his story than is revealed at the beginning, I still found myself disconnected from this character, especially after he continues to pressure Scott to resume playing while acknowledging that Scott is showing the symptoms of cracking under the stress. I did find it realistic that the band members would be so self involved not to understand what was happening to Scott in the 90’s but for them to consider his actions that of a “jerk” when he is clearly trying to protect himself and his self control in 2011, well I found that to be less feasible, more objectionable than anything else.

This also applies to the “aha” moment of the story which I won’t divulge here. But one thing that is repeatedly brought up is the fact that Scott “disappeared” and that in 16 years Scott never tried to contact the band members. They all knew he was in rehab and a little research would have shown that those in rehabilitation are not to have contact with those that helped enable them. Plus Scott King became a successful music producer, and they couldn’t find him until 16 years later? Again, that just doesn’t seem all that realistic. But those qualms aside, this author delivers a vibrant, enthusiastic portrait of young rockers, love and the price of fame to life in Metal Heart, and then leaves us with the promise that sometimes love is enough, even after 16 years apart. For me, this is still a HFN, instead of HEA and there seems to be plenty of room for another book to see where they take the relationship next as not all obstacles have been cleared away. Either way, this story will please fans of rock n roll stories and bad boys with music to burn as well as those of romantic lovers reunited at long last. All fans will be left satisfied at the end of Metal Heart. Pick it up and happy reading!

Cover art by Anne Cain. Love, love this cover. From the graphics to the color choices and fonts, just perfect.

Review: Open Cover Before Striking by Willa Okati

Rating: 4.5 stars

Davis Carmichael has one focus in life, his job as a writer for Tatterdemalion’s Voice, and he let’s nothing else distract him from that. This includes sexual encounters, then he meets Cristián in an airport while both are waiting for flights out. Their one night stand is not only white hot but revelatory and neither man can let go of their memories of the encounter. And neither man expects to see each other again, afterall they don’t even have each other’s full name.

But fate has something else in store for them. Because the subject of Davis Carmichael’s next column is a matchmaker who Davis intends to expose as a fraud and that matchmaker is none other than Cristián Baranov. Cristián Baranov is a believer in the adage that there is only one true love for each person and he believes he has a real gift in his ability to see those who are soul mates. When Davis travels to the home and office of the matchmaker, he is astonished to find his one night stand is the person he has been sent to interview and the surprise is not at all one sided. Cristián too is surprised to see Davis but also delighted. It is a case of big city snarky pessimism versus warm country romance and the winner will be anyone’s guess. But both will be losers in love if Cristián can’t make the biggest match of his life, that of his own.

I will say immediately that while I loved this book, I can see where it is going to be one that people either love or hate depending upon their taste. And they are going to feel that way from the beginning to the very end. It will be due to one character and maybe also because of a slight paranormal element that glides throughout this contemporary romance with all the subtly of a light fragrance you can’t put a name too. It will either tickle your fancy or make you retch and not too much in between.

First to the characters Willa Okati has created for her story. I actually loved them both. The first we meet is the one that will decide this story for the reader. You might love him or detest him as a total jerk. I loved him. Davis is that hot tempered, small bodied prickly hedge hog of a man. He has a vocabulary both quick witted and foul mouthed and uses words as a weapon more often than not. Davis pokes and strikes out at people to keep them at a distance and he does not make it easy to like him. But I did, from the first opening snark. Because for all his spines, and they are plentiful, there is something about him as Okati has written him that cries out “Don’t discount me, I am going to surprise you”. And he does. He has layers, the top of which are distrustful, sarcastic and defensive. But keep going and the real Davis appears and he is startling!

The one character that will keep the wavering reader going is Cristián Baranov. A creature of the country and a true romantic at heart, he really does have the power to see personal matches, all but his own in an ironic turn he is not blind to. He is compassionate and very much aware of human foibles, saying to the couples he brings together that while he can unite them, the rest is up to them. And as we all know “humans screw up”, and if things don’t work out, then it is only ourselves we can blame. Not that this makes his pain any less when the couples he brings together don’t make it. The author makes us believe so totally in his abilities that by the end of the book, you will wish that Cristián Baranov was real and that you could meet with him soon to find the one you were meant to be with.

The other element that the reader must take on faith is that the events in the story happen very quickly, this is no drawn out love affair, although there is a troubled long term couple also involved. It all comes down to faith. Faith in Christian’s abilities and faith that we have a perfect match for each of us out there. If you can take those concepts to heart, then this story will beguile you and the ending will make you cheer. And while I may not believe that there is only one for each of us, I loved these characters and their story. For me it was a darn near perfect Okati, just what I expect from her. So give this book a chance because really these characters and their story is worth it.

Cover art by April Martinez. I think you all know by now how I feel about red or yellow cover colors. I really dislike them and that is once again my only problem with this cover. I get why the artist did it but still while the models are perfection, ditto the lit match, couldn’t another background work just as well? Sigh.

Two Worthy Subjects, Gays in Professional Sports and Racially Insensitive Names: Mike Wise, Sports Columnist for The Washington Post

My book review of Metal Heart is delayed so I leave you with Mike Wise of The Washington Post. Several of his last two columns are worth reading for more than just sports. One deals with the racially insensitive name of the local football team known here as the ‘Skins and the other about out gays in professional sports. The topics are overdue for discussion and both subjects still have a long way to go before general acceptance is wide spread. Both are worth reading. Here they are, take a look for yourself:

Redskins Name Goes Before the Federal Trade Board….

Dave Kopay Knows What Questions Should be Asked….

Review: Venetian Masks by Kim Fielding

Rating: 4.75 stars

Jeff Dawkins is 30 years old. His partner just left him for an older, richer man and now he has to sell his house because he can no longer afford the mortgage. And on top of it all, he has been left with a prepaid, non refundable month long Grand Tour vacation package they planned to take together and that Jeff never wanted to do in the first place. So when his mother, the real estate agent. explained that the least painful way to show and sell his house was if he was away, Jeff grudgingly agreed to go on the vacation as planned and leave everything in her hands.

Jeff has never travelled outside of Sacramento, unless you count one trip to Canada as a kid with his parents. But prepared as always, he has his Kindle, laptop, travel guide and plans well in hand, hoping to make the best of a bad situation. Then he arrives in Venice and all his carefully laid out schedule flies out the window when he meets ex pat Cleve Prieto. Cleve is handsome, tattooed and familiar with the language and city. So when Cleve offers to be his tour guide, for a price of course, Cleve is both suspicious and intrigued enough to say yes. But nothing about Cleve is what he says it is, his story about his background is constantly changing and he appears to have no visible means of support. Still even with all the lies and misleadings, something about Cleve just pulls at Jeff’s heart, drawing him in just as the City of Venice does, making him fall in love twice over.

Then Cleve’s dark past arrives in Venice looking for him and Jeff must decide whether to hold onto his precious control and safe life or throw all caution away to pursue a love he never expected to find across a continent where nothing is familiar or safe, starting with the languages. Venetians like to hide behind masks and Jeff must discover what is under Cleve’s before it is too late for both of them.

What an amazing, lush journey Kim Fielding sets the reader on in Venetian Masks. Everything is here, a sumptuous banquet of travelogue, mystery, self discovery and of course, love. It doesn’t hurt that Fielding sets her story in the city of love, Venice, Italy, a place it appears she is familiar with and loves with a fervor equal to that of a Venetian themself. The city is described in vivid, knowledgeable, and affectionate terms, from the well known Piazza San Marco (St. Mark’s Square) to the less familiar island of “Isola di San Michele” where the main cemetery of Venice is located. We tour the canals via gondola or by the water bus known as vaporetto, and always we feel as thought we are sitting next to Jeff and Cleve instead of reading a tourist pamphlet on local sightseeing trips. I have been to Venice and still Kim Fielding made me see it again through Jeff’s eyes as it works its magic once more on those who visit her. I thought this section of the book perfection. Because it takes time for Jeff to fall in love with the city, so caught up in his breakup and preparedness that it takes a while before he starts to let go and enjoy himself. And I loved it as we are there every step of the way. Every day as Jeff starts out from his timeshare, the desk clerk, Mita, asks him if he has fallen in love with her city yet, and with each new day we listen in as the answer evolves. This is how it starts

Jeff shakes his head. “Well, she’s pretty cute, but I’m not sure if she’s my type.” Mita laughed. “You will see. My city is special and she will claim your heart.”

And you just know it will. You will too.

Into this amazing city, Kim Fielding creates two totally human and endearing characters, Jeff Dawkins and Cleve Prieto for her story of love and self discovery. We meet Jeff at a crossroads in his life, a life that has not been easy by any standards. He has lost his partner of 6 years, he is losing the house he loves because with his partner’s income gone, he can’t afford the mortgage and this trip is pulling him out of his comfort zone of his hometown of Sacramento, California. He is also 30, a crossroads age as well. He likes his life safe and he likes being prepared for any contingency and now Jeff feels like that is gone. Furthermore he is forced to go on a trip he never wanted because it is prepaid and his mother needs him gone to sell his house. Here is a man adrift in every aspect of his life while still trying to assert some measure of control. How can you not love him? Jeff is human, complex, and recognizable in his flaws.

Then he meets Cleve Prieto, his opposite in life. Like Jeff, the reader isn’t sure what to make of Cleve at the beginning. His personality is all shadow and smoke. But soon flashes of uncertainly and pain show through his smooth, casual demeanor, and we are trapped along with Jeff. We are unable to look away from this charismatic man, who might be a liar and thief who still manages to be the love of your life. Fielding did an outstanding job when she created the dichotomy that is Cleve Prieto. We understand immediately why Jeff cannot let him go, no matter what his actions say about him. Cleve is the one person who can make Jeff leave his carefully built zone of safety to reach for something more, and we get that immediately.

I think the plot here is thrilling and actually realistic and when the angst and adrenaline kicks in, it does so with a punch right to the gut as Jeff races across Europe with only a vague destination to go along with the goal in mind. Just sensational. And yet here is where my only quibble also makes an appearance. As Jeff arrives in Zagreb, he is on a mission and knows his time is running out, yet Fielding cannot let go of her inner travel agent. Too much time is spent on describing the gray edifices of Zagreb, bland communist buildings everywhere, local food and cafes, even the facial expressions of the denizens as they go about their everyday business. Jeff is too consumed to have noticed all that, intent on his goal and for the reader it just interrupts the flow of the story unnecessarily where the descriptions of Venice enhanced it. Had the descriptive portions of this section of the book been parred down, then this would have the 5 star rating this story deserves.

Kim Fielding is an author I only recently discovered and she went immediately into the “must read” column because her books are so well written and enjoyable. Venetian Masks is a wonder of a book and I cannot recommend it enough. The same goes for its creator. Make note of both and go get this book. You’ll be thanking me even while spending more money to grab up everything else she has written. But start here and prepare to fall in love with Jeff and Cleve and of course, Venice, the City of Love.

Cover Art by Shobana Appavu. This cover is as gorgeous and sumptuous as the story within. One of the best covers of the month and probably of the year.

Snowquestration, A Time Change and the Week Ahead in Book Reviews

For those of you outside of the DC Metropolitan Area, you may not have known but on Wednesday last week this area was expecting a snow storm of “historic” proportions. Forecasters got out their shovels and measuring sticks as the TV channels were full of giddy meteorologists pantomiming digging out driveways and anchors were busy imploring people to be prepared and stay home. Hour by hour the weather alerts increased the amount of snowfall we would see, Pepco our dysfunctional power company sent out text messages and robo called homes letting everyone know that they were on top of things, getting in crews from as far away as Alabama to keep the power on and lines clear of snow (for once). Schools in countries around the area from MD, DC and VA quickly cancelled classes the day before and the Federal Government closed all offices with all local governments following suit just as quickly. Grocery stores ran out of milk and other essentials, so did the liquor and wine stores. Streets emptied, stores shut down and our normally hyped up busy region turned into a ghost town. And we waited for the storm to start.

And we waited for the storm to start some more. Curtains were pulled back, and necks craned up as all eyes searched the sky for the first flakes to fall. And soon they did.

Big, fat, ginormous flakes fell.

And then they stopped falling. And it started to rain. And rain. And more rain.

Why did it rain? Because it had been f*&king warm all week long. A kindergartener could have told you that when it is that warm, it is not going to snow. And it didn’t, at least not here. It snowed in Pennsylvania, and in the mountains of VA, and the Midwest, and New England and out west, everywhere but here. Where it rained. OK we needed the rain, so that was great. But really, our entire region shut down because of rain. Is is any wonder that people outside the Beltway (the huge highway that encircles DC) think our area has lost our collective mind? That common sense and sound judgement are but vague concepts that make only fleeting appearances in the thoughts of those who inhabit Congress, run the World Bank, plot the course of the country on levels both small and large?

What name did we call this “historic” snowstorm? Why Snowquestration of course. That alone made perfect sense. A name that conjures up thoughts of dysfunction, of something that doesn’t work on the most basic level, something thought up in Congress that unfortunately affects everyone but Congress. Really, is that not perfection in labeling? I think so. It was the only thing that rang true for this storm and our area. Pundits will be using this for years in their columns. Ah, Washington, DC you have done it again. So proud to be from this area. But on the other hand it really is good for a laugh and we all need those. We closed the Federal government and schools because of rain. Have you stopped laughing yet?

The time changed. We sprang forward an hour. I hate this. Leave the time alone. Enuf’ said.

So spring is back (not that it ever really left), our DC Metro Book group is meeting today and I must be off. So without further ado, here is the week in reviews:

Monday, March 11: Blacque/Bleu by Belinda McBride

Tuesday, March 12: Venetian Masks by Kim Fielding

Wed., March 13: Silver/Steel by Belinda McBride

Thursday, March 14: Metal Heart by Meredith Shayne

Friday, March 15: Open Cover Before Striking by Willa Okati

Sat., March 16: Unconventional Union by Scotty Cade

Review: His Best Man by Treva Harte

Rating: 3.25 stars

Christian Ramsey finds himself divorced and the sole caregiver of his two girls after 11 years of marriage when his wife walks out the door. The first thing he realizes is that he has no idea of who his children really are or what to do next. During his marriage, Chris was the income earner, and his wife did everything else, including parent his children. Now that it is all on his shoulders, Chris feels incapable of handling the situation and he is not sure he even likes his children. Chris is adrift in his own life and knows it.

Enter Bill Dowe, former best friend, former best man at Chris’ wedding, and former lover of closeted, deep in denial Chris. Bill is now the principal at a local middle school and an incident between one of his school’s students and Chris’ oldest daughter brings the men back together again for the first time in 11 years. During their meeting at the school over the girls altercation, Chris asks Bill for help with his daughter and really his life. Bill is still bitter over Chris’ marriage and his denial about his sexuality but still he finds himself plunging once more into Chris life and his problems. When affection and attraction grow once more between Bill and Chris, will Chris take the chance he denied himself the first time around or will history repeat itself.

I think Treva Harte knows people and it shows when it comes to the characters she has created for this book. They are real people, full of flaws that we all recognize. They behave badly, run from problems when they should have faced them and make really bad personal decisions. They also redeem themselves, show an ability to grow emotionally and adjust to stressful situations. And they accept changes in relationships better than expected, surprising when one there parents. If you discerned that I was talking about the children here, Chris’ daughters, Pen and Annie Ramsey, then you are correct. In my opinion, Pen and Annie make this book. Harte writes tweenagers with a clarity that is astonishing. And trust me, these girls are heartbreaking in that way that only that age can be. Here is eleven year old Antigone “Annie” Ramsey in Bill’s office at school, after hitting another student:

“She wasn’t small for a kid her age, but she looked…well, oddly delicate. Like she was too skinny for that body, too fragile for her size. Like maybe she hadn’t been eating right for a while.

I’d heard of kids her age on diets, but—damn…I hoped she wasn’t. The world could screw with a kid’s head way too early. Did she think she needed to be skinny, or was something going on that made her not eat right? Bulimia, anemia, depression…

“I’m here because Miss Dumberson out there made me.”

I tried not to snort at the nickname. Sometimes I wasn’t much older than my students. Antigone sniffled again and peeked up at me through her eyelashes, probably deciding what kind of bullshit I’d believe. “It wasn’t my fault.”

Pen, her sister is a bundle of realistic complexities herself. Both girls are afraid and uncertain for themselves and their families future .And they react as you expect them to with their mother abandoning them to a emotionally reserved father they only saw after he came home from work. This is desperation with a capital D. And Treva Harte rolls it out there for the reader to see with all the authenticity and gritty realism of a documentary on dysfunctional families. I love these girls and connected with them on an emotional level from the first. And that is my problem with this book. These are not the main characters. With regard to the main characters, I don’t like either Chris or Bill very much, although Bill comes out much better than Chris does.

When the focus of the story is a dysfunctional, emotionally distant man who dislikes his children (mostly because he has absented himself from their lives and doesn’t know them), who runs from confrontation and problems of a personal nature, how do you engage the reader enough for them to make a connection to the character? For me it was one instance after another where Chris handles the situation or his children badly and then waits for Bill to bail him out. Who ends up understanding and taking care of the kids? Chris? Uh, no, that would be Bill. And while I could understand Bill far easier than Chris, he enabled Chris in his behavior and we are meant to approve of that.

Then there is the characterization of Chris’ wife which is very much in the one sided “evil witch” tradition that I despair of when reading m/m stories. Self centered to the point of abandoning her children for a man with more money and status, even a believable backstory is lacking. I could see it if she felt that 11 years in a marriage to a gay man left her unfulfilled, especially if that man was Chris but other than a sentence or two, where is her concern for the girls? I know that there are shallow women out there just like Stephanie, I just wish I didn’t see as many of them as I do in the stories these days. A more even handed approach would seem not only more sympathetic but more realistic.

In the end, I felt for the children, could have cared less what happened to Chris and wished that Bill would grab the kids and run like hell. Not the way one is supposed to feel when reading a contemporary m/m romance. And there is also a bdsm element in play here between Bill and Chris. I could sympathize with Bill taking a strap to Chris, but trust me when I say sexuality didn’t enter into my wishful thinking. Again, probably not what the author had in mind.

But oh those sisters! They deserve a story of their own, where they ride to each others rescue after thwapping a couple of villains (or maybe their parents) over the head. Trust me, these girls are more than capable. I loved them and had the focus been on them, you would have seen an entirely different rating. It is almost worth it to say to read this book for these two characters alone. Almost. So if Treva Harte is a “go to” author for you, you will want to pick up this story. Otherwise, I would wait and see what she comes up with next.

Cover: Cover Artist: Kalen O’Donnell. I am not a fan of red covers, including this one. They are hard to look at and this is especially garish.

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