Category: LGBTQ Audio Books

An Ali Audiobook Review: Winter Oranges by Marie Sexton and Nick J. Russo (Narrator)

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
winteroranges_audiobookJason Walker is a child star turned teen heartthrob turned reluctant B-movie regular who’s sick of his failing career. So he gives up Hollywood for northern Idaho, far away from the press, the drama of LA, and the best friend he’s secretly been in love with for years.

There’s only one problem with his new life: a strange young man only he can see is haunting his guesthouse. Except Benjamin Ward isn’t a ghost. He’s a man caught out of time, trapped since the Civil War in a magical prison where he can only watch the lives of those around him. He’s also sweet, funny, and cute as hell, with an affinity for cheesy ’80s TV shows. And he’s thrilled to finally have someone to talk to.

But Jason quickly discovers that spending all his time with a man nobody else can see or hear isn’t without its problems—especially when the tabloids find him again and make him front-page news. The local sheriff thinks he’s on drugs, and his best friend thinks he’s crazy. But Jason knows he hasn’t lost his mind. Too bad he can’t say the same thing about his heart.

This book takes a certain level of dispensing with reality. I mean…..person trapped in a snow globe. Once you get past that though this is a sweet tale of friendship and then romance. The two men are both extremely lonely in their own ways. Neither has had anyone to love them in a long time and they’re both in serious need of that. Of course things don’t go smoothly. (People generally think you’re crazy when you carry a snow globe with you everywhere and talk to someone no one else can see.) True love wins in the end though.

I thought the story was well written. The pacing was good and both of the main characters were enjoyable. I found myself rooting for them both and was happy when they got their happily ever after. This was creatively done story and while part of it takes place at Christmas I wouldn’t necessarily consider it a Christmas story. It’s a read you could enjoy year round.
This was narrated by Nick J Russo and I thought it was done very well.  I typically enjoy this author a lot and this was no exception.  He did all of the voices well and I never had a hard time telling the difference between the two MC’s.
Cover by L.C. Chase:  I like the cover.  It is nicely done and captures the essence of the story very well.
Sales Links

Audible, Amazon, iTunes

Book Details:

Audio release: December 7, 2016

Twenty percent of the proceeds from this title will be donated to the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender (GLBT) National Help Center.

Founded in 1996, the GLBT National Help Center is a non-profit organization that provides vital peer-support, community connections and resource information to people with questions regarding sexual orientation and/or gender identity. Utilizing a diverse group of GLBT volunteers, they operate two national hotlines, the GLBT National Hotline and the GLBT National Youth Talkline, as well as private, volunteer one-to-one online chat, that help both youth and adults with coming-out issues, safer-sex information, school bullying, family concerns, relationship problems and a lot more.

To learn more about this charity or to donate directly, please visit their website: http://www.glbthotline.org/

An Ali Audiobook Review: Between Ghosts by Garrett Leigh and Narrated by Craig Beck

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
betweenghosts_audiobook2400In 2003, journalist Connor Regan marched through London to add his voice to a million others, decrying the imminent invasion of Iraq. Eight months later, his brother, James, was killed in action in Mosul.

Three years on, Connor finds himself bound for Iraq to embed with an elite SAS team. He sets his boots on the ground looking for closure and solace—anything to ease the pain of his brother’s death. Instead he finds Sergeant Nathan Thompson.

Nat Thompson is a veteran commander, hardened by years of combat and haunted by the loss of his best friend. Being lumbered with a civilian is a hassle Nat doesn’t need, and he vows to do nothing more than keep the hapless hack from harm’s way.

But Connor proves far from hapless, and too compelling to ignore for long. He walks straight through the steel wall Nat’s built around his heart, and when their mission puts him in mortal danger, Nat must lay old ghosts to rest and fight to the death for the only man he’s ever truly loved.
I first read this around this time last year.  I was excited to get the opportunity to try this on audio because I had loved the story so much when I read it.  I’m happy to say that it was just as good on audio.  Connor is a journalist who has been an anti-war protester in the past. After his soldier brother dies Connor feels that he never really knew James and he fears James didn’t know how much he loved and respected him. Trying to find some peace in regards to his feelings about his brother Connor finds himself on a mission to Iraq with a SAS team. He’s going to do a series of articles showcasing what it is that the soldiers do and how they feel about their jobs.

Nat is the leader of that team and he’s been in war zones for years. He’s lost a lot of friends, as well as big pieces of his heart. He’s not happy about being stuck with a journalist but he quickly finds himself drawn to Connor and he’s challenged to start opening up the emotional parts of himself that he thought were long gone. Nat’s lost men in his command before that he feels responsible for and he’s consumed with fear that something might happen to Connor on his watch and that’s something he can’t live with.

The story is mostly set in Iraq so there is fighting and bloodshed. I didn’t find especially violent though and I do not think it will be an issue for most. There are some social and political issues raised but nothing that makes it preachy in either pro or con views. The war as a back drop to a budding romance just served to highlight the beauty of these two men’s relationship.

The highlight of this book are the relationships. Not just between Connor and Nat but between each of them and the other men in the group. Also important are the “ghosts” in their pasts. The brother that Connor lost and the best friend who’s death Nat feels responsible for. I loved both Connor and Nat and found them to be great MC’s. I empathized with what both of them were going through in the course of the story.
This is narrated by Craig Beck and I thought he did an excellent job.  There are a number of voices in this story and it was never difficult to tell them apart.  Also, there are a lot of emotions in this story and I think he did a great good making them all come through.  It added an extra level to what was already a poignant story.
This is an audio that I would highly recommend.  Everything about it is good.  It’s a unique story with an emotional plot and great characters and it is extremely well narrated.
The cover by Garrett Leigh:  I think this is a great cover and it fits the story very well.
Sales Links
Audiobook Details:
N/A

An Ali Audiobook Review: Merry Christmas, Mr. Miggles by Eli Easton and Tristan Wright (Narrator)

 Rating: 3.5 stars out of 5
merry-christmas-mr-miggles-audiobookToby Kincaid loves being the junior librarian in his hometown of Sandy Lake, Ohio. He spends his days surrounded by books and chatting with the library patrons. He especially adores the head librarian, Mr. Miggles, who is kind, witty, knowlegable about everything, and hopelessly addicted to Christmas. Sean Miggles is also pretty cute—especially for an older guy who wears ties and suit pants every day.

But Sean keeps himself at a distance, and there’s a sadness about him that Toby can’t figure out. When Sean is accused of a crime he didn’t commit, he gives up without a fight. Toby realizes that he alone can save the library—and their head librarian.

Toby will need to uncover the darkness in Sean’s past and prove to him that he deserves a second chance at life and at love too. And while Christmas miracles are being handed out, maybe Toby will get his own dearest wish—to love and be loved by Mr. Miggles.
This was a feel good holiday story.  The story is told from Toby’s point of view as he slowly learns his co-worker is a really great guy that does a lot for their small town.  After a crisis in which something bad happens to Sean, Toby steps up and tries to set things right.  And he enlists an assorted group of people he’s met through the library.  It’s that traditional holiday story where in the end everyone comes together to right the wrongs.  It’s one of those stories that helps you remember there are still a lot of good people in the world and it melts your heart just a bit.  I really enjoyed this part of the book.
My only complaint was the relationship between Toby and Sean.  Most of the book we’re told that Toby doesn’t know any side of Sean except his work side but then next thing you know they’re in love.  There isn’t any relationship building at all.  I think if this not been a Christmas story I would have been more bothered by this.  As it was, I just chalked it all up to the magic of Christmas and went with it.
This was narrated by Tristan Wright and I thought he did a good job.  I don’t think I’ve heard this narrator before.  He did a good job on both of the main characters and I never had a difficult time telling them apart.  He also did a good job on most of the side characters (and there were a lot of them).  There were a few women’s voices that didn’t work for me but they were not a huge part of the story so it wasn’t a problem.
I thought this was a well done and entertaining audiobook and a good addition to the holiday story genre.
Cover:  I like the cover.  It is simple but catches your eye right away.  (Probably because the model is so attractive.)
Sales Links
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Audiobook Details:
Length: 4 hrs and 45 mins
Audible Audio
Published December 16th 2016 by Pinkerton Road (first published November 23rd 2016)
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Edition LanguageEnglish

A Barb the Zany Old Lady Audiobook Review: Saving Silas by S.J. Himes and Derrick McClain (Narrator)

Rating: 2.75 stars out of 5

saving-silas-audiobook*Previously Published as part of Home For The Holidays, A M/M Holiday Anthology, Nov. 29th, 2015.*

This was a sweet-older-guy-rescues-twink story, and though there were quite a few plot holes, I did enjoy listening to it. That may possibly be due to the narration of Derrick McClain, who always comes through with a great narration.

Silas is caught in an alley while a shooter wreaks havoc on an area downtown. He’s in the alley because he crawled out a window to escape the wrath of his father, a nasty man who abhors homosexuals and has caught Silas in a lie about his sexuality. Though he’s always been brutal, this time Silas feels lucky to have escaped with his life and the shirt on his back. He can’t go to the cops because his father is the city’s DA and close friends with the police chief.

Fortunate that EMT Gael Dominic finds him behind the dumpster, the young man wakes up in the hospital to Gael’s soothing voice. Thinking he was underage, Gael volunteered to sit with him since there wasn’t anyone available from DCF. A John Doe that age would need to have someone on standby. Thankfully, when Silas awakens, he tries to keep his identity quiet, due to fear of his father finding him, but he does confirm that he’s nineteen. Unable to stop thinking about him, Gael heads out to visit him again the next day and finds out he’s just left AMA, disappeared from his room—a room which was now conspicuously crowded with men in suits. Acting on a hunch, Gael takes the back stairs generally used by staff and finds Silas near the outside door. When Silas begs for help, Gael can’t resist and takes him to his home.

There within two, possibly three days, they consummate their love, so to speak, and make plans for how Silas can cope without his ID. The resolution to the problem with his father was not quite believable, but no more remarkable than a near-death experience one day, running away the next, and having sex by the third day. It was a good concept, but not believably executed. Sprinkling in a little Christmas holiday emotion for good measure in the hopes it would leave readers feeling warm and fuzzy didn’t quite hit the mark.

So, not bad, not the best, but if you like big, tough, thirty-something, tattooed Alpha males and their romance with nineteen-year-old abused and injured homeless twinks, you may just rate this one higher. By all means, though, if you buy it, buy the audiobook version.

Cover art seems right for the story

Sales Link  Amazon Audible

Audiobook Details:

Listening Length: 3 hours and 38 minutes

Audiobook

Published November 30th 2016 by Sheena Jolee Himes (first published November 29th 2015)
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Edition LanguageEnglish

Out with 2016 and Hello 2017 and This Week at Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words

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Out with 2016 and Hello 2017!

Yes, its that time again. First day of the new year.  Time to shut the door on the old year and prepare to welcome in the new.  Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words turned 5 and got a whole new look!  We added reviewers and content hoping to provide more reviews as well as author and narrator interviews, giveaways and much more for all our readers.  I hope we’ve succeeded.

2016 held such promise.  LGBTQIA rights moved forward in the courts with marriage equality, transgender equality gaining ground in many states as laws were passed to protect peoples rights to live and love as they saw fit.  And so many of our stories reflected that hope and societal change.  It was wonderful and uplifting.  I loved reading about couples getting engaged and married while remembering stories reflected a reality not that long ago where that was not a possiblity.

Then came the elections.  Shock, disbelief, numbness,and so much more. Now we face an uncertain 2017 with a very different minded administration.  What will 2017 bring for the LGBTQIA community and the rest of us? And how quickly will we see that uncertainty and wide ranging emotions translated into our stories?  Will it be in our contemporary stories, science fiction, alternate universe or everything the authors can imagine and pour into their tales?  I can’t wait to read what 2017 will bring us with novels and short stories.

2016 saw the rapid rise of the audiobook as we mentioned during our month long series  where we interviewed audiobook narrators, authors and listeners.  This format is still rising in popularity and our reviews (and number of them) certainly reflect that.  We hope to be interviewing more narrators and talking more about this format in the coming year.  Do you have a favorite narrator?  Let us know and we’ll see if we can get them in for an interview!

We left off our Book Format series with the publishers view of  ebook publishing – how far its come, how its changed and where they think its going.  We hope to get back to that in 2017.

As we announced yesterday, several publishers are closing their houses.  All Romance is closed as of yesterday.  Torquere Press is closing but getting information about that is harder as all most people have is a message from the owners.  If you have more information, please let us  know so we can update our information to all our readers.  It would be greatly appreciated.

On the positive front, Samhain Publishing which once thought it would be closing, is staying open.  Great news for all.  Don’t forget to check them out as they now have over 2500 titles available to choose from.

Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words also started our Flash Fiction Writing Month.  That will continue in 2017, although not in contest form.  Look to see it again towards the end of the year as it was this time.

So many thoughts swirling and scattered about in my head….not unusual this first day of the year.  It will take more than a day to process it all.  Look for my ramblings to continue each Sunday this month as we reflect back and forward on 2016 and 2017.  STRW will also be taking a look at our favorite stories and covers, reviewer by reviewer.  Today we start off with Barb the Zany Old Lady’s favorite covers and stories of 2016.  How do they match up with yours?  Have you missed some?  Start  your TBRandMissed List now!

Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words Best of 2016

 From Our Reviewers!

 

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Barb the Zany Old Lady’s Top Ten of 2016 (in no particular order)

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Top 5 Covers:

  • Empty Net by Avon Gale– cover by Aaron Anderson
  • Wolfsong by T.J. Kllune – cover by Reese Dante
  • A Second Harvest by Eli Easton – cover by Bree Archer
  • Enjoy the Dance by Heidi Cullinan – cover by Kanaxa
  • Clickbait by E.J. Russell – cover by L.C. Chase

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*****

 Top Books & Audiobooks released in 2016:

Wolfsong by TJ Klune audiobook narrated by Kirt Graves

Absolution by Sloane Kennedy audiobook narrated by Joel Leslie

Dinner at Fiorelli’s by Rick R. Reed audiobook narrated by Joel Leslie

How to be a Normal Person by TJ Klune audiobook narrated by Derrick McClain

A Second Harvest by Eli Easton

Blank Spaces by Cass Lennox

Beyond the Sea by Keira Andrews

Enjoy the Dance by Heidi Cullinan

Tied Up in Knots by Mary Calmes

Empty Net by Avon Gale

If you’re adding to your TBR pile, keep going with some of the books we’ve reviewed this week.   From Amy Lane’s The Virgin Manny to Tara Lain’s Death Dancer to Tal Bauer’s Interlude: First Noel in his outstanding series, The Executive Office, to Falling Down by Eli Easton, there’s something for everyone this week.  Have a happy New Year’s Day everyone!

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This Week in 2017 at Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words

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Sunday, January 1, 2017 🎉 Happy New Years!:

  • Out with 2016 and Hello 2017 and This Week at Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words
  • Release Blitz  Tour – Amelia Faulkner’s Lord of Ravens (giveaway)
  • A Free Dreamer Review:O/s by Jane Davitt and Alexa Snow
  • A MelanieM Release Day Review: The Virgin Manny (The Mannies #1) by Amy Lane

Monday, January 2:

  • Release Day Blitz for A Collision with Reality by Storm Duffy
  • Tour: From the Ashes by Xen Sanders (excerpt and giveaway)
  • Release Day Blitz for Oops Caught by Alli Reshi
  • A Jeri Review: Wolf in League by AF Henley
  • A Lila Review: Interlude: First Noel by Tal Bauer
  • A PaulB  Review: Interlude: First Noel by Tal Bauer
  • An Alisa Review: Honey Trap by Fyn Alexander

Tuesday, January 3:

  • Release Blitz & Review Tour – Suki Fleet’s Light Up The Dark
  • DSP GUEST POST Avon Gale on “Whiskey Business“
  • A Jeri Review: Death Dancer (Dangerous Dancers #2) by Tara Lain
  • A MelanieM Review: The Next Competitor by Keira Andrews
  • A Paul B Review: Warrior Wolf and His Little Lamb (Pariah Pack #3) by Susan Laine
  • An Ali Review: A Collision with Reality by Storm Duffy

Wednesday, January 4:

  • Release Blitz Tour – Clare London’s Chase The Ace (London Lads #1)
  • A Free Dreamer Review: Crush by Caitlin Ricci
  • RIPTIDE TOUR: Assassins: Nemesis by Erica Cameron
  • A Barb the Zany Old Lady Audiobook Review: Saving Silas by S.J. Himes and Derrick McClain (Narrator)
  • A Jeri Review: Heart’s Gamble By S.J. Frost
  • A Lila Release Day Review: I Love You More Than Pierogi (World of Love) by K.A. Merikan
  • A Stella Review: Falling Down by Eli Easton
  • An Alisa Release Day Review: A Coal Miner’s Son by TA Chase

Thursday, January 5:

  • DSP GUEST POST C.L. Etta
  • DSP GUEST POST F.E. Feeley Jr on “The Haunting of Timber Manor“
  • A Lila Review: Tartan Candy by KC Burn
  • A Paul B Review: Henning Box Set by Hayden Thorne
  • A Stella Review:  Idlewild by Jude Sierra
  • An Alisa Review: Under the Mistletoe by Shawn Bailey

Friday, January 6:

  • Cover Reveal for Fireballs by Tara Lain
  • AE VIA BLOG SPOT on Nothing Special
  • DSP GUEST POST Taylor V. Donovan on “Six Degrees of Lust“
  • A Caryn Review:  Alpha Barman by Sue Brown
  • A Lila Review: Nothing Special V by AE Via
  • An Ali Release Day Review: Block & Strike by Kelly Jensen
  • An Alisa Review:  Defrosting Jack by Susan Laine

Saturday, January  7:

  • Release Blitz for Kayleigh Sky’s Doll Baby
  • DSP GUEST POST Thianna Durston on “Vespar“
  • An Ali Audiobook Review: Merry Christmas, Mr. Miggles by Eli Easton

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