Category: LGBTQ Book Reviews

Release Blitz – – Falling Into Love by Nell Iris & Kris T Bethke (excerpt and giveaway)

 

Buy Links: Amazon US | Amazon UK | JMS Books
 
Length: 34,305 words
 
Publisher: JMS Books
 
Blurb
 

Liam O’Donoughue is happy with his life. He runs V Wilderness Adventures with his best friends, his chosen brothers, and gets to spend his days hiking in the gorgeous Adirondacks. What’s not to love? But when he meets Austin on a hike, he thinks he’s found something he didn’t even know was missing.


Austin Jock is content with his work as a radiology tech and playing bass in a cover band. Someday he wants to find his forever person but doesn’t believe in romantic fireworks and isn’t sure it’ll ever happen. Then Liam comes crashing into his life, igniting sparks. Huge, life-altering sparks.


The connection between the two men is instant, and things move fast. But Austin isn’t sure what to do with everything he’s feeling inside. Can Liam convince him falling in love is the easiest thing in the world?


Excerpt

As Austin relaxed, he smiled more, and his body lost that tight posture. He leaned against me a little as the evening wore on, and when he started to shiver, I put my arm around him. The soft sigh he gave was one of the sweetest sounds I’d ever heard. I wanted to push him down onto the ground and devour him, taste and touch every inch of his delectable skin. But it was much too soon for that, and I definitely didn’t want to do it with an audience.

Eventually, he pulled out his phone, woke it up, and sighed. He turned into me so his entire side was pressed against my chest and tilted his head back, so he could look into my eyes.

“I have to go. I’ve got an early-ish shift tomorrow.”

Acute disappointment flooded my veins. But I nodded.

“Let me walk you to your car,” I murmured.

He nodded and stood. It took a little bit to say goodbye. I appreciated the enthusiasm Everett gushed over him, and I was pleased to see Drew give him a warm handshake. Finally, we moved out of the ring of firelight and ambled toward his car. Neither one of us seemed in a hurry for things to end.

“So, uh.” Austin cleared his throat, and then whispered so softly it was barely audible. “Poop.”

I laughed quietly, and reached out, tilting his face up. “Thanks for coming. I really wanted to see you.”

Austin sucked in a breath and held it, then let it out in a rush of words, “Was this a date?”

It took me a second to understand, because he’d spoken so fast I almost couldn’t make out what he said. But when I did, my grin was so wide my face hurt.

“Well, I certainly thought it was. I definitely wanted it to be. What’s your verdict?”

He gave a shaky laugh. “Me, too.”

“Good.” I cautiously took a step closer, wanting to be in his space, and he let me. He even lifted a hand and placed it on my waist. I cursed the layers between us. I wanted to feel his touch on my skin.

“Do you maybe want to do it again? Uh, go on a date, I mean?”

“No maybe about it. I definitely want to do it again.”

Austin nodded, opened his mouth, and then shut it again. He shook his head, mouthed a word I couldn’t make out in the dimness, and then said, “Can I cook for you?”

“I would love that,” I said fervently.

“Oh. Good.” Austin’s smile bloomed on his face, and for a long minute, I was captivated by his full, kissable mouth. I almost didn’t hear what he said next. “I have Tuesday off. Want to come over?”

“Just tell me what time.”

Austin laughed, and I swore it sounded like music. “I’ll text you as soon as I figure out what to make. You don’t have any allergies, do you?”

“Not to food.”

“Good. Then. Tuesday?”

“Absolutely.”

Austin sucked in another breath, kissed my cheek again with one of those fleeting, butterfly kisses, and then scrambled to get in his car. I couldn’t keep the grin off my face as I waved him on and stood there until his car disappeared around the bend in the drive.


Nell Iris is a romantic at heart who believes everyone deserves a happy ending. She’s a bona fide bookworm (learned to read long before she started school), wouldn’t dream of going anywhere without something to read (not even the ladies’ room), loves music (and singing along but, let’s face it, she’s no Celine Dion), and is a real Star Trek nerd (“Make it so”). She loves words, poetry, wine, and Sudoku, and absolutely adores elephants!


Nell believes passionately in equality for all regardless of race, gender, or sexuality, and wants to make the world a better, less hateful, place.


Nell is a forty-something bisexual Swedish woman, married to the love of her life, and a proud mama of a grown daughter. She left the Scandinavian cold and darkness for warmer and sunnier Malaysia a few years ago, and now spends her days writing, surfing the Internet, enjoying the heat, and eating good food. One day she decided to chase her lifelong dream of being a writer, sat down in front of her laptop, and wrote a story about two men falling in love.


Nell Iris writes gay romance, prefers sweet over angst, and wants to write diverse and different characters.


Email contact@nelliris.com
Web www.nelliris.com
Twitter @nellirisauthor
Facebook page www.facebook.com/nellirisauthor
Facebook profile www.facebook.com/nell.iris.12
Goodreads https://www.goodreads.com/nelliris
Instagram https://www.instagram.com/nell_iris/
QueeRomance Ink https://www.queeromanceink.com/mbm-book-author/nell-iris/



Kris T. Bethke has been a voracious reader for pretty much her entire life and has been writing stories for nearly as long. An avid and prolific daydreamer, she always has a story in her head. She spends most of her free time reading, writing, or knitting/crocheting her latest project. Her biggest desire is to find a way to accomplish all three tasks at one time. A classic muscle car will always turn her head, and naps on the weekend are one of her greatest guilty pleasures. She lives in a converted attic with a way too fluffy cat and the voices in her head. She’ll tell you she thinks that’s a pretty good deal. Kris believes that love is love, no matter the gender of people involved, and that all love deserves to be celebrated.


Find her on her site https://kristbethke.com Facebookhttps://www.facebook.com/people/Kris-T-Bethke/100014524539852 or on Twitterhttps://twitter.com/ 

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John R. Petrie on Writing and his new release The Quarterback’s Crush (author interview)

The Quarterback’s Crush by John R. Petrie

Harmony Ink Press
Cover Artist: Adrian Nicholas

The Quarterback’s Crush is now available at

Amazon (Kindle/Paper format) |  Dreamspinner Press  |  Harmony Ink Press  |  Barnes & Noble: 

Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words is happy to host John R. Petrie on tour for his new release The Quarterback’s Crush.  Welcome, John, into our author’s interview chair!

~ Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words Interview with John R. Petrie ~

  • How much of yourself goes into a character?

I tend to write characters who aren’t like me, so much as who I’d like to be.

What I love about the character of Dylan in The Quarterback’s Crush out from Harmony Ink on September 4th, 2018, is that he’s sweet and kind, but he lets his mind and mouth run away with what he knows he shouldn’t really say. He seems like he’s got a lot of fears, but he’s actually kind of fearless in many ways and I admire that.

  • Do you feel there’s a tight line between Mary Sue or should I say Gary Stu and using your own experiences to create a character?

I think there’s a line between writing characters who are wish fulfillment and writing characters who are perfect and accomplished. The line to me is more about writing a character as opposed to writing a plot device.

  • Does research play a role into choosing which genre you write?  Do you enjoy research or prefer making up your worlds and cultures?

I love doing research and thank goodness for Google and podcasts where I can learn about things, listen to interviews (especially important to hear how people talk, their syntax, and their vocabulary), and find out much more about smaller things that the characters are interested in that I know nothing about. I really needed to hear jocks talk so I can understand their cadence.

That being said, what I write about tends to be in the ‘real world’ so I haven’t had much of a chance to build my own world the way that science fiction and fantasy writers do. I admire them so much for creating an entire world or worlds to enjoy.

  • Do you like HFN or HEA? And why?

For me personally? I’m single, so I’d love a HEA, but I’ll settle for a HFN. Call me. I like tall guys, but I’m not fussy.

  • Who do you think is your major influence as a writer?  Now and growing up?

Some of my favorite prose authors are Jane Austen, Michael Cunningham, Andre Aciman, and TJ Klune. They’re all so amazing.

I’m also really, really influenced by plays and screenwriters and how the dialogue on screen and stage is so pithy and effective. From that angle, I’m hugely influenced by Amy Sherman-Palladino (Gilmore Girls) and Rob Thomas (Veronica Mars).

From my geek side some of my favorite comic book writers are Greg Rucka, Gail Simone, Jen Van Meter, and Kurt Busiek.

  • How do you feel about the ebook format and where do you see it going?

I have to quantify this answer first. Almost every job I’ve ever had has been around books. Libraries, book stores, and a publisher. The last time I moved, I had two boxes of clothes and twenty-two boxes of books. I love books. Love them!

That being said, a well written sentence is a well written sentence, whether it’s something that’s read on a computer screen, tablet, e-reader, or page. E-readers are wonderful for people with bad eyesight, people who don’t want to, or can’t, carry around big hardcovers.

Books will never go away, and they shouldn’t. E-readers, however, do give a lot of eyes to first time and beginning writers, which is always a wonderful thing.

  • How do you choose your covers?  (curious on my part)

The wonderful people at Harmony Ink Press paired me with the wonderful Adrian Nicholas, who took my ramblings about cover design and turned it into the cover. We went back and forth on a few things and Adrian couldn’t have been kinder!

  • What’s next for you as an author?

I’m working on a series of LGBT YA mysteries taking place in the Southern U.S. as well as an adult Gay romance in the world of a professional sport. (I don’t want to spoil anything on that one yet.) Plus I have a couple of cork boards filled with other ideas and characters. Now if only I could take a few months off of work… 

  • What traits do you find the most interesting in someone? Do you write them into your characters?

I love characters who are unapologetically who they are. I love reading characters who aren’t passive in their journey. While there are characters who start their journeys because of external forces, I try really hard to write characters who are active in their own progression.

  •  What’s  the wildest scene you’ve imagined and did it make it into a story?

 Hmmm, I wrote a very adult story for an online website and it had some pretty wild sex scenes from my dirty imagination. For The Quarterback’s Crush, nothing too wild comes to mind. I really wanted the romance between Dylan and Timothy to lead up to the first kiss.

  • With so much going on in the world today, do you write to explain?  To get away?  To move past?  To widen our knowledge?  Why do you write?

 I think of it as the people in my head getting really tired of me being the only one who hears them. Seriously, though, I try to write so I can have a creative outlet that I don’t get in my every day life. For me, reading and writing are my attempts to find the universality of human experiences. If the book is horror or comedy or romance, the experiences we have about going through our lives will always ring through, no matter the genre.

THE QUARTERBACK’S CRUSH by John R. Petrie

Dylan Porter needs a Hail Mary….

Because it’ll take a miracle for him to pass English and trig so he can stay on the football team, get a scholarship, and go away to college—where the distance from his friends and family will give him the confidence to finally tell them he’s gay. But flunking his classes will put a stop to all of his dreams.

Luckily there’s Tommy Peterson to help him. In Dylan’s eyes, Tommy’s perfect. Short, smart, and sexy, he checks every one of Dylan’s boxes, so it’s no surprise when Dylan falls head over heels. Too bad Tommy doesn’t seem to feel the same, and a pining Dylan accidentally outs himself to the team. Now Dylan has to deal with the fallout of his coming out to the team, his dad, and his coach while trying to score the ultimate touchdown—the love of Tommy Peterson.

 

About the Author

John R. Petrie grew up in Boston and now lives in the Bronx, NY. Almost his entire working career has been spent around books, from his first job in the town library to more than twenty years bookselling in one of the biggest bookstores in the US. He’s also worked for the Housing Works thrift stores in NYC, which provides services for the homeless and HIV communities, as well as a comic book publisher.

He’s had stories published in True Romance magazine, had a play he wrote produced at his college, acted, danced, and was nominated for an acting award playing Belize in Angels in America.

He stays up too late, eats too much junk food, and has been reading Wonder Woman comics for over forty years.

He is very, very happy to have his debut novel published by Harmony Ink Press. He hopes to continue writing stories which make people smile.

 He can be reached at johnrpetriewrites@gmail.com and looks forward to hearing from readers and writers.

My email is johnrpetriewrites@gmail.com

My twitter handle is @johnpetriewrite

(I don’t do Facebook because I’m too afraid I’ll have to contact people from High School again.)

Release Blitz and Giveaway – In This Iron Ground by Marina Vivancus

 

Buy Links: Amazon US | Amazon UK
 
Cover Design: Natasha Snow
 
Length: 85,000 words approx.
 
Blurb
 

Damien is nine years old when his parents die. What should have been the worst moment of his life begins a journey shadowed by loneliness and pain. The night of a full moon, four years and seven foster homes later, Damien flees to the forest, desperate to escape everything.

Instead, he finds the Salgado pack, and the earth beneath his feet shifts. Damien has seen the Salgado children in his school: Koko, who is in his class, and Hakan, two years older and infinitely unreachable. Damien is suddenly introduced into a world that had only ever existed in his imagination, where there is magic in the forest and the moon. He meets creatures that look like monsters, but Damien knows that monsters have the same face as anybody else.

Over the years, Damien and Hakan grow closer. First, just as friends and foster brothers in the Salgado house, and then into something heated and breathless when Damien joins Hakan at college. Despite what he may yearn for in the darkest part of the night, Damien knows, deep down in that bruised and mealy part of his core, that he’s not good enough to be part of the Salgado family, their pack. He’s not worthy of calling Hakan his home.

Even though he knows in the end it’ll hurt him, he’ll hold onto this for as long as he can.

CONTENT WARNING: This book contains themes of emotional and (nonsexual) physical child abuse and the subsequent emotional, cognitive, and behavioural impacts.

 
Author Bio
 
When Marina was a child she couldn’t sleep. Night after dissolving night she just couldn’t sleep. Nothing much worked – until she started making up stories in her head. Suddenly, the transition into unconsciousness was a smooth dive into calm waters.


Marina is currently in a period of sleepless upheaval, and she hopes writing down the stories in her head will cast the same spell it did decades ago.


Marina hopes to write in a variety of romance sub-genres, from contemporary to supernatural to sci-fi. Her style, however, tends to focus on character-centred stories that explore different facets of the human experience, such as mental health. She also enjoys writing explicit, drawn-out sex scenes, so expect those to be a prominent feature of her stories.


Marina tends to keep to herself unless prompted, so don’t be shy in approaching her! 
 
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Release Blitz for Meik & Sebastian – Obsessed 2 by Quin Perin (excerpt and giveaway)

RELEASE BLITZ

Book Title: Meik & Sebastian – Obsessed #2

Author: Quin Perin

Publisher: Self-Published

Cover Artist: Garrett Leigh

Genre/s: Gay Erotica / Gay Erotic Romance

Length: 24 000 words

Release Date: September 1, 2018

Add on Goodreads 

Buy Links – Available on Kindle Unlimited

Universal Link

Amazon US

Amazon UK

Blurb – Book 2

Ever since the first sexual encounter with Sebastian, Meik has felt off-kilter.

He can’t sleep, can’t eat, can’t work without thinking about the musician and so, Meik decides to settle into an arrangement with him. There is no love. There is no romance. Sebastian gets a warm place to sleep, and Meik gets to keep his boy toy.

The perfect bargain.

But when Sebastian’s presence triggers memories of his first and only love, Meik unravels under the reminiscences that carved him into the man he is today. Will Meik be able to hold himself together or will his carefully crafted badass image fall apart?

This is the second book of the Gay Erotic Romance “Obsessed”. It features explicit adult m/m content as well as romantic elements. The book ends on a cliffhanger.

Excerpt (18+ Readers only)

“You read books like that?”

Meik jerked, the tablet falling flat against his stomach as he turned his head to glance over at the musician. Amusement spread across Sebastian’s face as he leaned over the blond’s shoulder. “I thought you were sleeping.” His tone was accusing, like he’d just been caught with his hands down his pants, watching porn or something. Which…wasn’t too far from the truth.

Sebastian straightened up, his hands folded behind his back. He wasn’t wearing the towel anymore, pale body bare in the dim light of the living room. And he was hard, cock flushed a deep red, and the flared, shimmering head pointed directly at Meik. “Woke up,” he said, offering a crooked grin, “decided to come and see what you were doing. Didn’t expect you…to be reading smut.”

“What are you talking about?” Meik huffed, glaring at him.

“I saw what you were reading.” The little smirk spread into a full-on grin.

Meik wanted to fuck it off his face. “What about it?”

“It’s porn.” Sebastian laughed. “You were reading about a ranch hand fucking some twink. I saw it. Why when you could just fuck me?”

“I’m not fucking you. I already told you, I’m not going to let you get me sick.” Blue eyes dropped back down to that stiff cock, and he smirked faintly. “Look at you. Such an eager little whore, huh? Too bad for you, isn’t it?”

“Mm? Too bad for me?”

Sebastian’s eyes twinkled with something other than his fever as he stalked his way along the couch. It was an odd feeling; being looked at as though he were prey when it was usually the other way around.

HAVEN’T READ THE BEGINNING OF THE SERIES YET?

Read Book 1 for FREE here

Universal Link

Amazon US

Amazon UK 

Obsessed_Garrett_#1

Blurb

Quin Perin presents “Meik&Sebastian – Obsessed” – A best-selling Gay Erotic Romance

All Meik cares about is lust, not love.

An eager boy toy, that’s what he’s looking for. Someone who worships the ground he walks on. The very second he lays eyes on the enigmatic, street musician Sebastian, he believes he found his new playmate. Obsessed with the young man, Meik introduces him to a world full of sins and desire until the man’s presence threatens to reveal dark memories he had locked away tightly.

This is the first book of the Gay Erotic Romance “Obsessed”. It features explicit adult m/m content. The book ends on a cliffhanger but can be read as a standalone. This part does not entail any romantic elements.

Add on Goodreads 

About the Authors 

Hello there! This is Quin&Perin. We are a pair of sultry gay erotica writers who focus on detailed, toe-curling, and realistic smut scenes with a fair share of dirty talking (Oh, boy). Unlike other authors in the genre, we write without the goal of publishing anything. Publishing is just the cherry on top of a cream-covered bubble butt.

That said, it is time for the next level of smut: stories featuring fire, lust & desire.

Social Media Links

Blog/Website

Facebook

Twitter

Newsletter

Giveaway 

Enter the Rafflecopter Giveaway for a chance to win a $10 Amazon Gift Card

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Free M/M Short Story Downloads at Instrafreebie! Only A shorttime!

 

 

FREE m/m romance instafreebie downloads until September 4th! Jumped on and read quite a few of the stories already and they are wonderful. Lol! There’s Bru Baker, Lucy Lennox, Susi Hawke, RG Alexander, Silvia Violet, just to name a few! Go get ’em!

 

So many highlights here! New free stories from Marie Sexton, J.M. Dabney, Annabeth Albert, A.M. Arthur, Charlie Cochet’s Four Kings Security Series short story Ante Up, K.M. Neuhold, and much more.  I’ll be reviewing some of the ones I’ve read too.  It’s also a great way to get on these author’s mailing lists for upcoming announcements for new releases.

The free downloads will continue only until September 4th.  So download away.

 

Here is the Link to the Instafreebie website:

https://claims.instafreebie.com/gg/oryl0wCduHLFHJCRZy20

Release Blitz – Summit by Louise Lyons (excerpt and giveaway)

RELEASE BLITZ

Book Title:  Summit

Author: Louise Lyons

Publisher: Louise Lyons

Cover Artist: Jay Aheer, Simply Defined Art

Genre/s:  MM romance, adventure

Length: 62000 words 

Release Date: September 1, 2018

It is a standalone story.

Add on Goodreads

Blurb

When out of condition divorced lorry driver, Ash Tomlinson, makes the spur of the moment decision to climb Kilimanjaro, he doesn’t consider how much it will change his life. There’s the training, the equipment to buy, the fear of altitude sickness, and of failure. And there’s Sean, a man who makes Ash question what he really wants for his future.

Sean Briggs is a school sports teacher and wishful mountain leader, longing for the chance to lead people on mountain hikes, but never having taken the plunge to do the training course. While he thinks about it, he decides to undertake the trip of a lifetime on Kilimanjaro.

The two men meet on a training weekend in Wales, and afterwards Ash goes home and tries to forget about Sean, but finds it impossible.

When the pair strike out for the summit of the highest mountain in Africa, their physical and mental strength is tested, and their growing feelings for each other help them push through the toughest moments of the trek.

Excerpt

We applied extra sun cream and insect repellent, put on wide-brimmed hats, shouldered our backpacks, and prepared our hiking poles. This was it. The first leg of the very long trek to the top of the mountain. My heart thrummed with excitement and a glance at Sean’s beaming smile and bright eyes told me he felt as I did.

The lead Tanzanian guide set off slowly along a dusty path through the jungle and we followed in single file, with more guides and Phil and Mark mingling with us. Cameras and phones made repeated appearances during the four-hour trek to the camp, as we marvelled at the huge trees, mosses, and plants, and the monkeys and birds high up in the branches over our heads. Phil reminded us several times to drink regularly and I got into the habit of sucking water from the tube connected to the water bladder in my backpack every few minutes.

There were a couple of short breaks along the trail, during which we ate snacks, drank additional water, and peed again and again. Ladies’ and men’s “toilets” were clumps of bushes on opposite sides of the trail, which resulted in much giggling and squealing from the ladies as they came upon unsavoury deposits from the previous trekkers.

The path wound its way upwards, not too steeply, through humid shade provided by the tangle of trees. Their roots burst through the dirt underfoot and we constantly alternated between staring at the ground to avoid tripping and gazing around in wonder at the surroundings. The afternoon raced by and I barely realised three hours had passed, when the trail opened out into a vast clearing.

A cluster of green tents awaited us, with two tall narrow toilet tents off to one side and a large orange mess tent for our meals.

“Your bags will be in your tents waiting for you,” Phil reminded us.

“How do we find which is ours?” Sally asked.

“They’ll have tags on that match the tags we put on our bags last night,” Sean told her. “Ours is twin something.”

“They’re all twin something, except Gerald’s because he’s on his own.” I laughed. “Ours is four.”

“Oh, yeah.” Sean rolled his eyes and went looking for a tent with a plastic tag on it that read “twin four.” A moment later he unzipped the flap of a tent and disappeared inside. I followed, slipping my backpack from my shoulders as I reached it.

Sean sat in the entrance, unlacing his boots. Our two holdalls sat in the middle of the tent and a sleeping mat lay on each side. Sean placed his boots in one corner and shuffled backwards out of the way. “Which side do you want?”

“I don’t mind.” I took his place and removed my boots. Sean moved to the far side of the tent and placed his backpack in the middle between the two holdalls. We took a few minutes to organise things, unpacking our additional sleeping mats to put on top of the thin ones provided, spread sleeping bags on top of them, and found comfortable running shoes to wear for dinner. We changed out of our hiking trousers into warm jogging bottoms and pulled on fleeces over our base layers. Phil had warned that the temperature would plummet as soon as the sun set, and the sun dropped like a stone at exactly twenty past six.

“I knew I’d get you in a tent one day.” Sean grinned.

“Better than Wales. At least it’s dry.”

“For now. We might get rain or snow higher up. And it’ll be freezing.”

I lowered my voice to a whisper. “We can shift these bags over to one side and keep each other warm.”

Read an exclusive excerpt here

About the Author 

Louise Lyons comes from a family of writers. Her mother has a number of poems published in poetry anthologies, her aunt wrote poems for the church, and her grandmother sparked her inspiration with tales of fantasy.

Louise first ventured into writing short stories at the grand old age of eight, mostly about little girls and ponies. She branched into romance in her teens, and MM romance a few years later, but none of her work saw the light of day until she discovered FanFiction in her late twenties. Posting stories based on some of her favourite movies, provoked a surprisingly positive response from readers. This gave Louise the confidence to submit some of her work to publishers, and made her take her writing “hobby” more seriously.

Louise lives in the UK, about an hour north of London, with a mad dog called Casper, and a collection of tropical fish and tarantulas. She works in the insurance industry by day, and spends every spare minute writing. She loves to run long-distance and some of her best writing inspiration comes to her when her feet are pounding the open road. She often races home afterward, and grabs pen and paper to make notes.

Louise has always been a bit of a tomboy, and one of her other great loves is cars and motorcycles. Her car and bike are her pride and job, and she loves to exhibit the car at shows, and take off for long days out on the bike, with no one for company but herself.

Social Media Links

Blog/Website

Facebook

Twitter

Pinterest

Instagram

Giveaway 

Enter the Rafflecopter Giveaway for a chance to win one of 3 ebooks from Louise’s backlist.

Choose from: Conflicted, Beautiful Thunder, Cervena, Regeneration, Finding Beck, Favorite Toy, On The Outside, The Short Stories Collection.

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Release Blitz – Safe Place (Rainbow Place #2) by Jay Northcote

 

Buy Links: Amazon US | Amazon UK
 
Cover Design: Garrett Leigh @ Black Jazz Design
 
Length: 48,000 words approx.
 
Rainbow Place Series
 
Book #1 – Rainbow Place – Amazon US | Amazon UK
 
Blurb
 

Where do you go when your home is no longer a safe place?


Alex is about to turn eighteen and is firmly in the closet. He’s been biding his time, waiting to escape to uni, and finally come out away from the oppressive influence of his homophobic father. When he flunks his exams, he’s stuck in the small town of Porthladock—and what’s worse is that he’s working for his dad. The only thing that makes it bearable is Cam.


Cam’s comfortable with his bisexuality, but he doesn’t broadcast it. Young, free, and single, his social life revolves around playing rugby and hanging out with his mates. He’s attracted to Alex, but with the six-year age gap, Cam’s wary of getting involved. Plus, he thinks Alex needs a friend more than he needs a lover, and as their friendship grows, Cam decides he’s not willing to risk ruining it for casual sex.


When Alex’s dad finds out about his sexuality, Alex is suddenly both jobless and homeless. He finds work at Rainbow Place, the local LGBT-friendly café and Cam lets Alex stay in his flat for a while. But Alex would rather be sleeping in Cam’s bed than on his sofa. With them both living under one roof, their feelings for each other grow stronger, and the sexual tension is hard to ignore. Will giving in to it ruin their friendship and complicate things for Alex even more?


Although this book is part of a linked series, it has a satisfying happy ending, and can be enjoyed as a standalone.

Jay lives just outside Bristol in the West of England. He comes from a family of writers, but always used to believe that the gene for fiction writing had passed him by. He spent years only ever writing emails, articles, or website content.


One day, Jay decided to try and write a short story—just to see if he could—and found it rather addictive. He hasn’t stopped writing since.


Jay writes contemporary romance about men who fall in love with other men. He has five books published by Dreamspinner Press, and also self-publishes under the imprint Jaybird Press. Many of his books are now available as audiobooks.


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Jay’s books

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An Ali Audiobook Review: Changing Lines (Harrisburg Railers #1) by RJ Scott and VL Locey/Sean Crisden (Narrator)

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
The Rowe Brothers are famous hockey hotshots, but as the youngest of the trio, Tennant has always had to play against his brothers’ reputations. To get out of their shadows, and against their advice, he accepts a trade to the Harrisburg Railers, where he runs into Jared Madsen. Mads is an old family friend and his brother’s one-time teammate. Mads is Tennant’s new coach. And Mads is the sexiest thing he’s ever laid eyes on.
Jared Madsen’s hockey career was cut short by a fault in his heart, but coaching keeps him close to the game. When Ten is traded to the team, his carefully organized world is thrown into chaos. Nine years his junior and his best friend’s brother, he knows Ten is strictly off-limits, but as soon as he sees Ten’s moves, on and off the ice, he knows that his heart could get him into trouble again.
Can Tennant show Jared that age is just a number, and that love is all that matters?
I’m a big hockey fan so I try to read all the hockey romances out there.  This series is one that has been on my to be read list for awhile now so I was happy to have the chance to review the audiobook.  It was kind of a mixed bag for me.  There were some things I really liked about this and some that I didn’t.
I can’t believe I believe I’m going to say these words but “There was way too much hockey in this book”. There is an enormous amount of game and practice time in this book and lot’s and lot’s of plays and strategies  talk. I felt like this aspect overshadowed the relationship.  There is very little on page relationship development.  The majority of them getting close to each other takes place off page.  We see them having sex, them with their families and mostly them playing or practicing.
I’m not sure why the authors chose to have the majority of the relationship development off page.  There were some other relationship dynamics that were excellent.  Really well written.  Ten’s coming out scene with his parents and later a scene between him and his mother were beautiful.  There was also a scene between Jared and his son that was very emotional.  I felt so much more between Jared and Ten and their family than I did between the two of them as lovers.  There was a lot of telling and very little showing between the two of them.
Another thing that bothered me a lot was the fact that Jared was Ten’s coach and it was never really presented as an issue.  Jared mentions it at the beginning but this thread is never followed up on.  They talked about Ten coming out and how it would effect him being a professional sports player but no one seemed to bat an eye that he was having sex with his coach.  I think it’s a huge deal and should have been presented at such.
My last issue was that it ends on a cliffhanger of sorts. The guys are together and happy but a giant part of the plot is left hanging.  I felt a bit annoyed that after all the talk of Ten coming out we don’t see any of it. It seems from the set up of book two that it might be shown some there but I am not sure.
The audio was narrated by Sean Crisden and I thought it was fine.  I liked his voice but he spoke very quickly and I wasn’t always sure who was talking.  I had to slow the narration down from how I normally listen.  Once I did that it worked better for me.
Overall I thought it was a solid start to the series.  I appreciated the authors’ love of hockey that clearly comes through in this book.  While I had some issues I will probably try book two at some point.
Cover by Meredith Russell:  I like the cover.  The models on the cover really fit the description of the main characters well.
Buy Links: Audible US | Audible UK
Audiobook Details:
Audible Audio, Unabridged, 6 pages
Published July 25th 2018 by Love Lane Books Limited (first published July 12th 2017)
Original TitleChanging Lines
ASINB07FTRYXFF
Edition LanguageEnglish
SeriesHarrisburg Railers #1 settingHarrisburg, Pennsylvania (United States)
Pennsylvania (United States)