Category: LGBTQ Book Reviews

Review Tour: The Great North (A Legendary Love Book 1) byJ. Scott Coatsworth (excerpt)

The Great North (A Legendary Love Book 1) by J. Scott Coatsworth
Mischief Corner Press
Cover Artist: Freddy MacKay

Available for Sale at Amazon |  Kobo | iBooks |  Goodreads 

 

Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words is happy to host J. Scott Coatsworth here today on his tour for The Great North.

 

Blurb

Dwyn is a young man in the small, isolated town of Manicouga, son of the Minstor, who is betrothed to marry Kessa in a few weeks’ time.

Mael is shepherding the remains of his own village from the north, chased out by a terrible storm that destroyed Land’s End.

Both are trying to find their way in a post-apocalyptic world. When the two meet, their love and attraction may change the course of history.

—————

The Great North was inspired by St. Dwynwen’s Day, also known as Welsh Valentines Day:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dwynwen

 

Excerpt

“We celebrate Dwyn’s Day as a testament to true love and sacrifice. It’s a remembrance of the way things were and the way they’ve come to be. In the end, let it be a reminder that every one of us has the power to change the course of events through love.”

—Dillon Cooper, New Gods and Monsters, Twenty years After Dwyn

The gray clouds scudded by overhead, blowing in quickly from the east.

Dwyn shivered and pulled on his woolen cap. It was cold out, unusual for so early in the fall. The rains had been heavy this season, the wettest in a generation, and Circle Lake was close to overflowing its banks. If he stretched to look over the rows of corn plants, he could see the waters lapping at the shore far below, as if hungry to consume his village of Manicouga.

His father had consulted the elders, some of whom had seen more than fifty summers, and everyone agreed things were changing. Whether that augured good or ill was anyone’s guess.

He shrugged and moved along the row of plants, breaking off ears of corn and throwing them into the jute sack that hung from his shoulder.

Ahead of him, two of his age-mates, Declan and Baia, were working their way down the next two rows.

Dwyn frowned. He got distracted easily, and he’d let the two of them get a jump on him. That wouldn’t do.

He redoubled his pace. He moved with focus and purpose, and soon he was closing the gap with his friends.

“Someone’s being chased by a lion,” Baia said with a laugh.

“Or a tiger.” Declan grinned, his nice smile only missing one tooth, lost to a fight with one of the Beckham brothers the year before.

Dwyn grinned. “Or a bear?” Dwyn only knew lions and tigers from the fairy tale his mother used to tell them, “The Girl and the Aus.” He had no idea what an Aus was, either.

Bears he knew. The hunters occasionally brought one home, and old Alesser had a five-line scar across his wrinkled face that he claimed came from one of the beasts.

A shout went up from ahead of them. Dwyn craned his neck to see what the ruckus was, but he couldn’t make out anything. “What’s going on?”

Declan, who was half a head taller, looked toward the commotion. “Hard to tell. Something down by the road.”

Dwyn laid down his sack carefully and ran up the hill to one of the old elms that dotted the field. He climbed into the tree, scurrying up through the leaves and branches until he had a clear view of the Old Road. It ran from up north to somewhere down south, maybe near the ruins of old Quebec if the merchant tales held any truth. Hardly anyone from Manicouga ever followed it, but occasionally traders would follow it to town, bringing exotic wares and news from the other villages that were scattered up and down its length.

They swore it went all the way down to the Heat, the great desert that had consumed much of the world after the Reckoning.

“What’s going on down there?” Baia called from below.

Dwyn tried to make sense of it. “There are three wagons coming down the pass. They’re loaded up with all sorts of things. They don’t look like traders though.”

The first of the horse-drawn wagons had just reached the field above the main township. It stopped, and someone hopped off to talk with the villagers who had gathered from the fields.

“We need to get down there,” Dwyn said, scrambling down the tree trunk. “Something’s happening.” Nothing new ever happened in Manicouga, and he wasn’t going to miss it.

He grabbed his sack and sprinted toward the Old Road, not waiting to see if Declan and Baia followed.

Length: 34K
Format: eBook
Release Date: 6/14/17
Pairing: MM
Price: 3.99

 

About the Author 

Scott spends his time between the here and now and the what could be. Enticed into fantasy and sci fi by his mom at the tender age of nine, he devoured her Science Fiction Book Club library. But as he grew up, he wondered where all the people like him were in the books he was reading.

He decided that it was time to create the kinds of stories he couldn’t find at his local bookstore. If there weren’t gay characters in his favorite genres, he would remake them to his own ends.

His friends say Scott’s mind works a little differently – he sees relationships between things that others miss, and gets more done in a day than most folks manage in a week. He loves to transform traditional sci fi, fantasy, and contemporary worlds into something unexpected.

He runs both Queer Sci Fi and QueeRomance Ink with his husband Mark, sites that bring queer people together to promote and celebrate fiction that reflects their own lives.

Author Links:

Release Blitz & Review Tour for Better Than Suicide (The Yakuza Path #2) by Amy Tasukada

 

Buy Links: Amazon US | Amazon UK


Length: 86,000 words


The Yakuza Path Series


Blood Stained Tea (Book #1) Amazon US | Amazon UK


Blurb

A stash of drugs. A twisted cop. A mob on the verge of self-destruction…

Nao Murata is the new godfather of the Matsukawa syndicate. When Detective Yamada confronts Nao over a dead drug dealer, Nao knows his organization isn’t responsible. The Matsukawa doesn’t deal drugs… or does it?

When Nao discovers drugs in a locker owned by his syndicate, he no longer knows who to trust. With the police bearing down on the Matsukawa, Nao must make unlikely allies to find out the truth. Can he discover who is betraying him before time runs out, or will everyone suffer for a crime he didn’t commit?

Better Than Suicide is the second book in a Japanese mafia thriller series. If you like complex plots, gripping suspense, and a splash of romance, then you’ll love the next installment in Amy Tasukada’s Yakuza Path series.

Buy Better Than Suicide to start the race against the clock today!

This can be read as a standalone. 



Author Bio

Amy Tasukada lives in a catless home in North Texas. (She enjoys cats but can’t quite make that kind of commitment yet.) As an only child her day dreams kept her entertained, and at age ten she started to put them to paper. Since then her love of writing hasn’t cease. When she’s not chasing after stray cats, she can be found drinking hot tea and filming Japanese street fashion hauls on her Youtube channel.



https://www.amytasukada.com/
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A MelanieM Pre-Release Review: Dragon Home (Supernatural Consultant #5.2) by Mell Eight

Rating: 4.5 stars out of 5

With Rios happily mated and planning an entire future, Aqua can’t help but feeling left out. The brother that was always been his chief playmate and best friend is going to leave him behind, which isn’t at all acceptable. The obvious answer is to leave first, so Aqua packs a bag to go on an adventure. But this adventure isn’t anything like his last one and the chances of him returning home alive dwindle every moment.

I actually liked Dragon Home better than its previous story, Dragon Adventure, which I thought was really cute.  Here in Dragon Home (Supernatural Consultant #5.2), Mell Eight goes into a little more depth into her universe by revealing wonderful unknown details about  characters and dragon growth we hadn’t known before. We also meet some new supernatural creatures are introduced as well when Aqua, like Rios, sets off to find new friends and perhaps a mate like his twin.

When we begin this story, Uncle Willy himself seems to be undergoing a physical change which I found interesting although not explained exactly.  I’m hopeful that Mell Eight will find a mate for William as well and his change will be a part of that. He deserves one for his accepting attitude and loving behavior towards his “wards” and their antics.  Intriguing bits like this keep me thinking throughout the story.  Dragon Home (and indeed all of Mell Eight’s stories) is full of things of a similar narrative nature tucked here and there, just waiting for the reader to notice them and wonder.

Aqua is lonely and unhappy with his twin now spending all his time with his mate and his new found interest in the Coast Guard.  Rios has shot up physically with his mental and emotional maturity. Not so poor Aqua.  Now they don’t even look like twins, making him feel even more isolated, something William is aware of.  It’s adventure time for Aqua, he needs to see what it’s like to get out there by himself and he does in a big way by going where no water dragon should.

I won’t go further but this story has some surprising depth here.  The place Aqua “falls” into is a tumultuous one. It will take bravery, maturity and respect for others to see Aqua and others safely through.  That he does so is no surprise.  But the companion he brings home?  A delightful surprise, especially at the end which left me charmed and smiling as it did William.   Plus this story gave us a whole new side of William still to be seen.  I hope that book is coming.

Who knew I would love William and his kits as much as I do Dane, Mercury and their bunch?  Turns out I certainly do!  I just loved Dragon Home (Supernatural Consultant #5.2) by Mell Eight.  It’s not a standalone story, you really need to read the others.  Luckily they’re short and you can catch up quickly.  Read the entire series.  It’s a joy! I recommend not only Dragon Home but all of the Supernatural Consultant series.

Cover art by Aisha Akeju is one of my favorite in this series.  Dramatic and speaks to the story.

Sales Links:   Preorder at Less Than Three Press

Book Details:

ebook
Expected publication: June 21st 2017 by Less Than Three Press
ISBN139781684310333
Edition LanguageEnglish
SeriesSupernatural Consultant #5.2

An Alisa Review: Darien’s Omega (Dire Pack Reborn #4) by Stephani Hecht

Rating:  2.75 stars out of 5

 

Blaze’s dreams just may come true when the top Beta, Darien, finally notices him.

 

For years Blaze had a crush on Darien. Yet, the Beta never looked twice at the shy, small Omega. Why would he? After all, Blaze is the packs’ art teacher. He was never anything special and Darien was way out of his league.

 

Darien spots Blaze in the cafeteria and instantly drawn to the Omega. At first Darien thinks he’s blown things when he’d forgotten that he had known the Omega when they were both young. Luckily, Blaze forgives him. But, just as they are getting close, a danger looms, threatening the entire pack. Has Darien found love only to lose it? Or will they overcome the evil is out to get them?

 

This story did not really click for me.  Darien notices Blaze when he is bullied in the cafeteria and wants to take care of him.  Blaze has been the “useless” omega for so long he can’t believe that anyone would really want him especially his long time crush.  Darien does everything he can to show that his intentions are real.

 

We get to see both of the characters’ thoughts and feelings throughout the story so we know how they were reacting to everything that was happening around them.  Darien is so lost in how to actually date someone it’s pretty bad and not adorable like it usually comes off in books, it takes him basically getting told what to do in order for him to actually ask for a date.  Blaze has to see how true Darien is before he can fully commit himself.  There were so many references to the couples from the previous books but the couples were mixed up within the first few pages of the book and I had to keep looking back at previous book descriptions to make sure I remembered who the characters were.

 

The cover is nice and gives a great visual for the Beta.

 

Sales Links: MLR Press | Amazon | B&N

 

Book Details:

ebook, 107 pages

Published: May 12, 2017 by MLR Press

Edition Language: English

Series: Dire Pack Reborn #4

A MelanieM Review: Accepting The Fall by Meg Harding

Rating: 4.25 stars out of 5

Confronting the past is never easy.

Cole Whitaker is happy. He has the job and boyfriend he always wanted. His heart’s in no danger of being broken, and he can’t ask for more from life. As a kindergarten teacher, he sees it all; however, one troublesome student has him reaching out to the parent, wanting to help. There’s something about Savanah that tugs at his heartstrings.

He never expected her father.

Zander Brooks hasn’t had an easy life, and he’s made some mistakes. Freshly retired from the military and working as a firefighter, Zander thought he’d left Cole in the rearview mirror. He’s not expecting him to appear in St. Petersburg, Florida, of all places, teaching his daughter’s kindergarten class. Suddenly, his biggest mistake is being shoved in his face.

This is Zander’s chance to close a door he’d never fully shut, but time with his former flame might change his mind.

Meg Harding has done a great job with Accepting the Fall.  Its enjoyable so many levels.  You have the lovers reunited storyline and the second chance at love, which are always favorites of mine.  Plus Zander Brooks, one of the main characters, has been handed the unexpected role of father in the fiery, troubled form of five year old Savanah Emerson, dropped of by her mother with her birth certificate and a wave goodbye.  So we have a father/daughter new dynamic in play as well.  So many layers here in this story and the author does a beautiful job of weaving them in and out, juggling the new/returning romance with the demands of new fatherhood.

The other mc?  Cole?  He just so happens to be Savanah’s kindergarten teacher, dealing with an angry child with abandonment issues and just maybe her father as well.  Here Cole and Zander must pry apart their past issues before they can move  forward, both as lovers and for Zander, as a parent.  Harding brings in a terrific counselor, one I would wish for in many a school or child in this situation.  Through the counselor, Harding gets to work through all the emotional issues of child abandonment/abuse and its repercussions on children now and into adulthood (with Zander). Its handled with sensitivity and impact.

I loved the romance here as well.  Cole and Zander have issues to work out, so while the attraction is as strong as it was in the past, they work into it, also mindful of the child in the middle.  Plus they are hot, hot, together.

Ah, Cole, he’s a wonder of a character.  The teacher everyone would have wanted in kindergarten,  with a house and yard full of rescued animals, Cole also has a past beyond Zander, one that bugged that heck out of me. Why?  Because with the hints, mentions of it, and an actual “I’ll tell you later” which never happens”, we don’t find out what happened to him.  It’s the main reason this book didn’t get a 5 star rating.  There’s this HUGE mystery about Cole, it’s mentioned repeatedly throughout the story and I kept waiting for the bomb to drop and it never did.  Then I thought, ok, there’s  going to be another story after this.  Nope, we got an Epilogue which sort of eliminated that.  So why bring it up at all?  You have a great story, leave unanswered things like this out if you aren’t going to resolve them.  Or don’t make them such a big deal.  Either way irritated the heck out of me and still does.

So minus that narrative kerfuffle I mentioned above, I loved this story.  It’s sweet, heart-warming, romantic and layered.  It’s one I definitely recommend.  Pick up Accepting the Fall by Meg Harding and get started today.

Cover art by Black Jazz Design doesn’t really speak to the story, the age of the characters or anything.  Meh.

Buy Links: Amazon US | Amazon UK

Book Details:

Kindle Edition, 286 pages
Published June 8th 2017 by Oceanside Press
ASINB0725DR2FM
Edition LanguageEnglish

A Julia Review: Love Plus One (Stephanie Spicer Erotic Touch Romance #4) by Gemma Stone

Rating: 1 out of 5 stars

When beautiful businesswoman, Stephanie Spicer, finally gets together with handsome American lover, Rick Martin, a senior manager at the UK office of her biggest client, her life seems complete. But her life is thrown into turmoil when her boss, Katrina, sends her to Los Angeles to work on an important branding promotion for the company.

Feeling alone in the very office where Rick’s overpowering wife, Diane, is also a senior manager, Stephanie seeks friendship with Asha, the attractive airline stewardess she’s met on her flight over. Taking Stephanie into her home, her heart and her bed, Asha takes her under her wing and keeps her passions high.

When the success of the project is sealed at a high-profile company event by her impromptu presentation together with her old flame, tennis star Kelly Finch, Stephanie prepares to fly home and pick up her life and passionate affair with Rick. But a revelation about Diane’s “love plus one” forces Stephanie to make a decision that will forever change her life.

Can Stephanie keep her new-found love as she also tries to manage the challenges of delivering her client’s branding account in America? Or will his suspicious wife try and change the ground rules and bring her back to earth?

Love Plus One by Gemma Stone is apparently already the 4th entry in the so concisely titled “Stephanie Spicer Erotic Touch Romance”-series. I sincerely hope that the other volumes are a whole lot better than this one because it was quite frankly a huge let-down.

Let’s start with the fact that I’m already having a problem with the above summary since it implies that there is an actual plot to be found here as well as characters who have personalities and struggles to face. Sadly, the actual “story” features none of that. The plot exists at best only as a sort of frame for the one thing the author tried to forcefully squeeze in as much as possible: sex. The entire narrative consists mainly of sexual scenes between Stephanie Spicer and various other characters (both male and female) with only short intervals of non-sexual content.

Stephanie Spicer, the main protagonist, has literally one trait as a character: everyone who lays eyes on her is immediately physically attracted to her – no matter their gender or sexual orientation. Even the airport security employee had of course nothing else on her mind when checking her over. And, of course, Stephanie herself is more than happy to comply with everyone’s desires, despite the fact that she finally managed to get together with the man for whom she apparently has some kind of “romantic” feelings. But make no mistake, actual emotions are mentioned only in passing in order to get to the next bed scene as fast as possible. I don’t even have anything further to add about the characters since they are nothing more than cardboard cut-outs of stereotypically successful and attractive business people with no personality or depth to comment upon. Oh, and the relationships? People meet and sleep with each other a few scenes after. That is pretty much the extent of how most interactions go including the “main” one between Stephanie and Asha who meet exactly three times in the entire book – two quick meetings on a plane and the one time they sleep with each other after a dinner conversation that was mostly summarized in a few sentences. 

Now let’s talk about the sex scenes, shall we? After all they are clearly the only thing the author seemed to care about. Are they perhaps that mind-blowingly amazing or intricate to even remotely justify tossing everything else a good story should offer out the window? That would be a big “no” on my part. There is certainly nothing new or unusual about them. To be fair, they are not particularly badly written or so but I just got tired of them after the third one. There was no way for me to really get into them, since they felt utterly meaningless and I did not care about the characters involved in the least. There was even a f/f/f threesome that was apparently supposed to show the “awakening” of one of the participants – in other words, finding out that she enjoys intercourse with women. But there was no depth to it at all and the characters felt terribly fake and unrealistic.

In conclusion, to treat this so-called “novella” as an actual work of quality fiction seems almost like an insult to every author who strives to create compelling storylines with interesting and engaging characters. Please, don’t get me wrong, I appreciate well-written sexual content within a narrative as much as the next reader but it should exist to add to the relationship development between characters and the plot as a whole, not replace them.   

The cover design by CB Messer is fine, I guess. The scantily clad women at least make no secret out of what this book is all about. There is nothing particularly remarkable or exciting about this cover but then again neither is there about its content.

Sales Links:  Amazon

Book Details:

ebook, 16700 words

Published May 23, 2017

by Deep Desires Press

ISBN13: 9781370615636

Edition Language: English

Book Review Tour and Giveawy for Accepting The Fall by Meg Harding

 

Buy Links: Amazon US | Amazon UK
 
Length: 61,000 words
 
 
Blurb
 

Confronting the past is never easy.


Cole Whitaker is happy. He has the job and boyfriend he always wanted. His heart’s in no danger of being broken, and he can’t ask for more from life. As a kindergarten teacher, he sees it all; however, one troublesome student has him reaching out to the parent, wanting to help. There’s something about Savanah that tugs at his heartstrings.


He never expected her father.


Zander Brooks hasn’t had an easy life, and he’s made some mistakes. Freshly retired from the military and working as a firefighter, Zander thought he’d left Cole in the rearview mirror. He’s not expecting him to appear in St. Petersburg, Florida, of all places, teaching his daughter’s kindergarten class. Suddenly, his biggest mistake is being shoved in his face.


This is Zander’s chance to close a door he’d never fully shut, but time with his former flame might change his mind.

 

 

Author Bio

Meg Harding is a graduate of UCF, and recently completed a masters program for Publishing in the UK. For as long as she can remember, writing has always been her passion, but she had an inability to ever actually finish anything. She’s immensely happy that her inability has fled and looks forward to where her mind will take her next. She’s a sucker for happy endings, the beach, and superheroes. In her dream life she owns a wildlife conservation and is surrounded by puppies. She’s a film buff, voracious reader, and a massive geek.



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In the Spotlight: Back to You by Chris Scully (Riptide Publishing Tour and Giveaway)

Back to You by Chris Scully
Riptide Publishing

Cover by: L.C. Chase

Available for Purchase at Riptide Publishing

✒︎

Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words is happy to host Chris Scully here today on her Back to You Tour.  Welcome, Chris!

✒︎

Hello! I’m Chris Scully. I’m thrilled to welcome you to my blog tour for Back to You, my new romantic suspense novel. Join me at various tour stops, where I’ll be sharing some background on the novel and the characters, my thoughts on writing, and more. Comment on each stop to be entered in a drawing for a $20 Riptide gift certificate. Thanks for joining me on the tour!

About Back to You

Journalist Alex Buchanan has come home to the remote British Columbia town he grew up in, but only because his estranged father is dying. For Alex, the homecoming holds a mix of memories, mostly bad. The only bright spot is reconnecting with Benji Morning, the childhood friend he never truly forgot. As boys, the strength of their bond had frightened Alex. But now that he’s confident in his bisexuality, he’s drawn back to quiet, soft-spoken Ben.

Ben isn’t the same boy Alex left behind, though. His life has been overshadowed by the disappearance of his sister two decades earlier, and now a new break in the case threatens to undo the peace he’s worked so hard to attain.

As Alex struggles to repair the relationship with his father before it’s too late, he finds himself caught up in a twenty-year-old mystery, a story he never expected, and a shocking truth that could affect his and Ben’s future together.

Available now from Riptide Publishing. 

About Chris Scully

Chris Scully lives in Toronto, Canada. She grew up spinning romantic stories in her head and always dreamed of one day being a writer even though life had other plans. Her characters have accompanied her through career turns as a librarian and an IT professional, until finally, to escape the tedium of a corporate day job, she took a chance and began putting her daydreams down on paper.

Tired of the same old boy-meets-girl stories, she found a home in M/M romance and strives to give her characters the happy endings they deserve. She divides her time between a mundane 9-5 cubicle job and a much more interesting fantasy life. When she’s not working or writing (which isn’t often these days) she loves puttering in the garden and traveling. She is an avid reader and tries to bring pieces of other genres and styles to her stories. While her head is crammed full of all the things she’d like to try writing, her focus is always on the characters first. She describes her characters as authentic, ordinary people—the kind of guy you might meet on the street, or the one who might be your best friend.

Although keeping up with social media is still a struggle given her schedule, she does love to hear from readers.

Connect with Chris:

● Website: chrisscullyblog.wordpress.com

● Facebook: facebook.com/chris.scully.author

● Goodreads: goodreads.com/author/show/6152322.Chris_Scully

Giveaway

To celebrate the release of Back to You, one lucky winner will receive a $20 Riptide credit! Leave a comment with your contact info to enter the contest. Entries close at midnight, Eastern time, on June 17, 2017. Contest is NOT restricted to U.S. entries. Thanks for following the tour, and don’t forget to leave your contact info!