Category: M/M Book Reviews

An Alisa Review: A Little Blood (The Blood Bond Trilogy #1) by Aimer Boyz

Rating:  4 stars out of 5

 

a-little-bloodCan you handle forever?

Eternity comes with a price. Forever is a lonely word and Etienne Vaillancourt needs more than blood.

Andrew Delaney needs to pay down his student loans, maybe save enough money to fix up his relic of a Honda. No rush, Andrew’s got his whole life ahead of him.

But one lifetime isn’t always enough.

A chance meeting in a movie theatre is the start of a future neither man had thought possible. A future together … if they can handle forever.

 

I really enjoyed this book.  The main characters are wonderful with great secondary characters to enhance the story.  The author didn’t try to completely change how many would think of vampires, but also wasn’t too cliché either.

 

Etienne has been alone a long time, it’s better to keep his secret and to not get attached to his food.  However, Andrew completely throws him for a loop when they begin talking at the movie theatre.  They quickly grow to care for each other, but neither really know how they want to navigate their relationship.

 

Etienne and Andrew feel an immediate connection to each other when they meet that only grows with time.  This story was told from both characters’ points of view which gave me the opportunity to see both characters feelings.  Etienne would do anything to protect and be with Andrew, but is afraid of his reaction.  Andrew needs to decide if forever if what he really wants.  I can’t wait to read more stories in this series.

 

Cover art by James at GoOnWrite.com is perfect for this book.

 

Sales Link: Amazon

 

Book Details:

ebook, 235 pages

Published: September 9, 2016

Edition Language: English

Series: The Blood Bond Trilogy #1

Cover Reveal for Line Drive (Homeruns #6) by Sloan Johnson

Line Drive Sloan Johnson

Coming Soon!

PJ Nolan has convinced himself he can get through one last year. That changes when he arrives for the first day of spring training and his teammates think it’s funny to mock the one night that made him feel alive. They don’t realize those pictures are all he has left of Nate Kendricks.

Nate knows nothing about baseball, but agrees to a spring training road trip with his twin brother. He’s not thrilled about the prospect of seeing PJ Nolan, the man who’d haunted his dreams since the night of the charity auction. Nate thought their chemistry was undeniable, but after that night, he never heard from PJ again.

Once they reunite, PJ’s certain of one thing: he’s not going to let Nate slip away again. As he gets closer to joining his dad in the record books, he feels Nate slipping away. What will he choose if forced to pick between new love and a lifelong dream?

Sloan Johnson Sweet Spot

Home Runs series and Line Drive features gay baseball players. Why baseball, a sport that has remained relatively heterosexual when others sports have had players start to come out of the closet? Or is that important? Is it enough to just love the game?

When I started writing the series, I didn’t factor in whether or not there were any active gay players in MLB. While many of my stories have seeds in current events, they rarely dictate what I’m going to write in a fictional book.

That being said, I started Wild Pitch in 2014, which was the same year MLB announced Billy Bean as an ambassador for inclusion. Once I began researching, I read his memoir to see what closeted gay players have faced in the past. It was an absolutely tragic story, which had my muse begging to write a happier ending.

Last year, professional baseball did see their first active player come out to surprisingly little fanfare. When I read the story about David Denson (who, ironically enough, plays for one of the Milwaukee Brewers’ farm teams) I briefly had hope that the future of gay players rested in the farm system, because it seems like younger adults don’t hold the same prejudices as older players. Sadly, news later came out about Tyler Dunnington, who had a much different experience in the minors. He retired after one year because of vile comments he was forced to hear in the locker room.

The latter inspired part of PJ’s story in Line Drive. The change in clubhouses won’t happen overnight, but we have to hope that, in time, everyone will be welcomed wherever they go.

Cordelia Kingsbridge has 5 Fun Facts and a Riveting Romance with ‘Can’t Hide From Me’ (blog tour and giveaway)

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Can’t Hide from Me by Cordelia Kingsbridge
Riptide Publishing
Cover by: G.D. Leigh

Read an Excerpt/Buy It Here

 

Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words is happy to have Cordelia Kingsbridge here today on tour with Can’t Hide From Me. Welcome, Cordelia!

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Hi! I’m Cordelia Kingsbridge, and I’m pleased to welcome you to the blog tour for my novel Can’t Hide From Me. Thanks so much for checking it out!

Five Fun Facts About Can’t Hide From Me

1. The novel’s original title was From the Ashes. This is why Ángel’s codename is Phoenix, and by extension, why the rest of the San Diego team has codenames sourced from various mythologies.

2. I first started thinking about this novel in the summer of 2012. I still have the Word document of the original outline and character sketches, which are interesting to read now after so much time has passed. The vast majority of CHFM turned out very different from that early conception – for example, the team was once going to be FBI instead of ATF, and Charles’ name used to be Alexander. I even have the research that I did into the inner workings of the FBI back then, which I’m saving in case I need it for future projects.

3. I struggled with the plot for at least a year before I finally figured it out. Believe it or not, I came up with the basic framework for CHFM – the beginning and ending, as well as a few big moments in the middle – without actually knowing who Ángel’s stalker was. But of course it was impossible for me to move forward or get the plot to gel without that information. It wasn’t until I realized who I wanted the villain to be that the entire plot clicked and fell into place like pieces of a jigsaw puzzle. After that, CHFM flowed more smoothly for me than anything I’d written before.

4. I had to do some very interesting research along the way. Among the highlights: which firearms are popular with Mexican cartels, what polygraph examinations look like, how guns are hidden inside cars for smuggling purposes, how a person could introduce a suspect package into a federal building without raising red flags, what it feels like to be tasered, and other things I can’t reveal without major spoilers. I hope whichever NSA agent is monitoring my internet searches enjoys the man-on-man erotica!

5. I changed some of the major relationship moments based on feedback from my readers. I first posted From the Ashes online as a WIP (work-in-progress), as I had with my previous novels. One of the advantages of this approach is that it gives you real-time feedback on which aspects of the novel are coming across the way you want them to – and which really aren’t. In this case, I realized along the way that the conflict between Charles and Ángel was weighted too much in Ángel’s favor. Without meaning to, I’d been presenting Ángel’s side of things in a more sympathetic light and leaving out or glossing over Charles’ own very valid grievances, and the relationship came off as unbalanced in a way I definitely hadn’t intended. Seeing this, I went back through the novel once it was complete and changed a lot of the conversations and other details to balance things out before I even submitted it to Riptide for consideration. Feedback from my readers has always been vital to my writing process!

About Can’t Hide From Mecanthidefromme_600x900

Charles Hunter’s team is on a mission to extract an unidentified ATF agent from an undercover job gone wrong. All they’ve got to go on is the rendezvous location—until Charles recognizes the ex he hasn’t seen in years. Their “simple rescue mission” is about to get a lot more complicated.

For Ángel Medina, adjusting to life after his cartel nightmare is hard enough without confronting memories of a failed relationship. All he wants is a fresh start. But when a violent stalker lashes out from the shadows, Ángel realizes his nightmare is far from over.

As the stalker’s obsession escalates and bodies start dropping, Charles and Ángel are thrown together in a desperate search for the culprit. Tempers flare and old passions reignite, drawing them back into the same turbulent relationship that once ended in disaster.

But the stalker isn’t letting go—and the next strike might hit straight through the heart.

Available from Riptide Publishing: http://riptidepublishing.com/titles/cant-hide-from-me

About Cordelia Kingsbridge

Cordelia Kingsbridge has a master’s degree in social work from the University of Pittsburgh, but quickly discovered that direct practice in the field was not for her. Having written novels as a hobby throughout graduate school, she decided to turn her focus to writing as a full-time career. Now she explores her fascination with human behavior, motivation, and psychopathology through fiction. Her weaknesses include opposites-attract pairings and snarky banter.

Away from her desk, Cordelia is a fitness fanatic, and can be found strength training, cycling, and practicing Krav Maga. She lives in South Florida but spends most of her time indoors with the air conditioning on full blast!

Connect with Cordelia:

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Giveaway

To celebrate the release of Can’t Hide From Me, one lucky winner will receive a $15 Riptide Publishing gift card! Leave a comment with your contact info to enter the contest. Entries close at midnight, Eastern time, on October 8, 2016. Contest is NOT restricted to U.S. entries. Thanks for following the tour, and don’t forget to leave your contact info!

An Alisa Review: Smoke and Spots By Deirdre O’Dare

 

Rating:  3 stars out of 5

 

smoke-and-spotsWhen firefighter Grady Ashcroft adopts his deceased sister’s son, he knows life will change. He never expected to be a dad, but he’ll give young Jamie his best, even if it means a celibate life in a new home. He does not expect to find the man of his dreams in the Colorado village where he takes a new job, either.

Sullivan Parker wanted to be chief of the Valle Vista fire department when the former chief was forced to leave. Instead, the town council hires a stranger from far away. Despite his resentment, Sully finds himself drawn to the newcomer. He also discovers a need to take Jamie and the spotted pup the former chief left behind under his wing.

Can the brotherhood of battling dangerous blazes morph into stronger feelings for the two men, or will conflict prevail?

 

This was a nice short story.  Grady and Sully meet when Grady relocates with his son to Sully’s town as the new fire chief.  Grady spends most of the book adjusting to life in a small town and settling down into a new routine with little wrenches thrown in by Sully.

 

This story is told from both characters’ points of view which gives you a chance to see both of their personalities better.  They both feel drawn to one another, but don’t know how to interpret the feeling.  Grady is determined to make life good for his son and has resigned himself to a life as a single father because he assumes since he’s in a small town there won’t be anyone available.  This story has a HFN ending that gives you the chance to imagine a future for them.

 

The cover art is nice and connects to the story.

 

Sales Links: JMS Books | Amazon | ARe

 

Book Details:

ebook, 46 pages

Published: September 3, 2016 by JMS Books

ISBN: 9781634862103

Edition Language: English

A Caryn Review: Silences of Fallen Stars by Vivian Dean

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

silences-of-the-fallen-starsThis novella was set in Nebraska in the late 1960’s.  Although elsewhere in the country the Stonewall riots were happening, and hippies were experiencing free love, in the heartland things were much less progressive.  It was certainly not a place conducive to romance for gay men.

Jim and Ronnie were friends for most of their lives, and in high school they became lovers, but  secretly, and innocently.  Jim was lucky enough to be able to afford college, so he went to Omaha after graduation, and Ronnie stayed home.  Pride, and shame, led to a falling out, and then Ronnie was sent to Vietnam.  The story actually begins when Ronnie comes back home, wounded, and Jim is back at his grandfather’s farm after falling short of everyone’s expectations.

I love a good hurt/comfort storyline, and this book did it very well.  In the 5 years they were apart, Ronnie and Jim became men, and left the naïve highschool lovers behind.  They were both changed by    loss and heartache, and in Ronnie’s case, physical injury and disability.  Coming back together was not automatically a given, and Ms. Dean did an excellent job of showing the fragility of their new relationship, and how they eventually found their way back to each other.

The historical details were entered unobtrusively, but clearly enough that the impact of the times and the location on the men’s personalities and actions made perfect sense.  I am so thankful that I didn’t see any glaring anachronisms that bother me so much in poorly done historicals!  Overall, a sweet read, fairly low angst, with relatable characters and a realistic HFN.  Definitely recommended.

Cover art is lovely and eye catching.

Sales Links

JMS Books LLC

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Book Details:

Kindle Edition, 69 pages
Published September 3rd 2016 by JMS Books LLC (first published April 19th 2015)
ASIN B01KPNUMEU
Edition Language English

Jump into the Mystery and Romance that is ‘Investigating Julius Drake’ by Daisy Harris (tour and giveaway)

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Investigating Julius Drake by Daisy Harris
Riptide Publishing
Cover art by Michelle Fairbanks

Read an Excerpt/Buy It Here

 

Welcome to the Investigating Julius Drake blog tour! I’m Daisy, the author, and I’ll be sharing excerpts from the book, as well as extra information about the characters, location and story. Up until recently, Seattle was my home town, and I’ve stolen plenty of locations and institutions as settings for Investigating Julius Drake. Together, we’ll take a tour through the twisty-turny, damp and caffeine-addled world that my protagonist, Henry Walker, finds himself in. Grab yourself a double, almond, split-shot, extra-foam latte, pull up a chair, and join us! And don’t forget to comment for a chance to win a $30 Starbucks gift card. Drink like a Seattleite and enjoy.

About Investigating Julius Drake

After arriving at Seattle’s prestigious Clinton Academy, fourteen-year-old Henry Walker realizes he won’t fit in. If he’s going to run with the rich and powerful, he’ll have to hide his modest background, his lack of interest in girls, and most importantly, his fascination with his handsome but troubled classmate Julius Drake.

When Julius draws Henry into the investigation of a classmate’s suicide attempt, Henry can’t resist the case—or Julius. Soon, Henry’s not only facing the truth about his feelings for Julius, but also risking his life to unmask a social media imposter. “The Other Woman” is manipulating his classmates, searching out their vulnerabilities, and driving them to desperate actions. Julius himself is at risk, what with his callous parents threatening to send him away, and his mental health taking a beating both at school and at home.

If Henry’s going to save the day and get the boy of his dreams, he’ll have to stop worrying what everyone thinks and stop pretending to be someone he’s not. Most of all, Henry will have to be honest about who he loves.

Available from Riptide Publishing. http://www.riptidepublishing.com/titles/investigating-julius-drake

About Daisy Harris

Born into the psychedelic wonder that was the seventies, Daisy Harris has had an interesting life so far. She’s been to Catholic school and Ramones concerts, danced to MC Hammer and Flo Rida, made the honor roll and Phi Beta Kappa, survived cholera, faced bed bugs, and she’s been a hair’s breadth from shipwreck twice. (Three times, if you count sea kayaks!)

Daisy has been a lifelong reader, devouring romance, young adult, urban fantasy, and nonfiction alike. In her professional life, she’s written medical copy and edited scientific papers. However, since 2012, she’s devoted her energy to writing gay romance full-time. That’s okay, because now on the weekends she reads medical studies for fun.

As far as Daisy’s concerned, the best things in life happen by accident. Though she’s gotten better at planning over the years, she still writes, lives, and plays by the seat of her pants. Her books are a happy mix of mysteries, romantic comedies, and coming-of-age stories, more often than not inspired by the great films of the 1980s.

Daisy lives in Seattle in a house full of dogs and children. When she’s not writing gay fiction, she can be found riding her exercise bike and testing the outer boundaries of her food processor’s potential. Every once in a while, she goes out to pay homage to the party gods of her youth—and maybe to find a little trouble.

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Giveaway

To celebrate the release of Investigating Julius Drake, one lucky winner will receive a $30 Starbucks Gift Card! Leave a comment with your contact info to enter the contest. Entries close at midnight, Eastern time, on October 8, 2016. Contest is NOT restricted to U.S. entries. Thanks for following the tour, and don’t forget to leave your contact info!

A Paul B New Release Review: Unsafe Exposure (Hidden Wolves #4) by Kaje Harper

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

unsafe-exposure-by-kaje-harperWildlife artist Dylan Shore is accompanying his sister Frankie as she being Northwestern University.  He decides to go to the zoo to see if he can find anything interesting to draw.  Sitting at the wolf exhibit, a group of young men come up to him and ask why he did not pay respect when he came into pack territory.  Thinking his only way to prevent from being killed by this gang, he runs.  While he can outrun most everybody, these four not only keep pace but are actually gaining ground.  Only when a car pulls up along him does Dylan find an actual escape route.  He jumps in the car and they put the gang behind them.

Alex is a statistician doing medical research in Chicago.  As fourteenth in the Seattle pack, he is the lowest ranking werewolf there.  When he sees a strange werewolf running from members of the Chicago North pack, he decides to give the man a break, hoping the others don’t recognize him or his car.  After all, as a low ranking visiting wolf, you don’t want to piss off your hosts.  As he gets to know Dylan, there are two things that surprise him.  First, Dylan is a gay werewolf.  Second, Dylan has no clue that he is a werewolf.  It is no wonder that Dylan does not understand pack protocol.  With members of the Chicago North pack after both of them, Alex must now educate what it means to be a shifter.  But when both are captured and taken to a military research facility, Alex’s mission changes.  Now he must keep both of them, along with a young shifter boy, alive in order to escape.  When the escape occurs, it will have far reaching consequences for the werewolves not only across the country, but the world.

I have enjoyed Kaje Harper’s Hidden Wolves series from the start.  This is the fourth book (not counting two  interlude titles) to the series and as such should be read in order in order to understand the over-arching story lines. The series is a bit darker than most shifter series.  The emphasis is on pack politics and hierarchy, along with doing what wolves need to do to advance.  In fact, Aaron calls his mate “eleventh” during official pack business.   They are human wolves.

As for this book,  I like that the first part of the book focused mostly on the new characters that are introduced here.  There are mentions of the leader of the Alpha Council and the alpha of the Chicago North pack but do not play a major role until later.  In fact, the main characters of the previous books do not appear until two thirds of the way through the book.  Simon and Paul’s two kittens (both of whom think that they are wolf pups) make a cameo as well.  I await the next book in this series.

I like the cover by Winterheart Designs.  It has our two young men causally dresses as if going out in the Chicagoland area.  Below them is the skyline for Chicago.  Above them are wolf eyes watching out over the scene.  This fits the model of the other covers in the series.

Sales Links

MLR Press LLC

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Book Details

Ebook, 393 pages

Edition Language:  English

Published:  September 9, 2016 by MLR Press

ISBN:  978-1-944770-32-7

Series:  Hidden Wolves – add to your Goodreads shelf here: