Category: M/M Contemporary Fiction

A Kai Review: Facing West (Forever Wilde #1) by Lucy Lennox

Rating: 4.5 stars out of 5

Nico: 
I left my family and tiny Texas hometown fifteen years ago to escape small-town gossips and to give my mom and sister the chance at a better life. But when a phone call from an attorney back home informs me that my sister passed away, leaving me custody of her newborn baby, I’m shocked out of the steady life I’ve built for myself running a tattoo shop in San Francisco.
The thing is: I don’t do babies. And I don’t do small towns. Or commitment. And I especially don’t do family. My plan is to go back to Hobie just long enough to sign adoption papers, giving my niece the kind of stable, loving family I could never provide.
But the moment I meet my niece in the arms of Weston Wilde, my sister’s best friend, and the town’s handsome doctor, my plans begin to change. Because suddenly, I see a different future. One with the very thing I thought I never deserved: a family. If only I can convince West that I’m not the same good-for-nothing kid ready to bolt when things get tough.
Weston:
There’s one thing I know for sure about Nico Salerno: he was a good-for-nothing as a kid and judging by the purple-haired, tattooed punk who shows up at his sister’s funeral, he hasn’t changed. There’s no way I’m letting him take custody of my best friend’s baby.
But the more time I spend around him, the more I realize that his rough exterior is just a shell and that beneath all the tattoos is a scared, insecure man searching for a place to belong. And pretty soon I know exactly where he belongs: in my bed and by my side.
The problem is, he abandoned his family once before, how do I know that if we become a family he won’t do it again?

 

Facing West is a light, funny, sweet and sexy story. Absolutely just what I needed!

I love the Lucy Lennox style and in this book, she didn’t disappoint. She brought us a story filled with good writing, good and complex characters, hot-hot scenes, a crazy and big family and hot guys with babies. That’s right! (take care of your ovaries ladies, they can explode).

At first, I didn’t like West. He was presumptuous and judged Nico for things he didn’t know anything about. Even I could see that was more than the surface there. Luckily for him (since I didn’t have to hate him for long) he came around and realized Nico was a great guy. With problems, of course, but the guy’s heart was in the right place. And since Nico was a super-Hot tattooed man, I think it helped a little. Right, West?

Nico was a great character. I just loved him. I know he had problems and he was used to running instead of fighting, but I could see his struggle. Please don’t judge him so much, ok?

Guys, one of the things I absolutely loved about this book was the interaction between Nico and Pippa (his baby niece). For someone who feared babies, he got involved with Pippa so well. And it was clear he did love her. Stay with her, Nico!

Nico and West were super hot together. Are you hearing? I said: SUPER hot, like more than hot. I won’t spoil you the details but keep a ventilator close by. Just a little tip. 😉

The city was well described and the supporting characters were so great. Even the douche ones were well represented. Curt, for example, was one of the homophobic in closet dudes. I hated him, but thought Lucy did a great job with that character.

I loved West’s family. They were really huge, so guess what? That’s right, more books to come! Yay! The family patriarchs weren’t anyone less than two grandpas. Yes, Like couple grandpas. Isn’t that sweet? I think so. They were also funny and much supportive of their family and friends. I loved it about them.

I can talk more and more about this book, but I will leave you with this quote, below. Hope you enjoy this reading as much as I did.

“Spending time with Weston Wilde was supposed to have been temporary—like a stick-on tattoo at a child’s birthday party. But with every touch of his fingers in my hair and every brush of his lips over mine, I found myself wanting to cement those feelings into my skin forever with permanent ink.”

P.S: The cover art by AngstyG is beautiful and sexy, isn’t it? I absolutely love it!

​​

Sales Link:  Amazon

Book Details:

Kindle Edition: 312 pages

Published August 20th, 2017

Series: Forever Wilde #1

An Ali Review: Circle (Roads #3) by Garrett Leigh

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
I love him…but he’s forgotten why.


A lot can happen in six years, and Ash and Pete have seen their world flipped upside down more times than most. Being parents to Pete’s young nephew wasn’t in their plan, but life happens to them and they roll with the punches. Or at least they did, until new heartache rocks their hard-won happily-ever-after.

Ash loves Pete as much as ever—more, in fact—but Pete battles alone with a burden that weighs heavily on his heart. Ash is no stranger to dark clouds, but the secret Pete keeps from him is a storm that could break them.

Despite the fierce love that once buoyed them, they’re both drowning until a new friend throws them a lifeline. His wisdom offers insight—for better or worse, real love is rarely a smooth journey. For Ash and Pete to come full circle once more, they’ll have to hit the road and chase it. 
I was both excited and nervous when I saw that this book was coming.  The first book in the series, Slide, was one of the first books I read in this genre and it holds a special place in my heart.  I was happy with how things ended after book two and I wasn’t sure I wanted to revisit these two if their happily ever after was going to be changed.  As it turns out I had nothing to worry about.  This book was fantastic.  I loved every page of it.
When the book starts Pete and Ash are having some troubles.  Pete is really struggling with something and as a result he’s pulling away from Ash emotionally.  The thing that made this ok to read was that despite their struggles, you never doubt how much they love each other.  It jumps off every page at you.  You see that they’re going through something bad but you know that it’s going to work out in the end.  
I’m hesitant to say much about the plot because there are a lot of plot points that can be spoiled.  In fact, I recommend, rather ironically, that you avoid most reviews on this book.  There are just too many things that can be spoiled and I think it’s best to just go in to it with no information.  
This is the third book in this series and can not be read as a standalone. If you want to try this series you need to start with book one. If you are already a fan of this series you can read this without doing a re-read of the previous books.  It takes place a few years down the road and the author does a good job of catching you up on what’s been happening.  I did it without doing a re-read.  Honestly though, I wish I had done a re-read but just because once I got in to this I realized how much I’ve missed these two.  
This book was one of my most anticipated books of the year and it did not let me down.  I loved it from the first page to the epilogue that I cried happy tears through.  A must read for fans of this series.
Cover by Garrett Leigh:  I love this cover.  It’s a gorgeous cover and it fits well with the previous books in the series 
Buy Links: Amazon US | Amazon UK
Book Details:
Kindle Edition, 179 pages
Published September 5th 2017
ASINB0758BPRLJ
Series Roads #3

An Ali Review: Making It (Ringside Romance #3) by Christine d’Abo

Rating: 3.5 stars out of 5
Devan knows exactly what he wants from life: a good career, a husband who loves him, and a child to call his own. He’s working at the perfect job, and has found the man of his dreams in Eli. That only leaves one box left to tick. When his friend offers to be a surrogate mother for Devan and Eli, he’s convinced all his dreams have come true.

Eli has been fighting his entire life. Fighting to keep his sick mother safe, fighting his frustration, and fighting daily as an up-and-coming MMA star. The one thing he can’t fight is the feeling that he’s made a terrible mistake agreeing to be a father with Devan. On the worst night of their lives, Eli knows Devan is better off without him, and leaves.

When Eli returns three years later he comes face-to-face with Devan and a son who might be his. Devan has moved on with his life, but seeing Eli once again reignites forgotten passion. Yet if Eli wants to make it work with Devan, he must decide if he’s ready for the biggest fight of his life.
I was super excited about this book. I love a good second chance story. Unfortunately this didn’t live up to my expectations. 

The book starts three years in the past. Eli and Devon are married and they’re in a bad place. Things happen and Eli walks away from it all and the way he does it is truly horrible. My status update at this point said “Eli exhibited a bionic level of asshattery. He’s going to need to crawl through broken glass while begging for forgiveness for this to work for me.”

And there is the problem. He didn’t. He just shows back up, says he’s sorry and they’re seeing each other again. I couldn’t understand any decision Devon made at this point. They do this weird thing where they decide Devon should see other people so he knows he wants Eli back (but he hasn’t dated at all in the three years he’s been gone) AND he leaves his kid with Eli as the babysitter. Devon was like that one friend we all have who makes constant decisions that make you scream “WHAT ON EARTH ARE YOU DOING!?!” internally every time you talk about their relationship.
Despite the dramatic set up, the story is actually low angst and low drama and a nice and mellow love story. Which is not necessarily a bad thing but it was absolutely not what I was expecting or wanting from this book.

This is the third book in the series but is fine as a standalone. You see both couples from books one and two in this but the way the books are done they can all be easily read on their own.
This cover was done by L.C. Chase and I like it a lot.  I think it’s a good cover by itself but overall the covers of the books in this series have been some of my favorites this year.  They coordinate really well and they’re all striking in their own way.
Sales Links:  Riptide Publishing | Amazon
Book Details:
ebook, 226 pages
Published August 7th 2017 by Riptide Publishing
Original TitleMaking It
ISBN139781626495821
Edition LanguageEnglish
SeriesRingside Romance #3

Release Blitz and Giveaway: Hard Time (Responsible Adult #2) by C.F. White

 

 
Buy Links: Pride | Amazon US | Amazon UK 
 
Length: 77,855 words
 
Publisher: Pride Publishing
Responsible Adult Series
 
Misdemeanor (Book #1): Pride Publishing | Amazon US | Amazon UK
Blurb

 

Love isn’t always responsible.


After Micky O’Neill is remanded in custody for breaching his court order, his already tempestuous relationship with Dan Peters is tested to the limits.


Having to battle their way through a court case that could end with Micky in jail, social workers breaking up the family home, and the return of Micky’s deadbeat father, it seems everything is set to destroy their relationship before it even had the chance to start.


With such high stakes involved, not just for Micky but for once-burned, twice-shy Dan, they both have to learn that falling in love isn’t always responsible.

Author Bio


Brought up in a relatively small town in Hertfordshire, C F White managed to do what most other residents try to do and fail—leave.


Studying at a West London university, she realised there was a whole city out there waiting to be discovered, so, much like Dick Whittington before her, she never made it back home and still endlessly searches for the streets paved with gold, slowly coming to the realisation they’re mostly paved with chewing gum. And the odd bit of graffiti. And those little circles of yellow spray paint where the council point out the pot holes to someone who is supposedly meant to fix them instead of staring at them vacantly whilst holding a polystyrene cup of watered-down coffee.


She eventually moved West to East along that vast District Line and settled for pie and mash, cockles and winkles and a bit of Knees Up Mother Brown to live in the East End of London; securing a job and creating a life, a home and a family.


Having worked in Higher Education for most of her career, a life-altering experience brought pen back to paper after she’d written stories as a child but never had the confidence to show them to the world. Having embarked on this writing malarkey, C F White cannot stop. So strap in, it’s gonna be a bumpy ride…

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Release Blitz & Review Tour for Garrett Leigh’s Circle (Roads #3) (excerpt and giveaway)

 

Buy Links: Amazon US | Amazon UK
 
Length: 50,000 words approx
 
Cover Design: Garrett Leigh @ Black Jazz Design
 
Roads Series
 
Slide (Book #1) Amazon US | Amazon UK
Rare (Book #2) Amazon US | Amazon UK
 
Blurb
 

I love him…but he’s forgotten why.

A lot can happen in six years, and Ash and Pete have seen their world flipped upside down more times than most. Being parents to Pete’s young nephew wasn’t in their plan, but life happens to them and they roll with the punches. Or at least they did, until new heartache rocks their hard-won happily-ever-after.

Ash loves Pete as much as ever—more, in fact—but Pete battles alone with a burden that weighs heavily on his heart. Ash is no stranger to dark clouds, but the secret Pete keeps from him is a storm that could break them.

Despite the fierce love that once buoyed them, they’re both drowning until a new friend throws them a lifeline. His wisdom offers insight—for better or worse, real love is rarely a smooth journey. For Ash and Pete to come full circle once more, they’ll have to hit the road and chase it.

Excerpt

Okay, so feline-themed clubs were definitely not my bag, but I couldn’t deny that it felt amazing to be out and proud with Ash. I sank into a couple of beers, and the dark cloud that had become my constant companion lifted a touch, chased away by neon lights, glitter, and the swathes of naked man skin all around us.

Not that I took much notice of any man but Ash. He was never going to take his shirt off in public, but he didn’t need to. The fucker turned heads wherever he went, and the fact that he had no idea made me love him even more.

Made me want him even more.

We didn’t dance. Ever. But clubs had always made us horny in the past, and this one was no exception. The music ramped up and the heat seeped into us. The crowds thickened, pushing us ever closer. I pressed myself tight against Ash, so absorbed in him that I forgot to glare at anyone who dared look his way, and backed him into a nearby wall. “I like this club.”

“Yeah?” Ash hadn’t touched any booze, but his face was as flushed as mine felt, his eyes as hooded, and his skin jumped when I slid my hands beneath his T-shirt and over his chest. He licked his lips. “Do you think we’re gonna be here long?”

I doubted it, and it wouldn’t be the first time we’d cut loose early to run home and bang. But we weren’t at home now, and as I kissed Ash, it occurred to me that we’d never fucked anywhere that wasn’t our home. If tonight went the way most of our club adventures had before, where would it end? Would Ash fuck me in a hotel? I honestly had no idea. And whose fault is that? If I’d come with him when he’d first started traveling two years ago, I’d know, and perhaps would have even persuaded him that we could fuck anywhere we damn well pleased.

We kissed for hours in the club. The fact that Ash made no move to hustle me out clued me in to how he felt about banging in our hotel room, but I didn’t let that stop me enjoying him. Because, fuck, I’d missed him, even though he’d been right there from the moment I’d met him. Ash was my home, my family, my everything. We didn’t need to screw for me to know that.

Author Bio

Garrett Leigh is an award-winning British writer and book designer, currently working for Dreamspinner Press, Loose Id, Riptide Publishing, and Fox Love Press.

Garrett’s debut novel, Slide, won Best Bisexual Debut at the 2014 Rainbow Book Awards, and her polyamorous novel, Misfits was a finalist in the 2016 LAMBDA awards.

When not writing, Garrett can generally be found procrastinating on Twitter, cooking up a storm, or sitting on her behind doing as little as possible, all the while shouting at her menagerie of children and animals and attempting to tame her unruly and wonderful FOX.

Garrett is also an award winning cover artist, taking the silver medal at the Benjamin Franklin Book Awards in 2016. She designs for various publishing houses and independent authors at blackjazzdesign.com, and co-owns the specialist stock site moonstockphotography.com with renowned LGBTQA+ photographer Dan Burgess.

Website: http://www.garrettleigh.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/garrettleighauthor/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Garrett_Leigh

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Elin Gregory on Heroes and Helpers and her release ‘The Bones of Our Fathers’ (guest blog and giveaway)

Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words is happy to have Elin Gregory here talking about writing, characters and her latest story,The Bones of Our Fathers, one of our highly recommended novels.  Welcome, Elin.

✒︎

Heroes and Helpers by Elin Gregory

We all love a hero, don’t we? I know I enjoy writing mine, but I have to admit that most of my heroes would flounder and fall without the support of their secondary characters. Because I’ve often written stories where the heroes are in small enclosed communities – a workshop, on a ship – most of them have been ‘stag dos’ where all the available characters are men, but when writing stories set in a modern town with a normal spread of population it would seem a bit odd for the heroes to only bother with the other men in the area. In the Bones of Our Fathers I have very much enjoyed adding a mixed bunch of men and women who can help the heroes along, or hinder them if that’s what they are like.

Small towns thrive on gossip and so Mal, used to the anonymity of city living, is constantly startled by how much people know about him. I don’t find that unusual at all. I was brought up in a village even smaller than the fictional Pemberland and knew very well that if I stepped out of line my parents would have been told about it before I could get home to tell my side of the story. That sounds terribly oppressive but it had its advantages too. Any child who needed help could count on getting it. Any elderly person who was ill and didn’t open their curtains in the morning would get a visit from a neighbour as soon as it was noticed. In rural areas there’s a very blurred line between nosiness and neighbourly concern.

So Mal has a support network whether he likes it or not. There are the men, young and old, of the Friday Night irregulars – an unofficial gay club – and his employees, mumsy Sharon and outspoken pool-shark Betty. There’s Lil, his landlady and Veronica “Call me Ronnie, dahling”, a venerable groupie rumoured to have boinked all of the Stones – or was it The Who? She doesn’t know, if you can remember the Sixties you weren’t there! Newspaper reporters, ambulance men, building site labourers, all have an opinion on Mal’s doings and don’t hesitate to share it, but if there’s trouble they’ll join forces. Cities may be exciting places to live but I think I prefer the smaller more friendly environs of a little town.

Which do you prefer – city lights or rural quiet?

Buy Links: Manifold Press | Amazon US | Amazon UK
 
Length: 80,000 words approx
 
Publisher: Manifold Press
 
Cover Design: Michelle Peart
 
Blurb
 

Malcolm Bright, brand new museum curator in a small Welsh Border town, is a little lonely until – acting as emergency archaeological consultant on a new housing development – he crosses the path of Rob Escley, aka Dirty Rob, who makes Mal’s earth move in more ways than one.


Then Rob discovers something wonderful, and together they must combat greedy developers and a treasure hunter determined to get his hands on the find. Are desperate measures justified to save the bones of our fathers? Will Dirty Rob live up to his reputation? Do museum curators really do it meticulously?


Answers must be found for the sake of Mal’s future, his happiness and his heart.


 

 

Author Bio

Elin Gregory lives in South Wales and works in a museum in a castle built on the edge of a Roman Fort! She reckons that’s a pretty cool job.


Elin usually writes on historical subjects, and enjoys weaving the weird and wonderful facts she comes across in her research into her plots. She likes her heroes hard as nails but capable of tenderness when circumstances allow. Often they are in danger, frequently they have to make hard choices, but happy endings are always assured.


Current works in progress include one set during the Great War, another in WW2, one set in the Dark Ages and a series of contemporary romances set in a small town on the Welsh border.

Author Contacts:

www.elingregory.com
www.facebook.com/elin.gregory
@ElinGregory
www.elingregory.wordpress.com

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An Ali Review: A Matter of Courage (Hong Kong Nights Book 2) by J.C. Long

Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Winston Chang has spent much of his young life admiring the Dragons who have kept his area safe and fought off the gangs that would bring violence to their area. Now that he’s an adult, he wants nothing more than to join the Dragons and live up to those standards.

The opportunity presents itself when his passion and knowledge of cars is just what the Dragons need. One of their own has been killed and his death seems linked to his involvement with the illegal racing scene known as the Dark Streets. Winston is needed to infiltrate the scene and find out who is responsible and why.

Steel has always been Winston’s best friend, and Winston has always been there to get him out of trouble. Just as the stress in Winston’s life reaches its peak, the relationship between Winston and Steel begins to change in ways neither of them expected.

Will Winston and Steel be able to find the courage to face not only the unknown killer stalking the Dark Streets racers but also their growing feelings? 
I always get excited when I find a new author and/or a new series and the first book in this series was both for me.  I really enjoyed book one, A Matter of Duty, and was eagerly awaiting this book.  I’m quite glad to say that this book was also really good.  The couple here was set up in book one and they were important side characters there.  
 
This book starts a few months down the road from the end of the first book.  As the blurb states, Winston ends up going undercover in an effort to gather information and to prove that he’s mature enough to finally become a member of the Dragons.  The stress of this situation also ups the tension between Winston and Steel.  Steel’s worried sick about Winston and has to finally start forcing himself to acknowledge that he’s in love with his best friend.  
 
I love a good friends to lovers story and this one was well done.  There’s just enough tension between the two guys to keep you interested but not so much that it seems over the top or unrealistic.  These two were sweet together and you could really feel the emotion between them.  I had been rooting for them since the last book so I was really happy to see them get their hea.  
 
There are a lot of scenes with the Dragons as a whole so we get to see a lot of Noah and Wei, as well as a bunch of side characters. These side characters are not only important to this plot but will be important to future books.  I had to do a bit of author stalking but I found out who the next couple will be and I’m over the top excited.  Nothing beats a good enemies to lovers story so I have high hopes for it.  
 
If you’re looking for a new series with good writing and a plot that is a bit outside the norm then I highly recommend this series.  This one could be read as a standalone but I think you would enjoy it a lot more if you read book one first.  
 
This cover was done by Natasha Snow and I like it a lot.  If you look closely at it you will see how well it highlights the plot.  It’s also attractive and eye catching and it ties in nicely to the cover of the first book.
Book Details:
Kindle Edition, 300 pages
Published September 4th 2017 by NineStar Press
ASINB074TQXF71

A VVivacious Review: The Highlander (Order Series #2) by Kasia Bacon

 Rating: 5 Stars out of 5

  Lochan Féyes has never been so dependent on his feelings but he can’t seem to overcome his connection with Ervyn. As an assassin who specialises in making sure that people stay at a distance, he can’t seem to understand how Ervyn wriggled his way in. But as Lochan’s experience tells him people die and people leave and as he gets commissioned into the Scouts this fact becomes abundantly clear. Destined on two different paths will Lochan and Ervyn find their way to each other?

This story was amazing, so amazing in fact that I have already read it twice.

I loved “The Mutt” and before starting this one I was wondering if I would love this one too. The Mutt had a really interesting premise with how Ervyn is really just edging the line between affection and obsession and I really wondered if this book had anything that wonderful to offer. But as it turns out, I had nothing to fear on that count for being in Lochan’s head was a surreal experience.

 “The assassin in me rejoiced. The Elven soldier complied. The human lamented.”

This time around we didn’t get such a dark dilemma but a really heartrending one, the dilemma between wanting what you can’t have but wanting it anyway, basically Lochan faced the age-old dilemma of love and you would probably wonder how Lochan’s dilemma would hold a light to Ervyn’s but amazingly it is the other way around and that is the reason why so many stories in the world focus on love because there is something new to explore every single time.

Lochan’s feelings are mired with sweetness and pain and you can feel every bittersweet bit. I loved Lochan, I loved his mind and I loved hearing his side of the story. Lochan is so amazingly written that if the author hadn’t pointed out the fact that most of this story takes place in Lochan’s head I would have definitely not noticed the paucity of dialogue because as it so happens with people who speak less when they do speak it is almost always worth hearing. It bears repeating being in Lochan’s head was such a vivid experience, there are these lines that just kind of stayed with me and others which give you a wonderful insight into who Lochan is, how he thinks and what he feels.

“I held my breath as if the stream of air from my lungs had bearing on Ervyn’s accuracy.”

 “At times, he felt, smelt and tasted like my fate. At others—my biggest mistake.”

Lochan and Ervyn stole my breath. I can’t wait to read entire novels based on these two, like I really can’t wait. I am extremely glad we will be getting a short story to tide over the time because ever since I read about these two characters I haven’t been able to get them out of my head and considering that they only had some forty odd pages to convince me they not only have me convinced, they have me buried in conviction. Now I basically stalk the author almost relentlessly for more information on these two.

There is one scene in this book that is simply so beautiful, the magnitude of its beauty is unexplainable. It’s the scene at the very end when Ervyn is second guessing himself with Lochan and how much that hesitance gets to Lochan. All it takes is two lines to convince you that Lochan loves Ervyn relentlessly and unflinchingly. Now I just can’t wait for these two to finally confess.

“In a startling moment of clarity, with his fingers running through my hair, it occurred to me that just as he considered me his centre, I’d found mine in him.”

The only bad thing about this short is the wait that is bound to follow till I get more on these two. But I for one look forward to re-reading these two shorts while I hungrily wait for “The Scouts”.

Cover Art by Marek Frankowski. I loved the cover. I really liked how the brightness of this background contrasts with the darkness of The Mutt’s background because that is now how I see these books.

Sales Link:  Amazon

Book Details:

Kindle Edition, 58 pages
Published August 31st 2017
ASIN B074L31YFK
Edition Language English
Series The Order #2
setting The Elven Country
The Mutt (The Order #1)
The Highlander​ (The Order #2)