Category: m/m holiday stories

‘Tis The Season for A Family For Christmas by Jay Northcote (release day tour )

A Family For Christmas – Jay Northcote

Author: Jay Northcote
 
Cover Design: Garrett Leigh
 
Release: November 18
 
Length: 45,000 words
 
Buy Links: Amazon US | Amazon UK
 

Zac never had a family of his own, but Rudy has enough to share.

Shy, inexperienced Rudy has a crush on Zac from the moment his new colleague walks through the door. On an office night out before Christmas, Rudy finds the courage to make a move, and they form a tentative bond. When he discovers Zac will be alone at Christmas, he invites Zac to come home with him.

Zac prefers to keep people at arm’s length. Yet when Rudy offers him a family Christmas it’s impossible to resist. With no parents of his own, Zac is pleasantly surprised to be welcomed by Rudy’s. The only drawback is that everyone assumes they’re a couple. Unwilling to disappoint Rudy’s mum and make Christmas awkward, they decide not to deny it.

It’s not a chore for Zac to pose as Rudy’s boyfriend, but the pretence makes him want things that scare him—things like a real relationship with Rudy. Zac’s suffered enough rejection in his life already and is afraid to risk his heart. If he can get over his past rejection and let Rudy inside his armour, he might get more for Christmas than he ever imagined.

 

 

Author Bio

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.

Jay is transgender and was formerly known as she/her.

 

Its Release Day for A Christmas Kiss by Annabelle Jacobs

A Christmas Kiss – Annabelle Jacobs

Author: Annabelle Jacobs
 
Cover Design: Garrett Leigh
 
Release Date: November 18 
 
Length: 38,000 words
 
Buy Links: Amazon US | Amazon UK
 

Blurb

Keeping secrets from your best friend isn’t right, but it’s easier than admitting you’ve fallen in love with him.

Sharing a late-night kiss with his best friend, Alex, is Riley’s dream come true. Waking up to discover Alex was too drunk to remember anything is more like a nightmare. Scared the truth could destroy their friendship, Riley keeps quiet and pretends nothing happened.

Alex can’t shake the feeling that he said or did something stupid on their group’s drunken weekend away—why else would Riley be avoiding him? Although the explanation he finally gets sounds plausible, Riley’s still acting strange, and trying to figure out why that is unearths emotions Alex has worked hard to bury.

Riley knows not telling Alex how he feels is probably selfish, but he wants one last normal Christmas before he has to come clean and face the potential fallout.

He should have known it wouldn’t be that easy.


 

 

Author Bio

Annabelle Jacobs lives in the South West of England with three rowdy children, and two cats. An avid reader of fantasy herself for many years, Annabelle now spends her days writing her own stories. They’re usually either fantasy or paranormal fiction, because she loves building worlds filled with magical creatures, and creating stories full of action and adventure. Her characters may have a tough time of it—fighting enemies and adversity—but they always find love in the end.

Twitter : https://twitter.com/AJacobs_fiction
Website : www.annabellejacobs.com
Email : ajacobsfiction@gmail.com
Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/ajacobsfiction

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Love It When Romance and Magic Combine? Check out Katey Hawthorne’s WITCHY BOYS (excerpt and giveaway)

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Witchy Boys: Sexy Stories for Dark Nights by Katey Hawthorne
Release Date: October 1

 

Witchy Boys: Release Day!

Thanks so much for having me back to STaRW, Melanie and friends. Today is release day for my latest, an anthology—or maybe just a dual novella!—of two stories known collectively as WITCHY BOYS. It’s that time of year when full moons are even more beautiful (and powerful?) and the air becomes deliciously thin (… or is that the Veil?). Perfect time for some witchy stories to warm us up, right?

The first story, “Blood Magic and the Mini Zombie Apocalypse”, is all about a young witch called Griffin trying to make up for his past mistakes. He’s dabbled in several kinds of “black magic”, partly because he’s notoriously suggestible, partly because he has that deadly combination of no fear and intense curiosity. Unfortunately it’s that first quality, the suggestibility, that gets him into trouble, since he has a bad habit of hooking up with less-than-savory lovers. His ex, Cathy, used him to perform a powerful spell last year… and by the time Griff realized her real intention, they were already broken up and it was too late. Her mini zombie apocalypse is about to happen.

Fortunately, there’s a hottie named Blythe who has a lot of white magic who might be able to help. Unfortunately, Griff’s black magic has backfired on Blythe in the past, too, so… maybe not?

I know, I know, evil ex-girlfriend thing is done and over. I guess I could’ve made her an ex-boyfriend, but you know what? I love angry witches. I’d be angry too.

The second story is a reprint, “Præsidium”. Thackeray, my demon hunter hero, is a taciturn kind of guy. He’s haunted by a demon called Seir—consensually haunted, even—who helps him hunt down other demons, which is a pretty lonely way to exist. Demons aren’t known for their great company, after all. He gets a tip off about a small town coven biting off more than they can chew this Halloween and heads to intercept. An ex-member of said coven, Matt, is willing to help him.

The problem is: Matt’s fine as hell. And Seir’s super creepy about sex. The coven doesn’t end up being the most complicated problem, but the attraction between Thackeray and Matt… oh yeah, that’s trouble.


So if you’re looking for something to warm you up on a chilly, dark autumn evening, here’s your ticket! And don’t forget to drop a comment and enter the giveaway, while you’re here ❤

Witchy Boys Blog Tour

October 17-31

October 17 – A.J. Llwellyn

October 18 – Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words

October 19 – The Novel Approach

October 20 – MM Good Book Reviews

October 21 – Love Bytes

October 24 – P.G. Forte

October 25 – Joyfully Jay

October 26 – Prism Book Alliance

October 27 – Roxanne D. Howard

October 28 – Diverse Reader

October 28 – Gay Guy Reading (and Friends)

October 31 – Jenna Rose

WITCHY BOYS: Sexy Stories for Dark Nights

witchycover200Author: Katey Hawthorne

Publisher: Indie

Publication Date: October 18, 2016

Word Count: 20,000

Blurb

Just in time for Halloween! Two novelettes about men with magic—and the occasional demon.

“Blood Magic and the Mini Zombie Apocalypse”

Griff has a bad habit of getting talked into black magic he shouldn’t be using—but this time it’s even worse. His ex is bent on revenge in the form of a mini zombie apocalypse, and the only person who can help Griff is a hottie white magic practitioner named Blythe. The catch: one of Griff’s spells gone wrong left Blythe with a haunted apartment a year ago, and Blythe isn’t over it.

Still, Blythe agrees to work with Griff. As they unravel the ugly blood, sex, and death magic, they also discover surprising things about each other. Hopefully, it’s enough for the ultimate trust they’ll need to defeat a lot of zombies and a crazed witch, or their town will end up covered in corpses.

“Præsidium”

Six years ago, Thackeray agreed to let a demon haunt him in exchange for help hunting other demons. It’s a lonely life, but worth it to be the best demon hunter possible — to save families from the kind of evil that ruined his own childhood.

This Hallowe’en, Thackeray’s dealing with an upstart coven. A powerful, pretty witch named Matt defects to help Thackeray stop their scheme to invite god-knows-what from the other side.

Demons are much easier to fight than the urges Matt’s flirting inspires. But Thackeray can’t hook up with a demon watching over his shoulder… can he?

Buy Links

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Author Bio

Katey Hawthorne is an avid reader and writer of superpowered and paranormal romance, even though the only degree she holds is in the history of art. (Or, possibly, because the only degree she holds is in the history of art.) Originally from the Appalachian foothills of West Virginia, she currently lives in Columbus, Ohio with her family, two cats, and one very large puppy. In her spare time she enjoys travel, comic books, B-movies, loud music, video games, Epiphones, and Bushmills. Her favorite causes include animal rescue and bisexual representation in media. She is an unashamed fangirl and collects nerdy tattoos like she’s trying to prove it.

Find Katey at…

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Blog Tour Giveaway:

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A Jeri Review: Wolf, en Garde (Wolf #2) by A.F. Henley

Rating: 3 Stars out of 5

Wolf en Garde Front CoverThree years ago Lyle made a mistake that cost him his freedom, and almost his life. Now, sick to death of watching his father love the man that Lyle wanted, Lyle accepts an offer to leave Wolf, WY behind and see what life in Washington, D.C. can do for him instead.

When Lyle comes across a seductive, attractive stranger with a fascinating yet terrifying view of humanity, he’s more than intrigued. It doesn’t take Lyle long to realize that Arius isn’t just playing games, though, and when Lyle runs across a secret in Arius’ lair he has no choice but to flee, even knowing his actions will enrage Arius.

On the run, with only a psychic’s second sight and his own instinct to help him, Lyle has nowhere to go but home. The only question is, will they have him when he shows up.This book is a follow up to Wolf, WY. In that book father and son shifters were vying for the same man- although that man was only interested in one of them. Fast forward a bit to this book.

Lyle and family head to Washington, DC to visit his dad’s boyfriend’s family. Lyle has never been out of Wyoming and although he is completely uninterested in the “family” part of the family trip- he is beyond excited to see a new place. Even though his father forbade him from shifting while there. But Lyle was never really one to listen. After shifting and sneaking out his first night, Lyle comes across an old vampire who is determined to woo him. Young, impressionable, never out of WY Lyle falls right into his spell. But the vampire has some dark secrets.

So when I started reading the story I assumed that Lyle and the vampire, Arius, were the couple to fall in love against all odds, yada yada. I was wrong. In fact, we don’t meet the man Lyle is going to fall for until about two thirds into the book.

Honestly, this book kind of felt like a super fleshed out outline that was basically just setting us up for book three. Tons of things were left up in the air, too many questions left unanswered. And the instalove between Lyle and BOTH guys (ok, instalust?) was just a bit much.

Why did Arius taunt Lyle about Randy? How was Randy’s dad so clueless about Randy’s mom? Why was Randy’s mom so incredibly cold toward her son?

Too many questions which beg for a book three, but I really don’t know if I will invest my time in book three.

The dark cover with only bright green eyes and a full moon visible is catching, yet not unique for a wolf shifter book.

Sales Links:  Less Than Three Press |  ARe | Amazon

Book Details:

ebook, 254 pages
Published May 18th 2016 by Less Than Three Press
ISBN 1620047748 (ISBN13: 9781620047743)
Edition LanguageEnglish

SeriesWolf #2 settingWashington, D.C. (United States)

Barb, A Zany Old Lady Review: A Fortunate Blizzard by L.C. Chase

Rating: 5 stars out of 5    ★★★★★

A Fortunate Blizzard coverThis story was outstanding! Heartwarming and heartbreaking, it made me smile, and it made me cry, and I didn’t want it to end. I love these guys!

Trevor Morrison is dying. It’s a few days before Christmas, and his doctor has just told him that it’s likely his last. She didn’t use those exact words, but she did tell him that his kidney function is getting worse, and the dialysis he’s undergone for the past seven years may not be able to keep the kidney functioning much longer. She’s also given him a pamphlet on making the decision to go off dialysis and die naturally, virtually pain free, a decision he’s been leaning toward making. All this wonderful news is joined by more wonderful news—a blizzard is going to make it impossible to fly out of Denver to visit his family in Connecticut for Christmas.

When he gets stranded on his way to the airport, and the shuttle manages to get to a hotel, he meets Marcus Roberts in the bar. Marc is an attorney and a workaholic who is frustrated that he’s stuck in a hotel when he could have just stayed at his office and kept working. But his assistant forced him out, and now his car is out in a snowbank on the turnpike, and he’s stuck in the hotel. At least he has a room, something that is no longer available to the new arrivals.

One look at Trevor and Marc is struck by the need to get to know him. Initially inviting him to his table to talk, and later, inviting him to his room to share the comforts of the hotel room and other things that might arise, Marc eventually realizes that being forced out of the office that day may be the best thing to ever happen to him.

Trevor is very hesitant to allow anyone to get close to him, but Marc manages to squirm his way under Trevor’s defenses, and when the airport is still not open the next day, Marc invites Trevor back to his home to await Trevor’s rescheduled flight out the day after Christmas. Trevor is very clear that this is only a casual encounter, and Marc agrees, but when neither of them is prepared for it, their emotions complicate the casual and make it more.

They spend Christmas together, and Trevor, a renowned artist, manages to get Marc’s creative spark going by using their artistic skills to decorate for Christmas. Marc has not had a Christmas celebration in many years. Estranged from his mother, a woman who stifled his artistic creativity and shunned him for his sexuality, Marc hasn’t picked up a paintbrush in years. However, with Trevor encouraging him, he begins to think that he might have a future in which he can enjoy artistic pursuits and not just use work as his twenty-four hour a day focus.

All good things end, and when Trevor is gone the day after Christmas, Marc realizes that his priorities need a major overhaul, and one of the first things on his list is to find Trevor and convince him that their future is not impossible.

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As I mentioned at the beginning of this review, this one is a keeper. I highly recommend it to all lovers of contemporary M/M romance, especially to those who enjoy a tearjerker, hurt-comfort, men with disabilities, and those who just want a book that they can devour from beginning to end with no interruptions. Don’t miss a chance to read this one!

~~~
Cover Art by L.C. Chase is a beautiful portrayal of two young men, one kissing the cheek of the other, set against a backdrop of a snow scene with an empty park bench— a scene mentioned as being one of Trevor’s art creations in the book. It’s the perfect cover for such a wonderful story.

Sales Links:  Riptide Publishing | ARe | Amazon

Book Details:

ebook, 175 pages
Expected publication: November 2nd 2015 by Riptide Publishing
original title A Fortunate Blizzard
ISBN13 9781626493391
edition language English

A MelanieM Review: Champagne Kisses by Lynda Aicher

Rating: 4 stars out of 5

Champagne KissesThe Christmas Eve wedding Evan Cleary pulled together in four weeks is crashing down around him and taking his fledgling event planning business with it. With an empty altar and over a hundred guests arriving soon, he turns to the resistant, gorgeous brother of the runaway groom for help.

When Richard Patterson’s flamboyant brother storms out hours before he’s scheduled to marry his equally dramatic partner, Richard is left dealing with the fallout. The last thing he wants is more drama, yet he can’t deny his attraction to the effeminate event planner trying to salvage the wedding.

Evan thinks his crush on Richard is a lost cause, but one steaming kiss later, he learns different. What starts as a night of hot sex turns into a connection neither expected. But Evan knows their relationship is hopeless unless the ultra-conservative Richard can embrace every part of him—both in private and in public.

Short, sweet and sexy, this Christmas novella is the very definition of  opposites attract. Lynda Aicher starts off on one side of the spectrum with Evan Cleary. Flamboyant, some would say delicate to the point of being effeminate, Evan has worked hard on this Christmas Eve wedding which was to launch his event planning business…even though it had disaster written all over it, starting with the couple in question.

His opposite is Richard Patterson, masculine, solid, gorgeous, someone who has never been attracted before to someone of Evan’s “type”, until now, an attitude that doesn’t sit especially well with Evan.  It’s a night of emotional meltdowns, harsh attitudes, and revelations set amidst a wedding that  anyone would call the wedding of your dreams.  Aicher has described it in detail and I’m sure more than one reader sighed in response.

I liked the clash of personalities which included that of Richard’s  brother and Evan, which had a friendship here too.  There is a bit of hot domination play here and enough drama to satisfy those who need it in their relationship stories.  All in all a satisfying sexy romp.

My only issues?  Some very iffy word choices, a very big no if you are at all familiar with my reviews.  Two words that should never appear with regard to the male anatomy…canal and channel.   And they both appear here.  I just start waiting for the tugboats to appear.  Or river barges or things of that nature.  It almost got this story knocked down to a 3 star but no, the rest of it was charming. When they appear, close your eyes and move swiftly past.  Other than that, this story is a keeper.

Cover art by L.C. Chase is nice but doesn’t have enough details to make it stand out from any other cover.

Sales Links:   Riptide Publishing | ARe | Amazon

Book Details:

ebook, 83 pages
Published December 14th 2015 by Riptide Publishing
Original TitleChampagne Kisses
ISBN139781626493759
Edition LanguageEnglish
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