Category: M/M Romance

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

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!

A Kai Review: Boys Don’t Cry by J.K. Hogan

 

Rating: 4.75 stars out of 5

Mackenzie Pratt is having the worst luck of his life. His apartment building is being torn down, and since he’s jobless and just weeks away from graduating college, he can’t find anywhere else he can afford to live that isn’t a critter-infested dump. As he’s lamenting the very real possibility of job hunting while couch-surfing, he gets an offer from the coworker of his best friend. An in-demand mobile app developer and heir to his parents’ fortune, Laurent Beaudry is literally an eccentric billionaire. Even though Mackenzie realizes he’s basically living the plot of a cheesy romance novel, he takes the proffered room in Laurent’s Baltimore mansion. He finds his new housemate to be grumpy, brooding, and, at times, incredibly kind and endearing. Raised by his brother after their father’s death, Mackenzie spent his formative years plowing headlong through school, focusing on little else beyond earning his teaching certification. He’s never taken the time to explore love and relationships, much less sexuality, so when he finds himself being courted by another man, he has no idea what to do. And when he realizes he might actually return those feelings, his life takes a whole new direction.

Wow… Reading this was just a pleasure to me!

I loved almost everything about this book: The writing, the characters, the plot, the low angst, the HOT parts… It was just so good!

I loved Laurie so much! He was really weird and grumpy sometimes and to everybody who didn’t actually know him, he was just a cold bastard. But how a cold person can be the one who offers to a practically stranger (Mackenzie) a place to live,  just because the guy would be ejected from his place? Can you relate it to a cold person? No, he wasn’t cold. And soon enough Mackenzie learned that.

Laurie was an orphan who didn’t have a normal childhood and was left by everybody that he loved. So he had put a cold mask on to the world. But thankfully he couldn’t keep his disguise with Mackenzie for so long.

And we had Mackenzie.

Ah, Mackenzie, I wanted to strangle you sometimes, so you would admit for yourself what I already knew about you. Urgh! But I love you too.

Mackenzie was a guy who had lived so focused on making everybody happy his entire life, that he had never taken the time to be in a relationship. At the age of 23 years old, he had never explored his sexuality. So when he realized he was attracted to Laurie he struggled a little. He didn’t want to admit it even to himself. Good thing that Laurent was persistent and didn’t let Mack freak out.

Mackenzie doubts and fears felt real and even with a lot of concerns and denial he didn’t break apart from Laurent and I really loved him for that. He just took more time to notice that his feelings for Laurie were unquestionable and real.

Laurent and Mackenzie together were so amazing. They were hot, yeah yeah! They were also sweet and felt like a real couple. I can say I absolutely connected with them.

I also loved the other characters; Tayler in special. And even though River was a little of an ass with Laurent at first, I liked him too. So here is a think about these two characters (Tayler and River): I think there were something between them. Did you pick up the sexual tension as I did? I mean, they just snapped at each other but was clear for me that they needed a bed. Seriously, it was just me seeing it?

Anyway, this story was delightful. It was well written with Mackenzie point of view and I really loved how it worked.

The only thing I didn’t like about this book was:

I’m curious about Laurent’s uncle and I wanted to see the jerk going to hell. In the book, he appears briefly and I really wanted to know what happened to him and what he really did to Laurent in the past. Also, I wanted to see Henry (Laurent’s ex) going to hell too… Yes, I think I’m a little revengeful in the moment. Lol

Well, I was just looking for updates about this author, since this is my first book by her. And just found out that will be published another as a book sequel to this one. Yay! *Happy dance* So, yeah, I’m happy.

If you didn’t read this book yet, go get it now and read. I recommend!

The cover art by KHD Graphics is nice and sexy.

Sales Links:  Amazon

Book Details:

Ebook: 234 pages

Published May 25th, 2017 by Euphoria Press