Category: M/M Supernatural Fiction

An Alisa Review: Falling Hard: Stories of Men in Love by Dale Cameron Lowry

Rating:  4.5 stars out of 5

 

Nine of Dale Cameron Lowry’s best short romance stories, available for the first time in one book.

Part 1: Falling Fast
Warm up with whirlwind romances that last.

Mi Alma — Ex-Mormon Alma Larsen doesn’t know the first thing about alcohol, so he hires bartender Damian Banks to help out at his winter holiday party. They build a friendship that simmers with sexual tension—and possibly something much deeper. Will this Christmas bring them both a love that lasts?
Loggerhead — Soon after they fall in love, Jake makes Eric a promise inspired by an old track uniform. But demanding work schedules at Jake’s four-star restaurant and Eric’s newspaper keep them from following through. Six years later, they take the honeymoon they never had, heading to the Florida coast in search of sea turtles—and rekindling their passion for each other in the process.
Reading the Signs — The only thing twenty-three-year-old Theo De Jong expects when he enrolls in a summer school for linguists in New Mexico is to get more ideas for his master’s thesis in Dutch Sign Language. But then he meets the American sign language expert Alfonso Grossman, and sparks fly.

Part 2: Falling Fantastically
Because reality is overrated, these stories have elements of the fantastical.

Born of Fire — The fairies on Ireland’s north coast are notorious for kidnapping, and Aodhán of County Donegal has the scars to prove it. When the fairies abduct the handsome youth Cainnech, Aodhán seeks to free him—but risks losing his health and Cainnech in the process.
Ghost of a Chance — When shy Jeremy Anderson meets mysterious and dapper Frank at his spooky old university library, their connection is instant. Their romance waxes with the full moon—but just as quickly, Frank’s interest seems to wane. He insists that he loves spending time with Jeremy, but then why does he keep Jeremy at arm’s length?
Far From Home — Rajiv met and fell in love with his husband, Mateo, when they were both members of the scientific team responsible for transforming Mars into a home suitable for humans. But years into their shared mission, Rajiv is ordered back to Earth to restore the barren lands of the American Midwest. With a little help from technology, the two men find innovative ways to nurture their long-distance relationship while they wait to reunite.
Sweeter Than Blood — Keith was a vegan before a hot encounter with a stranger turned him into a vampire. In the year since, his sire, John, has tried to make up for the mistake by teaching Keith everything he knows about being a non-murderous bloodsucker. But temptation is strong in the form of Andres, a regular customer at the barbershop where Keith works. When Andres finally asks Keith on a date, the real danger begins.

Part 3: Falling Deep
The deeper the love, the hotter the intimacy.

Rough Love — Blake thinks new boyfriend Michael doesn’t like French kissing. Michael thinks Blake doesn’t like rough sex. Neither are virgins, except in the art of conversation. Can they set things straight before the honeymoon’s over?
Pacific Rimming — On Mike’s fortieth birthday, his husband, Ken, takes him on vacation to Vancouver Island in Western Canada to celebrate. While Mike mourns his loss of youth, Ken encourages him to recapture it by bedding a gorgeous twenty-something man they encounter while hiking in Pacific Rim National Park. A night of no-holds-barred passion among the three men reveals a sizzling chemistry, and when Mike and Ken return home they find themselves longing to reconnect with the young Jason. Can what started as a one-night stand transform into a threesome that lasts?

 

This is a great collection of stories.  The men are all looking for love or are enjoying the love they already have which was a nice variety.  They all ended great but took a bunch of different ways to get there, just like in real life.  Most of the stories are only told from one character’s point of view, but the author does a wonderful job of showing the other characters emotions and feelings through their eyes.

 

In Mi Alma Damian and Alma aren’t quite sure how to approach the other with their growing feelings but their tension works wonderfully in building their friendship, I thought both of these characters played well off each other.  In Loggerhead Jake and Eric show that it is easy to put yourselves and your relationship on the back burner a bit, but I loved seeing them make their relationship even stronger during their trip.  Theo and Alfonso begin a wonderful friendship at the beginning of Reading the Signs and keep it going via skype when their course is over for the summer and seeing Theo learn what love really is, even at a distance, is great.

 

Born of Fire was an interesting concept; Aodhán becomes abducted by fairies and realizes this and how much Cainnech could mean to him if they were free, but they have to support each other once they are free from the fairies.  Ghost of a Chance was one of the sweetest stories in this collection; Jeremy and Frank build a great friendship that turns into a strong relationship even though they are somewhat separated on the physical plane, but their love is what can keep Frank solidly in Jeremy’s life.  Rajiv and Mateo miss each other so much in Far From Home, but have figured out the next best thing to having the other with them.  In Sweeter than Blood Keith has not been very welcoming to the vampire lifestyle and when he finally takes a chance on Andres he realizes that maybe John is the one he needs.

 

In Rough Love Blake and Michael are trying to start their relationship off well, but don’t know how to talk to each other.  When they finally do we can see what they have been holding back and how much more perfect they are for each other.  Pacific Rimming show how there is always room in people hearts for more people to love if they want and Ken and Mike know that if they give it a chance Jason could easily fit into their lives.  Seeing Jason realize that he can have the love he has wanted is wonderful.

 

Cover art by Dale Cameron Lowry is great and eye catching.

 

Sales Links: Terrestrial Press | Amazon | Books2Read

 

Book Details:

ebook, 233 pages

Published: February 20, 2017 by Terrestrial Press

ISBN: 9781508058670

Edition Language: English

Love Never Dies in ‘Sons of Devils (Arising #1)’ by Alex Beecroft (giveaway)

Sons of Devils (Arising #1) by Alex Beecroft
Riptide Publishing

Cover by: Simoné

Available for Purchase/Read an Excerpt at

Riptide Publishing

 

About Sons of Devils

British scholar Frank Carew is in Wallachia to study the magic generator on nobleman Radu Vacarescu’s land. There, his party is attacked by bandits and his friends are killed. Pursued by a vampiric figure, he flees to Radu’s castle for help.

Unfortunately, this is precisely where the vampires came from. If allowed, they would feed unchecked and spread their undeath across the whole Earth, but Radu maintains a shaky control over them and keeps them penned in his tiny corner of the country.

As Frank recovers from his assault, Radu finds himself falling for the young man. But loving Frank and not wanting to lose him leaves Radu vulnerable to his demons’ demands. Can he bear to let them feed on the man he loves? Or must he give in to their blackmail and set them free to feast on his entire country?

Now available at Riptide. http://www.riptidepublishing.com/titles/sons-of-devils

About Alex Beecroft

Alex Beecroft is an English author best known for historical fiction, notably Age of Sail, featuring gay characters and romantic storylines. Her novels and shorter works include paranormal, fantasy, and contemporary fiction.

Beecroft won Linden Bay Romance’s (now Samhain Publishing) Starlight Writing Competition in 2007 with her first novel, Captain’s Surrender, making it her first published book. On the subject of writing gay romance, Beecroft has appeared in the Charleston City Paper, LA Weekly, the New Haven Advocate, the Baltimore City Paper, and The Other Paper. She is a member of the Romantic Novelists’ Association of the UK and an occasional reviewer for the blog Speak Its Name, which highlights historical gay fiction.

Alex was born in Northern Ireland during the Troubles and grew up in the wild countryside of the English Peak District. She lives with her husband and two children in a little village near Cambridge and tries to avoid being mistaken for a tourist.

Alex is only intermittently present in the real world. She has led a Saxon shield wall into battle, toiled as a Georgian kitchen maid, and recently taken up an 800-year-old form of English folk dance, but she still hasn’t learned to operate a mobile phone.

She is represented by Louise Fury of the L. Perkins Literary Agency.

Connect with Alex:

Giveaway

To celebrate the release of Sons of Devils, one lucky winner will receive a $10 Riptide credit and one ebook from Alex Beecroft’s backlist! Leave a comment with your contact info to enter the contest. Entries close at midnight, Eastern time, on March 18, 2017. Contest is NOT restricted to U.S. entries. Thanks for following the tour, and don’t forget to leave your contact info!

A MelanieM Recent Release Review: Dragon Soldier (Supernatural Consultant Book 5) by Mell Eight

Rating: 3.75 stars out of 5

The aftermath of the last battle has left Nickel weak in bed and grounded for the next decade. Despite being in trouble, Nickel wants to return to the battle as soon as he can, but thoughts of Platinum, the dragon helping to nurse him back to health, keep distracting him.

Platinum can’t believe how much his life has changed. He went from being a lonely fugitive on the run to part of a family in only hours. The last few days have been his happiest, especially now that he’s met Nickel. He knows it’s only temporary, though. The enemy that kept him captive for most of his life isn’t finished with him yet, and even Platinum and Nickel’s combined powers might not be enough to save them.

Dragon Soldier was a different sort of story in this series, focusing on the relationship between Nickel and Platinum, and Nickel’s recovery from his last battle which left him comatose and healing.  Now awake, Nickel is having a hard time with his slow recovery and being kept away from the investigation into the man responsible for the dragon kidnapping and experimentation.  Nickel has always been a favorite of mine, so having a Nickel centric book is a plus.

The romance between Platinum and Nickel is slowly heating up.  Think teenagers discovering love and romance for the first time.  Gentle, sweet and endearing and ever so slow that you shouldn’t expect things past a cuddles and a kiss.

I loved all that part of this story.  Even the battles and Platinum’s working through the damage left over from his time as an experimental subject.  All those was typically wonderful Mell Eight.

The only places where I feel this story came up short was in the villain aspect and the conclusion.  I felt shortchanged somehow.  With everything that went before, I wanted rants and ravings of a lunatic or explosions or something.  I don’t know.  It just  seemed sort of quiet.  All the rest was lovely.  The author does seem to be wrapping this series up.  Not sure yet.  But I adored the dragons and this family, so I hope not.  I’ll be waiting to see if there’s more to come.

Cover art by Aisha Akeju includes an element of the story but really doesn’t work as a design.

Sales Links

Less Than Three Press

 

Book Details:

Kindle Edition, 30,000 words
Published March 7th 2017 by Less Than Three Press, LLC
ASINB06XH1YR8J

A Stella Review: Three Hearts by Grace R. Duncan

RATING 2,5 out of 5 stars

Liam Scott is sick. That’s not supposed to be possible. As a wolf shifter, he’s supposed to be able to heal. The omega gene he was born with means he’s capable of carrying shifter young and Liam is worried that whatever is wrong will mean his one-day hope of having pups will be dashed. But despite the fears keeping him away from the doctor until now, he knows he needs to go.

It turns out the sickness is temporary, but the treatment causes a whole other problem.

Mason’s alpha gene means he’s one of very few wolves who can impregnate an omega male. For two years, he’d been watching Liam, but things kept getting in the way. When Liam shows up in heat, Mason recognizes the opportunity he needs and doesn’t hesitate make to Liam his mate and the father of his pups.

But Liam has old wounds and fears to work through which the pregnancy is only making worse, and Mason isn’t sure how to get past them to show he’s serious about making a life together as loving mates. It’s not until a female wolf decides Mason should be hers that Liam makes his biggest worry known—and Mason can finally put the fears to rest.

I was very enthusiastic to read this new release by Grace R Duncan, I’m a fan of male pregnancy stories and I jumped at the chance at having this book on my hands.

While I love the theme and the general idea of Three Hearts, I have to say I had a couple of problems with it: first of all, too many sex scenes that almost put me off at the start and although I forced myself to go on, it changed nothing. It was a succession of hot, steamy sex, I could enjoyed it some but it was a little too much and too repetitive. And this is the adjective I had on my mind through all the story. Repetitive, and boring too. The chapters told me always the same thing. I followed Mason and Liam through the pregnancy, the causes, the cravings, the delivery, and some scenes were really cute, others made me smile, and I loved all the secondary characters, well defined and all of them positive persons. Being a huge fan of mm stories with children in them, I would have preferred more pages on the MCs and their huge family, where at the end I got very few words about what happened after. I appreciated how the author explained in detail how the male preg functioned, the parts often ignored or just drafted in books I previously read, here were well described and gave almost reality to the male preg.

Three Hearts to me fell a little short, too simplistic, full of sex and attraction and with no romance at all. In my opinion it could have worked better if it had been shorter, more than 200 pages was definitely too much considering the author chose to focus all the story on the pregnancy. It dragged and left me dubious and unsatisfied.

The cover art by Jess Small is nice but not very eye catching.

Sales Links

BOOK DETAILS

Kindle Edition, 214 pages

Published March 3rd 2017

ASIN B01MYFCBSE

Edition Language English

An Alisa Review: Fangs Like Me by Lyssa Dering

Rating:  4.25 stars out of 5

 

Lane, a newborn vampire, still feels the pain of betrayal. Two years ago, a faithless boyfriend took his life, and now, Lane’s Maker has also left him behind. The pain of separation burns strong when all Lane wants are arms to hold him and enough warm blood to satisfy his voracious appetite. At a shifter party, Lane is drawn to a hunky Alpha werewolf who tries to console him.

 

Parker is more than a thoughtless hookup. Since his family disowned him for finding boys just as hot as girls, all he wants is someone to love and look after. The sweet little vamp calls to his protective instincts, but he sure is jumpy. Cuddling with boys is new and delicious, but when this boy also wants him as a food source, things get complicated.

 

Vampires and shifters aren’t supposed to get along, and Parker’s rough dominance triggers bad memories for Lane. But Parker’s wolf wants Lane, and he knows he can give Lane what he needs. Can Lane learn to navigate his past and give the thing growing between them a chance? Or will the very real possibilities of heartache, abandonment, and even death, keep them apart?

 

This was a very enjoyable book, it sounded interesting, but I wasn’t sure what to expect.  Lane was traumatized when his boyfriend took his life and then was saved by being made into a vampire.  Life hasn’t been easy for him since and he has had a hard time fitting into the vampire world and only really had one friend outside his den.

 

I couldn’t help but feel for Lane, he feels like an outsider in his home and doesn’t really have anyone to turn to.  He jumps at the opportunity to be with and protected by Parker, but is worried his fear of fangs and being bitten will cause problems between them.

 

Both of the characters have been hurt by those close to them and are trying to navigate new worlds when they meet.  Parker has wanted someone to take care of and love while being loved in return and can’t help but hope that maybe Lane is his chance.  We see both of these characters’ struggles and feelings throughout the story, both being willing to risk so much for the other.  I loved seeing their interactions and how much they really cared for the other.

 

Cover art by Natasha Snow is nice and gives great visuals of the characters.

 

Sales Links: Nine Star Press | Amazon

 

Book Details:

ebook, 120 pages

Published: March 13, 2017 by Nine Star Press

ISBN: 9781945952722

Edition Language: English

 

Release Day Blitz: The Broken Butterfly (In the Shadows #2) by Caitlin Ricci (excerpt and giveaway)

Title:  The Broken Butterfly

Series: In the Shadows, book 2

Author: Caitlin Ricci

Publisher: NineStar Press

Release Date: March 6

Heat Level: 1 – No Sex

Pairing: Male/Male

Length: 14900

Genre: Romance, NineStar Press, LGBT, gay, romance, ghost, demons, law enforcement, paranormal

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Synopsis

Carter is closer than ever to solving his latest cold case, but his disturbing dreams seem to be a warning to stay away from the truth. The victim, Jacob, deserves justice, and Carter can’t let a few bad dreams get in the way of that. When he goes to Malphas and Jamison for help, Carter learns that his dreams are more than they seem. What he learns is enough to send Malphas running, and as much as Carter wants to go with him and Jamison, he knows he can’t abandon Jacob so easily. Malphas says Jacob is being held by a powerful demon, and Carter knows he’s not in the business of doing favors for humans who aren’t Jamison. But to free Jacob, Carter is willing to do just about anything to convince Malphas to help him, even if it means making a deal with the devil.

Excerpt

The Broken Butterfly
Caitlin Ricci © 2017
All Rights Reserved

Some days Carter found it almost easy to be around Malphas. There were afternoons where Malphas would get Jamison and Carter drive-through cheeseburgers for lunch. He would sit quietly next to Jamison as if he was attempting to be on his best behavior during their lunch hour. During those afternoons, Carter could almost forget who Malphas was, what he was, and pretend he might have simply been a man Jamison was interested in and not the demon he actually was.

Then there were those times, like now, when Malphas was stretched out on the couch by himself while the three of them watched TV in the evenings. It had become routine since Carter had started staying with them. They each had a few slices of pizza in front of them, but unlike a normal person, Malphas had his pizza hovering in front of his face, close enough that he hardly had to move to take a bite, and whenever he wanted to turn the channel, he wiggled his fingers at the TV instead of using a remote.

Carter would have said something about how very nonhuman he was being, but it really didn’t matter. Malphas had gotten better about trying not to act so strangely when he was out with them or when he visited them at the precinct, and that was the important thing to remember when dealing with a demon. He was trying. Sometimes he still made light bulbs explode or people inexplicably changed their minds around him, especially when it benefited him or Jamison, but for the most part, Malphas was pretending to be just another normal human in the world. It was a relief not to have to feel like he had to constantly supervise the demon and remind him when he was acting out.

Two months ago, when Malphas had first come barreling into their lives, Carter would have never thought Malphas was anything other than a monster, and some days he hadn’t changed much at all, but he was always trying to be better. If only to please Jamison and stay on his good side.

Carter froze as he felt something warm drape over his shoulder. It still unnerved him sometimes to have his shadow around, especially since it was just a feeling and nothing nearly as corporeal as Malphas was. That would have made it easier, he was sure, if he could see whatever it was, whoever it was, that was following him around almost constantly.

“Is he here?” Carter asked Malphas. He’d started to give his shadow a gender. It made referring to him easier.

Malphas glanced over and then lifted his black eyes to something just above Carter’s shoulder. “Yep.” After a second, he added, “Well, it’s not my fault he can’t see you. Clearly you don’t belong in this realm. You should really go away.”

“That’s rich coming from a demon,” Carter replied, instantly coming to his shadow’s defense for no reason at all.

Jamison looked between them but said nothing. He’d been getting between them less and less. They hadn’t needed him to play referee when Malphas had shown no real interest in hurting Carter lately. There was the occasional jibe about him being an idiot, but even that had turned mostly playful.

Warmth spread down his shoulder to his arm, and Carter lifted his palm as the comfortable feeling flowed to his hand. He closed his eyes and imagined that whatever it was following him was holding his hand. Carter felt the slightest bit of pressure, but it wasn’t much, and he was half-certain he was actually imagining the whole thing.

“Hey,” he whispered. He could almost believe that he, whatever it was, was pushing back against him too.

Jamison got up from where he’d been sitting, and his movement distracted Carter enough that he lost the connection with his shadow.

“I wish I knew his name,” Carter said as he glanced behind him.

Mal snorted. “Why? He’s not actually part of this plane. He’s like…déjà vu or something like that. You know he’s here. I know he’s here. But he doesn’t actually exist here. It’s weird. He’s not a ghost or something like that. He’s stuck.”

That got Carter’s attention in a hurry, and Jamison paused on his way into the kitchen as well. “What do you mean he’s stuck?” Jamison asked Mal.

“Just that he’s where he is because he’s trapped there. It’s hard to explain to people who aren’t dead yet. When you die, I’ll show you.” Mal shrugged.

Purchase

NineStar Press | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo | Smashwords

Meet the Author

Caitlin was fortunate growing up to be surrounded by family and teachers that encouraged her love of reading. She has always been a voracious reader, and that love of the written word easily morphed into a passion for writing. She comes from a military family, and the men and women of the armed forces are close to her heart. She also enjoys gardening and horseback riding in the Colorado Rockies where she calls home with her wonderful husband and their two dogs. Her belief that there is no one true path to happily ever after runs deeply through all of her stories.

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads | eMail

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Looking for New Reviewers to Join Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words

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Do you love to read?  Can’t wait to share your thoughts on the books you just read?  Or maybe the books you just listened to?  Ebook and Audiobooks included!

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