Category: Torquere Books

Review: Tattoo You by Willa Okati

Rating: 3.75 stars

Tattoo YouJacob Lee has loved Donathon for three years and knows their love will last a lifetime.  There is almost nothing he wouldn’t do for his lover if Donathon asked him to.  Except one thing, get a tattoo.  Donathon is covered in tats, clouds, tigers…his body a veritable canvas of color and design.  His lover would love to see Jacob inked as well but Jacob is afraid of needles.  As Donathon’s birthday approaches, Jacob works up the courage to finally give his lover the one present he wants.  A formidable task, a twist of fate, and a forever love unite to give Jacob just the inspiration he needs to give Donathon the best birthday present of his life and a symbol of their love.

This is a very sweet, angst free love story from Willa Okati.  At 60 pages in length, it flies by quickly.  I have to admit the name Donathon threw me as my mind kept wanting to insert Jonathan everytime it saw the word on the page, a tad distracting.  I do like all the detailed knowledge the author displays of tattoo shops and the characters she created for Hummingbird Studio West, the tattoo parlor where half of the scenes take place. These people are interesting and intriguing in their own right. I would have loved to have seen more of each of them in this story or perhaps, their own as part of a series.  Jacob Lee (said together repeatedly) and Donathon are sweet together and their initial meeting is relayed to the reader as a remembrance in an endearing moment in the story.

One element I especially appreciated was the old drawings found in books in the basement.  That was a lovely touch and the mystery behind them made me want to know more about those men and their past.  It was the needed component to keep this story from being overly saccharine with its hint of sadness and inevitability.  But this story truly belongs to Jacob Lee and Donathon.  Their love story is appealing, and the ending satisfactory.  No one would ever question that this is a HEA just as they deserve.

In the mood for a quick happy read?  Pick this up and enjoy a light, sweet tale of love.

Cover art by BSClay is lovely but not the happy, cloud covered character that is Donathon.

Book Details

First published in Spiked Anthology from Torquere Press 2008:

Kindle Edition, 60 pages
Published June 2013 by Torquere Books
ASIN
B00DCZH29C
edition language
English

Review: Fever Anthology by M Rode

Rating: 4 stars out of 5

If you love cowboys, than this is the anthology for you.  From cowboy tv stars to those that ride bucking bulls and every permutation in between, these 8 stories will make you laugh, make you sigh, even reach for a fan or too but always make you remember why you love a cowboy.

Stories included in Fever are:Fever cover

Loose Riggin’ by Julia Talbot
Two Buckets and a Snakeskin Suit by Aaron Michaels
Torn by Sean Michael
Cowboy and Indian by Rob Rosen
Heart of Dixie by Mychael Black
Ready to Ride by Katherine Halle
White Hat/Black Hat by Kiernan Kelly
In the Pocket, a Roughstock story by BA Tortuga

I really enjoyed this anthology, especially because cowboys are a real weakness for me.  Of special interest was the new story from BA Tortuga in her Roughstock series, I cannot get enough of those boys.  It also introduced me to a series I hadn’t heard of, Mychael Black’s Hearth and Home series, so that was a plus too.  Here in sequence as they appear are mini reviews of each story:

1.  Loose Riggin‘ by Julia Talbot: 3.5 stars

One cowboy on the way up, one cowboy bull rider on the way down.  Baron LeBlanc is a top bullrider at the end of his career.  During one ride he injuries himself badly and an young bull rider, Arlen Deamus, offers to take care of him and become his traveling partner.  I loved this story and thought the characters and the plot were full of promise.  It is the perfect introduction for a longer story.  Julia Talbot draws us in with her wonderful characters, great names and vivid descriptions but just as we are settling in, its over. As a short story, it ends so abruptly that it feels incomplete and the reader feels more than a little frustrated after investing emotionally in the story.  I would love to see this author expand Baron and Arlen romance into a full length book.  I will be first in line to pick it up.

2. Two Buckets and a Snakeskin Suit by Aaron Michaels: Rating 3.5 stars out of 5

While on vacation, Marcus and his sister Shelly attend camel races outside Las Vegas.  Shelly is dying to meet an Australian cowboy and these camel races have more than their share of those.  But when Marcus is hurt after he falls off a camel, he is the one who captures the attention of the only Aussie cowboy there.  This was a cute little romance between a man talked into riding a camel by his sister and the Aussie cowboy who just happens to be a chiropractor who comes to his aid.  Michaels did a nice job with presenting us with a well rounded character in Marcus and Shelly but I would have loved a little more back story on Vic.  But it’s cute, hot, and has a realistic HFN.

3.  Torn by Sean Michael: 5 stars for the heat alone

Pistol, an injured bull rider, returns home to his partner Bender and their ranch after a long  6 month absence on the rodeo circuit and shoulder surgery.  He is unsure of his welcome after receiving an angry  phone call from his  partner following his injury.  Bender’s love for Pistol is both the source of his anger and the one thing that will heal it.  This is my second favorite story in the collection.  Sean Michael gets everything right in this story.  We get all the information we need about these two men and their long term relationship from Michael’s descriptions of their tense posture, their loving gestures and a dialog that  telegraphs a well established intimacy at every level.  Bender is tired of his lover’s injuries and this last one scared him badly.  Pistol loves riding bulls and is frightened that his time as a bullrider is coming to an end.  The situation is tense, hot, loving, angry, gentle, just everything you would expect from two scared people who love each other deeply and are faced with a serious situation.  The ending is perfection, but then so is this short story.  It doesn’t need to be longer, it doesn’t need any additional backstory.  It ends where it should.  Lovely.  Here is a tease. Pistol is returning home after surgery unsure of his welcome:

He opened the door, pushed it open and stood, trying to keep them from the arm still in the sling. “Hey y’all, you happy to see me?”

“You should have called and let me know.” Bender waited for the dogs to have their hello, blue eyes on him like twin laser beams.

“I didn’t want you worrying. Jack needed his guest room back.” He’d been imposing. Not to mention, the man’s mother-in-law had come to help with the last few days of Mary Ellen’s pregnancy, and he’d wanted to come home. Bender told the dogs to “scatter,” and they did.

Before Pistol could say anything Bender was on him, mouth covering his in a kiss that smashed his lips against his teeth and totally stole his breath.

Oh. Oh, thank God. He pushed up into the kiss, damn near sobbing with relief.

4. Cowboy and Indian by Rob Rosen: 2 stars out of 5

Jed sees a poster for a fifty-dollar prize for the longest bronco buck advertised outside a saloon.  He figures his horse Bessy needs a new saddle and aims to get it for her by riding in the rodeo.  Along the way he runs into an Apache warrior, Taza, who wants to help his people.  They make love, not war and end up with a future neither of them ever dreamed of.   There are quite a number of things about this story that I have issues with, but the portrait of Taza, an Apache warrior, is the largest.  Having a Native American character, especially in a historical story, can be a iffy element if not handled just right.  For me, Taza just did not work.  From his pidgin English which reminded me of the “Me, Tonto, you white man” variety to the fact that he drops trow for an unknown white man just after the awful Apache wars have ended….well it’s not just unrealistic but downright ridiculous.  Here is their first interchange:

 “Jed,” I told him, with a polite nod. “White man sounds so, well now, formal.”

With his free hand, he pounded his chest. “Taza,” he informed me. “In your language, means Apache warrior.”

I nodded my head. “Pleasure, Taza.”

And then he nodded, releasing the beast before sending it swinging. “You want to pleasure Taza?”

The only way that piece of dialog would work is in a Mel Brooks comedy.  And it just goes further downhill from there.  This is the one story I would skip over.

5. Heart of Dixie by Mychael Black: Rating 4 stars out of 5

Mack Sexton has been in love with his best friend and handyman Les Spencer for a long time.  Les feels the same but neither man has acknowledged let alone acted on their feelings.  Then one day everything changes.  Heart of Dixie is a snapshot of a relationship that is part of a series called Hearth and Home by Mychael Black.  I am unfamiliar with that series but got enough of a taste of it from this story that I will be scampering back to pick up the rest.  Black develops the characters and setting to the point that it and both men feel real and the reader connects with them from the start.  Mack’s sister, Kate, is a lively character in her own right and the interaction among the three of them comes across as long established and affectionate.  Enjoyable and romantic.  I loved this one.

6. Ready To Ride by Katherine Halle: 4 stars out of 5

Eric is an orthopedic surgeon volunteering his time with the Justin Sports Medicine program. Ben Greene is champion Saddle Bronc rider Eric has come to love.  When Eric’s volunteer time with the rodeo comes to an end, Ben must travel on the circuit alone.  And while neither man has talked about where their relationship is going, both love each other deeply.  When Ben is receives a season-ending injury during a ride, Eric decides that, conversation or not, he is bringing his man home for good.  I loved Halle’s characters and thought she got the character of Ben with his avoidance of “mushy talk” just right.  While most of the story is seen through Eric’s eyes,  Halle shows us that Ben’s actions telegraph his feelings perfectly to his lover and that words are not always necessary.  This story has romance, cowboys and HEA in a nice short package.

7. White Hat/Black Hat by Kiernan Kelly: 4.25 stars out of 5

The time is 1968, the place Hollywood where a new TV western is getting ready to go into production.  Two men, Dallas Frank and Stone Grant, arrive to audition for the two leads, Black Bart and Sheriff Carson Star, the White Hat/Black Hat title characters.  To each man’s surprise and delight, they win the roles and secretly the love of each other.   For the next forty years, they pretend to hate each other in public while continuing a love affair that has lasted as long as their show.  Then their show is cancelled.  What will they do now?  Kelly gives us a terrific look back at old Hollywood and its outlook on homosexuality.  Through small interludes we watch as Dallas (real name Joe Bob) and Stone Grant (real name Arvin Mason) settle into a long term relationship while playing the Hollywood game to protect the series and their reputation. The ending is rewarding, the relationship has a very authentic feel as does the times the men pass through.  My third favorite story of the collection.

8. In the Pocket, a Roughstock story by BA Tortuga: 5 out of 5 stars

Sterling is a new bullfighter and he loves his job.  He also loves working with his hero and fellow bullfighter, Coke Pharris.  But rodeo clown Dillon Walsh is tired of the youngster drooling on his man and figures a little matchmaking is in order.  When stock  contractor Colby Tyburn asks for an introduction to Sterling, Dillon sees an opportunity and takes it, maneuvering Sterling into a date with the stock contractor.  Colby Tyburn has been watching Sterling for some time and loves what he sees….a gorgeous energetic young man, all want and desire.  Sparks fly at the first introduction but neither man expects the white hot sex to turn into something deeper and just perhaps, permanent.  In the Pocket is a Roughstock story. So if the reader is familiar with the series, than you already know all about Coke Pharris and his rodeo clown lover, Dillon Walsh.  They happen to be a favorite couple of mine so it is wonderful to see them make an appearance here.  But the focus of the story is the young (and virginal) bullfighter, Sterling, and the older, more experienced man, Colby Tyburn, a roughstock contractor.

Sterling is a bouncy Tigger of a character.  He is youthful, energetic to the extreme and has a bad case of hero worship when it comes to Coke Pharris.  Unfortunately for Sterling, Coke is taken and Dillon is not happy that Sterling can’t keep his hands off his man.  BA Tortuga paints the perfect portrait of innocent enthusiasm and lustful need all wrapped up in one young man who doesn’t seem to know what to do with it all.  I just loved Sterling, he absolutely made me smile.  Colby Tyburn could have come off as a predator but his appreciation for Sterling and all of his qualities, not just his physical traits, brings him back to a person the reader can relate to.  Their sexual encounter is sexy, white hot, and ultimately very touching.  It is not necessary to have read the other Roughstock stories, but it does help to round out the back history of the other men mentioned, however casually.   There are over 17 stories in the Roughstock series, Coke and Dillon’s story is called Roughstock: And a Smile- Season One. I absolutely recommend them all.  Here is a taste:

Nate (was) screaming his head off to get the bull’s attention. Joa landed, but luckily the Brazilian was ready, and they sort of strong-armed each other.

“Gotcha.”

He flung Joa toward Pharris and put himself between the cowboy and Merry-Go-Round. He heard Coke grunt, but then he and Nate were busy playing a game of slap the bull on the nose, trading off as it went round and round. This was his favorite part, the fun part. They did their little dance, and he pulled his butt in, hearing the whoosh as two thousand pounds went by.

“Woohoo!” He grinned at the gate shut, jogging over to Pharris, who clapped him on the back.

He loved his life.

Loved it.

Cover illustration by BSClay is perfect in tone and design for this collection.

Book Details:

ebook, 195 pages
Published June 5th 2013 by Torquere Press
ISBN
1610404858 (ISBN13: 9781610404853)
edition language
English

Review: The Curtis Reincarnation by Zathyn Priest

Rating: 4.25 stars

The Curtis Reincarnation ebookJordan Braxton leads a quiet life as a website designer and shares his house with his sister, Becca. His sister has one main obsession, the rock star Tyler Curtis and when she wins two tickets to one of his concerts and backstage passes to his after concert party, Jordan has no idea his life is about to change.  Becca is sure that Tyler Curtis will sleep with her that night and doesn’t want to take along any of her friends, just in case they might divert attention away from her.  So the only logical person to take would be her gay older brother, someone the notoriously straight rocker would never look at.

Tyler Curtis is not what the public sees.  Tyler Curtis is a rock star image his manager has carefully crafted and promoted, nothing at all like the young man behind the eyeliner and bad behavior.  In fact, the real Curtis is crumbling under the pressure of stardom and the abusive manager who controls his life.  But Tyler Curtis’ life is about to change when Becca brings Jordan with her instead of her best friend.  But will there be enough of Tyler left to put back together once the real Curtis comes out for love?

I love a story with a rock star at it’s center and The Curtis Reincarnation is no exception.  But Zathyn Priest puts a lovely, and angst filled twist to the normal rock star persona with the creation of Tyler Curtis. Rock star Tyler is a carefully constructed front, whose bad boy image is maintained by Frank, Tyler Curtis’ manager. The young man beneath the facade, whose real name is Alec Tyler, is an abused, lonely, and physically ill artist.  He is as far from a rock star as you can get and Priest delivers him to the reader so realistically that his painful vulnerability scrapes against the reader’s heart as we learn more about him and his past.  But the road to Alec Tyler starts with two very different characters, that of Jordan Braxton and his outrageous sister, Bec.  This is our first meeting with the two of them and the beginning of Chapter 1:

A vision of pure horror scrambled down the stairs wearing a heavy clay face mask, a midriff T-shirt, and a pink lacy thong. Long red hair frizzed on one side of her head while lying sleek and straightened on the other. Shrieking like a banshee, she tripped over the last stair, fell forward, bounced off the wall, regained her balance, and lunged for the phone in Jordan’s lap. The laptop was hit next, saved by Jordan’s challenged reflexes while he attempted to ease the pain of his sister’s merciless dive. “Jesus Christ, Rebecca! What the hell are you doing?”

She ignored his high-pitched inquiry and frantically began to dial numbers. Faced with a rear end view, and seeing more of Bec than he ever needed to, Jordan looked down at the laptop screen and attempted to blank out the sight of his barely dressed sister from his mind before it etched forever into his memory banks. Pacing the lounge room in scanty knickers, Bec dialled, hung up, and dialled again. Her frenzy partnered with cursing, stamping feet, and frustrated screams. After a few minutes of this behaviour, Jordan lifted his gaze from the screen and took a chance at needing extensive therapy.

From within the tortured howls and cussing, Bec squealed like a piglet. “Shh! Oh my God, it’s ringing!”

“Did I say anything?”

She waved a hand. “Stop typing! Shh!” Somebody answered her call and the squealing escalated into a shrill scream. Her hand clamped to her forehead, she trembled and tried to give her name between moments of excited yelling and foot stomping. The call ended with Bec in a teary, quivering mess. She disappeared up the stairs without another word. Jordan peered into the furry orange face of an abnormally large cat beside him.

“And that, Furball, is why I’m gay”.

That scene not only had me laughing but also beautifully defines each character and their relationship with each other.  Of course, you know too that Bec has won her tickets to the show and from then on everyones lives start to change.  I know people like Bec and the author must as well because that characterization is darn near perfect.  Jordan is her opposite, all responsibility and patient older brother, personality traits needed for what lies ahead.  I think all the characters created for this story are marvelous, from the despicable Frank the manager to Taylor Mason, the reporter who turns into a friend.  They bring the reader immediately into the story, throwing out connecting lines left and right for us to grab onto.

Another component of the book is Alec’s epilepsy.  While not getting too much into details, the author treats Alec’s condition with sensitivity while letting the reader see what it takes to live as an epileptic from Alec’s viewpoint, that of  an isolated young man whose disease has gone  virtually untreated for years. I thought this was an interesting aspect to Alec’s story and an unexpected one. It highlights the need for a strict schedule for medication and physician monitoring, a necessary detail when using illness in a story. I think Zathyn Priest did a great job with both Alec and the effect that epilepsy has on his life.

A little curious is the switch in pov from time to time in the book’s narrative. Told mostly in third person, it occasionally switches to Frank’s pov and then back again.  I understand why the author did it, and while it helps to achieve a tone of suspense, the switch also throws a small wrench in the flow of the story.  A very small quibble in an overall terrific narrative.

I do have a larger issue with the insta love between Alex and Jordan.  Jordan is older looking for commitment and his HEA but Alec is almost a child in comparison. Definitely, childlike in behavior, Alec’s 18, shy, constantly blushing, a virgin and an abused soul.  Jordan is 27, older, and experienced, and by the end of the first evening, they are boyfriends, from funny evening into serious relationship in a blink of an eye.  I just wish the author had given them more time to get to know each other before settling into a serious and committed relationship.  For me, it would have made their love more believable than the love at first sight that occurred.

Those issues aside, this story and these characters will pull you in and hold you fast.  Once the characters meet and fall in love, events that will change all of their lives start to come fast and furious.  By the end of the story, the reader will feel totally happy with all aspects of The Curtis Reincarnation, and of course, the HEA that Jordan and Alec achieve together.  This is a heartwarming story, more on the love than rocker side, but it’s sweetness and terrific characters will make this a comfort read for the readers who find their way to this book.  If you are a fan of Zathyn Priest, you are probably on your way to get this book now.  If you are new to this author, put both the author and The Curtis Reincarnation immediately on your “must read, must have” list.  I absolutely recommend them both to you.

Cover Art by Scarlet Tie Designs.  It works well with the story inside.

Book Details:

eBook, Paperback, 300 pages
Published February 1st 2013 by MLR Press (first published May 1st 2008)
ISBN 160820779X (ISBN13: 9781608207794)
edition languageEnglish
original titleThe Curtis Reincarnation
urlhttp://www.mlrbooks.com/ShowBook.php?book=ZPCTREIN
charactersJordan Braxton, Alec Tyler (Tyler Curtis)
settingLondon, England (United Kingdom)

literary awardsGoodreads M/M Romance Member’s Choice Awards Nominee

ebook, 1st Edition, 220 pages
Published November 2008 by Torquere Press (first published May 1st 2008)
original titleThe Curtis Reincarnation
urlhttp://www.zathynpriest.com

Review: Fennel and Forgiveness by Ari McKay

Rating: 3.5 stars out of 5

Fennel And Forgiveness coverMaitre’d Darius Cooper of the renown Montgomery House has his work cut out for him this week.  Rhys Montgomery, owner of Montgomery House,  has decided to allow the Gourmet Network to use the restaurant for an episode of a reality show, while still keeping it open for business.  That means  Darius has to keep things running smooth and ensure that their famous and famously volatile chef, Executive Chef Stephen Pierce, is kept happy, no small feat.  But things start to go wrong from the beginning.  The bride picked out by the Gourmet Network turns into bridezilla, and the man in charge of the reality show shoot?  None other than Max Boyd, the only man Dare ever loved and the man who broke his heart seven years past.

Max Boyd has had seven years to grow up.  He left Darius Cooper to pursue his career, not ready to settle down to one man and a long term relationship.  But those years apart have seen Max mature and realize that he had left the only man for him behind in his pursuit of life as a producer.  Now Max wants Dare back but as Dare has made clear, Dare doesn’t trust him and wants nothing to do with Max.

With Chef Stephen Pierce threatening the bride, the owner threatening to toss them out , and Dare asking him to leave, how will Max pull off the production shoot  of Southern Wedding Belles and get his (and Dare’s) second chance at love?  Sometimes all it takes is a little fennel and forgiveness.

I love a plot where former lovers reunite for a second chance at love, that always gets to me.  So no surprise that the book description was really the thing that drew me to this story in the first place. I found this to be a sweet story but somehow just short of satisfying and it is hard to put my finger on exactly what component is the problem.

McKay has given us a wonderful location and setting for the story.  Montgomery House is a famous, historic restaurant in Charleston, SC.  and in it McKay has placed a renown chef with a huge ego and volatile attitude to match his reputation, an owner immensely proud of his restaurant and his restoration work and a Maitre’d equipped to handle both men and all other challenges except the one closest to his own  heart.  So far, great.  I loved them, the restaurant, and even the silly reality show brought into the mixture.  Southern Wedding Belles.  Someone has been watching a lot of TLC to get that one so right.

I think my problem is with the character of Max Boyd, the tv producer and the man who devastated Darius Cooper when he left him all those years ago.  I think the back story created for Max is a pretty realistic one.  Max was someone too young to handle a long term relationship with an older man who wanted to settle down.  Instead Max wanted to concentrate on his career, again understandable.  But the older Max still seems a little immature in my opinion.  Here is Max, after he has seen Darius again for the first time in seven years:

Looking back, he had to place the blame for their break-up squarely on his own shoulders. He’d panicked when Darius had asked him to move in, because at the time, he’d been more interested in climbing his career ladder than in settling down with one man yet. Ten years his senior, Darius was as solid as he was intense, and he’d wanted a commitment with a capital “C”, no holds barred and no going back. Unfortunately, Max was too immature and self-absorbed at the time to deal with the tougher aspects of sustaining a relationship and to compromise as much as he needed to. Max hadn’t been able to love Dare the way he deserved back then, but age and experience had helped Max understand that relationships required more than romance and sex; respect and a mutual commitment to making it last were vital.

The damnable thing was that he hadn’t been able to find anyone he wanted to commit to since then. He kept comparing his prospective partners to Dare, and they all fell far short of the mark.

So Max hasn’t found anyone as good as Dare so far?  And all this time, Max never looked up his former partner? Uh, no.  While McKay made me believe in Darius’ pain and the devastation Max inflicted upon his self image and ability to trust, I never really believed that Max loved Darius all that time they were apart.  I think it is that lack of belief in Max and Darius’s love that leaves this story foundering a bit.  It is sweet but not particularly memorable (or believable).

Also, while there is some discussion about them not getting back together immediately because of the pain inflicted, of course it happens almost immediately within the duration of the production shoot (after saying it would take time). Sigh.  I could see that a longer version might have made for a more realistic, better imagined reconciliation than the one that occurred within this story.  But as it is, it is too saccharine and far too unrealistic to be believed.

However, there is a lot to like here as well.  Mostly I loved Chef Stephen Pierce and Stephen’s PA Robert Logan.  Arrogant, snarky, and so much fun, they were the most interesting and absorbing characters in the story.  It was their story I wanted to read about, not Dare’s (disliked that nickname) and Max’s.  Ari McKay (a pen name for two people coauthoring as Ari McKay) has written the owner Rhys Montgomery’s story in Bay Leaves and Bachelors.  So I can only hope that Stephen’s story will be written as well.  That one I can’t wait for.

This is a sweet story, enjoyable and short at 102 pages.  It is just not very deep and multi dimensional but that fine, not every romance has to be.  I think most people will enjoy Max and Darius’ relationship.  I know they will love Montgomery House and the rest of the characters involved there.  I certainly did and look forward to more in this series.

Cover illustration by BS Clay.  Models are cute but Darius is 40, where is the older man in this picture?

ebook, 102 pages
Published May 8th 2013 by Torquere Press
ISBN
161040470X (ISBN13: 9781610404709)
edition language