Category: Riptide Publishing

An Alisa Audiobook Review: Sweetwater by Lisa Henry and Dorian Bane (Narrator)

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

sweetwater_audiobookWyoming Territory, 1870.

Elijah Carter is afflicted. Most of the townsfolk of South Pass City treat him as a simpleton because he’s deaf, but that’s not his only problem. Something in Elijah runs contrary to nature and to God. Something that Elijah desperately tries to keep hidden.

Harlan Crane, owner of the Empire saloon, knows Elijah for what he is—and for all the ungodly things he wants. But Crane isn’t the only one. Grady Mullins desires Elijah too, but unlike Crane, he refuses to push the kid.

When violence shatters Elijah’s world, he is caught between two very different men and two devastating urges: revenge, and despair. In a boomtown teetering on the edge of a bust, Elijah must face what it means to be a man in control of his own destiny, and choose a course that might end his life . . . or truly begin it for the very first time.

I haven’t read many books set in this time period so I was eager to give this a try.  I felt the setting was done really well and I could totally picture this western town as if I was there.  There were a host of characters all of which were felt realistic and added to the overall world building.  The majority of the story was told by Elijah who was a really different type of character but I struggled with him a bit.  He had a hard life and was very much a victim.  It was totally realistic and believable but as a result I don’t think I ever really warmed to him.  He annoyed me each time he did not stand up for himself.  I felt sorry for him but it was hard for me to find him a believable romance partner.  I didn’t see what Grady saw in him.  Even though parts of the story were told through Grady’s point of view I still didn’t feel the connection.  Elijah felt more like a child who needed a caregiver not a man who needed a romance partner.  So, I liked it as a fiction story but not so much as a romance.  The writing was really well done and this author is generally one of my favorites.  This was just not the book for me.
The book was narrated by Dorian Bane who I had never listened to before.  I thought he did an excellent job on all of the characters.  This was a big cast and I thought he did each of them equally well.  This is an audio that I would definitely recommend.
Cover by L.C. Chase:  I love the cover.  I think it fits the story perfectly.
Sales Links
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Audiobook Details:
Audible Audio, 8 pages, Listening Length: 7 hours and 39 minutes
Published August 5th 2016 by Riptide Publishing (first published September 29th 2014)
ASIN B01JO64IAS
Edition Language English

A Barb the Zany Old Lady Review: Rented Heart by Garrett Leigh

Rating: 5 stars out of 5

rented-heart-by-garrett-leighLonely and grief-stricken, Liam Mallaney finally agrees to go out with his friends to make an attempt to get back into being social and sociable a year after he lost the man he considered his husband. As he seeks respite outside the bar and tries to decide whether or not to go home, he’s approached by a young man who propositions him. It isn’t until he decides to go with the guy that he finds out it’s going to cost him a wad of money.

Zac Payne has been surviving on the slim pickings in this small town ever since he moved from London to Holkham to start anew after he recovered from a drug addiction that nearly killed him six months before. Because his services aren’t as often in demand here, he has to work long days and nights to earn enough to support himself and his still drug addicted best friend, Jamie. He feels that he owes Jamie since he’s the one who got Zac to the help he needed on time.

When he takes Liam home he gets more than he bargained for however. Liam is a hot, sexy Alpha male who treats Zac differently from any of his other Johns. In fact, it’s the most memorable night Zac has ever spent with a man, and the first time he ever brought one to his own bed. Unable to forget Liam, Zac daydreams of what might be if he wasn’t a hooker, so when Liam contacts him after a few weeks, he gladly accepts his offer of spending the day with him.

In the meantime, Jamie is falling further into his addiction and though Zac knows he’s powerless to help him, when Jamie shows up at the apartment with a cache of drugs, Zac flips out and kicks him out. Distressed, he does something he’ll later regret while spending the balance of the day with Liam, who is rapidly becoming so much more than just a John.

The author takes us through Liam’s healing from the grief and despair that has plagued him for so long, introduces us to the life he shared with his lover, and gives us a glimpse into the real Liam behind the corporate façade he wears to keep the company they founded together running. Concurrently, we explore Zac’s personality, his hopes and dreams, and his deep desire to do whatever it takes to stay sober. We also get to know Jamie and while watching him rapidly deteriorate, not only in body but also in spirit, we learn the depth of Zac’s devotion to him.

There were many layers to this emotional drama, and with each page turn the author kept my interest at a peak with yet another new development or another perspective. Alternating scenes between Liam and Zac, because so much of the story took place when they weren’t together, added depth to the drama. I appreciated the strength of their inner resolve and the commitment each exhibited as they fought through the difficult circumstances that plagued them.

My respect for Garrett Leigh grows exponentially with each book I read from this author. I honestly wish I could give this story more than 5 stars, and I very highly recommend it to those who are looking for a story of redemption and the engaging characters who fight their way through their very divergent circumstances to finally be together.

Cover art by G.D. Leigh.  I love that the author does their own covers  so that what they imagines their characters to be ends up being expressed here.

Sales Links

Riptide Publishing

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Book Details:

ebook, 228 pages
Published September 10th 2016 by Riptide Publishing
Original TitleRented Heart
ISBN 162649391X (ISBN13: 9781626493919)
Edition LanguageEnglish

Riptide Publishing’s Blog Tour and Giveaway: Rented Heart by Garrett Leigh

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Rented Heart by Garrett Leigh
Riptide Publishing

Cover by: G.D. Leigh
Read an Excerpt/Buy It Here

About Rented Heart

Ex-surfer-turned-businessman Liam Mallaney moved back to Holkham, Norfolk, to mourn the loss of his husband. Grief and loneliness keep him a solitary figure, and he likes it that way. There’s no room in his broken heart for anything else.

Rentboy Zac Payne left London and most of his demons behind, but he still only knows one way to make a living. When he spots Liam in a club one night, it seems he’s found his mark. But Liam proves nicer—and their connection far deeper—than he’d bargained for.

Their arrangement quickly becomes too complicated for Zac, who has other things on his mind: namely his BFF and wayward flatmate, Jamie. Zac owes Jamie the world, and even as Jamie’s drug addiction destroys all they have, Zac won’t leave him behind.

Besides, Liam knows nothing of Zac’s home life, too caught up in his own head to think much beyond the crazy heat he and Zac share. But when trouble comes to Zac’s door, putting his life in danger, Liam must set his grief and anger aside to pick up the pieces of Zac’s shattered heart and his own.

Purchase now at Riptide: http://riptidepublishing.com/titles/rented-heart

About Garrett Leigh

Garrett Leigh is a British writer and book designer, currently working for Dreamspinner Press, Loose Id, Riptide Publishing, and Black Jazz Press. Her protagonists will always always be tortured, crippled, broken, and deeply flawed. Throw in a tale of enduring true love, some stubbly facial hair, and a bunch of tattoos, and you’ve got yourself a Garrett special.

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. That, and dreaming up new ways to torture her characters. Garrett believes in happy endings; she just likes to make her boys work for it.

Garrett also works as a freelance cover artist for various publishing houses and independent authors under the pseudonym G.D. Leigh. For cover art info, please visit blackjazzpress.com.

Social media:
Website: http://garrettleigh.com
Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/Garrett_Leigh
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/garrettleighbooks
Cover art enquiries: blackjazzdesign@gmail.com

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Giveaway

To celebrate the release of Rented Heart, one lucky winner will receive $25 in Riptide Publishing credit! Leave a comment with your contact info to enter the contest. Entries close at midnight, Eastern time, on September 17, 2016. Contest is NOT restricted to U.S. entries. Thanks for following the tour, and don’t forget to leave your contact info!

An Alisa Audiobook Review: The Burnt Toast B&B (Bluewater Bay #5) by Heidi Belleau and Rachel Haimowitz with Dorian Bane (Narrator) andTobias Silversmith (Narrator)

Rating:  4 stars out of 5

 

the-burnt-toast-b-b-audiobookAfter breaking his arm on set, Wolf’s Landing stuntman Ginsberg Sloan finds himself temporarily out of work. Luckily, Bluewater Bay’s worst B&B has cheap long-term rates, and Ginsberg’s not too proud to take advantage of them.

 

Derrick Richards, a grizzled laid-off logger, inherited the B&B after his parents’ untimely deaths. Making beds and cooking sunny-side-up eggs is hardly Derrick’s idea of a man’s way to make a living, but just as he’s decided to shut the place down, Ginsberg shows up on his doorstep, pitiful and soaking wet, and Derrick can hardly send him packing.

 

Not outright, at least.

 

The plan? Carry on the B&B’s tradition of terrible customer service and even worse food until the pampered city boy leaves voluntarily. What Derrick doesn’t count on, though, is that the lousier he gets at hosting, the more he convinces bored, busybody Ginsberg to try to get the B&B back on track. And he definitely doesn’t count on the growing attraction between them, or how much more he learns from Ginsberg than how to put out kitchen fires.

 

Derrick is miserable, he never wanted to take over his parents’ B&B, but falls into it after he was laid off and his parents’ passed away.  He has never been very comfortable in his skin, even if he won’t admit it to others.  Ginsberg is perfectly comfortable with himself and has worked hard to be the man he is today and isn’t going to change that for anyone.

 

This story was told from both characters’ points of view, which made understanding their thoughts a bit easier.  It’s easy to see Derrick struggling with keeping up and being what he thinks a man should be even if sometimes you just want to give him a slap across the back of the head for being an idiot.  Ginsberg looks at the world as the glass is half full and is slowly able to show Derrick that everything isn’t as bad as he thinks.  Derrick takes awhile to get with the program, but once he does he is all in.

 

Dorian Bane and Tobias Silversmith did a nice job narrating this story.  I could connect with the characters through the voices and emotions they portrayed.  This is the first time I have listened to a story with separate narrators for the two main characters, I can’t say that it either helped or hurt the story, it was just different and I still enjoyed listening to them.

 

Cover art by LC Chase is nice and follows the pattern for the series.

Audiobook Sales Links

Riptide Publishing

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Audiobook Details:

Audible Audio, 7 pages, Listening Length: 6 hours and 22 minutes
Published August 2nd 2016 by Riptide Publishing (first published January 3rd 2015)
Original TitleThe Burnt Toast B&B
ASINB01JDGDXLY
Edition LanguageEnglish
SeriesBluewater Bay #5

 

Winner: Best Transgender Book in the 2015 Rainbow Awards!

Winner: Best Transgender Romance in the 2015 Rainbow Awards

A Barb the Zany Old Lady Review: Counterbalance by Aidan Wayne

Rating: 4.25 stars out of 5

counterbalance_600x900John loves his job as head rigger for Cirque Brilliance. The heavy scarring over half his face makes it a little hard to meet new people, but John’s got a good crew and a nice found family, and he’s content with his lot in life.

When Cirque hires talent for a new show, John meets Bao, a bright, ever-cheerful acrobat. Bao seems drawn to John and becomes a constant presence at his side—talking to him during downtime, spending time with him at lunch, and generally seeking out his company.

John doesn’t know what to make of this. Sure, he likes Bao—maybe a little too much, honestly—but he’s had enough experience to know that Bao couldn’t possibly like him back. Or so he thinks, anyway. Fortunately, Bao seems determined to prove him wrong.

This was a delightful romance story—one of those that leaves me saying “Aww, I want more.” I’ve heard some people call this kind of story too sweet, but really, it was very satisfying on so many levels; and IMHO, nothing is too sweet. This one was somewhat like a fine piece of dark chocolate that melts in your mouth as you savor the flavor while enjoying it slowly. 

Bao Liu is recruited from China to join a new Cirque show.  On his first day he meets John, the head rigger, a man whose face and body had been severely burned in the past—and a man who carries the scars as much on the inside as on the outside.  John has been rejected and taunted for how he looks and is even called Phantom by many in the show, including some of his crewmates. They apparently don’t know or care how much that hurts him. And they certainly don’t know why he never joins them on their time off and is never seen with a date.  John is simply too fearful to take a risk.  Until Bao breaks down the walls he’s spent years building.

But break them he does—one brick at a time. The cheerful, bouncy, personable acrobat will be featured in a handstand act, and it’s hard for John to imagine Bao staying still long enough to balance. He seems to be in perpetual motion, even when spending most of his free time hanging out with John, trying to befriend the stubborn recluse. It’s fun to watch Bao batter down those walls John has built, and the author does a beautiful job showing us the John who hides behind his mask of indifference. 

When Bao is injured, John not only takes on the blame for not assuring his safety, he ends up volunteering to check in on Bao and ensure he gets the rest he needs for a week.  And that gives the couple more time to get to know one another.

If I had one wish for this story, it would be that I want it to be longer. There is so much to these two men that didn’t have enough time for further exploration, and so many sweet moments I didn’t get to see because the story came to a close before I was ready to let them go. I hope the author considers more stories in this world. It was a unique setting, with unique and interesting characters, and I recommend it to all who love a sweet MM romance between an unlikely couple.

Cover art by L.C. Chase is beautiful and works for the story.

Sales Links

Riptide Publishing

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Book Details:

ebook, 79 pages
Expected publication: September 12th 2016 by Riptide Publishing (first published September 10th 2016)
ISBN 1626494673 (ISBN13: 9781626494671)

In the Spotlight – Counterbalance by Aiden Wayne (Riptide Publishing’s Blog Tour and Giveaway)

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Counterbalance by Aidan Wayne
Riptide Publishing
Cover Art by L.C. Chase

Read An Excerpt/Buy It Here

About Counterbalance

John loves his job as head rigger for Cirque Brilliance. The heavy scarring over half his face makes it a little hard to meet new people, but John’s got a good crew and a nice found family, and he’s content with his lot in life.

When Cirque hires talent for a new show, John meets Bao, a bright, ever-cheerful acrobat. Bao seems drawn to John and becomes a constant presence at his side—talking to him during downtime, spending time with him at lunch, and generally seeking out his company.

John doesn’t know what to make of this. Sure, he likes Bao—maybe a little too much, honestly—but he’s had enough experience to know that Bao couldn’t possibly like him back. Or so he thinks, anyway. Fortunately, Bao seems determined to prove him wrong.

Purchase from Riptide: http://riptidepublishing.com/titles/counterbalance

About Aidan Wayne

Aidan Wayne is a big believer in character-driven stories with happy endings. This is not to say that stories can’t contain a little (or a lot) of grief, just that at the end of it all expect there to be bandages and hugs. They particularly like to write about minority characters because damn it, they deserve happy endings too.

When not writing, Aidan enjoys practicing aerial, martial arts, and ASL, and watching reality cooking shows. They are probably in the middle of twelve projects as you read this.

Tumblr: justsayins.tumblr.com
Twitter: https://twitter.com/justsayins

Website: aidanwayne.wordpress.com

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Giveaway

To celebrate the release of Counterbalance, one lucky winner will receive $20 in Riptide Publishing credit! Leave a comment with your contact info to enter the contest. Entries close at midnight, Eastern time, on September 17, 2016. Contest is NOT restricted to U.S. entries. Thanks for following the tour, and don’t forget to leave your contact info!

A Barb the Zany Old Lady Audiobook Review: Misfits by Garrett Leigh ~ Audiobook narrated by Craig Beck

Rating: 5 stars out of 5

misfits_audiobook2400Restaurant owner Tom Fearnes has loved his partner Cass for as long as he can remember, but their work often keeps them apart. When he meets a striking young man named Jake on the vibrant streets of Camden Town, their heady first encounter takes an unexpected turn.

Jake Thompson can hardly believe his luck when he wakes up in Tom’s bed. Tom is gorgeous, kind, and…taken. Tom’s explanation of his open relationship leaves Jake cold, but Tom is too tempting, and when hard times force Jake to accept Tom’s helping hand, he finds himself between two men who’ve lost their way.

Cass Pearson is a troubled soul. He loves Tom with all he has, but some days it feels like he hasn’t much to give. Jake seems like the perfect solution. Cass risks everything to push Jake and Tom together, but Jake resists, wary, until the darkness of Cass’s past comes to call. Then Jake finds himself the last man standing, and it’s time to dig deep and shine a light for the men he’s grown to love.

Without a doubt, this is one of the very best ménage stories I’ve ever read, and I’ve read quite a few. After thinking it over, I’ve come to the conclusion that it’s because the established couple did not set out to take on a new man, and it wasn’t all about sex at all. Not even a little.  It was about compatibility, need, circumstance, nurturing, and finally love. 

When Tom first met Jake, Jake was super prickly about being helped in any way.  His Tourette’s Syndrome was flaring and Jake was cursing a blue streak. But Tom was attracted despite the TS and wanted to act on his attraction to Jake, so he pursued him until he got him in bed.  Tom and his partner Cass have an open relationship, each recognizing the need for a different bed partner once in a while. So when Cass walks in on Jake the next morning, after Tom has left for work, he thinks nothing of it. Jake, on the other hand, is freaked out and departs as quickly as he can.

Eventually, Tom convinces Jake about his relationship with Cass, and his continued offers of helping Jake find employment finally take root when Jake admits his TS is the underlying cause of losing jobs, despite the legalities against that.  He and Cass form a tentative friendship via text once Jake starts working for the company co-owned by Tom and Cass, and it’s Cass who finds Jake the day Jake is booted from his apartment for failure to pay his rent.  The stubborn man had refused to take payment from Tom for the work he’s doing on one of their new ventures, and Cass is the one who realizes why he’s now on the street and goes to retrieve him.  From then on, Jake lives with both men, though there’s no ménage sex until near the end of the story. 

What there is, however, is a bond born of friendship between all three men, one that grows and blossoms into more until they reach the point where they all can acknowledge their strengths and weaknesses, their support for each other, both emotional and physical, and their need for the strength they get as a threesome. 

I am going to listen to the audiobook again very soon. The narrator was very good, giving each man a different voice, but it was mostly the story itself that impressed me and made way for this trio to worm their way into my heart. 

I highly recommend this book and audiobook for hours of listening and/or reading pleasure. 

The cover by Garrett Leigh features the lower face and tattooed chest of Jake. The dragonfly tattoo symbolic of the name of the new restaurant the trio opened for which Jake was the project lead.  Very nicely done.

Sales Links

Riptide Publishing | Audible |  Amazon | iTunes

Audiobook Details:

Audible Audio, 7 pages, 6 hrs 43 mins
Published August 18th 2016 by Riptide Publishing (first published March 16th 2015)
Original Title Misfits
ASINB01KI5XGIE
Edition LanguageEnglish

Winner: GLBT Menage in the 2015 Romance Reviews Reader’s Choice Awards!

Finalist: Best Gay Romance in the 28th Annual Lambda Literary Awards!

A Barb the Zany Old Lady Review: Rented Heart by Garrett Leigh

Rating: 5 stars out of 5

Rented Heart by Garrett LeighLonely and grief-stricken, Liam Mallaney finally agrees to go out with his friends to make an attempt to get back into being social and sociable a year after he lost the man he considered his husband. As he seeks respite outside the bar and tries to decide whether or not to go home, he’s approached by a young man who propositions him. It isn’t until he decides to go with the guy that he finds out it’s going to cost him a wad of money.

Zac Payne has been surviving on the slim pickings in this small town ever since he moved from London to Holkham to start anew after he recovered from a drug addiction that nearly killed him six months before. Because his services aren’t as often in demand here, he has to work long days and nights to earn enough to support himself and his still drug addicted best friend, Jamie. He feels that he owes Jamie since he’s the one who got Zac to the help he needed on time.

When he takes Liam home he gets more than he bargained for however. Liam is a hot, sexy Alpha male who treats Zac differently from any of his other Johns. In fact, it’s the most memorable night Zac has ever spent with a man, and the first time he ever brought one to his own bed. Unable to forget Liam, Zac daydreams of what might be if he wasn’t a hooker, so when Liam contacts him after a few weeks, he gladly accepts his offer of spending the day with him.

In the meantime, Jamie is falling further into his addiction and though Zac knows he’s powerless to help him, when Jamie shows up at the apartment with a cache of drugs, Zac flips out and kicks him out. Distressed, he does something he’ll later regret while spending the balance of the day with Liam, who is rapidly becoming so much more than just a John.

The author takes us through Liam’s healing from the grief and despair that has plagued him for so long, introduces us to the life he shared with his lover, and gives us a glimpse into the real Liam behind the corporate façade he wears to keep the company they founded together running. Concurrently, we explore Zac’s personality, his hopes and dreams, and his deep desire to do whatever it takes to stay sober. We also get to know Jamie and while watching him rapidly deteriorate, not only in body but also in spirit, we learn the depth of Zac’s devotion to him.

There were many layers to this emotional drama, and with each page turn the author kept my interest at a peak with yet another new development or another perspective. Alternating scenes between Liam and Zac, because so much of the story took place when they weren’t together, added depth to the drama. I appreciated the strength of their inner resolve and the commitment each exhibited as they fought through the difficult circumstances that plagued them.

My respect for Garrett Leigh grows exponentially with each book I read from this author. I honestly wish I could give this story more than 5 stars, and I very highly recommend it to those who are looking for a story of redemption and the engaging characters who fight their way through their very divergent circumstances to finally be together.

Cover art by Garrett Leigh is perfect for the story.

Sales Links

Riptide Publishing

more links to follow – not yet available

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Book Details:

ebook, 228 pages
Expected publication: September 10th 2016 by Riptide Publishing
Original TitleRented Heart
ISBN 162649391X (ISBN13: 9781626493919)
Edition LanguageEnglish