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Focusing In On Midnight Rodeo: Homecoming by Kiernan Kelly, Julia Talbot and BA Tortuga (contest)

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Welcomes Kiernan Kelly, Julia Talbot and BA Tortuga

and their latest anthology,

Midnight Rodeo: Homecoming!

Rope, wolves, leather, vampires, demons, hats, bears.

Rodeo.

 

Kiernan Kelly, BA Tortuga, and Julia Talbot have combined their wild imaginations and talent to come up with the Midnight Rodeo: Homecoming Anthology.  It’s an irresistible combination of “rope, wolves, leather, vampires, demons, hats, bears”…and the rodeo!

When offered an interview, I grabbed at the chance to float some questions by these terrific authors.  My interview with them follows directly.

Today there’s a contest to enter, an excerpt to read and much more.    The link for the Raffecopter contest can be found here and at the bottom of today’s post.  Winner receives an eBook copy of Midnight Rodeo:Homecoming.  So don’t forget to enter to win.  As always you must be 18 years of age or older to enter.  Good luck and Happy Reading!

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Contest:  Rafflecopter Prize: E-Book of Midnight Rodeo.  Must be 18 years of age or older to enter.  Visit this link or the one at the bottom of the post to enter.

Book Title: Midnight Rodeo: Homecoming

Authors Name: Kiernan Kelly, Julia Talbot, BA Tortuga

 

 

A ScatteredThoughts Interview with Kiernan Kelly, Julia Talbot and BA Tortuga! 

 

 

STRW:  You all have been friends/SOs (congratulations to B.A. and Julia on their wedding) and co-authors for a long time. Has that affected each other’s writing styles, do you think?

  • Julia Talbot: Thank you! I think it definitely affects our writing. I mean, for one thing, we were all kinda pioneers in taking m/m from online chats and boards to mainstream fiction, so we set our own “house style” if you will. Then there’s the fact that we’ve all co-written and been critique partners for years. Bound to spill over some in each author’s work.
  • BA: Oh, lord yes. There isn’t a single thing that Julia has written that I haven’t read as she worked on it and vice versa. I get to see Kiernan stories chapter by chapter. We all listen to each other talk and visit together. We all share a part of the brain. 😀
  • KKelly: think our writing styles are naturally similar enough to blend nicely in an anthology, yet still remain distinct enough for a reader to recognize the author’s voice in each one.

STRW:   Which comes first? The anthology idea or similar stories you are all working on?

  • KKelly: I usually work on stories simultaneously, with preference given to whichever deadline is looming.
  • BA: I would say that the anthology idea almost always comes first. We go…Ooh! Shiny idea! And then we go… Oh, look. Look at this boy! 😉
  • Julia Talbot:  The anthology idea, generally. We get together at cons and someone says, what if there was this bar…

STRW:  Between the three of you, you all have written about a multitude of professions. Which is your favorite profession to assign a character and why?

  • BA: Well, I’m a cowboy fan, for sure. Rodeo cowboys, working cowboys, country western singers in Stetsons. Honestly, I love a blue-collar working man.
  • Julia Talbot:  Mine is pretty broad. Someone pointed out recently that I like uniforms. Military, cops, doctors, skinwalkers. I like the trappings of a false skin.
  • KKelly: That’s a good question. I like blue collar workers (I find something inherently sexy about a man who works with his hands), but I’ve written lots of white collar professions as well. My favorite (even if I’ve only done it in one story, Change of Heart, and its sequel, Change in Attitude) was to make a shifter a veterinarian. In Change of Heart, the shifter is hit by a truck while in wolf-form, and ends up in his own vet clinic. That was a great deal of fun to write.

STRW: BA, Bullriders or wolf shifters?  Do you have a favorite?  I have been waiting for a wolf shifter bull rider to arrive (although I am not sure that would work due to the predator prey nature) and it looks like I will get my wish along with other supernatural beings.  How did that come about?  Did it involve alcohol or a yarn binge?

  • BA (only):  Well, the funny thing is that the whole idea happened because I couldn’t decide between bullriders and werewolves. They tell you, as a writer, you have to pick a genre, and I was stressing it. Do I write cowboys or werewolves? Cowboys? Werewolves? Ack! Then I went…Oh.

OH!

PARANORMAL COWBOY BUTTS OMG.

And then I may have sparkled. 😉

STRW:   Historical fiction (westerns included) is among the hardest genres to write. Supernatural fiction probably the most fun. Do you each have a favorite type of story to write?

  • KKelly: I write in every genre, but I love to write paranormal romances because the usual laws of physics don’t necessarily apply. My particular favorite are shifters, although I tend to favor unusual creatures over the more familiar wolves. My “In Their Own Skins” trilogy features just about every type of animal-form I could think of – hawks, horses, bear, T-Rex, velociraptors… You just can’t do that in a contemporary romance. LOL
  • Julia Talbot:  I have a long love of historicals. They’re not hard to write for me as I love research. They are a harder sell, though, because they’re so much more subjective. What if someone really hates 16th century Spain? I also love paranormals, because I love the animal nature of shifters, the alien apex predator nature of a vampire.
  • BA: I love my westerns, modern and historicals, but it’s very very difficult for the paranormal elements not to creep in. I also adore writing horror. 😀

STRW:   Cowboys and rodeos are a real passion for many, including myself. Can you all explain why they act as a muse for your writing? Is there a particular bull rider on the circuit today you root for? Or even a bull for that matter?

  • KKelly: I was introduced to bullriding back when I wrote “Riding Heartbreak Road.” I knew next to nothing about the rodeo, but I had this image in my head of a hunky cowboy wearing nothing but his hat and chaps. I knew if I wanted to write the scene, I needed to do research about the rodeo, and since I liked the idea of cowboys trying to stay on the back of a two-thousand pound monster for a mere eight seconds, I narrowed my research to bullriding. I began by watching PBR (Professional Bull Riding) on television, and became so involved in the sport that I began to go to local PBR events. I’ve always been a fan of Guilherme Marchi and Mike Lee, and little Gage Gay is just so darn adorable, I’d like to pick him up and carry him around in my pocket.
  • Julia Talbot:  Oh, my grandpa was a cowboy, and to some extent so was my mom. I married into a family of them. I tend to root for the Brazilian bullriders now, but my all-time favorites are Chris Shivers and Mike White.
  • BA: I grew up with cowboys – my daddy’s a cowboy, my brothers are cowboys. Those are the people I know and love. I can’t imagine choosing another muse. I am totally old school, and currently I’m rooting for the Brazilians in the PBR. Guilherme Marchi makes me fluttery. Will Lowe is my favorite PRCA rider. My all time favorite cowboy is Ty Murray. No, Jim Shoulders. Wait…

STRW: (for BA) I find the older bullriders/bronc riders especially poignant.  It’s such a young man or woman’s sport.  I know and love BA’s Rough Stock series that has some retired cowboys.  But any plans for a story or series about the bull riders or rodeo riders who are forced to retire or leave that lifestyle behind?

  • BA: I actually do have a series in the works called Out to Pasture featuring the ‘old guys’ – old guys in Roughstock are, what? 25? 😉

STRW:  . The PBR and Gay Rodeo circuits…any overlap that you see these days? Has the PBR gotten any more LGBTQ friendly? Or is your writing a way to bring that element to the mainstream?

  • KKelly: I’m not sure if the doors are open yet on the PBR circuit. You don’t hear about gay riders. They’re probably there, but they keep it on the down-low. I’m afraid the PBR isn’t the most open operation, and definitely not as welcoming to everyone as the IGRA (International Gay Rodeo Association). I think the PBR is still very much a “good ol’ boys” network.
  • Julia Talbot:  I wouldn’t be able to speak for any organizations with any certainty. My writing of cowboys in particular is a fantasy of how I would love people to react to all things LGBTQ.
  • BA: All I’ll say on that subject is that, once Julia and I came out the closet, our attendance has gone from 10-12 events a year to maybe 1 a year. I write a fantasy world wherein love is accepted.

STRW:   Vampires or werewolves? Do you all have a favorite and why?

  • Julia Talbot:  Werewolves. I mean, I am a vamp fan since Dracula at 11, and later, Anne Rice and Poppy Z Brite. But I adore writing werebeasts and exploring how their animal side makes them react to human situations.
  • KKelly: Again, I’ve written both, but I do favor werewolves over vampires.  I think there are many reasons for my preference – I’m an animal lover (no, not in THAT way, thank you very much), so the wolves play into that. I like that wolves mate for life, and I enjoy exploring the pack mentality. Wolves are affectionate with each other, strong, agile, and noble creatures. Vampires…yeah, not so much. Vampires are by nature solitary, decadent creatures, usually interested solely in their own survival. Plus, with vampires, unless their love interest is also a vamp, you need to worry about the whole immortality-watching-your-love-age-and-die thing. Werewolves need to worry about three things: the full moon, silver bullets, and wolfsbane. That’s about it. Vampires, on the other hand, need to watch out for garlic, crosses, running water, sunlight, holy water, crucifixes, wooden stakes, etc. In other words, vampires are high maintenance.
  • BA: Werewolves. I mean, I love vamps, but werewolves!!! 😀 I love animals and the whole concept of pack structure and being driven by instinct makes me incredibly happy.

STRW:  Next projects up for each of you?

  • Julia Talbot:  A menage novella called Georgia Knights out in September from TQ. I have the third Elemental Ops book with Changeling Press out in August and a long novella contemporary out in January or February with Dreamspinner. Find all the things at my website, http://www.juliatalbot.com
  • BA: I am working on a m/m contemporary about kids and cowboys tentatively titled “Ever the Same”, Brazilian bullriders, the next story for the Cereus universe, and a contemporary m/m about a redneck musician and his bodyguard. I’m also finishing up a f/f YA novel currently titled, “Stealing Bases”.
  • KKelly: I’m currently working on an m/m YA titled “Mad About the Hatter,” a short story for the next book in the “Butt” series, Butt Babes in Boyland, which I’ve tentatively titled, “Elf Esteem,” and an m/m novel about a vampire (I know, I know – high maintenance) and an angel/vampire hybrid titled “Riding Lucifer.”

 STRW:  That was a butt load of questions and the answers from all three of you were wonderful.  Thank you so much for taking the time to spend a little  time here with us today!

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Author Bios:

  • BA Tortuga:

Texan to the bone and an unrepentant Daddy’s Girl, BA Tortuga spends her days with her basset hounds, getting tattooed, texting her sisters, and eating Mexican food. When she’s not doing that, she’s writing. She spends her days off watching rodeo, knitting and surfing porn sites in the name of research. BA’s personal saviors include her wife, Julia Talbot, her best friend, Sean Michael, and coffee. Lots of coffee. Really good coffee.

Having written everything from fist-fighting rednecks to hard-core cowboys to werewolves, BA does her damnedest to tell the stories of her heart, which was raised in Northeast Texas, but has answered the call of the high desert mountains. With books ranging from hard-hitting GLBT romance, to fiery menages, to the most traditional of love stories, BA refuses to be pigeon-holed by anyone but the voices in her head.

Links:
Website: http://www.batortuga.com
Twitter: @batortuga

  • Kiernan Kelly:

Kiernan Kelly lives in the wilds of the alligator-infested U.S. Southeast, slathered in SPF 45, drinking colorful tropical, hi-octane concoctions served by thong-clad cabana boys.

All right, the truth is that she spends her time locked in the dark recesses of her office, writing gay erotic romance while chained to a temperamental laptop, drinking coffee, and dreaming of thong-clad cabana boys.

Sigh.

To date, Kiernan has over a dozen novels in print and ebook, and a plethora of short stories in both formats.

Links:
Website 
Email:  KiernanKelly@KiernanKelly.com
Facebook

 

  • Julia Talbot:

Julia Talbot lives in the great Southwest, where there is hot and cold running rodeo, cowboys, and everything from meat and potatoes to the best Tex-Mex. A full time author, Julia has been published by Torquere Press, Ellora’s Cave, and Changeling Press. She believes that everyone deserves a happy ending, so she writes about love without limits, where boys love boys, girls love girls, and boys and girls get together to get wild, especially when her crazy paranormal characters are involved.

Find Julia at:
Twitter  at @juliatalbot
Website  
Facebook

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Midnight Rodeo Homecoming coverMidnight Rodeo: Homecoming
Authors: Kiernan Kelly, Julia Talbot, BA Tortuga
Cover Artist: Anne Squires
Publisher: Torquere Press

Buy Links:    Torquere Press

Blurb(s):

What happens when rodeos start to get too tough for humans to compete in? Midnight Rodeo, of course, where supernatural creatures like shifters and vampires work for the prize money, and for the awe of their audience.

In Welcome to the Pack by BA Tortuga, when head bullfighter Denton is killed by a demon bull, his twin, Denver, comes back to take his place. Denver was gone for years, working mundane rodeos and missing his twin. He’s not sure the pack can heal him since the other bullfighters challenge Denver at every turn. All except Blaine, who’s an outcast himself, and who knows Denver is like no one he’s ever met.

In Oklahoma Rain by Kiernan Kelly, psychic Blaze scouts locations for the rodeo company, Darque and Knight, where he finds another psychic talent, Zack, who’s hot as the Fourth of July. Zack is complicated, though, thanks to his sidekick, Mikey, a damaged kid. Blaze invites the pair back to the rodeo, but not everyone is as happy as Blaze to have them there.

In Big Bear, Little Bear, by Julia Talbot, bear shifter Ben is returning to the rodeo after a long injury recovery. Big bear shifter Ozzie is the barrel man and clown, and he’s been waiting for Ben to come back to the big show. But is Ben ready to ride again, let alone be the lover Ozzie is ready to take on?

Excerpt:

Denver was– wow.

Denton had been stunning, making Blaine stare a lot. A lot. Still, Dent had been off-limits, and he’d bet Denver was, too. No one could be that hot and be like Blaine.

He was the weird one, the one brought into the pack by a she-wolf who had already had a single pup. Blaine figured he was lucky no one had killed him when he was a kid.

Everyone else was broad and wide, shaggy headed with eyes like green glass. All of them came from the same line. Denver was the spitting image of Denton, really. A little harder around the edges, a little more wild. A shit ton more bruised.

The guys had been taking turns. Two a night, just like clockwork, they’d come and challenge Denver. One at midnight, one at three a.m. Greg and Vince went, then Carter and Caul, and finally Hank and Mike. Boom.

He supposed Denver was waiting for him, now. Blaine sighed. He had no intention of trying to take the pack. God, the very idea made his head hurt.
The real question was, were they going to just start over, or was Denver going to get a night off, a chance to sleep before they settled in town for tonight’s show?

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Tour Dates/Stops: 7/28 – 8/22

 

BadgeMR Homecoming Rev
7/28: Prism Book Alliance
7/29: Parker Williams
7/30: Up All Night, Read All Day
7/31: Amanda C. Stone
8/1: LeAnn’s Book Reviews
8/4: Love Bytes
8/5: Book Reviews, Rants, and Raves, Jade Crystal
8/6: The Hat Party
8/7: Night Owl Reviews, Because Two Men Are Better Than One
8/8: The Novel Approach
8/11: Decadent Delights
8/12: Wake Up Your Wild Side
8/13: Tara Lain
8/14: MM Good Book Reviews, Emotion in Motion
8/15: Iyana Jenna, Rainbow Gold Reviews
8/18: Fallen Angel Reviews, Velvet Panic
8/19: Hearts on Fire
8/20: Scattered Thoughts & Rogue Words, Dawn’s Reading Nook
8/21: Book Reviews and More by Kathy, Kimi-Chan
8/22: My Fiction Nook, Smoocher’s Voice
Contest:   Must be 18 years of age or older to enter. Rafflecopter Prize: E-Book of Midnight Rodeo

 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

 

Jackie Nacht’s ‘Wrong Locker’ Book Tour (contest)

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Contest:   Enter to win Rafflecopter Prize: $10 Amazon card and a PDF choice from Jackie’s backlist.  Use this Rafflecopter link to enter and for additional contest details.  

maginifying glass with Take a LookNow that the contest information is out of the way, let’s focus in on Wrong Locker by Jackie Nacht…

 

Book Name: Wrong Locker
Author Name: Jackie Nacht
Author Bio:

Short, sexy and sweet— where a little love goes a long way.

That’s the best way to describe Jackie Nacht’s stories. She was introduced to M/M Romance through her sister, Stephani, and read it for years. Then, she thought it was time to put her own stories on paper. Jackie began writing short and sweet stories that ended with a happily ever after.

Thinking back to her own book addiction, where there were many nights Jackie stayed up way too late so she could read just one more chapter— yeah, right— Jackie decided to write short romances for young adults as well as adults. Hopefully, they will give high school and college students, or working men and women something they can read during their lunch hour, in between classes or just when they want to briefly get away from the daily stresses of everyday life.

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Title: Wrong Locker by Jackie Nacht
Cover Artist: Zathyn Priest – Scarlet Tie Designs
Publisher: Featherweight Press

Buy Links:  Featherweight Publishing      Amazon

Blurb:
Sometimes the best way to turn your bad luck around, is reach out for the hand willing to help.

Sophomore Shaun Richards could not have any worse luck. The front office ended up placing his locker in the senior wing this year. A month into the year and it hasn’t gotten any better. A group of seniors make it their mission to prove that he doesn’t belong and gives him a hard time on a daily basis.

While eating lunch alone one day senior, Nash Wilder comes to sit with him. Shaun has had a crush on the senior all year and wonders what the heck the senior was doing sitting with the geeky underclassman?

 

 

 

Excerpt:Wrong Locker by Jackie Nacht

I was in pure hell. As I stood in front of Northeastern High, I could already feel my body tremble in panic. I was barely able to swallow, my throat dry with fear. Scrubbing a hand over my face, I wiped away the stray beads of sweat that showcased my anxiety to everyone passing me by.

Why was I so afraid to walk through those double doors? Oh that’s right. The front office had assigned me a locker in the senior hallway this year due to overcrowding. A sophomore in the senior wing? What in the world had they been thinking?

“You get up late, Shaun? Do you need me to start calling you in the morning again?” Wade adjusted his backpack as he came to stand next to me.

Wade was my only friend in school. We had grown up together and were tight as they came. He was protective of me and vice versa. He was also the only one I’d ever told I was gay, outside of my mom, even though I was teased ruthlessly by the jerks who just assumed. I wasn’t hiding it, but it was no one’s business either, so I didn’t confirm or deny.

How could I tell Wade that every day I tried to be this late? That way I might avoid having to walk to my locker in a hall crowded full of jerks that made it their life’s mission to put me through hell on a daily basis. If I came in late enough, I would only have to deal with a few stragglers as opposed to the whole gamut.

“No, I’m good, Wade.” My voice quivered. I hated feeling this way.

We entered the school together, and Wade paused at the front of the sophomore wing, pursing his lips. “Do you want me to go with you?”

As much as I wanted to say yes, I knew these jerks would be horrible to Wade, and I wanted to protect my one and only friend. “Go on to your locker. We only have a few minutes to make it to class.

“

Walking away from Wade was a test of my courage. My whole body started to go on lockdown, ready to be verbally attacked, insulted and made to feel like a piece of chewing gum on the bottom of a shoe.

Putting my head down, I turned the corner, heading for my locker. I learned that if I didn’t make eye contact with the seniors, usually they would ignore me. I prayed that this would be one of those days. Getting to my locker, my fingers trembled as I grabbed my lock. Sheesh, I couldn’t even get the combination in I was shaking so badly. After screwing it up once, I had to try 

spinning the combination out and trying again.

I took too long. The presence behind me confirmed that my day of hell was about to begin. Leaning my forehead against the cool locker, I didn’t even bother to try opening it up as my breath quickened.

A fist slammed next to me, causing me to jump.

Blake was there, leaning against the locker next to me with two of his buddies standing next to him. I have no clue what I ever did to offend the guy, but he hated me with a passion and was the ringleader to a group of seniors that gave me hell on a daily basis.

“Why haven’t you left yet? No one wants you here, fag.”

Blake all but sneered at me.

It was the same thing every day. A sophomore wasn’t wanted in the wing, but it was more than that. This guy hated me. And I absolutely loathed being called a fag. That was just as bad as a slap to the face. Worse.

There was no point in responding. I’d tried the first couple times, explaining administration couldn’t switch my locker and that the sophomore wing was on overflow to other wings. Heck, there were a few more sophomores in this wing too, but they didn’t seem to have half as much trouble as I did. Of course, those sophomores were athletes.

Me, I was more on the small side, skinny as they came with stylish brown hair that I used to love but now seemed to be a beacon for these jerks.

“I don’t want to see you anymore. I don’t care how you do it, but I don’t want you walking in this hallway again.” Blake slammed the locker with his fist again. The three walked away, laughing and jeering at my humiliation.

I had hoped that it would get better, that these guys would get bored and leave me alone. Yeah, they hadn’t physically hurt me, yet. I knew that it was only a matter of time. Things had escalated too quickly in the last month since I had started school.

The bell rang, and I groaned, knowing that I was going to get into trouble for another tardy. Some days it just didn’t pay to wake up.

I ran all the way to my classroom and got a stern look from my Spanish teacher before sitting down in my assigned seat. This was the best part of my day. While one group of seniors were jerks, they weren’t all bad. Spanish was an elective that students were required to take two years of. Most waited until the last two years but I knew that I wanted to minor it in college so I wanted to have four years of languages.

This period, I got to stare at the back of the football co-captain, Nash Wilder. The man was gorgeous with sun-streaked light brown hair that had a short messy style to it. He was filled out 

with muscles that I would forever lack and a tan I wish I could achieve. However, in my paleness, all I could hope for was a third degree burn. The man was handsome and unattainable. It seemed every girl dreamed he would ask them out, but the guy remained oblivious, concentrating on sports and school.

Glancing up at the dry erase board, I began doing my silent work of conjugating verbs and putting them into sentences. The tension in my body was still there from my earlier confrontation, but a small amount slipped away, knowing that I would have at least a small reprieve.

I was just about finished when Nash turned and stared at me. I glanced up from my paperwork into his puppy dog chocolate-brown eyes, surrounded by long dark eyelashes.

My jaw threatened to drop as he just scrutinized me. What was he thinking? Did I have something on my face? Oh God I did, didn’t I?

“You okay, Shaun?” Nash whispered, doing a quick glance over his shoulder to make sure the teacher wasn’t looking.

Nash knew my name? He freakin’ knew my name. I didn’t think anybody as popular as him would ever notice someone like me, unpopular and not an athletic bone in my body. He also sounded concerned. About me?

“I’m fine,” I croaked out.

Someone in Nash’s social stratosphere didn’t want to hear about all my problems. Probably would bore the guy to death.

Nash stared at me for a moment more before he went back to his work. I blew out a breath with relief that I didn’t have to discuss the jerks that constantly harassed me. How embarrassing would it be to admit to Nash the extent of my struggles, while crowded hallways seemed to simply part for him as he strolled along?

Rolling my pencil between my fingers, I frowned down at my work. This year was going to be so long for me. How was I ever going to be able to get through it? Sighing, I decided to try not to think about it as I got back to my work. Maybe in time I would have an answer, but right then, all I wanted was to survive the day.

BadgeWrongLockerTour Dates: 8/20/14WillPride

Tour Stops: Parker Williams, MM Good Book Reviews, Full Moon Dreaming, SA McAuley, My Fiction Nook, Love Bytes, Prism Book Alliance, LeAnn’s Book Reviews, Will Parkinson, Scattered Thoughts & Rogue Words, Charli Green, Dawn’s Reading Nook, Cate Ashwood, Hearts on Fire, Iyana Jenna, Rainbow Gold Reviews, Inked Rainbow Reads, Trisha Harrington’s Blog, Fallen Angels Review, Rainbow Warriors
Posting on 8/21/14:
Amanda C. Stone

Contest:
Rafflecopter Code: a Rafflecopter giveaway for $10 Amazon gift card and your choice of a pdf formatted eBook from Jackie Nacht’s book list.  Do not have to be 18 years of age as this is a YA novel.

 

A MelanieM Review: Midnight Rodeo: Homecoming by Kiernan Kelly, Julia Talbot, B.A.Tortuga

Rating: 4.75 stars out of 5

Midnight Rodeo Homecoming coverDoes just the thoughts of a rodeo fill you with anticipation of fun, knuckle cracking suspense and danger?  And good looking cowboys too?  What happens when you take all that and add in demons, vampires,  weres of all types, and a ghost or two?  The answer to the last question is Midnight Rodeo: Homecoming ,a collection of three stories by authors Kiernan Kelly, Julia Talbot and BA Tortuga.

The Darque and Knight Rodeo is famous for its wild bulls, great bull riders ,over the top bullfighters and much, much more.  If only the humans who came to watch knew who and what were really behind the gates and stands when this rodeo came to town.  Three stories look into the lives and loves of the Darque and Knight Rodeo. This rodeo is run and employees nothing but Supes as the Supernatural are known, in search of a home, love and a family.

Those stories are Welcome to the Pack by BA Tortuga, Oklahoma Rain by Kiernan Kelly, and Big Bear, Little Bear, by Julia Talbot. Don’t miss out on a single one!

This book checked all the boxes for me.  It’s got the rodeo and cowboys (as such), it’s got  weres (both cat, wolf, and more), vampires, demons, and paranormals…all on the search for love, home, and a family.  It’s also by Kiernan Kelly, BA Tortuga, and Julia Talbot, a trio of authors who always manage to bring it home with their stories and viewpoints.  All three stories are centered around the Darque and Knight Rodeo (love that play on words).

I’ll be taking a look at each story as they appear in the book.  First up? A werewolf homecoming of sorts in “Welcome to the Pack”.

“Welcome to the Pack” by BA Tortuga – 4.75 stars

Bullfighter Denver returns home when his twin brother and pack Alpha, Denton, is killed by a bull at The Darque and Knight Rodeo.  Denver left the pack when it was decided that Denton would be the Alpha and now Denver is returning to reclaim the role and get the pack in order.  It’s been decades since Denver has been back and the pack isn’t all that happy to see him. Denver must fight for the right to be Alpha and try to heal the hole caused by the loss of his brother.  Only another outcast, Blaine, seems to be in his corner.  A necessary support to have when all the bulls they fight are possessed by demons!

My favorite story of the three but not by much.  The universe building here is superb.  I can’t get enough of this rodeo and all the beings that make up this rodeo!  This is a tale of two brothers, really.  One has died by the beginning of the story but Denton’s presence is felt throughout as Denver greatly misses him and is often compared to his brother.  Denver has been working the “mundane” rodeo circuit as humans are called and now returns to his former pack in disarray.  They’ve gotten sloppy, mean, and not exactly welcoming to Denver.  As Denver fights his way back into the pack, he finds a mate and a home.  Along the way the readers finds out such details as there is a caged demon inside of each bull.  I’m sure that many cowboys would find this entirely plausible! The cat shifters, a pride, that runs the cafeteria, food stands, and give massages to those they care for.  I would love a story about that Pride and its members.

Blaine, an outsider by way of his unusual birth and size, is a wonderful character.  I adored him and his relationship with Denver.  This is the longest story of the three and could easily have been its own book.  And series.  Plus there is a Russian tiger shifter, Dimitri, in need of a mate.  I need that story as badly as he does his HEA!  I wonder if BA Tortuga takes bribes?

Oklahoma Rain by Kiernan Kelly – 5 stars

Blaze Morgan  looks like a mundane but he’s not.  Instead Blaze has a hidden psychic talent that allows him to scout out the locations in small towns along the rodeo circuit where Darque and Knight can set up for a while.  Blaze supplies patches when holes appear in the magic wards that kept their real identities masked and the magical nature of their rodeo hidden from the mundanes that buy the tickets at each stop. Blaze even has a talent for mind control but that only applies to the humans he meets and not any Supes he comes into contact with.  That proves to be a problem when Blaze finds a homeless pair hiding out on the deserted farm where Darque and Knight are getting ready to set up for a run.

Zack and 10 year old human Mikey have been using the farm as their home for a while and Blaze’s appearance shattered the temporary home they have made together.  Telekinetic Zack saved Mikey from abusive kidnapper, and the farm has served them both as a place for Mikey to try and heal and a  haven for Zack.  Blaze invites them to join the rodeo as they can always use another psychic but not everyone is happy to have a human child around.

This story got me too.  Loved poor damaged Mikey and his relationship with Zack.  Zack, Blaze and Mikey make a wonderful family but not everyone is happy to have them there.   Kelly builds the suspense and anguish skillfully as she does the love and bonding between the two men and the wounded child.  As it all comes to an explosive ending, the reader is fully engaged and ready to do battle along side Zack, and Blaze to keep their family safe and together.

Loved this story too as so many other types of beings appear here to deepen the universe all three authors are building.  Vampire Cody and Demon Philip own and run Darque and Knight, dragons are used as barrel racers and a single burp can set the tents on fire.  Cheetah shifters and wolf shifters and so many others are bull riders, barrel racers, and more.  There is even a Grand Wizard Dermid who sets the spells that enchant the rodeo to keep it safe. It just keeps getting more fascinating the more you know about it.

Big Bear, Little Bear, by Julia Talbot – 4.5 stars

Grizzly bear shifter Ozzie is the barrel man and clown for Darque and Knight Rodeo. Little Black Bear shifter, Ben, trains and supplies the best rodeo horses while managing on being the worst bulldogger. And Ben has the biggest crush of Ozzie but Ozzie thinks Ben’s too young and inexperienced. Then Ben is badly hurt and sent home to recover. When Ben comes back, Ozzie is surprised how much he has missed the little bear. But there’s something different about Ben, something he’s hiding and Ozzie is determined to get to the truth and let the little bear know how much he cares.

Of course, the barrel man and clown is a Grizzly shifter! How perfect!  And Julia Talbot gets the feel of a bear in human form just right as they lumber along with their love of honey, fruits, and finally each other.  The author brings the natural history of bears into her story in subtle but genuine  ways and it just elevates this story up another notch.  Ben’s injury almost killed him and the ensuing trauma has had enormous side effects, as it should.   Ben’s gentleness and forlorn demeanor plays off beautifully against the jovial good nature and confidence of Ozzie.  They are made for each other and Julia Talbot’s lovely story charts the  path of their romance  from start to finish.  More please, much, much more!

I really adored Midnight Rodeo: Homecoming.  I can only hope that this book is a precursor of more stories to come.  Darque and Knight Rodeo is full of amazing beings, each with their own stories to tell.  How did Philip and Cody get together? A demon and a vamp?  What about Dimitri and the Pride of cat shifters?  Plus there is Denver’s triplet brothers to get in trouble and surely other paranormals that could use a job at a rodeo?  I can think of character after character with a story that needs telling and these three authors are just the ones to do it.

I highly recommend Midnight Rodeo: Homecoming.  Its fun, lively, engrossing….just a great read.  Pick it up and become involved in the lives of the supernatural and paranormal as they find their way to HEA and a home.  You will be happy you did.

Sales Links:  Torquere Press           All Romance eBooks (ARe)              Amazon                    Midnight Rodeo: Homecoming

Cover by Anne Squires.  Love this cover.  I only wish there had been a bit of a supernatural air about it, maybe claws on the hand or something.

Book Details:

ebook, 228 pages
Published July 16th 2014 by Torquere Press
ISBN 1610407776 (ISBN13: 9781610407779)
edition languageEnglish
urlhttp://www.torquerebooks.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=76&products_id=4220

Book Blasting Away with Silvia Violet’s “Say Yes” Book Tour/Contest

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Contest:   Must be 18 years of age or older to enter. Rafflecopter Prize: $10 ARe gift card.  Enter here or use the Rafflecopter link at the end of the post for the entry form and additional contest details.

 

Book Name: Say Yes
Author Name: Silvia Violet

Author Bio: Silvia Violet writes erotic romance in a variety of genres including paranormal, contemporary, sci fi, and historical. She can be found haunting coffee shops looking for the darkest, strongest cup of coffee she can find. Once equipped with the needed fuel, she can happily sit for hours pounding away at her laptop. Silvia typically leaves home disguised as a suburban stay-at-home-mom, and other coffee shop patrons tend to ask her hilarious questions like “Do you write children’s books?” She loves watching the looks on their faces when they learn what she’s actually up to. When not writing, Silvia enjoys baking sinfully delicious treats, exploring new styles of cooking, and reading to her incorrigible offspring.

Say Yes Cover - Silvia Violet

 

 

Title:  Say Yes by Silvia Violet
Cover Artist: Freddy MacKay
Publisher: Silvia Violet Books

Buy Links:  Silvia Violet Books    All Romance (ARe)   Smashwords

Blurb:

Rex Aiken recently started his own business, Grass Fed Texas, supplying organic beef to restaurants and catering companies. When he hosts an event for potential clients at a prestigious hotel in Asheville, the event coordinator, J, impresses him with more than his professional expertise. They indulge in a delicious one night stand, but Rex’s taste of J leaves him wanting more. Rex intends to savor J, and he refuses to see the distance between them as an obstacle. He’ll do whatever is necessary to convince J to say yes.

Excerpt:

“So…um…you’re going to do some sightseeing tomorrow?” Jordan asked.

“I am. I haven’t been to this area since I was a kid, and it’s so beautiful this time of year.”

Jordan nodded. He’d picked up a pen and was rubbing the end of it over his full bottom lip. Rex wanted to replace it with his tongue. Jordan put the pen down and flipped through papers in a folder. When he licked the tip of his finger to help him unstick a few pages, Rex had to cover a groan by turning it into a cough.

Jordan glanced at him quickly before closing the file and slipping it into a drawer. “If there’s anything in particular you’d like to do, I could help you find the best—”

“I’d like to kiss you.” Rex hadn’t meant to be so bold, but he’d never been particularly good at restraining himself. His bluntness had served him well in business and almost as well in his attempts to pick up men.

Jordan made a strangled noise and looked up. “Mr. Aiken, I’m not sure that would…um…”

He looked terrified. Rex realized he was doing the same thing to Jordan that Lucy had done to him—putting him in a position where he could easily believe saying no would affect his job.

“I’m sorry. That was out of line. You did me a favor, and you deserve more respect from me.”

Jordan’s cheeks were now bright red. “I’m not offended, sir. I’m just surprised.”

SayYesBadgeTour Dates: 8/18/14

Tour Stops: Parker Williams, Angel Martinez, Wake Up Your Wild Side, Reviews and Ramblings, MM Good Book Reviews, Amanda C. Stone, Prism Book Alliance, Hearts on Fire, Redz World, Cate Ashwood, Love Bytes, Scattered Thoughts & Rogue Words, Kimi-Chan, Iyana Jenna, Smoocher’s Voice, Because Two Men Are Better Than One, Dawn’s Reading Nook, Fallen Angel Reviews, Inked Rainbow Reads, Romance the Night, Rainbow Gold Reviews, 3 Chicks After Dark, It’s Raining Men, Michael Mandrake, Jade Crystal.

 

 

Contest:  Must be 18 years of age or older to enter,

Rafflecopter Prize: $10 ARe gift card

 

 

 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

WillPride

Review: Queer Dirty Laundry by Jason Lloyd

Rating: 2.75 stars out of 5

Queer Dirty Laundry Cover“In this nonfiction coming of age mini memoir, Kevin and Jason embark on an adventure to Philadelphia to visit friends and to get into their normal hijinks. Along their journey, they confide in each other the only way best friends can; through laughter, love and pain. They share stories of coming out, first time sexual experiences and dramatic events that changed their lives forever. This hilarious and heartfelt journey through the past can only strengthen their friendship in the present.”..Jason Lloyd

I used the author’s blurb for his story because, honestly, this book is hard to describe in plot or category.   Fiction?  Non-fiction?  Jason Lloyd himself calls his book “creative non-fiction” so anyone’s guess would be accurate. It features Jason Lloyd taking a car trip with his best friend Kevin, aka” Monkey”, on their way to a weekend reunion of sorts with some old friends.   Jason Lloyd uses their road trip as the framework for a succession of personal remembrances and flashbacks into his childhood and early adult years.

It all starts in the Prologue, 40 Minutes After.  Jason and Kevin are in route and a tractor trailer is coming at them head on.  Jason’s life passes before his eyes and the flashbacks begin to….exactly 40 minutes before.

Not exactly a bad beginning but shortly after we find out that this is all so much smoke as the truck misses them and they are back on track to make their rendezvous in Philadelphia.

My issues with this story started almost immediately with the arrival of Kevin at Jason’s place.  His “brazen steps” announce Kevin’s presence like a “herd of elephants”.  Loud, heavy, right? Then Kevin appears and “prances” and “frolics” over to the refrigerator.  So heavy and assertive have given way to light and airy?   The word choices here are enough to flummox Funk & Wagnalls.  Kevin himself is no picnic.  Is Kevin real?  A character?  A real character?  Not sure exactly.  However, he is prone to calling people the “F” word, he is unshaven, wearing old Christmas pajama bottoms, a dirty t-shirt without sleeves as Kevin typically cuts off the stained, smelly armpits rather than wash them.  Offensive thy name is Kevin.  And this is someone the reader (and Jason) will spend the entire book with.  I found Kevin and his nigh constant verbal spouting of derogatory terms and epithets not only irritating but repulsive.  And you are in the car with him and Jason for 150 pages.

As they motor down the road, a conversation between them will bring up a memory which is followed by a flashback into Jason’s past.  Whether it is childhood bullies and the nickname Troll from grade school or remembrances of his closeted years, each segment seems to pop in and out without much effect or depth.  And those events should make an emotional impact on both the reader as well as Jason but that never comes across.

In additional to a jumpy flow to the narrative, the reader is also offered up such insights into Jason’s thoughts like this one:

“Bi was just a slippery dick before Homoville.”

This is Jason remembering how he told people he was bi because he wasn’t ready to come all the way out of the closet . Jason figured bi was more palatable. And yes, I can almost see the cringing from some that this sentence causes.  Jason is the narrator here of his own life and freedom of speech certainly applies.  But I found this offensive and I am certain others will too.  But this is one of the less derogatory sentences to appear here.  The “F” word is so liberally thrown around that I thought I must have been at a anti LGBTQ march.  How you feel about that will let you know whether this is the book for you.

And all along the way, there are just plain odd sentences strewn here and there.  Jason says at one point “his voice can no longer make a signal only dogs can hear..” Uh, you don’t make a signal with your voice, you make a sound, signals being, of course, a sign or gesture.  Jason also believes in “fate, kismet, and serendipity.”  Hmmm, one of these things are not like the others as the saying goes but Jason Lloyd appears unaware of that fact. Here is the quote:

I have always been a firm believer that everything happens for a reason. That just maybe the stars hold our fate. I would like to believe in fate. Serendipity. Kismet. I guess I am like a sappy Hallmark card in that way.”

Well, I can hear Hallmark shuddering now.  I would like to think a rather large red pencil and a determined editor could have fixed some of these problems but   honestly, I just don’t know.  I hate being the person who rains on a new author’s parade so to speak but I can’t see any way around it here.  If you are a friend or fan of Jason Lloyd’s, then pick up a copy and see if you appear inside.  But for all others, wait for the next book from Jason Lloyd to be released and give this one a  pass.

Sales Links:  Smashwords  Barnes & Noble        All Romance eBooks      Amazon

Cover art by Jason Lloyd.  The picture is unfocused.  Is that intentional or not? I suspect not as the type font for the title and the author’s name is blurry too.  Poor quality control cheapens the entire design.

Book Details:

ebook, 150 pages
Published June 12th 2014 by Ginge Publishing
ISBN139781310649332
edition languageEnglish