Tag: bisexual

T. Strange is Back with More Zombies with My Zombie Fiance’ (excerpt and giveaway)

My Zombie Fiance 1000x400

Author: T. Strange

Title:  My Zombie Fiancé

Series Title and Number: The Undead Canadian Series #2

Publisher:  Torquere Press

Cover Artist: Kris Norris

Release Date:  July 13th, 2016

Heat Level: 2

Pairing: Male/Male

Length:  63,000 words

Genre: Urban Fantasy, Paranormal Romance, Horror, Gay Romance, Bisexual, Humor

Add to Goodreads

My Zombie Fiance Cover

Synopsis

Edward Grey is no stranger to the undead; since raising his cat as a zombie when he was a child, he and his mentor Mariel have explored and developed his power as a necromancer. Despite everything he’s learned, as a necromancer and a medical student, he’s never encountered a ghost.

While Mariel is unreachable in Haiti on mysterious business, a ghost wakes Edward in the middle of the night, claiming to be his grandfather. When the ghost offers to teach him about this different form of undeath, Edward has little choice but to trust the spirit.

After receiving a phone call from a young girl claiming her father is possessed, Edward and his Undead Canadian fiancé, Kit, must travel to an acreage in Kingston…Ontario.

The haunting proves far more complicated than Edward could ever have guessed, and he finds himself pitted against an ancient evil determined to engulf everyone on the farm.

Edward’s love and connection to Kit will be tested, and his necromancy stretched to his limits as he has to find—and destroy—a twisted spirit more powerful than anything he’s ever encountered.

Excerpt

“Edward, answer the phone.” In our hurry to undress so we could ‘get Kit to sleep’, my phone had ended up on Kit’s side of the bed. He passed it to me, narrowly avoiding smacking me in the face with it. Miraculously, it was still ringing.

 

“’lo?” I managed.

“Is this Edward?”

It was a little girl’s voice, I thought. I didn’t know many little girls, so I made my best guess.

“Tia? It’s the middle of the night; I can’t come over to play right now. Isn’t it way past your bedtime? Go to bed. Bed is nice.” I closed my eyes, almost dropping the phone when my hand relaxed.

My neighbor two houses down has a very precocious four-year-old niece. She likes to play actual doctor with me—nothing creepy! I’ve taught her a few basic stitches for fixing her toys and dolls, though I suspect she may damage them on purpose so she can practice with me. Whoops. I also let her use my stethoscope and a few other safe, child-friendly pieces of medical equipment. I’ve heard her tell her aunt she wants to go to uncle Edward’s house, so I also suspect at least part of the reason she visits her aunt is to see me.

“Who’s Tia? This is Sarah. Mariel said that I should call you if it happened again. It happened again.” There was an expectant pause.

I don’t know anyone named Sarah, never mind a young girl. “Mariel told you to…? In case what happened again?”

“My daddy’s possessed,” she said, very calmly and matter-of-factly.

I felt goosebumps prickle along my arms at the word. I knew precisely as much about demonic possession as anyone who’d watched The Exorcist, and I had no idea what had, well…possessed…Mariel to refer this girl to me for help. “What exactly did Mariel say?”

The girl, Sarah, sighed deeply. She probably thought I was pretty slow, and at the moment I couldn’t blame her. “She said, call Edward, he’ll know what to do.” She sounded impatient, but not frightened. Maybe her father was possessed by something more benign than a demon.

Mariel had told her I could help, so I would do my best. Even though it was 3 AM and I knew nothing about possession. “What’s your daddy possessed by?” Not words I ever thought would come out of my mouth.

“Mister Jenkins.”

Mister Jenkins. That didn’t sound very frightening. “And what does Mister Jenkins do while he’s possessing your father?” Had she named the…spirit? It sounded like something a child might come up with.

“Not very much. He makes breakfast.” She lowered her voice. “Mister Jenkins is a better cook than daddy.”

Not much of a haunting, if movies were anything to go by. I envisioned a comedy, sort of like Three Men and a Baby, but with a ghost. Besides the one apparently caught on tape when they’d filmed that movie, come to think of it. “Does he…scare you?”

She laughed, high-pitched and genuine. “No, silly! I like Mister Jenkins, but Mariel says it’s bad for daddy if he stays too long.”

This was one of the strangest conversations I’d ever had, and I’ve lived with Kit for more than a year. And I’d dated Bone. It was even stranger than my recent conversation with my grandfather. “Where do you live, Sarah?” If there was a way to do an exorcism-by-telephone, I didn’t know it. Not that I knew any kind of exorcism, but hopefully I had enough time to find a solution before Mister Jenkins…burned toast or something. Maybe I could come up with something if I was physically present.

“Kingston.”

I had to go to Jamaica? If Mariel was in Haiti, she was much closer. I didn’t know why she didn’t just pop over and take care of Mister Jenkins.

Kit would love a tropical vacation—I wondered if his fair skin would tan or burn, or if his undeath made him immune? I wondered if he would be upset about it, one way or the other.

I was less than thrilled by the thought of the tropics. I don’t like heat, or the diseases that tend to accompany it.

“It’s in Ontario,” Sarah said, sounding very pleased with herself.

Oh. Kingston, Ontario. That was a relief, even if it was black fly season.

Great, now I’d have that song stuck in my head for days.

“Okay, I’ll be there as soon as I can. Can you tell me your address?” I would have to fly—driving would take several days, even if Kit and I switched and we drove continuously.

“No, but Mister Jenkins can.”

Her voice was replaced by a man’s, gentle and with a hint of a British accent. Part of his directions were, “Past Kingston Family Funworld”, which definitely sounded like a place to avoid. He apologized that he couldn’t meet me at the airport because he was bound to the house.

That was a good excuse. I wished I could use it.

My grandfather hadn’t been bound to a particular place, but he had reminded me over and over that he wasn’t a typical ghost. I wondered if most ghosts had a limited range, or if Mister Jenkins was unusual in that regard.

I told him I’d call when we landed, and he hung up.

I turned on my bedside lamp. “Kit, sweetie?” I poked him, gently.

“Mmm…”

“I have to go to Kingston.” It was a good thing I had a few weeks off from school. Hopefully I would get time to study during this trip. Study medicine, that is, not necromancy.

That got Kit’s attention. He gave a happy shriek and grabbed my hand. “Oh my God, no way! I’d love to go to Jamaica!”

“Kingston, Ontario.”

“Oh. Ew.”

“Why ew? Have you ever been there?”

“I don’t think so.”

“Then why—never mind. Do you still want to come with me?”

“Who calls you at three in the morning and tells you to go to Kingston, Ontario?”

“Sarah.”

He raised an eyebrow.

“I’m sorry! I’m still half asleep. This little girl, Sarah…Mariel told her to call me if her father got possessed again.”

“Mariel’s father? Is that why she left?”

“Sarah’s father.”

“Possessed again? Like, this is a regular occurrence?”

“Apparently. I have to book a flight.” I hunted beneath the bed for my laptop.

Kit had found his phone and was furiously typing on it. “Oooooh, Florence and the Machine is playing there! We can totally go!”

“Sure. Of course.” I found a flight that left early the next morning—in a few hours, really—and bought our tickets. “I don’t know if it’s worth going back to sleep; I’ll make us some coffee.” Not that coffee did much for Kit, except make him ill if he drank too much. Or, for some reason, if he used non-dairy creamer. It seemed to be some sort of…zombie kryptonite. I’d like to tell you I didn’t give some to Boo to see how he’d react, but I would be lying. The results: not pretty.

“What about the cats?”

Of course, the cats couldn’t come with us. While Winston could happily stay at the pet spa while we were gone, Boo could…not, and if we had someone taking care of one cat, it made sense for Winston to just stay at home. I felt a pang at the thought of being away from Boo for any length of time. “My parents can take care of them.” They wouldn’t be pleased—they’d actually thrown a “Boo is out of the house” party when I’d moved out, but they’d also get to spend time with Winston, and that was always a treat.

“I guess I’ll start packing. For both of us.”

He was welcome to do so.

In the meantime, it was definitely time to call Mariel. I wasn’t sure what time it was in Haiti, but I could definitely use her advice. For several panicked minutes I was worried that I’d lost the piece of paper she’d written the number on, when I remembered that she’d put it directly into my phone. I let it ring, over and over, but no one answered so I eventually gave up. Well, if Sarah had been able to get ahold of Mariel, she wouldn’t have needed to call me. Though she probably didn’t have Mariel’s number in Haiti…I’d just have to deal with the situation on my own for now, and call Mariel again when I had the chance.

Purchase

Torquere Press

My Zombie Fiance Square
Meet the Author

Strange didn’t want to learn how to read, but literacy prevailed and she hasn’t stopped reading—or writing—since. She’s been published with Torquere Press since 2013, and she writes M/M romance in multiple genres, including paranormal and BDSM. T.’s other interests include cross stitching, gardening, watching terrible horror movies, playing video games, and finding injured pigeons to rescue. Originally from White Rock, BC, she lives on the Canadian prairies, where she shares her home with her wife, cats, guinea pigs and other creatures of all shapes and sizes. She’s very easy to bribe with free food and drinks—especially wine.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/tq.strange

Facebook Author Page: https://www.facebook.com/AuthorTStrange

Twitter: https://twitter.com/TqStrange

Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/tqstrange/

Blog: http://tqstrange.blogspot.ca/

Tumblr: http://tqstrange.tumblr.com/

Giveaway

Rafflecopter Prize: One winner will be selected to win an eBook copy of My Zombie Fiance.

a Rafflecopter giveaway
https://widget-prime.rafflecopter.com/launch.js

Blog Button 2

Book Blitz – Cinnamon and Cigarettes by Samantha Kate (excerpt and giveaway)

Cinnamon and Cigarettes Banner

Title: Cinnamon and Cigarettes

Author: Samantha Kate

Publisher: Torquere Press

Cover Artist: Kris Norris

Release Date: June 1, 2016

Heat Level: 3

Pairing: F/F

Length: 88,800 words

Genre/Tags: Contemporary, Bisexual, Lesbian Romance, New Adult

Add to Goodreads

cinnamonandcigarettes1400

Synopsis

Sara Clarke, recent college grad, is sweet, demure, and cautious in all things, but especially romance—until she meets Moira Estrada, a bold amateur pilot and patron at the library where Sara works. Their intimacy blooms rapidly as they share everything from a sudden medical emergency to Christmas with the Estrada family. With her dashing new girlfriend by her side, Sara learns to overcome some of her greatest fears, whether they be acknowledging her own bisexuality, flying across the sky in a Cessna, or falling in love for the first time.

But Sara’s fear of confrontation is harder to conquer. When asked about her relationship, she finds herself lying to her family, pretending to date a man so she can avoid conflict with her straight-laced and image-conscious parents. But her attempts to please everyone cannot last forever and could result in far worse than her parents’ disapproval: she might lose the respect of her new friends at the library, or become estranged from her sister—or, worst of all, Sara might lose the only person she’s ever truly loved.

Excerpt

Moira pulled her key-ring out of her pocket, plucking out a large silver key from her collection. “Fasten your seat belt. We’re starting the engine now.”

She inserted the key; the plane gave a small lurch as the engine burst to life beneath Sara’s feet, and the propeller began to spin. This engine was nothing like the smooth start of a car; it ignited with a roar, like a motorcycle gunning to maximum velocity, and within moments that sound was pierced with sharp, rhythmic bursts from the propeller’s increasing oscillation. The sound was cacophonous; Sara put her hands to her ears, to block out a fraction of the din.

Amid the noise, she heard Moira speaking into her microphone. “Fairways Air Control, this is Lamassu. Oil pressure gauge is green, transponder is on. Are you receiving transmission?…Okay, thank you. Requesting permission to taxi to Runway Three…You’re the man, sir.”

Sara smiled faintly at her pilot. Moira’s combination of aviation jargon and casual slang was, admittedly, really endearing. So was the way her eyes widened as she scanned the blinking lights and bright monitors in front of her, grinning gleefully, looking simultaneously mischievous and reverent.

“Hang on,” Moira said, removing one hand from the controller and fumbling around by her feet. “I forgot to give you your intercom.” She withdrew another pair of headphones, handing them over. “These will help with the noise.”

Sara put on her headphones; the cacophony was quelled into the distance, now just a background ambiance. In the forefront now was Moira’s voice, smooth and sanguine, every word spoken directly in Sara’s ears.

“Removing parking brake now,” Moira said, a hand reaching out to pull the brake knob near Sara’s knee. The plane slid forward, and Sara gulped, hoping to keep her stomach from lurching as well. “Beginning taxi.”

They slid along the main “road” at a slow crawl. Sara noted each white stripe that passed by until they’d arrived at one of the runways; they did a slow 90-degree turn until they faced the open road. It was barely wide enough to accommodate the plane’s wings, and the forest was perhaps a mile ahead. Was that really enough space for them to take off? Even in such a small aircraft? Wouldn’t it take a massive amount of acceleration to lift them into the air? Was this even possible? Was it—

“Trim and flaps set,” said the voice in Sara’s ear, shaking her out of her fretting. Moira had a more “official” tone now, like one might hear over an automated line, with measured rising and falling inflections. “Engine temperature normal. Wingtip strobes on. Airspeed indicator reads zero.”

Sara fidgeted with the boom mic on her headphones. “That’s a lot of things to know about,” she whispered into it.

Moira turned her head, smiled, and put one hand on Sara’s knee. “That it is. But I’ve had my license for almost four years now, and if I were a shit pilot, they wouldn’t let me waltz back in those doors.” She grinned. “I’m going to bring you home safe, Sara. I promise.”

Sara nodded slowly.

“Okay,” Moira continued, pulling her hand back and gripping the throttle, “Lamassu departing now.”

She pushed the throttle in, gradually but firmly, and they lurched forward, slowly at first, but soon they were gathering speed—the pine trees lining the runway lost the detail of their branches and needles, and soon they were a blur of dark teal and mossy green, punctuated by open field—and Sara’s stomach was shoved down and back into the seat; she felt like where she once had flesh and sinew and blood there was now only a void, an empty space filling itself with nothing but the rush of incoming air—

“Okay, Sara, we’re going to lift off—now!”

Sara hadn’t known what it was like to lose the ground beneath her until this moment, when Lamassu’s nose flicked up and an anchor tied around her feet her whole life came undone, evaporated, dissipated into the afternoon sunlight—she realized it existed only when it ceased to exist. Suddenly there was space around her in every direction; she was now bound by nothing. The seat belt wrapped snug around her waist, the windshield ahead, the pane of glass a few inches from her right cheek—they seemed trivial, insignificant, incapable of truly binding her when the space beneath her feet was exponentially expanding.

“You’ve taken flight, dear.”

Soon the white lines beneath them vanished as well, as the runway shrank down, becoming a tiny part of a tiny complex that was quickly passing beneath and behind, no longer required, no longer relevant. She needed nothing in the air, only that constant whir of propeller oscillation, the humming of the engine, and the whipping of wind through the microscopic crack between the window and the fuselage. She almost thought she might float above her own seat, no longer subject to earth’s gravitational force.

“How are you feeling?”

Even Moira’s voice was distant now.

“I’m fine,” she said, in a tone that was half hummed, half spoken. She reached one hand up to the windowpane, tracing random curves along the glass with a couple of fingers. “I…I’m flying.”

“That you are.” Moira dropped her professional tone, her voice wrapping snugly around Sara’s head again. “And how does it feel?”

Even the trees were shrinking away now, becoming indistinct clusters of viridian mixed with a soft palette of mossy and earthy hues, separated by strips of gray asphalt drawing mechanical grids along the earth. She looked ahead, and for the first time took in the sky; its cerulean blue spread out infinitely across the horizon, accented with a few wispy cirrus clouds and an occasional burst of gold light reflecting from nearby lakes.

“It’s liberating.”

“Perfect.” Moira pressed a few more buttons, and the plane gently pitched forward, sliding into a consistent altitude. Within a few minutes they leveled off, thousands of feet above the earth, the bustling metropolis a mere memory behind them.

Purchase

Torquere Press

Cinnamon and Cigarettes Square

Meet the Author

Samantha Kate works as a paralibrarian (that’s library support staff) for her day job. In her free time, she tries to pursue more creative projects than is humanly possible. Cinnamon and Cigarettes is her first novel; her short story, “Bottom of the River,” was published in Torquere Press’ Twisted Fables anthology in February 2016.

Facebook | Twitter | Blog | Goodreads | Pinterest | Tumblr

Giveaway

Rafflecopter Prize: One winner will be selected to win an eBook copy of Cinnamon and Cigarettes.

a Rafflecopter giveaway
https://widget-prime.rafflecopter.com/launch.js

Blog Button 2

Coffee Sip and Book Break with Carrie Pack’s ‘In The Present Tense’ (excerpt and giveaway)

In the Present Tense 1600px (Smashwords, Amazon)

In The Present Tense by Carrie Pack
 Release Date: May 19, 2016

Goodreads Link
Publisher: Interlude Press
Cover Artist: CB Messer

*******

Today Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words is lucky to be interviewing Carrie Pack author of In the Present Tense. Hi Carrie, thank you for agreeing to this interview. Tell us a little about yourself, your background, and your current book.

I’m thrilled to be here and share my new release with you. In the Present Tense explores the impact of mental illness on those we love through the lens of contemporary science fiction. My main character, Miles, has a condition similar to dissociative identity disorder that causes him to time travel and it causes all sorts of trouble in his personal life.

  • Why do you write?

I write because I love the written word. I love the way language ebbs and flows over time. I love the way you can create poetry, songs, prose, nonfiction, and a dozen other types of writing with the same 26 letters of the alphabet. I love the way other languages worm their way into English. I am a shameless abuser of puns and I’ve always been fascinated by a writer’s ability to craft a well-turned phrase. I became a writer because I wanted to be one of those people.

  • Which of your books was the most difficult to write?

Definitely In the Present Tense. There was a sense that I was writing a “Book” this time. Whereas my first novel was written without the intent of publishing it, this go around, I had a contract before the first chapter was written. I also had to do a lot of research because I wanted to make sure I respected my topic. I have characters who are mentally ill and it’s very important to me that I treat that properly.

  • Give us an insight into your main character. What does he/she do that is so special?

He time travels, which is pretty unique, but that particular characteristic causes a lot of problems for him. One of the themes of this book is how varying degrees of mental illness affect those around us. Obviously, Miles’s illness is extreme, but nearly all my characters have varying degrees of mental health disorders. Miles has an amazing ability to use his mental illness as a tool to help him understand his own mistakes, though. So he tries to fix his past, and, of course, that changes his future.

  • How much research do you do for your books?

I always do some research. For my first book, Designs On You, my research was my early career as a graphic designer. For In the Present Tense, I read books and articles on dissociative identity disorder to make Miles’s condition as realistic as possible. And right now I’m working on a novel set during the Riot Grrrl movement of the early ‘90s. Research for that is fun. I’m reading back issues of zines and listening to lots of punk music.

  • Who designs your covers?

The lovely and talented CB Messer at Interlude Press is art director for all the IP covers and she frequently designs a lot of the covers as well. She was the artist for mine and it just so happens to be one of my favorite covers she’s ever done. I’m so lucky.

**********

Blurb

Miles Lawson goes to sleep dreaming of a future with his boyfriend Adam, but wakes to find he is married to Ana, an acquaintance from high school. When he learns he has been time traveling, Miles is consumed with finding a cure for his rare condition—and finding his first love. But will he be able to convince Adam he is telling the truth before it’s too late?

 

Pages or Words: 336 pages
 Categories: Bisexual, Contemporary, Fiction, Gay Fiction, Romance, Science Fiction

Excerpt

Miles sat there and tried to make out shapes and colors in the dark room as he searched his brain for a memory of anything.

Nothing looked familiar. His desk, his drum set, the sheets—all gone. Not one thing looked the way it had when he’d fallen asleep, and Ana certainly hadn’t been in his bed.

He tried to replay the previous day’s events, but everything seemed fuzzy, like a fogged bathroom mirror that he couldn’t wipe clean.

Why was everything so fuzzy?

Last night… What happened last night?

Adam had come over and they were watching TV together, and Adam had given him a small stuffed giraffe because Miles was scared about having surgery. He reached for his left arm, expecting to find the cast that had been there for the last two months, but it wasn’t there. His heart began to beat so loudly he glanced over at Ana to make sure she was still asleep.

Unable to determine what had happened to his cast, Miles resumed his tally of the previous evening’s chain of events. At around ten-thirty, his mom said Adam had to leave because they had to get up early to go to the hospital. He had taken his pain meds and gone to sleep with the phantom of Adam’s goodnight kiss on his cheek. He’d been happy.

He’d gotten a text from Ana earlier in the evening, but she was only wishing him luck with the surgery. She hadn’t come over. In fact, as far as Miles knew, Ana had been several hours away in her dorm room.

So how had she gotten into his bedroom? And who had changed his sheets?

He threw off the covers and stood up, noticing he was only wearing a tight-fitting pair of boxer briefs instead of his usual basketball shorts.

He looked around the room for anything familiar, but it was still dark out, and all he could see were shadows and vague shapes. On the dresser opposite the bed, he found a few framed photos. Squinting to see without turning on a light, Miles studied the images carefully.

As his eyes focused, he recognized a couple of the photos. One was from last year’s prom: Adam wearing that ridiculous corsage Miles had bought him, Ana being dipped by her date, David, as all four of them smiled widely in front of a cheesy faux tropical scene. One of the frames held a collage of photos of his and Ana’s friends. He recognized Adam, Lucky, Antonio, Dahlia and Brienne. But the last one, the largest of all the photos, was of him and Ana—her in a flowing white dress and him in a black suit, both wearing broad smiles and flanked by Miles’s parents and a woman Miles had only seen once: Julia Espinosa, Ana’s mother.

A loud clatter echoed through the bedroom as the frame hit the edge of the dresser and fell to the hardwood floor. This wasn’t his room, and he didn’t remember that photo being taken.

“Go back to sleep,” Ana mumbled, her voice muffled by the pillow.

“Ana,” he whispered, risking her full anger, but unable to stop himself, “we’re married.”

“Thanks for the update. Now go back to sleep before I divorce your dumb ass.”

He dropped to the floor on his knees, barely even noticing the sharp pain of bare skin hitting the hard surface.

Married. To Ana?

What the hell had happened?

 

Buy the book:

 

 

 

Meet the Author:

Carrie Pack is the author of Designs On You and a part-time college professor who recently left her job in marketing to actively pursue her writing career. Carrie lives in Florida, which she fondly calls America’s Wang, with her husband and four cats.

Where to find the author:

 


Tour Dates & Stops:

19-May: Sinfully Addicted to All Male Romance, Oh My Shelves, Happily Ever Chapter

20-May: The Novel Approach, Scattered Thoughts & Rogue Words, Velvet Panic, Havan Fellows

23-May: Anna Butler Fiction, Outrageous Heroes, Alpha Book Club, Jessie G. Books

24-May: Unquietly Me, Dawn’s Reading Nook, BFD Book Blog

25-May: Inked Rainbow Reads, Divine Magazine, Boys on the Brink Reviews

26-May: Love Bytes, Louise Lyons, A.M. Leibowitz

27-May: My Fiction Nook, Elisa – My Reviews and Ramblings

30-May: Bayou Book Junkie, MM Good Book Reviews

31-May: Wicked Faerie’s Tales and Reviews, TTC Books and More

1-Jun: Prism Book Alliance, Molly Lolly

In the Present Tense banner

Giveaway

Enter to win a $25 Interlude Press Gift Card.  Must be 18 years of age or older.

 

a Rafflecopter giveaway
https://widget-prime.rafflecopter.com/launch.js

The Devils Pride MCs are Riding Back with Talk Dirty to Me by Jessie G. (author interview, excerpt and giveaway)

Talk Dirty To Me - Final - 400 x 600

Talk Dirty to Me (Devils Pride MC #2) by Jessie G.
 Release Date: Mid-March (around March 15, 2016)

Goodreads Link
Publisher: Jessie G. Books Inc.
Cover Artist: Andrew Reyna, Dynamic Craft Studios

Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words is lucky to be interviewing Jessie G author of Talk Dirty to Me. Hi Jessie, thank you for agreeing to this interview.

**********

Thank you so much for hosting me and my boys.

  • How do you develop your plots and characters? I’m not really sure. My very first book, Past Hurts, came to me in a dream and it’s been a snowball effect ever since. Each new character that appears on page is a surprise and I take the time to get to know them. Once I know I want to write their story, I listen to what they tell me, ask questions, dig and let it unfolds. Each book has led to the next, one series spawned another, so I see it more as an evolution than something I’ve consciously done.
  • Who doesn’t love a good hero? Tell us about your protagonist. Was there a real life inspiration behind them? Snake is everything you want in a big bad undercover agent biker. He’s tall, built like a brick shithouse, he’ll do anything to get the job done and he loves Greg hard. He has no problem getting his hands dirty, encourages his lover to be exactly who he is and not who he thinks he needs to be, and has a strong sense of family even though he once considered himself a lone wolf.
  • What real-life inspirations do you use when world building? My books currently take place in Florida (Miami, Ft. Myers, Tampa, and Orlando). I live here, so I have the details to make it look real, but I take creative license to fit the story. After the release of Talk Dirty to Me, I had a local reader message me from the same breakfast spot Snake and Greg eat at. I thought that was the coolest thing ever.
  • Did you learn anything from this book and what was it? This book made me take a closer look at perceptions—how we perceive ourselves vs how the people who love us perceive us. Greg doesn’t think he’s much of a catch in the looks department, he’s nervous and awkward, and a bit of a nerd. Why would a smoking hot, bad ass biker want him? But Snake loves the whole of him and doesn’t see any of the things Greg dislikes about himself.
  • It’s your last meal on earth. What do you choose? Pechuga de Pollo, Ropa Vieja, Lomo Saltado, Guac and Chips – yeah, just prop me up at a Latin buffet and back away.

Blurb

As a secret agent for the DEA, Snake’s gone deep into Devils Pride MC with the hope of bringing down the head of Miami’s lucrative drug trade and finds himself saddled with the club’s volatile and secretive SA instead. Unfortunately, after years as partners doing shit neither of them wanted to do for reasons neither of them felt comfortable sharing, Snake considers Trick his best friend. Now he’ll do anything to repair the damage his own necessary lies did to their friendship because, while Trick may have walked away from the MC, Snake needs someone he trusts to have his back.

Meanwhile, Snake’s contact at the DEA has him tied up in knots. The sexy voice and inappropriate comments have him walking around with a permanent set of blue balls. Life undercover is lonely and he lives for every phone call, but his own personal Deep Throat is skittish about committing to a date once Snake returns to headquarters. As far as Snake’s concerned, they only have one shot to build something together and he’s not willing to waste it.

Greg knows he’s not Snake’s type, or anyone’s for that matter. Former love interests called him plain, chubby, and boring. More comfortable in his tech cave than with people, he’s a grade A nerd who isn’t exactly GQ material. Normally he would never be brave enough to flirt with anyone—much less the very hot and very dangerous ginger who’d been starring in his nightly fantasies—but Snake needed something to keep him from getting lost undercover. What started out as a helping hand quickly became an integral part of their relationship—if one could call a five year phone conversation a relationship—and Greg is terrified that once Snake’s sees the wizard behind the curtain, he’ll lose the only man he’s ever loved.

Now the DEA has called Snake home to plan the next stage of the mission, leaving Greg no more places to hide. When fantasy and reality collide, will it be everything Snake hopes for or everything Greg fears? The trick will be staying alive long enough to figure out the answer.

 

Pages or Words: 78,000 words
Series must be read in order
 Categories: Bisexual, Contemporary, Erotica, M/M Romance, Mystery, Romance (Please note: Snake’s bisexuality is only mentioned. It is not gone into.)

 

Excerpt

Knowing what Gene needed before he actually asked was what made them a good team and his growing personal feelings aside, he believed they worked well together. Greg also knew Gene felt the same way because he never failed to show his appreciation. “Thanks, Sunshine, I knew I could count on you. So, tell me how the move to Tampa’s going?”

Greg sighed and leaned back in his chair to look at the ceiling. He had been working at the DC office since joining the agency and while he enjoyed the work, DC was a stressful place to live. He’d adapted just as he’d done when he went to MIT in Cambridge, but it wasn’t his first choice. When the request to transfer and be closer to the undercover operation he’d been devoting ninety percent of his time to came in, he jumped at it even though he questioned his superior’s motives.

But moving was stressful, fitting in with new coworkers more so, and doing both while keeping up with Gene’s needs was damn near exhausting. It was worth it, but he was more tired than he ever remembered being and none of that was Gene’s problem. As an undercover agent in an outlaw motorcycle club, he had more important things to worry about, so Greg downplayed the stress he’d been under. “Florida’s better than DC, that’s for sure.”

“But?” Gene asked knowingly and Greg sighed. He should have known better than to think he could bluff his answer. They’d been talking multiple times a day for almost a year. If there was anyone who could tell just by the tone of his voice what he was feeling, it was Gene.

“When I first got this assignment, it seemed odd that I wasn’t immediately transferred to a closer office. Not that location really mattered in the past, but our partnership was a first in the agency. Normally, undercover agents have full use of the entire Intelligence Division and everyone in ID works together so nothing falls through the cracks.” Maybe he was becoming more like Gene, because he was seeing shadows everywhere lately. “That didn’t happen and it obviously wasn’t necessary because I was able to do whatever you needed from DC. So why, out of nowhere, did Crockett and Stimer request me in the Tampa office? If they wanted me closer to your operation, why not Fort Myers or even the Miami office?”

Gene didn’t immediately respond and Greg knew he was choosing his words. Lately, they’d begun to wonder if someone within the agency, or any branch of law enforcement, was working with Durango. Crooked agents were an unfortunate fact of life and the more information he uncovered about Durango and the MC, the more things didn’t add up. Namely, putting an agent in what they had to know would be a long term undercover operation only to bitch about how long it was taking him to get the job done. It was like they were setting him up for failure and that didn’t sit well with Greg at all.

He was fully invested in doing the best job he could and that was only solidified by the growing personal feelings he was developing for Gene. The last thing Greg wanted was to see him get burned by the agency they both joined in the hopes of doing something good.

“I can hear those wheels turning from here, but we both know how dangerous it is for you to go poking around into Crockett or Stimer. You’re the new face in the office so you have no allies you can trust. If anyone catches wind of what you’re doing…”

“They won’t.” Greg wanted to sneer at the suggestion that he didn’t know how to cover his tracks. The only thing that stopped him was the knowledge that Gene cared about the risks he might be taking. That concern was a foreign concept that he didn’t know how to deal with. “I know how to hide a trail, Gene.”

“I don’t doubt your abilities for a second,” Gene assured, taking the wind out of any potential argument between them. “I just don’t want to see you get hurt. If Crockett or Stimer or someone else has a hidden agenda, you’ll find it in the work we’re already doing. You’re already cherry picking the information you put in the files, already deciding what they can and can’t be trusted with, right?”

“Yes,” Greg grudgingly admitted. He just didn’t know if those precautions were enough.

Gene chuckled at his tone. “You and I both know if they’re in any way involved in Durango’s business, if they’re doing anything to hinder the case, you’ll uncover it in the intelligence you’re already gathering. I know it’s not enough, but I’m already in play and there’s no way to step back now. If you go digging and someone catches wind of it, you paint a target on both our backs.”

Which was the only reason he hadn’t already gone digging and why he was coming clean now. The very last thing he wanted to do was make Gene’s job more dangerous than it already was. “Fine.”

Gene laughed at him again and he found himself pulling up a photo of the agent. It was unfair how good looking the man was. Tall, broad, scruffy, with piercing eyes and a strong chin, and lips made for doing sinful things. Gene was all of Greg’s weakness wrapped up in a hard body that made his fingers itch to touch.

A soft sigh and the sound of a bed creaking brought his attention back to their conversation. “I’m done thinking about this for tonight. Tell me something good before we hang up.”

Buy the book:

 

BannerTemplate

Meet the author:

Like many readers, the dream of being a writer has been with me a long time. After three decades of trying, I’d begun to doubt. Thanks to social media, I followed my favorite authors hoping to glean some words of wisdom as I pounded out half-formed ideas with alarming regularity. Two repetitive themes emerged: to be a great writer you must read a lot and your butt must be in the chair every day like it’s a job. The more you write, the easier it will be to write and the better you will be at writing. I took that advice to heart and write every day. With three series in the works and a full schedule of releases planned for the next two years, it’s been amazing to have made this dream my reality.

I am a firm believer in marriage equality, love at first sight, power dynamics, and happily ever after. I’m a lover of strong secondary characters, and series filled with families—biological or chosen. All are themes you’ll find throughout my books.

Where to find the author:

Author Pages:

 

RC
Tour Dates & Stops:

14-Mar: Sassygirl Books, Carly’s Book Reviews

16-Mar: Wicked Faerie’s Tales and Reviews

18-Mar: Fangirl Moments and My Two Cents, Foxylutely Book Reviews

21-Mar: Alpha Book Club

23-Mar: V’s Reads

25-Mar: The Dark Arts

28-Mar: Oh My Shelves

30-Mar: Happily Ever Chapter, The Hat Party

1-Apr: 3 Chicks After Dark, Velvet Panic, MM Good Book Reviews

4-Apr: Full Moon Dreaming, Outrageous Heroes, Mikky’s World of Books, Nephy Hart,

Elisa – My Reviews and Ramblings, Book Lovers 4Ever. Scattered Thoughts & Rogue Words,

Up All Night, Read All Day

6-Apr: Man2ManTastic, The Novel Approach

8-Apr: Two Chicks Obsessed With Books and Eye Candy, Joyfully Jay

11-Apr: A.M. Leibowitz

13-Apr: Divine Magazine, Unquietly Me

15-Apr: Bonkers About Books

18-Apr: Kirsty Loves Books

20-Apr: Cathy Brockman Romances

22-Apr: Dawn’s Reading Nook, MM Book Escape

25-Apr: Molly Lolly, Books A to Z

27-Apr: Prism Book Alliance

29-Apr: Love Bytes, My Fiction Nook,

2-May: TTC Books and More, Bayou Book Junkie

4-May: Book Reviews and More by Kathy, Inked Rainbow Reads, Hearts on Fire, Making It Happen,

Because Two Men Are Better Than One

6-May: BFD Book Blog, Multitasking Mommas

Final

Giveaway

Enter to win.  Must be 18 years of age or older  to enter.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
https://widget-prime.rafflecopter.com/launch.js

A.C. Katt’s The Sarrans Series Continues with The Sarran Senator (excerpt and giveaway)

The_Sarran_Senator_400x600

The Sarran Senator (The Sarrans #4) by A.C. Katt
 Release Date: March 27, 2016

Goodreads Link
Publisher: JMS Books

 

Blurb

The Sarrans return home from Earth in triumph, having gained many new Earthen fems, coffee, chocolate, and cats.

Senator Samuel Johnson joins his grandson Michael, his daughter Sara, and her WarriorPair on Sarran. To his delighted surprise, he bonds irrevocably with Tarin, one of Sarran’s top engineers. Tarin had been bonded before and thought he would never experience a bond again, yet Sam’s love gives him a new lease on life. Now they only hope the Goddess has a fem for them.

Then the Sarran Elders host a mixer for Sarran warriors to meet the Earthen fems. Margaret Mary O’Neil, Meg to her friends, is a talented woman who fled to Sarran like so many Earth women looking for a new life. When she meets Sam and Tarin, her life changes forever.

But while things are looking up for the Sarrans, with new babies being born and WarriorPairs settling down, their enemy the Zyptz are relentless in their efforts to wipe them out. When the Zyptz attack both Sarran and Earth, the mutual dependence between the two becomes ever more evident.

 

Pages or Words: 50,531 words
 Categories: Bisexual, Fantasy, Fiction, Gay Fiction, Ménage, Paranormal, Romance, Science Fiction

Excerpt

::We will need to get our promise rings and Asta glasses, but we can decide where to live and get our rings and glasses later. Right now I want you under me.:: Tarin pushed Sam’s shoulders down into the softness of the couch pillows. Sam turned on his side so they faced each other.

::I foolishly didn’t bother to ask, although I should have consulted Mark, but now that I’ve taken the vial, does my equipment work the same way?::

::Yes and no. Externally you will see the slick that pours from under your foreskin. This enables one of us to penetrate the other and our fem without pain when we bond. Internally, there will be a type of a tube, a Secondary Sperm Valve that connects your channel to the seminal vesicle in your partner. When a Sarran Warrior receives sperm from his bonded, it opens the valve. The sperm goes through the valve to connect to the seminal vesicle where they mix with the sperm of your bonded. It is only when they mix that we can impregnate our fem. Our offspring are born with half of our fem’s DNA and one-quarter of each of ours. After we form the bond with our fem, we may make penetrative love with her or without her, as the Triad chooses.::

::I feel foolish asking for such basic information. I had the whole voyage to research this aspect of Sarran physiology. I was concentrating on helping Michael adjust to Sara’s Warriors.::

::You did the right thing, my fox. From the holos you showed me, Michael had reason to be wary.::

::Now I feel like a pre-pubescent offspring in health class, not knowing how my body is supposed to function.:: Sam blushed. ::How do I please you?::

::All the ways you’d please yourself without penetration. Let me show you.:: Tarin sat up, got off the couch, and knelt in front of Sam, removing the boots Mark and Juraens had fabricated for him on board the Brightstar. Tarin kissed the inside of Sam’s knee. Sam moaned. He never knew he had a hot spot there.

Tarin removed his own boots and then attacked Sam’s flightsuit. The one-piece garment came off quickly, giving Tarin access to Sam’s body.

Sam looked at his lover in appreciation. “You have a beautiful, hard form. I love your wavy blonde hair and blue eyes. You are everything I ever looked for in a man. If I had met you before Mary, I doubt I would have joined the army. I’d have become a college professor and lived in a house very much like this with you always at my side.”

Sam ran his palm down Tarin’s side from his shoulder to the curve of his ass. “Beautiful … I can’t believe how lucky I am and it seems even our dreams are in alignment.”

Tarin blushed. ::I keep in shape because any Sarran Warrior can be called to battle at any time. You were in governance, how did you train? You have a hard and well-made body, my fox.::

::In the Senate Gym. I exercised and had a trainer. If I were going to be the President, I had to be in the best shape I’d ever been in my life. The job is debilitating. Although the United States is only one country on Earth, the President of the United States carries the weight of the world on his shoulders because we act as the planet’s police and are the only major power left on Earth. Russia and China have the land mass and China has population, but the United States still has the upper hand in weaponry. We, like the Sarrans, also have fierce Warriors.::

::Being on council is much the same as you describe the presidency. The Elders aged quickly during the war and later when the Zyptz took our fems, the Elders bore the brunt of finding a solution. Our population is dangerously low, a mere twenty-thousand WarriorPairs. If you add the unbonded Warriors and offspring, it is another ten thousand. We need all of these bebes our fems are carrying and we must keep them safe.::

::You have too much open land to police properly. What you need is a type of radar that lets the government know immediately if the atmosphere has been breached, or better still, something that shields the planet from all but our own vessels.::

“I’ve been working on that project with Bron. It’s almost ready.”

Sam was about to speak and Tarin put a finger on his lips. ::My fox, I want to know everything about you. We could talk until dawntine but right now, I want to love you. We’re naked and wanting. Can we make love?::

Sam smiled and kissed his bonded’s eyes. “I was counting on it.”

Google_SarranSeries

Buy the book:

Amazon http://www.amazon.com/dp/B01C3J942U

JMS Books; http://www.jms-books.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=82_200&products_id=1648

Meet the author:

AC Katt was born in New York City’s Greenwich Village. She remembers sitting at the fountain in Washington Square Park listening to folk music while they passed the hat. At nine, her parents dragged her to New Jersey where she grew up, married and raised four children and became a voracious reader of romantic fiction. At one time she owned over two thousand novels, until she and her husband took themselves and the cat to New Mexico for their health and its great beauty.

Now, most of AC’s books are electronic (although she still keeps six bookcases of hardcovers), so she never has to give away another book. AC is a late bloomer, however, she claims to have found her niche writing LGBT romance.

She hangs out at ACKatt.com and ackattsjournal.com; where she keeps her blog. To get snippets of new releases and Works in Progress subscribe to AC Katt’s Kattery by sending an e-mail to mlhansel@gmail.com.

Where to find the author:

 


Tour Dates & Stops:

Parker Williams, Molly Lolly, BFD Book Blog, MM Good Book Reviews, Sassygirl Books,

Bayou Book Junkie, Full Moon Dreaming, Bonkers About Books, Fangirl Moments and My Two Cents,

Scattered Thoughts & Rogue Words, Book Lovers 4Ever, Happily Ever Chapter, Alpha Book Club,

Wicked Faerie’s Tales and Reviews, Havan Fellows, Unquietly Me, Redz World, A.M. Leibowitz,

Inked Rainbow Reads, V’s Reads, Man2ManTastic, Oh My Shelves, The Dark Arts, The Hat Party,

Rednecks and Romance, The Fuzzy, Fluffy World of Chris T. Kat, MM Book Escape, Chris McHart

 

Giveaway

Enter to win  a full set of ’The Sarran’ series by A.C. Katt!  Must be 18 years of age or older to enter.

a Rafflecopter giveaway
https://widget-prime.rafflecopter.com/launch.js

In the Book Spotlight: VL Locey’s ‘Full Strength’ (excerpt and giveaway)

FullStrength_APP

Full Strength (Point Shot #3) by  V.L. Locey
 Release Date: March 23, 2016

Goodreads Link
Publisher: Ellora’s Cave
Cover Artist: Ellora’s Cave

Blurb

What a difference a year makes. Twelve months ago, Victor Kalinski was one of the best and most controversial ice hockey players in the pros. This year he’s playing in the minors, has a paternity case pending, and has just been vindictively outed to the world by one of his own teammates.

But he seems to find life in the tiny town of Cayuga to his liking. A large part of that is Dan Arou, the Cougars’ alternate captain and the man who now holds Victor’s heart. Surely venomous, viper-tongued Victor hasn’t been mellowed by love!

Well, perhaps a little. But that doesn’t mean he doesn’t intend to get sweet revenge on those who’ve hurt the man he loves and the friends he’s somehow made along the way.

An adult gay romance from Ellora’s Cave

 

Pages or Words: 45,000 words
Categories: Bisexual, Contemporary, M/M Romance, Sports (Hockey)
This is a trilogy and should be read in order.

Excerpt just for Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words:

“Here.”

I lowered my hand. Dan was holding a bottle of Coke out to me. We had dumped all the booze down the drain. Now it was soda, water or milk. The domesticity of my life was downright embarrassing at times. I knocked back half the bottle of happy fizzy in one long pull. Dan sat down beside me, tugged the bottle out of my hand and took a swig.

“I’m out of root beer,” he informed me, then placed the bottle on the coffee table before slinging his leg over my thighs.

When he settled, I placed my hands on his sides. His fingers moved over my face and ended up on my scalp. My eyes drifted shut as Dan began massaging my head, his thumbs going in a circular motion on my temples.

“Holy fuck, that is nice,” I sighed.

He leaned in to give me a light peck. Things being what they are between Arou and me, that tiny smooch led to more tiny smooches. Soon his tongue was teasing the seam of my lips as his hips began a slow grind guaranteed to make me hot and hard. I was so into using sex to make me forget the past couple of hours. Dan’s hold on my head tightened as his tongue repeatedly swept the inside of my mouth.

He wiggled free after a nice, sloppy make-out session. I released my hold on his ribs and shivered as he slid to the floor between my spread legs.

 

Buy the book: Amazon | iBooks | All Romance eBooks

Meet the Author

V.L. Locey loves worn jeans, yoga, belly laughs, reading and writing lusty tales, Greek mythology, the New York Rangers, comic books, and coffee. (Not necessarily in that order.) She shares her life with her husband, her daughter, one dog, two cats, a flock of assorted domestic fowl, and three Jersey steers.

When not writing spicy romances, she enjoys spending her day with her menagerie in the rolling hills of Pennsylvania with a cup of fresh java in hand. She can also be found online on Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, and GoodReads.

Where to find the author:

 


Tour Dates & Stops:

23-Mar: MM Good Book Reviews, Man2ManTastic

24-Mar: Sik Reviews, Wicked Faerie’s Tales and Reviews

25-Mar: Love Bytes, Divine Magazine

28-Mar: Bonkers About Books, BFD Book Blog

29-Mar: Scattered Thoughts & Rogue Words, Oh My Shelves

30-Mar: Jessie G. Books, Bayou Book Junkie

 

Final

Giveaway

Enter to win.  Must be 18 years of age or older to enter.

 

a Rafflecopter giveaway
https://widget-prime.rafflecopter.com/launch.js

A Lila Review: Beyond the Sea by Keira Andrews

Rating: 4.25 stars out of 5

Pageflex Persona [document: PRS0000038_00070]Finding his brother breaking his promise isn’t what Troy Tanner expected to find when he entered Tyson’s hotel room. Unknowingly, his decision to leave their boy band tour, to travel from Australia to L.A., would change, not only his life, but the one of those in his path.

 Before he could second-guess his actions, Troy charters a private plane to visit his mother and talk about Tyson. Here is when he meets Brian who’s the plane’s first officer even when he’s more than qualify to be the captain. It doesn’t take long before the cyclone takes place, bringing Troy and Brian together. From that moment on, they depended on each other to survive on the deserted island in which they found shelter.

 We get to experience with the characters what it’s like to be stranded and losing hope of a rescue. Their journey to survive brought them together and their experiences cemented their relationship.

Their rescue took them by surprise, as well as their feelings for each other. They struggled separately, trying to adjust to a reality that felt almost like a lifetime ago. In the end, it’s up to them to see if their relationship can survive their new reality.

Beyond the Sea gets better the longer you read it. I need to admit that I considered a DNF several times during the first part of this story. The first forty percent moved at a snail pace, and some of the characters’ internal dialogues were not interesting enough to keep the boredom away. I think it has to do with the isolation and the unknowns they faced since this pages covered most of their survival efforts and the early discoveries of their friendship. But, as soon as Troy and Brian started to feel comfortable with their new routine, the story took off.

 The story is about survival. About how Troy and Brian had lived their separate lives until the accident, what they did to increase their survival chances, how they dealt with the possibilities of never returning to their friends & families, and most importantly, how they coped and managed life back to where they started. It’s an internal discovery of who they were until that moment, and the simple experiences that colored their new reality.

 I enjoyed having both characters’ POV. It gave the reader the chance to understand Troy’s and Brian’s fears and hopes about a life they considered lost.  Their acquaintance turned into a friendship that developed into a more personal relationship. Even when expecting the MCs to get together, I kept wondering about the final outcome and how the author was going to write their HEAs.

 The tenderness and understanding between the MCs created a deep connection between the characters. The UST was a little too much but fitted the situation. I do think Troy’s wants came without warning, but I guess their attraction was related to their journey together more than a physical attraction. Their inner qualities pulled them together, showing the reader the beauty behind a loving relationship without labels.

 Keira Andrew’s did indeed a good job creating a credible environment for the characters to be in. Everything from the weather, their delay routine, to their food and clothing had a purpose in this story. The memories they shared and their daily experiences added to the intimacy of their surroundings. Simple details like shaving, collecting water, and bathing in the sea felt as important as any other experience.

 The references to the movie Cast Away and the song that serves as the book’s title gave the story a reprise from the charged moments. I can’t stop thinking about the song days after reading the book. And yes, I listened to it online. It’s the perfect background soundtrack for Troy’s and Brian’s story. I did wonder, too, if they thought about buying the island after all.

 Overall, the story is an interesting combination of feels and self-discovery. In which everything other than their relationship and how they felt about each other became irrelevant.

 The cover goes with the island feel, but in my opinion, doesn’t match the characters or the scenes in the story. It’s very well done, just not for me.

 Sale Links:  Amazon | ARe

 Book Details:

 ebook, 275 pages
Published: March 15, 2016, by KA Books
ISBN: 9781988260020
Edition Language: English

Its Release Day for A.M. Leibowitz’s ‘Anthem’ (excerpt and giveaway)

Anthem1_1024x1024

Anthem (Notes from Boston #1) by A.M. Leibowitz
 Release Date: March 1, 2016

Goodreads Link
Publisher: Acquitted Books
Cover Artist: Brett Kessler

Blurb

Trevor Davidson has everything going for him. He’s just moved out on his own with three friends, and he’s landed a job as music director at a large Boston church. He has high hopes for marrying his long-term girlfriend and settling into a comfortable, devout lifestyle.

Andre Cole has spent the past few years throwing himself into a dead-end job at a Cape Cod-based call center. When an opportunity to move back to Boston arises, Andre believes it will be the do-over he needs to put his past behind him.

A chance meeting in a club on New Year’s Eve brings Trevor and Andre together for a brief but steamy encounter. Both assuming that’s the end of it, they are unexpectedly thrown back into each other’s lives when Trevor’s church hires Andre for their website design. While Andre is content at first to move on, Trevor’s conflicted feelings bubble over into his songwriting. Before he can stop it, his ode to Andre becomes an inadvertent Christian radio hit.

Unfortunately for Trevor, he isn’t the only one who knows the song’s hidden meaning. Someone has leaked the story and upended Trevor’s life. In order to put the pieces back together, he needs to learn to be honest with his girlfriend, with Andre, and especially with himself.

 

Pages or Words: 85,000 words/270 pages
 Categories: Bisexual, Contemporary, Polyamory

Excerpt

A sliver of light and the door thumping shut alerted him to the presence of someone else. His hands stopped moving, hovering over the keyboard. He looked up to see Pastor Bret standing at the back of the aud.

Trevor jumped, his face flaming, and he was glad for the dim light hiding the red flush he was sure marked his cheeks. “Uh…hi?” he squawked out.

“Don’t stop on my account,” Pastor Bret said. “The song is fantastic. You’ve been holding out on us, acting like you didn’t have anything big for the recording. Where’ve you been hiding that one?”

Covering his tracks, Trevor joked, “Under my hat.” His stomach churned.

“Uh huh. Well, I’d like to see you finish up your new song so we can use it. How long do you think it’ll take?”

“It’s about done, but—” He coughed, stalling while he worked out what to say to Bret to put him off. “I was thinking about changing some of the words, though. It’s not—I mean, it doesn’t specifically say God or Jesus, and it probably needs some other fixes. You know, so it sounds more…spiritual.” Trevor gritted his teeth in frustration as the inspiration for the song rose to the forefront of his mind.

Bret looked thoughtful. “I don’t know. Can you play it for me?”

All the blood which had previously rushed to Trevor’s face drained away, and sweat trickled down his neck to his collar. “I—”

“Not sure you want anyone to hear it til it’s perfect, eh?” Bret laughed. “Come on. Don’t worry that it’s not good enough.”

Oh, God, help me! Trevor prayed. “Okay,” he heard himself say, even though he’d really meant to say, No way in hell.

He played the opening chords and began to sing, quietly at first and then with more confidence. “You touch my heart…”

He immersed himself in the song and in the memories he’d drawn on to write it. It didn’t matter what it was about; he was perfectly capable of making it sound like a love song to his God. He kept his gaze trained on the chord sheet in front of him, not daring to look Bret in the eye just in case. When he was through, he let the note fade away and closed his eyes. He didn’t want to see Bret’s reaction.

It took a moment, but Bret finally broke the silence. “Wonderful. I wouldn’t change a thing. When we have a thousand members all singing this together, they’ll all know who they’re singing it for.”

Trevor’s immediate reaction was, No, they won’t.

Buy the book

Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo

BannerTemplate

Meet the Author

A. M. Leibowitz is a queer spouse, parent, feminist, and book-lover falling somewhere on the Geek-Nerd Spectrum. Ze keeps warm through the long, cold western New York winters by writing about life, relationships, hope, and happy-for-now endings. In between noveling and editing, ze blogs coffee-fueled, quirky commentary on faith, culture, writing, books, and hir family.

Where to find the author:

 


Tour Dates & Stops:

Parker Williams, Divine Magazine, The Hat Party, Three Books Over The Rainbow, KathyMac Reviews, BFD Book Blog, Scattered Thoughts & Rogue Words, Bayou Book Junkie, Elaine White, Unquietly Me, Elisa – My Reviews and Ramblings, MM Good Book Reviews, My Fiction Nook, Happily Ever Chapter, Molly Lolly,

Wicked Faerie’s Tales and Reviews, Alpha Book Club, Wake Up Your Wild Side, Louise Lyons, Boys on the Brink Reviews, Inked Rainbow Reads, Love Bytes, Velvet Panic, Kirsty Loves Books, Dawn’s Reading Nook, Cheekypee Reads and Reviews

Final

Giveaway

Enter to win a prize. Must be 18 years of age or older to enter. Link and prizes provided by the author and Pride Promotions.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
https://widget-prime.rafflecopter.com/launch.js

A MelanieM Review: Lovers Leap by JL Merrow

Rating: 4.25 stars out of 5

LoversLeap_600x900If they looked, would they ever leap?

Good-looking, confident, and doted on by his widowed mum, Michael is used to thinking only of himself. Getting shoved off an Isle of Wight pier by an exasperated ex ought to come as a wake-up call—but then he meets Rufus and he’s right back to letting the little head take charge. Rufus is cute, keen, and gets under Michael’s skin in a disturbing way.

Would-be chef Rufus can’t believe his luck when a dripping wet dream of a man walks out of the sea on his birthday, especially when Michael ends up staying at the family B&B. Life is perfect—at least until Michael has to go home to the mainland.

Rufus can’t leave the island for reasons he’s entirely neglected to mention. And though Michael identifies as bi, breaking his mum’s heart by coming out and having an actual relationship with a guy has never been his plan. With both men determined to keep their secrets, a leap of faith could land them in deep water.

I just  love JL Merrow and her ability to deliver characters that, whether you adore them, look at them with a little dislike and (yes, contempt for some), always feel downright real and human.   In Lovers Leap, Merrow delivers just such a story full of characters that are almost guaranteed to put readers down on one side or the other.  I fall firmly down on the side that sees this as a story full of characters that I understood, believed in and even when I was less then fond of their actions, I accepted them once I got the back history and foundation upon which they were based.  That’s wonderful storytelling.

The character in conflict, for the reader, himself and Rufus?  Michael, the man who came from the sea…the reason for which is one that is startling and is probably the basis for many readers dislike.  His actions that follow don’t help.  But there is something, as Merrow has written him, that draws you in, a certain vulnerability that pays off the more the story unfolds.  There are some very serious issues for Michael to deal with, his sexuality, his faith and family, and some are deeply shattering as the story unfolds.  Especially when it comes to his mother.  All his prior arrogance and obnoxiousness in words and deeds?  Well, there are reasons and a basis for all of them and Merrow lays it out for us like a very sad banquet.

Rufus is not without deep issues himself.  They too start at home with a father and stepmother whose fragile relationship with each other and perhaps Rufus is keeping them all tied in a knot that might be choking them in the B & B in which they all work and live.

Lovers Leap is all about twin needs that speak to each other without Rufus and Michael realizing how much at first, and then slowing pulling towards each other, with humor, with heartbreak, with passion…in true English form on the Isle of Wight.  I even adored the best friend, and her surprise coupling.  Definitely could have used more of them.

If you like your main characters with flaws that you can handle, you know a little gruff, nothing too bad, certainly not obnoxious or bi, perhaps this isn’t your story.  But if you love layered characters, people who need to work on themselves, and relationships that need just that bit of luck as well as love?  Don’t let Lovers Leap pass you by.  I highly recommend it and can’t wait to see what the Isle of Wight inspires JL Merrow to write next.

Cover art by Lou Harper is well done and indicative of the characters and story. Loved it.

Sales Links:  Riptide Publishing | ARe | Amazon

Book Details:

ebook, 202 pages
Published February 27th 2016 by Riptide Publishing
Original TitleLovers Leap
ISBN 1626493820 (ISBN13: 9781626493827)
Edition LanguageEnglish