Tag: JMS Books LLC

An Alisa Review: Commanding Officer Thomas by J.M. Snyder

Rating:  4 stars out of 5

Lieutenant Lee Mallory spends his time off duty playing video games. There isn’t much else to do while stationed on the USS Nova out in deep space.

Unfortunately, a run in with his commanding officer, Jonan Thomas, strips him — and everyone else onboard — of their gaming privileges.

Thomas has had it in for Lee from day one, when they got off on the wrong foot. Now, banned from using the game server in the rec room, Lee sneaks online in his quarters after hours, looking to play.

That’s where he meets a fellow gamer onboard who’s interested in a different kind of game. As much as Lee wants to hook up, though, he can’t afford to get into any more trouble.

Can Lee take command — in the game and in the bedroom — without further aggravating his CO?

I liked this story, it wasn’t very focused on the characters’ relationship but I don’t think that was a problem.  Lee got off on the wrong foot when he first met his CO and hasn’t gained any ground since. Jonan reacted badly when he first met Lee and hasn’t been able to figure out a way to fix that.

I could see Lee’s frustration at how the CO is treating him and his fear when he first learns who “Jo” really is.  They turn out to be very compatible but I can’t help but wonder how they can make it work.  They are cute though.

The cover art by Written Ink Designs is nice and I really liked the cover.

Sales Links: JMS Books | Amazon | B&N

Book Details:

ebook, 14,204 words

Published: June 16, 2018 by JMS Books

ISBN: 9781634866507

Edition Language: English

New Book Release Blitz for Commanding Officer Thomas by J.M. Snyder (excerpt and giveaway)

 

 
Buy Links: Amazon US | Amazon UK | JMS Books
 
Length: 14,204 words
 
Publisher: JMS Books
 
Blurb
 

Lieutenant Lee Mallory spends his time off duty playing video games. There isn’t much else to do while stationed on the USS Nova out in deep space.

Unfortunately, a run in with his commanding officer, Jonan Thomas, strips him — and everyone else onboard — of their gaming privileges.

Thomas has had it in for Lee from day one, when they got off on the wrong foot. Now, banned from using the game server in the rec room, Lee sneaks online in his quarters after hours, looking to play.

That’s where he meets a fellow gamer onboard who’s interested in a different kind of game. As much as Lee wants to hook up, though, he can’t afford to get into any more trouble.

Can Lee take command — in the game and in the bedroom — without further aggravating his CO?

 
Excerpt
 

Lee kept an eye on her as she benched the weight, but most of his attention was diverted to the sexy guy now doing side planks. Lee toyed with the idea of approaching him, but how would that look? Hey, I saw you exercising. You’re kinda hot. Any way he played it out in his head, he knew it sounded like nothing more than a bad pickup line.

The guy jumped up from the plank and ran in place, feet a blur, knees pumping double time. Then he started doing lunges, alternating legs and turning a quarter turn with each set.

As he turned, Lee admired the way his little gym shorts pulled taut across his pert ass. When he added arm crunches to his routine, the muscles in his arms stood out, veins cabling in relief.

Lee watched, entranced. He liked this one — so energetic. What would that energy be like in bed? His dick stirred at the sight of the guy’s buttocks flexing beneath the thin fabric. He imagined them both naked together, in his quarters, that round ass clenched tight and waiting beneath him. He could almost feel that pliant flesh in his hands as he massaged those ass cheeks, kneaded them, then pushed them together to ease his cock between them. He could almost see the dark tip of his dick peek out between the juicy twin mounds as he humped them once, twice, God. Just thinking about it made him hard.

Below him, Brenna made an exasperated sound. “Dude, you’re tenting. Chill.”

Lee shifted his legs to hide his budding erection. Budding? Hell, a few minutes more and he’d get off on his fantasy alone.

The barbell clanked back into the rack and Brenna sat up. Then she grabbed her towel off the bench and wiped the sweat off her face. With a sigh, she said, “Look, I know when I’m being ignored.”

“I’m not ignoring you!” Lee jiggled the barbell. “Come on, you need to get in your reps. I’m sorry –”

“It’s fine,” she assured him. “I’m done. Go talk to him already, will you?”

Sudden fear lurched in Lee’s chest. “What? I can’t. I don’t know him.”

“But you want to,” Brenna said. “So go over there and introduce yourself.”

“No!”

Across the gym, the guy they were discussing stopped exercising abruptly, as if he’d heard them. He raised his left leg, then reached back with his right hand to grab his foot and pull it back into a slow stretch. After a moment, he switched legs. Then he twisted at the waist, and he caught Lee staring.

Lee felt his face flush. God.

“He knows you now,” Brenna said. “Go on, man up.”

Before Lee could gather up his courage, the guy grabbed a nearby towel to wipe down and headed their way.

“Go on,” Brenna hissed.

The pressure was on. Lee’s palms grew slick, his cheeks burned. This was it, his moment, go for it. But what should he say? “Hey baby,” was a bit too blunt, but “Sup” sounded too informal. The guy was coming closer, he was almost close enough to speak to, damn.

Suddenly Lee’s mind locked up, and his mouth moved on its own. His tongue curved over his teeth, his bottom lip curled, and he let out a randy whistle.

The guy froze and stared at them. His eyes were dark — blue? black? Lee wasn’t sure, but they flashed under heavy brows knit together in confusion or anger, one of the two. Not exactly the reaction Lee had hoped for.

“Was that directed at me?” the guy asked.

His voice was level, calm. Maybe Lee was misreading the situation. Still, just to be safe, he gave a one-shouldered shrug and made a noncommittal noise he hoped could be read as either yes or no, depending on how it was interpreted.

The guy looked unimpressed. “What’s your name, mister?”

Maybe he was interested, after all. Lee tamped down the flicker of hope in his chest. “Lee. Lee Mallory with the 58th. This is –”

“Lieutenant Mallory.”

The blasé way he drew out Lee’s name set off all kinds of warning bells. “How’d you know my rank?”

Rubbing the towel over his close-cropped hair, the guy sounded casually disinterested as he replied, “You’re right. We haven’t been formally introduced. But I’ve heard all about you, Lieutenant.”

Beside him, Brenna groaned. “Oh no.”

Lee still didn’t get it. “What do you mean?”

“He’s our new CO,” Brenna moaned.

Now he smiled, a cold, hard slash across his face. “It’s Thomas. And you’ll address me as Commander or sir, is that understood?”

“Sir! Yes, sir!” Lee snapped to attention, as if that might help dig him out of trouble.

It didn’t. “So I’ll ask you again,” Thomas drawled. “Was that whistle directed at me?”

Lee didn’t know how to answer, what to say. What could he say? “Um …”

Author Bio
 

J.M. Snyder is a multi-published author of gay erotic romance who started writing fanfic (specifically, boyband slash). She has worked with several different e-publishers, including Amber Allure Press and Torquere Press, and has short stories published in anthologies by Alyson Books, Cleis Press, eXcessica, and Lethe Press. In 2010, she started JMS Books LLC to promote and publish her own work as well as that of other authors she enjoys.

For more information, please visit jmsnyder.net.

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A Barb the Zany Old Lady Review: The Recruit by Addison Albright

Rating: 3 stars out of 5

Phillip Brewer has terminal cancer. Considering his youth, that death sentence is shocking and depressing so he spends his good days walking around and enjoying the sights Mother Nature provides, knowing his time for joy is limited. When he meets Albert Manlii, a good-looking older man, he’s immediately attracted at first, and then he’s intrigued by the bizarre proposal Albert makes. Albert is offering him eternal life if Phillip chooses to join his organization. That organization is made up of vampires and its sole purpose seems to be to keep them functioning as a society without coming to the attention of humans.

Intriguing? Yes. But he must agree immediately and then the conversion will be done as soon as he agrees. So saying yes and diving in with both feet, he’s suddenly a part of this vast organization and he’s most definitely in the midst of a romance that he’s unprepared for. It seems Albert is his soulmate and that couldn’t make Phillip happier.

The story had so much potential but the action and execution was choppy. It’s as if the author wanted to cover everything and made an outline of key points. Then she filled in those points but not enough and somewhere along the way there’s a disconnect. Scenes don’t feel complete. New situations aren’t fully explored. The romance is fast, definitely insta-love, though that’s somewhat normal for a soulmate situation. But even the scenes of the two together are sketchy at best. Every scene seems rushed. It would likely have been so much better if it was much more fully developed.

But on the whole, I liked this story and I definitely liked the concept. Unfortunately, the execution keeps me from going any higher than 3 stars.

~~

The cover by Written Ink Designs features a close-up of a young man in a hoodie with blood at the corner of his mouth. This represents Phillip’s initial vampire bite and fits the story perfectly.

Sales Links:  Amazon |    Books2Read Universal Buy-Link | Publisher/JMS Books, LLC

Book Details:

ebook, 69 pages
Expected publication: June 16th 2018 by JMS Books, LLC
ISBN139781634866668
Edition LanguageEnglish
URLhttps://authoraddisonalbright.com/my-publications/stand-alone-stories/the-recruit/
CharactersAlbert Manlii, Phillip Brewer, Neil Franklin

Blitz Tour for The Recruit by Addison Albright (excerpt and giveaway)

Title:  The Recruit

Author: Addison Albright

Publisher: JMS Books, LLC

Release Date: June 16, 2018

Heat Level: 2 – Fade to Black Sex

Pairing: Male/Male

Length: Novella / 69 pages in PDF / 22,181 words

Genre: Romance, Paranormal, Vampires, HEA, Gay, Bisexual, Contemporary, Bargain, Hope, Blood Mates

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Synopsis

Albert Manlii has walked this earth for more than two thousand years, but survival on his own was never easy. Now he leads a faction of highly organized vampires who carefully guard the secret of their existence. Unlike the old days, potential recruits are carefully selected and presented with an offer.

Phillip Brewer has weeks to live—if he lets his disease run its course. He doesn’t want to die, but given a choice, will his desire to live outweigh his concerns about the vampires’ ethics?

When the new recruit’s missteps are cause for concern, can Albert control the fallout, or will Phillip’s life once again be torn apart?

Excerpt

The man moved to the bench and raised a brow in a welcoming fashion, silently inviting Phillip to join him. Phillip shrugged. He’d planned to sit here anyway, so why not have a conversation with a pleasant man while he did it?

“My name’s Albert.” He held out a hand, and Phillip shook it. The hand felt cooler than Phillip expected for someone walking on a warm day, but not exceptionally so. Perhaps he had a fever himself, and that made the man’s hand seem cooler than normal.

“Phillip.” He didn’t elaborate. There wasn’t anything he could think of to add. Small talk eluded him.

“I’m pleased to meet you, Phillip.” Albert paused, as if gathering his thoughts.

“Likewise.” Phillip kept his reply simple. Oddly enough, something about the gravity of Albert’s demeanor gave him the impression the man had directed him to the bench with a purpose in mind that had nothing to do with idle chit-chat, so he might as well let the man control the conversation. Albert didn’t give off a crazed serial-killer vibe, not that it would matter at this point as long as whatever he chose to do didn’t add pain to Phillip’s death. Not likely he’d try anything like that in broad daylight with people around, anyway.

Albert looked directly into his eyes with a steady gaze. “Phillip, I want to show you something, and I ask that you keep an open mind and hear me out before reacting.”

Phillip sat back. He hadn’t developed any expectations for this conversation, but if he had, this direction wasn’t anything he would have considered.

“I think we can help each other,” Albert continued.

“I’m dying,” Phillip said. He would have thought his appearance made that apparent, but perhaps not. “Whatever you have in mind, I’m sorry, but I won’t be able to make a deal with you.”

“Please, hear me out.” Albert held out an arm. “This seems like an unusual request, I know, but I’d like you to examine my arm. Go ahead and touch it. I want you to assure yourself that it is, indeed, my real arm and not any kind of advanced prosthetic or makeup designed to create a special effect.”

Phillips eyes widened. “Unusual request” was putting it lightly. But what the hell, he might as well add an interesting interlude to his final hours—or minutes, if this man turned out to be a homicidal maniac.

He put both hands on the well-shaped forearm. He felt for a pulse at the wrist and found one. The hairs appeared natural and moved appropriately as Phillip ran his hand across them. Veins were visible where expected. Phillip manipulated the man’s fingers and wrist. The bones on the back of Albert’s hand, and tendons at the inside of his wrist, moved correctly, becoming more or less prominent when the hand flexed. Then he lightly pinched Albert’s skin in various places. It felt perfectly normal, although still slightly cooler than usual.

When Phillip withdrew his hands, Albert lowered his arm. “Are you satisfied that this is indeed my natural arm?”

“Yes.” Phillip eyed him warily.

“Remember, keep an open mind and maintain your composure. Give me the opportunity to explain what you’re about to see.”

Weirder and weirder. Phillip narrowed his eyes but remained curiously drawn to hearing this man out. “All right.”

Albert took a quick glance around, and Phillip followed his gaze. The people he’d noticed earlier were still in sight, but nobody new had appeared.

Phillip held his breath when a small razor blade appeared in Albert’s other hand. Albert slowly drew the blade across the arm Phillip had just examined, cutting deeply enough for the tissue to separate. There was no way it was a fake blade merely drawing atop his skin. He was cutting deeply, but the blood that appeared was black, not red, and the gash closed up within seconds as the razor dragged up the length of that forearm.

“What the hell.” Phillip gasped and fought to keep his respiration steady as he turned to stare at Albert’s face. He’d been so riveted by what was happening to the man’s arm, he’d neglected to check his expression. Had that hurt? Albert’s face was tight, so maybe, although his mask of calm quickly returned.

“Do you trust your own eyes?” Albert asked. The razor disappeared into a pocket, replaced by a cloth handkerchief, which he used to wipe the remaining dark fluid—blood?—from his arm.

“I’ll admit I’m drugged up, but nothing that would explain that.” He’d pointedly requested medication that would not cause him to hallucinate or overly diminish his ability to reason. There was no point dragging out his life if he couldn’t consciously enjoy it.

He’d seen plenty of street magic in his day. Sleight of hand, etcetera, but this transcended all of that. There was simply no logical explanation for what he’d just seen.

“You accept what you just witnessed at face value?”

Phillip pursed his lips a moment before replying. “Okay. Yes. Obviously, there’s something superhuman about you.” Or he wasn’t human at all. An alien maybe?

“That’s one way to put it,” Albert said. “I was once fully human, but now…no, not quite human anymore.”

Phillip sat still as he digested that comment. Albert had “once” been human. He’d also approached Phillip—seemingly sought him out—and he’d said, “I think we can help each other.” Was there more than one logical deduction to make here?

“Please.” Phillip swallowed as a shiver of hope drifted over his skin. “I need you to spell out what you meant—earlier. Before your demonstration.”

Albert smiled. It was the smile of a man who sensed he had his fish on the hook. “About helping each other?”

Phillip nodded.

“You don’t need to die yet. I’ve been walking this earth for more than two thousand years.” Albert spoke calmly as Phillip froze in place, clenching his hands at his belly.

Two thousand years? And he wanted to make a deal with Phillip?

Did Phillip want to? What was in it for him? Everlasting life, apparently. But would it be an existence he wanted? “Who are you? You’re immortal. But how?”

“Immortal in the sense that I, and others like me, won’t appear to become older beyond our age at the time of transition. Nor will we die of natural causes. We can be killed, though. You’ve witnessed my self-healing abilities, but anything that would instantly kill a human will kill me…us, too.”

“So, if I agreed, this cancer would disappear just like that?” Phillip snapped his fingers.

“Like all of our ‘supernatural’ capabilities, self-healing improves over time. As a new convert, you won’t immediately feel better. It’ll take about a day for you to feel one hundred percent.”

That was hardly a deterrent, but Albert was obviously holding back. What facilitated this “transition”? “You still haven’t answered the question. Who are your people?”

Albert hesitated for a moment before replying. “The word you’re searching for is ‘vampire.’”

Phillip burst out laughing. He didn’t know what the hell he’d been thinking Albert’s answer would be, but the existence of some kind of magical immortality potion was difficult enough to believe without throwing in something that absurd.

Albert’s revelation probably should have made Phillip run in the opposite direction—if he’d believed it, or made him angry—because really, what kind of person fucked with a dying man like that? But at least his final hours were diverting. “You had me going there for a while.”

Tilting his head to the side, Albert raised a single eyebrow as he continued to gaze at Phillip. “Not the usual reaction. Intriguing, though. You don’t believe me, do you?”

“Please,” Phillip scoffed and gestured toward the bright sun overhead.

Purchase

JMS Books, LLC | Amazon | Barnes & Noble | Kobo | iTunes

Meet the Author

Addison Albright is a writer living in the middle of the USA. Her stories are gay romance in contemporary, fantasy, and paranormal genres. She generally adds a subtle touch of humor, a smidgen of drama/angst, and a healthy dose of slice-of-life to her stories. Her education includes a BS in Education with a major in mathematics and a minor in chemistry. Addison loves spending time with her family, reading, popcorn, boating, french fries, “open window weather,” cats, math, and anything chocolate. She loves to read pretty much anything and everything, anytime and anywhere.

Website | Facebook Page | Twitter |
Goodreads | Google+ | eMail | Instagram | Facebook | Bookbub

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A VVivacious Review: Flowers for the Gardener by Sharon Maria Bidwell

Rating: 4 Stars out of 5

Richard finds himself dealing with major life decisions after his father’s death, but he finds dealing with his mother, Ruby Gardener most difficult. If life weren’t difficult enough, there is the added complication of Ethan Fields.

Ethan and his father have been employed by the Gardeners for many years, though Ethan now finds himself dissatisfied with his work though unwilling to leave. He finds himself resenting Ruby and he wants closure from Richard for whatever it was that they shared.

Will Ethan and Richard stop falling into bed together long enough to work through everything that still remains unresolved between them or will they just drift apart at the end of the day?

Hands down, this is unlike any story I have ever read which was completely unexpected and it totally blindsided me. I had no idea people could create a contemporary romance this nuanced. This book was like a revelation and Sharon Maria Bidwell is an artist.

Initially, I thought this book would be a nice romance counting on social differences to provide the most conflict but I had no idea what I was in for and I must credit this book on how complicated a single thread of thought can be made in fiction. I really don’t hold contemporary romance in any of my favourites lists but done the way it was in this book, I could really see myself turning over to the other side, quick.

This book was off to an unsteady start which I was definitely going to take as an omen but the beginning of this book is somewhat like climbing a rickety staircase inelegant but oddly charming. The writing of this book is… unique. There are sentences that rub me the wrong way, feel overly dramatized but then there are other sentences which even being all of the above make me laugh out loud with the images that are conjured up in my head.

There is this really long conversation between Ethan and Richard in the very beginning of the book and the scene changes perspectives a million times which made me feel like a ping pong ball in a match. Like it was hard to keep track of whose turn it was at present and it felt like I was playing a game of match the following, trying to match the emotions to their respective owners. Again this was something I found irritating but oddly charming though this is an idiosyncrasy that is only true for the very beginning of the book.

Ethan and Richard are on opposite sides of society, they are basically employee and employer and wealth will always be an issue, because while Richard can think of money as a constant for Ethan it is a very current and variable issue which does provide conflict in this story but not all of it. There is also a little bit of the rich in wealth, poor in sense thing going on with Rich not understanding how employing Ethan could put their relationship into an ethical dilemma, but I also feel like that particular issue is seen differently by these two characters. For Ethan wonders, if Rich employing him makes him look like a rent buy while Rich is only trying to make sure Ethan is financially stable even outside of their relationship. Then there is the fact that they are both dealing with loss albeit in different ways and while Rich can lean on Ethan for support, Ethan feels denied of the same privilege. Then there is the matter of Ruby Gardener, Rich’s very opinionated mother who wants things to be exactly as she wants them to be and how both characters are in conflict with her though this fact is not recognizable early in the book.

This book has to be the slowest burning romance in the history of slow-burning romances wherein the characters already share a sexual relationship, it was kind of amazing because generally, it is the UST that drives a slow burn romance but here, was one with so much unresolved tension without any of it being sexual. This book is kind of an award-winning type of book because there so much detail in the book and so much going on, though you really don’t realize it. The fact is that the more detailed a work, the more complicated it becomes though that is surprisingly not the case here. This book has challenged a lot of my pre-conceptions on writing and storytelling, it has been an amazing experience.

Now I know you might be wondering why this book only has a four-star rating if it truly is award-winning good. The fact of the matter is that I have analysed this book to the extent that I can see its faults, this book only has three well-developed characters and another character comes of surprisingly underdeveloped atleast that is what I tell myself because I just couldn’t warm up to Sapphire.

Since Ethan and Rich already had a sexual relationship I felt that they needed to realise a relationship between themselves. In most slow burn romances the UST is resolved prior to the very end of the book such that you get to see exactly what I mentioned above the realisation of a relationship. Now since this book also features a lot of unresolved tensions between our MCs I wanted these tensions to be resolved before the ending of the book so that these two could realise their full potential as a couple. Alas, this wasn’t the case and I fear I have lost the opportunity to see these two as a couply couple.

This book has been a challenge for me one that I have really enjoyed and so far it is unparalleled in the amount of nuance that went into creating this romance.

Cover Art by Written Ink Design which I really liked.

Sales Links:  JMS Books LLC | Amazon

Book Details:

ebook, 227 pages
Published April 28th 2018 by JMS Books, LLC
ISBN139781634866194
Edition LanguageEnglish

An Alisa Review: Wrenching by Deirdre O’Dare

Rating: 3 stars out of 5

Mal has not had an easy life. He’s struggled to overcome a lot of roadblocks and hardships as he built himself a life as a mechanic, despite a serious handicap. He’s admired rancher Dan from afar but never dreamed events would play out to land him in the amazing spot of being able to do a real service for his secret hero. Can he maintain his cool and a safe distance when they’re sharing a house and working to resolve a dangerous mystery?

Dan says he does not have employees but friends who help him run the ranch he inherited from his father. Challenged by his younger step-brother and facing dangerous sabotage to his truck, he enlists a young mechanic to help solve the puzzle. He’d always wanted a real brother or a partner he could trust but his step-brother is not the right guy to fill that role. How about Mal, who brings some fine but rare qualities to the Flying W?

A lot of this story didn’t really make any sense to me and even with that I mostly enjoyed the story.  I’ve never understood the loving someone from afar when you barely know them as Mal did Dan. And Dan turns to someone he barely knows to help him.

The mystery wasn’t much of a mystery to me but it gave Dan and Mal a reason to be together for a period of time.  I didn’t really see this relationship building at all except for their own random thoughts but they never did anything or really got to know each other for Dan’s ideas at the end of story make any sense.

The cover art by Written Ink Designs is a nice understated design.

Sales Links: JMS Books | Amazon | B&N

Book Details:

ebook, 65 pages

Published: May 12, 2018 by JMS Books

ISBN: 9781634865838

Edition Language: English

A VVivacious Review: Military Emancipation by David O. Sullivan

Rating: 2 Stars out of 5

Marc and Adam are lovers, both serving in the navy at a time when DADT is still in effect though Marc still struggles with his sexuality. When an unwelcome come-on leads to an allegation of homosexuality putting his career in jeopardy, Marc finds himself questioning his sexuality, his life and his future.

I feel like I should be honest that I don’t fully understand how oppressive DADT was or could be. We truly live in much more liberal times that policies that are not even a decade old feel much more outdated, even though it wasn’t that long ago that they were still in effect. So I do agree that I am reading this story with a handicap and therefore I find certain plot points incongruous.

Even though DADT is still breathing fire and brimstone at the time of this story there was a surprising lack of homophobia among the military personnel while this could be true, I still feel that people would not be making this particular sentiment so overtly public for fear of slander and discrimination against themselves though I could be wrong. While in real life all these factors can coexist in a story things should be more cohesive and decisive if the story wants to focus on discrimination you can’t have everyone be so accepting because that particular approach in this book made my understanding of DADT even more tenuous.

Also, I didn’t like Marc’s defence of his homosexuality as he pleads not guilty and I find myself judging him on current standards wherein I wanted him to own up to it and not be ashamed of it when directly confronted with this question. This is the point in the story where the story’s 2018 feel directly contrasts with its 2011 setting, because everyone is so accepting I can’t understand where the discrimination stems from, so I want Marc to uphold 2018 standards. I really don’t know if I am getting this point across but I feel that this is at the crux of my disconnect with this story.

The story is suffering from an incongruous theme but despite that, the story held my interest and I read through this one quite quickly. The story is engaging but the writing and plot progression makes the story come across as very clunky.

I really couldn’t sympathize much with Marc as a character especially over his struggles with his sexuality somehow his struggle only comes through on a very surface level and I really couldn’t get any feel on why he struggled with his sexuality in the first place. I really couldn’t find my space in this story when it came to its characters though I liked Adam and would have liked a bit of his POV, I didn’t really connect with the other characters in the story.

Overall, the only thing that this story had going for it was that despite how many issues I was having with it while reading it this story still managed to hold my interest.

Cover Art by Written Ink Designs. I feel like the cover doesn’t really match the feel of the story but barring that I liked how the cover is designed.

Sales Links:  JMS Books LLC  | Amazon

Book Details:

ebook
Published April 27th 2018 by JMS Books LLC
ISBN139781634865999

A Barb the Zany Old Lady Review: The Recruit by Addison Albright

Rating: 3 stars out of 5

Phillip Brewer has terminal cancer. Considering his youth, that death sentence is shocking and depressing so he spends his good days walking around and enjoying the sights Mother Nature provides, knowing his time for joy is limited. When he meets Albert Manlii, a good-looking older man, he’s immediately attracted at first, and then he’s intrigued by the bizarre proposal Albert makes. Albert is offering him eternal life if Phillip chooses to join his organization. That organization is made up of vampires and its sole purpose seems to be to keep them functioning as a society without coming to the attention of humans.

Intriguing? Yes. But he must agree immediately and then the conversion will be done as soon as he agrees. So saying yes and diving in with both feet, he’s suddenly a part of this vast organization and he’s most definitely in the midst of a romance that he’s unprepared for. It seems Albert is his soulmate and that couldn’t make Phillip happier.

The story had so much potential but the action and execution was choppy. It’s as if the author wanted to cover everything and made an outline of key points. Then she filled in those points but not enough and somewhere along the way there’s a disconnect. Scenes don’t feel complete. New situations aren’t fully explored. The romance is fast, definitely insta-love, though that’s somewhat normal for a soulmate situation. But even the scenes of the two together are sketchy at best. Every scene seems rushed. It would likely have been so much better if it was much more fully developed.

But on the whole, I liked this story and I definitely liked the concept. Unfortunately, the execution keeps me from going any higher than 3 stars.

~~

The cover by Written Ink Designs features a close-up of a young man in a hoodie with blood at the corner of his mouth. This represents Phillip’s initial vampire bite and fits the story perfectly.

Sales Links:  Amazon |    Books2Read Universal Buy-Link | Publisher/JMS Books, LLC

Book Details:

ebook, 69 pages
Expected publication: June 16th 2018 by JMS Books, LLC
ISBN139781634866668
Edition LanguageEnglish
URLhttps://authoraddisonalbright.com/my-publications/stand-alone-stories/the-recruit/
CharactersAlbert Manlii, Phillip Brewer, Neil Franklin

A VVivacious Review: A Love to Remember by Sarah Hadley Brook

Rating: 2 Stars out of 5

Graham comes from a family ravaged by the effects of Alzheimer’s and as a result, he has walled up his heart against any possibility of love. He only engages in casual sex but he starts questioning his resolve once he gets to know Sam. Will Graham be able to stand by his decision or will he have to re-think his decisions with love just a hand’s reach away…?

I had a hard time making myself read this one. I don’t know why but my interest just waned at about the 60% mark which was weird considering the fact that the story of this book only gets started at that point. The first 60% of the book is just the setting and most of the information revealed till this point is one you already know if you have read the blurb. After this point, the story’s progression to its inevitable conclusion just didn’t hold my attention.

I liked the concept of the story about how a debilitating condition that runs in your family would change your outlook of the world. But I felt like this concept overshadowed the characterisations because I can’t think of Graham as anyone other than the guy who doesn’t want to love because he fears that one day he will have Alzheimer’s and will be a burden on those who love him.   

I feel like this story will be different for different people, so if you think the premise of this story speaks to you do pick up the book.

Cover Art by Written Ink Designs. I really liked the cover for this one, it was really sweet.

Sales Links: Universal Buy Link | Amazon

Book Details:

Kindle Edition, 85 pages
Published April 28th 2018 by JMS Books LLC
ASINB07C1QNCZ4
Edition LanguageEnglish