Review: The Queen’s Librarian by Carole Cummings

Rating: 2.75 stars out of 5

Lucas Tripp is the Queen’s Librarian. He is also her cousin, her much poorer cousin. He has a mother who loves to spend money and six sisters, four of whom need husbands and expect Lucas to find them suitably wealthy ones as their status (and their mother) dictates. Lucas also runs their family estate, takes care of their offerings to the gods and tries to find time to spend with his patient and oh so gorgeous boyfriend Alex Booker. But nothing is running according to plan, any plans. One of Lucas’ sister is being courted by a renown womanizer who just so happens to be his boyfriend’s brother. Then when another sister finally settles on a suitable suitor, the man disappears amidst a flurry of speculation and a tinge of magic.

Before Lucas realizes it, he is in the middle of a multitude of mysteries. Where did his sister’s suitor disappear to? What happened to the rains? Who is the man who keeps popping in and out of his life and rooms, only to mutter a mysterious foreign phrase or two and then disappear? Everything seems to come back to The Stone Circle and the Daimin but what does it all mean? Lucas must find the truth, get his sisters married ,save the towns harvest, and make his cousin, the Queen happy. Oh, and find time to spend with his boyfriend. What is a Queen’s Librarian to do?

Carole Cummings’ Wolf’s-own series was fantastic and one of my favorites last year. So when I saw she released a new book I couldn’t wait to read it. I was expecting marvelously intricate world building, multilayered characterizations and a tight, deep story worthy of the first two elements. Unfortunately, I found none of that here. In fact, The Queen’s Librarian is almost the antithesis of those amazing stories and it seems she planned it that way. In her dedication, she mentions that Fen of the Wolf’s-own series was the reason for this story. In her own words:

“Fen, because if it hadn’t been for the bleak despair that was his headspace, I would never have needed Lucas and Alex to brighten up the path away from his angsty abyss.” – Carole Cummings

Unfortunately, everything that was right with Fen is wrong with Lucas. Once again, it all comes back to characterization as the key to a story and at the heart of this story is one character so diffuse that he lacks a core personality to relate to. Lucas Tripp is one of those flighty, scatterbrained characters who dither and mumble and stumble their way through their life and the story. You can always count on them to be forgetful, naive to the point of stupidity, and have the focus of a Magpie. Have I left out any characteristics of this type of personality? Oh, right, they are also unaware of their good looks, kind, and prone to a punctuation free, never ending style of inner monologue.

I have seen quite a few of these characters lately. Some I loved because they were so well done or their dialog was fun if not downright delightful. Others not so much. Unfortunatelyl, Lucas falls into the latter category. I will give you a sample of Lucas and the narrative you will encounter:

THERE was a bit of a scuffle, with Bramble assuming he and his muddy paws would be welcome in the house and Lucas begging to differ. Lucas won. Just barely. And Cat seemed a little too pleased with it all, so much so that she deigned to greet Lucas with a stretch and a serpentine saunter over to her milk bowl—on the shelf over the stove to deter Bramble from slurping it—rather than her usual slow blink and yawn. Or, in Bramble’s case, her usual glare of death and warning extension of claws. Lucas obligingly fetched her the last of the milk and let the reverberating contented purr that rumbled through the quiet of the little house soothe him as he stripped and changed. His clothes smelled of pub. He hadn’t noticed it when he’d dragged them back on this morning, or when he and Alex had been walking home, but now… drat it all, had he spilled ale all over his shirt? Or maybe taken a swim in it?

He tossed the shirt into the growing pile in the corner. There was a basket under there somewhere, he was sure of it, that he was going to have to gather up one of these days and present to Miss Emma. The anticipated oh-whatever-are-we-going-to-do-with-you look that always came along with the occasion was what held him back. He should learn to wash his own clothes… someday. He should also learn to cook. Toast and cheese and the occasional egg did not a satisfying diet make. And if he learned to cook, he wouldn’t have to spend so much time up at the main house, suffering through yet another not-quite-lecture about Why Certain Young Men Should Have Already Given Their Mothers Grandchildren. As if there weren’t enough of the little creatures about the place for supper every Sun’s Day. Sometimes Lucas wondered if Pippa and Nan weren’t actually in some kind of competition for who could produce the most children in the shortest amount of time.

Thank God they weren’t Lucas’s problem anymore. He was going to have to dump his wages from the Library into the estate’s coffers again, he could see it coming now. He’d been hoping to at least buy Clara’s handfasting dress for her, but he wasn’t as optimistic now as he’d been only a week or so ago. Slade had taken the news of his prospective wife’s poverty extraordinarily well, almost weirdly enthusiastically, actually, nearly doing backflips to assure Lucas that he was in love with Clara and not her supposed dowry. And he hadn’t even been drunk yet. It endeared him almost instantly to Lucas, and even Alex had been soppily charmed. Of course, there was still the meeting with Slade’s parents to get through before everything was official, and the Queen had to approve, if Lucas ever got the chance to put the request to her, but Clara wanted this, and it was a love match, not a contract of convenience, so Lucas would make it happen.

And this is pretty typical of all 224 pages of The Queen’s Librarian. It just goes on and on and on as Lucas goes on and on and on. He rambles, he dithers, he’s myopic and the narrative reflects that in descriptions, dialog and plot. It made my eyes glaze over. For me to find this type of personality charming, I need to feel that the character has a solid foundation beneath all that fluttering and I never got that from Lucas. His is a personality so wispy it’s almost airborne.

The plot of The Queen’s Librarian suffers from some of the same elements that mark this book’s characterizations. It rambles yet the reader can clearly identify the villains almost immediately and determine where the plot meander off course. It’s a dense morass of words that makes it hard to find your way through the storyline. And there is a neat plot here but it is buried so deep under layers of extraneous words that it gets lost. The best part of this story is actually the last quarter (or less) of the book. The story gets a dynamic turn as the “aha” moment arrives, magic splatters off the walls and finally we see some action, instead of the constant rambling discourse that is the trademark of the majority of this story.

If I were to pinpoint the things I liked about The Queen’s Librarian, I suppose it would be the dog, the actual plot underneath it all, the Queen and her Consort. He seems like a fellow I would share a bit of candy with. The rest of the characters are a likable enough lot but would I spend another 224 pages with them? I don’t think so. I certainly couldn’t read this book again. As much as I wanted to, I just couldn’t give this a 3 rating. Sigh. For some of you, perhaps, just the fantasy aspect alone will make the story acceptable or better. For everyone else, I will recommend Cummings Wolf’s – own series to start with. Those books contain remarkable stories, with memorable characters and a substantial, intricate plot that flows through the series. Read those and leave this one alone.

Cover art by Paul Richmond. The cover is delightful, light in tone and design.

Book Details:

ebook, 224 pages

Published July 26th 2013 by Dreamspinner Press

ISBN 1623808693 (ISBN13: 9781623808693)

edition language English

url http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=4062

Review: Home Sweet Home (Home #5) by T. A. Chase

Rating: 4.5 stars out of 5

Yancey MacCafferty and Juan Romanos have been in love since the first time they met. In a gay bar in Texas, an underage Juan just wanted to dance. But danger was all around him. Yancey, a young rent boy, sees Juan’s innocence and naivete and falls in love, all while saving Juan from a predator on the dance floor. Eventually both ended up with their brothers on the ranch owned by Les Hardin and Randy Hersch, where they finished growing up and found their dreams. For Juan, it was all about the horses and being a world class equestrian, eventually ending up at a show bar on the East coast. Yancey chose another path, that of college and an education needed to become a veterinarian. And all during those years, Yancey and Juan never stopped loving each other, even though each was at opposite ends of the country.

Now Yancey has graduated from college and is ready to reunite with the man he loves and start his career. But to do that, he will have to leave the people he has grown to love including his brother for a new veterinarian practice in Virginia, just miles away from the show barn where Juan rides and lives. He and Juan have been parted long enough. He is sure that Juan feels the same way. Or does he? Yancey isn’t sure, exactly but its time to find out. Can Yancey and Juan’s puppy love mature into the forever love they have always wanted or will the reality of being and living together bring their dreams crashing down?

I have been waiting like so many others for Juan and Yancey’s story since the first time we met them in Home of His Own (Home #2 – their brothers, Brody MacCafferty and Tony Romanos story). These two young men were instantly endearing and their love story so heartwarming that it almost eclipsed that of their brothers. Happily, I can announce that it was worth the wait. Home Sweet Home is a wonderful story, reminescent of the first book in the series, No Going Home which remains my favorite.

In every book of the series, we kept getting glimpses of Juan and Yancey as they grew up. The author always managed to throw in little details of their lives, whether it was Yancey returning for the holidays from college or Juan’s equestrian training at Edward’s barns in Virginia. These small mentions managed to keep our interest in these young men alive and pique our curiosity over their future. In fact, one of the many aspects I love about this series is that Chase continues to bring together all the characters from other books into the latest stories. These people form a family, one cobbled together by need and choice so to have that family remain topical in every book is important to the cohesion and strength of the series.

The characters of Yancey and Juan have also grown as their characters have aged. From teenage gay boys to confident, mature young men, Chase has developed their characters realistically relative to their age. It’s wonderful getting reacquainted with these older versions of the boys we first met. Along with their characters, their love for each other needs to grow as well. Luckily, Chase has taken care of that too. The author has her characters adjust their views of each other and their careers in a very human and authentic manner. I just loved how tentative and yet determined each man is to make their relationship and Yancey’s move work. It is emotionally satisfying and oh so enjoyable to read about.

If I have a quibble, it would be with the ending. In the epilogue we fly forward from 1 year to 5 years into the future, missing out on so much of their lives together that it felt like a missed chance to round out their story in favor of a quick finish (note see my mini rant on storying endings). I don’t know if this rushed ending is due to Chase finishing up the series or just their story. Either way, it didn’t measure up to the first part of the story and that was a shame. But even with that quibble, I still love this series and recommend it. The Home series is heartwarming, sexy, and full of wonderful characters you will never get tired of. Home Sweet Home is another great installment and one you won’t want to miss.

Cover art by Posh Gosh. The young model in front is perfect for Juan and the cover gorgeous in design and detail.

Here are the Home series book in the order they were written and should be read to understand the characters and the events:

No Going Home (Home #1) – my favorite
Home of His Own (Home #2) Tony and Brody’s story (second favorite)
Wishing for a Home (Home #3) Derek and Max’s story
Leaving Home (Home #4) Peter and Chaz’s story
Home Sweet Home (Home #5) Juan and Yancey’s story (a tie with their brothers)

Book Details:

ebook, 137 pages

Published May 27th 2013 by Total-E-Bound

ISBN 1781843228 (ISBN13: 9781781843222)

edition language English

url http://www.total-e-bound.com/product.asp?strParents=&CAT_ID=&P_ID=2125

series Home #5

Review: Nischal (Leopard’s Spots #9) by Bailey Bradford

Rating: 3.75 stars out of 5

Preston Hardy’s brother, Paul, went missing over a year ago and is presumed dead. But Preston hasn’t given up hope of finding his twin. Preston knew his brother’s fascination with snow leopards and has found his way to Texas , the last place Paul was seen, and a side show with two snow leopards on display. The people exhibiting them seem suspicious and the snow leopards themselves are in bad shape. As Preston investigates further into the show’s owners and his brother’s disappearance, he falls into a perilous trap and a situation that will change his life and his perception of the world forever.

Nischal and his brother Sabin are snow leopard shifters. Trapped and taken away from their mother in their leopard form, the two young men have been drugged and starved while in captivity, their poor mental and physical condition keeping them from shifting back to their human form. Years of being caged have deprived them of hope but the appearance of Preston outside their cage changes everything. From the moment Nischal sees Preston, he knows his mate has arrived. But their captors will do everything in their power to keep the snow leopards as theirs and prevent Preston from the truth about his brother.

Nischal is the ninth book in the Leopard’s Spots series and a return finally to the story basics that made this such a fascinating series. Nischal starts at a seemingly random point with two captive Snow Leopards caged in a side show in Texas. A reader familiar with this series will search their memories for some prior mention of these brothers to no avail. This is the first we have heard of them. They are unaware of other Snow Leopards, including our foundation family, the Traveses, in Colorado, existing in a bubble created out of their mother’s isolation of them as cubs and their continued existence in captivity. Preston Hardy too has not the slightest connection to the previous books. He, like the shifter brothers, arrives outside of the previous narratives. It is not until mid-story that a character from the other books arrives and heralds the beginning of a connection to the series plotlines and universe. From there on out, this story’s twists and turns will surprise the most jaded of Bradford’s readers, especially a bombshell close to the end. I never saw it coming, and loved that surprising turn of events.

Really, Nischal exemplifies what is most frustrating and wondrous about this series. Bradford’s ideas are startlingly original, pinging off here and there but always eventually finding their way back to the pattern she is weaving in this series. Just as the reader is getting frustrated that she has left her original premise with the leopard shifters far behind with her wolf shifters and cougar shifters and shaman, she manages to bring all these disparate elements together in a wide ranging plot that continues to exasperate and involve us deeply in the futures of the leopard shifters and their mates. I loved all the different aspects of Nischal’s story. There is several mysteries, including that of Paul’s disappearance and the origin of the shifter brothers. A wolf faction from a previous book makes a reappearance here. And always there is the mate sex. Tons and tons of mate sex.

That is always my biggest issue with Bradford’s stories, that she sacrifices almost half her books story to over the top sex scenes involving various mated pairs. It usually starts right before or after the men realize they are mates. They leap into bed and spend the next five or ten pages staying there. Now I love a good sex scene and this book has many. But there are so many that the plot suffers under the weight of all that sex. When they finally stop you have to try and remember where you are in the storyline because its been that long since she has made reference to it. And that is a shame because she is giving you glimpses of a much larger picture here, one that will encompass all the story lines of the previous books. The possibilities I see within this story are intriguing and addicting. It is the reason I have stayed with this series even when certain books in it have almost caused me to abandon the series.

I came very close to giving this story a four, but the numerous sex scenes once more worked to the detriment of the story and pulled it down. I know that I must sound like a broken record with the same issues at book nine, but I keep hoping the author will surprise me with a change in writing style in much the same manner she surprised me with the plot twist at the end. Like Nischal and Sabin, there is always hope. And in this case, there is hope and a darn fine story to go along with it.

Cover art by Posh Gosh is gorgeous as always. Models are on target and perfectly represent the characters involved. Just beautiful.

Here are the books in the Leopard’s Spots series in the order they were written and should be read (mostly)

Levi (Leopard’s Spots, #1)
Oscar (Leopard’s Spots, #2)
Timothy (Leopard’s Spots, #3)
Isaiah (Leopard’s Spots #4)
Gilbert (Leopard’s Spots #5)
Esau (Leopard’s Spots #6)
Sullivan (Leopard’s Spots, #7)
Wesley (Leopard’s Spots, #8)
Nischal (Leopard’s Spots, #9)

Book Details:

ebook

Expected publication: August 9th 2013 by Total-E-Bound Publishing

ISBN13 9781781844052

url http://www.total-e-bound.com/product.asp?strParents=&CAT_ID=&P_ID=2233

series Leopard’s Spots #9

Review: Faire Fugitive by Madeleine Ribbon

Rating: 3.75 stars out of 5

Small time thief Devlin is on the run. Mac, his friend and former protector is trying to kill him and Devlin can never stay any place for long. When Mac catches up to Devlin again, Devlin flees to a local Renaissance Faire hoping to pick enough pockets to get the money he needs to move on. But the faire and the people inside are not quite as they seem. As Devlin winds his way through the crowd relieving them of their money, he notices a man with piercing green eyes watching him. Disconcerted, Devlin runs deep into the Faire town, a place full of shops and pubs. One shop calls to him. EZRA’S AMULETS, and he enters. Once inside, one particular amulet calls to him, and unable to stop, Devlin steals the amulet from the shop and puts it on.

From that moment on Devlin’s life starts to change. For the magic inside the amulet is real and pulls Devlin back to the Faire even as he runs off back to the city. Injured, Devlin returns, and waiting him is the man Devlin saw watching him – Ezra. But Mac is close behind Devlin, gun at hand. Devlin will die unless a miracle happens. Will Devlin trust in Ezra and the Faire’s magic to keep him alive or will Mac win out in the end?

Faire Fugitive is my first book by Madeleine Ribbon but it definitely won’t be my last. I found this story to be charming, engrossing, absolutely winning in almost every way. Madeleine Ribbon has created a wonderful universe in her Faire and its varied denizens. From a fox furry to a fortune teller with more than fortunes up his sleeve, the author has created a modern Brigadoon in the guise of a Renaissance Faire. Her descriptions of the Faire should be familiar to any person who has visited their local festival but then she takes it several marvelous steps further into a magical realm with a sentience of its own.

Ribbon’s characters too are charming and endearing each in its own way. Devlin’s life has been a hard one of foster families and then life on the street at the tender age of 11. His only friend has turned against him in a cruel twist of fate and now he is permanently on the run, fleeing for his life and out of funds. His desperation is keenly felt and the reader not only fears for him but feels for his circumstances too. Ezra, the amulet maker, is a little more of an enigma. I wish the author had given us more of his history. As it is, he doesn’t come against quite as realistic as Devlin does. None of the others do, except Gail, the fox furry, an adorable character. But perhaps that is the author’s intent because most of the other people involved are wedded to the magic that is the Faire and are no longer of the outside world.

Madeleine Ribbon’s narrative flows smoothly, bogging down only slightly when it spends too much time with Devlin prior to the Faire. Once within the gates, however, it picks up speed, gathering momentum as the plot proceeds to the end. And that is where all my quibbles arrive. Madeleine Ribbon sets us up for a denouement that never happens. We keep waiting for the “aha” moment and by a strange and deflating plot twist, takes that satisfaction away from the reader, giving us a poor substitution in its place. She also ends her story just where we would love to see an Epilogue appear. I hope that the abrupt ending foretells another story in the same universe. I would be first in line to pick it up.

Even with my quibbles, I recommend Faire Fugitive and look forward to much more from Madeleine Ribbon.

Cover art by Fiona Jayde. I thought this was a gorgeous cover, perfect in tone and coloring for the story within. One of my favorites of the month.

Book Details:

ebook, 201 pages

Published June 25th 2013 by Loose Id

ISBN139781623003890

url http://www.loose-id.com/faire-fugitive.html

Review: Grime and Punishment (The Brothers Grime #1) by Z.A. Maxfield

Rating: 4.5 stars out of 5

Jack Masterson was a firefighter until one massive blaze ended his career and put him on disability. Needing a new career and a way to help people involved, Jack created The Brothers Grime, a biohazard cleanup company. The Brothers Grime go to work at the crime scenes after the police and other agencies have cleared the site for clean up. Jack’s company’s job is to help people move on from a traumatic event by physically cleaning up all the mess left behind, the blood, the gore, everything. Then one night, The Brothers Grime get a call that changes everything for Jack. A man committed suicide at his cousin’s house and a clean up is needed. The suicide? One Nick Foasberg, former friend and more of Jack Masterson.

Jack’s memories of Nick are as traumatic as the accident that disabled him, perhaps more so. A high school attack on Jack involved Nick and others, an attack so savage it put Jack in the hospital for months and has had ramifications for Jack’s life ever since. And Nick’s suicide brings them all back with a vengeance. Further complicating things is Ryan Halloran, Nick’s cousin and owner of the house Nick was living in. Ryan looks like Nick while acting nothing like him. Nick’s life had been spiraling out of control for years as drugs and alcohol took control of his life. Ryan, a nurse, had been trying to help Nick recover.

Nick’s suicide brings the men together. And while Ryan only knows part of Nick’s past with Jack, the two men decide to gain closure and clean up Ryan’s house together. As an attraction grows between them so does Jack’s guilt over a secret he is keeping hidden from Ryan. Ryan has made Jack feel alive again after years of numbness and Jack doesn’t want to lose this chance at love. Both men need to move beyond their involvement with Nick and their pasts before they can find love again with each other.

I love Z.A. Maxfield’s stories and Grime and Punishment is no exception. In this first book in a new series, the author delves into the relatively unknown field of crime scene environmental cleanup, a fascinating aspect of the trauma crimes leave behind. With that occupation as a foundation, Maxfield gives us a group of emotionally and physically wounded men around which to build her story and series. I am sure I am not the only one who has not given a thought as to what happens when the police and medical examiners leave a scene. Maxfield takes us there and shows us the people and companies that make a living cleaning up the tragedies that life brings. The reality of these firms is both ugly and redeeming. They descend upon the scene, jockeying to throw in their bids and grab up the job before anyone else and that often means talking to the victim or victims shortly after the trauma has occurred. The manner in which that interaction is handled swings between sensitivity and rapaciousness.

For Maxfield’s character, Jack Masterson, this is not merely a job but a way in which he can help the victims move forward with their lives. He has been on the both sides of this job and knows that he and his people can make a difference and not just a living. Jack Masterson is one of the walking wounded. Jack was traumatized early in life by an attack during high school brought on by someone he loved and trusted. And that betrayal has caused Jack to emotionally withdraw from life. Jack is a masterful creation, a complex personality whose frailties, his emotional and physical vulnerabilities make him an easily accessible character to identify and like. And as he starts to change and become alive once more, the reader is so heavily invested in his emotional growth and rebirth that we feel we are there with him every step of the way.

Ryan also has many layers to him, a nurse drawn to the downtrodden and lost, he too must look closely at himself and his motives with regard to his relationships with Jack and Nick. The build to a relationship between Ryan and Jack is slow and full of obstacles. It is instead a very realistic portrait of two men wary of each other and their pasts who cautiously proceed forward together with no guarantees. I loved this aspect of the story and look forward to much more of them and the series.

Of course, there are so many others to grab your attention. Police officer Dave, so deeply in the closet he has built that he sees no way out, Dave too was affected deeply by Jack’s past as was everyone Jack has remained close to. The Brothers Grime is full of people who care for Jack, whether it is Gabe, Jack’s cousin or the others that work with them. All characters feel so alive that it is easy to entrust your affections to this diverse group of individuals and their various situations.

i love the way Maxfield has built her narrative here. At the start, it seems slow, almost a little frozen, just as Jack is. He is numb emotionally, physically hurting and so is everyone around him. All are bogged down in life, frozen in status as the story starts and the narrative reflects that. It’s mood is just as dark and deep as the characters at this stage in the story. But as their emotional stasis breaks up and the characters move forward in their lives, then the narrative moves forward at a pace equal to the characters emotional rebirth and growth. It becomes lively, and light in places, only to swoop downward at the first hint of returning troubles. Really, Grime and Punishment represents just a remarkable job of storytelling by the author.

I highly recommend this story and can’t wait for the next installment in the series. This is a great introduction for those of you new to Z.A. Maxfield. And for those of you already fond of this author, here is a new story of hers to love.

Book Details:

ebook, 176 pages

Published May 7th 2013 by Loose Id (first published 2013)

original title

Grime and Punishment

ISBN13 9781623003111

edition language English

url http://www.loose-id.com/grime-and-punishment.html

series The Brothers Grime

This Week’s Reviews From Scattered Thoughts

Just coming off a wonderful and exhausting week of company and lunch with my fellow Metro M/M Romance Group. A friend on her way back to the Azores stopped midway to stay with me last week. It was a terrific visit and we got all caught up on things going on in our lives. Then on Saturday, my M/M Romance Metro DC Group met at my house for drink, food and book talk. It was great. So Sunday? That was the day I collapsed. And cleaned. And did some catchup writing. Now I am about a day behind but not feeling very guilty about it. Everyone needs at least one day off and yesterday was mine.

So here is how the week is now shaking out. Not an awesome week, there is one or two redeeming books. I am saving one stupendously awful book for next week when I will have some great ones to balance it out. And of course, I have to have one book rant included for the week as well. This one involves book titles and the willy nilly manner in which some words are capitalized and others are not, depending upon editor, publisher and author. Makes me crazy and now you are going to hear about it.

Monday, July 29, 2013: This Week’s Reviews

Tuesday, July 30, 2013: Fire and Light by Berengaria Brown

Wed., July 31, 2013: Grime and Punishment by Z.A. Maxfield

Thursday, Aug. 1, 2013: The Boy Who Came In From the Cold by B. G. Thomas

Friday, Aug. 2, 2013: Welcome, Brother by Erica Pike

Saturday, Aug. 3, 2013: Book Titles and Capital letters are Making me Crazy!

Review: Sweet Young Thang (Theta Alpha Gamma #3) by Anne Tenino

Rating: 4.25 stars out of 5

Collin Montes was instrumental in getting his fraternity, Theta Alpha Gamma, to change their bylaws and accept gay and bisexual college men into TAG. Several of the brothers were already out about their sexuality, most notably Brad, so this just instilled in their bylaws the acceptance acknowledged in their close knit fraternity. But there is even another reason this change means so much to Collin and that is the fact that Collin is also gay. Collin has kept that fact hidden from most of his fraternity and his family. And that includes his Uncle Monty who raised him after his father died when Collin was 5. Uncle Monty is also the president of the TAG Alumni Association and an influential and powerful man in his own right. Uncle Monty is also a homophobe. The TAG Alumni Association contributes a heavy sum to the running of TAG and neither Uncle Monty or the rest of the board are happy with the inclusion of Gays and Bisexuals in the fraternity.

When first a water heater is rigged to launch through the ceiling, setting off a fire at the TAG house which injures one of the brothers, and then a bomb is found, Collin is sure that these are repercussions due to the changes in bylaws at TAG. One of the paramedics/firemen to arrive at the house the day of the fire is college and TAG Alumn Eric “Dix” Dixon. Eric sees Collin helping out his injured frat brother and the attraction between the men is instantaneous.

Older by ten years and with touches of grey in his hair, Eric is openly gay at work. Eric has always dreamed of someone to make a home and family with but that person hasn’t appeared until now. Collin, with his sexy eyes and gorgeous body, just may be the one Eric has been waiting for. But there are many obstacles between their happiness and future together, from Collin’s closeted status and homophobic uncle to the person responsible for the arson and bombing of the TAG House. As Eric and Collin fall in love, the threat to Collin and the fraternity grows greater. Can Eric protect the man he has come to love or will homophobic hatred ruin their chance for a future together?

This is the third book in the Theta Alpha Gamma series by Anne Tenino and I loved it. It has all the distinctive features of the others in the series. It’s funny, it has terrific characters, and of course, it’s over the top sexy! But this story has something more. It has a mystery as well. Who is behind the arson and bombs at the fraternity? A mystery is a terrific new aspect to this already wonderful series. But let’s take a closer look at this series most common features.

Each book has focused on a member of the Theta Alpha Gamma or TAG fraternity at Calapooya University in Oregon. First it was Brad, then Paul, and now it’s Collin’s turn. Each young man is not only a member of TAG but gay as well, although each has arrived at that self knowledge in differing ways. The wonderful thing about this series is that the characters and couple you have fallen in love with in the previous books are back, included in this story. That holds especially true for Brad and Sebastian from Frat B0y and Toppy (Theta Alpha Gamma #1). They are still working on their relationship and Collin plays an important part in helping them work through a few issues of their own. But the story here belongs to Collin and Eric, as well as the rest of the fraternity brothers.

This is the first time we have really seen the men of TAG interact with each other on a deeper scale. Tenino brings us into the frat house dynamics and the close knit brotherhood of the Theta Alpha Gamma fraternity. Once more we get to watch Tank, Ricky, Toby, Kyle, Jules and the rest support each other, no matter the problem. I have to admit the frat house scenes that involved all the frat brothers had me giggling uncontrollably. Whether they were being roused to action by the threat to their kegerator or watching Project Runway, these are the scenes that really brought their fraternity to goofy life. It’s hysterically funny and yet heartwarming at the same time. Is it a realistic depiction of life at a fraternity? Don’t know and quite frankly don’t care. In Tenino’s more than capable hands, these quirky, crazy group of guys are alive and kicking and making us laugh over and over again. I just loved them.

Collin and Eric are so interesting in their own right. Collin’s father died when he was young and although his mother is alive, his Uncle had a large part in raising him. Collin is an intelligent young man who knows he is gay but fears losing the love of his Uncle by telling him who Collin really is. Uncle Monty is homophobic and controlling, and that has defined Collin’s upbringing until now. It is a joy watching Collin change as the events unfold and his relationship with Eric grows more substantial. Eric is also an interesting character with a sexy, hidden side to him. Trust me when I say that a photography session is one of the sexy highlights of this story. I enjoyed their relationship and the journey towards love for them both. I liked that Anne Tenino took into consideration their age difference when writing the relationship. Neither man is at quite the same stage as the other which is an honest aspect to this story. I appreciated it much more than if we had gotten a case of “instant love”.

I did have a few quibbles with the story. The person behind the attacks on the frat house is easily spotted although the motive remains hidden until the end. I really didn’t have a problem with that aspect of the mystery because it plays out so nicely in the story. There is an event at the end I wasn’t expecting and that was a nice touch too. I did wish that Collin’s relationship with his Uncle had a better resolution (and his Uncle’s Alumni Association’s aspect too). Both his Uncle and the Alumi Association had figured greatly in the story, and that was not really dealt with at the end.

A new young gay character was introduced here. Tank’s younger brother has transfered into the college and been accepted into TAG. I see his story coming next. I can’t wait. I love these guys and their crazy mixed up fraternity. They have heart to go along with their beer parties. They are funny, engaging, and I always enjoy my time with them. I highly recommend this book and this series. Grab them all up, starting with the first one if you are new to the series and this marvelous band of brothers.

Here are the books in the order they were written and should be read to understand the characters and their relationships:

Frat Boy and Toppy (Theta Alpha Gamma, #1)

Love, Hypothetically (Theta Alpha Gamma, #2)

Sweet Young Thang (Theta Alpha Gamma, #3)

Book Details:

ebook

Published July 22nd 2013 by Riptide Publishing

ISBN139781626490321

edition languageEnglish

seriesTheta Alpha Gamma #3

Anthologies, Love Them or Leave Them?

I seem to be running into more and more anthologies these days. Name a publisher and I can show you a long list of anthologies they have published in just this year alone. I am not sure what is driving this trend. Are authors writing more short stories? Do publishers find it easier to publish short stories in an anthology rather than release them on their own? Torquere Press has their Torquere Sips. Dreamspinner Press has Nap-sized Dreams but is now only accepting stories under 15,000 words for use in their anthologies alone. For the most part, I look to find short stories in anthologies these days.

What is an anthology? An anthology is a collection of short stories by various authors that is usually grouped together by a common theme. I have seen anthologies where the stories all occurred in the same city, that was the common thread. Or different stories about a group of friends, each having their own tale in the anthology. Think Hearts From The Ashes from Samhain Press, a favorite of mine, for an anthology along these lines. And the number of authors found in each anthology can be anywhere from three to thirty! An anthology is quite the diverse creature.

So why all the mixed feelings with regard to anthologies? For some readers, its because they prefer a much longer story. They want a novel. These are readers who revel in the long view, jump with joy over complex characterizations and equally complicated story lines. And for the most part, those can only be found in the novel or novella form. Think banquet versus amuse-bouche (a one bite appetizer). Some readers get frustrated with anthologies or short stories because they feel they just get engaged with the characters and plot only to have them end abruptly. I understand that but often feel that is due to the quality of the short story being read. A well done short story should leave a reader satisfied in every way, an increasingly rare occasion these days (see Scattered Thoughts Looks A Short Story Writing).

I think we need to look at anthologies a bit differently than we do with novels or novellas. And perhaps with a different expectation as well. We all have our preset notions when it comes to novels we like. And when we finish a novel, after having invested a certain amount of time and emotion, if it does not meet those expectations, than we are disappointed and frustrated with book and author alike. But an anthology can represent, should we choose to look at it this way, a chance to look at a compilation as something quite different. And rightly so, because there is a different expectation in the amount of time invested because of the shorter length as well as large quantity of stories involved.

Perhaps an anthology becomes a daunting proposal when you think of reading multiple stories one right after the other. I get that as some of these collections are quite huge. I used to just plow through the collection, one right after the other, only to find the stories running together towards the middle, a method that never seemed to do the authors or their tales justice. Now I try to read them in short bursts and that has made it easier for me when not only reading but reviewing the anthology. These are short stories, not a run on novel and they should be read as such. I think we forget that at times because they have been grouped together in one volume. But that fact doesn’t change the actuality that these are short stories, separate from each other except for an artificial grouping made by a publisher.

For me, an anthology is often a smorgasbord or even a Tapas Bar. A series of small plates or appetizers, instead of a formal banquet of a novel. There will often be something familiar, maybe a well-known or well-loved author or two. And there will be surprises, new writers or authors never heard of before. Or just maybe there will be a story from an author whose literary works you don’t normally connect with for whatever reason but here you find a story from them that just blows you away, giving you a new perspective on this author you normally pass on. All those reasons and more make the anthology a format to be looked at with anticipation and with affection. Think your goody bag at the end of the evening on Halloween. How did you approach it? Did you dump it all out at once or pick through the candies left inside the bag? For me, the anthology is the Halloween goody bag. There will be some apples, or a banana, along with Twix, or Mounds Bar to go with the Reese’s Pieces and Hershey Kisses at the end of the night. You can read it all at once or pick through it, reading it a little at a time. Like some, love some, pass on others.

I have come to love anthologies for the jewels I have found inside, authors and stories alike. Inside anthologies I have discovered the joys of a sloth shifter (Charlie Cochrane for Lashings of Sauce) or the grief of love lost and found again (Two Tickets To Paradise). Give them a try, they will undoubtedly surprise you. And let me know, anthologies, do you love them or leave them?

Here are some of the anthologies I have reviewed:

Animal Magnetism

Closet Capers Anthology

Lashings of Sauce

Making Contact

Private Dicks Anthology

Two Tickets To Paradise

Fever Anthology

Unconventional At Best

Review: Waiting for Ty (Lovers and Friends #2) by Samantha Ann King

Rating: 3 stars out of 5

Tyler Coil and his his best friend, gorgeous Landon Burke, have been best friends since college. Landon, a cancer researcher, and Tyler, a politcal reporter, have remained close even though they no longer reside in the same city. Landon has secretly loved his best friend for years, just watched as Tyler dated one woman after another, never seriously. Now Tyler has come to stay with Landon at his apartment for a time while working on a report. Landon is getting ready to buy a condo and take a sabbatical for 6 months in another city. The time is ripe for change in their relationship. Will Landon take a chance on love or let his dream of happiness with Tyler go?

I have mixed feelings about Waiting for Ty. It is the second book in the Lovers and Friends series by Samantha Ann King. The first book, Sharing Hailey (Lovers and Friends #1) is a menage (m/f/m) book that contains a fair amount of back story missing from this book. But as menages are not my thing, I won’t be reading that one. And without that information, much of this book feels incomplete as the author did not take the time to build it into her narrative. And that is just one of the issues with Waiting for Ty.

The story opens with Ty visiting Landon in his rental apartment just as two important events in Landon’s life are about to take place. He is finally finished with his years of college, including graduate degrees and is working as a cancer researcher. He has bought a condo and has agreed to take a 6 month sabbatical from his current position to work with another research group in a different state. And in walks Ty. Tyler is in town to meet with a informer for a explosive political expose’ he is working on. His entrance and the start of the novel is so abrupt that we feel as though we have entered midway through the novel. The reader is given little to no back story as to the men or their history together. It is just so odd that it is almost impossible to feel engaged in Landon’s predicament or their relationship.

Once the plot moves forward and the men try to establish a relationship amid family disapproval and personal assertiveness, then the book takes shape and the reader can finally settle into feeling more connected to the men and their struggle to be together. Ty is “straight” so this reads as a “gay for you” story which I am not sure that I bought into. Their initial sex scene came across the page as being somewhat polished in experience considering Ty’s inexperience. I really thought the author did her best work with describing the family dynamics and religious beliefs that threaten to tear the couple apart even as they are getting started. That aspect of this story really highlights Samantha Ann King’s talents as a writer. Tyler’s family comes across as real and absolutely believable in their bedrock fundamental religious beliefs even after having evidence as to their love, especially his mother, for their son. The stress that Landon is under during his first visit to Tyler’s family and the strained family dynamics are perfectly portrayed. It’s sad, and it has the feel of a family ready to break apart, splintering beyond any of the family’s power to heal the fractures about to be created.

Tyler’s change of face with regard to his sexuality and relationship with Landon is a little too pat, and the ending of this novel comes about a little too soon to feel authentic as well. I liked this story but felt it had so much more potential than was evidenced in the final product. I think Samantha Ann King has a gift that she has just begun to explore and I look forward to more stories from this author. I liked this story but am on the fence as to whether I would recommend it.

Stories in the Lovers and Friends series:

Sharing Hailey (Lovers and Friends #1)

Waiting for Ty (Lovers and Friends #2)

Book Details:

ebook, 36,000 words

Expected publication: July 29th 2013 by Carina Press

ISBN13 781426896033

edition language English

series Lovers and Friends

Review: Worlds Collide (Sanctuary #7) by R.J. Scott

Rating: 4.75 stars out of 5

Dale MacIntyre, Sanctuary agent, is in charge of protecting Emily Bullen, wife of Senator Thomas Bullen, from her husband and the rest of the criminally inclined Bullen family. After turning states evidence, Emily is headed back to Albany on a jet. Accompanied only by Dale, the pilot of the plane, and the copilot, she is horrified when word reaches them that a key player in the Bullen family crime syndicate was mistakenly freed from jail and is now able to hunt down the only person who can put him away for life. That person is Emily Bullen.

Midflight, Dale realizes the extent that Ryland Griffin will go to in order to eliminate Emily Bullen. Dale reaches out immediately to the person he knows he can trust to have immediate answers, have his back and that of the person he is protecting. That person is his lover, Navy Seal Joseph Kinnon. When Dale’s assignment gets more dangerous, Joseph and his Seal Team intervene and the resulting events bring about a serious introspective search for Dale and Joseph about where their relationship is headed.

I have been waiting for another Dale and Joseph book since they first appeared in The Only Easy Day (Sanctuary #2). In that story, Dale, an ex Seal and Joseph, current Navy Seal, meet, clash and lust as the investigation into the Bullen family crime syndicate is in its initial stages with Joseph’s murdered sister as one of Bullen family’s first known victims. The start to their romance is white hot, primal and short lived. Since then, R.J. Scott has kept the readers on high anticipation with teasers of the couple in book after book but nothing notable or even remotely satisfying. This is how it all starts:

“It’s not too late, we can still get out of here,” Chief Petty Officer Joseph Kinnon said urgently. He pressed both hands to the glass and stared down at the street below. The city was a white, snowy landscape and at any other time would have been stunningly beautiful. They were ten stories up in a hotel in the heart of the historic district and the place had ledges at each level. As a team they’d dealt with worse. Assessing the situation, he considered the options.

“Fuentes, talk to me.”

Luca Fuentes, young, tall, and built like the side of barn with muscles on muscles, was the team’s resident hacker but was also a tactical genius. He joined Joseph at the window. “Chief,” he said formally. His green-eyed gaze unerringly focused in on the view that Joseph had. He frowned as he looked out.

“Can you find egress here?” Joseph asked.

Luca tapped the glass.

“Reinforced; we’d need some pretty heavy ordnance to get out—I can get Viktor on that—then zip wire. Get it hooked to the top of the plaza building.” Luca looked up and down, then turned to Joseph. “Forty degrees. We can get down to the roof and get out that way.”

“Assessment?” “Fifty-fifty. I think most of us will be okay, but one of our team is scared of heights,” Fuentes said seriously.

Joseph nodded in agreement. “You’re talking about Mike Dexter.”

“He’s a liability, sir,” Luca answered. “I’m not sure his underwear would remain unstained and survive the fall.”

Joseph and his Seal team are assembled for a very different type of mission, a personal one. This is a funny and really moving introduction, just what I have come to expect from R.J. Scott. Joseph and his team are truly a band of brothers,unchanging until now. But the event they have gathered for marks the beginning of transitions for more than one member of the team. We have not met Joseph’s team until now and what a diverse group they turn out to be. I can easily see R.J. Scott building an entire new series around this team, especially the randy Viktor. While Scott has let us see Joseph in action, this is the first time we get to see Joseph operating as a member of his Seal team. By their interactions with each other and their dialog the author lets us feel why being a Seal and a part of this team is so important to Joseph. And it also lets us into the pain Dale felt when he was forced out. Since being a Seal is fundamental to Joseph’s character, what plays out next highlights the importance of Dale and their relationship.

And that is really what Worlds Collide is all about, an internal shift in both men that will allow them to have a future with each other. This is more a relationship book than any of the other stories in the series to date. Yes, we are still dealing with the fallout from the Bullen family crime investigations. One important criminal has escaped and Dale is in charge of getting Emily Bullen to safety so she can testify. But this section is just the impetus for providing the platform for change in both men’s lives. Here is Joseph with a note from Dale:

Just touching the note grounded Joseph in the here and now. Slowly, over the course of the last few months, the space in his life that had once been filled by the team he was with, by the job, by staying alive, had seen a full-frontal assault by the man he had fallen in love with.

This is a huge ground shift by a man who lived for the Seals alone. Dale too has undergone his own emotional introspection about Joseph and their possible future ahead. I love the way Scott has developed their story. Our first meeting and theirs was explosive, a fight turned sexual. It was incendiary. But after that, something else occurred, they started to care about each other and so did the readers. From time to time, we heard about each man and their tentative relationship in the other books. Nothing concrete for them or us, just tantalizing bits that kept us engaged in their future. So this book was more than welcome, I am sure we felt it was long overdue after being teased through five books. And the author doesn’t let us down.

We alternate perspective, from Dale to Joseph and back, as the events brought on by Dale’s assignment, guarding Emily Bullen, brings out those determined to stop her at all costs. We get to see the fluidity of motion and deadly competency of the Seal team in action, and the intrepidness of Dale’s Sanctuary training coming together to achieve one end. But the highlight of the story must be the time that Joseph and Dale get to spend together after the mission is finished. It’s heartwarming, it’s sexy and it fulfills most of the dreams we have had about this couple. But of course, not all.

It’s all here. All the things that have made this series such a great one. Realistic, fully rounded characters, a complicated criminal investigation that spreads through the series, and a narrative that moves the plot forward swiftly and smoothly. I love that the Bullen investigation is still ongoing, with loose ends out there waiting to trip up Sanctuary and the other agencies. Just a terrific aspect of this series and beautifully plotted out. There are one or two small chinks in the armor here. One small scene with the Seals and the criminal that I thought was unrealistic given their training and readiness. And then there is the ending. Absolutely realistic as always. For those expecting a finality to Dale and Joseph’s romance, we haven’t gotten it …yet. But you know that it is coming and this ending will leave you satisfied for now.

If you are new to the series or Dale and Joseph’s romance, go back to the beginning. An absolute must in order to understand the characters and the events as they play out. Here are the books in the order they were written and must be read:

Guarding Morgan (Sanctuary #1)

The Only Easy Day (Sanctuary #2), Dale and Joseph’s romance begins

Face Value (Sanctuary, #3)

Still Waters (Sanctuary, #4)

Full Circle (Sanctuary, #5)

The Journal Of Sanctuary One (Sanctuary, #6)
]
Worlds Collide (Sanctuary #7)

Cover design by BitterGraceArt is lovely and in keeping with the characters.

Book Details:

ebook

Published June 28th 2013 by Love Lane Books (first published March 30th 2013)

url http://rjscottauthor.blogspot.co.uk/2013/02/worlds-collide-sanctuary-7.html

series Sanctuary