Tag: m/m action suspense

A Sammy Review: Slasherazzi by Daniel A. Kaine

Rating: 5 stars out of 5

Slasherazzi coverAlex Beckman, newly promoted to detective, already has the case of his career, no, his life. The serial killer dubbed Slasherazzi is like nothing anyone’s seen before. With each murder, the killer is getting more and more daring. At first, the bodies were found his slashes all done postmortem, but now the killer is torturing them first, and takes it even a step further when he picks high-risk targets.

It seems nothing can be done to catch him. He’s too careful, too precise. To top off the theme of failure seeming to seep into Alex’s life, he’s also maybe-somewhat back on with his on-again off-again boyfriend, Vincent Fairfield, a journalist who got his first big break by breaking Alex’s trust.

With the bodies piling up and suspicion brewing, there’s no telling who the killer may be, or where he’ll strike next.

Hello, mind fuck, how are you today? Good, that’s great. Me too.

I had hunches along the way and they often went back and forth. It’s this person, no it’s this person, oh man, what if it is that person. This story got me so twisted with theories and when it finally revealed the truth, I felt like I was hit with a ton of bricks.

First of all, I have to commend Mr. Kaine on his delivery of the reveal. I’ve never seen anything like it, and it was the most perfect way to do it. I was speechless and actually had to reread that particular part a few times. My first thought was “He’s jerking my chain, right?” Nope, no chain being jerked by Mr. Kaine. Brilliant. Just brilliant.

I was literally at 92% and still had no idea what was going to happen, so when it did, yep. Stunned. I’m still cruising on that misty dafuq feeling. I feel like I’m floating, or maybe I just lost my brain for a bit.

Okay, so, the rest of the story. It was good too. I’ve never made it a mystery that I love all things dark and delirious. This hit all those buttons, and then some. As an editor or beta reader, I’ve always encouraged authors to push more, just a little more, reach that much more. Well, I think that this author reached that far and then reached some more. He truly exposed some of the most raw, fucked up imaginations I’ve read in a long time, and I ate it up. Completely, totally, ate it up. If you’ve read the book, that will probably make you throw up in your mouth a bit, but so be it.

This story is not for someone who can’t handle explicit details of mutilation and torture. When I say that, I don’t mean the kind of torture we read in BDSM. This torture is so twisted and depraved, it left even me speechless.

So, Mr. Kaine, may I have a ticket to the darkest parts of your mind? I think I rather like it there. Until then, I think I may have to reread this with new eyes.

The cover art by Wilde City Press fits the story nearly perfectly. The only exception is that I wish the knife had been made of a different material (as to resemble a certain weapon in the story). All in all, though, it represents the story quite well.

Sales Links:   Wilde City Press       Amazon    Buy It Here

Book Details:

ebook, 189 pages
Published June 11th 2014 by Wilde City Press
ISBN139781925180152
edition languageEnglish
url http://www.danielakaine.com
settingTampa, Florida (United States)

A MelanieM Review: Fair Play (All’s Fair #2) by Josh Lanyon

Rating: 4.5 stars out of 5

Fair Play coverRoland Mills, father of ex-FBI agent Elliot Mills, has always been an activist, extremely liberal in his views and actions. Fifty years ago, Roland belonged to a violent protest group and now, when Roland is about to publish his memoirs, someone is willing to kill to prevent him from doing so.

It took the death of his mother, and Elliot Mills’s own injury to bring father and son back together.   Now the threats against his father’s life has Elliot reaching out to those in his father’s past, an action that  brings him up against the FBI and his lover, FBI Agent Tucker Lance.

Now living together, Tucker and Elliot are still trying to find their way to a solid relationship and these threats against Roland threaten that solidity once again. Tucker has never agreed with radical Roland on much, but when it comes to wanting Elliot to stay out of the mess Roland has gotten into, he and Roland agree for once that Elliot needs to let it alone.  As the danger closes in, it threatens not just Roland’s life, but that of Elliot’s and their relationship as well.

The first book in this series, Fair Game, remains a favorite read of mine.  I loved the complicated characters, the angst filled  past, and the tumultuous circumstances that brought such strong, intelligent men together.  Adding to that, Josh Lanyon completed his cast of characters by giving Elliot a compelling family history with a 60’s activist father, and beloved deceased mother and a host of wild and chaotic personalities that swirled around his father and the university they both teach at.  And then Lanyon piled on some horrific murders to boot!

At the conclusion of Fair Game, Tucker and Elliot agreed to give their relationship another try and this story, Fair Play, picks up with Tucker already living in Elliot’s house on the island.  Their relationship is passionate and committed, yet both men are still obviously adjusting to all new aspects of their cohabitation.  I have always loved this author’s ability to create such layered, fascinating characters and then bring them to life through sharp, thoughtful dialog and emotional interplay.  We feel Elliot’s and Tucker’s hesitations, those halting advances towards openness and vulnerability that is so hard for them both, in scene after scene.  It makes their journey back to each other feel real and sometimes painfully slow.  That makes it extremely gratifiying when they can move past these realistic moments in their relationship to something deeper.   And all the while,  they are trying to deal with Roland’s intractability, fear, and an unknown killer on the loose.

The father/son dynamics between Roland and Elliot that Lanyon has brought into this series is as compelling as the one between Tucker and Elliot, and its not always a given that the relationship will survive the actions of each other, as diametrically opposed as they often are.  I loved the mystery that goes along with the attempts on Roland’s life, it leads into the past and the idea that all actions have reverberations that will continue into the present and beyond.    We also see the potential for the villain in the first story to make a reappearance soon.  That alone gave me the shivers.

In Fair Play, we are there as Tucker and Elliot solve complicated mysteries and move deeper into their relationship. The suspense is gripping, and the emotional involvement never lets up.  We are engrossed in the hunt for the would-be assassin while also heavily invested in Tucker and Elliot’s sometimes shaky partnership and well being. Fair Play is immensely satisfying,  totally entertaining, and a wonderful read.   I highly recommend not only this book but the first in the series as well.   Start with Fair Game to see what brings Elliot and Tucker back together and then continue on to Fair Play.  What a ride awaits you in the All’s Fair series from Josh Lanyon.

 

Cover Artist is a great job in overall tone and concept.

Sales Links:  Carina Press      All Romance (ARe)        Amazon   Buy it Here

Book Details:

Kindle Edition, 250 pages
Published November 10th 2014 by Carina Press
ASINB00KV5Z7M0
series All’s Fair #2

All’s Fair Series:

Fair Game
Fair Play (All’s Fair #2)

Go Free Falling with S.E. Jakes! Guest Spotlight and Book Contest.

FreeFalling_TourBanner

Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words is happy to have SE Jakes visiting today to talk about Free Falling, a story in the marvelously addicting Extreme Escapes universe series.FreeFalling_150x300

S.E. Jakes:
Thanks so much for having me here today, so I can shout about the fact that Free Falling’s getting a re-release with Riptide! I’m so excited about this, you have no idea. For me, this is the book that started the Hell or High Water series (see below for more on that).

Free Falling originally came out in December of 2012—it was the first book I self-published, and I worked with Sarah Frantz as my editor (and she’s now my Riptide editor as well) and the entire experience was simply awesome.

This would also be the second book Prophet inserted himself into (the first was Bound For Keeps). It was then I realized that the man needed his own series or else he would show up in every single book I wrote. But for Free Falling, it certainly cemented the bond between Blue and Prophet. I’ve brought Blue and Mick back in Long Time Gone (Hell or High Water 2) and yes, I’m totally planning a Free Falling sequel, which would happen sometime post Dirty Love (Dirty Deeds 3). Because I can’t get enough of Blue, my favorite thief, and Mick, the man who’ll chase him every single time.

The great thing about moving this book to Riptide is that now all my EE Ltd. books are in one place AND Free Falling will now be available everywhere in eFormat AND in print!!! The cover looks gorgeous in person.

,
Contest:
Every comment on this blog tour enters you in a drawing to win one of three SIGNED copies of Hell or High Water series: Catch a Ghost and Long Time Gone. Entries close at midnight, Eastern Time, on March 24th, and winners will be announced on March 25th.  Contest is valid worldwide.

About Free Falling:

Sometimes falling in love is the most dangerous thing of all.
**
FreeFalling_500x750Blue is a thief who lives for adrenaline and danger. And when he meets Mick, a mercenary, he’s hit with a buzz of attraction like the rush of a high-rise job without a safety rope. But after making plans to get together, Mick leaves him hanging, and Blue vows never again.
A year later, Mick watches helplessly as Blue stumbles into the middle of one of Mick’s jobs. Risking his cover and their lives, Mick saves Blue and cares for him as he recuperates, but neither man has any idea how to handle the intimacy this forces them into.
Once Blue is safe, Mick redoubles his efforts to take down the drug lord responsible—and disappears. Blue goes after him, determined to return the favor and rescue the man he loves, no matter the cost.
This is a revised second edition of the originally self-published title. No substantive changes have been made to the story.
About SE Jakes:
SE Jakes writes m/m romance. She believes in happy endings and fighting for what you want in both fiction and real life.
She lives in New York with her family, and most days, she can be found happily writing (in bed). No really…

Connect with SE Jakes:

Review: Long Time Gone (Hell or High Water #2) by S.E. Jakes

Rating: 5 stars out of 5

When a tornado meets a volcano, nothing is safe.

Long Time Gone coverAfter their last “off the grid” mission was finished, Tom Boudreaux was given a choice of partners,  Cope or Prophet.  Tom chose Cope thinking that he would keep Prophet safe by removing him from Tom’s bad luck.  But now three months later Tom’s decision has brought him nothing but regret.  Regret and a constant anxiety over Prophet’s whereabouts and  safety as Prophet has left EE Ltd and no one is sure of his whereabouts.

When Tom Boudreaux walked away from him and their partnership, Prophet realized two things.  One that he no longer wanted to work alone, and secondly he had just let the man he wanted walk out of his life.  After Tom left, he wrote Prophet emails, including one that asked him for a personal favor, never sure if the man would get them.  He did.  And now Prophet is heading to New Orleans to see Della, Tom’s aunt,  to make sure she stays safe as a hurricane approaches.

Fearing for his aunt’s safety as a hurricane bears down on New Orleans, Tom disobeys his employer’s orders and leaves for his old home town and an explosive reunion with Prophet, a man he hasn’t been able to forget.  The horror that is Tom’s past rises up around them along with the flooding bayou waters bringing alligators, murder, and old enemies to the surface. Tom and Prophet must fight not only to stay together but for their lives as well.

SE Jakes has done it again! Long Time Gone, the 2nd book in the Hell or High Water series, is one sexy, tumultuous, and action-packed roller-coaster of a novel.  A Mr. Toad’s Wild Ride and Spy Hunt for adults and it couldn’t be more satisfying.  With  Tom Boudreaux and Prophet Drews, Jakes has added to her pantheon of complicated, conflicted Alphas intensely connected by their pasts as well as professions as spies and covert ops.  These are tough, wary, secretive warriors.  So it makes sense to make these men (and us) work hard to establish any sort of realistic relationship, if one is possible.

As Catch A Ghost ended, we saw Tom accept a new partner, walking away from Prophet and their intense relationship.Three months have passed since that event and things can’t be more different for both men.  Tom is bored out of his skull, buried in a job he doesn’t want with a partner who is making him crazy.  He is missing Prophet so deeply that he is writing the man emails he isn’t sure Prophet will ever receive.  Why?  Because the man has disappeared and even those closest to him are unable to find him.  Prophet left EE, Ltd, their agency after a fight with their boss.  And now he wanders the globe on his own dangerous missions that by their varying nature send pointed messages to the security agencies around the world.  These men are coming to a crossroads and it will take a hurricane to set them back on the path together.

The world is familiar with the impact a hurricane can have on the City of New Orleans and it’s surrounding parishes.  So it definitely works to bring the reader immediately into the setting for this novel by bringing this natural disaster back to life in the same place where Katrina left so much devastation and death.  It lays an emotional, knowledgeable base for the actions that follow and the choice of New Orleans, with its fantastic mix of voodoo and beignets, of alligators and corruption, is the perfect stage for a story where “the seventh son of a seventh son”, and a man named Prophet will reunite to deal with Tom’s demons, ones that have haunted him from birth, just as a new hurricane bears down on a town familiar with disasters of every kind, natural and man made.

With the hurricane coming, and New Orleans as the setting, Jakes has all the elements she needs to create a story wide ranging in emotions, explosive in actions and incendiary in the sexual heat generated by  Tom and Prophet, really this story has it all.  Tom and Prophet were enigmas in Catch a Ghost.  Here we start to flesh out their backstories, Tom’s especially.  The angry, out of control agent seen fighting in the first novel is laid bare, his character explained through the bayou, his family and the past events that continue to stain relationship and friendships today.  The bayou and the Cajun culture flourishes here in the touches  and in the metaphors Jakes creates for her two battled scarred men fight nature and others to be together, including their own  doubts and best intentions.  As the lightning flashes and the storm rages outside the house where Tom’s aunt lives, it parallels the passion and emotional chaos occurring within Tom and Prophet as they meet up again under dire circumstances.  It’s scary hot, swirling with anger and longing yet still oddly humorous at the same time.  The water rises along with Tom’s past, bringing up bodies, old enemies seeking revenge and retribution  in a maelstrom of hate, anguish and pain.

It’s also not just Tom’s past that is dealt with, Prophet brings his own share of torment as well.  The thunder and lightning flashes mimic the sounds of guns and warfare throwing Prophet into paralyzing states of PTSD and flashbacks.  One man’s horror combines with another’s man terrifying upbringing but salvation or success is never a given.  Not with these two, the most they can ask for is time and hope.

I suppose this is the best time to bring up alligator kink.  I now have one thanks to SE Jakes and her boys.  I never saw that coming. I admit that when someone mentions alligator ‘rastling’ in the past, it conjured up images of good old boy poachers ,bootleg tanners and hokey sideshow venues in the south or any show on TLC.  No more.  Now I think of Tom and Prophet and New Orleans. It’s a wild scene as they roll passionately about Aunt Della’s kitchen floor, as well as a cabin in the swamp.  It’s sexy and funny and yes, satisfying as the boys reunite after 3 months of separation. All those wet, naked rolling bodies is further later detailed as Tom puts on a show as he wrestles and rolls an alligator into submission.  It opens a new sexual kink for Prophet, one that plays out in a white hot moment to come.

So much lovely, lusty sex here, which works on many different levels.  Sex is the number one choice of communication between Tom and Prophet.  They use it to defer those “we have to talk” situations while saying so much to each other by their touches,caresses, and telling strokes.  Because these boys have forgotten how to talk, how to open themselves up to another person, if they ever knew how to begin with. So when Jakes’ plot forces them to share parts of their past with each other, its realistically painful and monosyllabic.  It also makes us (and the person on the receiving end of said pertinent data) so appreciative of the information that we do get while making us a little frustrated at how much more there is to know and understand about the complicated men before us.

To continue the metaphor, Jakes’ narrative is a pitching deck on hurricane waters.  If the story feels a little choppy in places, its because that format works to keep every one off balance, as the waves throw one thing after another at our couple.  Sometimes it looks like they are going to drown in their past other times they crest towards the surface and safety.  I love that we are never sure what the next page and scene will bring us.  The suspense is wonderful and agonizing for us as well as Tom and Prophet.

Tom Boudreaux and Prophet Drews are the real deal, that addictive couple that snares us at the beginning of a potential relationship and never lets us go.  Each stumble forward, every tentative gain made towards a lasting relationship is met with a realistic picture of just how fragile and momentary those new stages in their relationship are.  Just one phone call, one appearance by the wrong person and all could be lost.  Such an overview paints a veneer of uncertainty and suspense over all the events and actions that occur within the story.  Tom and Prophet are together again but for long how?  Where is the next enemy coming from?  Their present or their past?  Jakes keeps us teetering on the edge of our emotions along with Tom and Prophet as they navigate the rough waters ahead.  I can’t wait to see how they will handle what this fine author has to throw at them (and us).  It is guaranteed to be chilling, unexpected and downright sexy.  I was always one for the E Ticket rides and this is that in spades.  I just hope we all survive the journey.

Long Time Gone and the Hell or High Water series are highly recommended to all.

LC Chase has again supplied us with an outstanding cover, perfect for the man and  his story inside.

Books in the Hell or High Water series in the order they should be read:

Catch a Ghost (Hell or High Water, #1) 
Long Time Gone (Hell or High Water, #2)

Associated Series: Men of Honor and Dirty Deeds:

Dirty Deeds (DirtyDeeds #1)

Book Details:

ebook, 270 pages
Published October 28th 2013 by Riptide Publishing (first published October 27th 2013)
ISBN139781626490604
edition languageEnglish
urlhttp://www.riptidepublishing.com/titles/long-time-gone
seriesHell or High Water #2

Review: Oceans Apart (Separate Ways #2) by Laura Harner

Rating: 5 stars out of 5

Oceans Apart coverTwo years after the events in London, Detective Remy Remington has returned to Phoenix, along with his friend, former cop Miguel “Miggy” Rojas.  Miggy needed to get clean after years undercover saw him hooked on drugs. Remy was needed to support his old friend and did so by leaving the Phoenix PD, and with Miggy as a partner, started their own detective agency.  When  their  biggest client sends them a diamond dealer in need of security for a huge diamond sale, the men quickly agree.  But there are several twists to this delivery starting with the fact that it is to be made on board a gay Caribbean cruise the diamond merchant is sailing on. Remy and Miggy will be going undercover as a couple on a cruise that advertises clothing optional and Miggy is straight, isn’t he?

Lord Jamie Mainwaring and his partner Special Agent Ryan Whiteside are investigating high seas piracy for Interpol. Their case leads them to a gay Caribbean cruise, a ship that just happens to be the same ocean liner where Miggy and Remy are supervising the diamond transfer.  Going undercover as a gay couple isn’t a problem for Jamie and Ryan as they are already romantically involved.  The surprise will be the couple already on board, one half of whom Jamie still  loves deeply even after two years apart.

Four men, two couples, a complicated past history, and soon the lines of investigation and romance are blurring into trouble.  Dangers are everywhere, both emotional and professional.  And someone will pay the ultimate cost before the cruise is over.

Intense, surprising, and over the top fantastic.  Those are just a few of the words I would use to describe Oceans Apart, the second story in the Separate Ways series by Laura Harner.  As mentioned, this story takes place two years after the combined investigation into slavery case in London where Jamie and Remy met.  Both men have picked up their lives.  Remy more so than Jamie who still mourns the loss of Remy and their love for each other.  Laura Harner alternates the point of view as the reader is given glimpses into each man’s  life since London and their journey to a new reality for them both.

It is clear that Remy has moved on more successfully from the events and emotions in London.  Together with a Miggy in recovery, Remy has emerged as a different man than the one we met in London.  Harner has deepened and matured her characterization of Remy in Oceans Apart.  The two years have realistically reformed Remy into a person who has accepted new responsibilities as well as the prospect of family and a new romance.   I loved this new Remy.  His new maturity and openness is not only appealing but allows his character to widen his outlook on life and his future.  Miggy Rojas has figured greatly into that transformation.  What a great new character and what a set of complications he brings to the series.  Miggy lives with Remy, he is his partner in the business they started and together they found one of the young men they rescued in the aftermath of London and adopted him thereby forming a family.  That young man, Toby, also brought another satisfactory element to this story as I had wanted to know what happened to him in London.  This story supplied that answer in a way that made me deeply happy.  Everything about the Phoenix group feels real.  It’s messy, complicated, funny, and down to earth.  I loved all of them.  And so of course, their happiness made me fear for the future.

Less content, feeling dissatisfied in his life in almost every way is Lord Jamie Mainwaring. He has rebounded in his mother’s affections and the regard of London society.  He is in a romantic relationship with his partner Ryan Whiteside and feeling successful at his profession.  And Jamie is deeply unhappy.  Jamie’s character is one that if not given depth and insight would come across as whinny and ungrateful for his position as a wealthy lord with a mother who adores him and a partner in love as well as business.  But Harner’s characterization invites understanding and compassion for Jamie in his current reality.  Jamie is that person who realizes that he let the love of  his life get away without trying to stop him.  His current romance is lacking, at least on his side and his return to his duties to his mother and society are as underwhelming as they were to begin with.  I think readers will relate to Jamie as almost everyone has been at this point in their life where everything is off and the path to change is uncertain.

Harner then takes  all four men and throws them into the deep, professionally, emotionally and of course, romantically.  The reader, of course, knows the men are on the same ship before they do which ramps up our anticipation of that moment of discovery.  And from that instant on, the author’s plot takes off running, leaping, swimming, a constant motion of frenzied action, unexpected developments and heart racing suspense and anxiety for the men we have come to care for.  Harner’s narrative provides both a complicated, ever-twisting plot while making her characters even more realistic, especially given the events that occur on and off the cruise.   The story is fast paced, smooth, and action packed. Towards the end as all the secrets start to come out the story becomes unrelenting in the turmoil it creates.  It’s white knuckled action all the way to the shocking denouement.  What an outstanding ride!

Is this a romance?  Hmmm, sort of.  It is called Separate Ways for a reason.  The romance between Remy and Jamie is going to be a long, drawn out affair, despite the white hot beginning.  They parted for a reason, one that remains valid here in this story.  Jamie’s world is England.  Remy’s is in Phoenix and there is not valid, logical way for them to be together now.  Harner understands the complications of each man’s life as well as their priorities and her series reflects that.  Life has a way of intruding no matter what we may want to happen.  The humor, the sadness, and the unexpected elements that arise to throw these men off course.  I love the authenticity of this series from the heartrending moments to those of quiet joy.

Harner has at least four books planned for this series.  Three are out now with the fourth to be released 2014.  If the first two stories are any indication, its going to be a “wild and bumpy” ride, albeit an outstanding one.  It hasn’t disappointed me so far.  I love all the characters and the twists that keep appearing.  I can’t wait for more.  Follow me to the next one Moving Mountains (Separate Way #3).

If you are new to the series, go back to the beginning Continental Divide and start there, a must to understand these men and the events that occur.  Catch up with us and settle in for an astounding ride, fraught with emotional fissures and hot sexy men.  Consider this one of Scattered Thoughts Best of 2013 series and one I highly recommend.

Books in the Separate Ways series in the order they were written and should be read are:

Continental Divide (Separate Ways #1) written by Laura Harner, Lisa Worrall
Oceans Apart (Separate Ways #2) written by Laura Harner
Moving Mountains (Separate Ways #3) written by Laura Harner
Untitled Fourth Book coming in April 2014

Cover art by Laura Harner.

Buy links:  Amazon, ARe

Book Details:

ebook, 200 pages
Published October 19th 2012 by Hot Corner Press
ISBN13 9781937252298
edition language English

Contest and Shock & Awe Blog Tour with Abigail Roux

ShockAwe_TourBanner

Good morning all.  Today ScatteredThoughtsandRogueWords is happy to play host to the Shock & Awe Virtual Book Tour featuring one of our favorite authors, Abigail Roux and her new Sidewinder series.  I am so excited about this book and the new couple of Nick and Kelly.  They won my heart immediately and they will win yours too.  Shock & Awe is one of Scattered Thoughts Best Novels of 2013.  You don’t want to miss this one.  And here is bunch more reasons to acquaint yourself with Nick, Kelly, and the rest of the Sidewinders:

Hello everyone! Welcome to the Shock & Awe blog tour! Thank you to ScatteredThoughtsandRogueWords for hosting today. If you’re following along, you might find this handy dandy schedule of use, and you might be interested in keeping up with me each day, because I’ve got a couple goodies to give away. In celebration of Nick and Kelly’s coming out, so to speak, I’ve got three of their Heart and Clover T-shirts for three lucky commenters. And I’ve got five sets of trading cards with original artwork and character work-ups, something I intend to add new cards to every year, which makes this first year’s cards pretty important if you’re an obsessive collector like I am.

Author Bio: 

Abigail Roux was born and raised in North Carolina. A past volleyball star who specializes in sarcasm and painful historical accuracy, she currently spends her time coaching high school volleyball and investigating the mysteries of single motherhood. Any spare time is spent living and dying with every Atlanta Braves and Carolina Panthers game of the year.
Abigail has a daughter, Little Roux, who is the light of her life, a boxer, four rescued cats who play an ongoing live-action variation of Call of Duty throughout the house, a certifiable extended family down the road, and a cast of thousands in her head.
Connect with Abi:

Shock & Awe Blurb:

Shock & Awe CoverAfter barely surviving a shootout in New Orleans, Sidewinder medic Kelly Abbott has to suffer through a month of recovery before he can return home to Colorado. He’s not surprised when fellow Sidewinder Nick O’Flaherty stays with him in New Orleans. Nor is he surprised when Nick travels home with him to help him get back on his feet—after all, years on the same Marine Force Recon team bonded the men in ways that only bleeding for a brother can. He’s very surprised, though, when Nick humors his moment of curiosity and kisses him.

Nick knows all of Kelly’s quirks and caprices, so the kiss was a low-risk move on his part . . . or so he thought. But what should’ve been a simple moment unleashes a flood of confusing emotions and urges that neither man is prepared to address.

Now, Kelly and Nick must figure out what they mean to each other—friends and brothers in arms, or something even deeper?—before the past can come back to ruin their tenuous future.

You can read an excerpt and purchase Shock & Awe today from Riptide!

Contest Giveaway:
Abi is giving away some great goodies along the tour, including three of their Heart and Clover T-shirts for three lucky commenters and five sets of trading cards with original artwork and character work-ups. Just leave a comment at any of the stops along the tour to enter. The contest closes on November 25th.

Contest Rules:

  • By entering the giveaway, you’re confirming that you are at least 18 years old.
  • Please note that the contest is open worldwide, winners will be chosen tour-wide and comments left with an email address will be entered to win.
  • Winners will be selected by random number. No purchase necessary to win. The number of eligible entries received determines the odds of winning.
  •  Winners may be announced on the blog following the contest. By entering the contest you are agreeing to allow your name to be posted and promoted as the contest winner by ScatteredThoughtsandRogueWords.
  • Prizes will be distributed following the giveaway Riptide Publishing..
  • By entering you are agreeing to hold ScatteredThoughtsandRogueWords harmless if the prize or giveaway in some way negatively impacts the winner.
  • Readers may only enter once for each contest. Duplicate entries for the same giveaway will be ignored. In the event of technical problems with the blog during the contest, every effort will be made to extend the contest deadline to allow for additional entries.
  • Void where prohibited by law.

 

ShockAwe_TourBanner

Pulp Friction Author Roundup with Havan Fellows, Lee Brazil, Laura Harner and T.A “Tom” Webb. Winners too!

Pulp Friction 4 covers

Well, it has been such an outstanding week here at ScatteredThoughtsandRogueWords.  Its been great fun having all four such terrific authors stopping by each day this week. And a pleasure to listen to each of your thoughts on the Pulp Friction series and to hear how this idea came to fruition.

I love seeing the old pulp fiction format resurrected and working successfully.  Each series is exciting on its own but combined with the other three Pulp Friction creates a cohesive, dynamic portrait of an amazing collection of men who are locked together by bonds of friendship, love and a past.

Look at the cast you all have assembled.  Whether it is Wick Templeton (Wicked’s Way), Chance Dumont (Chances Are),  Zachary and Archer Wilde (Triple Threat), or Marcus Prater of City Knight, each and every one is a fascinating and, quite frankly, addicting character.  Then you start to add on their new lovers, in Chance’s case, Rory or for Marcus its his Benjamin and Jeremiah for Archer and Zachary.  And when it comes down to it, we will have to include Ned for Wick whether he admits it or not.

But I won’t keep you readers waiting any longer, here they are for our final chat….this week. Trust me, you will be hearing from these people again in the near future….*hands out glasses and yells that the bar is open*  Oh, and the winners are announced at the bottom of the post.  No peaking now.

WARNING: When the Pulp Friction group gets together it can get a little wild…we talk in a group chat all the time and are real good at following each other—but I suspect a fly on the wall may get a slight headache trying to keep up *blushes* so we are color coding our blog for you today just for that reason! *whispers* Well that and I like playing with colors, hehe. (Note: WordPress won’t play nicely with colors, so you readers will just have to imagine all the loveliness of the rainbow they had planned for you.)

May I introduce to you Lee Brazil…Tom Webb…the lovely Laura Harner…and me (I’m Havan Fellows *big smiles*)

Havan: There are few places I’m extremely comfortable…you know what I’m talking about? Places I can let my hair down…kick off my shoes…unbutton my shirt…wiggle out of my—

Lee: Havan! Stop that! Button that shirt up and keep your pants on. *glares* Okay, you can keep the shoes off, but this is NOT the right place for naked time.

Havan: *eyes bug out* There’s a wrong place for naked time? Um…okay…maybe not THAT comfortable—though I’m working on my Pulp Friction family to relegate our PF headquarters into a clothing optional facility…hehe

Lee: *frowns* Never gonna happen. Modesty is a virtue, and it happens to be one I’m rather fond of.

Havan: *sighs* Fine…for now…*talks quickly* But back to my original point – because yes, yes I did have a point to make – sitting with my Pulp Friction co-writers: Lee Brazil, Tom Webb and the mastermind who brought this fabtabulous idea to us Laura Harner…I do feel comfortable and they make sure I know I can open up to them and we work great as a team. *big smiles*

I believe that is one of the reasons Pulp Friction has exceeded our expectations. < see, point! lol

So now we are gathered once again to unload a few deep dark secrets…

Lee: *gasp* Havan! You can’t tell them…

Havan: No, I promised never to tell anyone that! Anyway, *eye rolls* not about ourselves *breathes a sigh of relief* (there isn’t that much blog space for that *winks*). *glares* I’m talking about secrets of the FINAL *gasp* book in the Pulp Friction 2013 series…and maybe…just maybe if you are interested…a sneak peek into what might be happening in 2014 with PF…

Lee: *yanks Havan into the seat next to me* Look, you don’t have to go blabbing ALL the secrets at once. A little mystery, something left to the imagination….

Havan: Hmmmm…you do have a great imagination Lee *winks*. Sooooooooo…who wants to begin?

Laura: *Raises hand, and waits to be called on* My name is Laura and I’m a-
Oops, wrong meeting. *Blushes* In all seriousness, when we first talked about this idea last October, I had no idea how big or how satisfying Pulp Friction would be,

*Pauses to consider just exactly how deliciously naughty that sounded.*

Sorry, I was sidetracked for a moment. When we started writing, we shared little bits here and there, hesitantly offered a comment or two about how one of our characters might fit into someone else’s book, and waited with mixed apprehension and excitement to write the next book.

We are all various shades of punsters, *whispers aside: I think she means pantsers, because lord knows no one laughs at my jokes* which means we had no real organization, no master outline, or even an idea of how it would all end.

A funny thing happened though. Just as the characters grew within our individual series, they also grew closer to each other. Unexpected friendships occurred, secrets were revealed, relationships grew or were broken. The line blurred between the reactions of the characters and the writers, and when Zack wanted to scream with frustration at Wick and shout out his denial-that was because we’d both been shocked and hurt by someone we thought we knew. And that is what makes these stories so powerful for me. We respond to the stories that have gone before, and sometimes we are cut by the power of the emotions that are right there at the surface. They feel real, because to us…they are.

Tom: Exactly, Laura. Writing five stories each, then coming together (and with four of us, that is something to plan!) to do the finale, Marcus and Benjamin are like my own family. They talk to me, haunt my dreams, and snipe at each other just like…well, I do. The last book, Darkest Knight, was so easy to write, because these guys run around my head and I know them.

And the fun (and totally weird) thing is? We all can write each others’ characters because we know them so well too. I love Wick, annoying asshat that he is, Chance, Zachary and Archer, and their men. It’s funny how they all ended up with younger men, although we don’t quite know about Ned. He can fool us all.

But seriously, I wasn’t prepared for how popular the series became, and how many fans each of us have. Marcus and Benjamin, and now Frankie and some of the other supporting characters, interact with not only each other but all the other cast, and fans…well, they have their favorites. Some wanted Wick with Frankie, then they read Havan’s books and loved them. Others haven’t read any but their favorite author’s books, and then they read some of the others and it opens up a whole new world.

It’s kind of like that with us too. We all write our own way, our own styles, and have our own successes. Then the four of us came together and decided to try this experiment, and didn’t know how it would all turn out. The best thing? Damn, but it worked!

I’ve learned so much from writing with these guys. You have no idea how much energy it takes to make this whole thing work. We talk daily, and discuss the what ifs and the how abouts, and what I personally found was, we all fit together so well. They way we think, the way we write…it’s so similar, but not. Laura is so patient, and I think I picked up some of that. Lee thinks a lot the way I do, but he is so creative and solid. And Havan, she makes sure the fun is there.

We fit.

I like this group, and can’t wait to take it to Flagstaff.

Lee: When Laura suggested this, I had no idea how it would work. In fact, I wasn’t even sure if I could do it. And that was when I thought I was writing a single series. I had the luck of writing the first book, so I was going in blind as well, hadn’t met anyone else’s characters, or been told their story lines. I got Chances Are written, and shocked myself with who he turned out to be. At first he was closed off, isolated, and bitter. But as the other stories unfolded, it became clear that Chance wasn’t as alone as he thought, and by the end of the series he isn’t living in his own head quite so much.

The same thing happened on this side of the computer screen too. Writing is of necessity a solitary occupation. That’s what I used to think. What I discovered, right alongside Chance, is that the right people can make everything better. I grew to enjoy the intricate way our stories were woven together, and to depend on my fellow PF writers for support and inspiration. I can’t imagine sitting down to write without having them at hand.

So, I’m really looking forward to Pulp Friction 2014, to seeing how PF will continue to evolve, as I’m sure it will.

Havan: Wow…you guys verbalized it so beautifully. *wipes eyes* Me…I’m just here for the free liquor Melanie offered…*winks*

So there will be one last PF ’13 book that all four of us are penning together—a four-way! Something we’ve never admitted to doing before!—and it will nicely wrap up any loose ends you may think we have out there *cough cough* and then PF ’14 brings a whole slew of new main characters in a new location to the west this time…Flagstaff!

Think you’re ready for another year? Oh are you in for a treat then—think of the first year as foreplay. We got to feel on each other…taste the other three’s styles on our tongues…wrap our hands around their abilities…

Foreplay’s over…

This is gonna be fun.

STRW: Whew! *runs and locks the liquor cabinet*  That was amazing and now we know that the last book, no. 6, will be a joint effort and bring the hunt for the killer to a close. *whispers to the dogs that I knew that would happen*.  I can’t wait to read that story and I know the rest of you feel the same way.

So, meet us back here in December for the final Pulp Friction guest post of 2013 and the final Pulp Friction review.  There will be another giveway or two.  You never know. My thanks again to all these remarkable people, Havan Fellows, Lee Brazil, Laura Harner and of course, Tom Webb for stopping by this week and giving us insight into their characters, their series and of course, Pulp Friction.

Now here are the Winners of the books by day and author:

Monday, Havan Fellows, Wicked’s Way:  The winner is penumbrareads(at)gmail(dot)com

Tuesday, Lee Brazil, Chances Are:   The winner is Leni (ldinnell@gmail.com)

Wed., Laura Harner, Triple Threat:  The winner of Laura’s book is Ashley E (ashley.vanburen@gmail.com)

and drumroll please….

Thur., Tom Webb, City Knight:  The winner of Tom’s book is bluesmokey (richards851@sbcglobal.net)

Darkest KNight cover

Duplicity cover

Wicked Truths cover

Chance In Hell cover

Review: Fragile Bond by Rhi Etzweiler

Rating: 5 stars

Fragile BondSniper Sergeant Marc Staille and his trusty rifle, Mat are on duty, taking down the tawnies, the native dirt-colored predators that live on the on the desert planet of Horace Deuce-Niner targeted for mining by his employer.  His job is to go in and take out any non sentient indigenous creatures that might threaten their mining operation.  Everything seems normal until his group of snipers is ambushed by the same tawnies they have been hunting, and Marc is taken captive. To Marc’s anguish and surprise, the so called “tawnies” are sentient natives, not mere “fauna” as had been determined, and he is now seen as a murderer as well as invader.

Commander Hamm Orsonna, leader of the fefa clan, had a desperate mission.  Take one of the invaders alive so it could be interrogated and that mission had to succeed at all costs.  Hamm found it hard to believe that such hairless, frail creatures could be the cause of so much death and destruction, mostly from those little metal sticks they carried.  At the high cost of the death of most of his squad, Hamm captured an invader, and found a surprise for both of them.  The furrs as Hamm’s species are called use pheromones (along with fang and claws) to control and dominate others, and when Hamm uses it on Marc, the results are quick and effective submission.  But there is surprise on Hamm’s side as well.   Marc smells different from the other invaders, a smell that compels Hamm to protect him even from other members of the fefa clan.

It soon becomes clear to Marc and Hamm, that the future of both their species might lie in their hands. it will depend on their communication skills and the fragile bond they have established with each other if they are to find a way for them to find a lasting peace and perhaps even love.

What a stunning book!  Fragile Bond is a science fiction tour de force from author Rhi Etzweiler, an amazing example of world building and character development.  Usually I start by breaking out the components of the book that I liked best but that won’t work here.  I found every aspect of Fragile Bond to be just superior, from the tight, suspenseful narrative to the superlative “alien” voice and mind set created for Hamm and his race.  I save my 5 star rating for books I want to gush over and reread often.  I want to do both for Fragile Bond.

Since we have to start somewhere, let’s start with Etzweiler’s world building.  So many things can go wrong when an author starts to create an alien world that will seem both familiar and alien at the same time.  The world must pull in the reader by its believable aspects yet still make us feel as though we are on an alien planet.  And we totally get that here.  When we first meet Sniper Marc Staille, he is on on the desert planet of Horace Deuce-Niner killing tawnies with amazing accuracy, watching them explode in a pink mist one after the other.  He is dispassionate, a soldier doing his duty, pleased with his marksmanship and his weapon, Mat.   We see the planet and its flora and fauna through his eyes, an important viewpoint because he gives the reader the story’s “human” voice.  He is, at first, our most identifiable connection and his horror at finding out that the “beasts” he has been killing so unmercifully are sentient beings becomes our horror too.  It is also his first step away from the soldier/mercenary life and mindset he has been living.  The more that Marc (and the reader) learns about the race that has captured him and its culture, the more growth he shows as an individual. This journey adds such depth and soul to the story that it alone would make the story memorable.  But Etzweiler goes further, taking us into the minds and culture of the fefa clan.

Commander Hamm Orsanna is another outstanding creation.  A race of felines or furrs, their culture is both advanced enough to have implanted linguistic translators and primal still to use pheromones to control and dominate other members of the clan, and claws and fang when pheromones aren’t sufficient.  They are a race trying to move beyond their animalistic behaviors and this first “meeting” will place untold stress and loss on beings already under duress.  Added to the anguish of the fefa clan, is the huge loss of life that Marc and his group have inflicted with their weaponry, picking them off with the ease shooting tin cans off a fence.  Etzweiler does a fantastic job of giving Hamm and his clan an alien voice and a language not always translatable, even by their own devices.  The author flips the point of view back and forth between Hamm and Marc in a necessary interplay of cultures, mission goals and racial outlook.  We are given an event or situation and then see it from both points of view, a neat balancing act that works to connect us intimately with the characters, all of the characters, and invest us emotionally in the precarious outcome on planet Horace Deuce-Niner.

And thanks to a tightly woven narrative, the suspense and anxiety levels continue to build throughout the story, the outcome is never assured of a happy ending.    Marc has a huge human contingent behind him, and although he says that the fact that an indigenous culture exists on the planet will halt things, the reader also has a vast store of knowledge of situations where that fact has rarely stopped humans at all.  Etzweiler uses this human history to ramp up the tension, as misunderstandings and events start to escalate things out of control.  I love that Etzweiler consistently uses our own knowledge of human history to increase our anxiety over the outcome of the clash of cultures and material needs while bringing us into the side of the race being invaded and exploited.

There are some wonderful secondary characters on both sides who enriched the story by their  presence and made me want to know their  history too. The author gives us at least one more indigenous races while hinting of others, that live on the planet that I wanted to know more of as well. And finally,we had a glimpse of a fascinating backstory of Marc’s employers, the trace supplied had me craving more and speculating wildly on their origin.  But did I feel that I needed any of that to fill out Fragile Bond? No, it wasn’t needed, and might have distracted us from the focus of the story.

Should this story be classified as a m/m romance?  Perhaps. There is a m/m romance here but as part of a larger story and with little sexuality attached to it.  It doesn’t need it.  This is powerful storytelling.  We have two races and two male beings meeting under the worst of circumstances.  That most primal of influences,pheromones,  will bring them together and start them on a path to mutual understanding and perhaps even love.  The story is told concisely, beautifully, and in such a way that this world and everyone you will meet on it will linger in your minds and hearts for some time to come.  Does something this great really need a category?  I don’t think so.  But it does need readers, lots of them to pass the word along.  Pick it up, immerse yourself in this world, and become a fan yourself.  I remain one and hope that someday the author will return to this planet for another walk on the alien wild side.

Cover art Petite-Madame VonApple is gorgeous and subtle.

Book Details:

ebook, 175 pages
Published February 18th 2013 by Riptide Publishing
ISBN 1937551911 (ISBN13: 9781937551919)
edition languageEnglish
url:http://www.rhianonetzweiler.com/fragile-bond.html

Riptide Publishing buy link