Tag: m/m romance

He’s Hot, He’s Sexy, He’s The Alpha King by Vicktor Alexander (book tour and contest)

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Book Name: The Alpha King
Goodreads Link
Author Name: Vicktor Alexander

I am thrilled to have Vicktor Alexander here in the author’s chair to talk about this intriquing new series from the inspiration to main story  elements.

Q.  The Alpha King  has a rather unique premise behind it, a sort of gay wolf shifters in space element.  Where did you get the inspiration for the concept?

Viktor: It’s really weird, honestly. With my books I live in a constant state of “What if?” And I found myself going, “What if the Earth was sentient and turned on humans because we were killing each other? Because of our hatred for each other? Our racism? Our inability to take care of her? What if there actually was life out there on other planets and they tried to warn us and we didn’t listen? And then, what if by they time they finally did, most of the human race had been killed off by Earth herself?” By that point my brain had already created this entire world, this entire series, and then I realized that humans wouldn’t be able to live on these other planets because of our lungs so we would have to breed with them and create new species, the humanoids, but then, because I’m a “what if” person, I wondered, what if there was one particular family whose genetic makeup gave them the ability to bring back the pure human race again? What would happen? Who would try to prevent that? And how would that happen? And The Alpha King was born. A book filled with shifters of all kinds, humanoids, scifi, monarchy, intrigue, angst, and lots of hot man sex.

Q.  The Alpha King rests on a plot narrative that meant your world building had to incorporate a wealth of information and back history.  From a dying world to prophesies to a planet of wolf shifters…that’s a lot of elements and back history to create and then fold into your story?  What or where did you draw from to create this foundation for your story?

Viktor: I think some of it came from Star Trek, LOL. I’m a HUGE Trekkie, fan. Some of it came from the dogma that my biological family used to spout at me, but I sort of flipped it on its head. Some of it came from just reality. The whole global warming thing. And I was extremely distressed when I heard a story about a transwoman being attacked in a McDonald’s bathroom and it was recorded. When I talked to a coworker about it, she said she understood and agreed with it! I was so brokenhearted about it and wondered if I was the only person. Then I wondered if the Earth were alive if it got tired of all the bullshit that we humans did to each other. So it was pretty much a number of different places that I drew from to get the world building. After that it was just a matter of sitting down and taking it planet by planet and creating languages, laws, history, etc. I’m so much of a history and sci-fi nerd that I wanted to make sure that it all worked together before I started writing.

Q.  Why science fiction?

Viktor: Because I’m a nerd? LOL. I like blending different genres together. And I didn’t want to just have the shifters on Earth. The entire premise of the series lay on humans being rescued by shifters from other planets, that was a science fiction element. Blame it on my Trekkieness. “To seek out new worlds and new civilizations…”

Q.  …and then why take wolf shifters, which I automatically think of as an “earth” oriented supernatural being, into space?

Viktor: Because I was always the kid who colored outside of the lines. I don’t like it when someone tells me that something has to be this way. I create the parameters, I create the lines and the boundaries. I am the Dom. My whole thing with writing has always been a “who said?” when people tell me I have to write something a particular way. “But vampires can’t walk in the daylight!” Who said? “But shifters have to be on Earth!” Who said? I write what my characters tell me to write and then when I cross some proverbial line that people say is there or I’m not in the box that people expect me to be in, I shrug and point at myself. I’m a multi-ethnic, transgender, gay male who is Messianic Jewish, a veteran of the United States Army, and a lot of other things. Nothing about me says “in the box.” Nothing about screams that I stay inside the lines. I spend my life pushing people’s boundaries because they want me to, I’m going to do it in my writing as well. LOL.

Q.  This book contains bdsm or elements of bdsm.  From the note included, it explains, rather succinctly, a little about the bdsm lifestyle plus a warning for those not in the lifestyle not to try this out without a trained professional.  Why do you feel that is so important?  Do you feel that your representation of aspects of the bdsm lifestyle come across as accurate?

Viktor: Well, seeing as how I was trained as a Dom for over a year and I have been in the BDSM Lifestyle for over 13 years now, I would say, pretty confidently that my representation of the Lifestyle is accurate. LOL. And yes, I do think that the warning at the beginning of the book is needed. Too often there are books that are published with aspects of the BDSM Lifestyle contained within them that do not contain a note of caution, and while most readers are not reading the book for anything other than entertainment, there may be some that decide to try out the actions or the scene within the story with someone who is not trained and may get hurt. Not only because they are not trained, but sometimes because the book that is published is written by someone who has not done any research into the Lifestyle, or it is written by someone who is not in the Lifestyle themselves. This worries me as a Dom, as an author, and as a caring individual. Not only does this put a mark on the BDSM/Kink community, but on the writing community as well. We put warnings at the front of books for anal sex, double penetration, and even humorous ones about virgins, or too stupid to live characters, but when a book contains BDSM, which prides itself on Safe, Sane, and Consensual, we have numerous books out there that do not hold any warning whatsoever. This, to me, is unacceptable, and I’ve had a number of readers and even other authors, who have emailed and private messaged me and asked me what I thought about different books, authors, and the lack of warnings in books, and because of that, I knew that I had to make sure that this warning was stated plainly in the front of this book. Thankfully, the other owners of Rooster & Pig Publishing, Inc. agreed with me.

Q.  With such an elaborate world building, do you plan more stories in this universe or a sequel to The Alpha King?

Viktor: Oh, absolutely! There are 5 other books planned for the Passion’s Hero series: The Beta Prince, The Epsilon Elder, The Gamma Guard, The Vermithian Consort, The Strawxigian Spy. And then there are 15 books planned for a spin-off series which follows the children born of the Passion’s Hero series in a series entitled: Love’s Savior.

Q.  Were you a prolific reader as a child? Was there one book or author who impacted you as a child whose influence has continued today?

Viktor: LOL. Yes I was. I was reading by the time I was 4 and by the time I was 10 I was reading William Shakespeare with comprehension. I would have to say that Langston Hughes and the book Where The Sidewalk Ends by Shel Silverstein were probably the biggest impacts on my childhood, after William Shakespeare, of course (I know, I know. I cheated.)
.
Q.  What’s next for Vicktor Alexander?

Viktor:  I’m finishing up The Servant Duchess Of Whitcomb which is the sequel to Groom Of Convenience which released from Dreamspinner Press on October 17th. Then I’ll be working on a short story for MLR Press. Then finishing up Daddy’s Boy for Rooster & Pig Publishing, Inc. Then there’s the next book in the Mistake’s series for Totally Bound Publishing Wonderful Mistake, and then there’s the Truth or Dare Anthology which will be self-published. But of course, I’m saying all of this and my muse may decide to change his mind and rearrange all of it as soon as I finish the short story for MLR. LOL.
Thanks so much for having me! –  -Vicktor Alexander

Part of a series?: Yes. This is book one in the Passion’s Hero series and subsequent books should be read in order.

Author Bio:

Vicktor “Vic” Alexander wrote his first story at the age of ten and hasn’t stopped writing since. He loves reading about anything and everything and is a proud member of the little known U.N. group (Undercover Nerds) because while he lives, eats, breathes, and sleeps sports, he also breathes history and science fiction and grew up a Trekkie. But don’t ask him about Dungeons & Dragons, because he has no idea how to play that game.

When it comes to writing he loves everything from paranormal to contemporary to fantasy to historical and is known not only for being the Epilogue King but also for writing stories that cross lines and boundaries that he doesn’t know are there.

Vic is a proud father of two daughters one of whom watches over him from Heaven with his deceased partner Christopher. Vic is a proud trans* and gay man, and when he is not writing, he is hanging out with his friends, or being distracted by videos of John Barrowman, Scott Hoying, and Shemar Moore. Vicktor has published numerous bestselling novels and has a WIP list that makes him exhausted just thinking about. He knows that he will be still be writing about hot men falling in love with each other, long after he is living in an assisted living facility, flirting with the hot, male nurses.

Author Contact: http://www.twitter.com/VVeeB

Publisher: Rooster & Pig PublishingThe Alpha King Cover Photo
Cover Artist: Vicktor Alexander

Sales Links:  Amazon UK  Amazon   ARe    Rooster & Pig Publishing

The Alpha King Blurb:

Centuries after the destruction of Earth, destiny is being fulfilled and plans are in motion to restore not only the Earth, but mankind, to its former glory. One family is fated to bring about this amazing destiny. One man puts it all in motion, the day he crashes on to the wolf-planet of Tumaro and met his mate. 

Talon Versuthion always knew that some kind of way, life was going to screw him over. His parents died when he was just a boy and he can’t remember a thing about them. He was adopted by a great family only to have them tell him that he is a Vermithian, one of the most despised humanoid species. Even worse than that? He has no idea that a prophecy was made about his family, one that mentions that someone from the Versuthion family will bring back a pure human race. And there are people out there who will stop at nothing to make sure that never happens. No matter what.

While on a delivery for the GPA with his adopted sister Josie, however, Tal’s space shuttle crashes onto Tumaro, the notorious wolf-shifter planet. Tal is lucky to be alive, though Josie can’t be found. He is desperate to find her, but destiny steps in and history is changed forever. Because the Alpha King of the planet, Blazell Roughshire, is Talon’s mate. And before the two men can even settle into their new relationship they must deal with conspiracy, murder, kidnapping and a centuries old plot to completely eradicate the human race. Will Blaze be able to keep his mate safe from those who would see him dead? Is Tal truly the only one left from his family who can fulfill this centuries old prophecy? And can Tal, who has made it a point to never fall in love with anyone, open his heart and let Blaze be Passion’s hero?

Warning: This book contains references to abuse, rape, torture, and violence. It also 
contains hot sex between a young man with an affinity for celebrities that may sound familiar to 
you and his hot possessive Alpha mate. This is a R&P Whips & Chains novel which means the 
story contains BDSM elements. BDSM is a Lifestyle and while certain elements of it are not 
dangerous, please do not engage in any part of the BDSM Lifestyle without a trained 
professional on-hand.(This is a re-edited, re-published novel. The publisher has been changed. 
Over 22,500 words have been added to the original)

Categories: Alternate Universe, BDSM, Fantasy, Fiction, Gay Fiction, M/M Romance, Paranormal, Romance, Science Fiction

The Alpha King Excerpt:

“Where the hell are my clothes? More than that. Where the hell is my sister?” Talon yelled, pulling the bedcovers up to his chin.

Blazell laughed heartily, not at all deterred by his mate’s little freak-out. “Your clothes 
were destroyed in your accident, my love. I took the liberty of removing the hospital gown you 
wore when I brought you here to our bedroom,” he stated with amusement.

“Our bedroom?” Talon questioned in a small, hesitant voice, quivering with fear and shock.

“Yes, love, our bedroom. Where we will sleep and make love, more so the latter than the 
former.” He didn’t know how to respond about the man’s sister. He hadn’t heard anything about there being anyone else found at the crash. He would fully admit he was being rather selfish at the moment and only wanted to focus on his mate’s well-being and Talon’s sudden appearance in his life. Once they were fully bonded, Blazell would look into Talon’s missing sister. Blazell knew that made him an asshole, but, at the moment, he couldn’t bring himself and his wolf to feel ashamed.

Talon shook his head in bewilderment. “But you don’t even know me, and I certainly don’t know you!”

“My soul knows yours, my heart embraces yours, and my life and I were made for you as 
yours was made for me. I know you in the deepest parts of me, even though my mind may not,”Blazell declared. “You were made for me,” he said as he placed his hands on either side of his 
mate’s face, his thumbs delicately caressing Talon’s cheeks. “As I was made for you.”

Words/Pages: 92,505 words, 258 pages

Tour Dates/Tour Stops:

TAKBadgeTour Dates/Tour Stops:

1-Dec

Scattered Thoughts & Rogue Words

Tara Lain

2-Dec

MM Good Book Reviews

Carly’s Book Reviews

Amanda C. Stone

3-Dec

Queer Town Abbey

EE Montgomery

Cate Ashwood

My Fiction Nook

Love Bytes
Queer Town Abbey

4-Dec

Multitasking Mommas

Fallen Angel Reviews

Inked Rainbow Reads

5-Dec

Wicked Wolves and Dreaming Dragons

Molly Lolly

Parker Williams 

Contest:  Enter to win a Rafflecopter Prize: $10 Amazon Gift Card.  Must be 18 years of age or older to enter.  Use the link provided for all additional contest details and for the entry form.

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In the Book Spotlight: Slippery Slope by Iyana Jenna (blog tour and contest)

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Book Name: Slippery Slope
Goodreads Link
Author Name: Iyana Jenna

Author Bio:

Iyana writes M/M short stories and novellas. Her works have been published by Evernight Publishing, JMS Books, Books to Go Now, Torquere Press, Bitten Press, Leap of Faith Publishing, Breathless Press, and Alfie Dog Fiction.

Iyana lives in Jakarta, a city famous for its traffic jams, a lot of cars and motorcycles, and people selling stuff on the roads. You can spend two hours on the road going to a place you can reach in half an hour in a normal situation. Thanks to the traffic jams, though, Iyana can come up with a lot of stories, mostly shorties, as she prefers to spend the time during her trips writing into her cell phone rather than sleeping.

Another thing Iyana loves is kitties. Right now she has three of them. Their names are Cil, Horus, and Betsy, and one kitten. When she doesn’t write, she plays with them, or they would play with her when she writes.

Publisher: JMS Books
Author:  Iyana Jenna
 Cover Artist: Written Ink Designs

Sales Links:  JMS Books     Amazon US    Amazon UK   Smashwords     All Romance (ARe)  Bookstrand

Slippery Slope Blurb:

Actors Ethan Grey and Alex Haynes are gay, but in Hollywood, they can’t be open unless they’re willing to be typecast in future movies or they’re dating prominent gay producers. Since neither are willing to become stereotypes, and neither have studio boyfriends, they take another path — hiding their relationship under the cover of a pretend girlfriend.

What works for Ethan, though, doesn’t work for Alex, who screws up to the point of losing his job and the chance to get another. His manager finally finds him another job across the pond, where he meets Nathan Wells.

Nathan can be the prominent producer Alex needs to further his career, but there’s something Alex doesn’t know about the man.

Soon Wells grows obsessed with Alex, and he’ll do anything to keep Alex from getting away.

Though Nathan wants Alex for himself, there’s still Ethan to think about. Is the love story between Alex and Ethan really over? Or will Ethan find a way to get his boyfriend back?

Categories: Contemporary, Fiction, Gay Fiction, M/M Romance, Romance

Words: 20,000

Excerpt:

“Come on, Ethan. You don’t have to pretend. I’m in love with you, but I’m not blind. There’s clearly someone else you’d rather be with right now instead of me.” Lea wrapped herself up in the silky coverlet, leaving Ethan staring at her, shocked, as he sat back on his heels.

Feeling ashamed yet not totally guilty, Ethan backed away from the bed and put on his jeans.

“Who is it that you want, Ethan? It’s Alex, isn’t it?”

Ethan just looked out of the window. The setting sun was golden on the horizon.

“I—I need to do something,” he mumbled then, and left the room. He felt Lea’s eyes boring into his back but Ethan just couldn’t make himself turn around. He’d been unfair to her from the very beginning.

Ethan sank into the chair and turned on his notebook. He hadn’t checked his email for too long. This might be the best time to do so. Time to find out what was hot in the world right now.

His eyes fell to the first mail, and Ethan’s heart started to pound. It was a Google alert he had for Alex. It had been months since he’d heard anything about Alex. Ethan felt like crying.

 

SSBadgeTour Dates/Tour Stops:

24-Nov

Fangirl Moments and My Two Cents

The Hat Party

25-Nov

BFD Book Blog

25-Nov

Bayou Book Junkie

26-Nov

Up All Night, Read All Day

MM Good Book Reviews

27-Nov

Parker Williams

3 Chicks After Dark

28-Nov

Scattered Thoughts & Rogue Words

Love Bytes 

 

Contest: Enter to win a Rafflecopter Prize: E-book copy of Slippery Slope. Must be 18 years of age or older to enter. Use the link provided below for all contest details and for the entry form.

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Get Into the Holiday Spirit with Mischief Corner Books ‘Chestnuts Roasting’ Anthology from Angel Martinez, Silvia Violet, Freddy MacKay, and Toni Griffin (book tour and contest)

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 Book Name: Chestnuts Roasting Anthology
Goodreads Link
Authors Names: Toni Griffin, Angel Martinez, Silvia Violet, Freddy MacKay

Four authors, four different perspective on the holidays.  Now for something a little different.  Instead of a full author interview, I asked each of the authors one question. Where did your inspiration come from?  Here are their answers…

Angel Martinez:

Yes. Everywhere. Everything. A conversation, a painting, a moment on the street, Freddy daring me to try something – there are no limits or predictable patterns for inspiration. I use a lot of science news and folktale as starting points, but those are certainly not my only inspirations.

Silvia Violet:

My story is set in Baton Rouge. I lived there for six years so all the celebrating Christmas when it still feely summery outside comes from personal experience. A scene with a barista asking out a guy who considered himself straight just popped into my head one day. I wrote it down, knowing I’d use it eventually and when I started thinking about Christmas stories, there it was.

Freddy MacKay:

I decided I wanted to write a fantasy, so I went shopping for mythical creatures. I like to go for the more obscure, lesser used/known creatures. When I found my “demon” I was hooked because I knew I hit something different and fun for me to write.

Toni Griffin:

My story, Wreath of Fire, is book two in my Smokey Mountain Bears series. It’s my only series set outside of Australia and the reason for that is in 2012 I visited Gatlinburg TN and the surrounding areas. I met some amazing people, had the time of my life in one of the most relaxing, picturesque settings I could have ever imagined. This place needed to be put down on paper. When the idea for the Cabin for Two anthology was being thrown around I knew exactly what I wanted to write. A Bear in the Woods was born. It’s taken me a little while to get back to the characters and write book two, but I can guarantee you won’t have to wait as long for book three.

 

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Author Group Bio:

Mischief Corner Books is an organization of superheroes… no, it’s a platinum-album techno-fusion group…no, hold on a sec here…

Ah, yes. Mischief Corner is a diverse group of authors who met on a mountain in Tennessee and decided since we probably were too easily distracted to rule the world that we’d settle for causing a bit of mayhem instead.

In addition to making mayhem, we publish books with a diverse range of genres and topics… we live to break molds. 

MCB. Giving voice to LGBTQ fiction.

Author Contact:

Mischief Corner Books Website and Store
MCB Facebook page

Publisher: Mischief Corner Books, LLCChestnutsRoasting10x15
Cover Artist: Catherine Dair
Sales Links:  

 

Blurb(s):

Christmas means different things to everyone, but most often it’s all about pulling loved ones close and brightening the gloom. The fire’s crackling. The snow is piling up outside, even if it’s only in your dreams. Time to snuggle up with some cocoa and some stories carefully crafted by the Mischief Corner Crew to warm hearts and cockles.

Wreath of Fire: Smokey Mountains Bears 2 – Toni Griffin:

Michael’s trying to start a new life away from his abusive father, but he’s drifting and not sure what he wants. When he accidentally starts a kitchen fire, the hot new fireman who comes to the rescue is not only another bear shifter. He’s Michael’s mate. Michael desperately needs to get his act together and figure out what he wants if he has any hope of claiming the bear fated to be his.

A Christmas Cactus for the General – Angel Martinez

Exiled to Earth for perhaps the worst failure in Irasolan history, General Teer must assimilate or die. Earth is too warm, too wet, too foreign, but he does the best he can even though human males are loud, childish louts whom he can’t imitate successfully. When a grieving seaplane pilot strikes up a strange and uneasy friendship with him, he finds he may have been too quick to judge human males. They are strange to look at, but perhaps not as unbearable as he thought.

Holly Jolly – Silvia Violet

I’m not gay. I just notice men sometimes. Everybody does, right? I notice Dane a lot, like every time I’m near him, but just because I think he’s an attractive man that doesn’t mean I like him, does it?

I’m also not a fan of Christmas. Too many years “celebrating” with my Bible-thumping family ruined the holiday for me. So what if I envy all these cheerful souls dashing about with smiles on their faces? I don’t have to like Christmas, do I? If anyone could get me in the Christmas spirit, it would be Dane with his easy, relaxed manner and his gorgeous smile. If that were going to happen, though, I’d have to find the courage to talk to him and to admit that maybe I don’t know myself all that well after all.

Snow on Spirit Bridge – Freddy MacKay

Alone in Japan, Finni is struggling against the constant distrust, avoidance, and xenophobia he experiences every day. He misses home. He misses his family. Nightmares come all too frequently because of the stress, and well, Christmas is just not Christmas in Japan. Not how he understands it.

Distressed by how miserable Finni is, his roommate, Mamoru, offers to be Finni’s family for Christmas. Little does he know how much one agreement would change everything between them, because both of them kept secrets neither ever dreamed were true.

Categories: Contemporary, Fantasy, Humor, M/M Romance, Paranormal, Romance, Science Fiction, Urban Fantasy (Please note: Not all tags refer to the collection of stories.)

Excerpt From Snow on Spirit Bridge by Freddy MacKay

Chapter One

There should be snow. Lots of it. Moreover, it should be below freezing with clouds, not this sunny and fifties crap. People should be huddled together and hurrying to get inside. It didn’t feel like Christmas otherwise.

With a sigh, Finni glanced around the train platform.

If he’d been home in Chicago, snow would blanket the streets and salt would crunch under his feet. Shop windows with mannequins would line the Magnificent Mile with Christmas winter scenes. The tree would be up at his parents’, decorated with bright lights and homemade ornaments he and his siblings made over the years. One or two presents would lie under the tree as a teaser for the younger cousins. Warm drinks would be waiting for him as he stepped through the door and brushed the snow off his coat. His family would smile at him and voices would call out to him.

If he’d been home in Chicago.

Tokyo wasn’t home.

A big, bustling city, yes, but not home.

As people hurried from one shop to the next, got on and off the trains, and ran about in their jackets and sweaters, Tokyo couldn’t have been farther from home. Yes, decorations were up at cake shops and at the department stores, but they weren’t the same. The plastic Christmas trees seemed more likely to come alive and hunt people down than give off a relaxing pine scent. They didn’t give off the same cozy family feeling Finni connected with. Everything was geared toward couples.

Since when was Christmas about couples?

A pang of loneliness ate at Finni’s gut. All he wanted was his parents, his brothers and sisters, and his cousins, aunts, uncles, and some snow. He needed to see everyone was happy and okay. Was that too much to ask for?

A chilled wind blasted Finni, and he looked up, expecting the train, but nothing rattled down the tracks. Other people grabbed their coats and hunched. Some young girls squealed and huddled closer to each other. Finally, a shiver wracked Finni, clueing him in to the unusual temperature drop.

Temperatures had plummeted from the fifties to almost thirty since he’d arrived on the platform, not normal weather. In only a T-shirt, even Finni felt the cold.

Finni sighed, closed his eyes, and concentrated on sunshine and warm thoughts. He almost laughed under the circumstances. The people would think he was odd and leave an even bigger circle around him. One more oddity to make Finni miss home even more.
The swoosh and rattle of a train making its way down the tracks caused Finni to open his eyes, watching expectantly with the others.

About damn time. Usually the trains didn’t run late unless something untoward happened. Like a jumper, which occurred more often than Finni comprehended. He risked a glance around and saw the people more relaxed, the extreme temperature flux now gone, just an oddity to discuss among themselves.

The train hissed to a stop, the doors popped open, and everyone hurried on, ready to leave the unusual drop in temperature behind them. While the men and women bumped into each other, the girls giggling as they passed Finni, he still got a wide berth as he ducked through. The crowd moved and swayed in a loose circle around him until Finni got to his spot by the doors and faced the window.

Once again, the seat next to him remained empty, no one sitting down even though the train was packed. Not every foreigner got quite the same treatment he did, but his size—not to mention the blond hair and blue eyes—made people’s reaction to him more extreme. Finni ignored the slight, though it stung more than it had the past couple of months. He’d learned not to notice when people stared or jumped in surprised when they looked up at him or moved away as soon as they noticed him after they sat down. Better to stay quiet and pretend nothing happened than draw attention to the behavior. It only made things worse.

Except today, the unfounded fears of the people he’d rode the train with since his move mid-October dug into him like claws. He sighed, leaned against the windows, and closed his eyes, exhausted.

Sleep wasn’t easy lately. Nightmares waited for him, ones that made it harder to be away from his family. He yawned, fighting off the weariness, but the rocking of the train called to him like a siren to a sailor.

No matter the direction he looked in, Finni only saw white. The snow beat down on him as he cried out. Torrents of wind spiraled all around him, the weather mimicking his heart.

Why hadn’t anyone come? The sky was dark. Someone should have found them by now. He trembled in the cold and felt so tired. He just wanted to sleep.

But he couldn’t. Not yet.

Finni tried to call out, but his voice had given out long before the sun went down.

He clutched Gunder to him. Realization had finally sunk in, but as he sniffed, Finni knew he’d never let Gunder go. No matter what.
He should’ve kept up with him. Kept Gunder in his sights, but his brother ran so much faster than he did. His legs were so long and big compared to Finni’s scrawny ones. Someday, he’d be bigger than Gunder, though, he just knew it. Then he’d be able to outrun his brother.

When they were grown up, three years wouldn’t be that big of a difference in age.

“Hear that, Gunder?” Finni asked in a whisper, pressing his face against his brother’s. “I’m going to be bigger than you someday. Be able to run faster. So…so…so…”

He broke down, sobs torn from his chest. How did they get home? Finni just wanted Mom and Dad. He just wanted to go home with Gunder.

“Mom!” His voice barely made it out, but he had to try. “Dad! Somebody!”

Nothing. He was alone. All alone.

Mom. Dad. I don’t want to be alone.

He screamed and the wind picked up, whipped around him in a cyclone. The temperature dropped farther.

“Finni! Gunder!”

Who was that?

“Finni! Where are you boys?”

“Gr-gr-grandpa?” Guilt warred with hope. He should hide. Everyone was gonna be mad. So, so mad. They’d never like him again.
The wind’s moaning stopped. The snowflakes stirred no more. Grandpa’s huge, hulking figure appeared.

“Grandpa,” Finni cried out. The hiccups came as he tried to get it all out. “G-G-Gunder fell through the ice… I-I-couldn’t reach him. Gunder…he… I-I-tried to g-g-get us home.”

“Oh, oh. Oh, Finni,” his grandpa said quietly. Tears ran down his cheeks.

Oh no. Grandpa was mad.

“My little boy.” Grandpa wrapped his big arms around them and kissed his forehead. “My poor boys.”

Finni wailed, and the snow picked back up.

 

Snow on Spirit Bridge – Freddy MacKay – Angel Martinez Reading The Excerpt – so wonderful!

Pages:

MCBBadgeTour Dates/Stops:

20-Nov

Amanda C. Stone

Scattered Thoughts & Rogue Words

21-Nov

Parker Williams

24-Nov

Love Bytes

Wicked Faerie’s Tales and Reviews

25-Nov

Hearts on Fire

26-Nov

BFD Book Blog

27-Nov

MM Good Book Reviews

28-Nov

Velvet Panic

1-Dec

Elisa – My Reviews and Ramblings

Molly Lolly

2-Dec

Book Reviews, Rants, and Raves

Cate Ashwood

3-Dec

My Fiction Nook

Queer Town Abbey

Prism Book Alliance

4-Dec

Multitasking Mommas

Cathy Brockman Romances 

 

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A MelanieM Review: Fire and Light by Berengaria Brown

Rating: 2.5 stars ouf of 5 stars

Fire and Light coverSeveral years after the divorce, Hugh’s ex-wife decides that she doesn’t want her son and gives Hugh full custody.   Hugh loves his son and finds this a wonderful turn of events, even if it means he has to rearrange his life.  With 6 year old Orion living with him, Hugh and his son are adjusting to life as a family when a chance encounter with a man named Quigley changes all their lives forever.

This is a short story about a romance that starts in an equally small amount of time.  Hugh has just gotten custody of his son from his ex-wife.  She is in a new relationship and her boyfriend does not want Orion around.  Quigley is a man on a 2-week vacation.  All three meet cute in a surf shop and bond over board shorts and goggles.  In that 2 week time frame, the men fall in love and decide to be a family, along with Orion.  Orion adjusts beautifully.  Everyone is happy. The end.

That’s the story.  Short, sweet and has no character building, no foundation on which to build a realistic love story and certainly no depth.What it does have is loads of sex scenes, with a smattering of story.  It’s fluffy with some lovely scenes between Hugh and his son.  That is really the best part of Fire and Light, the father-son relationship.  Of course, that is also the component that makes the acceptance of a stranger and the instant family kind of creepy.

If Berengaria Brown is a must read author for you, then go ahead and pick this up.  But for the rest of us, I would give this a pass.

Book Details:
ebook, 2nd Edition, 57 pages
Published June 19th 2013 by Torquere Press (first published June 16th 2011)
ISBN 1610404882 (ISBN13: 9781610404884)
edition language English

Review: Convergence (Proud to be a Vampire) by Talya Andor

Rating: 4 stars out of 5

Convergence coverLong time friends Chris Bryant and Ling Tam work for Chris’ father in Bryant’s Teas and Curiosities, a store that buys and sells antiques and oddities.  Chris and Ling have long searched for a certain treasure and now they think they have found it.  But in order to succeed they need the assistance of a very special and dangerous being, a vampire.  Chris places a discreet ad in the newspaper and it is answered by Dorran Gracen, a Welsh vampire who accepts the job and the challenges of the journey.

But traveling with a gorgeous predator has its own challenges and attractions, physical attractions that Chris Bryant has kept hidden from his family and society.  As their journey to China continues, he starts to yearn for more from Gracen than just his help to obtain the treasure.  At the journey’s end, will Chris and Ling find the treasure they have searched for or will Chris’ attraction to the vampire cost them everything they have worked for and his life as well.

Convergence is a wonderful little story by Talya Andor that reaches beyond its 22,000 word scope for something larger and, for the most part, succeeds.  It appears to take place in England sometime in the 1800’s, but this England is a place where vampires are a  reality, although a carefully hidden one.  Andor crafts a totally believable world, from Chris’ store to the voyage that takes the trio to China and their buried treasure.

I loved the relationship between Chris and Ling as well as the one that develops between Chris and Dorran.  Given the time period, unusual relationships such as those between people of differing races and social rank are not easily tolerated.  So in a lovely twist, Andor shows that while Chris and Ling consider themselves to be equals, they hide their  true friendships. A neat twist is that they consider themselves almost brothers, but still have to pretend to have a master/servant relationship, one that switches around once they reach China.

It is a time when it is equally dangerous to be gay so among the many things Chris is hiding, he is also careful not to disclose his homosexuality.  The only one who knows he is gay is Ling, his straight friend.  So many secrets here in Convergence, including the true nature of Ling and Chris’ collection of artifacts.  Then Andor adds another layer of deception with the introduction of her Welsh vampire, a somewhat civilized predator with an agenda of his own and truly, all paths and deceptions converge within a mountainous lair of puzzles and treasure.

The treacherous path to the jeweled artifact is a lovely combination of torturous puzzles and challenging physical hurdles.  I really enjoyed the planning and thought that went into this hunt.  The vivid descriptions made the atmosphere and setting come alive.  I had only one quibble with one hurdle that I am sure the author could have answered given a longer length.  Ok, how did those sharks stay alive given their location? Hmmm?  But the rest of it was so neatly planned out, that I can look past this curiosity.

The only other quibble I had with this story was that I wanted a little more of the growing relationship between Chris and Dorran.  The scenes we were given were so tantalizing that it made me want so much more.  They are a great couple and the ending makes me hopeful that there will be more of this couple and their hunts for oddities and treasures.  Whether you love vampires or romance or a combination of both, this is a story you won’t want to miss!

Note:  It appears as part of a bundle titled Proud To Be A Vampire, No. 1 and No. 2 but I don’t see any further references to these main characters so I am not certain where this story comes in.  It can certainly be read as a stand alone.

Cover designed by Aisha Akeju works wonderfully for the story and the treasure within.

Book Details:

ebook, 22,000 words, approx. 80 pages
Published October 9th 2013 by Less Than Three Press LLC
original title Convergence
ISBN13 9781620042519
edition language English

Review: Hunter By Blood by Robin White

Rating: 2.75  stars out of 5

Cover - Hunter By BloodWerewolf hunter Kayn is in pursuit of a  werewolf when he is bitten by his prey.  Found by another hunter, the injured Kayn is returned to headquarters to shift and meet his fate.  But there is something different about Kayn.  The transformation isn’t normal.  Kayn can control the  wolf and its hunger.  Kayn is also much bigger and a different color than was expected.   The leader of the Hunters lets Kayn live and his decision has long lasting ramficiations for all.  For the answer to Kayn’s transition and the new werewolf he has become is hidden in plain sight.  Behind the red door in the Hunter Headquarters lies the answers Kayn needs and his future requires.

Well, all I can say is that its just too bad that so many neat ideas ended up in such an less finished, and disconnected story.  I love werewolf stories and the author has included some intriguing elements  created for Hunter by Blood.  Unfortunately she has buried it in a morass of confused storylines, a lack of any sort of universe building, frustrating disconnected plot threads and lack of defined characterizations.  Everything about this story is as murky as its cover.  From the start we have no information about the universe we are reading about.  We learn nothing  about the city and society.  Ditto about the band of hunters killing the werewolves. And sometimes vampires?  We don’t know anything because the story lays no foundations for anything, it’s just confusing.

Equally confusing are the relationships among the men we meet.  Or the people we meet, some might be men and some are…..something else?  Not human?  Again, just don’t know.  Kayn and another hunter, Bryce.  They arrived to join the Hunters on the same day (which according to the story is odd but it never explains why). Since that moment, the men have competed (in what again we dont know) and have been at odds ever since.  Or have they.  One, Kayn, has dark coloring and  Bryce is his exact opposite.  What does that mean if anything?  Kaye’s wolf shape is white with red stripes., when he should be black.  Again why?

At certain points in the story its  mentioned that they might have feelings towards each other but as we aren’t supplied with any history or evidence of such, it turned into a throwaway line until it reappeared towards the end.  The Hunter group appears to have been created along the lines of the French Foreign Legion where each person leaves their family and past behind.  Only the author keeps bringing Kayn’s past up, although without any details, just vague references to some family ties that make him an even better hunter.  Trust me, after 20 pages or so, you will be frustrated beyond belief at the lack of details given that the author clearly wants you to think is a great mystery instead of the great pain in the you know what it actually is.

Here is an example with Aaron, the head of the Hunter group in his rooms and a furred demon snake appears floating at his head. sigh:

“I haven’t seen you this nervous in quite a while, Aaron.”

The voice seemed to come from nowhere, and something like smoke seemed to rise from the shadows. Aaron sighed quietly, but he smiled as the smoke formed into something he often compared to a snake covered in fur and and infused with a very talkative personality. Biblios, a word demon, had been one of his few trusted companions for quite some time and was always offering his advice. The other hunters didn’t know about the strange creature, and for that Aaron was grateful. His long, sleek body curled up on top of Aaron’s desk, silver runes glowing in his dark fur. Biblios seemed to have recently digested, in his way, a story once again. The way it worked was a riddle to Aaron, but it wasn’t of concern for the moment. He needed to talk about his current situation to someone, and Biblios was just the right … entity to talk to.

“You are worrying about Kayn’s condition, correct?”

“Yes. It should be impossible for him to even think rationally any longer, yet he stood before me and even talked about his worries about what the infection might entail for him.” Aaron tilted his head to one side. “I simply don’t understand it.” “Well …” Biblios exhaled, a cloud of silver-white smoke coming from his nostrils. “That is a mystery indeed. We already know that there’s a multitude of different werewolves out there, every single of those variants with very specific attributes and abilities. But what we see happening with Kayn might be a completely new species, without any ties to a werewolf.”

Aaron shook his head. “No, Biblios, that strains credulity too far. He was bitten by a werewolf. There is no doubt he will— well, you know …”

No we don’t know and quite frankly neither do they.  Although I have to admit I liked Biblios, a word demon who consumes words the way others devour hamburgers. He is a inventive creation, quite wasted in this story.  But liking a segment here or appreciating an element there doesn’t add up to a whole story.  For me, it just frustrating because even with all the small interesting bits, it just doesn’t work as a finished product.  So I am giving this werewolf tale a pass.  You should too.

Cover design by London Burden.

Book Details:

ebook
Expected publication: November 13th 2013 by Less Than Three Press LLC
original titleHunter by Blood
ISBN139781620042830
edition languageEnglish

2013 Pulp Friction Series Finale, Finale Contest and Odd Man Out!

Pulp Friction 4 covers

Today ScatteredThoughts is welcoming back authors Havan Fellows, Lee Brazil, Laura Harner and Tom Webb to talk about the last book in the Pulp Friction series…all of the series…, Odd Man Out.  Odd Man Out was written by all of the authors and ties up all the storylines for each author’s main character or characters.  There is a sensational contest to go along with this series finale, Odd Man Out 2013 Finale coverbut before we get to the contest, lets meet our authors for our final Pulp Friction get together of 2013!

Meeting already in progress, let’s listen in….

Havan: Right now, here, talking about this—this feels like it might’ve been the quickest year of my life. I swear just a couple of days ago Laura came to us with—

Wait a second…how rude, here I am assuming that you know us and our dastardly delicious Pulp Friction stories…introductions may be appreciated…”us” is Laura Harner, T.A. Webb, Lee Brazil and Havan Fellows…now back to our ramblings *winks*

—so Laura approached us with this crazy idea of bad guys being good guys and serial pulp fiction booklets and lots of man love…or something like that. After we completely thought she’d taken up some sort of (perhaps illegal lol) habit and realized she was just naturally…um…spunky like that…lmao…we sat and thought about her proposition.

I just love saying that…Laura propositioned 3 people at once…and we accepted!

And…Pulp Friction was born.

Flash forward roughly a year…and we’re now saying good-bye to the characters that became a part of our lives. Oh I’m not kidding, when Zack got mad at Wick it was hard as hell for me to not think that Laura was mad at me…and when Rory walked out on Chance hearts broke and we wanted to wrap our arms around Chance and tell him it would be okay. These are our boys, our hearts and souls…we’ve brought a very turbulent year of their lives to you and hope that you—our readers—love them as much as we do.

The dynamics of these men are really mind-boggling. We were already friends when we decided to test our boundaries with this endeavor. We knew that we could spend elongated periods of time together and not want to do each other bodily harm…lol…but could we write together? Could we allow the others into our minds and create—develop something that readers would enjoy? (Because make no mistake, even though only the last book is a combined effort we were holding each other’s hands through every single one of the twenty books that came before the finale.) That’s a scary as hell concept for private people to bear.

But we did it…and when the finale came around four extremely talented (some maybe a tad bit melodramatic *cough cough* or a touch hard-headed) and dedicated authors worked together and wrote one blazingly hot and holy-shit-hang-on-for-your-life-roller-coaster ride of a book.

Oh – and just for the record – our voices freaking sing when combined…*bows*.

And now it’s time to say good-bye to what started as five bad guys being good guys and ended as nine men (throw in a cousin & aunt, a housekeeper/mother figure, a manager of a bar & smartening up cop, a brother with two kiddos and a voice across the line) and well—that’s one hell of a family that no one wants to cross and anyone would be proud to be a part of.

We’ll miss them, we’ll think of them often and we’ll always have a place for them in us.

That being said…we’re ready to wow you next year when we take on Flagstaff and see what kind of trouble we can rouse up there.

Lee: Havan, I think you said everything that we’re all feeling right now. I’d just like to add a big thank you to readers and reviewers who supported us with such enthusiasm in this whole endeavor. It isn’t the usual fare in today’s world of instant gratification. This whole concept of waiting to find out what happens next? Well, we knew it would tick some people off, but we hoped you’d love it as much as we did! People like Melanie and Will Parkinson wowed us with their responses, and that is so encouraging. Big hugs and lots of love to all of you!

Laura:  What she said. And then some. I really had no idea what this would turn into by the end of our first year together, but I can tell you, that just as the characters grew into a family, so have the PF writers. Friends who aren’t afraid to test the limits only come along so often in life. I’m grateful to have Havan, Lee, and Tom in mine. Tom wasn’t able to be with us today, but he and I have talked so much this past year about just how lucky we are to be part of this magical collaboration. He is always so appreciative of the amazing reader response to Marcus and Ben.

Havan: Oh-kay…the feelings have been tossed out there, our boys have shared every side they have…and the Macallans Whisky has run dry—well if that isn’t our cue to wrap this up nothing is. But we don’t want to leave ya’ll empty handed…because you should always have something in your hand *winks* soooooooooooo…time for some fun.

Leave a comment…any comment you want, we aren’t picky…and FOUR lucky winners will be picked—each to receive one of the four compilations we published of the series. Oh…don’t forget to leave your email address also! And for the ones keeping count at home—yes we just said we will be giving away a total of twenty books to four lucky winners…a set of each of the series…so leave your comment already *points to comment area*

Contest Rehash (because I always wanted to use that word): Leave a comment here and four winners will be picked to receive one of the four compilations of the series.  That’s 24 books to 4 lucky winners, wow.  A set for each of you.  And please leave us your email address as well so we can get in touch.  I mean, this is remarkable.  Here is what the winners will get:

Wicked Truths coverWicked’s Way Series by Havan Fellows:

Wicked Solutions (Wicked’s Way #1)
Wicked Bindings (Wicked’s Way #2)
Wicked Incarceration (Wicked’s Way #3)
Wicked Guidance (Wicked’s Way #4)
Wicked Truths (Wicked’s Way #5)
Odd Man Out (4 series finale, #6)

Chance In Hell coverChances Are Series by Lee Brazil:

Chances Are (Chances Are #1)
Second Chances Are (Chances Are #2)
Fifty, Fifty Chances Are (Chances Are, #3)
Ghost of a Chance (Chances Are, #4)
Chance in Hell (Chances Are #5)
Odd Man Out (4 series finale, #6)

Darkest KNight coverCity Knight Series by T.A. Webb:

City Knight (City Knight #1)
Knightmare (City Knight #2)
Starry Knight (City Knight #3)
Knights Out (City Knight #4)
Darkest Knight (City Knight #5)
Odd Man Out (4 series finale, #6)

Duplicity coverTriple Threat Series by Laura Harner:

Triple Threat (Triple Threat #1)
Retribution (Triple Threat #2)
Defiance (Triple Threat, #3)
Crucify (Triple Threat, #4)
Duplicity (Triple Threat #5)
Odd Man Out (4 series finale, #6)

Review: Too Many Fairy Princes by Alex Beecroft

Rating: 5 stars out of 5

Too Many Fairy PrincesKing Volmar of Vagar was dying.  Well, in truth, the King had been assassinated 100 years before, but hung on after death due to enchantments.  Now those magics have run out and the king will die completely.  But who will reign after him?  One son has been banished for treason, the remaining four will fight for the throne.  But fairy legends have always stated that the youngest son will win out, no matter the circumstances.  So  when their father, the King, gives them all one month to prove themselves worthy of the  title, the fallout is disasterous.   One brother starts wars, another assassinates the youngest hoping to take his place, and Prince Kjarten?  All he hoped was to stay out of the way and continue his studies but when Gisli, his youngest brother is killed by the second youngest, Tyrnir, Prince Kjarten realizes it is only a matter of time before his ambitious brothers turn on him.

When the assassination attempt happens, Kjarten flings himself, injured, into the mortal world hoping to hide. The fairy prince has heard tales of the horrible humans and the nasty fate that awaits him at their hands.  But nothing has prepared Kjarten for the truth when he is found by an artist searching for the answers to his own problems and future.

Artist and art gallery worker Joel Wilson life is full of problems.  His ex boyfriend was a jerk who left him penniless and his boss who owns the art gallery where Joel works and shows his paintings is in financial trouble.   In fact, that financial trouble involves loan sharks and other assorted criminals. Joel doesn’t know what to do.  Then he finds an elf lying injured in an alleyway near his home and everything changes.  Can a mortal artist and a elf prince pull together to save the kingdom and find true love?

Magical, funny and absolutely absorbing.  Those are the words that spring to mind when asked to describe my feelings after reading Too Many Fairy Princes by Alex Beecroft.  So many things to love about this book.  First off?  Alex Beecroft keeps me off center with her characters.  They aren’t what I expect them to be.  And that’s at any point in time during the narrative. An elf  prince?  Why, gorgeous and etheral of course.  But also self centered, isolated (by choice) so completely from his family that other important events escape him completely? That’s Kjarten too.  Somewhat arrogant and cruel, although less so than his brothers? Check.  Not exactly your normal fictional elf. Or maybe he is if you return to the old ways of thinking about the Fae.  Then the personalities of Kjarten ring true.

But nothing about the characters you will meet within these pages are static portraits.  No, these beings grow and change before your eyes, their natures metamorphosing along with the events, while still staying true to who they are at the most basic.  Beecroft’s characterizations are marvelous and not just the elves either.  From the Queen of England to the remarkable Joel Wilson, her human beings are more than a match for any elf, or goblin as the case may be.  I loved them all too.  It is so easy to become invested in all these people, elf and human alike because the author has made the reader an intimate companion to them and their worlds.  She brings us into their thoughts and hearts so that their vulnerability and insecurities help engage our affections immediately.  And her worlds? Magical as well as mundane.

World building is also a creative gift and Alex Beecroft has that in spades too.  I loved the kingdom of Vagar.  Ok, I didn’t love it.  Its hateful and cold.  But its also fascinating and full of creatures to amaze and wonder at.  Including a dead king who is still around to muck up things for the kingdom.  Here is King Volmar:

“Now we can start.” “Thank you for that, youngest,” King Volmar of Vagar said in a dry voice, as Kjartan slipped into his place below Bjarti, with a whisper of silk and a curling trace of the scent of honeysuckle. “Since Kjartan has taken up all the time I had set aside in which to do this gently, I shall do it harshly and blame him.”

No change there, Kjartan thought, watching a new-hatched moth make its way out of his father’s mouth and fly towards the light of the sea.

“Today,” the king went on, stopping carefully between each phrase to reinflate his lungs, “marks the hundredth anniversary of my execution by the sea-people, at the instigation of your exiled brother Dagnar. I like to think that the intervening years have rubbed their faces in the fact that they didn’t win that one.”

He paused to wipe a cobweb from his left eye. “However, it seems the magic sustaining me can only do so much, and I have…” a court mage leaned down to whisper in his ear, “… only a month or so left.”

“No!” cried Gisli, apparently quite genuinely. “Father!”

Kjartan and Tyrnir shook their heads, one fondly, one in irritation. Bjarti just waited to find out what would happen next.

“So each of you has one month,” the king continued, unmoved, “to prove himself worthy of inheriting the throne.” As he wiped more moth larvae from his lips, his eyelids closed, apparently by themselves. He dragged them open wearily. “There was meant to be more pomp and ceremony, but Kjartan spoiled that. So off you go. Do something impressive, come back in a month and a day with proof, and I will decide between you.”

The King is literally being cocooned before their eyes, moth larvae spinning inside him, cobwebs flowing over his features.  At one point, a servant licks the king’s eyeballs to give them moisture.  Everything about the king is both repellent and compelling.  A marvelous portrait in every way, a true mxture of evil and promise.  And we see this type of thing over and over again in this story.

The human world is just as vibrant as the elf one.  Life is not always kind to the people there either.  And one can be a human and be as isolated from those around him by choice as an elf prince.  Beecroft manages to draw comparisons between two very different individuals and their backgrounds with subtlety and finesse.

This book grabbed me from the start.  I  laughed, gasped and wholeheartedly fell in love with all the characters involved here.  And I loved the ending too, something that seems to be missing from so many stories these days.  So while I was sorry to leave their company, I loved the way in which the author tied up the loose ends.  I heartedly recommend this  book.  It’s terrific.  Run, don’t walk, and pick it up.

Cover by Lou Harper is just perfect.  I loved it as much as i did the story.  Great job.

Book Details:

Kindle Edition
Expected publication: November 5th 2013 by Samhain Publishing
ISBN13 B00D89OG9G
edition language English

How I Met Your Father Guest Blog and Book Tour

HowIMetYourFather_TourBanner

Good morning everyone! ScatteredThoughtsandRogueWords is so happy to have  LB Gregg here with us today.  She has been a favorite of mine ever since I discovered her Romano and Albright series as well as her newish Cornwall  books.  She is stopping by today to promote her new release How I Met Your Father.  I loved this story and think you will too. So without further ado, here is LB Gregg:

Hi! My name is LB Gregg and I write m/m romantic comedies. Thanks for stopping by on the How I Met Your Father blog tour. I’m LBGreggpicturethrilled to be part of the Home for the Holidays collection and want to encourage you to purchase my book—as Riptide will donate 20% of the proceeds of the sale of this book, and the collection, to the Ali Forney Center in New York. The centers mission “is to protect lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, questioning (LGBTQ) youth from the harm of homelessness, and to support them in becoming safe and independent as they move from adolescence to adulthood.”

Exclusive How I Met Your Father excerpt!

“Gee. I wish my dad had been as cool as you.”

That cracked his veneer. I would have said more, but Jack’s gaze found mine, and what I saw reflected there wasn’t annoyance. It was amusement. He flicked ash into the sand, and his wink made me glad it was dark under the trees.

Laid up, huh? My pleasure adding to your list of conquests, Mr. Hayes.”

And this time he didn’t just smile. He bowed.

“Please.” I rolled my eyes. “I hiccupped. I wasn’t trying to be smooth or add notches to some imaginary belt.” Which was admittedly filled with all manner of notches. “You pursued me. And how in the hell did you hear me in the bar?”

“I came in from the beach.” The glowing end of his cigar waved toward Nevis’s shore. “They left the hotel without me, too.”

He’d taken the same path from the hotel that I had. He’d come in right after me, following me again, though he’d waited before he’d approached his family. Lurking in the shadows. What wasn’t weird about that?

“You kids did a nice job. Catchy.”

Kids. I resisted the urge to sit taller. “Gee. Thanks, mister.”

He exhaled a ring of smoke.

I found myself asking, “You really didn’t know who I was?”

“Not a hint. What do I know about music? My daughter listens to women who don’t shave their legs, and my son wears headphones twenty-four seven.”

My ego took a tiny, tiny hit, and damn him, Jack noticed.

“Does it bother you that I didn’t know?”

“Not really. It’s actually refreshing.” How could he possibly know Chuck Kinney, the fucking Chuck Kinney, and not have seen a picture of me at some point? There were photos of us together all over Chuck’s apartment. There were posters of us, actually. Teen Choice Awards. We’d had a picture with the president. Surely he’d Googled Chuck? Wherever Chuck stood, I’d been at his side.

A man like Jack would have practiced due diligence and had his daughter’s fiancé investigated before giving his blessing on any marriage, right? I’d confirmed that both Mandy and Chuck had signed their prenup because that fell under my job description as peacemaker and watchdog for the four of us.

Jack’s keen gaze read me easily. “I bet for you, it’s a pain in the ass that everywhere you go, people think they know you.” His words were uncomfortably astute. “I know I wouldn’t like it.”

“It can be a pain in the ass, but I appreciate the fans.”

“You practice that in a mirror, sport? Because you didn’t look appreciative this afternoon when that woman pointed a camera at you. You bolted.”

The back door slammed, saving me a lame denial, and a woman in a slinky romper tiptoed shakily across the rocky patio. We waited. Jack gazed thoughtfully into the darkness, and I swatted insects and wondered what the hell else he saw. He sort of freaked me out. He’d had my number since the Fasten Seatbelt sign first illuminated.

I shot him a look, but Jack was watching the shoreline, one hand stuffed in his front pocket and his blazer wrinkled manfully behind his arm. White smoke floated around his head.

So far, no one had come looking for us, which was a minor miracle, but TJ and Matt were hitting on anyone with a C cup or higher, and Chuck . . . would appear in the doorway any second now.

The girl in the stilettos joined her friends at the fire pit, and I had one burning question for Jack. “How old are you?”

“Younger than I look. Older than I feel.”

“That’s helpful. You’re supposed to answer the question with a number. Like this: I’m twenty-nine. I’m guessing you’re . . .”

I sucked at guessing anyone’s age, but I gave it a shot. Silver-streaked hair, tan enough to do some work or sports outdoors, ripped from the gym, loaded if the watch was any indication, smoker of Cuban cigars, wearer of fine shoes, father of Mandy—

Holy fuck. The man must be fifty.

“Relax. I’m forty-four.”

My relief must have been evident. It was certainly audible as I sighed.

Jack shook his head. “Not as old as you thought. Thanks.”

“Sorry. I’m really bad at this. And forty-four’s not old. It’s distinguished.”

“Sure. You look twenty, so let’s call it a draw.”

“Twenty?” He would have carded me, too. Maybe I did need a beard. “So you are a pervert.”

His mouth twitched.

“Or did what happened earlier have nothing to do with age? For you, I mean.”

“Didn’t it?” His low words made my neck tingle. He didn’t move closer, but his gaze settled on my mouth like he remembered the feel of his lips on mine. “It had to do with opportunity,” he said slowly. “Adrenaline. Anonymity. Adventure. Age. You didn’t know me. I didn’t know you. And you loved it.”

I swallowed.

“I knew you would. I knew it the second I saw you. We could do it again.” He moved closer. “Take our time. Get to know each other.” His words skimmed across my nerves like a caress and Jesus Christ, they called me a player? The man could give lessons. “We could go back to the hotel.”

So tempting. But I remembered Chuck. And Mandy. And Benji’s slightly worshipping gaze. The wedding. Propriety. A bug hit my eye and, thank God, it broke the spell Jack had me under. I smacked another mosquito, and I knew Jack wasn’t playing me—he was playing with me.

LB Gregg writes m/m contemporary romantic comedies for a variety of publishers including Riptide, Carina Press, Samhain and Musa. For information about LB’s books, visit her on the web at lbgregg.com.

Contest Specifics or How To Enter to Get This Fabulous Book: 

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HowIMetYourFather_150x300Publisher Blurb:
The man of your dreams could be sitting right next to you.

Former boy band member Justin Hayes isn’t looking for a man. He just wants a quiet, scandal-free Christmas at home in Chicago, out of the public eye. But his best friend and bandmate is subjecting everyone to his destination wedding, and Justin can’t dodge the “best man” bullet. All he has to do is get to the island on time, survive the reunion, and get Chuck to the altar with as little drama as possible. What could possibly go wrong?

Jack Bassinger’s own plans for a quiet Christmas have been dashed by the summons to his daughter’s hasty wedding with a man Jack has hardly met. On the bumpy flight to the island, he finds himself comforting a nervous — and extremely attractive — young man. One hasty sexual encounter in an airport bathroom later, they both feel much better. No one ever has to know, after all.

Now Justin and Jack must find a way to explore their attraction, despite the distractions of disapproving family members, unexpected announcements, an impromptu concert, and an island paradise that proves there’s no place like home.

Buy Riptide Publishing buy link.Click here to read an excerpt and order How I Met Your Father!

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