A VVivacious Review: Orientation by Rick R. Reed

Rating: 4 Stars out of 5

Robert and his lover Ethan have drifted apart to the point that they are mere strangers living together. As things between them worsen Robert wonders if he ever truly loved anyone other than his first lover Keith who died of AIDS.

Then on one particularly lonely night Robert comes across a suicidal girl, Jess but it appears that there is more going on between Jess and Robert than either can guess at first. But what exactly does this sense of familiarity and love translate to between a gay man and lesbian?

I really think this book is not aptly named, I mean I don’t think it ever deals with orientation, I mean the characters in this book are not conflicted about their orientation and neither are they troubled by it. While this book ends on a note that kind of stresses orientation, this book is truly just a story of love.

It is a very engaging story. I read this book at a stretch; I just couldn’t put it down. It is a short book but what I liked about it is that the story never becomes predictable. What kept me turning the pages one after the other was the fact that I had no idea where this story would take me or how it would end.

Our MCs are Robert and Jessica who are both in ways dealing with loss. They bond over this fact but what truly makes them want to be with the other is the fact that there is a deeper sense of familiarity and love that underlies there meetings. Since the moment they met Jessica has felt that she is meeting someone she already knows and loves. Complicating this fact is that even though they feel love towards the other their orientations are completely incompatible. This story also follows two other characters, Ethan, Robert’s boyfriend and his drug dealer, Tony.

This story really focuses on its characters, you can sympathize with Robert’s desire to be blind to the obvious, to not have to face his boyfriend’s infidelities as well as his potentially lethal lifestyle and bury that under the joy of having someone else who understands his love for Keith. While Ethan’s struggle with his addiction is painful, he is wasting away and try as he might to climb out of the abyss he is in, he only ever manages to dig himself deeper. Tony’s guilt over being the reason many people have lost touch with themselves and his shame over not being able to give up the opportunity to make just a little more money is honest. And then there is Jess who is reeling form loss, is burdened by her lack of finances and struggling to understand these new feelings that have awakened in her… for a man…

This story really ties together the lives of these four characters and makes for a compelling read. This book is firstly about love and secondly about the human condition. It is an amazing read.

Cover Art by Wilde City Press. I liked the cover but I’m unsure as to how it relates to the story.

Sales Links

Wilde City Press

Books Details:

Wilde City Press

Kindle Edition, 2 edition, 192 pages

Published July 25th 2016 (first published May 7th 2008)

Original Title Orientation

ASIN B01J4KIP94

A MelanieM Review: Hidden Wings by Ana Raine

Rating: 3 stars out of 5

Kanji is the last royal Kuro swan, an ancient race who once served the demonic Sidhee. The Kuro were betrayed and given as slaves to the Dryma fairies. When a Dryma is born, his soul attaches to a tree and to sustain their lives, the Dryma conscript the Kuro to protect their woods. In their servitude, the Kuro are languishing and dying off. Kanji is desperate to reunite his people with their stolen wings, but the task seems impossible.

When Kanji discovers a plan to unite the Sidhee and the Dryma, he tricks the Sidhee prince and attends a masked ball in disguise. There he meets Prince Tristan, who is nothing like the other fairies. Kind and compassionate, Tristan has a plan to free the Dryma from their dependence on the trees—and their need of the Kuro’s protection. It could mean freedom for Kanji’s people, but it might also mean choosing between them and the life of the fairy who is—impossibly—his mate.

When Tristan is wounded in battle and left for dead, his survival depends on the success of his experiments. Can Kanji dare to believe, or must he come to terms with the loss of his mate?

Hidden Wings by Ana Raine caught my attention primarily due to the inclusion of swans in her fantasy story, well that and the fae. I have long admired the species as much for their deadly attack skills as for their elegance and loyalty. So I had high hopes for seeing such natural history characteristics included as part of the plot and folded into the character of Kanji, the last of the royal Kuro Swans. What I ended up with was a interesting mixture that didn’t always make sense but still managed to be entertaining none the less.

Ana Raine set a huge task for herself with this tale, specifically creating the two species, their individual cultures and collective histories and then bringing them together in the forms of Tristan and Kanji. I think that in putting her attention towards the Dryma and the Kuro, the characters of Kanji and Tristan came off as pale comparisons. There is a richness in the mythology that Raine has created that just is so lovely, the dependency on the trees, the need for sacrifice that runs throughout many ancient cultures, and then threading those elements through her story that pulls you in and makes you forget some of the other aspects that might otherwise have you shaking your head. I’ve seen swans take out foxes and dogs. Swans are deadly. Where is that here?

Also, for many of you, this is not your happily ever after, nor is it meant to be. Hidden Wings is part of Dreamspinner Press’ Bittersweet Dreams titles which states in part that “… these stories of romance do not offer a traditional happy ending, but the strong and enduring love will still touch your heart and maybe move you to tears.” Note the no traditional happy ending. So, you wouldn’t go into this book expecting to get one and you don’t. I didn’t mind that, but I know many readers will.

No, what bothered me was that I thought the characters and their relationship as mates needed more substance, at least as much as their species and cultures got. Hidden Wings has so much promise, enough that the author could easily pull more stories from without having to establish a base universe once again.

If you are a fan of fantasy, pick it up and decide for yourself.

Cover art by Anne Cain is lovely and works for me

Sales Links: Dreamspinner Press | ARe | Amazon

Book Details:

ebook, 210 pages

Published January 6th 2016 by Dreamspinner Press

ISBN 1634767519 (ISBN13: 9781634767514)

Edition Language English

An Aurora YA Review: Out of Order by Casey Lawrence

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Corinna “Corey” Nguyen’s life seems perfectly average for a closeted bisexual whiz kid with her eyes on college and a budding romance with her friend Kate. Sixteen and navigating senior year with her tight-knit group of best friends through crushes, breakups, and pregnancy scares, Corey mistakenly believes that running for valedictorian and choosing the right college are the worst of her worries. That is, until prom night, when she’s left alone and in shock, hiding inside a diner restroom, the only witness to a multiple homicide.

With graduation looming, the pressure is on for Corey to identify the killer and ensure that the crime that has changed her life forever will not go unpunished.

I love mysteries, and I love books that really make you think, and this book does both in a masterful way. There are so few books that I’ve read that are pure mysteries or thrillers that are also YA books. In fact as I sat down to write this review, I thought for a good five minutes about any books similar to this one, and I could only think of one that I had read or even seen. I always love to read books like this, and this book was not only a standout simply for the subject matter, but it was just well written. From the larger scale parts of the book that involved the murder, which were fascinating, to the plots that involved Corey simply living life as a teenager, every part of the book was really interesting to read. In general it was just very exciting, and it kept me very engaged from beginning to end.

I love characters and the way they’re developed, I make no secret of it. And this book did not disappoint as far as character. Most notably, Corey was absolutely wonderfully written. She was endearing, I loved her, and I wanted to see her come out on top. She seemed like a real teenager without seeming like she was a stereotype. She was very interesting while, again, seeming very much like a real teenager who was simply put in an extraordinary situation, which is one of my favorite things to see in any form of entertainment. I really, thoroughly enjoyed this book and it was a very fun read. It kept me engaged the entire time, and I really liked the characters and writing style.

Aaron Anderson is the cover artist. Definitely just based on seeing the cover in a store or online, I would have picked up this book because the cover is very intriguing. It makes me wonder what the book is about and is very well put together. I think that the fact that it doesn’t feature anyone’s face is actually very smart. It doesn’t assign an image to any of the characters for the reader before they read the book, but it still makes the reader interested and still does a good job of showing what the book is about.

Sales Links: Harmony Ink Press – All Romance (ARe) – Amazon Buy It Here

Book Details:

ebook, 180 pages, and in paperback
Published March 21st 2015 by Harmony Ink Press
ISBN139781634760126
edition languageEnglish
url http://www.harmonyinkpress.com
A YA Imprint of Dreamspinner Press

A MelanieM Review: A Counselor Among Wolves (Leader Murders #2) by Liv Olteano

Rating: 4.25 stars out of 5

Sequel to A Tooth for a Fang
Leader Murders: Case Two

Five dead leaders, their bodies arranged in a pentagram. Treason, lies, and backstabbing. A make-believe affair that turns into a real mating.

Timothy Sands is a PBI counselor, half-fey, half-elf, with a secret crush on Herman Weiss, PBI director. As a new chapter is added to the Leader Murders, it is Weiss’s responsibility to investigate what seems an impossible-to-solve case. The other problem? Weiss is suffering from rages, and his only salvation lies in Tim’s emotional-grid-balancing skills. They only have to pretend to be a couple for Tim to use his talents, and he owes Weiss a big favor. Piece of cake, right?

The fey might be involved in the Leader Murders. Someone on the Council might be their ally, and another prominent PBI figure looks more and more suspicious as they investigate. The stakes are upped when Timothy’s father, the Fey King, threatens to leave the Council destitute if they don’t hand Timothy over to him. Weiss’s brilliant solution? Mating Timothy and forcing the Council into protecting him.

There’s only one small hitch in that plan: instead of protecting one, the Council might decide to get rid of two.

A Tooth for a Fang was the first book I had read by Liv Olteano, and I loved the author’s darker take on werewolves, lycans, wolfshifters of all sorts (two different things in this series) and the supernatural in general. As much as I love all my romantic wolf shifter love stories, reading one where the wolves have a more manipulative aspect to their character that dominates all their relationships and outlook was refreshing and new. And the author took it further and separated out the wolf shifters or lycans from the werewolves, a divide both emotional and physical. But it was Olteano’s focus on domestic abuse in a Mate/Mate bond that was unexpected, intriguing and powerful.

For many stories, the weres and their mates meet and the mate bond snaps into place (a broad generalization I know), and they are happy together at the end. But what happens when one mate hates or grows to hate the other? In a species where the need to be dominant is inherent and expected, then the possibility of mate/spousal abuse appears. This element is a major part of the plot in Liv Olteano’s Leader Murder Mystery trilogy. Those mates who have been abused (no matter what species they belong too, were, lycan, vampire… whathaveyou) and those that see a wrong that needs to be addressed in their society have banded together to enact new laws to protect abused mates and enable them to “divorce” their abuser. Not a small thing in a hide bound society that resists change. But some of them have gone further and several murders of abusive leaders have occurred.

The first book involved a were and a human lured into a mate bond. That pair is still on shaky ground when this story opens But A Counselor Among Wolves has a different focus and pairing. This time its Timothy Sands, a half elf,half fey, who works for the PBI (Paranormal Bureau of Investigations). A loner due to his heritage, past history, and inclinations, Tim has been in love with the PBI’S Director,Herman Weiss, a Werewolf Alpha, for 5 years, to no avail. Weiss, as he is called, has been mated for years and last year his female mate produced the heir Weiss had been waiting for. His mating? Not at all happy, as everyone found out in the first story. The difficult relationships established in the first story get even more so here.

The “revolution” is building, Tim is part of the group that is working towards Mate Bond reforms (through legal methods) and Weiss is trying to deal with new murders, his imploded relationship, his son, and his increasingly unstable personality. The one being who might hold some of the answers Weiss requires? That would be Tim, who wants to keep his shields and secrets intact.

Olteano’s supernatural beings are anything but superficial in their creation. The author delivers not only each species physical characteristics, but background, natural history, cultural history and current racial and societal issues as well. Like I said, these aren’t your cuddly sort of wolves. Even Weiss’ toddler son is capable of well thought out manipulations and the boy/pup demonstrates a constant defiance that shows he is challenging his father (and others) for dominance even at the youngest of ages. His is a remarkable portrait as well. How many 5 year olds do you know who attack their mothers, trying to force them to submit? As Olteano points out, that makes it hard to establish a maternal bond, now doesn’t it? A Counselor to Wolves (and the series to date) is just one neat twist and turn after another. But always at its heart, are serious subject matters such as domestic abuse and violence.

Still this is a romance, of sorts, one between Tim and Weiss that struggles to coalesce at first under the stress and extraordinary circumstances. Then gets mired down in the politics and machinations of the investigation and murders. Throw in Tim’s father, who has his own nefarious plotting underway that also involves his son, and well, this book has plenty of layers to satisfy any lover of espionage and suspense. Plus Tim and Weiss are just plain hot together. You will root for them, really you will.

In this story, some of the revelations help speed us along to the final story that will tie up all the investigations and plotting revealed here. All the couples will have their moment on stage in the final story. That’s especially important because neither of the two couples relationships and pairing are on particularly stable ground. There are too many unknown elements still at play, and that include’s Tim’s father, the Elf King.

Now comes the waiting…how I hate that part. I want the final story now. This is such a terrific series. My admiration for Liv Olteano’s writing and plot grows with each story that’s released. I loved lycan Travis Chandler and the former human Rick Barton who took a vacation from an abusive lover and ended up as a mate. And I love Tim, one of a kind Tim and the dominating Alpha, Weiss and his son. We have one more couple to come forward and then the author will tie things up. I expect it to be messy, bloody, hot, and one heck of a wild ride towards the end. As I said, I can’t wait.

New to this series? Pick up A Tooth For A Fang first, then proceed to A Counselor Among Wolves. These books need to be read in the order they were written to understand the character and plot developments that are occurring within. The author tries to fill in gaps in each story but its far too complicated for that to one in any one book. I highly recommend them both. Then we can wait together for the final installment to arrive. See you there.

Cover Art by AngstyG. Love the cover, its dark and yes, angsty. Works a treat for the characters and story within.

Sales Links: Dreamspinner Press – All Romance (ARe) – Amazon Buy It Here

Book Details:

ebook, 230 pages, also in paperback
Published May 8th 2015 by Dreamspinner Press LLC
ISBN139781632169235
edition languageEnglish
seriesLeader Murders #2

The Leader Murder Case Mysteries Trilogy:

A Tooth For a Fang (Leader Murders #1)
A Counselor Among Wolves (Leader Murders, #2)

A Sammy Review: A Royal Affair by John Wiltshire

Rating: 4 stars out of 5

Perhaps if I had listened more closely, I would have heard them all whispering his name. For it is his name I hear still in my nightmares and in my waking dreams. It is the everyday hum of my new life in this vast country. But it began there, on that ship, in the sense of longing in my heart. Even my heartbeat murmured his name.

I should have listened more closely.

Doctor Nikolai Hartmann earns a reputation for himself after saving a wealthy man from evil poisons. That reputation summons him to a faraway land, to save a king who has presented similar symptoms, leaving him entertaining death. On his way to the king, he encounters despair unlike anything he’s seen before. Villages are impoverished, suffering is suffocating to all those who pass, and the cruelty is unbearable to an outsider like Nikolai.

One night, after witnessing particular horrific events, he is met by men that are camouflaged by the forest. Little does he expect to encounter them later on in his travels, or for one of them to be a Prince – the son of the very same king on his death bed.

Through poison, wars, and death, Aleksey and Nikolai come together, too entwined to ever separate again.

I was filled with searing, bitter, exalting, joyous, but awful knowledge that I loved Aleksey. I loved him as a man should love a woman. I wanted him as a man should want a woman.

But love, in my experience, was something that left you weak and vulnerable and near to death.

Some books have a plot, and yet have very little happen. This isn’t a fault of the book, merely the style. There are no explosions or great, tragic events. Just a simple story of life. This is not one of those stories. You will find all of these things in A Royal Affair, all of them in spades. Just when you think you’ve mounted the worst, more comes crashing down, sometimes quite literally.

The book was, quite bluntly, packed to the brim with events. And for the most part, it worked in the books favor. One thing can be said for sure, and that is that John Wiltshire is a master of words. Each phrase seemed to be delicately stringed together, like the author sat quietly and thought carefully about how one word would look next to the other. It’s beautiful, and especially in moments of depicting war, it was breathtaking. Death is ugly, and these words colored it in a beautiful and equally horrifying way.

It was, of course, not without its faults. For one, we met Mark in the beginning and unless I totally missed something happening to him, we never really heard of him again – just maybe two brief mentions after the actual meeting. I would’ve liked to know more about him, as all Aleksey’s other friends were wonderfully crafted and incredibly intriguing.

Also, I found that there were points in this where the book just felt so far beyond its 250 pages, and not necessarily in a good way. Had I not been so far enveloped in the story, I think it would’ve weighed far more heavy on me and made me become anxious to finally finish. If someone reads this and isn’t as interested in the nuances of a historical novel, I can see them easily growing bored with it. I, for the most part, did not, though I did feel its length, particularly at the beginning of the war section of the story.

One other thing that irritated me was the fade to black that we had for the first scene with actual penetration. There was a finger – and then just a brief summary that the night was most joyous. I’m greedy, I know this, but I wanted details. I suppose when you get to the end, it may make more sense as to why parts of the story were told as they were – simply through words and not actual dialogue between characters (these parts did coincide with the parts that began to feel a bit too lengthy to me, so that may speak to why those parts became particularly tedious).

Nevertheless, A Royal Affair is beautifully crafted and certainly a journey worth taking. I loved seeing not just a particular day or month in a characters life, but what truly felt like an entire, whole chapter of their life. This felt like I knew the characters for years, which was quite lovely. There is no doubt that I will be reading more by John Wiltshire, especially with the poetry he creates through the simplest of words.

The cover art by L.C. Chase is simply but perfect for the story. It doesn’t need any intricate cover with two men embracing or something that is commonly seen. The sword speaks for itself, and it makes for a striking first impression.

Sales Links: Dreamspinner Press eBook & Paperback All Romance (ARe) Amazon Buy it here

Book Details:

ebook, 250 pages
Published September 8th 2014 by Dreamspinner Press
edition languageEnglish

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