Tag: Pride Publishing

An Ali Release Day Review: Gaining Trust (Kiss of Leather #5) by Morticia Knight

Rating:  5 stars out of 5

 

gaining-trust-kiss-of-leather-5-by-morticia-knightChuck isn’t sure what he needs and Master Jordan can’t wait to show him.

 

Stone’s shy junior investigator, Chuck, can no longer deny his interest in the BDSM lifestyle. The beautiful connections and raw emotions he’s witnessed between so many of the Doms and subs at Kiss of Leather leave him yearning for something he’d never dared hope he could have—unconditional love and care from a man. He isn’t sure if he can take the chance of having a real relationship when he’s not out to his meddling parents yet, but the sexy Master Jordan, Gavin’s friend and the owner of Club Consequence, makes him want to take that chance.

 

Master Jordan has been biding his time until he can get next to the super-fine Chuck. Gavin warned him that Chuck isn’t in the lifestyle, but there’s something special about him that speaks to Jordan’s heart. When they’re finally alone, the chemistry is off the charts and Jordan can tell it won’t take much to bring Chuck willingly into the world of BDSM.

 

An unexpected development in the case of Corey’s kidnappers shocks them all, but not as much as what happens with Chuck’s family. Jordan teaches Chuck that secrets hold power over the person keeping them, and that gaining trust can only be achieved through complete honesty.

 

I loved this story just as much as I have with all of the others in this series.  Chuck and Jordan have been dancing around each other for the last couple books, so it was great to see them finally get their own story.  It’s great to see Chuck’s trust building in Jordan when he has to deal with his combative family dynamic.

 

We got a quick look at Josh and David working to fix their relationship problems from the previous book, but leaves a little mystery for the future with the possibility of an additional owner for the club that gives the opportunity for more characters to come into play in future books.  The rest of the book was on Chuck and Jordan’s budding relationship.  Once they got going they moved pretty fast, but they had a lot of build up that had been in the background in the previous books, so they weren’t just jumping in.

 

They mystery of Corey’s previous dom continues throughout this book and brings in some new twists that may play a bigger role in later books.  I look forward to reading more in this series while they solve the mystery, but also to see more of all the wonderful characters in this series.

 

The cover art is great and follows the pattern for the series.

 

Sales Links: Pride Publishing | Amazon | B&N

 

Book Details:

ebook, 142 pages

Expected Publication: January 24, 2017 by Pride Publishing

ISBN: 9781786515384

Edition Language: English

Series: Kiss of Leather #5

A Jeri Review: Death Dancer (Dangerous Dancers #2) by Tara Lain

Rating: 4 stars out of 5

death-dancer-by-tara-lainNormally I am not a big fan of mysteries or murder mysteries. But couple it with a romance AND an author I enjoy- sign me up. To top it off, it is set in the ballet world. Second only to baseball for me.

Valentin is a professional ballet dancer earning his dues and wanting the lead he feels he deserves, but the current lead isn’t giving up his spot.

Andrew meets Val when one of the dancers from the corp turns up dead. He isn’t the first and likely isn’t to be the last. Andrew and Val are immediately drawn to each other. But then Valentin’s rival is the next dead body and Val himself is the prime suspect.

The heat and chemistry between Andrew and Val is off the charts! I really liked seeing their relationship develop while also dealing with these murders and Valentin being a suspect.

The supporting characters were great- loved Andrew’s work partner. She cracked me up with her straight talk. The supporting dance characters were very typical of the dance world. The literal and figurative prima donnas, the corp members desperately trying to get ahead and their near hero worship of those who are principals.

The mystery itself was done really well. A nice twist or two kept me turning the pages to see “whodunit”.

This is the second in the series but easily read as a stand alone.

Cover art is wonderful.

Sales Links

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Book Details:

ebook, 199 pages
Published November 1st 2016 by Pride Publishing
Original TitleDeath Dancer
ISBN 1786515172 (ISBN13: 9781786515179)
Edition LanguageEnglish

Series Dangerous Dancers:

A Caryn Review: Wild Rose, Silent Snow by Angel Martinez

Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

wild-rose-silent-snowYay, another retold fairy tale from one of my favorite authors!  It was great to review Boots a few weeks ago, so I was looking forward to this one, and I have to say, I liked it even better.  I hope Ms. Martinez writes more adapted fairy tales (please!)

This book is a retelling of the Grimm brother’s Snow White and Rose Red.  Nothing like the Disney version of Snow White, thank goodness!  This time I googled the original story before I read this version, and once again I really enjoyed how she was able to take the best elements of the original, twist them around and flesh them out, and place them into a contemporary setting.  One of my favorite parts of this story was how she was able to place the forest – that place of magic and mystery so prevalent in Grimm’s fairy tales – in a place where it just fit.  This time, in rural Minnesota in the dead of winter.

Rowan Hadley is the main protagonist of the story.  He lives with his twin brother Snowden in their deceased parent’s house on an isolated island in a large lake.  Rowan and Snowden are barely scraping by, after their parents died and their inheritance got tied up in probate and lawsuits.  Both men are disabled in some way – Snowden has very limited speech but Rowan’s disability is not revealed until a good ways into the book – that makes them unable to pursue regular jobs, so they subsist on hunting, fishing, and working odd jobs during the summer.  Winter for them is much like it must have been to the original Snow White and Rose Red – a time of dark, and cold, and danger, and privation.  The brothers are very close, dependent upon each other, but they stick together out of love more than need.

When a bear appears on the island, the brothers are only mildly concerned, expecting it to wander away.  Then Rowan runs right into the bear, and immediately notices that this is not an average bear, especially when it follows him home.  Eventually the bear is in their house, and Rowan finds himself attached to him not just like human and pet, but in a way that feels different, but strangely right.  When the bear does not show up as usual one night, Rowan goes out looking for him but instead finds a gorgeous bear of a man naked in the snow.  And Rowan brings him home as well.  And thus begins their journey – Rowan, Snowden, and the bear – to discover and break the curse and rescue not only this bear, but another man who got caught up in the curse (because after all, Snowden needs to have a man to fall in love with too!)

The way the author brought magic into our world was more subtle, and therefore easier to accept, than the way she did it in Boots.  There was even a little bit of Beauty and the Beast here, with Cade being cursed into a bear due to his out of control temper, and although becoming a better man wasn’t the way to break the curse, he wouldn’t have been able to do so without earning and accepting the trust and assistance of Rowan and Snowden.  Cade was the character than changed and grew, while Rowan and Snowden remained the staunchly good and decent human beings that inspire those around them to be better people.  I was able to fall in love with all of them, and that’s what made me enjoy the book so much.  There was just the right amount of danger and conflict to make it exciting, but I just wanted to jump in there hug all three of these men!

Now I just need to read more of these, and Ms. Martinez does them so well!  I hope she has more in the works, and if so, I’ll be first in line to read them…

Cover art is by Posh Gosh, and once again is perfect for the story.

Sales Links

Pride Publishing

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Book Details:

ebook
Published November 29th 2016 (first published November 18th 2012)
ISBN139781786515001
Edition LanguageEnglish

A Caryn Review: Boots by Angel Martinez

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

bootsOK, I have to admit it.  I love retold fairy tales!  I love how an author can take a recognizable skeleton plot and add, change, twist, and fold it into something entirely new.  I discovered them when my kids were in elementary school (East by Edith Pattou is one of my all time favorites), and have been reading them ever since.  And I was so happy to find that they are a fairly popular sub-genre of M/M romance (Brute by Kim Fielding is my favorite here!)

The other fun thing about retold fairy tales is when an author will weave in elements of other myths, other folklore from other cultures, and combine them with a fantasy world, or, like in this one, with the contemporary world.  Ms. Martinez combined the European “Puss in Boots” with the Japanese Kasha, or cat demon, but then she created her own background for why he was in present-day small town Pennsylvania.  And when a book sends me to Wikipedia to look up the references and find out where and how the author departed from canon mythology, I call that successful!

The book starts when the unfavored third son, Willem, inherits only $300 and the family cat when his father dies.  Although he thinks this was just his father’s last jab at him, he’s going to make the best of what he has, and after all, he’s always liked Puss.  He’s been laid off from his job, lost his apartment when his boyfriend cheated, and is essentially homeless but doesn’t want to impose upon either of his brothers, even though winter is setting in (this was the only part of the story that bothered me – if Willem is such a good and reasonable guy, why does he let something like pride drive him to the streets?)  He is shocked when Puss starts talking to him, but is so low that he’s willing to believe in magic if it finds him a warm place to sleep.  The cat informs him that “Puss” is a terrible name, insists that Willem call him Kasha, and sets out to help him get back on his feet.  Kasha is a demon who has been exiled to the human world, and is moved from one master to another in order to help them find what they want and need.  When one mission is accomplished he moves on to the next in an endless circle of servitude, so he’s learned to take what joy he can from that life, but he’s been burned enough times by cruel masters to be guarded about his purpose and abilities.

Willem is different, though.  Despite his past mistakes, he is a good and generous man who doesn’t accept or want Kasha as a servant/slave and still feels that it is his responsibility to take care of Kasha.  Kasha can also manifest as a man (with some cat parts that makes the sex both funny and kinda kinky) who is conveniently gay and Willem is just his type.

The rest of the story is the classic sacrifice and redemption that makes any good fairy tale work.  I enjoyed it, but was never able to really get behind either who these characters were before they met, or what it was about their connection that made them worthier of blessing in the end.  There was a little punishment kink introduced that was both gratuitous and unconvincing.  Kasha’s personality was a little more fleshed out in terms of what made him into a somewhat jaded and suspicious man in the beginning, but I just wasn’t convinced of the love between the men, and certainly not that it was responsible for either of them making the grand gestures that a fairy tale requires.

I really like this author though, and I’m going to be reviewing another of her fairy tales in this blog here soon, and I’ll be hoping for a little more!

Cover art by Posh Gosh is perfect for the book (except that Kasha had green eyes, not yellow!)

Sales Links

Pride Publishing

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Book Details:

ebook
Published November 8th 2016 by Pride Publishing (first published April 16th 2011)
ISBN139781786514967
Edition LanguageEnglish

An Alisa Review: One Too Many (Mystic Tattoos #1) by Bailey Bradford

Rating:  3 stars out of 5

 

one-too-manyDon’t discount the mystic powers in the world…

 

Casey has spent most of his adult life building a successful business. His mother has been on him to settle down with a good man. Casey would, but he hasn’t had time to look for one. On his fortieth birthday, he goes out with friends and gets drunk—and has one too many.

 

When he wakes up in the morning, there’s a sexy, strange man in his home and a new, kind of painful tattoo on Casey’s chest. He doesn’t remember what happened the night before, but it doesn’t take him long to realize that the stranger, Ed, is someone he wants to get to know much better.

 

Now, if the fates and stars and all that mystical stuff will align, Casey and Ed might have their Happily Ever After, with the help of a mysterious tattoo artist and a vanishing tattoo shop.

 

This story was an interesting concept and turned out to be one that I liked.  Ed was Casey’s Uber ride home after his fortieth birthday celebration with friends.  Casey doesn’t remember much of the night, but has a permanent reminder in the form of a tattoo on his chest and the opportunity to have something meaningful with Ed.

 

In this story we see both characters’ points of view which helps understand what they are feeling and thinking.  Casey has basically been a workaholic for the last decade to get his business going, but he sees an opportunity with Ed that may make him change his ways.  Ed is afraid to push too far, but knows what he wants.  The genie that initially and finally brings them together is interesting.  I kinda wish there would have been a bit more of the story for him and how the characters really grew their relationship.

 

The cover art is nice and catches your eye.

 

Sales Links: Pride Publishing | Amazon

 

Book Details:

ebook, 70 pages

Published: November 29, 2016 by Pride Publishing

ISBN: 9781786515162

Edition Language: English

An Ali Review: Sunset on Turtle Lake by Carol Lynne

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars
sunset-on-turtle-lake-by-carol-lynneWinter isn’t the only chill in the air on Turtle Lake.

When Sam Burgman’s mother, Gloria, nears the end of her battle with cancer, Sam makes the hard decision to leave his job as a corporate lawyer in Miami to take his mom home to Turtle Lake, Minnesota.

Ian Mendoza takes his job as Gloria’s caregiver very seriously, but unlike the assignments he’s taken in the past, Ian fails to maintain a professional distance when it comes to Sam. Unfortunately for Ian, Sam refuses to open his heart despite their mutual attraction.

Born and raised in Miami, Ian isn’t prepared for the frozen landscape that is Minnesota in the winter, but the chill he wants to erase is the one coming from Sam.
This was a short, low angst story about two men who find love while dealing with the impending death of a woman they both care for.  The story threw me off a bit at first because when it starts the men have known each other for some time and have already fallen for each other.  I felt at first that I had been thrown in to the middle of a story (which I had been) and I was scrambling to catch up.  Once they head back to Minnesota though the store flowed better for me.  I enjoyed the interactions with Gloria and felt they were reasonably realistic.  (I work in the medical field and I am super picky about how death/dying issues are portrayed.)  I liked both Sam and Ian and I enjoyed their journey to a happily ever after.
The writing was well done and it was a unique plot with interesting characters.  My only complaint was that it was so short.  I liked what was here but I would have rather read a longer book so we could have seen the two men falling for each other.  As previously stated it was all a little abrupt and I had to take a lot of things on faith.  Overall though I enjoyed this and I would recommend it as a short story.
Cover:  I love the cover.  I think it is really lovely cover that is both nice to look at and a great representation of the story.
Sales Links
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Book Details:
ebook
Published October 25th 2016 by Pride Publishing
ISBN139781786515155
Edition LanguageEnglish

A Paul B Review: Beautiful Goodbyes (The Connelly Chronicles #2) by N.J. Nielsen

Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

beautiful-goodbyesRay Connelly and Christopher “Viv” Vivvens Connelly are living their life with their extended blended family.  Ranging from Ray’s grandmother Catherine down to the toddlers, life is full for the two men.  However, they wish that they could have one day without some stress invading their lives.  From finding Viv’s brother Declan to the custody fight over Jaime’s boyfriend Bear, life has been chaotic the last several months.  All told, taking care of ten “children” along with balancing work and school takes a lot of work for the two men.

Ray and Viv are most worried about their adult “children” who are really siblings that they are responsible for.  Girly is having relationship problems with Dan, who happens to be interested in Girly’s brother Nate.  When Girly breaks things off with Dan, Dan runs to the family retreat to have time to think.  Declan was found with Nate in a house where the “landlord” decides to take rent out on the young men living there by having sex with them.  This prompts the family to establish a safe house for young men who have nowhere else to turn.  Viv meanwhile has turned the running of his club over to the older children while he concentrates on running the Connelly business and going to university to further his education.  Ray contents himself in managing the household with five youngsters, one of which seems to never be able to shake off ear infections.  The men must also deal with someone from the past who has not learned his lesson yet that he and alcohol do not mix. 

This wonderful family story is the second in the Connelly Chronicles series.  With such a large, blended family, I will admit I was a little lost at times having not read the first book in the series, which is now on my to be read list.  I had a bit of a difficult time figuring out exactly which character belonged to which branch of the family for a bit.  But in the end it really did not matter as it is never a case of yours or mine but our family.  While Ray and Viv form the center of this extended family, its heart and soul is Catherine.  Always seemingly one step ahead of things, she is always there with sage advice, even if the recipient does not want it.  Ray and Viv obviously love each other and their large family and are learning how to deal the different personalities within it.  They feel that if life could just let them breathe for a day or two without the seemingly constant drama, things would be just a bit better.  But they keep marching on, trying to make their family as happy as possible given the relationship dynamics in the family.

The cover art by Posh Gosh has our two protagonists above superimposed above a view of an Australian coast.  It is a fitting cover for the book.

Sales Links

Pride Publishing

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Book Details

EBook, 237 pages

Edition Language:  English

Published:  October 2016 by Pride Publishing

ISBN: 978-1-78651-485-1

Series:  Connelly Chronicles

  • Family Connections (Connelly Chronicles #1)
  • Beautiful Goodbyes (Connelly Chronicles #2)

A Lila Release Day Review: Built for Pleasure by Thursday Euclid

Rating:  4 stars out of 5

 

built-for-pleasure

 Retired military officer Malcolm Torvik runs a rehabilitation facility for malfunctioning pleasure cyborgs. When WLF-6759—Wolf—arrives at Reboot Camp, the former battle cyborg presents problems Malcolm’s never faced before. Most pleasure cyborgs are sensation junkies, constantly high on the chemicals sex releases into their bloodstream, but Wolf’s faulty refit means it’s spent a decade suffering through unwanted encounters—and sometimes fighting back despite the consequences.

 At first Wolf’s rebellion frustrates Malcolm even as Wolf’s undeniable physical perfection draws him. Then Wolf’s unexpected vulnerability and need open a whole new dynamic between them, and Malcolm finds himself feeling far too much for something that isn’t even human. Or is it? Could Homo sapiens technica be just as human as Malcolm is? And if it is, what’s Malcolm supposed to do about it? Malcolm’s been alone for so long…. Is it possible he’s found love with a cyborg? How far will he go to ensure Wolf’s freedom? Malcolm knows what he must do—for both of them—but it might cost him much more than his comfortable life.

Built for Pleasure is a beautiful story. The first couple of chapters are strong and have a depth that goes beyond the amount of words used. The ideas are refreshing and interesting, keeping the reader engage and wanting to read the next page and the next. 

I love the idea behind Wolf’s and Malcolm’s meeting and how their relationship evolved even when by their society standards Wolf shouldn’t have the ability to create a friendship or anything more. And we get to see how Malcolm struggles to understand the differences between Wolf and the rest of the cyborgs.

This book is a wild ride. We get a bit of everything, from one-on-one scenes between the characters, to regal parties, and battle scenes. The author did an outstanding job building a world for this story, and including well-rounded characters to go with it. The way the cyborgs are integrated into the story and the everyday life of the citizens is an interesting take on traditional sci-fi books. 

I like that Malcolm was a middle-aged, retired military man with a good relationship with his family. They played an important role in molding the type of man he is. And Wolf is a character that will steal your heart. I love seeing how much he “matures” during the story and how he tries to do better, first for Malcolm, and then for himself. 

 If you like sci-fi stories with a good balance of romance and world-built elements, this story will be for you. The only thinks that didn’t work for me were some elements related to Wolf’s past, and a bit of a slow pace in the middle of the story. Other than that, this is a good story to read. 

There’s a lot to look at in the cover designed by Aaron Anderson, but the overall composition works well; even when it feels a bit generic.  All the elements are part of the story itself. 

Sale Links

        

Book Details:

ebook, 200 pages

 Published: November 21, 2016, Dreamspinner Press

ISBN: 1634779037 (ISBN13: 9781634779036)

> Edition Language: English

 

Sales Links: Pride Publishing | Amazon

 

Book Details:

ebook, 151 pages

Published: November 8, 2016 by Pride Publishing

ISBN: 9781786514790

Edition Language: English

A Caryn Review: Faded into You (Intoxication #2) by Remmy Duchene

Rating: 1.5 out of 5 stars

faded-into-you-by-remmy-ducheneWhen I was in high school in the early 1980s, I read harlequin romances obsessively.  At the time, they were exactly what my immature self wanted – quick reads where the guy gets the girl with little angst, and the girl would then devote the rest of her life to making her man happy.  Which also meant becoming dependent upon said man for her happiness and well being as well, financial and emotional.

And you know what?  The world isn’t like that any more.  By the time I was a year into college, I quit thinking that I needed a man to define me, or to make my life worthwhile.  And I quit reading cheesy romances, because they offended me with their misogyny.  Why was it always the woman who needed rescuing?  And I continued to stay away from romances until I discovered M/M romance a few years ago, and I could read about people falling in love without that built-in power differential between men and women that bothered me so much.  If a man needed rescuing, it was not simply because of gender, but because of circumstances, or choices, and when they got together, they were equals.

That’s how a relationship should be.

OK, that’s my soapbox, and what I expect from this genre.  So when I read a book that follows that old harlequin formula, just substituting the woman with a man, it pisses me off.  And that’s what this book did.  Ravi is supposed to be an ambitious and successful marketing professional, who chooses to take a job in India in order to further his career and to see the world.  But really, he is just sad and jealous that his best friend is getting married and he’s not, and since his life really has no meaning without a man, he runs away, to India.  Thaddeus is supposed to be a cyber security guru with a checkered past who goes to India to do a job that will further his career as well.  But he takes on the role of uber-alpha male who will “fix” everything that is wrong with Ravi’s life with his magic penis.  Ravi acts irrationally, hating Thaddeus on sight for no apparent reason, but going along with everything he wants because, well, he is powerless in the face of Thaddeus’ take charge masculinity.  There was that annoying “I hate you, but I want you, and I really have no self respect so go ahead and ravish me, and that will make me fall in love with you”.  And of course, Ravi is always the bottom, because he is the weak “woman” in this pairing.  Physically smaller and weaker, younger, less successful, and needing his alpha male to “complete” him.

So enough feminist ranting.  Yes, I know that I have read and enjoyed other books with alpha males, and I’m not sure what set me off so much with this one, but I would have DNFed it about a third of the way through if I hadn’t committed to writing a review.  On top of that, the writing wasn’t even all that good.  There was an awful lot of filler and no substance.  I do not need to read about Thaddeus putting on his boots, then noticing the snow and tucking his pants in, wondering where his scarf went, then getting in the car, closing the door, turning on the defroster…….  And I don’t want to know that he takes a piss every morning before he brushes his teeth.  Who the hell cares and wants to read about that?

I hoped to read and learn about India, but all I got out of this book was that it’s hot, and people are poor there.  Oh, until Ravi and “Thaddy” (shoot me) save their Indian driver who is gay and driven out of his homophobic father’s home, and then his sister is also driven out because she still loves her brother.  Both of them would have obviously become homeless prostitutes without the great Americans to save them.  So even though one MC is Indian and the other is black, I still found this book racist.

I could go on.  I made notes of things I didn’t like, but the list is so long and I don’t want to spend any more time writing about it.  Oh, and I have no idea what the title meant or how it related to the story, and why the subtitle “Fighting Love is Futile” is even there.  Was someone expecting the Borg??

Cover art by Posh Gosh was extremely generic, though the Indian man was good looking.  It would have been nice to have a photograph from India instead of the random sunset, which said nothing about the book.

Sales Links

Pride Publishing

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Book Details:

ebook
Expected publication: November 1st 2016 by Pride Publishing
ISBN139781786514837
Edition LanguageEnglish