Tag: Torquere Press

The Week Ahead and another Rant on the Heat and F%^*&%g Pepco!

It’s Sunday in Maryland and we are in the 12th day of our heat wave and power losses!  Yesterday we hit 105 degrees F and today is not supposed to be much better.  There are still plenty of folks around the area without power as the limbs from last Friday’s storm continue to fall onto power lines, including some that just went back up. We are anticipating more storms as the cold front from the north is slowly coming our way and we know from experience (and science class) that a collision between a cold front and a hot as hell front brings a humongous amount of meteorological explosions.

Yesterday I found out that the storm cost us our relatively new dishwasher (burned out) to  go along with the air conditioning circuit board and a heck of a lot of groceries that had to be thrown out.  When I called the appliance store to see if there was any reset button etc that I could try, I got the “yeah, lady, I have been fielding calls from hundreds of people just like you all day”.  Am I supposed to take comfort in the fact that everyone lost their appliances along with us?  Perhaps so.  There are thousands of us facing the same problems.

It is also our unfortunate lot to have Pepco has our energy supplier.  They rank last in the ENTIRE NATION in service and reliability.  Not surprisingly they rank first in profits as their bill came yesterday right on time, along with their expectation that we pay right on time.  But they are not held to the same accountability.  People just coming into the area say they have never experienced the power outages that are a regular occurrence here.  And Pepco just asked for a rate raise too!  Talk about cojones!  But I think this time they will be met with more fines instead of raises.  Peoples ire is up.  We are fed up, the politicians are fed up!  Maybe something will finally be done about them.  I can always hope.  In the meantime, the Moderate State is hanging up its nameplate and looking for a new moniker!  Any ideas?

So yeah, heat.  So hot in fact that I haven’t felt like cooking.  It’s too hot even to stand at the grill.  So we are making drinks, baby!  Look for a drink recipe after the week ahead.

 

I am continuing to review two more books in the Dancing With The Devil series by Megan Derr.  Just a outstanding series by a great writer and a wonderful lead into the week of July 16th which will be concentrating on book series all week.  I think you will love it.  So this is how this week will play out if the power stays on:

Monday:                                  Midnight (DWTD #3) by Megan Derr

Tuesday:                                  Ruffskin (DWTD #4) by Megan Derr

Wednesday:                            Almost Paradise by Caitlin Ricci

Thursday:                                Torquere Short Stories

Friday:                                      Stolen Dreams by Sue Brown

Saturday:                                  Author Spotlight: Nicole Kimberling

 

For your summer drinking pleasure, a Catalina Margarita!
1 1/2 oz tequila
1 oz peach schnapps
1 oz Blue Curacao liqueur
4 oz sweet and sour mix

Directions

Shake with cracked ice and strain into chilled cocktail or margarita glass.

 

 

Review of Emerald Fire by A. Catherine Noon and Rachel Wilder

Rating: 4.5

Keeper Teeka left his home at the Emerald Keep for his first Contract with Senior Hunter Brandt out in the deserts of their world Persis. Disaster hits only two months into his Contract when Hunter Brandt is killed on his Claim, leaving Teeka without a Contract far from his family and Keep.  When Teeka decides to Claim the find for himself and Brandt’s heir, he is surprised to find Brandt’s heir is none other than Senior Hunter Quill, a scarred, enigmatic Hunter who keeps to himself.  Quill offers to protect Teeka and together they decide to work the mine Teeka found to both honor Brandt’s memory and to register the Claim for themselves.

The head of the Hunters Guild gives Quill and Teeka  one month times to work the mlne.  If they don’t finish the lode, another Hunter may claim it and all their hard work will be for nothing.  As Hunter Quill mines the Claim, Teeka keeps for him, cooking, cleaning and making sure all of their equipments runs smoothly. Teeka also learns the process of mining the gems while their attraction to each other grows daily.  But a Keeper without a Contract must keep themselves chaste and their reputation clear of all gossip and their situation is not making that easy.

When Brandt’s death turns out to be murder instead of an accident, Quill and Teeka’s suspicions are raised, even about each other. And when others falls sick and Quill and Teeka come under attack, they must decide to trust each other and stand together or lose everything, even their chance at love.

Emerald Fire is a richly layered novel by two authors previously unknown to me.  Noon and Wilder have pulled together elements from cultures around the world as well as fabricated many of their own to build a gorgeously textured world called Persis.  They have left nothing out in their world building, from geology to biology with various habitats each with its own unique flora and fauna. Their vivid descriptions of Persis’ differing cultures  come complete with separate  the peoples beliefs, separate religions, government officials, laws, clothing, food, education, and transportation, I mean everything!  One of my favorite creations of theirs is a truffle.  A furred desert animal, it has a trunk, two sets of eyelids, short trunk like legs and an endearing personality.  I kept picturing a cross between a miniature elephant and a dog (the mind boggles).  I want one, perhaps two, just like Snuffles and Sniffles in the story.  And the cooking!  We get an intimate glimpse into Teeka’s meals including a roast he made of a sandcat (including his butchering technique), supplemented with roasted onions, moss bulbs, spices and a sauce.  And Teeka’s deserts including his famous lavender berries cake had my mouth watering.  They came up  with spices and cooking methods and complete menus – just amazing.

With some stories, an excess of minutiae works against the plot, swamping it with too much information.  Here the opposite is true, the details are seamlessly blended into the narrative, so like the spices in a dish, the details add depth and flavor to the story being created.  We learn how the tents work to exclude the heat of the two suns, the gloves and clothing worn to insulate the people, their inside garb, even the “necessities”, usually shared by a group of tents, where all shower and relieve themselves.  We get to wander into the market place to buy teas and vegetables or watch Teeka knitting socks or rugs from threads made of all types of matter, animal and vegetable much like here.  Each elements serving to wet our interest in life as it is lived on Persis.  I cannot congratulate the authors enough on the outstanding job they have done here.  Just remarkable.

Noon and Wilder build their characters the same way they built their world, with attention to detail and dimension.  No character is truly known from the start, not to the reader,not to each other.  Emerald Keeper Teeka starts off young, earnest, sure of his talents as a Keeper but he is only two months into his  first Contract and feels every bit the novice coming from a sheltered background.  He delights in each new sensation and experience and is devastated by Brandt’s death.  I had so many questions at the beginning.  What is a Keeper?  What is the training they keep referring to?  What is a Contract? Part of the joy of this story is that the answers are unveiled in small increments as the story unfolds. The character of Senior Hunter Quill is built in conjunction with that of Teeka, both characters fleshing out and becoming real the more we get to know them and their backstory (as told to each other).  Their secondary and side characters all equally authentic, all equally detailed.

I again wavered between a 4.5 and 5 rating with this story.  But a few things kept it from perfection with me.  Actually, that would be one thing,  the ending. Teeka’s future seemed headed in the right direction, as is the relationship between two main characters I have come to love.  But there was still so much more to be settled. I can’t give specifics here as I don’t want to spoil this wonderful book for anyone, I just felt that there was just a few too many loose ends left not tucked in to the beautiful tapestry they wove for us. Teeka would never have left one of his knitting projects in such a state nor did I expect it given all that went before in the story.  I hope both authors can be persuaded to continue Teeka and Quill’s saga.  They have made a great world and I, for one, am ready for more journeys there.

Cover:  Cover art by Alessio Brio, an artist I am also not familiar with.  Here she takes the colors I usually don’t like in a cover and uses them to create a stunning cover redolent of the heat beating down on the desert dunes.  Outstanding job.  Conveys the location of the story and the authors names are clear and easy to read.

Review of Concord Grape: Unexpected by TC Blue

Rating: 4.25 stars

Pauly Mitchell never thought a simple evening of bar hopping with friends would end being chased by a crazy person in a cab following him in a cab. Lucky for  him, his cab driver is quick thinking as well as being very cute and the night ends with the psycho in custody, the other cab driver only slightly wounded and a safe trip home. Then he meets up again with not only his cab driver but the 911 operator who coordinated their rescue. Both men are attractive in separate ways and both attracted to him.  What’s a guy with a bad romantic past to do?

Randy never thought that one wild night as a cab driver would turn his world upside down. When he runs into Pauly again after their wild ride in his cab, Randy asks him out and the date is going great.  Then the two of them run into James, the 911 Operator who coordinated their rescue the other  night and he joins them on the date.  When Randy finds himself drawn to both men, he is confused and overwhelmed by his feelings.  Never secure about his looks, why would he think either of them would like him back?

James has always kept himself commitment free.  Love them or more realistically have sex with them and let them go.  But lately that has gotten old and something seems to be missing from his life.  He has a circle of friends who are mostly paired up and he is feeling a little envious.  But his job as a 911 operator leaves him little time for relationships so no one is more surprised then he is when a chance meeting between two of the men involved in one of his calls starts turning into friendship, then something more.  James wants Pauly, and he wants Randy too.  He thinks they might feel the same.  Who is going to take the first step into making them a threesome?

This is the second book for me this week involving threesomes, not a relationship structure I normally read.  Both books make it work well within the context of their stories and make it totally believable which is key to making me understand a threesome or as Pauly calls it “a triad”.  Concord Grape is the sixth book in the Fruit Basket series by  TC Blue.  Each book is the story of a relationship between characters from a close knit group of friends.  I have read three from this series and can vouch for the wonderful characterization by TC Blue in each story.

I really like Concord Grape because I think TC Blue did a great job of giving us three diverse characters and then juggling the dynamics of their needs/insecurities/damaged pasts as they struggle towards understanding that they want a relationship that extends past the normal pairing into one that stretches to include all three men.  None of the men here have ever give thought to such a relationship until now which makes it easy for the reader to go along with them as they sort out their thoughts about such an unconventional partnership.  As they come to accept that it is possible, so does the reader.  Job well done!

Pauly is the most damaged of the three men and the first to capture your heart.  It takes time to unravel his story and understand the relationship between himself and his overprotective younger brother, Brendan.  As with Randy and James, each man fits into each others life like a puzzle piece finding its place and so it is for Pauly.  He needs the steadiness and reliability of Randy and the blunt sexy confidence that is James for all of his emotional needs to be met.  Randy is also easy to understand.  He doesn’t think of himself as attractive or anything very special but in fact he is the anchor that holds the others at safe harbor.  And finally there is James who appears so shallow to some of his friends that his nickname is “cheetos”, a quick snack that is never filling. Ouch.  But  while that hurts, James also understand where it comes from and upon meeting Pauly and Randy, James decides its time to change.  TC Blue takes the time with each character and their backstories so that it becomes very apparent why the men are drawn to each other.  I really enjoyed the way in which the author built the foundation for romantic love among all three protagonists.

But there are a few things to quibble about here.  One is the character of Brendan, Pauly’s younger brother.  I really liked that character but there were several explosive events here in which Brendan came apart emotionally that were never fully explained.  One especially inferred abusive past but was then dropped and never brought up again.  Brendan was seeing a psychiatrist but his background was only partially explained.  More problematic was Pauly’s attitude towards the last emotional “explosion”.  Instead of investigating and asking Brendan questions, Pauly lets his brother go off, and hide behind closed doors while he heads off with James and Randy.  That never made much sense to me as did other things about their relationship.  It remained an irritant throughout the story especially as I came to be invested in Brendan.

The other quibble is much smaller and that was the format.  It starts in the present as the group of friends are at a party.  Pauly tells the story of their relationship as a flashback.  When the story concludes, we are back at the party as Pauly finishes his tale.  I just found that a little cutsy and unnecessary as you already have a lovely story.  It didn’t need that embellishment. Other than those quibbles, this is a great addition to a lovely series.  You really can’t go wrong here but while they can be read as stand alone stories, it helps to read them in order to get a better idea of all the characters in the circle of friends.

Other books written by TC Blue in the Fruit Basket series include:

Lemon Yellow: Making Lemonade (Grey and Evan’s story) Book 1

Lime Green: Margarita Mondays (Jeremy and Troy) Book 2

Mandarin Orange: Sweet and Sour (Riley and Kelly) Book 3

Guava Red:Almost Paradise (Bastian and Chase) Book 4

Berry Blue: Lessons Learned (Peter Jamison and Dex’s story) Book 5

Concord Grape: Unexpected (Pauly, Randy, and James) m/m/m  Book 6

Cover:  I like the idea of the same type of cover for all the books, just changing out the background cover.  But since the unexpected is a threesome, shouldn’t the outline of three men be a little more clear? I almost missed the third as it is hidden behind the rainbow border.

The Week Ahead and A Must Recipe – Tarragon Chicken

Happy Father’s Day all.  It’s a beautiful day here in Maryland, and all is well.  Except for third best dog, Kirby.  Kirby is our Soft Coated Wheaton and a rescue.  A total joy and all around dim bulb who we love dearly.  But he is like a small boy, boundless energy and everything goes into his mouth, regardless of what it is.  So he got into something a couple of days ago and has a upset stomach for his efforts.  This is a typical day with Kirby. It starts either inside or outside.

Kirby comes up to me and sits, wagging his tail, waiting for me to notice him. (uh, right big dog with a Wilfred Brimley face at my elbow)

Me:  Kirby, whatcha doing?

Kirby:  Grins and shows me mouth full of crap (5 socks, robe, pillow case, 3 stuffed toys, who knows)

Me:  Oh, Kirby. (sigh).  OK, let me have it.

Kirby: Runs to top of hill, staircase, sits and grins with mouth full of crap.

Me:  Kirby, get your butt down here.

Kirby:  Grins, wags tail.

Me:  Kirbyyyyyyyyyyy!   Get up, goes to top of hill or staircase, at which point Kirby runs past me to stand at the bottom.

Kirby:  Sits and grins with mouth full of crap.

Repeat sequence until I finally empty his mouth.  Which he promptly fills up again. And when his mouth is empty, he is talking up a storm.  He  wants me to know that kids are on their bikes in front of the house, the UPS man has just driven down the street, you name it.  He is the house’s Town Cryer.  Siamese cats have nothing on him.  I wish I could do an audio recording of Kirby.  I would post it here, trust me you would be amazed.

So while I have a few moments this morning before we start our ritual, here is our review schedule for next week:

Monday:                                   Concord Grape: Unexpected by TC Blue

Tuesday:                                    Stone Rose (Lost Gods #3) by Megan Derr

Wednesday:                             Smooth Like Latte by Rawiya

Thursday:                                 Second Time Lucky by Ethan Day

Friday:                                      Emerald Fire by A. Catherine Noon and Rachel Wilder

Saturday:                                  Reviewers Surprise

 

After all that great reading, you will need some sustenance.  I just made this for the first time and it was wonderful.  I used chicken thighs which I lightly seasoned and put into a 420 oven for 15 mins.  Then I crisped the skin in the pan and put the chicken pieces aside.  Then start the recipe from there.  You will love it.  Pair it with the dry white wine you cooked with and a lovely light salad and you have a great summer meal. Enjoy!

Tarragon Chicken

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 chicken (about 3 pounds, cut into 8 pieces
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup chicken stock
3/4 cup  dry white wine
1 shallot, minced
1 cup   creme fraiche
1/2 cup chopped fresh tarragon
Lemon juice

Directions:

Melt the butter with the oil in a large skillet over quite high heat. Sprinkle the chicken pieces with salt and pepper and fry in batches until well browned, about 5 minutes per side. Put all the chicken back in the pan, add the chicken stock and reduce the heat to medium. Cover and cook until tender, about 30 minutes.

Remove the chicken to a plate and keep warm. Reduce any leftover juices until sticky. Add the wine and the shallots and reduce to a thickish sauce, about 5 minutes. Add the creme fraiche and half the tarragon. Boil down again to sauce consistency, 3 to 5 minutes.

Season the sauce with salt, pepper and lemon juice. Put back the chicken pieces, turning to coat, then transfer to a platter. Pour the sauce over, scatter over the remaining tarragon and serve.

I’m Not Sexy And I Know It by Vic Winter

Rating: 4.25 stars

When a new song starts up, it finds Winston standing at the edge of the dance floor, his usual spot at the night club.  But its infectious beat has Winston moving his body to the rhythm of the music, something he never does.  A sexy voice whispers in his ear, anonymous hands are placed on his hips and an unseen dancer behind him moves him onto the dance floor and into an evening of sexy music, dancing and joy.  The evening ends and Winston still doesn’t know who his dance partner was, only the for the first time in ages he felt sexy and alive.

At brunch, his friends don’t get what made that night so special when he describes it to them as there was no date, no sex, no hooking up.   Only his friend, Clark, seems to understand how it made him feel.  And why is he is going back, hoping to find that person who finds him sexy and have one more dance.

This is a wonderfully endearing short story about a man who looks at himself in the mirror and finds the picture woefully inadequate, especially when judged against the looks of those around him, including his best friend.  Vic Winter has done a great job of capturing a person’s insecurities about their looks in his character of Winston.  Who among us has not had that moment where we have felt  fat or ugly or just plain when we take a look at the people we work or live with, even though we know we are good people inside.  Winston stands for all of us and that has us rooting for a good and  decent person to see himself as others see him.  And to a HFN, with the possibility of a HEA in the future.

My only quibble in a terrific short story is that I wish the ending had felt a little less rushed at the end as the author had struck a beautiful balance up until then.  Great job, Vic Winter.  I need to read more of your stories if I’m Not SexyAnd I Know It speaks for the rest of your stories.

Cover:  Just the same Torquere Sip cover that they use for all short stories in this category.

Review of How We Operate by A. R. Moler

Rating: 4.5 stars

Chris Kearney is a seasoned Trauma surgeon who still mourns the loss of a young patient whose life on the streets caught up with him.  He meets with the undercover officer who brought the kid in to brief him on the injuries he found on the young man’s body and notices how attractive the cop is before returning to his OR.  The attraction is mutual.  Det. Drew Hayden, Vice , takes notice of the tired, kind hearted surgeon who answers his  questions, and calls him days later to let him know the case was closed and the murderer found.  Both men are  tempted to ask the other out, but their job responsibilities and limited free time make them pause.  When a surprise encounter at the local grocery store brings them together again, Drew Hayden takes the initiative and asks the doctor out.

Each date leads to another as the doctor and the detective find they mesh, physically, mentally, in every way possible.  But each works such long hours, and Hayden disappears for days when working undercover. Can each man find what it takes to make their relationship work even while dealing with the stress and strains of their occupations?  Only time will tell.

How We Operate delivers a deft portrayal of a relationship between two men from the first stirrings of attraction, then first date to exclusivity and declarations of love.  Each chapter represents a milestone in Chris and Drew’s relationship, large and small, which is a great idea I had not come across before. And each milestone shows us in detail how each man deals with the event and its impact upon their relationship. I felt as though I was almost eavesdropping on their conversations on each occasion so beautifully is this handled.

Make no mistake, A. R. Moler has done an outstanding job in giving us two real, flawed human beings in Chris Kearney and Drew Hayden so their relationship growth is not smooth or fairytale in any respect.  And I loved that.  The stresses and strains from their jobs flow over into their personal lives just as it does in ours so it makes it so easy for us to understand and empathize with each character as they struggle for balance between their professional and their private lives. Again just as we do.  The author clearly understand the pressures most couples operate under these days and treats it with the compassion it deserves.

A. R. Moler keeps the story and characters firmly grounded in reality.  It is also clear that Moler has done the necessary homework with regard to the descriptions of each man professions which are treated realistically and with respect.  Not once do we drop our belief in these men because we can see them so clearly.  Drew Hayden, long haired, weary from long hours undercover who needs to wash the dirt of the job off his body and out of his head.  Chris Kearney, overworked, a perfectionist in the OR, far too controlled for his own good. If either man walked into a room, I would know them  immediately, so vividly is each character drawn.

There are some stunning developments here which you might expect given each man’s profession, still when it occurs, the impact upon the reader is huge because you now care greatly what happens to them.  Yes, some tissues will be needed.  But Chris, Drew, and the reader are in capable hands here and when at last I put my Kindle down, I was happy for the couple I had gotten to know so well over the year and half of their relationship and throughly satisfied how I left them. I loved How We Operate and look forward to new stories from A. R. Moler.  I know I will be in good hands.

Cover:  Cover illustration by Alessia Brio.  I am not sure about this cover.  I kept thinking what is he doing? Given the professions of vice cop and er surgeon, I think the artist could have done a better job.  It doesn’t give the reader a clear indication of the story or characters within. I did like the fonts and the color of the title, easy to read as is the name of the author.

Available from Torquere Press, Amazon, and ARe.