Well, we have a treat in store for you today! We have joined up with other bloggers to bring to your attention Wilde City Press’s Ghoul’s Gym by Eric Arvin & T.J. Klune, we are not only helping to advertise this brilliant book but also bringing YOU a giveaway with a chance to win Christmas Kitsch by Amy Lane (such a fantastic book) and Amazon gift cards (2 x $25…. what’s that in English money???? *shrugs*).
Why am I doing this? Well, besides Portia begging, oh so prettily for me to quickly read and review the book and dropping the blog tour on my toes. It’s because Eric & T.J. have more important things to worry about and if our little site can take a bit of advertising pressure off them then I say, Hell Yes! So, Have a quick shifty through the post, click on the Rafflecopter link for a chance to win, read my review and then go and buy the book! ~Pixie~
Ghoul’s Gym, in which 5 out of 5 walking dead agree that exercise can be dangerous to your health.
Jake Howell and Uly Hoak have two hard and fast rules in their relationship: never go to bed angry and never, no matter the circumstances, ever part without saying goodbye. Little did either of them know when they said their farewells to each other on one decidedly fateful Saturday morning, it might be the last.
Jake is fighting the Green-Eyed monster, feeling a little less than physically adequate next to his ultra-buff gym bunny, Uly, and it doesn’t help that Uly’s boss at the gym, Stephen Fucking Dorian, can’t resist taking potshots at Jake’s rather unimpressive physique, making Jake feel all the more lacking and all the more jealous of the fact Dorian wants Uly for himself.
Turns out that’s the least of Jake’s problems, however, as strange things are afoot in this once sleepy and pristine little town. Unusual outbreaks of violence quickly reach apocalyptic proportions and pit Jake and Uly in a race against time to find each other before it’s too late.
Could a conspiracy be at the heart of the disaster? If so, the mechanics and manipulators of this plot to rid the world of the compulsively fit had better be prepared. They’re about to get a taste of vengeance.
About Eric Arvin:
Eric Arvin resides in the same sleepy Indiana river town where he grew up. He graduated from Hanover College with a Bachelors in History. He has lived, for brief periods, in Italy and Australia. He has survived brain surgery and his own loud-mouthed personal demons. Eric is the author of Woke Up In A Strange Place, Subsurdity, Simple Men, Galley Proof,and various other sundry and not-so-sundry writings. He intends to live the rest of his days with tongue in cheek and eyes set to roam.
About TJ Klune:
When TJ Klune was eight, he picked up a pen and paper and began to write his first story (which turned out to be his own sweeping epic version of the video game Super Metroid—he didn’t think the game ended very well and wanted to offer his own take on it. He never heard back from the video game company, much to his chagrin). Now, two decades later, the cast of characters in his head have only gotten louder, wondering why he has to go to work as a claims examiner for an insurance company during the day when he could just stay home and write.
He lives with a neurotic cat in the middle of the Sonoran Desert. It’s hot there, but he doesn’t mind. He dreams about one day standing at Stonehenge, just so he can say he did
Giveaway: Enter at each stop to win that blog’s free download code by commenting on their post. Winner for this post to be drawn and contacted by Portia *sly grin*. Must be 18 or older to enter. No purchase necessary. To win one of two $25 Amazon gift cards, please enter at: a Rafflecopter giveaway
Title: Ghoul’s Gym
Author: Eric Arvin & T.J. Klune
Genre: Horror, Erotic, Zombies
Length: Novella (113pgs)
ISNB: 978-1-925031-70-6
Publisher: Wilde City Press (18th December 2013)
Heat Level: Explicit
Heart Rating: 4 ½ Hearts
Reviewer: Pixie
Blurb: (Blurb nicked from T.J. Klune’s author page on Facebook 🙂 )
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Who knew being sexy could be so dangerous?
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Some people will do anything to obtain the perfect body. When Uly goes to work at the Art Of Man Fitness center, it’s a day like any other. But then a strange illness transforms some of the patrons into horned-up, flesh hungry monsters, causing a lockdown and mass hysteria. Banding together with a small group of friends, all Uly can do is fight to survive and hope that his boyfriend, Jake, is safe on the outside world.
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What Uly doesn’t know is that Jake has got problems of his own. From a drug dealer with misplaced ideals, to a harem of muscle twinks, Jake is learning just how far he’ll go to become the man he thinks his boyfriend wants. With the line crossed and time running out, Jake must descend into the hell that is the Art Of Man. What he finds there is only the beginning.
Review: Jake and Uly have been together for a year and they have lived together for six months but that doesn’t stop Jake from feeling inadequate. Uly is built, he works in a gym and has the body of a muscled god, while Jake is smaller and can’t get bigger no matter how hard he tries. Jake takes matters into his own hands and things get ugly when he discovers that the man who coverts his lover is connected with the tainted drugs. Uly is in the middle of things when everything falls apart, and if he is to survive he has to make the greatest sacrifice of all.
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Holy hell!!! I loved this gory story with its bittersweet ending and I can only hope that we will be seeing a sequel as Uly takes up the mantle in Jakes name. Jake and Uly are madly in love but that doesn’t stop Jake from feeling jealous and inadequate when Uly’s boss won’t stop sniffing around his lover. Uly doesn’t realise how Jake really feels and heads off to work, not realising that something is happening with some of the population. Jake heads out to find something to help him bulk up and ends up infected, and his only thought is to get to Uly because he will fix everything.
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How do you describe a book that blows away your expectations and makes you crave more but also makes you feel icky and has you cringing as you remember lingering scenes of goriness? I know, it’s hard, but hell it’s a brilliant zombie story that has love and devastation and GORE!!!! Jake is a man who has security issues, he believes Uly deserves a man more like himself and doesn’t get that Uly loves him just as he is. Uly loves Jake and doesn’t realise that Jake doesn’t think he is good enough for Uly, the beginning of the story throws us straight into the issue and it leads through the jealousy and the actions that find Jake in hot water.
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This story was beautifully written, the details of Jake’s experience was fantastic and made you see clearly that it was his love for Uly that helped keep his head clear-ish even when Jake didn’t understand why. Uly’s experience was a lot more brutal and harsh but you ran through the gym with him every step of the way as he dodged zombies, saw the horror and tried to protect friends. You couldn’t help but hope that there would be a miracle, that Uly could save Jake, that Jake’s love for Uly would keep his head clear and keep the urges at bay and that the sacrifice that was to come could be avoided. Although I would love to say we see a happy ending we don’t, it’s bittersweet with a love that would overcome anything if it could and an ending that both shocks and angers but makes you yearn for a sequel just so we can witness the revenge.
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I recommend this to those who love horror, bloody gruesome scenes, hot men fighting for their lives, a love that lasts till the end and a harsh heartfelt ending.
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And for you who still don’t believe that this is a fabulous book, here is a little taste. If you are good, we might post a few more excerpt today, so check back. ~ Portia
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Excerpt One from Ghoul’s Gym:
What the fuck is wrong with me?
Shit.
What the fuck isn’t wrong with me?
I try and school my face. Relax my shoulders. Not seem so combative. It’s not working. I clench my fists. Grit my teeth. My dick is still half hard, like it’s mocking me, still slick with lube and come. Go down, I tell it. Just fucking go down.
“I asked you a question,” Uly says from behind me. He’s trying to use what he calls his redneck polite voice, but we’ve been together a year now. Lived with each other half that time. I know he’s pissed. At me. Not that I blame him. I just fucked him within an inch of his life and couldn’t be bothered to make sure he enjoyed it. Uly doesn’t take shit like that lying down. Well, not figuratively.
“I heard you,” I tell him, keeping my voice low. The bathroom door is only feet away, and I have to resist the urge to go through it and close the door behind me. Lock it all out. Including him. Goddammit.
“Well?” His patience is wearing thin.
“Can we not do this now?” Or ever. That would be awesome too.
“Oh? Then when do you wanna do it? Seems to me the only time we talk now is when you tell me if you want me on my back or on my knees.”
I try not to shrink back at the bitterness in his words. He’s right, of course. How could I have let this get so bad? But then that fucker Stephen pops back into my head, and I see red again. I swear to fucking Christ I could tear him apart with my hands if I ever have to see him again. Twinkie, he calls me. Uly’s little princess. The Prince and the pea.
Yeah, Uly’s a big fucker, muscles piled on top of muscles. Some people might think it’s gross how jacked he is, but not me. There’s something about the way his veins look so pronounced that gets my cock hard. The cut and defined lines of his arms and thighs. The massive chest. Everything about him is big. Every single part of him. Personality, body, mind. Everything.
Except for me.
He says he doesn’t care. He says he doesn’t care that I’m a third his size, that he outweighs me by a good hundred pounds. He says he doesn’t care that I’m not cut, or ripped, or jacked. He says he doesn’t care that next to him, I’m just a shadow. I see you just fine, he told me once. I don’t need you big like me. I just need you to be you.
Many of us woke up this morning to discover that Eric Arvin was a lot more poorly than was first thought, family and friends are pulling together to support both Eric & Tj and authors & readers across the MM genre are doing what they can to gather more support as it looks like a lengthily hospital stay.
Eric Arvin & Tj Klune need our support today, so instead of buying my usual stack of books I am donating my book pennies to Eric & Tj so they have less to worry about and can concentrate on each other. If you can donate then please do, even if it is just the price of a book every penny counts.
We have watched Eric & Tj over the last couple of years as these two great authors flirted on Facebook, met at GLR 2012, fell in love, moved in together, entertained us and finally at GLR 2013 they got engaged.
So lets show these guys how much we love them!
Message on Facebook from Tj. Klune: Eric will have to be in the hospital for a while. Surgery is most likely on his brain stem. We are waiting for his previous scans to be sent to compare to the ones we had last night.
I am sad and scared and tired, but I remember it is all worth it when he opens his eyes and smiles at me.
He is comfortable now, and he just went to sleep while I played him some music next to his bed.
Keep your posts coming to him because I read them all to him he loves that you guys are doing your music lists for him too.
Thank you!
So boys & girls lets help these two wonderful men as best we can whether it’s pennies or well wishes every thought counts.
Hey guys, yes I have nicked the site again to bring a new author to you! Today I bring you Liam Livings who has today released Christmas Serendipity with JMS Books. So with out further ado my interview with Liam Livings and the review for Christmas Serendipity! ~Pixie~
Pixie: Christmas Serendipity is your first published work, how happy are you at the moment seeing your baby released to the masses?
Liam: I really can’t quite believe it’s actually happening! I started writing a few years ago, with a view to getting published. I didn’t expect Christmas Serendipity to be my first published work. I wrote Best Friends Perfect http://www.liamlivings.com/best-friends-perfect-series.html a few years ago, but due to publisher deadlines, it’s worked out that Christmas Serendipity is published first, which I’m thrilled about.
Pixie: Tell us a little about Christmas Serendipity and how it came about.
Liam: I wanted to write something shorter than a novel. I love Christmas, so that was always going to be an obvious choice for a topic. While on holiday over summer 2013, the BF and I were sat outside a pub, and we watched the opening scene from the story unfold in front of our eyes. In real life it was two women with one of them working in the pub. As they left, I wondered what they would get up to afterwards. I used that as the start of Christmas Serendipity – with two gay male friends.
Pixie: When writing CS did you draw from personal experience for either David’s or Christian’s issues?
Liam: I have known people who’ve had a hard time coming out to their family. I’ve also had a few nasty break ups, and supported friends through them too. I used elements of those when writing about David’s and Christian’s issues. The actual story and characters were from my imagination.
Pixie: Most people now throw Delia Smith, Nigella Lawson, Jamie Oliver or Gordon Ramsey’s names about when talking about cooking idols and Mary Berry is a rare one to find, do you yourself admire Mary Berry?
Liam: I love Mary Berry. She is the queen of baking cakes – much better than the others for cakes, in my opinion. I discovered baking after I started cooking properly with the aid of Delia & Nigella. I wanted to find ‘the mother-ship’ of baking, and I believe in Mary Berry I found it.
Pixie: David’s and Christian’s friends Tony and Cathy are great characters both supporting their friends and offering them a safe haven for Christmas, do you have friends that you can turn to like that? And are they like Cathy and Tony?
Liam: I’m lucky to have friends I can turn to for help in that way. None of my friends are, what I’d describe as ‘like’ Cathy and Tony.
Pixie: What encouraged you to write MM rather than mainstream (whatever that is)?
Liam: When I wrote my first novel, Best Friends Perfect, I didn’t even consider whether it was MM. I simply wrote a story with characters, experiences and love which I could relate to, and had in part, experienced myself. It was only when Clare London invited me to UK Meet 2012 in Brighton, that I realised I’d written a MM novel.
Pixie: Can you tell us what you have coming next in your career as an author, any more books being published?
Liam: The Best Friends Perfect series will start to be published from spring 2014. I have a fairy tale called Frangipani Kisses http://www.liamlivings.com/frangipani-kisses-short-story.html in an anthology which is due out in 2014. I will begin submitting my next novel, And Then That Happened in 2014, http://www.liamlivings.com/and-then-that-happened.html so that could be published in 2014 too. And also I have just planned my next story, called The Wrong Room, which I’ll write in 2014, and who knows when that will be ready for a publisher to see it.
Pixie: Tell our readers a bit about yourself and what you do when you aren’t writing, and where they can contact you and buy your book.
Liam: I love to bake cakes and other sweet things. I love to spend time with friends and family. I enjoy tucking up with a good box set or film. I have furry friends, our cats. And I am also, to mix it up a bit, and go against some stereotypes, a massive car geek too.
Pixie: Thanks for joining us Liam and we all hope you do great with Christmas Serendipity and we look forward to your next release Best Friends Perfect.
About Liam Livings
Three things about him – there are five more on the website, one is a lie.
1) He lives, with his partner and cats, where east London ends and becomes nine-carat-gold- highlights-and-fake-tan-west-Essex.
2) He was born in Hampshire with two club feet (look it up, it’s not nice) and problem ears, needing grommets: this meant he was in plaster from toe to groin until he was two, and had to swim with a cap and olive oil soaked lamb’s wool over his ears – olive oil bought from a health food shop, before it was sold by supermarkets.
3) He started writing when he was 14: sat in French lessons during a French exchange trip, for want of anything better to do, he wrote pen portraits about his French exchange’s teachers. He wrote for his school’s creative writing magazine and still writes a diary every day.
Just before the Christmas holiday, in a snowy small town in England, refugees of Christmas bad luck, handyman, plumber Christian and office worker David find themselves thrown together at miss Organiser, Cathy’s non-family Christmas.
Christian thinks the world has ended as his parents get used to him being gay, and disinvite him to their Christmas. David has just been fired from his waiting job, and is still getting used to the fact that he has dumped him. Although David’s ex was a useless cheating, money grabbing waste of space, he was at least, David’s useless, cheating, money grabbing waste of space. And now David doesn’t even have that. He’s not in the mood for a night out with his best friend, camp Tony, just before Christmas. Instead they retire to Cathy and Tony’s place, to find a quiet Christian.
With Cathy’s organizational skills and enthusiasm, these four spend a non-family Christmas together, making the best of it. Together they drink, eat and play their way through Christmas, surprising each other at how it turns out, and how well they all get to know one another during the short break.
Refugees of serendipity and luck, David and Christian realize that spending the holiday season together may be just what they both needed, when they both needed it. They find that apart from both just escaping from awful relationships, they also have much more in common.
Excerpt
We talked late into the night, moving onto Cathy’s special Christmas spirits. “Only to be drunk at this time of year,” she explained. She appeared with a tray of snowballs—yellow advocaat and lemonade, foaming with a little red cherry perched on top of each one. “This’ll send us to sleep,” she advised.
We took it in turns to throw more wood onto the fire, until we ran out. Cathy announced she was going to bed. She’d made up the spare room for Christian, and she pointed to the sofa in the corner for me.
I looked at her, feeling slightly light-headed from the alcohol, and started to ask if she’d show me how to make it up. Before I could say anything more, somehow she’d managed with just one hand, to turn it into a bed and cover it with perfect duvet and pillows.
“Thanks, Cathy. Night.” I stood up, a little unsteadily.
She kissed my cheek. “Night boys.” And she made her way up the stairs.
Tony followed, waving goodnight to us both.
And then there were two. I’ll admit I did consider, for a brief moment, just following Christian to his room. But I decided he wasn’t that sort of boy, and really, neither was I. So instead, I opted for an awkward goodnight hug/kiss, standing over the remains of the Indian takeaway in the middle of the floor. The gentle glow from the fire and a few candles around the room gave the only light. He kissed my cheek and I his, before lingering for a moment too long on his neck, holding the hug as long as I could manage without seeming creepy. I felt his breath on my neck and I felt myself responding in my boxer shorts. We both pulled back and stared into each other’s eyes, his warm breath mixing with mine as I breathed in and out. He smiled. I stared into his deep blue eyes and kissed him again, this time with our tongues exploring each other’s mouths. He gently bit my bottom lip and a jolt went to my groin. I felt his hand on my bum, trying to pull me towards him, despite our legs being a few feet apart, separated by the takeaway. We fell onto the sofa, his small frame landing gently on my muscly chest. He sat astride me, leaning down and continuing to kiss me. His hands caressed my pectoral muscles under my T-shirt, tweaking my nipples, harder and harder.
Maybe he was that sort of boy, and maybe I was too.
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Christmas Serendipity will be published by JMS on 8 December.
Buy links from 8 December – other distributor links will be available a week or so after this date.
Blurb: In a snowy small town in England just before Christmas, handyman Christian thinks the world has ended — his parents are still getting used to his being gay and have disinvited him to their Christmas. Former waiter David has just been fired and is still getting used to the fact that his useless, cheating, money-grabbing, waste-of-space boyfriend has just dumped him. Their mutual friend Cathy steps in and invites the two strangers to a non-family Christmas at the flat she shares with Tony.
With Cathy’s organizational skills and enthusiasm, these four spend Christmas together, making the best of it and getting to know each other. A spark of attraction clearly brings David and Christian closer, and spending the festive season together may be just what these two refugees need to calm their troubled souls.
But the past still haunts them both and threatens to be their undoing. Is love enough to overcome the burdens they bear? Can they find a happy Christmas together after all?
Review: David leans on his mate Tony as he mulls over the ending of his disastrous relationship, when he gets fired from his job just days before Christmas Tony drags him home with him. Christian finds himself with nowhere to go for Christmas when his parents rescind their invite after he confesses he is gay, his workmate Cathy takes pity on him and invites him home for Christmas. As David and Christian share Christmas with the two flatmates, a spark of attraction flares between them and it just might bring them both happiness in the New Year if they can both resolve their past hurts.
I quite enjoyed this simple story of friends becoming a family for Christmas. David has had a terrible relationship where he was used as a doormat by his boyfriend, but with the boyfriend tossing him to the side David can’t just put his feelings behind him. When David meets Christian a spark is lit and although he doesn’t want to rush into anything he knows he has to give them a chance. Christian is still reeling from his parent’s actions and although there is a spark of hope that his parents will come around he is still miserable, meeting David sparks his interest and taking it slow is a great idea even if he would at first prefer passionate sex to ease his woes.
This is a very Christmas with friends story, where friends pull together to have an enjoyable Christmas and put their problems behind them for a couple of days. Cathy and Tony are incredible friends who make this Christmas for both men enjoyable, but while Cathy is overjoyed that David and Christian are becoming close, Tony is more cautious and encourages David to slow down and not jump in feet first. Both David and Christian seem to be wonderful men working their way through their personal issues but neither man is willing to turn their back on the attraction between them, it is a slow moving relationship that is still tentative and new but with much hope on both sides.
I recommend this to those who love saving Christmas stories, friends pulling together, support and friendship, a spark of new love and new hope and a very Merry Christmas.
Hi again all, seeing as I am in soooo much trouble already I thought I’d throw all my cards in today and have a guest post with an author I am a huge fan of, I love his stuff and even though his latest is a contemporary instead of steampunk/fantasy I still read it and I was soooo glad I did. Well without further ado I am handing you over to Eon de Beaumont and his first contemporary story Rum and Ginger the first book in TheConnection series *hey it was as close to a rainbow as I could get!* remember to stick around for my review. *kisses* ~Pixie~
Eon de Beaumont – Rum and Ginger
Hello all, my name is Eon de Beaumont and I’ve written my very first contemporary story. This post is part of a promotional blog tour I’m undertaking to celebrate the release of Rum & Ginger, The Connection: Book One. The story is very character oriented so I’m going to introduce you to each of the major characters in each of these blog posts and give you some background about how they fit in the world and how I came up with them. Shall we?
The main character is Ben Silver. Ben is working at a soulless corporate restaurant called T.C. McFlannigan’s Funstaurant. It’s exactly what you think. There’s crappy kitsch all over the walls and they force the employees to dress like idiots. Ben’s the general manager and he makes a comfortable living but it isn’t fulfilling by any stretch of the imagination. He aspires to more but has had to settle because of his current boyfriend’s plans. Ben’s forced to remain in the closet too due to his boyfriend’s hang-ups.
There are plenty of bars in their crappy little town and Ben would like nothing more than to throw of the chains of McFlannigan’s and open the first gay bar. Ben is a nerd, who was although on the track team in high school. He wasn’t a typical jock. I wanted to make Ben outside of a specific mold. Characters are usually jocks or nerds. I wanted Ben to straddle that line. Ben was and is the kind of guy who can get along with anyone. Above all I didn’t want him to be a cliché. I think I’ve accomplished that. You’ll have to give Rum & Ginger a try and let me know what you think.
For now here’s the blurb and an excerpt that introduces you to Ben and his trials at T.C. McFlannigan’s Funstaurant. You’ll also meet his best friend Lena, a waitress at the restaurant, but we’ll speak more of her in another post. You can connect with me on facebook or follow my Twitter: @mascaraboy13 for updates and announcements. I hope you enjoy the excerpt and if you’re interested, there’s a buylink following. Thanks!
Blurb:
Ben Silver’s personal dream is to open the first gay bar in Liamsport, Pennsylvania. The town isn’t exactly open-minded, but that’s not why Ben stays in the closet. Chance, Ben’s computer nerd boyfriend, is deathly afraid of anyone finding out he’s gay. On a night out, Ben meets Brodie Felix, a younger, heavily tattooed bartender who lights a spark in Ben’s heart. Although the spark in his relationship with Chance has dwindled to almost nothing, Ben feels guilty for wanting to be single, for wanting another man, so he tries to forget about Brodie.
But when Ben discovers one of Chance’s own secrets, he’s forced to make a difficult choice.
On his own for the first time in his life, Ben can be open with his family and friends. Though honesty has its benefits, his life isn’t perfect. Ben’s circle of friends and family is growing. So is the spark between him and Brodie, and Ben hopes it will grow into a flame. His dream remains out of his grasp, but with a little help and a lot of work, he might yet serve his favorite rum and ginger ale at his own establishment, the first gay bar in his hometown.
Excerpt:
Chapter One:
“You need to get out here, Ben.” Lena panted as she leaned into his office, her jet-black hair pulling free of her ponytail. “There’s a rhino stampeding again.”
“Christ.” Ben groaned as he rose from his chair. “It’s only fricking Tuesday.”
“Hurry up. She’s ready to tear the place apart,” Lena stated as she exited the office. Ben pinched the bridge of his nose and followed. A rhino on Tuesday did not bode well for the rest of the week. Sometimes being the manager of T.C. McFlannigan’s Family Funstaurant and Grillery gave Ben a splitting headache. He straightened his red-and-white-striped tie as he walked down the hallway, its wall covered in bits and pieces of pop-culture kitsch from decades past. The autographed picture of the cast of Diff’rent Strokes had remained in the same place since he’d started here as a waiter in high school. He shook his head as he marched toward the inevitable rhino confrontation.
The employees of the T.C. McFlannigan’s in Liamsport, Pennsylvania had been using the term “rhino” since before Ben started. Any overweight, disagreeable customer could be a rhino. Ben hated when they stampeded, when they started arguing with the waitstaff for some reason. He marched along the cheap tile floor in his company-issued polo with the requisite five pieces of “dazzle” Flannigan’s forced managers to sport. Ben had chosen a Batman cloisonné pin, two peace sign buttons, an embroidered Cure patch, a Star Trek combadge, and a polymer clay ladybug Lena had made him. The waiters and waitresses were required to cover their entire vests in “dazzle.” Ben didn’t miss those days.
He could hear the woman bellowing as he approached the dining room. “It says ‘all you can eat shrimp’! I ain’t done yet!” she protested at the top of her ample lungs. Ben readied his placating “manager smile” and he stepped in front of Lena. The large customer took a large sip from her large drink and barked, “Get me a manager, damn it! I want to talk—” She stopped when her piggy brown eyes met Ben’s blue gaze. He’d often practiced the look he turned on the woman, confident that his smile and expression would calm the awful creature. The woman sputtered once as her family averted their eyes in shame. Her husband’s face glowed red with embarrassment.
“Hello, ma’am. I’m Mr. Silver, the general manager. What’s affecting your funtertainment this evening?” Ben regurgitated the Flannigans’s approved greeting.
“Well. Hot damn.” The woman’s tongue snaked out and danced across her lips as her eyes molested Ben’s physique. “You’re the manager?”
“I am, ma’am. What’s the problem?”
“I got this coupon.” She presented the little slip of paper. “It says if we buy an entrée and two appetizers, we get all you can eat shrimp. This bitch,” the customer stated, shoving a finger in Christine’s face, “says she’s cuttin’ me off!” Christine’s expression paled with shock. “What’s that shit?”
“I don’t think it’s the shrimp Christine is cutting off, ma’am. I think you’ve had a bit too much to drink. Isn’t that right, Chrissy?” The frightened waitress nodded, her eyes wide. “We’re happy to give you as much shrimp as you want, but we have to draw the line when your drinking causes you to become belligerent. This is a family establishment.” Ben flashed his most ingratiating smile to punctuate his plea.
“You think you’re so cute. I paid my money. I got my coupon.” The woman drained her glass and shook it in Ben’s face. The ice cubes rattled annoyingly. “Give me my effing shrimps!”
Something in Ben’s brain snapped. “You don’t need any more shrimp, you fat cow! You’ve had too much to drink tonight. You’ve had too much to eat since the day you were born, and you’re humiliating your family. Get the hell out of here before I call animal control to put you down!”
“I—” The customer gasped. Her mouth opened and closed without sound. “I…what… you….”
“Out!” Ben pointed to the door. He looked at the astonished faces of the woman’s family and his waitstaff. Ben didn’t care. He was sick of these awful human beings walking all over them and demanding consideration. The woman snorted before she stomped out of the restaurant. Her family followed with their heads down, but Ben caught a smirk on her husband’s face.
“Jesus, Ben,” Lena stated with something Ben thought might be awe. “Where did that come from?”
He shook his head. “Just one of those days. Not in the mood for people.” Ben turned, uncomfortable with the stares of the entire dining room. He wasn’t sure what had come over him, but he’d never lost it like that before. He wanted to visit the bar himself, but he still had a few hours left of his shift. He stalked off to his office instead.
Blurb: Ben Silver’s personal dream is to open the first gay bar in Liamsport, Pennsylvania. The town isn’t exactly open-minded, but that’s not why Ben stays in the closet. Chance, Ben’s computer nerd boyfriend, is deathly afraid of anyone finding out he’s gay. On a night out, Ben meets Brodie Felix, a younger, heavily tattooed bartender who lights a spark in Ben’s heart. Although the spark in his relationship with Chance has dwindled to almost nothing, Ben feels guilty for wanting to be single, for wanting another man, so he tries to forget about Brodie. But when Ben discovers one of Chance’s own secrets, he’s forced to make a difficult choice. On his own for the first time in his life, Ben can be open with his family and friends. Though honesty has its benefits, his life isn’t perfect. Ben’s circle of friends and family is growing. So is the spark between him and Brodie, and Ben hopes it will grow into a flame. His dream remains out of his grasp, but with a little help and a lot of work, he might yet serve his favorite rum and ginger ale at his own establishment, the first gay bar in his hometown.
Review: Ben is the manager of T.C. McFlannigan’s, it isn’t a job he ever aspired to have but he followed love back home, now though even his relationship seems to be strained and opening up about his dreams doesn’t get the support he hoped for. With Chance seeming to drift further away Ben makes new friends who he doesn’t have to hide his sexuality with and one of them, Brodie, encourages Ben to seize his dreams. When Ben discovers Chance’s betrayal Ben also discovers that he has more support than he realized, he draws closer to Brodie and the dream of opening his own gay bar.
This is a great story of fading love and discovering new love, of following your dreams and making new friends. Ben has never been happy hiding his relationship from the world, but Chance is too scared of his family to admit to being gay so Ben is forced to live in the closet if he wants to keep his lover. Now though, years later, there seems to be something wrong with their relationship and when Ben discovers what one of those things is, he walks. Meeting Brodie sparks something in Ben that has been missing for a while and resurrects the dream he once had of opening his own bar.
I was pleasantly surprised with this story because it has two relationships in it, for the first half of the book it is Ben and Chance and how they have drifted apart and mistakes being made and the relationship failing, and then the second half of the book is Ben getting his life on track and the budding relationship between Ben and Brodie. Even though there is a break up it isn’t too angsty or heartbreaking, there are hurt feelings but it is more the realization that they had fallen into a rut and something different tempts them.
While both Chance and Brodie play large parts in this story we still only know the basics about them, we don’t get to understand why Chance did what he did and we don’t get to know Brodie as well as we could have. The secondary characters really add something to this story, Lena with her party-girl attitude who always has a drink to hand and Derek with his newly bachelor state trying to fill his time with drinking and girls and not wanting to be alone. We see more than just a romantic relationship being built, we see friendships new and old and family ties being strengthened, we see a man finding he has more than he thought he did and his hopes for the future. The new relationship between Ben and Brodie starts off as friendship and because of that their relationship when they get together doesn’t feel rushed.
I recommend this to those who love moving forward with your life, developing new friendships and relationships, forgiving the past and embracing the future, some hot sex and an ending that is a beginning.
Shy tattoo artist Ash has a troubled past. Years of neglect, drug abuse, and life on the streets have taken their toll, and sometimes it seems the deep, unspoken bond with his lover is the only balm for wounds he doesn’t quite understand.
Chicago paramedic Pete is warmth, love, and strength—things Ash never knew he could have, and never even knew he wanted until Pete showed him. But fate is a cruel, cruel mistress, and when nightmares collide with the present, their tentatively built world comes crashing down.
Traumatic events in Pete’s work life distance him from home, and he doesn’t realize until it’s too late that Ash has slipped away. Betrayal, secrets, and lies unfold, and when a devastating coincidence takes hold, Pete must fight with all he has to save the love of his life.
Review: Pete is a paramedic working the mean streets of Chicago. Long and unpredictable shifts coupled with dangerous calls that sometimes leave him battered and bruised leave his boyfriend anxious and jittery. He met the super shy street artist, Ash, through their mutual friend Ellie. What started out as a roommate arrangement quickly grows into more based on an intense mutual attraction. But Ash’s past is shrouded in darkness and mystery that threatens their already volatile relationship.
What is perceived as secrets and lies slowly unravels as a darkness in Ash’s past that he’s tried hard to bury. This secret has caused something within Ash to break, mentally, sort of like self-preservation. He can’t really remember the memory, only the voice, and the same voice that sends him spiraling out of control for no apparent reason. Can Pete piece together the seemingly random clues and help Ash not only face his past, but also come to terms with it, before he loses him inside his warped mind forever.
I had high hopes for this book and anxiously awaited its release for weeks. The story started out on a high note, and I enjoyed getting to know Pete and Ash at the start. I soon became frustrated with Pete constantly assuming things, but never really talking to Ash, they’d just fall into bed every five minutes as if that were the answer to everything. Don’t get me wrong, these two had some serious steam, but at times, it weighed down the story. I thought I could see where the author was going with Ash’s story early on, and in the end, I was partially right. It was so aggravating and long-winded that by the time what should have been an “oh my god” moment came along; it was more like “it’s about damn time you clued me in.”
This is a rare novel that should have been a novella. I could have done with the condensed version or the footnotes. Sorry guys, I tried really hard to like this one, but it just fell flat in the end for me.
Hey guys, Pixie here! Yes I know, I know, has Portia finally gone insane? But hey, I finally wrest control from Portia to announce a fantastic blog tour from Riptide publishing !!! Just read below for the details and you can be in for a chance to win a Riptide Publishing gift certificate (imagine the books *drool*) or a Brien Michaels ebook! (whoop!). I’ve also added Thommie’s review for Bump in the Night and let me tell you I had hours of fun teasing Thommie about tentacles!! LOL
So I leave you in the hands of Riptide Publishing and Brien Michaels and their awesome competition, have fun guys. Pixie 😉
Hello there, I’m Brien Michaels and welcome to the Bump in the Night blog tour. Bump in the Night is an erotic horror anthology edited by Rachel Haimowitz and featuring my story “Out From Under.”
Anybody who knows me knows how big a role music plays in my writing. Can’t write without it, can barely think without it sometimes. And if they really know me, they know that each of my books share titles with some of my favorite songs. It’s funny (to me, at least) that the original title for my offering to the Bump in the Night anthology was Monster, which is a song from Lady Gaga’s The Fame Monster EP. It seemed fitting, considering how horrific this story is (we’re talking demons, tentacles, being held against your will and some serious dubcon bordering on noncon) and that the main antagonist is a sperm-eating plant demon. But my editor told me that the title seemed a little flat and she thought it was a good idea to change it. So I went back to the drawing board.
I came up with a whole list of titles and spent nearly a week going through them, but none seemed to fit. Every time I looked at them I was just overcome with a sense of blah. Then I was doing a read-through before I sent back the first round of edits and I realized the answer was literally staring me right in the face.
I have a borderline unnatural obsession with Britney Spears (fun fact of the day), and there’s a song on her fifth album Blackout that’s always resonated with me. It’s basically about what to do when you can’t go any further in a relationship. When you’ve tried literally everything you could have tried and it’s just not working, but the other person still wants to keep trying. The song is called Out From Under, and it’s heartbreaking in its vulnerability. Anyway, near the end of the chorus, she sings, “I don’t want to feel the pain. What good would it do me now? I’ll get it figured out when I’m Out from under. From under… From under…” When I first heard the song and her chanting “From under” I thought to myself “Wow…that would make a really cool name for a demon.” This was four to five years ago, mind you. But I finally got to use it. My demon/plant monster in this story is called Fromunder and it fits so perfectly I jumped up and down when I figured it out
So the story itself is called Out From Under and I think that title ties in so well to the struggles not only my protagonist but also my antagonist are facing it’s scary. I won’t give anything away here, but just know…it’s pretty fucking terrifying. Want a blurb?
When Brant’s lover is killed, he’s left with no choice but to complete one last task for his demon master Fromunder. The prize? His lover alive again. The alternative? Eternal servitude. But the stakes of this mission are higher than Brant realizes, and now he might now survive the night.
And because I love you all…I’m going to be doing a drawing from all the comments on this post. The prize, an e-copy of my first erotic horror publication, Last Friday Night.
“Tyler Mack is straight almost to the point of being homophobic. He’s with a different woman night after night, secretly longing for the one who will make him feel something besides the soul-crushing emptiness following orgasm number X.
Jessie Nalick used to be married. His wife left him for a man with a bigger check, a bigger car and (from what she says) a bigger dick. He’s relocated to another state and is planning on starting his life over. The house he’s having built is almost finished and things seem to finally be looking up, until he receives a panicked call from Tyler, one of the construction men working on the house, claiming there’s trouble.
Someone has lured both of them from the safety of their normal lives and is about to force them into a situation where it’s not their lives at stake, but the lives of the people they love. There’s only one thing they have to do to ensure no one dies, but it’s the one thing Tyler would rather die than do.”
Thanks so much to everyone for coming out! Hope to see more of you in the future. And thanks to my wonderful host for having me over today. Happy reading!
You can read an excerpt of “Out From Under” and purchase Bump in the Nighthere.
Contest:
Every comment on this blog tour enters you in a drawing for a $25 Riptide Publishing gift certificate! Entries close at midnight, EST, on November 2nd, and one grand prize winner will be announced or contacted on November 3rd. Contest is valid worldwide.
Blurb:
Turn off the lights . . . and turn on your darkest fantasies.
Demon pacts. Ghostly possessions. Monsters lurking in the depths. The things that go bump in the night frighten us, but they also intrigue us. Fascinate us. Even turn us on.
Join us as fan favorites Ally Blue and Kari Gregg bring over-amorous aquatic beasts to life with their mythic twists on the Siren and the monster in the lake. Erotic horror pros Heidi Belleau, Sam Schooler, and Brien Michaels show us just how sexy scary can be with a pair of demon deals destined to curl your toes and set your heart thrashing. And literary masters Laylah Hunter and Peter Hansen weave haunting worlds where ghosts and dead lovers can touch our hearts (and other, naughtier places too . . .) and teach us lessons from beyond the grave.
By turns exciting, evocative, and exquisitely explicit, the stories in Bump in the Night are sure to scratch your sexy paranormal itch. Explore your wildest fantasies with us in this collection of dark erotic tales.
by Rachel Haimowitz (editor), Heidi Belleau, Ally Blue, Kari Gregg, Peter Hansen, Laylah Hunter, Brien Michaels, Sam Schooler
Genre: Paranormal / Dark Erotica / Horror
Length: 198 pages
Publisher: Riptide Publishing
HeatLevel: Explicit
HeartRating: 4 Hearts
Reviewer: Thommie
Blurb: Turn off the lights . . . and turn on your darkest fantasies.
Demon pacts. Ghostly possessions. Monsters lurking in the depths. The things that go bump in the night frighten us, but they also intrigue us. Fascinate us. Even turn us on.
Join us as fan favorites Ally Blue and Kari Gregg bring over-amorous aquatic beasts to life with their mythic twists on the Siren and the monster in the lake. Erotic horror pros Heidi Belleau, Sam Schooler, and Brien Michaels show us just how sexy scary can be with a pair of demon deals destined to curl your toes and set your heart thrashing. And literary masters Laylah Hunter and Peter Hansen weave haunting worlds where ghosts and dead lovers can touch our hearts (and other, naughtier places too . . .) and teach us lessons from beyond the grave.
By turns exciting, evocative, and exquisitely explicit, the stories in Bump in the Night are sure to scratch your sexy paranormal itch. Explore your wildest fantasies with us in this collection of dark erotic tales.
Review: So, I’ve been reading anthologies lately and almost all of them have this thing in common. No, not the theme (that is a given) rather the fact that after a while all the stories in the anthology seem the same, no unique ones to make a stand, a very few grab your attention. They are nice, but you forget them after a day or two.
But this one, oh my God, this anthology has made it straight to my favorites shelf, and I’ll be damned if I don’t take it down every so often to re-read it again and again and again. You might notice down below on each review how some of these stories have made quite an impact in me, one perhaps has scarred me for life. I swear I’m still going to re-read that incredibly horrifying story for as long as I live. Hell I’m going to have a great time telling them tales when with friends to scare the heck out of them too. Because that’s what this anthology is about. An incredible mix of dark fiction and explicit erotica meant to scare the living daylight out of you while simultaneously stoking that forbidden dark fire deep down in your shadiest part of your soul. Bump in the Night is definitely my favorite anthology among them all. Many thanks to the very talented authors who created these stories, they were simply wonderful.
Resurrection Man By Laylah Hunter
Oh my, what a marvelous story, how very creepy and brilliant.
What would you do if you were to lose the love of your life? What if you could bring him back from the cold darkness of Death? What price would you pay?
There is nothing Josef wouldn’t do for Adel. All his artistry, all their money, everything he can he’s ready to give. But when he pulls Adel’s spirit back into the living world he realizes the price he ultimately has to pay is much, much bigger than mere money or knowledge. The hunger for life is so much bigger when you’ve been dead after all…
A brilliant paranormal story and so very unique to what I’ve read so far. Honestly I don’t think I’ve read anything similar and the balance between the creepy and sexy and horny is just plain perfect. It’s like a mix of Frankenstein and Vampires with a slight dose of magic thrown in for good measure. I liked it, no I loved it. Everything about it was way cool, the writing, the idea and the way the story went, the play of emotions. Excellent indeed!
This is definitely a story I’d love to tell when around the fire on dark, stormy nights, or around Halloween. And if you love the style I think this is one of those you should not miss.
Mating Season By Kari Gregg
Horrifying, oh I have no words… This is terror, pure, unadulterated terror. Oh my God!!! Oh my guts are screaming in sympathy with the poor character of this story. Oh I have no words as my skin crawls and goosebumps travel my whole body. Oh my freaking God, this is definitely a story I’ll never, ever, EVER forget.
Ok, here it is. Danny has been humiliated. His girlfriend left him right before their marriage for his boss, and said boss fired him right after. Feeling useless and in a dead end in his life Danny hides in his apartment until his friend Keith drags him out for a game of basketball all the time trying to make him feel better and suggesting him to go hiking the lake and get his shit together.
Danny never goes to the lake once autumn rounds the corner. There are tales of a monster living there and Danny deep down believes them. But his friends insistence make him careless and he eventually makes his mind to go hiking. What follows is a crazy scientist, a slimy monster with enormous tentacles, and a poor guy forced into being a lab-rat, all dancing around a horrifying story that includes forced… things and death and addiction and… I have no words!
This is a horror story people! Horror with capital “H”. There is no other way around it. The things that happen to Danny from the very first night he sets foot on that lake are made from the worst of nightmares. I was literally screaming for half this read. My skin still hasn’t stopped crawling and I’m awed at this author’s creativity and slimy tale. OH MY GOD!!!
So I don’t know; did I like it? I don’t know. Was I fascinated by it? Hell yeah. Did it grip me and held me captive despite the gut wrenching horror I felt the entire time? It sure did. Is this what you want? Only if you don’t faint easily and have a strong, strong stomach. Oh God, I’ll never step foot on a lake, ever, ever again.
Flesh and Song By Ally Blue
La Terre de la Belle Mort, The Land of Beautiful Death. The island found in no map, whispered only in frightening tales, a sinful promise of all your heart’s desires that come with a severe price.
That is what Noah has been looking for, for nearly eight months. The tale wants the island unfound when you so much search for it. Only by sheer luck or mistake one can land there, only when lost one can be found, but then you might never leave it again…
Just as he’s about to give up the search though a mighty storm leads him to this gorgeous island. But Noah doesn’t know what he wants. Now that he’s here what exactly is he looking for? The gorgeous naked man on the beach calls to him, running through the jungle the call becomes near painful. He must go to him, he needs to before he dies. And there, on a beautiful pool under a waterfall his God awaits, his fathomless black eyes beaconing him forward, his wonderful musical voice urging him to this astonishing creature.
Days, weeks, months pass in the haze of dream that takes everything from him besides the longing for his God. No memories, no ambitions, no will for anything else beside the arms wrapped around him and the sex God giving him all he wants, nothing else exists. Finally Noah understands what he’s been searching for. But he forgot that once he got his heart’s desire, it would come with a price…
This is a gorgeous story, heartbreaking and a bit sad in the end, but gorgeous nonetheless. I believe when I think of a Siren, the emotions this story evoked are exactly right. The promises, the longing, the will to do anything, to give anything for the call of the Siren. Homer would have been ecstatic to have read this version of his Sirens’. What a wonderful story this one.
Out from Under By Brien Michaels
How did it come to this? To get trapped between two demons and their century long vendetta? Each more horrible than the other, every path leading to death… or worse.
Three years under the demon’s spell. Three years of nightmares and being a slave to the demon’s twisted wishes, luring men into their deaths. But when Fromunder killed his lover right in front of his eyes Brant felt his world shift and true Hell consume him. The demon had no hold on him now that his lover was dead, or had he? The promise to bring Jason back was too alluring to deny, the price for that burning his soul, yet nothing would deter him from doing whatever in his power to achieve it.
And that’s how it came to this… lying in the middle of a bed between two sworn enemies, waiting for one to die and the other to consume him… After all he suffered, he would never see his lover again. Right?
This was a very nice story, the evil and viciousness of the paranormal world was so strong, the read so raw not shying away from explicit violence, torture, or sexual abuse, but rather basking in it. A story made from the stuff nightmares come from, a story fit for the spirit of Halloween, a story strong enough to make you lose yourself in its dark depths.
Can you tell I loved this one too?
Sleeping With Ghosts By Peter Hansen
Oh, wow! This was quite a cold story. I don’t know what to make of it really.
In this story Yordan is a Bookman, a priest who is sent to turn the last page of men’s life in order to give a chance for a soulless newborn. A weird world with many Churches, Priests, Brotherhoods. Religion and politics that make an appearance and give you a notion of what this world is about without delving much into it. The story is mostly about Yordan taking a life that was uncalled for, simply by blindly following orders. The soul who lost his body now wanders without a new one to take residence. A haunted night, a cold encounter, rippling feeling of dread… Yes, cold is how this story leaves you, cold from inside out. It gave shivers and frankly it made me want more. I was not satisfied with this short, I wan’t more Bookmen, more Ironmen, more of this world.
However this story was quite worth it and so very in the ghostly atmosphere. Lovely indeed. I still want more though. *sigh*
Blasphemer, Sinner, Saint By Heidi Belleau and Sam Schooler
Oh this story was quite brilliant as well. See this is another “deal with a Devil” themed one, but it was so very well executed.
The man who makes the deal doesn’t make it for himself, rather for someone else. He makes a deal for a person he once loved as a boy in dark corners, but shunned in broad daylight. He made the deal for a man he held in contempt, humiliated, and crushed his hopes when he most needed him. Tobias makes a deal for David’s life.
What I loved more in this story was the fact that the Devil here is a creature that as horrific and repulsive as he was described to be, I ended up admiring and actually being my favorite character here. Tobias was this self-righteous Christian charitable man who lacked humbleness and was blind by his bigotry. He perverted and twisted his love for David by convincing himself that David “tempted” him and he still stayed strong and moral, while David “chose” to be the immoral person he became. The brilliancy of the writing here was how the Devil made Tobias become David in the end. How he made him feel and understand and comprehend that sometimes in life there is no choice, sometimes you simply have to do everything in your power for the person you love, own it and never once back out from it.
I loved this story, it was deep with meanings while in the same time was full of those dark sinful erotic scenes that come when you strike a deal with a devil…
Blurb:Simon Roberts’ plan for his senior year is simple — help his high school hockey team win the state championship and earn a college scholarship so he can get away from his dysfunctional family, especially his belligerent father and obnoxious older brother.
When the Central High Falcons open their season with an away game, Simon is forced to deal with the problem he’s struggled with for months — his crush on teammate Alex Miller. After the game that night, Alex makes an unexpected announcement — he’s gay, and in love with Simon.
Simon’s elated but scared to openly acknowledge that he’s gay, especially with so much at stake in their senior year. Now that they are out to each other, they have to decide what to do next. Should they date? Should they keep things between them secret? What about the team? Can Simon and Alex hide that they’re more than friends from the guys they spend so much time with?
Then a simple kiss is witnessed and their secret is out. The team fractures, and Simon’s family explodes as news about the gay hockey players quickly spreads. The guys must figure out how to move forward with everyone watching. Being the center of attention was in no way part of Simon’s plan for the year.
Can Simon juggle school, commitments to the team, his new relationship, and an unexpected tragedy all before the end of the hockey season?
Review: Okay let me start by saying that I’m not a lover of the YA genre. I tend to get squicked out by underage loving. Nevertheless, I read the blurb and thought, hmmm, this looks interesting and I’m always about a coming out story that involves sports. It’s such a closeted group that they are rife to have those boys busting out the closet.
So where do I start. Well the beginning is generally good. The book was a cornucopia of themes and they all blended so well together. By the time I was finished reading the novel, I realized that the author had done the whole ying/yang thing. For every negative he presented, he presented a mirror positive. So in the novel you see a family who embraces their gay son while another does not. You see an example of a bad brother unable to accept his gay sibling and another who not only embraces that sibling but also goes out of his way to do special things for him. You see examples of good friendships and bad friendships, good marriages and bad marriages.
So balance became what was most important in this story – the ability for the main characters, Simon and Alex to find balance in their lives and in their relationships. I hate giving away plot lines or secrets to a book and this novel is chock full of them. Alex and Simon fall into a relationship almost immediately and it takes a while before the first conflict in the book arises with their coming out to friends and family. Once that is overcome, the reader is left wondering well if this is resolved, then what’s left? A bunch I can tell you.
Well the author takes the reader on a quite a journey. There is quite a bit of drama. There is being kicked out of the house, fights, death, destruction, police kidnapping, jail time, divorce and just to add a lighter note, dancing at the spring formal and prom. Alex and Simon spend their senior year moving from being teenagers to becoming young men. They spend that year learning not only who they are, but also what is really important to them. They are placed in a situation where they must grow up very quickly to manage the changing dynamics around them. They must make choices about the men they will become and the couple they choose to be. Their decisions make the people around them, family and friends also have to make decisions about who they will be and how they will treat them – battle lines will be drawn and Alex and Simon must manage and overcome those adversities. Oh and with all that they are spectacular hockey players who manage to snag scholarships to college.
Alex and Simon become role models not only for unknown youth out there as their story is made public, but they become role models for their friends and family as well. They become unlikely heroes in a world often devoid of them. My main aim when reading a book is to determine the writer’s aim and in a YA book, it is often to teach young people some vital lesson. This book does a great job of crafting a great love story that is appropriate for the audience, but also offers what I’m sure as some outstanding commentaries on hockey.
The writing is very appropriate for the audience. All in all, two enthusiastic thumbs up!
Blurb: Sergeant First Class Matt Ridley adopts a new puppy and joins his HOA Board thinking it will get him out of the house more; otherwise the alternative is his well-meaning brother signing him up for online dating sites. Through HOA business, Ridley meets Brett Isaacs, a civilian Army security guard at the base where he works, who also shares his destructive dog woes. A yard planning session with beer and pizza turns into a profession of mutual attraction and a very satisfying ending as they agree to embark on something new.
Review: This is a nice story with a dash of sweet and a portion of hot thrown in there.
It starts a bit on the slow lane. Matt has forced himself into joining the HOA Board so that it gives him some reason to get out of his house more, he has a new puppy that is quite energetic, and he’s trying to be more social.
This was something that I didn’t get to understand though. Why was Matt not socializing? Was the reason his ex and their divorce (he mentioned her at some point) or was it his time in the army? It didn’t seem to be the later though as he bonds quite easily with Brett over their time there. So I failed to really see why Matt was such a recluse.
The story moves on, Matt gets to meet Brett through his HOA business, and the attraction seems instant and mutual. While the context is still a bit on the mellow side as the men get to know each other things take a good leap on the erotic scale when both men have their first date.
At some point there is some dirty talking going on. Like bedroom, dirty talking. I can’t say how much I appreciated it, nor how much a enjoyed it. I wouldn’t mind it a bit more on that account but as it was it was a pretty hot and sexy ending. It made up for the slow start and changed my entire view on this story.
Blurb: The year is 1943, and Colin knows society and his family fully expects him to get married, but he is not as enthusiastic as everyone else is over the prospect of settling down. In fact, the very idea of bedding a wife makes him physically ill, so he’s overjoyed when he received his draft notice. It will give him at least a temporary reprieve from the altar.
At boot camp, he meets Jake, a big Texan with a warm smile and a hot, wet mouth. They hit it off immediately, and as they share stolen moments together wherever they can, their feelings for one another deepen.
Soon enough, though, cold reality sets in when the horrors of war threaten to tear their lives, and hearts, apart on a bullet-strewn beach in Normandy.
Review: Well damn! What an awesome little short. It nearly made me cry too.
This is a historical romance set in the 40’s and follows Colin, a young man who is trying to avoid getting married to a girl by joining the army. He has no idea what he’s signed himself for, but he knows one thing. The idea of marrying a woman is repulsive.
So he sets to boot camp and basic training getting acclimated to new level of Hell on Earth and as in by accident meeting Jake.
I say as in by accident because it was so when they both ended in the showers alone after some chore or other and realized they got the hots for each other.
At this point, I feel the need to say how much I loved the introduction of this couple. I loved the way this author made proper use of her limited space to not only give us the idea of how and when and what with this couple, but also managed to convey the feeling, enwrap us with them while not overwhelming us with useless details. We get to see the bond between these two, we get to see the dangers looming and not only because of the impending war (they are still in training thus not on the battlefield yet) and we get to see that they intend to pursue a future.
But life is not easy. War is not a joke. Luck was not with them all the way. Their first battle was the one on Normandy, France. One of the bloodiest battles to come, one every single man who survived it would forever remember.
And all the gay drama of the young man trying to escape marriage, along with the fun and games of boot camp, everything took a turn here with a swift twist and became heavy with feeling, choking you up – in the good way – and even claiming a tear or two.
I did not think this book would be the romance it turned out to be. It was near brilliant for the length and space and quality. I’m awfully happy that the last book of the Charity Event ended up to be the best of them yet.
Publisher: Wilde City Press (September 18th, 2013)
Heat Level: Explicit
Heart Rating: ♥♥♥♥4Hearts
Blurb: Scotty Fuller is a man who demands order. His job as a librarian gives him the solace he needs, and a BDSM club provides him with the kind of entertainment he craves. That is until a cute young college student threatens to unglue his carefully pieced-together life and rip open old wounds.
Wesley Reese is a shy college student with a problem: he’s crushing on the librarian. On a dare, he asks the handsome older man on a date, but dating Scotty requires more from Wesley than he can give. When the bondage restraints come out, Wesley knows he’s in too deep.
Will he change for love? Will he lose himself forever? Or will each man finally be… Cherished?
Review: Scotty is an accidental dominant. He lives the lifestyle because he demands respect and control, and the only place he’s ever found it is within the BDSM lifestyle. He is not cruel though, he believes in protecting the integrity of the lifestyle as well as the submissives. Wesley is an Art student that is crushing big time on Scotty. He finally approaches him and asks him out on a dare. He’s not exactly a submissive, but he would do just about anything for Scotty.
Wesley quickly breaks through nearly every barrier Scotty has built, finding his way to his heart. Scotty wages an inner battles between his heart and mind, afraid to give up the control his dominate side provides and let Wesley into his heart. The last guy he trusted betrayed him. His life has been a misery of misplaced trust and betrayal. Can he truly give himself to Wesley and not be broken, again?
Scotty and Wesley are complete opposites who could have a chance at happiness if they can find a balance of love, trust, and compromise. Each one struggles with the possibility of a relationship at different times throughout the story, and for differing reasons. Sex is never really an issue, aside from Scotty trying his damnedest to exert his control as a Dom at the start, but learning somewhere along the way, he’s just as happy to submit.
This was a very powerful read, I know that is a strong word, but it’s the only one that comes to mind at the moment. York managed to find a balance between the pain and grief inflicted upon her characters, leveling out that content with love and passion. Scotty is assured in his role as a Dom, being the caring boyfriend is new and dangerous territory for him. Wesley isn’t a virgin, but his inexperience mixed with his strong personality make it difficult for him to completely be a sub. Where do they find their balance; can they?
The violence in the story is appalling, possibly because I can see the reality in it. If you are a fan of BDSM and stories with a struggle that finds a conclusion, then this would be a book for you. There is some nasty, steamy, passionate sex peppered throughout as well. Bonus!
Blurb: Jay should be a very happy slave boy. His new master is young, hot, affectionate, and no stricter than he needs to be. Also, rich now, thanks to one night’s hectic gambling. But the man who lost all that money – and his slave boy too – wants his revenge. He wants everything back, including Jay, and he’ll do whatever it takes to achieve his goal.
It’s dangerous to challenge so much wealth and influence, let alone to defeat them – and that’s only the start of the trouble for Jay and his master Jensen. Jay has a secret, that he’s kept hidden from all the men who’ve owned him. Now that’s going to lead him and his master too down strange roads in stranger company, and into deadly danger, eventually into Hell itself…
Review: At first, I wasn’t sure how much I liked slaveboy Jay’s monologues but I warmed up to him. This story really was a clever tale! It’s difficult to create an entire fantasy world and bring a reader into it convincingly and I really became entwined into the fantasy writing. I quickly became aware of how intelligent the devious slave boy Jay was, and the author really played into the sub/need to serve mindset Jay has. The idea of real mage guilds and magic is was very alluring to me. One of the best aspects about this story is how, at first, I was decidedly turned off by Jensen, but grew to like and then admire him as the story went on. The book has lots of adventure, fantasy, steamy sexual encounters, plenty of D/s, and an intriguing world of magic, demons, and power. This is an enjoyable read, moves swiftly, and is engaging. Though Gambling Heart is part of the Tales of Amaranth series, the story easily stands alone.
Publisher: Silver Publishing (21st September 2013)
Heat Level: Moderate
Heart Rating: ♥♥♥ 3 Hearts
Reviewer: Pixie
Blurb:Jack and Sean have started a new life in Mexico. Though happy together, nightmares begin to haunt both men. Are they hallucinating, or are they about to find out that monsters are real and lurking just around the corner?
In this sequel to the best-selling book, Haywire, Jack Connors, and Sean Delaney, who’ve survived being hunted down by aliens, are living under assumed names in Mexico. They’re finally getting over the events which sent them into hiding, but Jack is taunted by nightmares of his son, Nicky, calling out to him. Jack is traumatized as these episodes become more frequent, and he starts to worry that the secret government agency that was creating hybrid human-alien babies–of which his son, Nicky, and Sean’s son, David, were part of the horrifying program–has found them.
Sean tries to calm Jack, assuring him that he is just paranoid and fearful. Nobody knows who they are. But then strange things start to happen. Jack is shocked when he and Sean meet a US Marshal who claims to be on vacation in Mexico, but is he really? Is Jack losing the plot? The marshal is traveling with his wife and daughter. Can it be a coincidence…or is something terrible about to happen?
Review:This story is part of a series and must be read in order. Jack and Sean have settled in Mexico, having survived the aliens who hunted them they still keep their heads down as much as they can. When Jack starts to have dreams about his ‘son’ Nicky and Sean admits to dreams of his ‘son’ David the suspicions that they aren’t safe begin to mount but seeing an US Marshall with a daughter who looks just like their sons have them ready to flee.
Well, we are again brought into the spear of aliens infiltrating the world, with children used to bring the adults to their knees and a desperate fight for survival. Jack and Sean have come a long way from Haywire, building a new life far from those that hunt them, but with the dreams coming they begin to realize that those that want them haven’t given up their hunt. But, before they can move on again their nightmares come knocking. Sean and Jack get separated and have to find their way back to each other, but things become complicated when Sean remembers what the numbers mean and he becomes one of Earths last chances of survival.
I thought Haywire was trippy with the confusion of what was and what wasn’t real and we are again treated to the doubts as Sean and Jack take control and fight not only the aliens but their memories as well. Sean comes to the fore in this story as his past is fully remembered and the aliens are desperately trying to reclaim both Jack and Sean. The flickers in time as the scenes change are jolting and you again begin to wonder what is real and what is dreams and wishful hopes, you can clearly see how both men still love their sons and wish it had all been real and you can only admire them as they refuse to give in and accept the blissful false by clinging to the nightmare truth. Sean’s secrets that he forgot really bring this story to life as we realize that the aliens have nearly conquered large parts of Earth, and the secrets that were locked in Sean’s mind could bring liberation for all.
I recommend this to those who love science fiction, secret alien invasions, a love that overcomes mind control, a great twist and a wonderful sweet ending.
Blurb: Hollywood script supervisor Pippo Baker has always been unlucky in love; therefore, he enjoys his fantasies. His idea of a dream man is James Bond. So when the opportunity arises to test out Aston Martins in a snow drive in St. Moritz, Switzerland, it doesn’t take much for his roommate, Michael, to persuade him to throw caution to the winter winds and go. Pippo is excited about accompanying Michael on the luxury two-day extravaganza promoted by the European car company. The only drawback is that Pippo realizes too late that his holiday on ice has labeled him a “spectator only.” It’s the story of his life.
But then something happens, something magical and quite fitting with his dreams. He meets Scottish racecar driver, Kethin Teague, on the flight to Zurich and their mutual attraction is instant. Now Pippo discovers that, sometimes real men are better than the dream ones. And he’s about to find out just how much better they really are in the snow-kissed mountains on his very first snow drive.
Review: A little wild, a little wacky and a whole lot of fun to read, this is an engaging story about taking chances when they come your way.
Pippo’s life is about to change, the pilot for the show he’s worked for is ending and he doesn’t see a new one on the horizon. His roommate Michael, an actor, wants him to take a once in a lifetime vacation, test driving the new Aston Martins in the snow of St. Moritz. But, Pippo leaves the detail to Michael and finds out that his ticket is for a spectator only, he won’t get to drive. He’ll be on the sidelines looking on as he does with the rest of his life.
On the flight over there, he meets driver Kethin and the sparks are instant. However, as usual in his life there are speed bumps along the way to happy ever after, like his ex-lover Cory showing up. Too long showers, love interests falling asleep, love on a train, lederhosen filled dreams and drunken roommates to name a few.
I loved the small insights into the television world workings as well as the running joke throughout this story, wardrobe problems, Michael’s lobster claws, Pippo’s haiku poems and other various things that happen to Pippo along the way. This was a funny story with well-written characters that I truly enjoyed.
Blurb: What can wolf-shifter Jake Taylor do when the man he loves, his fated mate Daniel Brooks, is not only human but also straight?
Being forced to share a room with his unclaimed mate is painful enough for Jake, so how will he cope when Daniel starts returning from nights out in the local clubs with a woman’s scent all over him?
For Daniel, living with the man he has always longed for, life has been just as unhappy and he has had to come up with ways to protect his heart. Though the tactics he used to hide his true feelings allow him to keep his love for Jake hidden, they also tear him up inside and he does not know how much longer he can continue.
With everything else going on, can Jake and Daniel break through their long-held misunderstandings and really see each other’s hearts? Will they ever truly learn they belong together? Forever.
Review:This story is part of a series and is best read in order. Wolf shifter Jake has longed for his mate for years. Being in close contact is getting harder and harder, but he refuses to claim a man who is straight and has never shown any interest other than friendship. Daniel has kept his sexuality hidden from his friends and workmates, as a way to hide his attraction to Jake, knowing Jake could meet his fated mate at any time. After one night together, Daniel disappears and Jake begins to go feral, and when Daniel reappears, will it be too late to save Jake?
This story starts somewhere around-about half way through book one and is from Jake’s and Daniel’s perspectives. Jake has known since he first met Daniel that they were mates but Daniel was seventeen so he decided to wait, but then thought Daniel was straight so has left him alone and has suffered from unrequited love. Daniel has always been attracted to Jake but understands a little about the mate business and because he doesn’t want his heart ripped out later, he pretends to be straight as a way to handle his attraction to Jake. When their misunderstanding is finally corrected, they have more challenges ahead.
This is a pretty good paranormal story that begins to clear up the threat to the paranormals that we were introduced to in Alpha Second. Jake and Daniel make a fantastic couple. Once they both reveal their true feelings, they are smoking hot and super sexy. Both men have hidden their feelings for the other thinking they were protecting themselves, but really, they have only been hurting each other. Daniel dives into trying to discovering what information they found when they rescued the captives and Jake continues to keep everyone safe. I did enjoy this story, but I could never figure out why Daniel pretended to be straight? So he wanted to throw others off his attraction to Jake, fine, but he could have done that easily enough with his true sexuality. The storyline continues with the Michaelson thread and the relocation of the rescued paranormals. it was nice to see how they were all taken care of and the discovery of mates for some of Perry’s pack.
I recommend this to those who love paranormals coming to the rescue, misunderstanding and miscommunication, hot sex, new discoveries and a great ending for Daniel and Jake.
Blurb: Blake is not thrilled when his friend concocts idea, which will have him tagging along whenever his pride mates decide to meet with members of neighboring pride, Golden Grass. The only bright spot is that Golden Grass enforcer Luc LeBleu is supposed to do the same. A spark of attraction between them quickly sizzles into encompassing fire. It’s not that Blake has a problem going after what he wants and he definitely wants Luc and the feeling seems to be mutual—except that they are both pride enforcers and it could turn ugly quickly if anyone finds out.
The situation once again spins out of control, but the way prides handle it isn’t something Blake was expecting. He is for all intents and purposes, now mated to Luc.
What is he supposed to do when random attacks starts happening in both prides? Who is he supposed to trust?
He wants to protect Luc. He is just not sure from whom.
Review: Blake is the enforcer for his pride and is annoyed when he is reduced to being a babysitter when the younger pride mates want to go clubbing, but at least he has company that is a joy to look at. Luc is Blake’s equal in the neighboring pack and he has no trouble with keeping Blake company in nightclubs. The pride Elders in both prides have come up with a plan keep the younger pride mates from causing trouble, but when the plan fails they resort to a custom that is very little used and Blake and Luc find themselves able to act on their attraction. But someone is unhappy and as things heat up, danger comes, and Blake and Luc prove to the prides that an alliance is worthwhile.
This is a great paranormal story that has a great pride structure and some great characters. Blake is a member of the Black Shadows jaguar pride and has a fierce attraction for his counterpart, Luc, in the Golden Grass lions pride, but a relationship would be frowned upon as they still have tentative peace between the prides. They are thrown together as they keep their younger pride mates in line but when that fails they are bonded together and it gives them both the excuse to act on their attraction. But some of their prides don’t want peace, set out to cause trouble, and as enforcers it is Luc’s and Blake’s place to find out who they are.
I really did enjoy this story and I loved how the prides were set up so there wasn’t just one person in charge, the storyline was interesting, and we meet some wonderful characters. Luc and Blake are two smoking hot characters who are attracted to each other but have to ignore it because of the tensions within their prides. When they can finally act on it, they burn up the sheets and connect together perfectly. They also face problems from within the packs as some pride mates don’t want peace between the prides and cause as much trouble as they can even if it endangers the young. Luc and Blake are great characters and this story fits them perfectly. The connecting of the prides to make it easier for them all is pretty interesting but we only get it from Luc and Blake’s perspective so although we see the mating bond take place we don’t really see how it happens other than some of the Elders chanting. My one bugbear with this story was the editing, I found it to be poor in places, and it really detracted the story.
I recommend this to those who love paranormals coming to understandings, hot man on man sex, a touch of danger, an interesting storyline and really hot sexy ending.
UNOFFICIAL BLURB (many thanks to Lisa TNA Reviews, The Novel Approach):
Eric Arvin resides in the same sleepy Indiana river town where he grew up. He graduated from Hanover College with a Bachelors in History. He has lived, for brief periods, in Italy and Australia. He has survived brain surgery and his own loud-mouthed personal demons. Eric is the author of Woke Up In A Strange Place, Subsurdity, Simple Men, Galley Proof,and various other sundry and not-so-sundry writings. He intends to live the rest of his days with tongue in cheek and eyes set to roam.
About TJ Klune:
Title: Ghoul’s Gym
