Tag: Becky Black

Assumed Dead by Becky Black

Becky Black - Assumed Dead CoverTitle: Assumed Dead

Author: Becky Black

Genre: Horror, Zombies

Publisher: Loose ID (June 14, 2016)

Length: Novel (294 Pages)

Heat Level: Low

Heart Rating: ♥♥♥♥♥ 5 Hearts

Blurb: The zombie apocalypse left twelve people trapped, but safe, at a scientific research base on an Arctic island. Three years later, with supplies critically low, they know they can’t survive another harsh winter. But all of them fear what awaits them on the mainland.

Former grad student, Matt Warner, has retrained as a nurse under the group’s doctor, Peter Lane. Training is not the only thing Matt wants to be under Peter for, but Peter has always resisted responding to Matt’s interest in him. Before all this started Peter had a husband, Harrison, back home. A husband he desperately hopes is still alive.

Despair finally weakens Peter’s resolve and he and Matt begin sharing a bed. It’s Matt’s dream come true, even if he knows Peter’s feelings for him aren’t as strong as his for Peter. But everything changes, when the group learns of the existence of a vaccine against the zombie virus and they escape the island to search for the people distributing the vaccine. Matt fears their relationship won’t survive, because Peter wants to search for his husband—even if only to confirm his death. And Peter knows if he goes looking for Harrison, he’ll lose Matt forever.

ISBN: 978-1-68252-148-9

Product Link: http://www.loose-id.com/assumed-dead.html

Reviewer: Lisa

Review: Ok I am done laughing now; I really should pay attention to more than just the title or the hot men on a cover when I choose a book.  However this was one of the good choices.  I have never been a fan of horror books or even movies, but for some strange reason I love to read or watch anything with zombies.  

I would have never thought during the zombie apocalypse to head to the Arctic’s but then again these guys were there when the whole thing went down.  Twelve people surviving and learning to live with one another.  However you can only eat caribou and eggs for so long.  Peter has been married for some time but three years they have not seen one another.  He has no idea if Harrison is even alive.  He kept pure for that bond, but damn if Matt is not getting to him.

Matt is a former grad student and is being trained by Peter to be a nurse.  He also has the hots for Peter, but the man doesn’t return his feelings.  Then the zombie’s start showing up on their island and Peter realizes that he does have feelings for Matt.  However he still needs to know if Harrison is alive or dead, he has to make choices.  

I love the little twist to this story, although I have to say I kind of knew the outcome for both of my questions before I got to it in the story.  It was a fairly easy step to take.  I normally don’t like to read books by author’s that I have not heard of or read, but damn if this author is not going to be a favorite of mine.  I can’t wait to see what other stories she has out.  Danger, zombies, freezing temp’s, fear and hot sex is just a bit of what you get in this story.  Let’s just say that it rocked and I hope to see more stories like this one from this author.  Way to go!  

2016 Top Ten Gay Romance from JMS Books Release Blitz, Excerpt & Giveaway!

2016 Top Ten Gay Romance Banner

Hi guys, we have the JMS Books anthology 2016 Top Ten Gay Romance stopping by today to celebrates it’s release, we have a great excerpt and a brilliant giveaway, so check out the post and click that giveaway link <3 ~Pixie~

2016 Top Ten Gay Romance Cover

2016 Top Ten Gay Romance

by

Becky Black, T.A. Creech, Rebecca James, Shawn Lane, J.L. Merrow, A.R. Moler, Terry O’Reilly, Michael P. Thomas, Tinnean, J.D. Walker. Edited by J.M.Snyder

2016 Top Ten Gay Romance brings together the best-selling short stories published by JMS Books that year.

From first love to true love, from submission to sensual, from heat to sweet and everything in between, the couples in these stories are sure to keep you turning the pages as you fall in love with them. The 10 stories in this head-over-heels collection go beyond bedtime reading. Whether happily ever after or happy for now, there’s an ending for everyone in here!

Contains the stories:

· Me and My Big Mouth by Becky Black 
· Captive by T.A. Creech 
· Love Lost, Love Found by Rebecca James 
· Accidentally His by Shawn Lane 
· A Pint of Beer, a Bag of Chips, and Thou by J.L. Merrow 
· For the Last Time by A.R. Moler 
· First and Goal by Terry O’Reilly
· It’s Not Yule, It’s Me by Michael P. Thomas 
· In His Line of Work by Tinnean 
· And This is Ed by J.D. Walker

Continue reading “2016 Top Ten Gay Romance from JMS Books Release Blitz, Excerpt & Giveaway!” →

Dream for Me by Becky Black

dreamforme_beckyblackTitle: Dream for Me
Author: Becky Black
Genre: Sci-Fi
Length: Novel (219 pages)
Publisher: Loose ID (July 8th 2014)
Heat Level: Moderate to Explicit
Heart Rating: ♥♥♥♥♥ 4.5 Hearts
Reviewer: Tams
Blurb: In a society awake for twenty-four hours a day a man who sleeps is a freak. But not to neurobiologist Shay Mistry. Jacob Garcia, the last known sleeper in America, is the test subject whose brain Shay has been dying to get his hands on for years. When they meet, Shay discovers the sleeper’s brain comes accompanied by a gorgeous body and a hostile attitude. As Jacob sleeps night after night in his lab, it’s harder and harder for Shay to resist their mutual attraction.

Jacob is tired of being a lab rat, but he’s got his reasons to be in Shay’s lab—one of them he’s not going to tell anyone about—and his plan is to do what he came to do and leave. So falling in love with Shay is like adding a hand grenade to all the other balls he’s juggling. He doesn’t need this added complication, but his desire for Shay is too strong to resist. When Jacob’s secret comes out it triggers a chain of events leaving Shay irrevocably changed and forcing Jacob to choose where his loyalties lie.

Purchase Link: http://www.loose-id.com/dream-for-me.html
Review: Jacob Garcia has spent the better part of his life in labs, an anomaly, only worth what he can give the doctors and scientists that are studying him. In a world where no one sleeps, Jacob is a sleeper, someone who can still dream. Shay Mistry is one of those doctors that only value Jacob for what they can find during REM, or is he?

There is an attraction there from the start. Jacob can tell by the way Shay looks at him, his eyes full of hunger, lust and need. Hesitant to explore any type of romantic relationship with Jacob because of his sleep study, Shay resists as much as he can. But chemistry ignites when Shay is faced with Jacob leaving town. Lust sends Shay to Jacob’s apartment, but emotion keeps him there. Having never really experienced tenderness and love, Shay is entranced with the man who really see’s him.

All the while Jacob is romancing Shay, there is a threat brewing behind the scenes. A group of sleeper’s that are hiding out in a place they call Nyx have been working on a study of their own, a way to make everyone sleep again. And the final piece of that puzzle is Shay. Can Jacob stop his people, his own family from unleashing a germ that could not only make everyone sleep again, but quite possibly kill people as well? Will he choose his family or the man he loves?

This was a very vivid and detailed future that Black wrote that could very well be based as reality. The arguments from both sides as to why things should either stay as they were, or be changed back to how they were, were both compelling and sound. And the forced sterilization aspect on sleepers so no more would be born is so much like something our government would do, it’s frightening! The writing was so descriptive that I could actually envision this Denver in my mind.

My only complaint, which may sound odd to some, I don’t like sex in a book just for the sake of having sex. If it doesn’t advance the story or add to the characters in some way, it should be either left out of just alluded to. While I love a sweaty, sexy, passionate romp between two men, a couple of times it seemed forced or thrown in to add page count. Aside from that, I was intrigued throughout with this story. I’ve never read another story like it, where the norm is always awake.

This one is a must read for Sci-Fi fans. It’s passionate, romantic, fast paced and engaging.

Smoke in My Eyes by Becky Black

91LSerLRJOL._SL1500_Title: Smoke in My Eyes

Series:   NA

Author: Becky Black

Genre: Contemporary

Length:   Short (45 pages)

Publisher: JMS Books (October 16th, 2013)

Heat: Mild

Heart: ♥♥♥3Hearts

Reviewer:   Eli/Mandingo

Blurb: After a decade together, death took Daniel’s lover away in an instant. A year of grieving kept him from thinking about the future. But now fearing loneliness, fearing aging and its effects, he’s ready to find someone new before it’s too late. Filled with good intentions, Daniel joins a gym. He plans to work hard to keep what time is all too quickly taking away from him. But are good intentions enough against the many distractions and temptations of life? Is he really prepared to make the sacrifices required? Meeting gym owner Chris may be the extra boost his motivation needs — if only he could figure out why Chris keeps blowing hot and cold on him.

Death claimed Chris’s lover too, but took much longer about it. The memory of watching the man he loved suffer has left Chris terrified of getting close to anyone again. He likes Daniel a lot, but there’s a problem and Chris can’t fix it, only Daniel can. If he’s serious about being with Chris. It’s a straightforward ultimatum. Daniel smokes and Chris will not date a smoker. Daniel has a choice. It’s Chris or the cigarettes.

Daniel has to prove to Chris that he’s ready to make changes and he’s not all mouth. But can he do it? Are the sacrifices he’ll have to make worth it? Should he even be changing himself to suit a man who’s made him no promises and who might still back off later? Chris has to learn to accept Daniel’s imperfections and mortality. Only once he gets past the grief and fear can he take a risk on loving Daniel, even knowing he could be hurt again.

Daniel takes on the biggest physical challenge he’s ever faced to prove he’s serious about Chris. But in the end, he has to decide if he wants to make the changes for himself and his own future, whether Chris is part of that or not.

Purchase Link:   http://www.jms-books.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=945

Review: Well the blurb is going to be much longer than the actual review.  The blurb left little for the reader to actually experience because the entire plotline is revealed. The only thing left to really discover is if you liked ‘how’ the author told the story. The theme of the story is change and one’s motivation to change.  Daniel must find his motivation to become healthy and live a new life and Chris must find his motivation to simply move on from the past.  Both men have to prove things more to themselves than to each other.  This is accomplished through Daniel’s eyes since this is his story.  He moves himself to a new reality and is thus able to move Chris to a new reality as well. 

The story takes place over six months and the interaction between the men is real to what one would or could expect with men both grieving and needing to come to grips with their new reality. Daniel’s journey to physical fitness was interesting to read, but I’d have liked to have read more about his interaction with his fellow athletes and any hook ups he might have had.  But the key is that his journey focused on him and not on his pining for Chris.  It is only after he found himself that Chris returned to the picture.

The best part of the book is the end when both men are able to accept the changes that they’ve each made and you are able to envision what a future for them could be like.  Not a bad short read, I recommend in between flights at an airport.

Patient Z by Beck Black

18218754Title: Patient Z

Series: N/A

Author: Becky Black

Genre: Post-Apocalyptic

Length: Novel

Publisher: Loose Id (July 23rd, 2013)

Heat Level: Explicit

Heart Rating: ♥♥♥♥♥4.5 Hearts

Reviewer: Thommie

Blurb: Two years ago, the zombie apocalypse wiped out the world police officer Mitch Kennedy had a role in. But he’s found a way to continue doing his duty, serving as guardian of a small community of survivors, living in the safest place they can find. When the group takes in Cal Richardson Mitch can’t help but be attracted to the first available–and incidentally, gorgeous–man to cross his path in months.

Mitch and Cal can’t resist each other physically, but each man tries to hold back his emotions. Though he’s strong on the outside, Mitch is too badly hurt inside to risk more pain. Cal’s very sure he won’t stay for long. He’s been a drifter all his life and it came naturally to him to survive alone after civilization fell. He’s sure this is a temporary stopover for him. He has no intention of becoming emotionally involved with a cop who is certain to despise Cal when he learns the truth about him.

But the longer Cal stays the stronger his urge to run, but the harder it becomes to give up the safety of the community and his new friends. The harder it becomes to give up Mitch.

Product Link: http://www.loose-id.com/patient-zero.html

Review: Post-Apocalyptic books are so very tricky in my opinion. You’re either going to love them or you’re going to hate them, nothing in between. At least that’s how I’m affected. Zombies? Oh God, the very notion is horribly appealing. You hate them but you can’t stand away from them, and you pray that it’s well written so that they don’t turn your stomach the bad way. I’m sure there are many half-arsed works out there, grabbing the virus idea, and going bat-crazy with it. This is not the case.

I loved, no adored this book. It made my “Favorite” list without blinking an eye. It was simply brilliant; the plot, the characters, the romance, and damn even the end was bloody fantastic. It starts with a hooking scene, one you can’t say no to, and in a matter of seconds, it has you in its grip, daring you to stop, driving you crazy when you really, really need to take a break.

Cal is found on his boat, nearly dehydrated, and on top of it bitten. (Ah and this is my one issue here. I couldn’t understand how the Doc didn’t understand the difference between a dog bite and a zombie one) He is rescued, shot with a vaccine that is on trial and error phase, shackled and fettered, and observed for a week by the guardians of a small community of survivors.

And what a community that one was. I couldn’t believe it when it was revealed. I didn’t know what to do with that, laugh my head off, or marvel at the brilliance.

Mitch Kennedy, a cop when the world had a meaning, retains some of that past duty with his community of survivors, being their guardian, training their guards, and distrusting everybody. The chemistry between Cal and Mitch, electrifying. The willingness to go for a quickie while transparent from Cal’s side doesn’t even stand a chance with Mitch. There can’t be simple sex between them, not now, not when they’re sharing the same room, not when they’re living, working, surviving together.

The men’s different personalities clash, the strain of their chemistry unbearable, the situation they’re living in when every day could be your last day weights on their heart, and the inevitable is only around the corner. As much as Mitch tried to stay away Cal is a master in seduction, and as much as Cal tried to guard his heart, Mitch is the kind of man who you can’t help but lay it in his feet. The drifter and loner in Cal’s soul gets restless and the steady Mitch can’t do anything to stop him, making him stay.

I absolutely loved this pair. The romance part was fantastic, so hooking, so hot and sexy, so heartbreaking, and so suitable. I kept thinking, this pair is made for each other, and I know, right? This is a piece of fiction, of course this pair was made for each other.

As for the rest of the plot, well there are no words. It was well thought, well executed, kept me on my toes all the time, had my heart beating every time the guys were on raids, and in the end, when Cal does that brilliant stunt that has Bren shouting “He’s the King of the Zombies” oh my, I was half shouting along with Bren and half shaking my head frustration. It took them long enough to figure that out didn’t it? But yeah, that scene was amazing.

In the end there isn’t much left to be said. I love a good post-apoc and this not only didn’t disappoint, but it raised the bar a bit higher. If you’re even remotely fans of the genre, this is a book you must not miss. Strongly recommended!

 

Shoot the Humans First by Becky Black

400000000000001071023_s4Title: Shoot the Humans First

Author: Becky Black

Genre: Science Fiction, Futuristic

Length: Novel (161pgs)

Publisher: Becky Black (15th June 2013)

Reviewer: Pixie

Heat Level: Nil

Heart Rating: ♥♥♥♥4 Hearts

Blurb: Brilliant intelligence analyst, Ilyan, is certain humanity and Earth itself is in imminent danger. High Command refuses to believe it, forcing Ilyan to go on the run, desperate to spread the truth. If he can’t make High Command believe in the threat, then he will take his message to the soldiers on the ground.

Infantryman Jadeth is one of those soldiers. He doesn’t know if its accident or fate that has brought him to Ilyan, but he knows he has only one mission now. He must protect Ilyan and his small band of followers as they travel through hostile territory, spreading the truth. High Command has betrayed humanity, and Jadeth has nothing left to believe in—except The Prophet. Ilyan is determined to reach Earth’s mercenary army, scattered across the galaxy fighting other people’s wars. His new guardian Jadeth must keep him safe from agents of High Command determined to silence him. If Jadeth fails, he will have nothing left. If that happens Earth, will to learn how far a man can go when everything he believed in is lost.

Purchase Link: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/326476  (Free read)

Review: The human race is now a race of soldiers sent out to fight wars for other races, as long as the price is right of course. Intelligence analyst Ilyan has predicted that those races are about to turn on Earth but High Command refuse to listen. Ilyan is forced to run and he is desperate to spread the truth so he goes to those who are on the ground, the soldiers who blindly follow orders of those that have betrayed humanity. Jadeth is one of those soldiers. Jadeth joins up with Ilyan and his small band when the unit he is with is caught up in shellfire, discovering Ilyan’s story he can’t believe the group of nutters are traveling in hostile territories spreading such an outlandish tale, until he remembers an exchange he saw years earlier. Now Jadeth is Ilyan’s guardian keeping the man safe so he can spread the story, but with High Command assassins chasing them, they both know that survival means keeping one foot ahead.

While this story isn’t M/M or a romance it does have, a kinda bromance feel to it as Jadeth gets to know Ilyan. Earth has produced soldiers for other races war for hundreds of years, churning out soldiers is humanities only commodity and they exploit it to the fullest. Ilyan has predicted where war will break out for years, always directing the High Command so they can negotiate a price but when he predicts war will be coming to Earth High Command doesn’t want to know, and Ilyan finds himself on the run spreading the word and dodging the assassins sent after him. Jadeth is just a simple grunt and when he runs across Ilyan’s group he decides to stick with them when he realizes what Ilyan says makes sense, protecting Ilyan becomes his mission and if High Command succeeds then humanity might just be in grave danger.

This is a brilliant science fiction story that has humans doing what they do best, fighting in wars. The storyline is very simple, intelligence agents predict where war will break out, High Command sends out its soldiers to fight for the side that will pay the most, but High Command has a secret, which Ilyan wants to tell everyone so they will believe when he tells them war is coming to Earth. Jadeth finds himself drawn to and protective of Ilyan, both men are straight but there is an undercurrent of admiration. This story carries you across worlds as they spread the truth, avoiding assassins and the High Command and dealing with petty jealousies but betrayal is heading their way and humanity will pay the price.

I recommend this if you love science fiction, futuristic, great characters, a brilliant story, and an ending that will blow you away. 

 

The Company Man by Beck Black

thecompanymanTitle: The Company Man

Series: The Red Dragon 01

Author: Becky Black

Genre: Science Fiction, Space Opera

Length: Novel Plus (257pgs)

Publisher: Loose Id (21st May 2013)

Heat Level: Explicit

Heart Rating: ♥♥♥♥4 Hearts

Reviewer: Pixie

Blurb: Jarvez Kashari travels light, sacrificing relationships for ambition. Alyn Evans is out to establish himself as a company captain. Falling in love was not part of either man’s plans.

Once the pride of the Outer Spiral Trading Company’s fleet, The Red Dragon has been neglected and fallen from its old glory. It’s a ship in need of love – and a new captain.

Alyn Evans is a man in need of a new challenge. He’s an ex-warship captain and peace has put him out of a job. A man of his experience should have no trouble commanding a merchant ship…he thinks. But of all the challenges he faces on his first trip out, the hardest one is keeping his hands off his gorgeous and fascinating company rep, Jarvez Kashari.

Jarvez Kashari is a man with a plan. He’s determined to make a name as the company’s best trader and thinks reviving the fortunes of the Red Dragon is the perfect opportunity to prove himself. Jarvez travels light, sacrificing personal relationships to focus on his ambitions – until he meets Alyn Evans. Falling in love was not part of the plan.

Its four months to Earth. Four months for Alyn to juggle passengers, prisoners, suspicious officers, a resentful crew and the intensifying relationship with Jarvez. Four months in space with a traitor aboard…

Purchase Link: http://www.loose-id.com/the-red-dragon-1-company-man.html

Review: Alyn has accepted a job with a trading company, now that peace has put him out of a job. Being a captain of a merchant ship will be vastly different from being a warship captain, but he is sure it won’t be too hard. Jarvez is a trader and has plans to be the best trader in the company. he just has to prove himself to his family. Alyn is assigned the Red Dragon, a star-ship that has been vastly neglected and abused by the former captain. Jarvez is the new trader for the ship, but his main task is to investigate the corruption aboard the ship. When the two men first meet they are both rocked. A blissful hour the night before has come back to smack them both in the face. Their attraction is fierce, but mixing business and pleasure is never a good idea. They face four months of space travel with a disgruntled crew and a traitor, and they each fight their attraction to the other.

Alyn and Jarvez are well-rounded characters. They both have an idea of what they want from life. Alyn just wants to captain a star-ship and have the respect of his crew. Jarvez wants to be the best trader in the company, working his way to the best trade routes and improving his wealth. Together they have to decide what they truly want when they can no longer ignore their attraction. Especially, when they are on-board a star-ship whose crew are suspicious of them. When they reach the end of their journey, they have new decisions. For Alyn, it’s a choice to stay with a decrepit star-ship and make her glorious again or accept a newer fancier ship. and for Jarvez , it’s improve the current trading route or go for easy money with the larger, more choice, routes…. And then there’s the choice of doing it together or apart.

I really did enjoy this science fiction story, because we have the relationship between Alyn and Jarvez vying with the storyline of corrupt officers and traitors. they were blended well together and I can’t say which I enjoyed more. Jarvez is a man who wants to prove himself to his family. he wants to go far in the company on his own merit so getting involved with the captain of one of the ships is a mistake he wishes never happened. It is interesting to watch Jarvez fight his consuming need to be with Alyn. He doesn’t always succeed, which gives us some explosive passionate scenes. Alyn is much more able to keep his simmering need controlled, but make no mistake; it is just waiting to be unleashed.

I loved the investigation side of the story. Both men not knowing who they can trust but, trying to win the crew over anyway. Jarvez trying to discover who the third traitor is from among the officers, while Alyn tries to put the ship and its crew back together. Then, we have the prisoners who are in the background, just waiting for their shot. The writing is good and flows well. Nothing happens too fast and there are one or two exciting scenes.

I recommend this to those that love science fiction, traitors, mutiny, investigations, great characters, falling in love in difficult situations, hot explosive sex and an ending that is a new beginning for our two MCs.

Traveler's 5: Chrysalis Cage by Becky Black

bb_chrysaliscage_coverhrTitle: Chrysalis Cage

Series: Travelers 5

Author: Becky Black

Genre: MM / Science Fiction

Length: Novel (147 pages)

Publisher: Loose Id(January 28th, 2013)

Reviewer: Thommie

Heat Level: Explicit

Heart Rating: ♥♥♥♥4Hearts

Blurb: Jarrett Blake’s escaping from prison after months of torture and solitary confinement, but his bid for freedom ends when his stolen ship crashes into a remote moon. He wakes to find himself with two broken legs and helpless in the care of Marc Satie, a technician stationed alone at an isolated monitoring station. Marc saved Jarrett’s life, but was it an act of mercy or does he want to claim the reward on Jarrett’s head? It’s a big reward–as befits the most wanted terrorist in the galaxy.

Jarrett gradually recovers under Marc’s care and seduces him, hoping Marc will never turn his lover over to the authorities. As time passes. Jarrett begins to think of it as more than a seduction. Marc is beautiful, gentle and kind and Jarrett’s had none of those things in his life for a long time. He wants Marc at his side permanently.

But Marc has a secret and the exposure of it will show Jarrett he’s been in more danger than he ever realized. Marc is not the man Jarrett thought he was. After the truth comes out, Marc proposes a daring plan. If it succeeds they can walk away together as free men. But they have very different ideas about where they’re walking to.

Product Link: http://www.loose-id.com/travelers-5-chrysalis-cage.html

Review: This was a very good book and I liked it very much, but the entire read I kept thinking how very lonely it was. The story takes place in the moon of a gas planet. Due to a magnetic storm, the moon is abandoned and the only person still living there is a young man, Marc, who is maintaining the observation station. However the story is narrated by Jarrett’s point of view.

Jarrett Blake a rebel of Chindra’s resistance who has finally escaped his Earthen captors. However, he is being pursued and finally his stolen ship is hit. His only thoughts are “let them not take me alive”. Yes, Jarrett would rather die than go back to that black hole where he’s been for nearly two years.

When his ship crashes on a remote moon, a stranger collects him and saves him. A stranger that looks just like an angel, but who is in reality an Earthen man. Jarrett wakes up to find himself severely wounded. Both his legs are broken and he is in the complete mercy of his enemy. His enemy though appears to be quite nice and gentle, Taking care of him almost with reverence. Specters of fear often cross his eyes though and that puts Jarrett in edge. Being for years an outlaw, in the middle of the battle, having killed hundreds and having his life in constant danger makes a man cautious. Jarrett is not a fool and as much as Marc appears to be meek, he can smell the hidden plan in the young man’s head.

Using more patience than ever before Jarrett reveals the young man’s secrets, secrets that put him in immediate danger, secrets that cause even a killer like Jarrett to be afraid. Assessing his situation Jarrett concludes that the only way for a chance in survival is to seduce Mark, make him fall in love and ensure that he’ll be loyal to him.

And just like that the trap has been laid. A trap for both of them in the end as Jarrett is not immune to Marc’s charms. Four months in that little place all alone with each other, planning their way free, getting into shape and loving each other, all with tinged with a layer of desperation. They might just pull it out, or they might lose everything they both are fighting for.

A very intense story from the beginning, Chrysalis Cage kept my attention till the last page and still hasn’t let it go. As much as you get an indication of what’s going on from the early start, the plot is marvelous in that it constantly changes. Subtle changes that you do not expect, but that throw you completely of balance. Characters that surprise you and often leave you with your jaw hanging, making for a very nice read. Even the men’s more intimate relationship is beautiful to see. Witnessing a killer, a terrorist, in action, being in his head, hearing his calculations one moment and his complete abandon the next. Seeing him in constant doubt, never letting go, never trusting too much was the best treat for me.

Very well written, with just the perfect amount of angst and the perfect balance in romance. Even the end was brilliant for me. I suppose should’ve expected it, everything indicated to it, but the little details thrown there had me thinking for a moment that it might end differently.

I loved it; it was a great read and adding fuel to my new-found love for Sci-Fi. Strongly recommended.

 

Higher Ground by Becky Black

Title: Higher Ground

Author: Becky Black

Genre: Science Fiction, Futuristic

Length: Novel (279pgs)

Publisher: Loose Id (28th February 2012)

Heat Level: Explicit

Heart Rating: ♥♥♥♥♥4 ½Hearts

Reviewer: Pixie

Blurb: Zach is impatient and likes to hurry. Adam likes to take it slow and to tease. But, they’d have worked it all out — if only the end of the world hadn’t gotten in the way.

Zach Benesh is sure his prediction is right – the island colony of Zahara is about to sink into the ocean. Adam Gray isn’t as certain, but he’s happy to follow the intense, brilliant geophysicist into the mountains to escape the flooding. Though he’d be even happier without three hundred other people – and their pets – tagging along. He’d like to have Zach all to himself out there.

But Zach’s prediction is right and as disaster begins to unfold towards an unstoppable, inevitable conclusion, the two young scientists must become a team in the fight to save their people. They draw strength from their rapidly developing relationship, but the higher Zach and Adam climb, the more difficult the tests they face – as lovers and as men.

Purchase Link: http://www.loose-id.com/Higher-Ground.aspx

Review: Zach is a geophysicist who has been running tests on a small earthquake in his spare time.   When the results come in he prays they are wrong, but knows they are right and the colony is in grave danger. Adam is a botanist and has just started dating Zach.   He doesn’t know what to believe, but Zach is so sure in his conviction that Adam will follow him and support him while their relationship is pushed along fast and is tested to its youthful limits.

This is a well written story that has good characters, an interesting story-line and a great conclusion. Zach is a genius who is never wrong, but this is one time that he wishes he was.   When he can’t get any of his colleagues to read his findings he goes directly to the people on the Island.  He has some small success, but because of what they face he knows that some of his colleagues and the council are playing with fire. Adam might not be sure of what Zach has discovered, but the lengths that Zach goes to convinces him that Zach really believes the Island will sink and so he makes the decision to support his lover.

I think this story is brilliant… it’s a disaster story on a terraformed planet, a small island sat on a super-volcano, the closest rescue a small outpost 18hrs away, the colony elders disbelieving and 300 people climbing to higher ground. I must admit there wasn’t as much world building as I wanted, but the descriptions that we did get were brilliant.  The characters are interesting and likeable. Zach is just so passionate in his belief that disaster is days away but even as he climbs the mountain and is thrust into a role of leadership he wants to be wrong and you can understand the emotions he is feeling. Adam you can understand why he supports Zach, even if he doesn’t quite believe and the fear that they both go through when the next earthquake strikes is palpable.

The relationship between Adam and Zach had only just begun days before and on their journey it is forced to progress faster than either really wanted and although they declare their love a spanner is thrown in the works by Zach’s jealousy over a new arrival Glyn. This is a great story it’s more than just a romance, it’s about survival and blind trust, it’s about grabbing on to life in a disaster and doing the right thing even in the face of adversity.

I will recommend this to those who love science fiction, disaster movies, life and death situations, a fast paced relationship, hot sex, jealousy and a great story.