Walking on Water by Matthew J. Metzger Blog Tour, Interview, Excerpt & Giveaway!

Matthew J. Metzger - Walking on Water Tour Banner

Hi guys, we have Matthew J. Metzger visiting today with his new release Walking on Water, we have a great interview with Matthew, a tasty excerpt and a brilliant giveaway, so check out the post and enter the giveaway! <3 ~Pixie~

Walking on Water

by

Matthew J. Metzger

When a cloud falls to earth, Calla sets out to find what lies beyond the sky. Father says there’s nothing, but Calla knows better. Something killed that cloud; someone brought it down.

Raised on legends of fabled skymen, Calla never expected them to be real, much less save one from drowning—and lose her heart to him. Who are the men who walk on water? And how can such strange creatures be so beautiful?

Infatuated and intrigued, Calla rises out of her world in pursuit of a skyman who doesn’t even speak her language. Above the waves lies more than princes and politics. Above the sky awaits the discovery of who Calla was always meant to be. But what if it also means never going home again?

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What It Looks Like by Matthew J. Metzger Excerpt, Review & Giveaway!

Matthew J. Metzger - What It Looks Like GraphicOne s

Hi peeps, we have Matthew J. Metzger stopping by with his new release What It Looks Like, we have a great excerpt, a brilliant giveaway and Shorty’s review, so check out the post and click that giveaway link <3 ~Pixie~

Matthew J. Metzger - What It Looks Like Cover

What It Looks Like

by

Matthew J. Metzger

Eli Bell is the only son of a police chief inspector and a forensic scientist. He’s grown up wonky in a world that only deals with the straight and narrow — and his new boyfriend isn’t helping.

Rob Hawkes is six feet of muscle, tattoos, and arrest warrants. A career criminal and a former guest of Her Majesty’s Prison Service, he’d rather hit Eli’s parents than sit down to dinner with them. One wrong move, and Rob could destroy Eli — and his family — without a second thought.

But this isn’t what it looks like.

Rob’s not in control here — and Eli’s the one to blame.

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What It Looks Like by Matthew J. Metzger Release Blitz & Giveaway!

Matthew J. Metzger - What It Looks Like GraphicOne s

Hi peeps, we have Matthew J. Metzger stopping by with his new release What It Looks Like, we have a great excerpt and a brilliant giveaway so check out the post and click that giveaway link <3 ~Pixie~

Matthew J. Metzger - What It Looks Like Cover

What It Looks Like

by

Matthew J. Metzger

Eli Bell is the only son of a police chief inspector and a forensic scientist. He’s grown up wonky in a world that only deals with the straight and narrow — and his new boyfriend isn’t helping.

Rob Hawkes is six feet of muscle, tattoos, and arrest warrants. A career criminal and a former guest of Her Majesty’s Prison Service, he’d rather hit Eli’s parents than sit down to dinner with them. One wrong move, and Rob could destroy Eli — and his family — without a second thought.

But this isn’t what it looks like.

Rob’s not in control here — and Eli’s the one to blame.

Continue reading “What It Looks Like by Matthew J. Metzger Release Blitz & Giveaway!”

The Devil's Trill Sonata by Matthew J. Metzger

20935687 Title: The Devil’s Trill Sonata

Series: Vivaldi In the Dark, #2

Author: Matthew J. Metzger

Genre: Contemporary/Depression/Young Love

Length: Novel (267 pages)

Publisher: JMS Books (March 2nd, 2014)

Heat Level: Mild

Heart Rating:
♥♥♥♥ 4Hearts

Blurb: Sequel to Vivaldi in the Dark

Three years after that first meeting in a theatre storeroom, Jayden Phillips and Darren Peace are separating for the first time, trading in school for the trappings of adult life. Jayden has achieved his dream of a place at Cambridge University; Darren has achieved his own of escaping the Cold War of home and tasting true independence for the first time.

A hundred miles apart and embarking on two very different paths, Jayden feels it is inevitable that time and distance will slowly pull them apart. School relationships, after all, don’t last. Darren disagrees — at first. Love is all they need, and they have weathered harder storms than chasing dreams.

That is until the separation, and the encroaching influence of Jayden’s new friends, begins to take its toll on Darren’s mental state. Alone, he descends in a rapid downward spiral that is finally arrested by one night and a drastic course of action. In the wake of a single unanswered phone call, Jayden learns that time and distance have the power to do much more than break a relationship.

The dream is over — and the reality is far, far worse.

Product Link: http://www.smashwords.com/extreader/read/419060/1/the-devils-trill-sonata

Reviewer:  GiGi

Review: Jayden and Darren are back, this time facing new hurdles to their growing relationship and maturing lives. This story would be about the usual young love, tested by time and distance, which the odds are stacked against, but add to that one partner suffering from depression and you have even more trouble. Both fight an inner conflict about the distance college and job training are now putting between them as Jayden goes off to his dream of studying at Cambridge and Darren moves farther south to train as a crime scene investigator with the police force. They both know the odds, both Jayden and Darren struggle inwardly about whether or not it would just be better to break up now, instead of a slow drift apart. Even new friends suggest that high school love doesn’t last beyond college. But Darrin is determined to make it work, and Jayden is in love and can’t fold either. The pressure of new friends and the crazy workload at Cambridge are wearing Jayden down. He feels pressured to fit in with his snobby new friends and feels the distance between him and Darren grows each painful day.

Darren feels his depression creeping in, even the on the job training demands can’t keep him distracted, he’s starting to feel numb, even to the pain of Jayden drifting away. This story seems darker than Vivaldi in the Dark does, at least for me it brought me down to some very emotional lows. I held very little hope for the young couple, and became frustrated with the lack of coping mechanisms Darren had, not to mention how spineless Jayden became without him.

Parts of the story seemed to slow down and get drawn out, become …well….depressing. Which is kinda what the books is all about. Unfortunately, the main characters don’t pull their heads out of their bums in time to avoid a very tragic incident. Don’t worry though, the ending will satisfy you…but I think there’s more in store for our maturing couple.

This was yet another very well written story, very smooth, and the transitions in POV were clear. The sexual content is appropriate for YA readers, it’s intimate, but it’s vague. I felt the distance between Jayden and Darrin, and I felt the frustration too, the writing was most successful at that. I’m glad that in the end, Darren and Jayden didn’t just learn to cope with Darren’s depression. They took steps to learn to treat it. Empowering and encouraging!

Vivaldi in the Dark by Matthew Metzger

20653514Title: Vivaldi in the Dark

Series:  N/A

Author: Matthew Metzger

Genre: Coming of Age/Coming Out/Young Adult

Length: Novel (296 pages)

Publisher: Queerteen Press (December 8th, 2013)

Heat Level: Mild

Heart Rating:
  ♥♥♥♥♥5Hearts

Blurb: Out-and-regretting-it comprehensive attendee Jayden Phillips turns his cast-iron plans for life upside-down by falling in love with private-school violinist Darren Peace, a sardonic boy with the craziest hair Jayden’s ever seen.

But all is not what it seems, and Jayden’s bullying problem becomes meaningless when he is confronted with what the music does to Darren. How do you stop a dangerous depression rooted in the same thing that makes someone what they are? Dark moods, blank apathy, and the undertow of self-loathing all simmer beneath Darren’s dry and beautiful veneer and Jayden feel powerless to stop them.

Then a mugging gone wrong takes the music forcibly away, and Jayden is finally given the chance to change Darren’s life — and, quite literally, his mind.

Product Link: http://www.queerteen-press.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=2&products_id=112

Reviewer:   GiGi

Review: This is a great YA read, about coming of age, sexual discovery and coming out. There is also so much more, including the topics of bullying and depression.

Jayden and Darren come into their relationship with different obstacles. Jayden has a couple supportive friends and a family that does not necessarily know about him being gay. They are otherwise very supportive and loving. His school life is made hell by constant bullying and his confidence in the matter is very lacking. Darren has a couple of great friends who suspect he might be gay, seems outwardly confident, defends Jayden against his bullies, has oodles of talent but a family that is cold and distant with high expectations. Both these boys feel the pressure, but are powerfully drawn to each other and let a slowly burning relationship build without too much sexual pressure. Their bond keeps growing and Jayden is excited but Darren has to disclose his serious bouts of depression. Is it too much for a young boyfriend to handle?

This book deals with the very serious issues of bullying and depression which all by themselves can be debilitating, add to that the pressures of coming out and your first fumbling sexual relationships. These topics are handled so well, and the young love between the two main characters taken seriously and treated delicately. Depression, which is such a vague term in reality, is handled so very well in this story. The description of the depression, the results of the “bad days” are felt in such a way as to make them feel real, not just words on a page but a weight on my chest. I’m very impressed with this young adult story.

The sexual encounters are vague but honest, and the two different family reactions to their gay sons are a great illustration of the choices individuals have to accept, or lose their children’s trust. I loved this book. There are some harrowing times, but one is left hopeful and excited for both main characters as they face these hurdles and leap forward into the future.