Denise

Snowed In by Teodora Kostova : Quick Review

December 15, 2015 by Denise

Be careful what you wish for…

Nate has been in love with Quinn, his brother’s best friend, for as long as he can remember. But when he finally gets the chance to show Quinn how he feels, his heart gets broken in the most unexpected way.

Second chances come when you least expect them…

Quinn doesn’t believe in miracles, especially not Christmas ones. When he decides to win Nate back he knows it won’t be easy. The last thing he expects is a health scare, a road trip and a vicious snow storm to work in his favor.

In the end, a cabin in the woods turns out to be not only the shelter they desperately need, but also Quinn’s very own Christmas miracle.

Sometimes, to forgive, you need to get snowed in…

*Stand alone novella, not connected to any series

Amazon

This holiday novella follows Nate and Quinn, through their very young adulthood for part one. Then again several years later for part two, as they get to their HEA.

Nate was such a sweet young man in part one, who couldn’t wait to see the man he had been in love with since they met. Quinn left town, and broke his heart, and Nate became an angry, promiscuous man, who hated Quinn upon seeing him again.

I will admit, that after Quinn broke Nate’s heart at the end of part one, I was angry myself. I couldn’t read the novella for a while after that, stewing in my anger, much the way Nate seemed to do. When Quinn came back, to win Nate over, I was hesitant at first too, not knowing why Quinn left in the first place. He tried to convince Nate that he wanted him back, that he wanted to make up for the pain he had caused.

I did have a few issues with the characterizations in this novella, though. There might be a few small spoilers ahead, so you are warned.

The brain tumor of Quinn’s roommate led the pack here. Quinn felt beholden to the roommate as he got sick, and that he needed to care for him. That was the type of person he was, wanting to take care of a man who had taken care of him. However, in all honesty, they had been roommates and friends, so why would Quinn choose to hurt a man so tremondously, that he claimed to love, because someone who was a friend was sick? Could it be because he didn’t want Nate to see him struggling to deal with it? Perhaps. Another reason might have been their ages. Making a decision like that, at that age, could very well be what someone would think was best. However, for me, it didn’t strike me as something someone who loves you would do.

In addition, remembering that Nate’s parents had taken in Quinn, much as the roommate had, why would the roommate win over Quinn’s devotion more than Nate? Was it because Nate had his brother and parents, and the roommate had no one? That is entirely possible, but again, I go back to the fact that the roommate was just a friend, and Nate could have easily been a source of support for Quinn as he helped the man die with dignity.

All that being said, I definitely felt the connection between these two. One of the issues sometimes with novellas is they are so fast, it’s hard to feel the connection that the reader wants in order to get to the HEA satisfactorily. In this case, that wasn’t an issue. Because Nate and Quinn had a connection prior to expressing their love to each other, the reader was able to feel that bond reform as they traveled towards Denver, and found themselves at the place that their previous falling out had taken place.

There was so much to love in this novella, two men who tiptoed around each other for years, then had to find a way to go from enemies to lovers, some hot sex scenes (because Teodora can definitely write some of those!), and an awesome cover, that my other issues could be put to the backburner somewhat.

I definitely enjoyed this one, and was glad I got a chance to read it. I would love to read a little more on these men. How they were able to work through some of the lingering anger and fears to solidify their relationship could be an entirely different novella!

3.75 pieces of Eye Candy for me

Hi, my name is Teodora and I live in London with my husband and my son. I’ve been writing ever since I can remember, but it became my full time job a few years ago when I decided that everything else I’ve tried bores me to death and I have to do what I’ve always wanted to do, but never had the guts to fully embrace. I’ve been a journalist, an editor, a personal assistant and an interior designer among other things, but as soon as the novelty of the new, exciting job wears off, I always go back to writing. Being twitchy, impatient, loud and hasty are not qualities that help a writer, because I have to sit alone, preferably still, and write for most of the day, but I absolutely love it. It’s the only time that I’m truly at peace and the only thing I can do for more than ten minutes at a time – my son has a bigger attention span than me.
When I’m procrastinating, I like to go to the gym, cook Italian meals (and eat them), read, listen to rock music, watch indie movies and True Blood re-runs. Or, in the worst case scenario, get beaten at every Nintendo Wii game by a kid.
Don’t be shy and get in touch – I love connecting with my readers.

Blog: www.teodorakostova.blogspot.com

Twitter: @Teodora_Kostova
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/teodorakostovaauthor

E-mail: t.t.kostova@gmail.com

Instagram: teodorika1

What Happens At Christmas by Jay Northcote : Quick Review

December 15, 2015 by Denise

When two friends pose as boyfriends, could what happens at Christmas turn into something more?

Justin is recently and unhappily single. Christmas is coming, and he doesn’t want to face his ex alone at their office party. So Sean—Justin’s best mate and long-time secret crush—volunteers to go with him and pretend to be his new flame.

Sean has always lusted after Justin from afar, but there’s never been a good opportunity to ask him for more than friendship. Posing as Justin’s boyfriend isn’t a chore, and if Justin wants to rebound onto him, Sean’s more than willing. At the party pretence and reality blur, and a kiss on the dance floor leads to a night of passion.

In the aftermath, they both assume it was a one-time thing until fate intervenes. Stuck together in London over the holidays, they give in to temptation again. But what happens at Christmas stays at Christmas… right?

Length: 37,000 words

Amazon

What Happens at Christmas by Jay Northcote combines two of my favorite tropes: friends to lovers and holiday magic. Justin and Sean were both written beautifully. Even though this is a novella, I felt there was plenty of time given to getting to know both characters, as well as explore their feelings for one another.

It would have been so easy for this story to take a turn into a cheesy mess, but the author never went that far. It was a perfect balance between Sean and Justin trying to play their parts in front of Justin’s ex and them trying to decide whether to hide or reveal their own feelings.

Even though it would have been plausible if they had jumped right into the sack, I appreciated that there was a bit of build up to them doing the deed. It made their connection that much stronger and believable.

I’m not typically a fan of novellas because they always leave me feeling like something’s missing, but that was NOT the case this time. I feel confident that Justin and Sean are on their way to a great new life together and will stand the test of time!

This book has already been added to my holiday collection and I can’t wait until next year when I can enjoy it all over again!

5 pieces of Eye Candy

Winter Wonderland by Heidi Cullinan : Quick Review

December 14, 2015 by Denise

Finding Mr. Right can be a snow lot of fun.

Minnesota Christmas, Book 3

Paul Jansen was the only one of his friends who wanted a relationship. Naturally, he’s the last single man standing. No gay man within a fifty-mile radius wants more than casual sex.

No one, that is, except too-young, too-twinky Kyle Parks, who sends him suggestive texts and leaves X-rated snow sculptures on his front porch.

Kyle is tired of being the town’s resident Peter Pan. He’s twenty-five, not ten, and despite his effeminate appearance, he’s nothing but the boss in bed. He’s loved Paul since forever, and this Christmas, since they’re both working on the Winter Wonderland festival, he might finally get his chance for a holiday romance.

But Paul comes with baggage. His ultra-conservative family wants him paired up with a woman, not a man with Logan’s rainbow connection. When their anti-LGBT crusade spills beyond managing Paul’s love life and threatens the holiday festival, Kyle and Paul must fight for everyone’s happily ever after, including their own.

Warning: Contains erotic snow art, toppy twinks, and super-sweet holiday moments. Best savored with a mug of hot chocolate with a dash of spice.

Amazon

Can I tell you how much I love the little town of Logan, MN? Sure, they have their issues and their closed-minded jerks, but I want to move there so bad! Especially after reading Winter Wonderland, the third book in the Minnesota Christmas series.

Last year, I fell in love with Arthur, Marcus, and Paul. The first two men found their happily ever afters, but poor Paul was left without someone to keep him warm at night. I needed him to find love.

When a book starts out with something as cheesy as snow penises, it could be cause for worry. It would have been if not for the fact that the first two books in the series were so solid.

Yes, it got a bit tiring to listen to Paul’s reasons why he and Kyle couldn’t work out, but I think that’s because if Paul was my real-life friend sitting in the room with me, I’d have wanted to slap him and remind him that he deserves to be happy. He was written that well.

And then you have poor Kyle… my mom used to tell us that we’d better not do anything on one end of town that we didn’t want her knowing about before we got home. Because small Midwestern towns take that whole “it takes a village” philosophy very seriously. And just like long lost relatives, small towns have a hard time believing that one of their own is all grown up. But damn, Kyle is grown!

One thing that sticks with me about this book is how Heidi Cullinan bucked stereotypes. Paul might have been the “bear” of the couple, but Kyle has no problem trying to tame him.

If I had to make a complaint at all, it’d be that there’s not a fourth book out. Like now. I love the boys of Logan and really hope there are more stories coming, because I need to know if their big dreams for Logan become a reality!

5 pieces of Eye Candy

The Deepest Blue by Christina Lee : Quick Review

December 14, 2015 by Denise

Lee exchanges skyline for swampland in the next book of her male/male romance series, Roadmap to Your Heart.

Rugged and conventional Callum Montgomery enjoys running Shady Pines hunting preserve, except for the secret that’s eating him alive. When his sister brings a date for a family wedding, he can’t stand the arrogant city slicker with the stick up his perfectly fine ass. He doesn’t understand his draw to Dean, who pushes his buttons at every turn, but he’d never dream of betraying his sibling over some lust fueled fantasy.

Handsome and conscientious Dean Abbott is a research assistant in his university’s biology lab. When his roommate, Cassie, begs him to be her pretend date in front of her meddling family, he begrudgingly agrees to help. He doesn’t anticipate being enchanted by the countryside, the colorful cast of characters, or her sexy and brooding straight brother.

When contempt turns to passion and leads to stolen moments in a sugar cane field, Callum can’t help longing for the kind of connection he believes he can never have. But not even the world’s most heart-melting kiss can bridge the vast philosophical differences between the men.

Dean’s return to his urban lifestyle leaves him restless, his mind continually wandering to the charming setting that spoke to something missing deep inside him. Because you can take the city boy out of the country but you can’t make him forget the intriguing man he left behind.

Author: Christina Lee

Title: The Deepest Blue

Series Title and Number: Roadmap to Your Heart #2 (can be read as a standalone)

Publisher: Self Published

Release Date: 12-4-15

Genre: LGBTQ Romance

Tags: Contemporary, M/M Romance

Heat Level (1 being no sexual content, 5 being erotica): 4

Pairing: Male/Male

Length: 250 pages

Amazon

Most of the time, every book in a series follows the same characters in the same world. Early in The Deepest Blue by Christina Lee, I felt a bit lost because there was nothing about this book that followed The Darkest Flame, which is the first book in the series. That feeling didn’t last long, because Christina Lee is a master storyteller and she sucked me into the Montgomery family and left me needing more.

The biggest fear with this book was that it could’ve easily taken on a Duck Dynasty feel with the southern, backwoods family and the city boy. It didn’t. It toed the line a few times, but never stepped over into something cliche and annoying.

I wanted to slap Callum on more than one occasion, because it was so obvious to me, the reader, that most of his family loved and supported him. But it wasn’t just his family he had to worry about, and he acted the way he did because he was trying to protect his family. Was that necessary? Quite probably.

Yes, there were some moments that seemed a bit out of character, mostly on Callum’s part. Yes, there was a moment or two where I wanted to slap Dean for treating Callum like an uneducated hick. But overall, I love this book just as much, if not a little bit more, than the first in the series.

Christina Lee has written two complete standalone books that have a very minor tie holding them together. That’s a good thing, because you will lose nothing if you pick up The Deepest Blue without having read The Darkest Flame. That being said, you really should grab both of them because both are among my favorite reads of this year.

4.5 pieces of Eye Candy

Champagne Kisses by Lynda Aicher : Blog Tour Stop and Giveaway

December 14, 2015 by Denise

Hi! I’m Lynda Aicher, and I’m currently touring the internet talking about my latest release Champagne Kisses. Thanks to the wonderful blog hosts for having me and to you for joining the fun. Don’t forget to check out the full list of tour stops and leave comments along the way for a chance to win a $50 Amazon gift card.

synopsis The Christmas Eve wedding Evan Cleary pulled together in four weeks is crashing down around him and taking his fledgling event planning business with it. With an empty altar and over a hundred guests arriving soon, he turns to the resistant, gorgeous brother of the runaway groom for help.

When Richard Patterson’s flamboyant brother storms out hours before he’s scheduled to marry his equally dramatic partner, Richard is left dealing with the fallout. The last thing he wants is more drama, yet he can’t deny his attraction to the effeminate event planner trying to salvage the wedding.

Evan thinks his crush on Richard is a lost cause, but one steaming kiss later, he learns different. What starts as a night of hot sex turns into a connection neither expected. But Evan knows their relationship is hopeless unless the ultra-conservative Richard can embrace every part of him—both in private and in public.

I love to read. It’s a simple fact about me that has been true since I discovered the worlds of Judy Blume at the age of ten. This love of reading transferred to young romance (the early version of Young Adult when the stories weren’t plagued by vampires, werewolves, and death) which hooked me on the romance genre and the fulfillment that comes with a happy-ever-after ending.

Twenty-five years later, I’m still an avid reader of all types of romance. The diversity of writing in the market ensures that there is always something new to read. I’m still a sucker for the happy-ever-after because there are more than enough not-so-happy endings in the real world that I don’t need to read about them. I read a book for enjoyment and I want to feel good when the story ends.

I have the luxury of being a full-time writer, that is, a full-time writer around my duties as mom, wife, cleaner, cook, chauffeur, master scheduler, banker, cheerleader, volunteer, and tutor. Writing has to be a priority, or it would never happen.

I live in the Pacific Northwest which provides many months of rain-filled incentive to stay indoors and write. However, I’m a Midwesterner at heart. A perfect day has the snow falling outside, a fire warming the room, a football game on the television, a roast cooking in the oven, my family hanging out around me and a good book to read.

I’m thrilled to be nominated for a 2015 Romance Writers of America RITA® award (that’s the Oscars of the romance world) for my Male/Male book Bonds of Denial. This is the first time any M/M books have been nominated and I’m humbled to be a part of such a great event.

Connect with Lynda:

Website: com
Facebook: facebook.com/lyndaaicherauthor
Twitter: @lyndaaicher

To celebrate the release of Champagne Kisses, Lynda Aicher is giving away a $50 gift card to Amazon! Your first comment at each stop on this tour enters you in the drawing. Entries close at midnight, Eastern time, on December 19, 2015. Contest is NOT restricted to U.S. Entries. Follow the tour for more opportunities to enter the giveaway, and don’t forget to leave your email or method of contact so Riptide can reach you if you win!

With This Bling by L.B. Gregg : Blog Tour and Giveaway

December 11, 2015 by Denise

Caesar Romano’s catering career is doing better than he’d ever dreamed. And so is his love life—even if his boyfriend’s house in Staten Island is way too far from civilization for his liking. But then in short order, Caesar is duped into helping his cousin propose, is tricked by his best friend and business partner into appearing on live television, and is harassed by a thug-like personal trainer and his far too beautiful wife. In fact, Caesar is almost too busy to notice that something is troubling his PI boyfriend, Dan Albright.

Almost.

Laid-back, open, charming—that’s the impression hunky former NYPD Detective Dan Albright gives everyone. Caesar can add sexually adventurous and a bit of an exhibitionist. But he also knows that Dan is hiding something—something dark and a little dangerous—and when Dan’s silence over his mysterious past threatens to harm them both, it’s Caesar’s turn to save the day.

But then again, a break-in, a gallery party, an heirloom ring, a new suit, and a stalker with bad BO are all just a typical week for Caesar Romano.

When not working from her home in the rolling hills of Northwestern Connecticut, author L.B. Gregg can be spotted in coffee shops from Berlin to Singapore to Panama–sipping lattes and writing sweet, hot, often funny, stories about men who love men.

For more info on L.B., because surely one can never get too much of a good thing, you can follow her on her preferred social media, Facebook. You can also e-mail L.B. at lbgregg at lbgregg dot com, visit her website www.lbgregg.com, be her GoodReads pal or follow her sporadic appearances on twitter.

To celebrate the release of With This Bling, L.B. Gregg is giving away a Romano and Albright mug with swag, and a $40 gift card to Amazon! Your first comment at each stop on this tour enters you in the drawing. Entries close at midnight, Eastern time, on December 12, 2015. Contest is NOT restricted to U.S. Entries. Follow the tour for more opportunities to enter the giveaway! Don’t forget to leave your email or method of contact so Riptide can reach you if you win!