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Author Guest Post

We Still Live by Sara Dobie Bauer: Blog Tour with Exclusive Guest Post, Excerpt

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Today we have the author of We Still Live, a book so relevant to today’s society. We asked Sara Dobie Bauer to tell us a little about Writing Realistic Characters with Mental Illness, and she has a very personal take on the situation. Take a peek, and then read the excerpt. You will want to grab this book!

To escape the past, accept it.

Running from a scandal that ruined his life, Isaac Twain accepts a teaching position at Hambden University where, three months prior, Professor John Conlon stopped a campus nightmare by stepping in front of an active shooter.

When John and Isaac become faculty advisors for the school’s literary magazine, their professional relationship evolves. Despite the strict code of conduct forbidding faculty fraternization, they delve into a secret affair—until Simon arrives.

Isaac’s violent ex threatens not only their careers, but also John’s life. His PTSD triggered, John must come to terms with that bloody day on College Green while Isaac must accept the heartbreak his secrets have wrought.

***WE STILL LIVE is a standalone M/M friends-to-lovers romance featuring detailed adult content, graphic violence, hurt/comfort, and mental illness.***

BLOG TOUR

Book Title: We Still Live

Author: Sara Dobie Bauer

Publisher: NineStar Press

Cover Artist: Natasha Snow

Release Date: December 9, 2019

Genre: Contemporary M/M Romance

Tropes: Friends to lovers, hurt/comfort

Themes: Coming out, depression, anxiety, PTSD/post-traumatic stress, mental illness

Heat Rating:  4 flames

Length: 62 000 words

It is a standalone book.

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Writing Realistic Characters with Mental Illness By Sara Dobie Bauer

My new novel We Still Live deals with some heavy stuff. Not only are the characters haunted by a college shooting, but they also must now survive the ramifications of that shooting—most notably, their destroyed mental health.

At the forefront of the story is romantic interest John Conlon, the hero professor who stepped in front of an active shooter. John is passionate and kind and gorgeous (of course), loved by his students and friends alike. However, since the shooting, John is different. He now suffers from depression, extreme anxiety, PTSD, and night terrors.

Who could blame him? He saw students and friends murdered. He felt their blood on his hands, and he survived—but has yet to heal. Newly hired professor Isaac Twain falls for John, considering it’s difficult to not be charmed by this charismatic, beautiful man who seems so strong when he’s absolutely shattered inside.

So where did John come from? How did I develop this complicated character whose mental illness is as much a part of him as his fabulous hair?

I admit, I did some research. I read up on college shootings (which is not fun, let me tell you). I live in a small Ohio town that was shaken by a high school shooting a few years before I moved there. I’ve watched the news and seen the horrors of Paris, Atlanta, insert yet another tragedy here. But the honest to God truth?

John’s mental illness is realistic because I live it every day.

I’m thirty-seven now, but I’ve been suffering from depression and nightmares since puberty. The anxiety and PTSD showed up due to a high pressure hell job that threw my life off-balance. I’m now medicated to deal with all these issues. I revisit therapy when things get really bad. I stopped watching the news, and a lot of that had to do with the myriad shootings that seem to occur daily.

I wrote We Still Live for selfish reasons. It is an exorcism. I took all my fear, pain, and rage and channeled it into John and the other survivors of the fictional Hambden University shooting. Writer, heal thyself, within the safe cocoon of your imagination.

You’ve heard the adage, “Write what you know.” I don’t agree with that in most cases, but I agree with that statement here. Writing fiction has always been a comfort to me. It’s an escape from reality when reality becomes too hard. It’s a hell of a lot healthier than drinking and drugs.

Maybe you suffer from mental illness, too. Maybe there’s an issue that scares you or gets your heart pumping. Maybe you start writing. Iadmit, penning We Still Live wasn’t easy. Putting John and Isaac through the wringer wasn’t fun, and I had days when I would type through my tears. But I kept going, because their story is important to me and hopefully will be to other people, too.

How did I write a realistic character with mental illness? I looked inside myself. What ghouls are in your closet begging to be set free? You never know who you might help by being open about your issues. You might help some troubled reader out there realize they aren’t alone. Like John, you might even save a life.

Close as they were to the foyer, Isaac was the first to notice the front door opening. A student walked inside. The kid dragged a heavy-looking suitcase behind him. Dressed as he was in a slim-fitting button-down, Isaac immediately assumed preppy, although that assumption altered and changed when taking into account the tight black jeans, Converse sneakers, and shaggy hair the color of caramel and chocolate—a mass of waves and curls that fell down the back of his neck but not quite to his shoulders.

The kid pushed his hair out of the way and looked up, eyes finding Isaac and flashing a moment of panicked nonrecognition before seeing Tommy.

“Um.” Isaac pointed toward the new arrival.

Tommy turned and shouted, “John! My man!”

Not a student, then.

Tommy wrapped John in a hug that actually lifted his feet off the ground. Isaac imagined it wouldn’t be difficult. The new guy might have been average height, but he was gangly, skin and bones.

Tommy ruffled his hair. “Have you lost weight?”

John grumbled and scratched his face with his middle finger. “What are you freeloaders doing in my house?” His voice was surprisingly resonant for someone Isaac considered “pretty.” At John’s pronouncement, crows of approval rang from every direction.

“Come meet Isaac,” Tommy said.

John wiped his palms on his jeans before reaching out to shake, and Isaac’s large hand dwarfed his.

“Isaac Twain is the newest addition to our special corner of Hambden hell. Isaac, this is John Conlon.”

John brushed more hair out of his face. “Nice to—”

“John Conlon?”

John and Tommy froze.

Isaac jerked his thumb over his shoulder. “The books on the shelf. Those are yours?”

John’s face, immobile in what looked like dread a moment before, melted into relief, tinged with a bit of blush. “Oh, yeah. You’ve read?”

“No, but I should. You’ve published a lot of books. You must be good.”

John’s nose wrinkled, and he looked away.

Tommy shook him by the shoulders. “John is an amazing writer. He had a story published in The New Yorker when he was, like, five. Are you working on anything right now?”

John glanced at the bookshelf. “Not lately.”

“You need a drink,” Tommy said.

John’s eyes widened on a big breath. “God, yes, I do.”

“Nice to meet you,” Isaac said, but John just nodded quickly, smile thin, before allowing himself to be herded farther into the house toward the sound of quiet laughter and clinking bottles.

Isaac felt it then—an outsider’s emptiness. He became a nervous-looking coat rack in the corner, a terrified tree waiting for the ax. As the party doubled in auditory volume, he bemoaned his spilled wine. Was it okay for him to leave? It wasn’t like he was supposed to make a speech. He was only there because he figured it was the easiest way to meet everyone before the first official faculty meeting, but he’d been standing around too long. He wanted to run.

Out of curiosity, he reopened John’s book from earlier and read the front flap. It was a coming-of-age story about a gay kid in the Midwest. He flipped to the back, and a picture of John stared back at him. He’d assumed the guy was tired when they first met, but no; apparently, John had perpetual bedroom eyes, and his hair was always an artful mess. He skimmed…creative writing professor at Hambden University…gay rights activist…Converse-wearer and “old-people music” enthusiast.

All arrows pointed to John’s probable sexual preference for men. A spark of interest flickered but quickly went out. True, John Conlon was what most people would consider beautiful, but he wasn’t Isaac’s type. John was the kind of man butch guys fought over in gay clubs, but he was too small for Isaac, too fragile-looking, girly. After all he’d been through, the last thing Isaac wanted was someone feminine.

A thin figure ducked into the library and literally hid against the doorframe. He took a long drink of something brown and leaned his head back. “It’s not good when you want to hide in your own house.”

“Library is the best place for it,” Isaac said.

John kicked away from the wall. “Tommy mentioned you just moved here? I’ve been in Lothos forever, so if you need anything…” He examined Isaac from his brown boat shoes to the top of his blond head. John’s large eyes, dark green, seemed bottomless—drowning pools of intellect and soul—only slightly overshadowed by his thick eyebrows.

Sara Dobie Bauer is a bestselling author, model, and mental health / LGBTQ advocate with a creative writing degree from Ohio University. She lives with her hottie husband and two precious pups in Northeast Ohio, although she’d really like to live in a Tim Burton film. She is author of the paranormal rom-com Bite Somebody series and Escape Trilogy.

Photo credit: Bill Thornhill

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The Captain & the Best Man by Eleanor Harkstead & Catherine Curzon (Captivating Captains Book 4): Exclusive Guest Post, New Release Review

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When Josh meets handsome airline pilot Captain Guy Collingwood on a sun-kissed island, he finds out what flying first class really means!

When Josh leaves the rainy shore of England for the sun-drenched tropical island of St Sebastian, his biggest worry is remembering his best man’s speech. But a chance meeting with handsome airline pilot Captain Guy Collingwood leads to a hot and raunchy holiday romance.

Guy’s everything Josh is looking for in his ideal man. Mature, dashing and confident, he’s also single and more than happy to show Josh the pleasures of St Sebastian. Yet Guy’s unruffled demeanor hides a past regret. Is the wedding of Josh’s best friend about to reopen a painful chapter that has never fully closed?

As a fearsome tropical storm threatens the island paradise and a broken family threatens Josh and Guy’s happiness, the stakes have never been higher. Can St Sebastian work its magic to heal past wounds and will Josh and Guy’s holiday fling take flight?

General Release Date: 3rd December 2019

Genre:

CONTEMPORARY
EROTIC ROMANCE
GAY
GLBTQ

Amazon

Pride Publishing-Print

The pros and cons of co-writing

We’ve been writing together for nearly three years and in that time we’ve been writing our Captivating Captains m/m romances, as well as the de Chastelaine Chronicles paranormal romances. Our latest Captivating Captains novel, The Captain and the Best Man, is out on 3rd December. Readers and other writers are often curious about how we do it, so here’s an insight into what we get up to!

Pros

  1. Different co-writing authors approach co-writing differently. Some write alternate chapters to accommodate different points-of-view, others divide up the work so one writes plot and the other writes the narrative, and others have one writer produce the first draft while the second comes in and adds embellishments. Because we write in the same document (thank you, Google Docs!) we divide up characters and write together that way. One of the pros to this approach is that our dialogue really does sound like different characters talking because in reality, it really is the voices of two different people! And bear in mind, writing together isn’t at all unusual in the world of television, but it is when it comes to fiction.
  2. Brainstorming ideas works really well when writing as a team because you can bounce ideas of each other and can look at suggestions from different angles. I might put forward an idea and Catherine will go, “I like that. And what about…?” And it’s those “and what about” questions that help to develop and shape the plot and the characters.
  3. We have two people’s experiences to inspire our stories. For instance, there’s a woman I see on the way to work each morning who puts her make-up on on the bus, and I sent Catherine a message from the bus saying “She’s like the heroine of a romcom. Imagine if a man – who turns out to be the hero – sits next to her and she manages to tip blusher into his lap!” And Catherine replied, saying,“Yes! And what if she’s going to a job interview, and she walks into the room and it’s the man from the bus on the interview panel!” The ideas kept on coming and like rolling a snowball across the garden that eventually grows big enough to turn into a snowman, we came up with a novel.
  4. We share out the jobs. So while the writing is shared down the middle anyway, there’s other tasks that writers have to do, such as going through edits from the editor, talking to the publisher about cover art, doing promo, etc. This way, we share the load.
  5. It’s fun! The best way to explain what co-writing is like – at least, the way we do it – is that it’s like when you were little and your friend came round after school to play with Sindy dolls or Sylvanians. Writing can be a lonely process so it’s good to write with someone else. Also, it’s frustrating when a story comes to a stop as you’re writing, so when this happens, we at least have each other to talk about in order to find a solution. And commiserate if we realise we need to either do major unpicking or abandon ship. Luckily we have a lot of ideas knocking about, so if something does prove unworkable, we have other projects we can move onto. And eventually, one of us will have an idea that’ll fix the stalled project and bring it back to life.

 

Cons

  1. Compromise is essential. Imagine if, when I suggested the “woman doing her make-up on the bus” idea, Catherine had said, “I’m not seeing it. What about a woman who eats toast and drinks tea on the bus for breakfast instead?” Then we’d have to have a chat about what’s more compelling, what’s more realistic, and in a romcom, what’s funniest. It can be difficult if you’re wedded to an idea, but the point of thrashing the ideas out is to make sure the stories are as good as can be. You might have to compromise on a detail, but if it means the story works better overall, then that’s the main thing. Authors writing solo will have experienced something similar when their editor returns a manuscript querying what the characters are up to! So at least we will have spotted anomalies or things that might work better with a tweak before our editor reads the story.
  2. It’s the old chestnut that crops up in job interviews when you get a question about teamwork, but really, communication is incredibly important when co-writing. And sometimes communicating ideas can be difficult – we live about two and half hours apart so can’t meet up very often and we rely on communicating online which isn’t always easy. Messenger is okay most of the time, but there’s some things you just can’t discuss that way so we use Skype.
  3. Leading on from communication – you can’t see inside someone else’s head so you need to be clear about how you’re seeing the world you’re creating. Sometimes this is resolved easily by sending each other photos of what we see – this is the character’s house, and he looks a bit like this guy, and he wears these shoes and drives this car. Sometimes you might need to check – so when they walk out of that door you see them in a corridor? I thought they were in another room! But obviously for consistency you’ve got to see the same room layout!
  4. Plot required! I’ve put this under cons because there’s certain stories where a plot is essential, like when you’ve got a mystery for your characters to unravel (although some authors write stories with a mystery element without one!). And if you don’t want to go the whole hog with a tightly laid out, chapter-by-chapter plot, you need at least a roadmap or an outline of ideas when co-writing so you both know where you’re going. If you think of it as a convoy, it’s sensible that you both know where the destination is and what the main routes are on the way there so everyone knows the route to drive. But saying that, as important as the plot is, it can feel quite tyrannous! I don’t think either of us are natural “pantsers” ie writers who plunge into a story without knowing where it’s going and with no plot in mind, but still, a plot can feel like a yoke sometimes, so we try even to avoid referring to the “plotting document” and call it “the ideas page” instead!
  5. We’re different people. It’s a con in that it would be much easier if we were exactly the same and agreed all the time with the same ideas, the same perception of the characters and their world, etc. But then again, if we were the same, then there would be no point in co-writing. Being two different people means we bring different, although sometimes similar, things to the table. And that’s why co-writing works.

Oh my gosh, I enjoyed this book so much! It was fun and flirty. It had just the right dash of island fun, great characters and some definite sexiness.

These characters started as a holiday romance, for sure, with even a few bumblings to begin with…the soaked napkin was awesome to me. I felt Josh’s disappointment, and then his joy when he was given a second chance. The two MC’s were a great match, with Guy teaching Josh a little about being adventurous, and Josh willing to jump head-first into the fun.

I’m not sure if the island of St. Sebastian is real (and I refuse to look it up, because I don’t want to be disappointed), but I definitely want to head there for a little fun in the sun, and basking in the glow of all the characters.

4 pieces of eye candy

Links:

https://curzonharkstead.co.uk

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https://mybook.to/captainbestman

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Becoming Us by Becca Seymour: Exclusive Guest Post, New Release Review and Giveaway

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In two years, it’s clear love can last, just as it can grow.

Davis’s business remains successful, Scott’s clinic is going strong, and Libby is happy and content.

But that doesn’t mean real life is always perfect, nor does it mean fatherhood isn’t as exhausting as it is wonderful.

Needing a break from their daily routines, Davis and Scott head away for a weekend of uninhibited fun. With lots of laughter and dancing, Davis has never seen Scott so relaxed and comfortable in public.

And he’s not quite sure how to handle that.

Worried that life in Kirkby is holding Scott back, Davis nearly makes the biggest mistake of his life.

But Scott has other ideas. He doesn’t need saving. What he needs is his man to step up and fight for their family and their future.

And he has just the plan to do it.

A True-Blue novella. I’ve Got You MUST be read prior to reading this story.

Small-Town Romance Love

outback

NOUN

the outback

  1. The remote and usually uninhabited inland districts of Australia.

‘a two-week tour of the outback’

1.1 Any remote or sparsely populated inland region.

 

Having spent three years living in the gateway to the Queensland outback, approximately a six-hour drive from true civilisation, and now settling on acreage in the Queensland hinterland, it’s no wonder I’m drawn to all-things small town.

There’s a whole lot of fun in the dynamics of locals in a small town. The gossip, the acceptance, the rallying, the crazy stories, together they help to inspire so many possibilities for story fodder.

It’s all of the above that I’ve encountered over the past eight years. And sitting along the sidelines bearing witness to brewing romances, watching reactions to gossip as well as individuals’ journeys has been an eyeopener.

It’s my love of living in a small town and the connections it’s possible to make that allows Kirkby, my fictious American small town, to be a place I wish everyone could visit. That doesn’t mean it comes without its pitfalls. It’s both the wonderful and isolating that we see in my True-Blue series. It’s also especially relevant in Becoming Us (True-Blue #3) when the characters consider how restricting living in a small town can be for the LGBTQ community.

Simple tasks of a same-sex couple walking down the street hand in hand, and giving a sweet kiss hello or goodbye come with their own level of uncertainty and fear. It’s this concept of being true to yourself and the challenges of fitting in (and definitely feeling comfortable) that is lightly tackled in Becoming Us.

While my town of Kirkby has growing LGBTQ representation, it’s imperative to enjoy the positives while challenging the more negative aspects of small-town life. And I hope to continue to do so in my True-Blue series.

A cute little novella about Davis, Scott and baby Libby.

I love getting a look into Scott’s life a few years later. Because I initially hated him so much and then fell in love with him and wanted him to have everything he never thought he deserved, it was nice to get a glimpse into his ongoing happily ever after.

So, in this one, Scott and Davis are well established and have a good routine going with both of their jobs and raising Davis’s daughter Libby, together. She’s three now and as fun as she is exhausting, which any parent can tell you is true, and while juggling all their day-to-day’s, Davis gets asked to join a younger employee/friend on a night out to a gay club in a neighboring city with Scott. It would be nice to get Scott away from the small town and let him experience a gay club and all it’s glory.

If you remember from either of the other two books in this series, you should remember how hard it was for Scott to come to accept his sexuality and to live openly and truth be told, he still has some reservations and it’s not as easy as it is with some, but he’s happy and content and after a week with a sick and fussy Libby, both men jump at the chance for a night away.
Letting their hair down, so to speak, the guys have a fun night and meet a new younger friend (who I hoooope is coming up next). The guys are happy that they got a night to recharge and have fun but it’s ruined by some old hag in a diner and it has Davis wondering if life in a small town is what Scott needs. When he questions him, it comes out wrong and it has both men on edge and thinking the worst.

With any relationship though, there are bumps in the road and times that are tougher than others… this is just a small blip and a misunderstanding and because they’re grown ups who communicate and respect each other enough to work things out, of course, it does and in the sweetest way.

I love a hot dad story and it’s made even better when when it turns into two hot dads. I love Scott’s relationship with Libby and the way she just knows him as her other daddy. It was very cute and I cannot wait to read more about all of them and any new addition (Jasper and Ian) that may be next.

4 Pieces of Eye Candy

Becca Seymour lives and breathes all things book related. Usually with at least three books being read and two WiPs being written at the same time, life is merrily hectic. She tends to do nothing by halves so happily seeks the craziness and busyness life offers.

Living on her small property in Queensland with her human family as well as her animal family of cows, chooks, and dogs, Becca appreciates the beauty of the world around her and is a believer that love truly is love.

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Claiming Marcus (Lords of Discord Book 1) by Jocelynn Drake: Exclusive Guest Post, Excerpt, New Release Reviews and Giveaway

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Vampires slaughtered my family.

No one believed me until I met some new friends, who promised to help me get justice.

But nothing prepared me for Marcus Varik.

Tall, dark, and mind-numbingly sexy.

But he’s also shy, protective, and adorably eccentric.

Oh God, I should have never agreed to betray him.

Hopefully, it’s not too late to fix my mistake before I lose more people I love.

Claiming Marcus is the first book in an MM paranormal romance series that has vampires, betrayal, annoying brothers, music, heartbreak, hope, sexy times, and a raven named Ozzie.

Title:  Claiming Marcus

Series: Lords of Discord #1

Author: Jocelynn Drake

Publisher: Indie

Release Date: 10/31/2019

Heat Level: 3 – Some Sex

Pairing: Male/Male

Length: 100,000

Genre: Romance, paranormal romance

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The Playlist for CLAIMING MARCUS

Like many authors, I prefer to write to music. Sometimes I will create a specific playlist that I’m listening to and sometimes I will to specific albums over and over again to keep me in a specific mindset.

When I was working on Shiver, book 1 of the Unbreakable Bonds series, most of my writing was done to the Counting Crows’ album “August and Everything After.” After I finished that book, I really haven’t listened to that album much.

I’ve written at least three books to video game scores created by Jesper Kyd. I particularly love the score for Assassin’s Creed II. I still use it a lot to this day. There were also a couple of books that were written to the score for Constantine. That’s some good, creepy music.

For Claiming Marcus, book 1 of the Lords of Discord, I bounced around a lot. This is my first time writing vampires in more than five years so it was interesting trying to find the right mood music and mindset to match the book.

For Marcus, I found myself drifting to Beethoven a lot. He’s got some great, moody pieces that can be melancholy or excited or angry. I could easily see Marcus coming back to Beethoven over and over again to pull some of the angst and venom from his soul.

After he became a vampire, Marcus had more to worry about than just his mother and brothers. He had to deal with being a new creature in a new society. He had to deal with other vampires, which seemed to naturally bring me to Marilyn Manson and Trent Reznor from the Nine Inch Nails.

When it came to the human Ethan, I found myself drifting in a totally different direction. Ethan has a great love of Tori Amos. An accomplished pianist, Tori offers some great songs that match Ethan’s moods. The hardest part was picking just the right ones that matched him. Naturally, his love of a pianist made Ethan a natural admirer of Marcus.

And then, of course, I needed a few more songs that spoke to the love they were trying to nurture in the midst of the chaos.

If you would like to listen to the playlist that I’ve pulled together for CLAIMING MARCUS, you can find it here on Spotify.

Ethan wanted to feel panic and fear when he stared at Marcus. There really was no doubt in his mind that Marcus and his brothers were vampires. A sane person would have taken his brother to a hospital. Ethan hadn’t seen the actual wounds, but just the amount of blood he cleaned up meant that Bel had been seriously injured. No one could heal from that without medical assistance.

And yet, just an hour later, Bel’s color was starting to improve. He was resting on the couch, his breathing falling in a steady rhythm.

Looking at the aristocratic creature seated on the piano bench, streaked with his brother’s blood, Ethan couldn’t see anything but a man exhausted and hurting in ways that he couldn’t fully understand. He trusted Marcus to not harm him. He’d already gone out of his way to protect him from Meryl and Cain.

Ethan wanted to take care of Marcus. It was clear that he was the family protector. He was the one who made the hard decisions and directed the others in order to get things done and keep them safe. But who was there to take care of Marcus?

Taking Marcus’s bloody hand in his, Ethan pulled him to his feet and led him out of the music room. He paused in the hallway. The third floor held four rooms with locked doors. One of them was Marcus’s private bedroom, but he didn’t know which one.

“Here,” Marcus said, pointing to a pair of double doors farther down the hall.

Ethan nodded and led the way, pulling the keys Marcus had given him out of his pocket. He unlocked the doors and pushed them open. There was only one small lamp on the nightstand burning, but it was enough to illuminate the large room with an enormous four-poster bed and a long bureau made of a dark wood. The walls were a dark blue with white trim. The carpet under their feet was so thick it was almost like walking on a cloud.

“Thank you, Ethan,” Marcus murmured. He squeezed Ethan’s hand before releasing it. “You can sleep in the green room if you’re too tired to return home. And you don’t have to come in to work tomorrow…or rather today. You need your rest.”

Ethan turned and smirked up at Marcus. “Work, huh? I thought I was fired.”

Marcus gave him a tired little smile. “I don’t think I technically fired you. Just threatened to do it.”

Taking a step closer, Ethan slowly reached up and touch the top button on his stained shirt. “Well, I think I’m technically here as a friend, because if your employee did this…” Ethan paused and slipped the first button through the hole. “We’d have to deal with a whole lot of HR shit, and we don’t want to do that.”

Marcus swallowed hard, staring at Ethan. He licked his lips as his breathing picked up, but he didn’t say anything to stop Ethan. Yeah, Marcus was attracted to him. Ethan thought he’d picked up a few little tells over the past couple of weeks, but Marcus was overall very careful. The guy was stuck so far in the closet, there was little hope of him ever seeing daylight.

But this wasn’t about Marcus exploring his sexuality. There was still the issue of him being a vampire and holding knowledge of his mother’s killer. This was about Ethan seeing that Marcus got some well-deserved rest.

Still moving slowly, Ethan lowered his hands and unbuttoned the next three buttons before Marcus finally moved, capturing both of his hands in his.

“Ethan?”

“It’s okay,” he said, giving him a reassuring smile. “I’m just helping you. I’m going to turn on the shower and get the water to warm up. Do you want me to help you finish getting undressed?”

Marcus’s mouth dropped open and sort of soundlessly bobbed for a second like he couldn’t get the words out.

Ethan chuckled. He was so damn attracted to this man, to this vulnerable side that he was sure his brothers didn’t get to see. Ethan pulled his hands free and resumed unbuttoning his shirt. He pulled the shirt free of Marcus’s pants to get the last couple of buttons. Hours ago, Marcus had rolled his sleeves up his forearms so that all Ethan had to do was run his palms up Marcus’s strong chest, reveling in the feel of hard muscle. A low groan rumbled in Marcus’s throat and that sound sent blood rushing to Ethan’s cock. Fuck, that was an amazing sound. He smoothed his hands across Marcus’s shoulders, pushing the shirt down his arms and to the floor.

“Ethan…I…”

“Shhh,” Ethan murmured. “Nothing is going to happen. You’re safe.” He leaned up on the tips of his toes and pressed a light kiss to Marcus’s throat. Strong hands immediately clamped down on his hips, holding him in place. Fingers dug into his ass and Ethan nearly moaned. He’d die to feel those hands all over his body. Just the thought had his cock stiffening.

“Not sure if the promise of nothing has me relieved or disappointed,” Marcus admitted in a shaky voice. He looked down and Ethan could feel the slight tremor creeping through Marcus’s muscles. “I’ve…I’ve never—”

“I know,” Ethan interrupted. “That’s why nothing is going to happen.” Well, one of the reasons, at least. “You need someone to take care of you tonight. Shower and then bed. Once you’re tucked in, I’m going to head home, but I’ll return later today.”

Sadness crept into Marcus’s blue eyes, but there was also relief there. He nodded and released Ethan.

“Finish getting undressed, my sexy friend,” Ethan said and sauntered toward the open door across from the bed. He was guessing it was a private bathroom.

 

He flicked a switch and sucked in a harsh breath as buttery light cascaded over warm marbled and gold fixtures. The bathroom was almost as big as his old apartment. There was a large garden tub that could easily fit three full-grown men, a double sink vanity with a long mirror, and a shower stall that had enough space and heads to cover the same three men who just climbed out of the tub.

There was muffled thump on the floor and Ethan guessed that Marcus had dropped a shoe. “Are you so touchy-feely with all your friends?”

Ethan laughed as he walked over to the shower. “Would you be jealous if I was?”

“Yes,” Marcus hissed, and that single word wrapped in a possessive tone warmed Ethan like nothing else could. He’d had more than a few sexual partners in his life, but no one he’d call a boyfriend and no one who ever felt possessive. He was just a warm body, a tight hole, a great mouth to fuck.

But with Marcus, he felt like more.

Opening the door, Ethan turned the handle, starting the shower. He stuck his hand in the spray, checking the temperature. Still cold. He started to turn to make sure that Marcus had a clean towel, but he jumped when he found Marcus standing directly behind him. The man had moved so silently and so fucking quickly. How had he not noticed him?

Because he’s a vampire.

Oh, yeah. Ethan’s brain kept conveniently forgetting that little fact.

It was even easier to forget when Marcus was standing just a couple of inches away, wearing only a pair of black boxer briefs. He was pale, but it didn’t detract from his beautiful body. Every inch of him was hard. Every. Fucking. Inch.

Wow….

So, I’m not a fan of paranormal. Not even a little bit, but, I haven’t read a story by Ms. Drake that I haven’t been so enamored with and this one was no different. I might have to take a dive into vampire romance, I fear I’ve been missin out!

So, in this one, we see Ethan as a child, when we witness his family being murdered by something he thought was only folklore and urban legends. Seeing his family torn to bits as well as his neighbors in the the apartment complex, hearing it as well as witnessing the aftermath, it’s no surprise that when we meet him again, he’s working with Legion to exterminate known vampires so he can get revenge from the killing of his family that left him all alone.

Getting a job with Marcus Valrik wasn’t easy, but he needed to find out if he was a vampire and if he or his family were the ones he needed to get even with. Turns out, he isn’t, and he’s not even sure he’s a vampire at all, though he’s pretty sure. Marcus and his brothers aren’t anything like you see in the movies and what this legion of vampire hunters expect him to be…they’re almost normal even.

I adored Marcus and even more, I loved his corky and eccentric brothers. I loved the bond they all had and their loyalty to each other and their mother. Being vampires didn’t do anything to change any of that, if anything, the 176 years they’d been vampires together had only made them closer… though they were very different from one another and it showed in the way they lived their lives.

I don’t want to give too much away, but I will say that I loved it from beginning to end and I cannot wait to see who’s next… Hopefully Rafe, though I hope all the brothers get their own story!!!

5 well deserved pieces of eye candy from me!

SO GOOD!

Books with vampires can get really cheesy (uh, sparkly?) or really dark (thank you Anne Rice) or just really dumb (too many to name). But this was really, really well done.

Ethan, seeking revenge for the murders of his family when he was a child, gets hired by Marcus as a PA under false pretenses. Marcus needs help coordinating a move from South Carolina to Connecticut, Ethan is to provide intel to a vampire hate group.

But Ethan slowly gets to know Marcus. Who seems like a nice guy- not a vampire.

And Marcus. The oldest of four brothers- all vampires- who try to take care of their mother (also a vampire) while she teeters on the edge of sanity.

Ethan and Marcus start falling for each other- while we fall for them. Being that they grew up oh, almost 200 years apart, Ethan is out and proud but Marcus is in the closet still and scared. Ugh, my heart. Marcus is so sheltered even though he is nearly 200 years old. He just broke my heart.

Surrounding Marcus are his brothers. Definitely a recurring theme in Ms Drake’s books are the strong band of brothers- by blood or by circumstance. And you end up loving them all for different reasons.

The plot was interesting as well. Trying to figure out who the bad guys were, who killed Ethan’s family and why were ranking vampire government members being killed. It was woven together nicely, while still giving us a good romance between Marcus and Ethan.

So yep, I really loved it. I can’t wait for the next book with the next brother (who I picture as Eric Northman from True Blood). Points off from 5 POEC just because once their sexual relationship began, Marcus seemed way too experienced for someone with literally no experience.

4.5 pieces of eye candy

It started with a battered notebook. Jocelynn Drake wrote her first story when she was 12 years old. It was a retelling of Robin Hood that now included a kick-ass female who could keep up with all the boys and be more than just a sad little love interest. From there, she explored space, talked to dragons, and fell in love again and again and again.

This former Kentucky girl has moved up, down, and across the U.S. with her patient husband. They’ve settled near the Rockies…for now. She spends the majority of her time lost in the strong embrace of a good book.

When she’s not hammering away at her keyboard or curled up with a book, she can usually be found cuddling with her cat Demona, walking her dog Ace, or flinging curses at the TV while playing a video game. Outside of books, furry babies, and video games, she is completely enamored of Bruce Wayne, Ezio Auditore, travel, tattoos, explosions, and fast cars.

She is the New York Times Bestselling author of the urban fantasy series: The Dark Days series and the Asylum Tales. She has just completed a gay romantic suspense series called The Exit Strategy about two assassins falling in love and trying to create a life together. Her newest project returns to her vampire roots with a new MM paranormal romance series. She is also the co-author of the Unbreakable Bonds, Ward Security, and Pineapple Grove series with Rinda Elliott.

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads | eMail | Instagram

https://jocelynndrake.com/

https://www.facebook.com/jocelynn.drake/

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https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1080585.Jocelynn_Drake

jocelynn@jocelynndrake.com

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Tour Schedule

11/3     The Blogger Girls             http://thebloggergirls.com/

11/4     Two Chicks Obsessed with Books and Eye Candy             https://twochicksobsessed.com/

11/5     Love Bytes Reviews             http://lovebytesreviews.com/

11/6     Joyfully Jay       http://joyfullyjay.com

11/7     Bayou Book Junkie             https://bayoubookjunkie.wordpress.com

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Bishop by A.E. Via: Blog Tour, New Release Review and Giveaway

by

At only thirty-two, Bishop Stockley has lived a hard-knock life. His gang was his family, the streets his home. Until the crew he’d always called his brothers betrayed him. After doing five years in a federal prison, Bishop is back at his dad’s trailer and working for his landscaping company, thrust into a legit world where he’s no longer the alpha—a world where a criminal record is the least of his disadvantages, because Bishop can’t read or write. Illiteracy had never been an obstacle for him on the streets, he didn’t need to know how to read Moby Dick to survive, he needed to know how to read people… and that was a hustle he’d learned hard and fast. Now, he had to change his life.

Bishop’s only support system was a young, inexperienced dad who’d insisted he call him Mike all their life—since they looked more like brothers than father and son. And his hot-tempered, childhood, best friend from ’juvie, Trent. Bishop already had the deck stacked against him, but he wasn’t afraid of hard work to change his situation, and he did want to change. Especially after he encountered Edison Scala, a kind-spirited office manager who didn’t hesitate to come to his defense… a man that saw past Bishop’s grass-stained coveralls. A man who wasn’t intimidated by his stern features and his silence.

Edison hadn’t grown up the way most of his peers had. He’d been raised by a single father who’d owned an old-fashioned barber shop where Edison was taught how to not only shave with a straight razor, and shine shoes, but also how to treat others, to not judge, to be a gentleman, to be respectful and speak without profanity. But, the biggest lesson he’d learned, was to always be himself. His lack of friends and a social life wasn’t his fault. No matter how much weight he gained, no matter how many times his staff called him a square, Edison did not need to change.

Bishop knew Edison was off-limits. He’d made personal vows to himself when he was released from prison, ones that he never intended to break. But, when Edison asked him about providing landscaping services at his home, there was no way he could refuse. He hadn’t expected Edison to feed him, praise him, encourage him, and look at him the way he did—as if Bishop was somebody. Mike and Trent warned him not to mix business with pleasure and he didn’t intend to.

No multiple pairings. No cliffhangers. Ends with a very, very HFN.
Warning:
This book is a M/M contemporary romance, a hardened man’s struggle to find real love. There are no police chases or doors being kicked in, in this one. But, don’t worry. Bishop is still intense enough to keep you on the edge.

Length: 121,000 words approx.

Cover Design: Simply Defined Art

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Hello,hello,hello!!

Thank you for taking the time to check out my latest release entitled: Bishop: A True Lover’s Story. I went back and forth with my good friend Carra Saigh on this title and how it would be perceived. Bishop’s story is my twentieth book, and I wanted it to be something very different then what my readers are used to. I wanted to give them more depth and more realism than any other story I’ve written. And I think I have.

This story is a slow burn, make-you-feel novel. It touches on sensitive issues that everyday people live with. No one in this book is perfect, no one in this story is living a picturesque life. The struggles are real and the battle is long.

I hope you’ll enjoy it.

I am celebrating my writing anniversary in the best way! Which means showering my readers with gratitude gifts and tons of love letters. Without you all, my words would be unheard. For a chance to be adorned with love and appreciation, join my lively Facebook group and party with me. You can drop in anytime for some mature MM fun.  https://bit.ly/2Ku4jAx

xxxxxx

Adrienne V.

Okay, so, I wasn’t ready. I thought I was, but…nay. I was not.

Edison, who we meet first, is an executive assistant at a law firm. He’s kind of the big wig of the office, though as sweet as he is and as non-confrontational, everyone just kind of walks all over him and treats him like crap. It had me sick to my stomach the way a few people treated, most especially Skylar, but we’ll get to him in a minute. Since losing his mother as an infant and his father, who was his best friend, a couple years back, he was pretty much alone in every sense of the word, save for an Aunt and Uncle. I was glad that he had them, but as Edison is an adult, he kind of left them to their lives and kept himself to himself.

He was lonely, sure, but he had a job he loved, even if the people were less than welcoming, he had hobbies that required only him, like reading and cooking and he’s just an all-around good guy. He sees the best in people, even when they don’t deserve it. When he meets Bishop outside of his office one day, he’s instantly attracted to him but as shy as he seems to be, his co-worker Skylar doesn’t help things the other times they run into each other. Skylar is jealous and selfish and petty and I knew he was going to be trouble… I kind of wish Trent would’ve scalped him or something when he had the chance, but alas, I wished for karmic street justice instead of the legal kind he eventually got… but, I won’t give too much that away. It was only just enough satisfaction, I hope to see more in the next one… but, rewind, back to Bishop.

Now, Bishop was brought up by a teenage father who didn’t know how to be one. His childhood lacked any kind of education or goals, so it wasn’t a surprise he was in and out of juvie as a child and then raised in the streets the rest of the time. When he went to prison for a crime his gang committed, he was lucky an even douchier ex kind of kept him from going away for longer after humiliating him in court. After a handful of years in prison, Bishop was finally out of prison, out of the gang and trying to forge a relationship that he never had with his dad. He and his childhood friend, ex-gang member and prison friend Trent left that life behind and were trying to be better… even if Trent needed a little firmer hand than Bishop did in the beginning.

I adored Bishop’s dad and their relationship. I understand being young parents and doing so many things wrong. I loved how he owned it and was set to be all his son needed him to be, even if Bishop pushed him away and tried to resist it at first. As a parent, better late than never, and I loved how much he loved his son and supported him and encouraged him to better himself, he was amazing. And so was Trent, who as I said was more like Bishop’s little brother and they acted like it too. I loved how loyal Trent was, always down for whatever, always having Bishops back and loving him the way a chosen family would. I adored Trent and I cannot wait to see him and meet Wood in the next book! Yay!

Growing up the way he did, Bishop had a lot of obstacles in his way to get where he wanted in life, but he was working on it with the help of Trent and Mike and he knew it wouldn’t be easy. When he meets Edison, he knows that he wants to be better for him too.

I love these two together, they were so opposite but in the very best ways. Where Bishop was growly and big and intimidating and quiet, Edison was soft and sweet and naive in some ways, but it just made him who he is and you couldn’t help but fall in love with both of them. It wasn’t always easy though, with Bishop wanting to work a little more on bettering himself, though not being able to stay away from Edison and sweet blushing face and amazing ways he took care of Bishop by cooking for him and helping him, even unknowingly that he was worthy. I could imagine Bishop not feeling that with the way he’d grown up.

Of course, there are some bumps in the road, what with Bishop’s ex being petty in the beginning (thankfully he didn’t last long) and then Skylar, the jealous and somewhat psycho co-worker… there were some times that I wanted to grab Bishop a time or two and tell him to stop running away, but I understood it. It was realistic and raw and I felt it for them. Fortunately, Edison loved Bishop for exactly who he was, no question, no hesitation and Bishop pulled Edison out of his shell and boosted his self-confidence and self-worth. It was just beautiful to see, all of it. Aside from Ruxs and Green from the Nothing Special series, this might be my new favorite from Ms. A.

I truly cannot wait for more, I’ll be fangirling like a lunatic until I find out what happens with Trent and Wood.

5 of the brightest pieces of eye candy from me

A.E. Via has been a best-selling author in the beautiful gay romance genre for five years now, but she’s no stranger to MM. She’s been an avid reader of gay lit for over fifteen years before she picked up her laptop to place her own kiss on this genre. She’s also the founder and owner of Via Star Wings Books, having published a couple great new up and coming MM authors.

A.E. has a Bachelor of Arts in Criminal Justice from Virginia Wesleyan College that she used to start her own paralegal firm after she graduated in 2008. She spent five years preparing and filing bankruptcy petitions for struggling blue collar workers who couldn’t afford to file with a lawyer. It was a rewarding and satisfying career… but another path called to her. Writing.

A.E.’s writing embodies everything from hopelessly romantic to adventure, to scandalous. Her stories often include intriguing edges and twists that take readers to new, thought-provoking depths.

Now that she’s gotten over her 10 books published hump, she’s kind of known now for her hardcore, play rough and love hard, bad boy, alphas. However, she does like to push herself to step out of her comfort zone, exploring different tropes, but she won’t push herself into a whole other genre. She’s head over heels for gay romance and she has tons of more hot stories to tell.

Be sure to visit Adrienne on her social media pages and subscribe to her newsletter to never miss another release date! Go to A.E. Via’s official website http://authoraevia.com for more detailed information on how to contact her, follow her, or a sneak peak at upcoming work, free reads, VSWB submissions, and where she’ll appear next.

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The Secrets We Keep by Rick R. Reed: Exclusive Guest Post and Excerpt, Giveaway

by

Jasper Warren is a happy-go-lucky young man in spite of the tragedy that’s marred his life. He’s on a road to nowhere with his roommate, Lacy, whom he adores, and a dead-end retail job in Chicago.

And then everything changes in a single night. Though Jasper doesn’t know it, his road is going somewhere after all. This time when tragedy strikes, it brings with it Lacy’s older, wealthy, sexy uncle Rob. Despite the heart-wrenching circumstances, an immediate connection forms between the two men.

But the secrets between them test their attraction. Will their revelations destroy the bloom of new love… or encourage it to grow?

Title: The Secrets We Keep
Author: Rick R. Reed
Release Date: September 17, 2019
Category: Contemporary Romance

Length: 195 pages

Publisher: Dreamspinner Press

Cover Design: Reese Dante

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It’s always exciting for me, both as a writer and as a reader, when the two main lovers in a book first meet. In THE SECRETS WE KEEP, that first meeting is at a funeral home wake, for someone both men loved deeply (and for whom many of the secrets in the book are kept).

***

When he stepped out of the bathroom, someone was waiting for him. An older man.

Jasper tried to thread his way around the guy. “Did you want to go in?” Jasper gestured toward the open bathroom.

“No. I was waiting for you.” The guy eyed him. He was probably a good twenty years older than Jasper, but as inappropriate as it was at a time like this, Jasper couldn’t help noticing how sexy he was. Trim, a little on the short side, it was obvious, even in his impeccably tailored black suit, he was in very good, and very powerful, shape. Jasper was certain those weren’t shoulder pads testing the seams at the tops of his arms.

He had kind eyes. And they were the most amazing shade of pale gray. Jasper had seen a husky once with eyes like that; he couldn’t say he’d ever seen anything like it on a human being. Those eyes were mesmerizing, arresting, and chilling, framed in long, black lashes.

His hair was silver, shorn close on the sides with a bit more on top, spiked with some gel.

He wore a fashionable five-o’clock shadow that Jasper couldn’t deny he wanted to feel—either with his fingers or against his own smooth cheeks.

“For me?” Jasper smiled. “I’m sorry. Do I know you?”

He simply smiled enigmatically. “Probably not. But I bet I know you. You’re Jasper, Heather’s roommate, right?”

“Yeah. And you are?”

“I’m Robert. Robert Burroughs.” He extended his hand.

Jasper gripped the warm hand, slightly soft and a little damp. He didn’t take his eyes off Robert the whole time, and the “whole time” was much longer than the duration of a handshake for most guys. It sent a shiver through Jasper.

“Burroughs?” Jasper had a terrifying thought. What if this is her dad? Good Lord, I’m flirting with Lacy’s dad! At her funeral! The very thought caused beads of sweat to pop out on Jasper’s forehead. He held in a giddy burst of laughter. “Are you, um, related to Lacy? Er, Heather?”

Please don’t say you’re her father.

“I’m her uncle Rob. Did she never mention me?”

Jasper wracked his brain. One thing neither of them did much of was talk about their respective families. They liked to believe they were each other’s family now, “chosen family” was the term they used. The idea, the memory of this, brought a lump to Jasper’s throat, bringing home for real that his best friend was gone. “I’m not sure.”

“It’s okay if she didn’t. I hadn’t seen her in quite some time. My schedule doesn’t afford me much opportunity to see family, as much as I might want to.” He smiled, and Jasper noticed the sadness around his eyes despite it. Robert went on softly, “I wish I’d had one more chance to talk to her, to tell her how I loved her. I’m afraid she didn’t know.”

Jasper nodded. “Me too. If I could just talk to her one more time, maybe we wouldn’t be here.”

Robert cocked his head. “No?”

Jasper didn’t want to disabuse him of the notion that Lacy had not killed herself, if that was what he was choosing to believe. So he simply said, “Who knows?”

“Heather used to write sometimes, a long time ago. She’d shoot me a text, you know, a birthday emoji or a holiday one. We were close when she was a kid. I used to take her places with me whenever I could. Her parents never really got her, you know?”

“Oh, I know.”

“They were always trying to change her. Like, she was left-handed naturally, and they worked and worked and worked on getting her to use her right. They tried to get her to hang out with what they deemed the popular girls. They bought her American Girl dolls when all she wanted was a set of paints and a good book, preferably horror. I could stand here all day and tell you how little my brother and sister-in-law knew their girl. But I won’t.

“I just wish I’d stayed in better touch with her. Once my career took off, back when she was just becoming a teenybopper, I kind of got preoccupied and we lost touch.” He paused and Jasper noticed the tears standing in his incredible eyes. Unexpectedly, he laughed. “When she was a little girl, and I mean like three or four, she would sigh and say, ‘Woe is me.’ What little girl says that?”

“Lacy. It so figures.”

“You call her Lacy. Why?”

“That’s how she referred to herself. She was even thinking of legally changing her name. She hated Heather.”

Robert nodded. “I get that. I never thought of her as a Heather. I’m glad she found something else.” He glanced over his shoulder into the viewing room. “I wish they’d respected that.”

I do too. Jasper felt, suddenly, even sadder. For his own loss, sure, but more for Lacy’s loss. The rest of her life. She could have done so much. She could have been happy. He just knew it.

He placed his hand on Robert’s shoulder. “Look, I intended to stay longer, but I need to get out of here. This place is too oppressive. And it honestly feels like someone else is being waked, not the girl I know. So I’m gonna book. But it was nice to talk to you.”

Robert nodded. “Will you be at the funeral tomorrow morning?”

The funeral was set for one of Rogers Park’s Catholic churches. Then they’d fly the body back to California for burial in the family plot.

It was all wrong. All not what Lacy would have chosen.

Jasper shook his head. “No. I don’t think so. This isn’t her. I think I’ll just remember her as I knew her.”

Jasper turned away, feeling on the verge of tears. He didn’t want to cry in front of Lacy’s uncle—or anyone else gathered at the funeral home, for that matter.

As he reached the door, Robert’s voice stopped him.

“Jasper?”

He turned.

“Would you mind if I came with you? I need to get out of here too.”

 

Real Men. True Love.

Rick R. Reed draws inspiration from the lives of gay men to craft stories that quicken the heartbeat, engage emotions, and keep the pages turning. Although he dabbles in horror, dark suspense, and comedy, his attention always returns to the power of love. He’s the award-winning and bestselling author of more than fifty works of published fiction and is forever at work on yet another book. Lambda Literary has called him: “A writer that doesn’t disappoint…” You can find him at www.rickrreed.com or www.rickrreedreality.blogspot.com. Rick lives in Palm Springs, CA with his beloved husband and their fierce Chihuahua/Shiba Inu mix.

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Email: rickrreedbooks@gmail.com

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