New Release Review

Pretty Poison (Sinister in Savannah Series, Book 3) by Aimee Nicole Walker: Blog Tour, Excerpt and New Release Review

March 9, 2021 by Denise

Redemption seeker. Chameleon. Damaged heart.

By day, Rocky Jacobs is a private investigator. By night, he produces Sinister in Savannah, a true-crime podcast, with his two best friends. Rocky’s life revolves around three principles: possessing skill is better than having luck, a man’s reputation is everything, and there’s no sacrifice too great for those you love.

Is Tess Hamilton pretty poison or just unlucky in love?

That’s the question the trio of trouble will try to uncover. This investigation strikes a little too close to home for one of them. Tess, a woman accused of killing her three husbands, has been tried and convicted in the media, something Rocky knows all too well. When their investigation turns up nothing but dead ends, Rocky will keep digging. Is it because he believes in her innocence? Or does Rocky hope to find redemption for himself by achieving it for Tess?

A stagnant case turns out to be the least of his problems.

What happens in Vegas never truly stays stay there. For fifteen months, Rocky has been running from a tragedy that shattered his life and countless others. The most painful casualty was the destruction of his marriage to Asher Dunleavy. When the sexy federal marshal turns up in Savannah, Rocky is reminded of his greatest love and deepest regret. Every minute spent in Asher’s presence makes him yearn for the life they lost. Will Rocky drown in the sorrows of what might’ve been or fight for what could be?

Sinister in Savannah series is a fictional podcast exploring the city’s most nefarious crimes with Southern-fried snark. The books explore friendship, love, loss, and the irrepressible human spirit. Pretty Poison is book three of three. While each novel is written about a different couple, the series should be read in order due to continuing storylines. Sinister in Savannah is an LGBT romantic suspense series with mature language and sexual content intended for adults eighteen and older.

Trigger warning: the main character struggles with PTSD resulting from an investigation involving a murder-suicide. While the content is not overly graphic, it could still cause emotional harm to some readers. One of Rocky’s side effects is anxiety, which may trigger similar reactions in those battling the disorder. As with the murder-suicide scene, I avoided being too graphic with his attacks.

Pretty Poison

Sinister in Savannah Series, Book Three

Aimee Nicole Walker

LGBT Romantic Suspense

Release Date: 02.20.21

Amazon – Kindle Unlimited

Setting the aluminum pan on the counter, Rocky pulled the mixing bowl from the cabinet and a whisk from the drawer while Asher pulled out ingredients from the refrigerator.

“How old is this ham?” Asher asked.

“Honestly, I’m not sure. Sniff it.”

“You sniff it.”

Rocky crossed the room. Asher lifted the deli bag up, and Rocky took a deep whiff to see if the contents were still fresh. “It’s good.”

“Forgive me if I doubt your food freshness test.”

Rocky shrugged. “It’s never let me down before.”

“They say there’s a first time for everything, but I’ll happily go the rest of my life without experiencing food poisoning.”

They locked eyes and started to laugh because it was a conversation they’d had many times during their short marriage. Rocky reached inside the deli bag and tore off a hunk of meat and popped it into his mouth. Asher’s eyes dropped to Rocky’s lips and he seemed mesmerized by their movement. And maybe Rocky chewed the tiny piece longer than necessary before swallowing and declaring it safe enough for Asher to eat.

“Where do you keep your skillets?” Asher asked.

Rocky crossed his arms over his chest. “And you claim to know me so well.” He muscled Asher out of the way and opened the oven door, then gestured to the pots and pans stacked neatly inside. “Tah-dah.”

Book 3 of the trilogy when Rocky gets his happily ever after.

This was a satisfying conclusion to the series. Although we didn’t get a big case to try to solve along side the guys, seeing Rocky reconnect with his soon to be ex husband as well as finally work through his trauma with a therapist was a happy conclusion.

(Spoilerish)

It does start out with a mystery. Did a woman kill her previous husbands or did they die of natural causes as stated. There were a few leads that made you think maybe this, maybe that. But ultimately it was a bust and they dropped their investigation.

Rocky, Jonah and Felix all grew closer and we got quite a bit of Marla time. How can you not love Marla? She is just amazing and she was much less of a caricature in this installment as she wasn’t the center of attention.

And Asher. YUM! Rocky’s soon to be yummy ex husband who got transferred to Savannah. Convenient. We find out their back story, how and why their split happened and how they are trying to fix things.

Everything was wrapped up neatly with a bow. Not much angst or mystery, but like I said, a very satisfying conclusion.

4 pieces of eye candy

Ever since she was a little girl, Aimee Nicole Walker entertained herself with stories that popped into her head. Now she gets paid to tell those stories to other people. She wears many titles—wife, mom, and animal lover are just a few of them. Her absolute favorite title is champion of the happily ever after. Love inspires everything she does, music keeps her sane, and coffee is the magic elixir that fuels her day. I’d love to hear from you

https://linktr.ee/AimeeNicoleWalker

Golden Dancer: A Gay Awakening, MMM, Romantic Suspense (Dangerous Dancers) by Tara Lain: New Release Review

March 9, 2021 by Denise

How does a guy who doesn’t know he’s gay wind up in bed with two men?

Mac’s obsession with world-famous ballet dancer, Trelain Medveyev, is shared by billionaire art collector, Daniel Terrebone.

Trelain won’t choose.
Neither will Mac – and suddenly gay virgin Mac’s in a passionate menage.

Big problem. Mac’s an investigative journalist, who can make his career if he proves that Daniel’s really an art thief.

What would you do when three-way love meets three-way lies?

GOLDEN DANCER is a gay awakening, romantic suspense, three-way-love, MMM romance – in tights.

Amazon – Kindle Unlimited

This is a rerelease of a book that came out 10 years ago. It was one of the author’s firsts. There isn’t any additional content and/or editing. Just a new cover. I will say, if you are rereleasing one of your first books, it is the perfect time to clean it up. As is, it reads like one of the author’s first books.

Moving on. The relationship of the three together is actually quite good. It’s not easy to write a MMM when the relationship progresses organically. Many times it seems forced or convoluted. But this was well written.

I also enjoyed the secondary story of whodunit in regard to a piece of art. While it was cool, more detail would have been fun. How did it happen? How did he evade detection? Would it happen again? Has it happened before?

As with the secondary story, I wanted more. More depth of character- especially Daniel. His past and family are sort of glossed over. Trelain got more of a back story, but I was still left wanting a bit. Mac definitely got the most backstory which helped understand his psyche and why he never considered that he was gay before.

Overall, enjoyable. Certain things bugged me. I cringe when the word butt is used in a sex scene. Not sexy. Trelain always had silk shirts on. He was also often referred to as “the dancer”. Meh. But, as you know, I am super picky.

I had read this long ago (sucker for dancers, I am) and I don’t regret reading it again. But not adding or changing content was a missed opportunity.

3.5 Pieces of Candy

Bossy by N.R. Walker: New Release Review

March 8, 2021 by Denise

Michael Pietersen isn’t up for complications.

He’s one of Sydney’s fastest-moving career-focused corporate realtors, and the only thing he has time for is one-night stands with zero fuss.

Bryson Schroeder’s back home from two years overseas with plans to leave his family’s hotel empire and begin his own business ventures. Out with friends to celebrate his return, he sees a gorgeous blond man across the bar, and with merely a smile and a raised eyebrow, they leave together for a night of incredible chemistry.

The rules are clear: no names, no details, no complications.

But one night becomes one more night, and eventually the arrangement suits them both for weeks . . . until their professional and personal worlds collide. With their hearts already on the line, Michael and Bry need to decide just how complicated they want to get.

Amazon – Kindle Unlimited

Huh. A “normal” story from NR Walker. Two guys, no one is in the closet, they aren’t looking for butterflies or serial killers, no amnesia or switched at birth or androids. What is this???

HAHAHAH! If you are a fan, you know what I mean.

It’s the hot one night stand that turns into a regular weekly thing that turns into more.

I loved that they didn’t exchange names and their names were revealed accidentally. They were wickedly hot together and they just kind of seamlessly slipped into a relationship without even knowing it. Without knowing each other’s names.

They were supportive of each other. They didn’t make any demands or ultimatums. There were supportive friends. It was all so…normal.

The only real fly in the ointment was Bryce’s father. Very business minded and cold, he wasn’t the warm fuzzy dad type. He believed focus should 100% be on business. Which is what drove Bryce’s mother away. And that is kind of an awful thing to say to your kid.

Very low angst, very hot, great chemistry. But I was waiting for some butterflies to show up.

4 Pieces of Eye Candy

N.R. Walker is an Australian author, who loves her genre of gay romance. She loves writing and spends far too much time doing it, but wouldn’t have it any other way.

She is many things: a mother, a wife, a sister, a writer. She has pretty, pretty boys who live in her head, who don’t let her sleep at night unless she gives them life with words.

She likes it when they do dirty, dirty things… but likes it even more when they fall in love.

She used to think having people in her head talking to her was weird, until one day she happened across other writers who told her it was normal.

She’s been writing ever since…

For more about N.R. Walker you can find her at:

Email: nrwalker@nrwalker.net

Textured, Wall, Background, Old, Wallpaper

Best Laid Plans (Garnet Run Book 2) by Roan Parrish: New Release Review * 2

March 8, 2021 by Denise

A man who’s been moving his whole life finally finds a reason to stay put.

Charlie Matheson has spent his life taking care of things. When his parents died two days before his eighteenth birthday, he took care of his younger brother, even though that meant putting his own dreams on hold. He took care of his father’s hardware store, building it into something known several towns over. He took care of the cat he found in the woods…so now he has a cat.

When a stranger with epic tattoos and a glare to match starts coming into Matheson’s Hardware, buying things seemingly at random and lugging them off in a car so beat-up Charlie feels bad for it, his instinct is to help. When the man comes in for the fifth time in a week, Charlie can’t resist intervening.

Rye Janssen has spent his life breaking things. Promises. His parents’ hearts. Leases. He isn’t used to people wanting to put things back together—not the crumbling house he just inherited, not his future and certainly not him. But the longer he stays in Garnet Run, the more he can see himself belonging there. And the more time he spends with Charlie, the more he can see himself falling asleep in Charlie’s arms…and waking up in them.

Is this what it feels like to have a home—and someone to share it with?

Amazon

Carina Press

Better Than People (Book 1)

One of the things I really love about Roan Parrish‘s books are the writing. They are just SO well written. I don’t just mean edited well or a good story- although both are undeniably true. I mean she is a master of prose and narrative. She not only paints a picture that immerses you in the story, but the natural flow of language keeps you there.

I’m kind of gushing. But I know for a fact that I will have to look up at least 5 words that she uses. But the use of these words also flows. Because it is so well written. It’s not like she pulled this 25 cent word out of a thesaurus to sound smart. The writing IS smart. Do you know how many times I read the phrase “boner killer” in books? Far, far too many. Ms. Parrish instead said “anaphrodisiac”. It just elevates the narrative.

I’ll stop now. Instead I will talk about swoony Charlie, who we met in Better Than People, and Rye, a guy with no direction in life who packs up his cat and moves from Seattle to Wyoming when he finds out a grandfather he didn’t know he had, died and left him a house.

Being that Charlie owns the town’s hardware store and the house is quite literally falling down around him, Rye and Charlie meet quickly. But Charlie’s need to help is butting up against Rye’s need to be independent.

So begins their story of finding each other, learning to accept help, learning to love yourself and 2 amazing cats in the mix.

Just read it. You won’t be disappointed. You don’t have to read the first book, Better Than People, but you should. Because it is also a treasure.

And so, I am giving this book my ever rare, but certainly deserved…

5 pieces of eye candy

Another fantastic emotional journey by Roan Parrish. Every book I read by this author, I continue to be impressed by the level of emotion that is leveled into the stories, without creating unnecessary angst. (I’m not an angsty reader…that’s Erin…I like happy and sweet and an HEA that makes me feel squishy inside.)

We met Charlie in Better Than People, as the mysterious brother who raised Jack after their parents were killed. We didn’t learn a lot about Charlie in that book, other than he clearly loved his brother, and he was kind of stand-offish. In this book, we learn how he really dealt with their parents’ death, how it changed his life forever in many ways. The scene where this is addressed…just powerful.

Rye, in his own way stand-offish, but because of past hurts and challenges. But he was such a brave soul to pick up and move (and not leave his cat behind!!!!), and even when he saw the dilapidated home he was left didn’t give up, just kept trying and moving forward. Watching him learn to accept help was touching. It wasn’t easy for him, but he knew he could only do so much on his own.

These two men really complimented each other, and were able to work together to make a challenging situation become a great situation. 🙂 I love that Rye, despite his normal cynicism, saw the good in the kids at his house, and let them stay, even though he knew Charlie would not like it. He trusted the kids, and it said so much about the person he was. And in the end, he was right…he just had to convince Charlie of that.

Side note…the cats…yes, this crazy cat lady loved every minute with those two.

So well written, and it just felt warm and sunny and I felt happy when I finished. As an aside, the cover is perfect for the book!

4.5 pieces of eye candy

Crossed Hearts (Arrowood) by JR Gray: New Release Review

March 2, 2021 by Denise

Small towns thrive on gossip, and as the owner of the local bar I consider myself keeper of those secrets. The bar is like a confessional, a place to unload. My sanctuary where my secrets stay hidden and the focus is never on me.

I keep my world orderly. None of the bad touching the good. Little dividers allow me to live with myself, which isn’t easy in Arrowood.

It worked until my one lapse in judgement showed up to bite me in the ass.

My best friend’s arrogant, moody, and persistent little brother who just won’t take no for an answer. I’ve never wanted and hated someone so much in my life. He’s determined to pull my secrets out of me—I’m determined to resist him.

Amazon – Kindle Unlimited

Much like the previous two books in the series, I feel like we don’t get to really KNOW the characters. The story was fine, but there just was no depth.

Adam, the middle and grouchy brother who runs the bar is the focus this time. Hilarious that he is a total grump to his family, often to his friends, keeps a tally of “friend points” AND bans people from his bar for a myriad of reasons- yet he is described as the nicest guy. Mmmkay

Because he is mad at his other two brothers, he has been crashing at his best friend’s house. Until best friend’s brother shows up. And he and Adam have a very brief past. So Adam is mean to him. SHOCK.

Both of these guys have issues. But they can’t keep their hands off of each other. And they think they will keep it a secret. Riiiiigggghhhhhhhhtttttttt

Adam does seem to reconcile with his brothers, so that is nice.

But there was a lot of head scratchers in here. It’s the Colorado mountains in winter. So stopping for a wank while hiking is a good idea? As is having sex. Naked. Outside.

Time makes no sense either. I don’t know if it is days, weeks or months that have passed. And OH MY GOD Adam’s parents. They were cute and eccentric in the first two books. In this book they are just flat out crazy.

OH! And Cory (Sage’s brother, Adam’s bff) was born with a different name. Which Sage uses occasionally and no one ever mentions it!

This story could have been so much more than it was. Adam was grouchy, I would have SLAPPED Sage across the face the way he spoke to Adam’s parents and it was lacking emotion.

3 pieces of eye candy

The Beautiful Things Shoppe (Seasons of New Hope Book 2) by Philip William Stover: New Release Review

March 1, 2021 by Denise

Their collections may clash but their hearts are a perfect match.

Moving to eclectic New Hope, Pennsylvania, and running The Beautiful Things Shoppe is a dream come true for elegant and reserved fine arts dealer Prescott J. Henderson. He never agreed to share the space with Danny Roman, an easygoing extrovert who collects retro toys and colorful knickknacks.

And yet here they are, trapped together in the quaint shop as they scramble to open in time for New Hope’s charming Winter Festival.

Danny has spent years leading with his heart instead of his head. The Beautiful Things Shoppe is his chance to ground himself and build something permanent and joyful. The last thing he needs is an uptight snob who doesn’t appreciate his whimsy occupying half his shop.

It’s only when two of New Hope’s historic landmarks—each as different as Danny and Prescott—are threatened that a tentative alliance forms. And with it, the first blush of romance. Suddenly, running The Beautiful Things Shoppe together doesn’t seem so bad…until Danny’s secret threatens to ruin it all.

Seasons of New Hope
Book 1: The Hideaway Inn
Book 2: The Beautiful Things Shoppe

Amazon

Carina Press

I’ll start by saying, I didn’t read the first book, but it definitely was a stand-alone…although after reading this book, and seeing a bit about the MC’s from book 1, I definitely can see going back and reading the first in the series.

This book is an enemies to lovers story, with forced proximity. However, they quickly learn that they have more in common than they expect, and it’s adorable! I loved how the owner of the building set them up without their knowledge, and they kept falling into that trap.

Prescott and Danny, on the surface, were quite the opposites. One really into antiques from the late 19th century, the other into anything kitschy and fun (he described it as things that made him happy), yet both really just wanting to share their love of their items with other people. It didn’t take them long to find a common purpose that brought them together.

The secrets that they held I thought were probably a little too small to be of the level of concern that was portrayed. Meanwhile, Prescott’s ex was everything you don’t want to see in an ex, out for what worked best for him and how he could make that happen.

This was an enjoyable book that brought two opposites together to find their other half.

3.5 pieces of eye candy

Philip William Stover splits his time between Bucks County, Pennsylvania, and New York City. He has an MFA in writing and is a clinical professor at New York University.

As a freelance journalist, his essays and reviews have appeared in Newsday, the Forward, the Tony Awards, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, the Houston Chronicle, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, and other national publications. For many years he ghosted for an international best-selling women’s fiction author. He has published multiple middle-grade novels for Simon & Schuster and was the American Theater critic for About.com.

He grew up tearing the covers off the romance novels he devoured so he wouldn’t get teased at school. Now he enjoys traveling the world with his husband of over twenty years and would never consider defacing any of the books he loves.

He can be found on social media as Philip William Stover.