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Release Day Review

Of Sunlight and Stardust by Riley Hart & Christina Lee: Release Day Blitz, Excerpt, Review and Giveaway

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After the death of his wife, Tanner Rowe takes a step toward making her dream come true and buys the house with the dilapidated barn she’d been inexplicably drawn to in the picturesque Upper Peninsula. But after a year, he still can’t get past his grief long enough to make the repairs he’d promised.

Recently out of prison, Cole Lachlan has little to his name. Homeless, broke, and without many options as a felon, Cole heads to Red Bluff with hopes of a second chance. There, he meets Tanner, whose loneliness mirrors his own and soon, Cole is trading room and board for rebuilding the burned-out barn on Tanner’s property that hasn’t been touched in seventy years.

Turns out, the barn holds a lot more secrets than either of them could have imagined. After unearthing a hidden journal from 1948, Cole and Tanner spend their evenings poring through the pages and reading about a young man pining after his best friend. As they delve deeper into this forbidden affair from the past, the more Cole and Tanner’s own relationship shifts—from acquaintance to friend…to undeniable attraction.

But as they begin to deal with the newness of falling in love amid Cole’s past and Tanner’s loss, they also become more determined to unravel the mystery of the young lovers who’ve captured their hearts, the rumors about the fire, and what really happened that fateful night.

OF SUNLIGHT AND STARDUST

RILEY HART & CHRISTINA LEE 

M/M ROMANCE

RELEASE DATE: 09.21.18

Cover Design: JAY AHEER/ Simply Defined Art

Cover Image: Strangeland Photography

Goodreads 

Amazon – Kindle Unlimited

Tanner’s eyes snapped open. He didn’t know what had woken him so suddenly, but the moment he did, he realized he’d fallen asleep with Cole on the couch, that Cole’s head was on his shoulder.

It was a little weird…and a little not weird…or maybe he was looking for it to be weird or not? As he sat there a moment, focusing on the heat of Cole against him, the feel of his head on his shoulder, it felt good. Christ, Cole felt good to him.

It wasn’t the first time that seeing Cole, touching his skin, studying his hands or his back, felt right. That truth hit him in the gut, so the moment Cole groaned in his sleep and turned his head, Tanner slipped out from under the blanket.

For a moment he considered trying to lay Cole down. Did his knee hurt? Was the position uncomfortable? But he didn’t know how to do it or if he should do it, and he suddenly really fucking needed to get out of the house.

Tanner shoved his feet into his shoes. Thankfully, he was wearing jeans and a tee he’d put on before going to look for Cole last night. His keys were on the kitchen counter, so he swooped them up and quietly sneaked out of the house.

Last night had been…something. How he could breathe easier after the loss of Emma, how much Cole’s friendship meant to him, Tom and Charlie, and falling asleep on the couch. It was…a lot, and he wished like hell he had his fishing supplies so he could go fishing.

So what could he do?

Guilt made his stomach tumble because he knew Cole would wake up and wonder where he was, might even think he’d done something wrong, which he hadn’t. Tanner just didn’t know how to do…whatever he was doing. It was like he was learning how to live again.

He drove around for a little while, taking in the small town he and Emma had loved. What would she think about his friendship with Cole? He knew Emma, and she would be glad Tanner had him, that he’d allowed himself to have someone.

The more he drove, the more he began to feel slightly foolish for leaving the way he had. Who cared if they fell asleep on the couch together? Who cared if having Cole around eased some of the weight in his chest?

So instead of driving around town for no reason, Tanner turned and headed for the general store. He’d get some bacon and eggs, then go home and make breakfast for them.

This book was really two stories in one. Tanner and Cole now and Charlie and Tom then. One completely broke my heart, but the other gave me hope.

Tanner buys and moves into his wife’s dream house. Except that his wife died a year ago. Since then, Tanner is just a shell of a man. His wife knew he would be like that and begged him not to. The depiction of Tanner in his grief for his wife was just so real. He didn’t hate the world. He didn’t proclaim how the world was unfair. He didn’t say he would never love again. Instead, he was more just existing. Living day by day, missing his wife. Wanting to live up to her expectations of him. He seemed to mostly just feel nothing. And if you’ve ever had depression, you know the feeling of nothing.

Cole is fresh out of prison and trying to just make it in life. But getting a job is difficult when you check the felon box on an application. A chance meeting and a bit of kindness bring Cole and Tanner together.

I’m going to say my biggest critique is that Cole’s crime and subsequent punishment were kind of weak. A little more of a solid crime for 4 years in prison wouldn’t have been hard to do and still stick to the story line.

Yes, that is my biggest critique. Because I really loved this book.

I loved that both men stick to themselves even though they both crave intimacy. I love that there wasn’t even flirting for almost half of the book. There are a few mentions of Cole admiring Tanner, but quickly putting it away as inappropriate. And I loved that they not only read the journal together, but did it slowly.

Both of these characters could have been the the that really annoy me. Tanner could have put up the proverbial walls that Cole would have to knock down, but he didn’t. Cole could have been a total jerk with a chip on his shoulder, but he wasn’t. So instead of getting slogged down with 2 characters with “issues”, we watch 2 characters gravitate to each other and learn to love again.

I was warned by someone who beta read this book that I would cry. I got like 75% in and no tears. False sense of security there. Holy sobbing mess.

I’m fairly certain this is my favorite collaboration of theirs. So far.

4.5 pieces of eye candy

Riley Hart is the girl who wears her heart on her sleeve. She’s a hopeless romantic, a lover of sexy stories, passionate men, and writing about all the trouble they can get into together.

She loves reading, flawed characters, and hanging out with her husband and children, who she adores. She and her family live in Southern California, soaking up the sunshine while also missing seasons. Not a day goes by that she isn’t thankful she gets to wake up and do what she loves.

Life is good. Riley also writes young adult and new adult under the name Nyrae Dawn.

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Once upon a time, I lived in New York City and was a wardrobe stylist. I spent my days shopping for photo shoots, getting into cabs, eating amazing food, and drinking coffee at my favorite hangouts.

Now I live in the Midwest with my husband and son—my two favorite guys. I’ve been a clinical social worker and a special education teacher. But it wasn’t until I wrote a weekly column for the local newspaper that I realized I could turn the fairytales inside my head into the reality of writing fiction.

I write Adult, New Adult, and M/M Contemporary Romance. I’m addicted to lip gloss and salted caramel everything. I believes in true love and kissing, so writing romance novels has become a dream job.

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* Disclosure of Material: I received a copy of this book from the Author/Publisher with the hope that I would voluntarily leave unbiased and unsolicited feedback. I was not asked, encouraged, or required to leave a review – nor was I compensated in any way. I am posting this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising. *

Honey From the Lion by Jackie North: Exclusive Guest Post and Excerpt with Release Day Review

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Soulmates across time. A love that was meant to be.

In present day, Laurie, tired of corporate life, takes a much-needed vacation at Farthingdale Dude Ranch.

The very first night a freak blizzard combined with a powerful meteor shower takes Laurie back to the year 1891. When he wakes up in a snowbank, his only refuge is an isolated cabin inhabited by the gruff, grouchy John Henton, who only wants to be left alone. His sense of duty prevails, however, and he takes Laurie under his care, teaching him how to survive on the wild frontier.

As winter approaches, Laurie’s normal fun-loving manner make it difficult for him to connect with John, but in spite of John’s old-fashioned ways, the chemistry between them grows.

Sparks fly as the blizzard rages outside the cabin. Can two men from different worlds and different times find happiness together?

A male/male time travel romance, complete with hurt/comfort, true confessions, a shared bed, fireplace kisses, the angst of separation, and true love across time.

Amazon – Kindle Unlimited

Time Travel and Me by Jackie North

I am a voracious reader, and even when I was a kid, I loved time travel books. There are a bunch of good ones out there for kids (The Ruby Ring, When Marnie Was There, A Wrinkle in Time, Tom’s Midnight Garden, The Time Garden, Charlotte Sometimes), and I devoured them!

What drew me was not the “clever kids having adventures” trope, though that was fun. No, it was the idea of going Back In Time. I longed to escape and was desperate to get away from a home life that was hectic and scattered and unpredictable. I wanted something simpler, more structured, more gentle and slow-paced.

I wanted to wear a bonnet and button-up shoes, a gingham dress that went to my ankles, and an apron. I wanted to carry my lunch in a tin dinner pail, and drink cool well water from a dipper. I wanted to carry a slate and do sums with a slate pencil. In short, I wanted to be Laura Ingalls, minus the grasshopper plague, the prairie fires, and Nellie Olsen, of course. (Although Nellie, to her credit, made a very good foil for Laura.)

Now that I’m grown, my own life is very simple and unhectic. You’d think it was boring, but I call it peaceful. I live inside of a rhythm that suits me. When co-workers ask me what plans I have for the weekend, I have to scramble to come up with something suitably entertaining because the reality of what I have planned would not be pass muster.

The irony of all of this is that now that I’m writing my m/m time travel romance series, Love Across Time, I put my characters through the most hectic and rugged experiences imaginable. They do not get to drink cool well water from a dipper until they’ve been through the fire of adapting to a time not their own. They are misunderstood and isolated, experience hunger and wild weather, and function with a 21st century mentality in a world that simply doesn’t understand them. They represent one of my favorite tropes: Fish Out Of Water.

All of my characters get an HEA, of course, but I like to be mean to them first. There are all kinds of ways that allow me to do this and contrast our time with theirs. Take, for example, the food. With a Lucky’s and a Whole Foods nearby, I can have pretty much any food I care to eat. But for my characters, well, that’s another story!

Take this moment from my new book Honey From the Lion. Laurie (the protagonist hero), through the magic of blizzards and meteor showers has been transported back to the year 1891.

He’s given shelter by John Henton (the love interest), who is living out the winter in an isolated cabin with the job of looking after the railroad’s surveying equipment. (John just wants to be alone, and yet Laurie has nowhere else to go, and voila, Cabin Fic happens!)

John, as a dutiful host, serves a meal that consists of bacon, potatoes, onions, and cornbread. (And oh, my gut clenches at the thought of surviving on this fare, but that’s what folks ate in the year 1891 on the high plains of Wyoming.)

On the table is a bowl of something white and lumpy that is meant to be butter. Laurie comments (or complains, depending on your point of view) that butter should be yellow. John replies with the sagacity of his age that butter is the color it is when it’s churned, not the color you want it to be.

Partly this is fun, because it lets me show how Laurie thinks (and yes, to me, butter should be yellow), and how John thinks. I’m pretty certain that John would say what my Nana used to say when I wanted something my own way: “What do you want, egg in your beer?” Although now, I think the Cool Kids would say, “Why you gotta be extra?” Which is pretty much the same thing!

As the story develops, Laurie comes to adore the food John serves because he comes to realize how much effort it takes to not only prepare it, but also to gather the food, to keep the cabin warm, and to help them both survive until spring.

To bring this back to the time travel trope, Laurie gains a new perspective on how easy his own life in the 21st century was, and how hard John’s life is in the year 1891. Time travel is like any other travel, it opens your eyes wide to the differences that separate us, and makes you appreciate how we are the same under the skin.

For your reading pleasure, here is an excerpt where John is serving up dinner; he doesn’t know that Laurie is from his future, but instead, that he’s come from Back East:

When Laurie went to join John at the table, John had just placed the last of the food down, and was bending to light a kerosene lamp, which cast bright silver circles on the wood.

John sat down with his back to the fire, so Laurie took the other seat with his back nearest the door. He could feel a cold draft coming from somewhere, but was distracted by the meal that John had prepared. There was a plate of fried bacon slices, a bowl of cornbread bricks, and a bowl of what looked like fried potatoes and onions. None of it resembled Laurie’s idea of what supper was. Still, he didn’t want to be rude.

“What’s in the jar?” asked Laurie, pointing.

“Tomato preserves,” said John with a bit of a grunt, as if Laurie should already have known that. “There’s butter, if you want it.”

Laurie looked where John was pointing, which was at a wooden bowl with several pale lumps in it. It might be butter, but it actually looked like old white frosting scraped from a can.

“That’s not very yellow,” said Laurie, reaching for it. “Butter is yellow,” he told John, nodding his head to emphasize this.

“Maybe back east, where you come from,” said John. “Out here, butter is the color that it is when it’s churned.”

Laurie gave John a mock salute and points off for being so gloomy and serious. And just as he reached for the plate of bacon, John lifted it and scraped off half onto Laurie’s plate. He did the same thing with the hunks of cornbread and fried potatoes and onions, each dish divided neatly and fairly into two portions.

“Help yourself to the butter and tomatoes,” said John. With his fork gripped in his fist, he began to shovel in the food, slowly and methodically, as though it gave him no pleasure at all and was merely sustenance. Which, as Laurie considered it, in 1891 was how it probably had been.

 

 

Square One by JJ Harper: Release Day Blitz, Review and Excerpt

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Xander is angry and fed up of being signed off work for something that was out of his control. He loses himself in alcohol and one-night stands, anything to dull the pain in his head.

Jonah is enjoying the freedom away from his small-town life, living life to the full in a big city. A few weeks away from starting his job as a firefighter, he embraces the nightlife and the men found in the clubs. One man, in particular, catches his eye, and not even exchanging names, they spend a night lost in each other, and then another. Still not bothering to find out any more about each other, they go their separate ways.

Until they find themselves face-to-face at work.

Unable to stay away from each other, they embark on something that soon morphs into so much more. Deeper, more intense, looking a lot like love.

But will it be enough when Jonah hears some life-changing news and he turns to Xander for support?

Square One is part of the Under The Uniform series by Aubergine Publishing.

Amazon – Kindle Unlimited

Waking up, I stir and move my hand across the bed, finding it empty. I hate it when he does this. I want us to wake up lazily wrapped around each other, then mess around, getting all hot and sweaty again. Listening out, I can hear him moving around downstairs. I look to see where my clothes are because I have come to learn that Jonah doesn’t do mess. Not one bit, so it’s no surprise to see them folded neatly on the chair in the corner by the window. Before I can move to get out of bed, I hear him whistling softly, almost under his breath as he comes back upstairs.

Pushing upright, I lean back on the headboard and wait for him to come back in. I smile when I see him with a tray full of coffee cups and toast.

“You’ve brought me breakfast.” I laugh softly as he blushes slightly.

“Yeah, I woke up and was hungry, so I thought I’d bring it all back up to you too.” He hands me the tray, then slips his joggers down his legs and folds them neatly on the end of the bed. Climbing back in next to me, he drops a soft kiss on my eager mouth.

“This is awesome. I can’t remember the last time I had breakfast in bed. Thank you, Jonah.” I kiss him again.

Looking at the tray, I see he’s done more than just coffee and toast. There’s orange juice and waffles with some strawberries too. His eyes shine bright with happiness as he reaches over and snags his mug and a slice of toast.

“What do you want to do today?” he garbles at me with his mouth chewing his toast noisily. This should annoy me, but with him, it seems cute.

“I’ve got boring stuff like my laundry and a trip to the supermarket. I got back later than I thought yesterday and really only had time to shower and change before coming here.” I look at him as I grab a strawberry. “What about you?”

“I don’t have anything planned, so I can hang out with you if you’d like?”

“You won’t be too bored. It’s only Tesco and dirty clothes?”

“Nope, I’ve missed you. I’d like to spend it with you, if you don’t mind.”

I grin at him and kiss his cheek. “I’d like it too.”

So, after breakfast and a lot of fooling around in bed that ended with needing another shower, we make it out of the house.

Looking up at the clear blue April sky, I can feel the warmth of the spring sun on my face. I smile at Jonah as he slides his Oakley sunglasses on.

“You look fucking sexy, Jo. C’mon before I drag you back inside.” I hold out my hand for him and give it a squeeze as he clasps it.

“Yeah, we’ve done enough of that this morning.” He chortles.

“Never. There’s no such thing as too much sex! As a gay man, you should be ashamed of yourself.” I pull him up to me and kiss his grinning mouth. “Get in the car,” I mumble against his lips.

Okay, so two hot firefighters, that’s really all I needed to want to read this book. I kind of went into it blind apart from that… LOL, I’m easy. So, in this one, we have Jonah and Xander.

Xander is off on medical leave until he can get his head sorted after a call gone bad where they lost a twelve year old little girl. Although there was nothing he could do, he carried the weight of it, and understandably so… I can’t imagine how hard it must be to be a first responder of any kind. I liked the realness of his situation and the way it was handled…. In this aspect at least. There are other parts of this story that I did not agree with, but we’ll get to that in a minute.

Now, meeting at a club, Jonah and Xander have an incredible connection, though they don’t catch each other’s names the couple times’ theyd run into each other. What I didn’t like was that everyone seemed to sleep with this bartender Curtis…. Literally, everyone; even Xander’s ex that pops up out of nowhere. And they’re all okay with Curtis, knowing that he sleeps with everyone, including their boyfriends?? Even Xander didn’t care that he’d slept with the ex, as well as Jonah, after he slept with Jonah?? I didn’t like that at all…. I’m a slut shamer. Absolutely.

Anyway, after another weekend hookup without exchanging names, Xander is set to go back to work. He’s been cleared, and the next day he’s back on rotation…. Problem is… the nameless hookup he can’t stop thinking about is his new partner! Then…. They go from 0-100 in about a day. Neither of them do relationships, neither of them hook up with the same person twice, but the first day they work together, they decide that after two weekends of hooking up…. They’re boyfriends….. they didn’t call it that til the next week, but that’s what it was. It felt like the story should’ve been over at 50%….. but then we get thrown a curve ball.

Jonah has a son…. A teenage son with the only girl he’s ever slept with. His teenage best friend from 15 years ago. Cliché, eh? Except she was supposed to have had an abortion and moved away back then. Unfortunately, when her husband- that has raised Jonah’s son his entire life, finds out that Jonah’s son (Christian Grey- yes, that’s his actual name) Kit (nicknamed, thankfully), when he finds out that he’s gay, he flips and all the sudden doesn’t want to be his dad anymore…. And Kit’s mom just goes along with it. Of course, she cries… but are you kidding? You’re going to choose a homophobe over your child???

I didn’t like how everyone kept blowing this kid off. I understood that it came out of left field for Jonah, and he needed to get his head around it and all, but, even he said that if it was going to cause problems with Xander, he’d choose Xander…. What is wrong with these people? This is a kid…. YOUR kid, and for neither of them to put that kid first, made me sick. And I loved Xander and Jonah together, even if it did go at warp speed and the dialogue was cringy at times… I enjoyed them together, they were good for each other. But, seriously…. You’re going to make the whole second half of the story about the kid, but, nobody really cared about the kid. Least, not in my opinion.

Anyway, I loved Xander’s family, but we get a face full of Jonah’s mom several times. She seems awful, but then she just disappeared. No more mention of Kit’s mom, after she said okay, the kid can live with you so I can keep my husband….(okay, she didn’t say that, but it’s what it felt like to me)

Overall, I felt there was a lot going on in this story, and a lot of it I didn’t agree with….I kind of felt on the fence with it, but it ended well.

Cute. I’ll go with 3 pieces of eye candy for me on this one.

 

You will normally find her in the living room—typing away—with her dog, Maud. As a hopeless romantic, JJ dives into her stories, always falling in love with her men, making sure they get the happy ever after they deserves, even if they do have to work hard for it.

As a bona fide bookaholic, coffee-addicted, wine-drinking and swear-like-a-sailor type of girl, she has yet to work out how to act her age!! LOL. And she has no intentions of growing up or growing old gracefully.

JJ lives in a small, very quiet, village in Lincolnshire, UK, with her husband and dog, and spends all day dreaming up stories full of really hot men.

Website: www.jjharper-author.com

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** Disclosure of Material: I received a copy of this book from the Author/Publisher with the hope that I would voluntarily leave unbiased and unsolicited feedback. I was not asked, encouraged, or required to leave a review – nor was I compensated in any way. I am posting this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising. 

 

Saddle Up (Clean Slate Rach book 3) by AM Arthur: New Release Review

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Reyes Caldero keeps his past buried deep and his emotions buried deeper. But what he doesn’t say he always makes up for with his actions. When the hot chef he once saved from an abusive ex turns up at Clean Slate Ranch, the quiet cowboy is happy to act on their sizzling chemistry, even if he’s not ready to share his secrets—or his heart.

Miles Arlington needs to get the hell out of San Francisco, and heading north for a job near Clean Slate Ranch seems like just the thing. It doesn’t hurt that his secret crush slash onetime rescuer happens to work at the ranch. Miles has never been one for the outdoors, but the superhot Reyes has him ready to saddle up.

Reyes is happy to keep things casual, even though his heart has other ideas. And when Miles is forced to confront his past again, Reyes and Miles will have to put all their trust in each other if they want any chance at building a future together.

Amazon

Carina Press

Please read the first two books in the series. It isn’t 100% necessary, but it will make this one all the more enjoyable.

That being said, I couldn’t wait for Reyes and his story. Always quiet, never with much to say, but always there for his friends. Reyes and Miles have been avoiding flirting since book 1. Avoiding it so much that it was obvious to everyone. And when Miles gets a job at the ghost town and the only available bed is in the 2 man cabin with Reyes, it won’t be easy to avoid each other.

But they do. Their relationship really grows as friends. Miles is up front in that he doesn’t want a relationship but he does want to be friends. Reyes readily agrees because he doesn’t feel worthy of love.

So while this isn’t really a friends to lovers trope, they definitely grow their friendship. And I loved that.

Reyes and Miles have big secrets. Secrets that even their best friends don’t know. And when they finally tell each other- it is painful. Especially Reyes’ secret. I wasn’t expecting that.

OF COURSE A.M. Arthur made me cry. The tears of her readers feed her. But don’t worry, there is a happily ever after.

4 Pieces of Candy

Love Spell by Mia Kerick: Blog Tour, New Release Review, Excerpt and Giveaway

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Chance César is fabulously gay, but his gender identity—or, as he phrases it, “being stuck in the gray area between girl and boy”—remains confusing. Nonetheless, he struts his stuff on the catwalk in black patent leather pumps and a snug-in-all-the-right (wrong)-places orange tuxedo as the winner of this year’s Miss (ter) Harvest Moon Festival. He rules supreme at the local Beans and Greens Farm’s annual fall celebration, serenaded by the enthusiastic catcalls of his BFF, Emily Benson.

Although he refuses to visually fade into the background of his rural New Hampshire town, Chance is socially invisible—except when being tormented by familiar bullies. But sparks fly when Chance, Pumpkin Pageant Queen, meets Jasper (Jazz) Donahue, winner of the Pumpkin Carving King contest. Chance wants to be noticed and admired and romantically embraced by Jazz, in all of his neon-orange-haired glory.

And so at a sleepover, Chance and Emily conduct intense, late-night research, and find an online article: “Ten Scientifically Proven Ways to Make a Man Fall in Love With You.” Along with a bonus love spell thrown in for good measure, it becomes the basis of their strategy to capture Jazz’s heart.

But will this “no-fail” plan work? Can Chance and Jazz fall under the fickle spell of love?

Title:  Love Spell

Author: Mia Kerick

Publisher:  NineStar Press, LLC

Release Date: September 17, 2018

Heat Level: 1 – No Sex

Pairing: Male/Male

Length: 43300

Genre: Contemporary YA, contemporary, YA, non-binary, bullying, homophobia, coming-of-age, humorous

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Just call me brazen.

It occurs to me that brazen—unabashedly bold and without an inkling of shame—is the perfectly appropriate word to describe moi right about now. It is, however, the only perfectly appropriate part of this evening. Which is perfectly appropriate, in my humble opinion. So get over it.

I lift my chin just enough to stop the stiff orange spikes of glitter-gelled hair from flopping forward onto my forehead. Who can blame me? These spikes are razor sharp—best they stay upright on my head where they belong. And gravity can only do so much to that end.

Okaaaayyyy…sidetracked much? Forces rebellious thoughts on business at hand.

Chance César is a brazen B.

I stare ’em down, but only after I pop the collar of the blinding “Orange Crush” tuxedo I’m rockin’ and shrug my shoulders in a sort of what-the-fuck fashion. Rule of thumb in this queen’s life—first things must always come first.

Pop, shrug, and only then is it kosher to stare. I clear my throat.

“Eat your ginger-haired heart out, Ed Sheeran.”

Based on the buzz of scandalized chatter blowing about in the crisp evening breeze, I’m reasonably certain that nobody in the crowd heard me speak. And although several of the girls currently gawking at me may do double backflips over my red-haired counterpart across the pond, they don’t give a rat’s ass about Chance César. In fact, I have a sneaking suspicion that they view my atomic tangerine locks as more reminiscent of Bozo the Clown than of the smexy singer-songwriter.

They are, however, completely unaware that this carrot top is going to make Harvest Moon Festival history tonight.

Refusing to succumb to the impulse to duck my head, I take a single shaky step forward onto the stage that’s been set up on the dusty ground beside a vast—by New England standards—cornfield. The stage doesn’t wobble, but my knees sure as shit do. Okay, I’m an honest diva and I tell it like it is. And I’m what you might call a freaking wreck.

Nonetheless, this brazen B takes a deep breath, blows it out in a single gush, and starts to strut. This boy’s werkin’ it.

Smi-zeee!! Yeah, my smile is painted on, just like my trousers.

Chance, you are by far the edgiest Miss Harvest Moon this ramshackle town has ever had the good fortune to gaze upon. I am a major fan of positive self-talk.

Using the feigned British accent I’ve perfected—thanks to long hours of tedious practice in my bathroom—I dish out my next thought aloud. “I wish I’d put in a tad more practice walking in these bloody heels before going public in ’em.” And despite one slight stumble—a close call to be sure—the clicking sound my pumps make is crisp and confident. I saunter out onto the catwalk.

#TrueConfessions: Faking foreign accents is a hobby of mine. I can yammer it up in improvised French, German, Mexican, Russian, and plenty more accents, but I don’t mimic Asian languages, as it seems too close to ridicule. My plan for the rest of the night is to continue vocalizing my abundant thoughts in Standard British, with a hint of Cockney thrown in for charm. After all, New Hampshire is the “Live Free or Die” state, and I’ll do what I laaaa-like. Yaaasss!

First: Teenagers are ridiculous.
Second: It makes me feel incredibly old to say that.
Third: Chance is exhausting but in the cutest ways

Chance is voted Miss something or other in his towns Miss Something or other pageant, cuz kids are mean, and they thought it would be funny for the boy to be queen… didn’t they realize he’d own it?! If they didn’t, they got schooled….cuz he owned it.

I couldn’t imagine being an openly gay, genderfluid teenager, confused about his gender identity and having to navigate high school in today’s world. People are so intolerant, and ignorant, that it had my heart hurting for the things that he had to put up with. And if we know anything about my rants, its when people get away with being terrible, and those A-holes made high school hard for him, and I hated reading that… Thankfully, Chance has his bestie Emily, and she’s more than just a bestie, she’s the family he doesn’t have. His parents are awful too…. They’re not abusive in any typical sense of the word, but there’s no love there, and that made me sad for him too.

Now, at the miss whatever pageant (it was a cute and clever name, I just don’t remember what it was called), he meets Jasper, who he aptly nicknames Jazz… Jazz is sweet and shy and about fifteen kinds of adorable. His mom works any spare second she can, and Jasper is left juggling school, a job and helping raise his little sister…. Is that not just the cutest?! Chance is quite smitten with him at first site, even though they’ve been going to the same school together, forever.

Unfortunately, two things happen…. One, Jazz already likes Chance but doesn’t just come out and tell him…and two… Chance and Emily come up with the most ridiculous list of ways to make Jazz fall in love with him. Now, some of these were downright stupid, and I couldn’t believe that they A. believed it would work, or B. attempted to try them. No wonder Jazz got the wrong idea, the suggestions were terrible and terribly executed lol though it was entertaining (at times) (other times, exhausting)

So, when the list is almost finished, the only two things left are the only suggestions that he’d have needed all along, it was too late…. Or was it? There are a couple really good lessons in this story, and it would be one I’d let my newly “out” thirteen year old read…. If he could understand the lingo… I’ll admit, there were a couple times I had to be like…what in the world does that mean?!…. You’ll get there though.

If you enjoy YA, overly dramatic, sarcastic and sassy, gender-confused and charming…..or the quiet and shy, simple boy…. Give this one a chance, <wink wink>

4 pieces of eye candy from me

Mia Kerick is the mother of four exceptional children—one in law school, another at a dance conservatory, a third studying at Mia’s alma mater, Boston College, and her lone son still in high school. She has published more than twenty books of LGBTQ romance when not editing National Honor Society essays, offering opinions on college and law school applications, helping to create dance bios, and reviewing English papers. Her husband of twenty-five years has been told by many that he has the patience of Job, but don’t ask Mia about this, as it is a sensitive subject.

Mia focuses her stories on the emotional growth of troubled young people and their relationships. She has a great affinity for the tortured hero in literature, and as a teen, Mia filled spiral-bound notebooks with tales of tortured heroes and stuffed them under her mattress for safekeeping. She is thankful to NineStar Press for providing her with an alternate place to stash her stories.

Her books have been featured in Kirkus Reviews magazine, and have won Rainbow Awards for Best Transgender Contemporary Romance and Best YA Lesbian Fiction, a Reader Views’ Book by Book Publicity Literary Award, the Jack Eadon Award for Best Book in Contemporary Drama, an Indie Fab Award, and a Royal Dragonfly Award for Cultural Diversity, among other awards.

Mia Kerick is a social liberal and cheers for each and every victory made in the name of human rights. Her only major regret: never having taken typing or computer class in school, destining her to a life consumed with two-fingered pecking and constant prayer to the Gods of Technology. Contact Mia at miakerick@gmail.com or visit at www.miakerickya.com to see what is going on in Mia’s world.

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Savior (415 Ink book 2) by Rhys Ford: Release Day Review

by

415 Ink: Book Two

A savior lies in the heart of every good man, but sometimes only love can awaken the man inside the savior.

The world’s had it out for San Francisco firefighter Mace Crawford from the moment he was born. Rescued from a horrific home life and dragged through an uncaring foster system, he’s dedicated his life to saving people, including the men he calls his brothers. As second-in-command of their knitted-together clan, Mace guides his younger siblings, helps out at 415 Ink, the family tattoo shop, and most of all, makes sure the brothers don’t discover his darkest secrets.

It’s a lonely life with one big problem—he’s sworn off love, and Rob Claussen, one of 415 Ink’s tattoo artists, has gotten under his skin in the worst way possible.

Mace’s world is too tight, too controlled to let Rob into his life, much less his heart, but the brash Filipino inker is there every time Mace turns around. He can’t let Rob in without shaking the foundations of the life he’s built, but when an evil from his past resurfaces, Mace is forced to choose between protecting his lies and saving the man he’s too scared to love.

Amazon

Dreamspinner Press

I love books that are set in San Francisco. That is what drew me to book 1 in this series. And while I liked that one, it was very cluttered with getting to know these five “brothers”. But now that that has all been established, the romance and love story between Rob and Mace were the focus.

Mace is one of the brothers who doesn’t work at 415 Ink, although he is one of the owners. Instead he is a firefighter in China town and also lives in the neighborhood. Instead of falling back on stereotypes, the author offers some insight into the neighborhood without it being a history lesson.

Rob is a newer artist at 415 Ink and he and Mace have been doing that strange dance around each other where they act like they hate each other but they really want to rip each other’s clothes off.

Which they finally do in the aftermath of an earthquake.

*Quick note. After the earthquake IT WAS NEVER MENTIONED AGAIN! Like, what? If you go through an earthquake no matter how big or small, you talk about it. With everyone. But nope, just a tool to get Mace and Rob naked together.

Back to the story. Mace broke my heart with his entire backstory. Ugh, gutted. And while I sort of understand Rob’s situation, I don’t completely. But maybe I just misread something.

All of the other brothers are included in the story without taking it over, which I always enjoy. That is one of the great things about reading a series.

Overall, I liked this one a lot more than the first and I am glad I kept reading. And now bring on book 3!

4 Pieces of Eye Candy