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You Are Not Me (’90s Coming of Age Book 2) by Leta Blake: RB, Exclusive Excerpt and Giveaway

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Follow Peter into the summer following his senior year to face new beginnings, new friends, and old baggage.

After a tumultuous final year of high school, Peter Mandel needs a break. It’s the summer of 1991, and his secret relationship with his ‘best friend’ Adam Algedi is put on hold as Adam goes away to Italy for the summer. On the cusp of adulthood, Peter has a couple of months to explore who he is without Adam at his side.

Enter Daniel McPeak, a slightly older, out, responsible college guy with a posse of gay friends and an attraction for Peter. Drawn into the brave new world of the local gay club, Peter embarks on a whirlwind of experiences—good and bad—which culminate in a hotel room where he has to make the ultimate choice.

But Adam will come back eventually, and there are promises that have to be kept. As autumn draws near and college awaits, can Peter break free of the binds of twisted first love? And what exactly is Daniel’s role in his life – a brief temptation, or something more?

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Goodreads

Pictures of You (’90s Coming of Age Book 1)

Only You (’90s Coming of Age Book 3)

Bobby’s gray eyes pierced me, and I swallowed nervously. I’d never been in the same room with someone who had AIDS. I hadn’t thought it would bother me, but a sudden dread swept over me, along with a strange urge to get away. But I smiled and forced my feet to move forward, sticking out my hand.

“Peter Mandel, sir.”

“That’s right. Daniel said he’d be bringing a friend.” His grip was weak and the contact short-lived.

“Peter thinks he might volunteer with ARK,” Daniel offered.

I nodded and smiled as Bobby looked me up and down, saying nothing.

Daniel headed over to the fridge to pull out fruit and vegetables. He grabbed a colander from the cabinet. “I see Kerri did the shopping. I’ll prepare a few things for you, okay?”

“Sure.” Bobby motioned at the seat across from him, and I sank into it, keeping a smile fixed on my face. He grunted. “You’re not really thinking of volunteering, are you, kid?”

“I, uh, I wasn’t sure, but—”

Bobby grimaced. “You want to watch people die? What’s wrong with you? Don’t put yourself through it.”

Daniel frowned but didn’t say anything, starting to hull strawberries and cutting them up into a bowl.

Bobby continued. “Watching men waste away, it’s not good for anyone. Least of all a young kid like you. So, I tell you what, after you leave today, never come back. Just go out dancing, have fun, kiss some boys, and take Daniel with you. Both of you are too young to be dealing with this crap.”

“Oh.” I shifted uncomfortably on my chair. “Well, that’s one way to look at it.”

I glanced at Daniel. His shoulders were tense as he cut the green off the strawberries. This wasn’t what I’d been expecting. Daniel had said Bobby was laid-back. He must be having a bad day.

I fumbled on. “I guess another way to look at it is that we’re all in this together, right? A big world family of human beings and we should take care of each other.”

Bobby shrugged, obviously not convinced. “Jeff died,” he called over his shoulder to Daniel, not taking his eyes off me. “Jeff Rosenthal. My ex. Remember me telling you about him?”

Daniel stopped working and turned to look at the back of Bobby’s head. He leaned against the counter. “I remember. I’m sorry to hear it.”

“He was sex on legs when I met him. At the end, he couldn’t have weighed a hundred pounds. Nothing but bones.”

I bit the inside of my cheek, a lump rising in my throat and a burning sensation filling my chest. I wanted to reach out and hug the man, but I was anxious about touching him. Not because of his illness, but because I just didn’t know how he’d react.

“We’re all going to die,” Bobby said gruffly, his eyes filling with tears. “All my old friends and lovers. We thought we were safe here, away from the plague in the big cities. We weren’t safe at all.” His lips trembled.

Daniel wrapped his arms around Bobby from behind, pressing his face against Bobby’s cheek, and when the man closed his eyes and tears started down his face, Daniel made hushing sounds in his ear.

“We were young like you once,” Bobby said, his voice breaking. “We didn’t know. We had no idea what was coming. If we had… I never even told Jeff I loved him. How stupid was that? Such a dumb kid back then.”

I half expected Daniel to tell Bobby that Jeff had known anyway, but he didn’t. He just hugged him and let him cry. I patted Milky Way’s head as she wriggled in her owner’s lap, unsure what was causing his distress. I tried to calm her with long strokes down her silky ears.

When Bobby calmed, he said, “Don’t end up with regrets, boys. Regrets are the worst.”

“We won’t,” Daniel promised.

“Liar.” He scoffed. “We all have to deal with regrets. Every last one of us.”

I had no idea what to say, so I just sat there as Bobby eventually dried his tears, and Daniel went back to the food.

Bobby couldn’t walk very well, so after Daniel made his meal, he helped him to the living room and into a La-Z-Boy chair. As he ate, he chatted about soap operas.

“Not much else to do with my life now but watch stories,” he said to me, like he needed to justify it. “Daniel claims he doesn’t have time to watch them, but I keep him up to date on the happenings.”

“When is Marlena going to reveal herself to Roman?” Daniel asked, sitting on the sofa next to me and taking a brush to Milky Way’s fur. She struggled but he held her firmly in his big hands until she submitted.

I reached out to stroke her ears again as he worked, and she licked my hand.

“Beats the hell outta me. I guess she likes hearing what everyone says about her since they all think she’s dead.”

“You said you saw a commercial, though, right?And it hinted that Roman would find out she wasn’t dead sometime this summer?”

“Hopefully soon,” Bobby said. “I’m real tired of waiting around for the big reveal. I’ve only got so much time left. One little infection, and boom, I’ll never get to see the look on Roman’s face when he sees she’s alive.”

“Let’s be optimistic.”

“You be optimistic—I’ll be however the hell I feel like being.”

Daniel laughed softly. “Fair enough.”

“You like soaps?” Bobby asked me, his gray eyes piercing.

“I can’t say I’ve ever watched one, sir.”

“But his mother writes romance novels,” Daniel said, grinning. “So he probably understands the appeal.”

“Does she now?”

“Yes, sir.”

“Is she any good at it?”

“I think so. I don’t read her books.”

“Why not?”

“He doesn’t need to,” Daniel said. “Peter lives in a soap opera.”

 

I flinched, sucker-punched, but Daniel put his hand on my knee and squeezed, taking away the sting.

“Does he now? Do tell.” Bobby took a small bite of his sandwich and chewed gingerly, like it hurt, keeping his eyes on my face.

Daniel lifted a brow at me.

“Uh, I don’t know.” I picked at the hem of my shirt. “My life’s not that exciting.”

Bobby’s eyes gleamed. “Son, I’m stuck in this house by myself, save for Kerri and Daniel, day in and day out. I promise I won’t be telling anyone your deep dark secrets. Have mercy and entertain a sick, dying man.”

“Bobby’s a great listener,” Daniel said.

I hesitated, glancing between them awkwardly. “It’s embarrassing. The whole situation makes me seem like an asshole.”

“Oh, now you’re just selling it,” Bobby said with a grin. It was that bright smile, the first I’d seen from him, that led me to dump my whole sordid story into Bobby’s lap—sans my excruciating and escalating crush on Daniel.

Bobby’s eyes glittered merrily the whole time I talked. He ate everything on his plate, and Daniel brought him some cantaloupe, which he also ate as he listened. This seemed to please Daniel, and I kept on talking until Bobby was through.

Daniel went in and out of the room, bringing Bobby his medication, going to clean the bathroom and change the sheets in the bedroom. After he started the laundry in the machines kept in a hall closet, he plopped on the sofa next to me just as I was explaining the upcoming situation this fall—how Adam was going to be at Oglethorpe with Leslie, and how I was going to be here.

“Well, hell if that ain’t some kinky shit right there,” Bobby said, grinning. “This boy’s a mess, Daniel. He’s great. Bring him around again because I want to know how this all comes out in the wash.”

Author of the bestselling book Smoky Mountain Dreams and the fan favorite Training Season, Leta Blake’s educational and professional background is in psychology and finance, respectively. However, her passion has always been for writing. She enjoys crafting romance stories and exploring the psyches of made up people. At home in the Southern U.S., Leta works hard at achieving balance between her day job, her writing, and her family.

If you’d like to be among the first to know about new releases, you can sign up for Leta’s newsletter here: http://eepurl.com/bdn32H

Bonus material for the Heat of Love series, Will & Patrick Wake Up Married series, Training Season series, Smoky Mountain Dreams, Mr. Frosty Pants, The River Leith, and more is available on Leta Blake’s Patreon account. Sign up here: https://www.patreon.com/letablake

Or you can find out more about her by following her online:

On the web: https://letablake.com

On Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/letablake

On Twitter: https://twitter.com/LetaBlake

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Mirror of the Sun (Enhanced World: Book 7) by Victoria Sue: Release Blitz, Exclusive Excerpt and Giveaway

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.                              .

Together, they might stand a chance.
Divided the world might never survive.

Richard, chased by the memory of losing his entire team in Syria, agreed to help his younger brother Talon, in an attempt to forge bonds between them that had been broken when Talon had transformed.

Adam, terrified of the team that had given him a chance at life, finding out what he had done. Would it result not only in losing the family he had always wanted but never had, but the real risk of harm to those not expecting it, and knowing he was going to be forced to choose between the two?

Sawyer, torn between the real possibility that his ability was out of control, and terrified to admit it even to those who had always had his back, was secretly being drawn to both the warrior that might save the world, and the innocent that might have to sacrifice himself for it.

And the very real possibility that the evil they faced would defeat all three.

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Enhanced World Books 1-6 – Kindle Unlimited – All Regions

Too stupid to live? Wasn’t that what the kids said? Or was that just Finn? Adam snorted and pressed his face to the glass. It was going to rain. Hardly surprising in Florida. And even though it was hot and sticky outside, everything inside him chilled.

“Hi, I’m Finn.” Adam had been shy. Everyone else’s mom or dad had been standing at the bus stop with them that first day, but the two who had parents who didn’t give a fuck had naturally gravitated to each other. “You wanna sit next to me?”

And they had just about been inseparable for the next five and a bit years. Thanks to Tammy, Adam had already been reading when he started school, but he hated math. Finn was exactly the opposite. He struggled with words. Not the ones he heard but the ones he was supposed to read. Finn was clever. Far cleverer than Adam, but just because he didn’t understand other people’s words when they were written down, everyone thought he wasn’t.

Adam had quickly disabused Jamie Salmon of that idea in first grade. And any of the other idiots who thought they could pick on his friend. Jamie was named after a big pink fish, so who was he to talk? Adam was big for his age and had a sister who anyone only took on if they had a death wish. Finn had a brother but wished he didn’t. Adam wouldn’t have wanted a brother like Deke, either.

They’d been inseparable right up to that last year. Adam had told Finn he liked Mandy Jameson even though he was pretty sure she ate poisonous plants like Brussels Sprouts, and Finn had gone quiet and then confessed he liked Mandy’s older brother. The one in high school that sometimes dropped her off at school in the mornings. That had given Adam a lot to think about because, yeah, he was pretty sure he liked Mandy Jameson’s brother as well. And it had always been like that. That they could say anything to each other.

Until that morning. That morning when his world had ended because he’d woken up with a scar on his face and found out that the people who were supposed to love you never really had.

Except Finn. Adam knew beyond any doubt Finn would have stuck with him. Finn would have taken one look at his face and probably likened him to some weird superhero, or alien, or someone else in a book no one else would have ever heard of. And it wouldn’t have mattered. They’d have gotten on the bus and talked about pink fish and liking boys and how they were always going to be best friends. Forever.

But forever was a long time, and Adam didn’t think even Finn could forgive this one.

The screen door banged, and Adam turned around, surprised he hadn’t heard Todd’s truck only to come face to face with Sawyer. He ducked his head, but it was too late, and Sawyer swore, striding over and hooking his thumb under Adam’s chin and raising his face. His black eye would be more visible. Not that you couldn’t see it from space.

Instead of Sawyer getting angry, getting defensive, his expression gentled, as did his fingers. Adam missed the feel of them when they left his face. “What do you need me to do?”

Adam wished so fucking much he could tell him. “I’m handling it.” He didn’t look at Sawyer as he said it. He didn’t need to see the doubt or the disbelief, and he wished so fucking hard he could tell him. He turned away because he had to blink rapidly, but Sawyer had seen, and his warm fingers returned as his palm landed on Adam’s cheek. The one with the scar. Not that Sawyer would flinch because he had one of his own, and Adam closed his eyes on the world and leaned into the touch. He caught a hurried breath from Sawyer, then Sawyer’s thumb slid down his jaw until he was nearly touching Adam’s lip. What would that touch feel like? Adam slid his face a little more toward Sawyer.

He opened his eyes because he had to know and met Sawyer’s green ones and marveled for a second at how deep and wide they had gotten. And how much they seemed to draw him in. He took in the slight flush on Sawyer’s neck and the way his breathing seemed to have sped up. And the way Sawyer looked at him. Saw him. He didn’t see a scar. He didn’t see a failure. He didn’t see betrayal.

Adam knew he needed to step back. He couldn’t drag Sawyer into his mess. Fuck, but he didn’t want to. He wanted—

But the lips that touched his own sent all rational thought somewhere else, somewhere that didn’t hurt. Somewhere where bad decisions belonged to someone else. Somewhere he could be someone else.

Adam’s arms were around Sawyer before he knew what was happening, and he drew him closer. His lips were gentle on Adam’s, but Adam didn’t want gentle. He wanted fierce and possessive, not tentative and unsure. Sawyer moaned into his touch, and Adam explored with his tongue. He could feel Sawyer’s hardness through his jeans and rubbed their hips together. Sawyer groaned again and ground against him. His lips left Adam’s, but only to mouth the base of his neck, and Adam slid his hands down the back of Sawyer’s jeans, yanking him forward even more. Adam could feel the warmth start in his spine as his body responded. Fuck, how long had it been?

“Adam,” Sawyer gasped, a small whine leaving his throat, the vibration against the skin of Adam’s neck addictive. He wanted more. More touching, more kisses.

“Adam, come with me. Come to my place,” Sawyer whispered.

Reality.

Adam stilled so completely that Sawyer hesitated and looked up. “Adam?” When Adam couldn’t seem to form an answer, Sawyer tilted his head, confusion chasing away the passion in those lust-filled eyes.

“I can’t,” Adam choked out and took a step back. The hardest one he’d ever taken.

Sawyer’s arms dropped to his sides. “You can have your own room if—”

But Adam shook his head. “No, sorry. I was upset, and I took it out on you.”

“Adam, that wasn’t an angry kiss. I was two minutes from dragging you into bed until I remembered where we were.” And who you’re supposed to be with. The words weren’t spoken, but Adam heard them all the same.

“I’m sorry, that was bad. I didn’t mean to give you the impression that I wanted more. I just needed a distraction.” Adam wanted to flinch at the hurt that flashed across Sawyer’s face, scream. He didn’t mean it, but he couldn’t unsay it. He didn’t dare. “I guess you’re here for those things you left?”

Sawyer didn’t reply. He took one disbelieving look at Adam, then simply turned and left. Adam closed his eyes. He didn’t want to watch someone else leave him.

Because, in the end, that’s all they ever did, even if this time Adam had pushed them away.

Bullets and Babies!
Victoria writes about guys loving other guys in between dodging bullets, kidnappers, and serial killers. She enjoys putting them through hell to get their happy ever after—it’s a character flaw she
embraces.
She also believes that family is who you choose, that dogs are often much wiser than human beings, and that we’re steadily destroying the world we live in.
She also believes that if people read more books, they wouldn’t screw up as much.

Victoria Sue is giving away a free ebook from her backlist for someone who comments on this post. Check out her backlist here.

Free Me (Love in the Pacific Northwest Series, Book 4) by Beck Grey: RB, Exclusive Author Interview, Excerpt and Giveaway

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A gender-fluid cutie, a workaholic hottie, and a hookup gone right.

Blake
No romantic relationship could ever compete with my dream job. Sure, it gets lonely, but that’s what occasional hookups are for. Work-life balance? Who cares? I certainly don’t. Until chest pains bring me to my knees and land me in the emergency room.

It’s a wake-up call I can’t afford to ignore.

When my well-meaning family encourages me to make some major life changes, like hiring a meditation and physiotherapist, whatever that is, I’m worried enough to agree.

Imagine my surprise when my practitioner turns out to be the hookup I haven’t been able to forget.

Stef
What’s a fabulously vivacious genderfluid beauty to do when stress is high and Prince Charmings aren’t lined up at their door? Head to the club to recharge my sparkle on the dance floor. I have no intention of hooking up with anyone. Hookups are not my thing.

I may be sassy, but I keep it classy. Usually.

Then I see the slightly older hottie in the Tom Ford suit, and all my self-restraint goes up in a blast of glitter.
When it turns out he’s my new meditation client and my friend’s older brother, I’m sure the universe is messing with me.

Because mixing business with pleasure is a huge no-no.
So why does my heart keep shouting yes?
Free Me is a low-angst, opposites attract, worlds collide, LGBTQ romance about a genderfluid cutie, a slightly older hottie, and a hookup gone right. It contains no cheating, and a guaranteed HEA.

Title: Free Me
Authors: Beck Grey
Length: 75k
Series: Love in the Pacific Northwest Series, Book 4
Genre: Contemporary, Low Angst.
Tropes: low-angst, opposites attract, worlds collide.

Amazon – Kindle Unlimited – All Regions

Goodreads

Book 1: Save Me: Love in the Pacific Northwest

Book 2: Embrace Me: Love in the Pacific Northwest

Book 3:  Choose Me: Love in the Pacific Northwest

Book 5: Heal Me: Love in the Pacific Northwest (Out Jan. ’24)

  • If you could sit down with one other writer, living or dead, who would you choose, and what would you ask them?

Neil Gaiman. And what wouldn’t I ask him? The guy is absolutely a wealth of information on about a billion subjects and he’s married to another fascinating person, Amanda Palmer. I’d ask him book related questions and questions about writing, and characters, but I’d also ask him about trips he’s taken and life experiences he’s had. He’s incredibly interesting and listening to interviews he’s given, his life-views are thoughtful and humane.

  • Tell us more about your forthcoming release? What’s this book about?

Free Me is the story of Stef Evans, an out and proud genderqueer physiotherapist and meditation coach, and Blake McCarthy, a workaholic book publisher. It’s a low-angst, opposites attract, worlds collide, LGBTQ romance about a genderfluid cutie, a slightly older hottie, and a hookup gone right. It contains no cheating, and a guaranteed HEA.

It’s book four in my Love in the Pacific Northwest series. All of my books can be read as standalones, but most of the characters make appearances in other books. So we’ve met Stef before in their brother Jules’ book, Choose Me, and in their friend Quinn’s book, Embrace Me. But in the time between books three and four, they learned they were genderfluid.

I would like to take credit for making Stef genderfluid, but they told me that bit of information as I was writing the first chapter of Free Me. They were very insistent, so what could I do? But I love it, because having representation matters. I’m non-binary and it’s nice to put some of that representation in my books. Especially with what’s going on in the world right now with people’s civil rights.

  • What inspired you to write this particular story? What were the challenges in bringing it to life?

Representation of all kinds is what inspires me to write. My series follows a group of LGBTQ friends as they find their people and their happily ever afters. They all have their challenges—social anxiety, Deafness, long distances—but the characters never question who they are. I won’t write main characters who are questioning their sexuality or identity. There are a ton of incredibly powerful, well-written books that address these issues. I love writing situations where being part of the LGBTQ community is just another aspect of someone’s life, like having brown eyes, or being a certain height. It’s something that is, and can’t be changed. So, all of my characters will always be accepting of who they are in and out of the LGBTQ community.

Stef’s book was always going to be next in my series, and I had initially intended it to be more of an age-gap kind of focus, but neither character really seemed overly bothered by the age difference between them. It’s nine years, and while Blake considers it, he doesn’t dwell on it. And then once Stef revealed they’re gender-fluid that really became the focus of the book. So the trick was to walk the line between having this new revelation in Stef’s life be part of their new identity without making it “an issue” for them. Stef does worry it will impact Blake’s career, but Stef never questions who they are, or considers changing, or hiding it.

  • Where can readers find out more about you and your work?

I’m on FB, Discord, TikTok, Instagram, BookBub and Goodreads. All of those links can be found on my Langtry: https://linktr.ee/beck_grey

Check out my website if you’d like sneak peeks of upcoming releases and lots of other stuff! https://www.beckgrey.com/

My Newsletter signup: https://www.subscribepage.com/beckgrey

I walk out to the bedroom balcony and look down at the patio. Blake is lounging by the pool in swim trunks and sunglasses, reading a book. He looks incredibly relaxed, and it makes my heart happy. “Hey, handsome.” He glances up and his face breaks into a wide grin. Okay, yes, we’ve been together for a few months, but his smile still makes my insides all melty and warm. “You want to come in and eat, or should I bring the food out?”

“Put on a suit and come down. This is my big plan for the day.” He gestures to the pool area and waves his book.

I lean my elbows on the railing and grin down at him. “If you’re trying to seduce me, it’s working.”

“Excellent. Step one in my evil plan is complete. Now come down here. I missed you.”

“Be down in a sec!” I hurry inside, strip out of my work clothes, then lather myself in the sunscreen that smells like coconut. Blake loves the scent, and I love how he nuzzles my neck when I use it. I pull on my tiniest black and white print swim briefs, grab a beach towel from the closet and the food bags from the kitchen counter, and hurry down to the game room and out to the patio. “Should we eat at the table or on the loungers like heathens?”

Blake glances up from his book and his eyes lock on my tiny swimsuit. I do a slow spin, giving him a good view of my ass. “Like?”

He pulls his sunglasses to the end of his nose and peers over them. “That’s new.” His voice is thick with lust. Oh, yeah. Mission accomplished.

“It is! And it’s so adorable!”

Blake licks his lips. “And so tiny.”

“I had a feeling you might like it.” I skip past him to the table and deposit the bags.

Blake practically growls and grabs my hips the moment I put the bags down. “Come here.”

I laugh as he manhandles me, hauling me close and inhaling my skin. He drags his nose across my abdomen and my cock stirs, eager to join in the fun, but my stomach growls with hunger. “Mmm. I’m fully on board with whatever you’re planning here, Darling, but we should eat before the food gets cold.”

Blake bites my hip. “We can heat it up.”

My laugh quickly turns to a gasp as his tongue teases above the edge of my suit. It’s all I can do not to press his head a few inches lower. “Blake, Darling, I have souvlaki and Greek salad.”

He hums and sits back, waggling his eyebrows at me. “You know I love Greek.”

I snort at his double entendre. “As do I, my darling. So let’s eat.” I wink at him. “Then we can eat.”

His chuckle warms every part of me. He pushes to his feet with a sigh. “If we must, we must.”

“We must.” I press up on my tiptoes and pucker up.

He obliges me, but turns my expected quick press of lips into a lingering kiss that curls my toes and has me second-guessing my stance on eating first. As I’m about to give in, he lets me go and pats my backside. “C’mon. Let’s feed you so we can move on to other enjoyable things.”

Beck is a non-binary writer of sweet, sexy, LGBTQ happily ever afters. They live in the Northeastern United States with their two adorable dogs. Weekdays are spent working their day job, but nights and weekends are devoted to writing stories involving hot characters, favorite tropes, and happy endings. Any additional time includes reading, laughing with friends, drinking red wine, and playing D&D. If there’s cake involved at any point it’s a win!

Connect with Beck:
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Ripped: An MM Age Gap Romance (Mars Fitness Book 1) by Linden Bell: RB, Exclusive Excerpt and Release Day Review

by

Sometimes heartache is a blessing in disguise.

I thought my life was perfect, and then I walked in on my boyfriend sleeping with my best friend.

The only person I can turn to now is Donnie, the silver-fox spin instructor who lets me crash at his place. Donnie’s a lot older and he’s still grieving his late husband. My dreams of being a filmmaker have disintegrated along with my relationship.

The worst of life has brought us together. Do we dare create something beautiful out of it?

Ripped is an age gap, nerd/jock, hurt/comfort MM romance between roommates who cuddle while watching classic movies. Expect steamy shower rooms, teary confessions, disapproving family, and brand new beginnings. It is the first book in the Mars Fitness series and can be read as a standalone.

CW: grief and loss of a spouse, description of fatal car accident, description of homophobic family, cheating secondary characters. Happily ever after guaranteed.

Title: Ripped
Authors: Linden Bell
Length: 60k
Series: Mars Fitness, Book 1
Genre: Contemporary

Amazon – Kindle Unlimited – All Regions

“I cannot believe you’ve never seen The Count of Monte Cristo! Hello, Jim Caviezel? Guy Pearce? Baby Henry Cavill? With sideburns! In cravats!”

Donnie stares at me like I’m speaking a different language. “I don’t know. Maybe? If I have seen it, I don’t remember it. Must not have been memorable.”

“Oh my god, sacrilege! This is an emergency. We need to remedy this.”

We’ve finished our dinner of beef and broccoli on cauliflower rice, which—again—isn’t bad, but isn’t rice. Now we’re in the middle of cleaning up and Donnie drops this bombshell on me. It isn’t his first. He’s never seen Casablanca or Citizen Kane or Dr. Strangelove either. Never mind Psycho or Carrie or The Exorcist. I’m sleeping under the same roof as a film virgin and I have my work cut out for me.

“It’s not that I don’t like movies. They just… don’t make an impression, I guess.”

I take the plate Donnie hands me and run the microfiber cloth over it until it’s dry. “Okay, name one movie that’s made an impression.”

Donnie narrows his eyes as he thinks. “Titanic?”

“Oh my god!” I set the plate down carefully and snap the towel at Donnie.

He screeches and darts away, laughing. He looks amazing like that with his hazel eyes dancing and the laugh lines around his mouth and eyes out in full force. It’s been like this for most of dinner. Jokes and teasing and easy conversation that flows like we’ve known each other forever.

It’s comfortable. Not like old sneakers comfortable, where you should’ve replaced them ages ago, but couldn’t be bothered. More like finding that perfect pair of jeans that you buy in every available color.

Being with Donnie feels so normal it’s kinda freaky. We really have very little in common. He’s all into healthy eating and staying active. He knows a lot about how the body works. None of that is surprising because obvs, he’s Donnie, The Spin Instructor. But he also reads like, five books a week and listens to all kinds of weird music.

Movies and TV, though? Not so much. Not huge into Broadway either—musicals or plays. He almost never eats out and there are like, no snacks in the house. At least, nothing I would consider a snack. Granola is not a snack. At most, it’s breakfast. I need chips.

Donnie and I stand off in the kitchen. Him with wet and soapy fingers. Me with my towel-snapping skills. We stalk around each other in circles, each waiting for the other to strike first.

“Connor,” Donnie warns. There’s a twinkle in his eyes that urges me on.

“Donnie.” I mimic his tone, holding my towel in attack mode.

“What do you think you’re doing?”

“What does it look like I’m doing?”

I take a step toward Donnie, and he takes a step back. I take another step forward, and he bumps into the wall. He’s trapped and I smile like Jack Nicholson coming through the door in The Shining.

As far as I can tell, this is a new author. Unless it’s a pen name of another. But still, first title under their name. And while new authors tend to make me hesitate, I liked the sound of the blurb.

And…I liked it!

Ok, it was far from perfect, but a perfect book is nearly impossible to me. But if this truly is a first time author, well done. I think I only rolled my eyes once (tickle fight? really?) and moved on.

Although we know Connor is mid 20’s, I don’t know if we ever got Donnie’s age. I’m guessing he is a good 20 years older. Donnie is still mourning the death of his husband almost 4 years prior, but he is drawn to Connor. And having Connor living in his guest room is very tempting.

Donnie and Connor just mesh their lives together so seamlessly. It almost seemed like they had known each other for years before sliding into a romantic relationship.

Oh wait, I rolled my eyes again. I just remembered. Still, only twice.

Ultimately, they helped heal each other. Connor helped Donnie heal from his husband’s death and Donnie helped Connor heal from the betrayal of his boy friend and best friend. He even helps Connor’s mother understand a bit of adult Connor. Even though it’s really Connor’s brother who needs a slap.

The happily ever after wrapped up so well, and we get a very short glimpse of the next couple in the series. Which I will definitely want to read.

4 pieces of eye candy

Rescue Me, Daddy by Michael Robert: RB, Exclusive Excerpt, and Giveaway

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TIM MILLER
My life in Valentine, Nebraska, wasn’t easy. At just nineteen, I found myself homeless and jobless with no prospects on the horizon. A life of abuse crushed people, but I still had space in my heart for love. With the support and guidance of an elderly widower, my life finally began to turn around.

Being young and gay in a small town brought challenges but I had goals for my life, one of which was to be loved. The arrival of a world famous author to our small community turned my world upside down. What did I have to offer a man like Davis? I have nothing but my heart. I hope it’s enough.

DAVIS HILL
After the end of my five-year relationship in Malibu, I was desperate for change. Even though my career was successful, I could still use an infusion of ideas for my next book. So I did the unthinkable and decided to randomly stick a pin in a map and relocate. My friends may have labeled me insane, but I couldn’t resist the temptation. A fresh start in a new town offered the chance to distract myself while I heal from the pain of a failed relationship.

Coming to the rescue of Tim on the very first day we met, was the beginning of one story I hadn’t expected. I had relocated to find a great story, but hadn’t expected to discover my own love story. Could a small town in the middle of nowhere offer a new beginning for both my heart and my career? Little did I know that small towns could have dark secrets that could threaten to shatter my heart.

Title: Rescue Me, Daddy
Author: Michael Robert
Length: 360 pages
Genre: Contemporary, Kink

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The idea of the striking stranger being right here in my town after rescuing me, caused a stirring inside I didn’t recognize. I was nervous, excited, tingly, and my mind conjured up all sorts of scenes where he protected me and held me close. Maybe he’d kiss me?

“Nobody knows why he’s here, but trust me, the single ladies are all a flutter,” she said. “He can expect a load of welcome-wagon casseroles coming his way.”

I curled my index finger asking her to come closer.

“He is very, very, very, good looking,” I whispered.

“So do you mean very ?” she joked.

I exaggeratingly nodded my head.

“I have an idea,” she began. “Let’s drive by old lady Bolling’s place and check him out.”

“Tonight?” I asked.

“Hell yeah, tonight, dude,” she stated. “Do you wanna be late to the parade of casseroles?”

I knew with every fiber in my body I did not want to miss any parade our town’s newest resident was involved in.

Michael Robert is an author residing in Seattle, Washington. The Crow Flies Free is his debut novel. Michael enjoys traveling and he aspires to visit the locations of his upcoming novels so as to provide vivid and accurate descriptions of them. He enjoys tennis, road trips and fast cars. Please look for his future projects, the next story coming soon.

Connect with Michael:
https://linktr.ee/AuthorMichaelRobert
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Adverse Conditions (Reclaimed Hearts, Book 1) by Elle Keaton: RB, Exclusive Excerpt, and Giveaway

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Xavier swore he’d never move back to the flyspeck of a town he’d grown up in and he kept that promise for over twenty years. Now he’s back for good.

Vincent never left. After earning his teaching certificate, he stayed in town to be close to his elderly parents. These days he’s the single dad of a fifteen-year-old daughter and working two jobs to make ends meet. He’s perfectly happy with his life.

Xavier’s mission is to save Cooper Springs. But his efforts are being hindered by his stodgy, straight-laced, rule-following neighbor, Vincent Barone. Dark-eyed, broad-shouldered, and muscly Vincent, who Xav stealthily ogles when he toils in his yard sans shirt. For a high school shop teacher, Vincent is too sexy. And he has a kid. And he infuriates Xavier. And anyway, love is for suckers.

Vincent doesn’t have time to date. And he certainly wouldn’t date his flashy, arrogant, neighbor who he absolutely did not have a crush on in high school. Who did Xavier think he was, moving back to town and throwing his weight around, causing butterflies in Vincent’s stomach, and making his stupid heart beat faster every time he saw him?

Cooper Springs has changed since they were kids, and maybe two guys can move from hate to love. But are they ready? Will Vincent bend a few of his rules? Will Xavier reign in his chaotic tendencies? Is love in the air?

Then there’s the matter of the grisly discovery in the woods, murder is bad for business.

Welcome to Cooper Springs, home to UFO chasers, Sasquatch believers, conspiracy theorists, chainsaw artists, and regular folk just trying to make a living. And, quite possibly, a killer.

Adverse Conditions is the first in the Reclaimed Hearts series, set in the wilds of the Olympic Peninsula in Washington State, it is an opposites-attract, older lovers. enemies to lovers, small-town romance, with a little murder.

Title: Adverse Conditions
Author: Elle Keaton
Series: Reclaimed Hearts, Book 1
Genre: Contemporary, Mystery/Suspense.

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If Vincent had any luck at all, Romy would never know that he had fallen asleep at Xavier’s until oh-dark-thirty, when he’d woken in a panic, jumped out of bed, and dashed across their street, barefoot, clutching his sweatshirt to his chest like the last remaining heroine in a slasher movie.

He was not that lucky.

A sleeping Xavier had mumbled something that hopefully wasn’t him being mad that Vincent was leaving. After school was out, he planned to track Xavier down and they could talk. Or not.

“Hey, Dad. Where were you last night?” Romy asked as she came into the kitchen a few hours later.

He’d had two hours to come up with something and he’d come up with absolutely nothing. Vincent was a terrible liar. It was as if he had some kind of internal sensor that started going off when he tried. He stuttered, his cheeks heated, and his skin twitched—apparently no one could see him blush, but Carly had probably lied about that too.

“Oh, um, just hanging out with a friend. Lost track of time.” Smooth. He choked back a curse when he realized his fingertips were tapping restlessly against the tabletop and quickly jammed his hand into his pocket.

Grabbing a bowl from the cupboard, Romy began pouring cereal into it. Vincent let out a noiseless sigh of relief.  After she’d topped the bowl off with milk, she turned his direction, staring at him as she set her breakfast on the table.

Crap. He’d let his guard down too soon.

Eyeing him, Romy drew her dark eyebrows together— his daughter had a high-quality bull-crap detector and it was on full alert. He managed to resist shifting in his seat like a ten-year-old.

“On a Monday night? When it’s not a holiday?” Her eyes narrowed. “What happened to that early-to-bed thing you nag me about all the time?”

Lifting his coffee mug to his lips, Vincent shrugged as he took a big sip so he wouldn’t have to answer right away. He also resisted the urge to point out she was his daughter, not his mother.

Her eyes narrowed further as her gaze moved to… his neck? He squirmed, standing up so whatever she thought she saw wasn’t visible. His kid could be as—er, informed as she wanted to be about sex, but Vincent was a private guy and not about to share his extra-private life with his almost sixteen-year-old. Not ever.

Turning his back to his inquisitor, Vincent fished his lunch bag out of the fridge and then busied himself transferring fresh coffee into his Cooper Springs is for Lovers travel mug. Probably left over from the 1990s, it had a tacky graphic of two hairy Sasquatches kissing with little hearts floating above their heads. He’d picked it up at the thrift store last summer for a dollar, thinking it was hilarious. Romy had just given him a disdainful look when he’d proudly showed it to her.

“Do you need a ride in today?” Please god, not today. A car ride would inevitably lead to more questions. Vincent crossed his fingers out of Romy’s sight; Romy’s friend Violet had her license and a car.

“No, Vi’s picking me up in a few minutes.”

Vincent breathed a sigh of relief.

“Well, finish your breakfast before you leave, and don’t forget your club stuff. I am not coming home to get your things for you.”

“Yes, Father.”

Romy shoved the last spoonful of cereal into her mouth, continuing to eye him with suspicion.

“And lock the door on your way out. I’ve got a meeting with Jensen this morning, so I gotta get going.”

Grabbing his backpack, coffee, and lunch bag, he headed toward the door, but had a feeling he hadn’t escaped quite as easily as he hoped. Romy wouldn’t forget this.

“Don’t forget there’s a game Friday!” she called after him as he twisted the door handle.

How could he forget with his daughter, the high school, and most of the population of Cooper Springs spending the week reminding him?

“I’ll be there. I promised I would be.”

“And bring a friend!”

A friend? Like who? Most of the town would be there anyway. This was Cooper Spring High’s chance to beat Elma High, their closest rivals. Did she mean Xavier? No way, Xavier was not a Friday-night-high-school-football-game kind of man. Vincent chuckled, imagining Xavier wrapped up in a parka and rooting for the Cooper Springs Fighting Sasquatch [SB1] football team in the pouring rain.

Yeah, nope.

Outside, the weather was cloudy, but no rain—not yet anyway. However, the weather report promised more was on the way. It was that weird time in late fall, when most of the deciduous trees were bare and the rest looked depressed, just waiting for that last leaf to drop. Vincent couldn’t stop himself from glancing across the street, but Xavier’s house was still dark.

If only Romy hadn’t already been suspicious. And he hadn’t been running late. And he hadn’t made sure Xavier’s front door was locked before leaving. If all that hadn’t happened this morning, Vincent might have snuck back over and left him a note. But Romy was probably watching him through the front window and Stuart Jensen, head of the eleventh and twelfth grade teaching staff, did not like it when his staff was late.

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Elle Keaton writes MM romantic suspense set in the Pacific Northwest with some contemporary romance thrown in. She’s passionate about writing inclusive romances with complex characters and a unique sense of place. Her characters start out broken, and maybe they’re still banged up by the end, but they find the other half of their hearts and ALWAYS get their happily ever after. In 2017 Elle hit the publish button for the first time and hasn’t looked back. Being an author is the best job Elle has ever had and now she has over thirty books available for you to read or listen to! She loves cats and dogs, Star Wars and Star Trek, pineapple on pizza, and has a cribbage habit her husband encourages.

Connect with Elle:
https://ellekeaton.com/
https://ellekeaton.com/join-the-highway-to-elle-newsletter/
https://www.facebook.com/ellekeatonauthor (my page)
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https://www.amazon.com/stores/Elle-Keaton/author/B06XJWJRLK
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