Two Chicks Obsessed with Books & Eye Candy

Sharing our love of M/M Romance

TCO Reviewer: Denise

Love in Spades by Charlie Cochet: Exclusive Excerpt, Audio Book Tour, and Review

by

Ex-Special Forces soldier Anston “Ace” Sharpe is fighting a different battle these days—one involving the world of private security across the state of Florida. As part owner of Four Kings Security, Ace and his fellow Kings tackle everything from armed transport and investigations to cyber intelligence and executive protection. Cocky, fearless, and brash, Ace isn’t afraid to take risks.

After years of working alongside his father, Colton Connolly is ready to take the helm at Connolly Maritime, but his father’s retirement is put on hold when Colton begins receiving death threats. If that isn’t bad enough, his father signs a contract with Four Kings Security to provide Colton with round-the-clock protection, despite his adamant refusal. Colton’s life has been turned upside down, the last thing he needs is a shadow, especially in the form of infuriating, sexy-as-sin Ace Sharpe, who seems to be on a mission to drive Colton mad.

Sparks fly the moment Colton and Ace meet on a sultry night club dance floor. But getting involved with a client, even one as fiery and beautiful as Colton Connolly, is a line Ace is unwilling to cross. Colton might be attracted to Ace, but he’d been burned before. He might be willing to put his life in Ace’s hands, but not his heart.

As the Florida nights heat up, so does their passion, and Ace and Colton are faced with a difficult choice—take the plunge and risk it all, or play it safe and walk away?

If Ace can keep a deadly threat from robbing Colton of a future….

Love in Spades: Four Kings Security, Book 1

Author: Charlie Cochet

AUDIO RELEASE: 06.20.18

COVER DESIGN: REESE DANTE

NARRATOR: Greg Boudreaux

https://www.facebook.com/GTremblayVoice/

Listening Length: 7 hours and 53 minutes

Audible

Amazon ebook

iTunes

  

 

“Do I get a gun?” Colton asked.

“Have you ever fired a gun?”

“No. I’m not really a fan.”

“It’s amazing how many clients believe we’re going to arm them. Even if you were an expert marksman, you wouldn’t get a gun. You get a pen.”

Wait…. “A pen?”

“Yep. Titanium.” Ace handed Colton a silver pen, and Colton hesitantly took it from him. He held it up in front of him and peered at it.

“I’m supposed to fend off an attacker with a pen?” Was it a Bond pen? If he clicked the end or twisted it, would it release a toxic gas or set off an explosive? He clicked the end, and the ink nib popped out. Nope. It was just a pen.

“It’s a tactical weapon,” Ace assured him. “With the right amount of force in the right place, it can cause some serious damage.”

Colton eyed him skeptically. “You’re messing with me.”

“No.”

“What if they have a gun?”

“That’s a different lesson.”

Colton sighed. “Okay, show me.”

“Not if you’re going to give me attitude.”

“I’m not giving you attitude.”

Ace held his hand out. “Give me the pen.”

“No. It’s my pen.” Colton clutched it to his chest.  “You gave it to me.”

“Seriously?”

“Yes. This is the only defense I have. You’re not taking it from me.”

“Colton, you do realize I could take it from you without you even realizing.”

“Oh yeah, Mr. Hot-Shot-Green-Beret? Then do it.”

“Colton,” Ace warned.

“Come on. I want to see your super-secret moves.”

“I don’t even know what to say to you right now, other than you’re being ridiculous. And I have your pen.” Ace held up a silver pen.

“What the hell?” Colton gaped at his empty hands before his head shot up. “How’d you do that?”

“With years of practice. Now, are you going to pay attention?”

“Yes.”

“Good.”

“Can I have my pen back?”

Ace pressed his lips together like he was trying to keep from laughing. The guy was so fucking sexy. Colton wanted to climb him and do terrible things to his body. Instead he took the pen Ace handed him.

“Thank you.”

“Okay, put that in your pocket. First I’m going to demonstrate the moves.” Ace pulled his own pen from his pocket.”

“Ooh, yours is black. It looks very serious.”

“It’s the same as yours, but black.”

“It camouflages with your clothes.”

“Yes.”

“Does it come in different colors?”

“You should know that I’m two seconds away from putting you in a sleeper hold.”

 

 

There are few things that make a book that you’ve already read and loved better than having a good narrator do the Audible. If you are going to choose to listen to the audiobook, after having read the ebook, for me, you need to have an amazing narrator, to give the reader/listener that much more than they took from the first read. Fortunately, Charlie Cochet only ever has the best narrate her books. With this new self-published series, Four Kings Security, choosing Greg Boudreaux was fantastic. He is one of my top three narrators…if you want to know the other two, that’s a story for another day. 😉 Greg’s voice just resonates so well with me for any book he narrates. He moderates well, can change voices, and is able to carry a more steady pace when there isn’t character dialogue.

This book is sexy, with characters who are smart a**es, has action, and a family that won’t quit on each other. That is one of the things that I have always loved about Charlie’s books. Her books ALWAYS have family as integral part of them, and that family is so often a family of the character’s choosing, rather than (or in addition to) the bloodline they are born into. Family is about the people you keep close to you, through thick and thin, not necessarily the ones who raised you. The Four Kings? They are their own family, with some blood family thrown in there as well, and they have been with each other through the hardest moments of their lives, and will be there for the best times, as well.

With Ace, his family is what has gotten him through, and yet he can be the one who pisses off their boss, and laughs through it, knowing that their “King” will murder him if he gets dead. Colton has a family that adores him, and has never cared about his sexuality, and continues to extend love to everyone he meets. These two together create a dynamic that will carry through the entire series, I think, as they show the other Kings, the ones who have been burned by those that they loved, that love is possible for each of them.

Greg does a fantastic job of creating the character’s distinct voices (loved hearing him speak Spanish for Lucky!), and giving them all the personality he saw for them in the words. When there was sassyness by Ace or Colton…or really many of the characters…he portrayed that so well, with his voice. Creating urgency, as well as showing those tender moments, all are points that can be lost with some narrators, but never with Greg. He allows his characters’ to shine through, without making it about any “acting” voice, but simply the voice of what he sees for the characters. That fine line is never crossed with him (hence one of my top 3 narrators!). This is one of the many things I love about listening to his narration. He portrayed Ace and Colton with very distinct and separate characteristics.

Story: 4.5 pieces of eye candy

Narration: Also 4.5 pieces of eye candy

Charlie Cochet is an author by day and artist by night. Always quick to succumb to the whispers of her wayward muse, no star is out of reach when following her passion. From adventurous agents and sexy shifters, to society gentlemen and hardboiled detectives, there’s bound to be plenty of mischief for her heroes to find themselves in, and plenty of romance, too!

Currently residing in Central Florida, Charlie is at the beck and call of a rascally Doxiepoo bent on world domination. When she isn’t writing, she can usually be found reading, drawing, or watching movies. She runs on coffee, thrives on music, and loves to hear from readers.

Website: http://www.charliecochet.com

Blog: http://www.charliecochet.com/blog

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/charliecochet

Facebook Author Page: http://facebook.com/authorcharliecochet

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Broken Rules by Michaela Grey: Exclusive Excerpt and New Release Review

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Sanyam Desai is a Dom, a master of his craft. He knows exactly how to make a person beg, and he does it for a living, but he has no idea how to be in love.

Sterling Reynard is in desperate need of manners and someone who cares enough to take him in hand, but he knows he’ll never be loved.

When Sterling’s world crumbles around him, he turns to the one person who’s never asked for anything from him but his trust. But their relationship is built on quicksand, and one careless word will bring the whole thing down.

Title: Broken Rules
Series: Mended Hearts: Book 2
Author: Michaela Grey
Release Date: July 24, 2018
Category: Contemporary, BDSM
Pages: 215

Amazon

Dreamspinner Press

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Sterling propped himself on his elbows and glanced at the clock. It was close to dinnertime. He’d slept right through lunch, he realized, surprised.

“Sanyam?”

There was no answer. Of course there was no answer. Why on earth would Sanyam have stuck around?

Rolling off the bed, Sterling limped to the bathroom, which was spotless. He used the toilet, washed his hands, and shuffled his halting way out to the living room just as Sanyam pushed the front door open and stepped inside.

“Oh,” Sterling said blankly. “I—thought you’d gone.”

Sanyam hefted the bags in his hands. “I did, briefly. I had a craving for some Thai curry. I hope you like spicy food.”

Sterling followed him to the table, and Sanyam set the food on it before turning to inspect Sterling, who blinked and drew back a pace.

“What are you doing?”

“Trying to get a gauge of your mental state,” Sanyam said. “How are you feeling?”

Sterling twitched away from Sanyam’s probing gaze. “I didn’t jack off, if that’s what you’re asking.”

Sanyam’s eyes creased as he smiled. “I know. Sit. Let’s eat.”

Sterling sank into a chair as Sanyam gathered silverware and plates from his cupboards.

“How do you know?”

“Hmm? Know what?”

“Whether I’ve jacked off,” Sterling clarified. He shifted in his seat and winced. “You knew… at the club, that I had. And today, you knew I hadn’t. So… how?”

Sanyam straightened with plates in his hands. “It’s in your bearing, for one thing. I can’t really put a finger on it, but it’s a combination of tension or lack thereof, as well as—” He laughed as he put the plates on the table. “You looked ridiculously guilty when you lied to me last night. You’re a terrible liar.”

Sterling scowled. “I’m a great liar, excuse you. My parents still think I’m straight, for one thing.”

Sanyam’s eyebrows went up as he went back to the kitchen to get Utopias from the refrigerator. “Oh dear. Are they homophobic?”

“Dad is,” Sterling said, hunching his shoulders and twirling a fork between his fingers. “Mom… doesn’t care.”

“About you being gay or in general?”

“Yes,” Sterling said flatly. “What kind of curry did you get?”

“Massaman and red,” Sanyam said. His eyes were sharp, but mercifully, he dropped the subject of Sterling’s parents. “If you can’t handle spice, stick with the massaman; I’ll take the red.”

Sterling bridled and snatched the red curry. “I can handle spice just fine, asshole.”

Sanyam’s lips twitched. “If I’d said I preferred the massaman, you’d have taken that instead, wouldn’t you?”

His eyes danced with amusement, and Sterling floundered. No one had ever found his dickish behavior funny before.

Sanyam’s smile widened. “Enjoy your spice, Fox.”

Sterling hesitated.

“What is it?”

“I… actually like massaman better,” he admitted.

Sanyam laughed out loud and handed him the container. “Good, because I prefer the red.”

Sterling’s lips curved as he took the curry and began to ladle it over his rice.

I will admit that I haven’t read anything by this author previously, but something about this book intrigued me right away (the cover threw me though…I didn’t understand it at all, until I read the book, then it made so much more sense!). I loved that it was BDSM, but clearly not just any BDSM. A Dom that actually WORKS as a Dominant for a living is not a book you read every day.

The beginning was a little rough for me. When they first met, there was a difficult situation, and I didn’t see or feel any chemistry. Then when they met the second time, I felt the same. I couldn’t see why Sanyam was drawn to Sterling at all. He wasn’t just a brat, he was an a-hole. Just a complete a-hole. A hard character to like initially. Of course, because the author really put her characterizations together well, you began to see why Sterling was a character that was hard to love, but that Sanyam looked right through to the core of. In that same vein, I even had a hard time figuring out why Sterling chose to meet with Sanyam at all. It just didn’t make sense to me. So yeah, the beginning was a touch rough.

But it smoothed out very quickly after that. The reader definitely saw the characters’ personalities, and how they were shaped. In the case of Sterling, he had several very traumatic events at an early age. Not physically traumatic, or even something that someone might characterize as “abusive”. However, with events such as that, it was obvious why Sterling developed a shell around him that he would rather have everything bounce off of, versus letting anyone close to him.

The glimpses of the “good guy” in Sterling were fantastic though. He took a situation that was an every day event with his sister, that could have been so tragic to the eroding of his shell, and slowly worked it into something positive, something he could feel proud of. Oh, he fell, many times, but he kept trying to find the good in himself, and Sanyam was will and able to help with that.

I loved that Sanyam was an Indian character, originally from Mumbai, and other than one very brief moment in the book, it was never an issue for him. The author could easily have used Sanyam’s race as a way to move the book forward, and yet did not, and I appreciated that. The issues that came up were plentiful and of the characters’ own making, so the book did not feel lacking by not addressing racism intensely.

By about 50% in the book, Sterling had stolen my heart, simply because he had so many hard knocks in his life, and they just kept coming. And although, no one could call him a positive person, he could easily have sank into drugs or alcohol, and instead stayed away from that, keeping his pain internal. Certainly not the best avenue, but it could have been so much worse for him. It did allow Sanyam the space to help where he could, and bring Sterling out of his head, and into his heart.

One last piece, the “resolution” scene, if you will. There were pieces that I didn’t quite like as a reader, simply because I want joy, and agreement and happiness everywhere…and yet, they were absolutely the right things for these characters, and once I thought on that, I completely agreed with the author’s choices there. So, although I always want everyone to have the happiest of happy endings, and to get everything they want, it truly was what was right for the characters. Bravo to the author for changing my mind…not always possible. 🙂

In the end, 4.5 pieces of eye candy, and one I think I’d like to read again. I think this is a book, I might glean even more from once I read it a second time. Recommended.

Michaela Grey lives and writes in the Texas hill country. Her hobbies include knitting, analyzing her favorite TV shows, and experiencing intense feelings over fictional characters. Michaela Grey told stories to put herself to sleep since she was old enough to hold a conversation in her head. When she learned to write, she began putting those stories down on paper. She and her family reside in the Texas hill country with their cats, and she is perpetually on the hunt for peaceful writing time, which her children make difficult to find. When she’s not writing, she’s watching hockey videos or avoiding responsibilities on Twitter, where she shamelessly ogles pretty people and tries to keep her cat off the keyboard.

Social media:

Twitter: @GreyMichaela

Tumblr: http://greymichaela.tumblr.com

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/GreyMichaela

Email: greymichaela@gmail.com

Cover artist: 

Kanaxa

Serving Him (The Retreat Book 1) by L.M. Somerton: RDB, Excerpt and Release Day Review

by

An escape from the real world can only ever be temporary.

Rowan Stanton knows he is submissive. He loves to look after people but the country hotel he works at can’t quite fulfill his need to serve. When he succeeds at getting a new role as houseboy at The Retreat, an exclusive BDSM hideaway in the New Forest, he believes it’s his dream job. Inexperienced in many ways, he soon realizes he’s not as prepared as he thought for the demands placed upon him.

Lorcan Wilder is young, rich and successful. He’s also haunted by nightmares and has sacrificed a decade to his business. Selling it gives him the freedom to explore his Dominant side and four weeks at The Retreat are the start of a new life. He doesn’t expect the young submissive employed to serve him will have such a profound effect on him. Exploring and pushing Rowan’s boundaries is exactly what Lorcan needs to separate himself from his past.

Lorcan makes full use of The Retreat’s facilities, from the genuine dungeon to the secret toys concealed in every room. He rediscovers his energy for life and gradually re-engages with the world. However, his efforts to compartmentalize the past ultimately fail and he comes to realize what he’s always known—that true submissives have an inner strength he can only envy.

By the end of his stay, Lorcan can’t let Rowan go, though he thinks he must. What will convince him that he’s allowed a happy ever after, and will he find the courage to accept it?

Book Title: Serving Him – The Retreat #1

Author: L. M. Somerton

Publisher: Pride Publishing

Cover Artist: Cherith Vaughan

Genre/s: MM BDSM

Length: 57,670 words/151 pages

It is a standalone story

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Global Amazon link

 

“Who’d have thought there would be so many applicants for a role where the job description includes nudity and a willingness to get your arse whipped?” Carey Hoffman leafed through the pile of paperwork in front of him. “This is a lot harder than recruiting for club servers.”

“Relax, Sir. It’s important we find the right people. The more applicants we get, the better chance we have of finding someone perfect.” Alistair Easton, Carey’s submissive, kneaded his Master’s shoulders. “Our first paying client deserves the best.”

“That’s so good.” The tension melted from Carey’s shoulders as Alistair loosened knotted muscles. “Maybe we should go upstairs for an hour so that you can relieve other parts of my anatomy.”

Alistair giggled. “Not a good idea if you want to invite people in for interviews this week. We have work to do.”

Scowling, Carey turned to his friend and bar manager Harry Croft. “What’s a Dom to do, Harry, when his sub takes charge?”

“Generally,” Harry replied, “I find it’s best to do what I’m told.” He ruffled his sub’s hair. Kai Smithson was seated on the floor between Harry’s legs. “You can always spank him later, but for now, Alistair is right. We have to get through all these applications this evening. We only have one post left to fill, don’t we?”

Alistair knelt at Carey’s side, hands folded in his lap, his serenity in complete contrast to the noise and activity going on all around them. The Underground was always busy, but Friday nights tended to be hectic. Carey had sequestered a quiet corner for their discussion. A low table held paperwork and drinks, and cushions softened the floor for Alistair’s knees and Kai’s backside. Carey still found it hard to concentrate. He blamed Alistair for looking so tempting in leather trousers and a sheer silk shirt. He imagined removing the shirt, exposing Alistair’s smooth skin inch by inch, then watching his lover wriggle out of the trousers…

“Carey?” Harry brought him out of his daydream.

“Sorry, I got a bit distracted. Where were we?”

“The last vacancy—if you can keep your mind on recruitment and off whatever it is you’re planning to do to Alistair?” He shared a conspiratorial grin.

“Oh, yes. Right. Well, I’m thankful Mr. Wilder’s requirements are not too onerous. Tor Halvorsen will act as executive chef. He cooked for Joe and Heath when they had their taster weekend with Olly and Aiden and their reviews of his cooking were first rate. Olly said, and I’m quoting here, that Tor’s double chocolate brownies were better than an orgasm after two days in chastity.”

Alistair and Kai both burst out laughing.

Harry rolled his eyes. “Olly would be proud. He can create chaos even when he’s hundreds of miles away. That’s two extra strokes for you tonight, young man.” He gave Kai’s hair a gentle tug. Kai sucked on his lower lip but his eyes sparkled and he rubbed his cheek against Harry’s thigh.

“Tor has recruited two kitchen assistants, both, I might add, stolen from here at The Underground,” Carey said. “As Mr. Wilder is traveling alone, Tor says that will be more than adequate to cover his stay and allow for days off for each of them. Tor intends to work through and take some time off in between clients. He’ll also take on training Benjy and Frank. Going forward, I think we should consider rotating the junior kitchen staff through The Retreat. Then they’ll all get experience of different kinds of catering.”

“That’s a great idea. At least they won’t be shocked by anything they see at The Retreat.” Harry grinned. “Right. Goran has sorted all the drink supplies, so Mr. Wilder won’t starve or go thirsty.” Goran was Harry’s very capable deputy bar manager. “He can always take a quick trip down there if Tor needs him for anything. It’s always possible that the client will want to throw a party while he’s staying. Goran’s already offered to run the bar for events like that.”

Carey nodded. “Excellent. Then we have Luke Redding as general manager. He’s ex-forces, like Tor.”

“The Retreat is going to be run like a military campaign,” Harry said. “Tell me about Luke. I know he’s a member here but not much else.”

“He’s a well-respected Dom. Kept up his membership even when he was overseas on active duty.”

“Well, you do give service personnel an excellent discount.”

“I do, and they deserve it. Whereas Tor was in the army, Luke is ex-Navy. Served fifteen years then took an honorable discharge to care for his father who died last year. Mother passed when he was a child so his dad brought him up. He told me at the interview that he gave himself to his career, then to his father, now it’s his time. He was very open. He doesn’t have to work for the money but needs a purpose. He’s a very experienced manager and won’t take shit from anyone. He’ll be perfect for mentoring the young men that will be working at The Retreat, as well as the contractors. Management of the house and garden staff as well as all the arrangements related to housekeeping and maintenance will sit with him, and if our guests want any training in a particular technique, Luke can either handle it himself or bring someone in from the club if he doesn’t feel qualified. He knows the area well too—he was based at Portsmouth for many years and the New Forest was a favorite daytrip destination.”

“I hope I’ll get to meet him one day,” Harry said. “I’m surprised I’ve never come across him here.”

“I’m sure you will. I intend to have post-stay debriefings with The Retreat’s management team here at the club.”

“Good idea. So, when you Skyped with Mr. Wilder…”

“Lorcan. He prefers to be called Lorcan.”

“When you Skyped with Lorcan, did he have any special requirements for other staff?”

“I think he’s going to be a low maintenance client—he was reserved, but friendly. The stay is a personal reward for selling his business. From what I could make out, he’s done little else but work for many years. He’s had some training as a Dominant and has excellent references from a couple of clubs I know in the U.S. He wants to see whether immersion in the lifestyle is what he wants because, as he said, he thinks it is but he’s never had time to prove it to himself.”

“Sounds like he has his head in the right place.”

Nodding, Carey flicked through a few applications. “I’ve done a full background check. There was an incident in his late teens, which I won’t go into here because it shouldn’t cause any issues. It marks him as a survivor. He plays hard when he has the time but that isn’t often. He admits to a preference for blonds. Smaller than him and not too muscled.”

“How tall is he?” Harry asked.

“Six feet one.”

“That rules out three of these—all within an inch of that height. There are also several brunets and one redhead in here so I’ll put them aside. That still leaves six possibles.”

“Whoever we choose has to be prepared to be very flexible.” At Harry’s feet, Kai giggled. “Not that kind of flexible, brat,” Carey chided. “Lorcan wants one man to be his personal assistant, valet and submissive. He doesn’t want a lot of people around the place because his break is about getting some breathing space, so this man will be at his beck and call twenty-four seven. Experience isn’t needed. I think Lorcan wants someone he can mold to his requirements, so we’re looking for a relative innocent—but one who knows what he’s getting into.”

“And who understands the difference between furniture wax and candle wax.” Harry rolled his eyes. “Talk about mission impossible.”

“The housework will be light, just Lorcan’s bedroom and bathroom. The contracted cleaning service will handle the rest. We’ll need someone bright enough to be an effective assistant…”

“And who doesn’t mind taking notes naked, with a plug up his arse.” Harry laughed. “Sorry, I’m being facetious.”

“You may not be that far off the mark. Nudity and minimal dress are non-negotiable.”

“Well, that helps us narrow the field a bit more. Two of these applicants are house subs here. I know them both and I don’t think either of them could be called sweet and innocent—they’re a pair of brats. Of the remaining four, two have university degrees and one went to work straight from school but got very good grades at A level. The last one seems to have drifted from job to job but does have waiting experience.”

“Drop him for now and ask the other three to come in. When we have time, I want to see all the applicants we’ve rejected for this job in case they’d like us to hold their details for future opportunities. It would be nice to be able to offer clients a portfolio of staff to choose from rather than having to go through this process all the time. That way we can also broach the subject when we recruit staff for The Underground. Whoever we choose this time will be permanently employed, but The Retreat is fully booked for months. We’ll need to alternate between clients so that the houseboys can take some time off and that means we need to line up someone else for the next booking after Mr. Wilder. We can cover unexpected illness or, God forbid, walk-outs, with staff from the club in the meantime.” Carey caught Alistair’s eye. “What do you think, love?”

“The catalogue is a brilliant idea. I’d be happy to take pictures for it, but maybe you should ask some of the members what they think, too? You have an instant audience for research here.”

“You’re right, of course.” Carey surveyed his club. The Underground was his pride and joy and he fully intended to make The Retreat just as perfect. “I’ll leave the interview arrangements to you, Harry. Time for me to make sure my members are happy. I think the boss giving his sub a public spanking might go down well tonight, don’t you?”

“You know it will.”

At Carey’s side, Alistair shivered. Carey stroked his hair. “Would you like that, sweetheart?”

“If it makes you happy, Sir.” Alistair kept his eyes downcast but Carey could see he was smiling.

“Oh, it will, you can be sure of that and if you’re very, very good you might even get to come. Emphasis on the might.” Carey raised his glass. “A toast. Here’s to finding someone for Lorcan Wilder who lives up to our exacting standards.”

Harry pulled Kai onto his lap. He clinked his glass against Carey’s. “Bottoms up!” He avoided spilling his drink by the narrowest margin as Kai shook with laughter.

“They soon will be.” Carey chuckled while Alistair tried, unsuccessfully, to conceal a groan.

I’m not quite sure how I haven’t read any of this author’s books before. I really thought I had, but looking at her backlist, I realized I hadn’t, so a new book in a brand new series made it an easy decision. And after reading this book, I believe I might have to go see if I can find the books on the secondary characters, such as The Retreat’s owner.

I really enjoy realistic BDSM books. Ones where someone has a job, maybe a pet, or a random hobby. Sometimes it’s easy to forget that people in the lifestyle need to do things like go shopping for groceries, or tie their shoes. This isn’t one of those books, but I didn’t enjoy it any less. This was much more of a suspended reality for these men. A new BDSM resort, away from the hustle and bustle of life, a new job for a submissive that hadn’t been fully trained yet, and a Dom who sold his company and literally had nothing to do but spend time with his paid sub. Definitely suspended reality. However, the story did still bring in reality for these characters, from Rowan deciding to leave his steady job and every day life and jump into something he’d dreamed of, but still being aware of things like his family’s concerns. There were even times when Lorcan declared that they needed to not be “on” and just enjoy some time away from the rules that he had imposed upon them during their stay.

And of course, every day life and stresses were waiting for Lorcan as soon as he came back online. However, it seemed that he had grown enough as a person, and as a Dom to be able to handle those stresses without completing dropping out of the world, and was glad to bring Rowan with him. Even a trip to London addressed some of the everyday things one would find there, such as the noise, and the extra people.

Meanwhile, Rowan grew to understand himself and what he wanted as a submissive, and his life, and was able to finally express it by finding what he’d been searching for. (BTW, it was super adorable the one thing that he made sure that he brought with him, and initially hid from Lorcan, only to find out Lorcan had something similar for himself back home…read it, it’s adorable 😉 ).

Anyway, I enjoyed the book, even with the suspended reality, because sometimes that’s exactly what you want or need in your life. Time away from everything.

4 pieces of eye candy

 

LM lives in a small village in the English countryside, surrounded by rolling hills, cows and sheep. She started writing to fill time between jobs and is now firmly and unashamedly addicted.

She loves the English weather, especially the rain, and adores a thunderstorm. She loves good food, warm company and a crackling fire. She’s fascinated by the psychology of relationships, especially between men, and her stories contain some subtle (and some not so subtle) leanings towards BDSM.

LM is winner of the National Leather Association’s Pauline Reage Award for best novel and the 2016 Golden Flogger Award for best BDSM novel in the LGBT category. She has received multiple Honorable Mentions in the Rainbow Awards and won the Action and Adventure category of Divine Magazine’s Book Awards in 2015.

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Like Breathing by Tia Fielding: Exclusive Guest Post and New Release Review

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A love as easy as breathing.

Life started out rocky for Devin Rice, but it’s turned out pretty well. He has adoptive parents and a brother who love him, and he works as a coder for his dad’s video game company. Romance is scarce, but a chance encounter leads to more than he ever expected.

While dropping off an assignment for his sick brother, Dev meets his mentor. Art history professor Seth Kent is brilliant and gorgeous, just what Dev has been looking for. Except that he’s in a long-term committed relationship.

Seth’s partner, Leaf, is older and sees the world differently due to his unusual upbringing. To him, the clear attraction between Seth and Dev isn’t a problem, it’s an unexpected gift. After all, Leaf is often on the road, going wherever rescue dogs need rehabilitation.

When Leaf meets Dev, all the missing pieces fall into place, and three men from different worlds and at different points in life fill each other’s empty spaces. For them, building a future together is the most natural thing in the world. But their unconventional love causes waves in their careers and family dynamics, and each man has his own doubts and fears to overcome.

Title: Like Breathing
Author: Tia Fielding
Release Date: July 10, 2018
Category: Contemporary, M/M/M
Pages: 240

Amazon

Dreamspinner Press ebook

Dreamspinner Press Paperback

 

A Gamer Writes Stories

It’s not a secret to anyone who follows me on social media, that I’m a gamer. Occasionally in my stories, my characters are gamers too. Usually that’s not a huge part of them, after all, who wants to read a romance where one of the guys is mainly sitting at his desk, playing games on his computer (or couch, on his console.)

I’ve been thinking about writing a story that’s about two guys meeting in an online roleplaying game, though, but we shall see if that ever happens. Anyway, I’m here to talk about how it is for a gamer to write stories.

Basically, it’s exactly the same as if a non-gamer would write them, I suppose. But there are differences too. For one, my gaming time is always time away from writing, and sometimes, I get sucked into a game for days at a time.

See, gaming is a hobby like anything else. Some people marathon series, others read a whole series of books at once, and others, well, go run that marathon, I guess. For me, while I definitely watch series and read books and pointedly do not run at all, gaming often takes first place.

Funnily enough, gaming often also helps me write more. No, not because inspiration, but because it helps me focus. Let me explain how. See, I have ADHD, and my mind gets to bee pretty damn annoying some days. It’s a lot of “look squirrel!” this and “oooh, shiny!” that, which doesn’t a good environment for writing make.

That’s where gaming comes in. If I’m, at that time, into a game that allows pausing, I’m using that to my advantage. (By the way, this also works with TV-shows and movies just as well.) When I’m writing, I have the game running on my computer as well. Then, whenever my brain starts to do its thing and my concentration starts to slip, I switch from my manuscript to the game. I play for a few minutes or so, and then pause the game again, and go back to writing immediately. If I can go back and forth like this, it prevents me from staying on Facebook or whatever else I might get up to online. Because that kind of distraction really… distracts me. For hours sometimes.

When I do the same technique with a TV-show, I often have them open on half my screen and the manuscript is open on the other half. Then I watch the show for anything from seconds to twenty minutes before going back to writing. Works just as well for me.

So why gaming? It’s always been hard to explain gaming to a non-gamer. But here are some of my reasons for the type of games  I like to play.

There are many different kinds of games from Mario Kart to World of Warcraft to Fortnite to dozen others. Some you play alone, others with many people connected to you via the internet. When I play a solo game, it’s often like getting to live out a movie at the safety of your own home. You get to be the hero, make the decisions, run a whole country, rescue kidnapped people, or ride that dragon, maybe. What’s not to love about that?

It’s a bit different with online games. I’ll use World of Warcraft as a personal example here. WoW was first “pushed” on me by my best friend in 2006 sometime. I didn’t want to do it then, we had a bit of a crappy internet connection and I knew it would suck my life into the black hole of gaming, so I resisted for a few months.

In January 2007, though, the first expansion for WoW, called Burning Crusade, came out, and I was house-sitting for my parents for two weeks and I had time and… yeah. The rest is history. I still buy every expansion and play for a few months each year, until I get bored of it. It’s been 11 years, which blows even my mind a little.

The thing about games like WoW for me is the community. People form guilds inside the game (and many others) and find new friends there. Hell, I even introduced two of my friends from different parts of the country to each other through the game because I wanted to hang out with them both. They played together for a while, met offline, and have now been married for years.

I’ve met many of my closest friends—some who I still have, others I’ve lost over time—online and in gaming. In fact, that best friend who got me into WoW, I met in another online game over fifteen years ago.

After a long day, it’s a nice thing to log into a game and be greeted by people asking about your day and wanting to hang out with you, even when they’re sometimes on the other side of the world. Sure, there are negative things about online games, but for me, the positives have always been more important.

Where it all started from for me, then? Well, it might be the Mario Bros games when I was little. One of my best friends at the time had a Nintendo Entertainment System (yes, I’m that old…) and we used to play Mario when we were hanging out at her place.

I got my first computer in my early teens, and it was one of those grayscale ones that didn’t really have games. The one after that did, though, on floppy discs. I got those computers whenever a family friend’s work office upgraded to a newer model and they gave me the old one. So I was always behind on them, not that they were much to talk about back then anyway.

When I was eighteen, I met my first partner. They and their brother were gamers. They’d also just gotten a new gaming computer, and we got sucked into a game I’d seen a review of somewhere and wanted to play (incidentally, their brother had the game in his shelf, and they’d never noticed!)

Through the next few years we were together, we played so many computer games. We still reminiscence about the games, and yes, we still play together online sometimes.

It was during those years when I finally got a computer that could run some games, and I never looked back. Now, at 37, I’m sometimes the oldest person in a group of gamers online, but often I’m actually not. I’ve been in a WoW guild a few years back, when a sixty-something lady played too, for example. Gaming shouldn’t be about age anyways, because neither is reading or watching movies.

In my July 10th release, Like Breathing, there’s a scene where Dev, a gamer who works in the gaming industry, shows some games to Seth, who is an art history professor. He does that because he instinctively knows that Seth will find the art in the games fascinating—and he does.

There are so many facets in gaming that most people don’t even think about. The next time you see someone you love playing a game, maybe ask if you can watch for a while? And if your kid plays too much Fortnite, talk to them calmly, ask if they could teach you how to play so you understand better, and for goodness’ sake, don’t forbid them from playing before you actually know what you’re banning them from. We all know why you’d want to limit a child’s computer time (and I agree wholly that there should be a limit, feel free to contact me if you want more of my thoughts on that), but I also believe you should know what it is exactly they’re playing.

In any case, there are many kinds of games for many more kinds of players. It all takes finding the right one for you, if you’re brave enough to open your mind a little and look.

Tia Fielding is a thirtysomething Scandinavian who is a lover of witty people, words, cats, sarcasm, autumn, and the tiny beautiful things in life. Tia struggles with stubborn muses and depression, but both are things she has learned to live with. Tia identifies as genderqueer, but isn’t strict about pronouns. Why? Because luckily, in her native language there aren’t gender-specific pronouns. Being a reclusive author living with her fur-babies is another fact of life for Tia, among the need to write that seems to be a part of her psyche by now. In 2013 one of Tia’s novels was recognized by the industry’s Rainbow Awards in the Best LGBT Erotic Romance (Bobby Michaels Award) category.

Social media:

Facebook – http://www.facebook.com/authortiafielding

Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/tiaf/

Patreon – https://www.patreon.com/tiafielding

Knitting a Broken Heart Back Together by Ari McKay: Release Day Review

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When a Christmas shopping expedition brings Tomy Peralta into Jason Winters’s yarn store, both men feel an immediate and intense spark of attraction, but dance instructor Tomy intends to propose to his boyfriend, Sean, at Christmas. Unfortunately for Tomy, marriage isn’t on career-minded Sean’s agenda. Heartbroken, Tomy throws himself into his work until his mother convinces him that learning to knit might help take his mind off his failed romance.

Jason falls hard for Tomy, but he knows Tomy needs time to heal and to trust in love again. As Jason teaches Tomy to knit, Tomy teaches him to dance in return. Just when it seems Tomy is ready for a new romance, Sean shows up, wanting Tomy back. Will Tomy give his heart to Sean once more, or will Tomy finally see Sean for who he truly is, and choose the man who helped him knit his heart together again?

First Edition released 2014 with Torque Press

Amazon

Dreamspinner Press

I absolutely loved where this story started…and ended, and the in between was quite enjoyable too. This was a slow burn from the storyline, but as a novella it covered a year fairly quickly. What a sweet story!

Seeing how Tomy was before his big breakup, a man who clearly loved life, loved his job, and his selfish boyfriend. Then watching as he went through all the stages of grieving a broken relationship, while Jason simply befriended him allowed the reader to fall in love with Jason as Tomy did. Tomy went through all the sadness, projecting it outwardly for those closest to him to see, then the slow turn around as he began to see Jason for the gentle sweet man he was. Jason didn’t pretend to be anything other than a man waiting for his forever man, Tomy just wasn’t clear on it being him, even if his family was.

It’s always refreshing when an LGBT book doesn’t focus on one of the characters coming out, or the family hating them for being gay. There was none of that here. Tomy’s family adored him, and Jason. This story truly was simply about finding love after having your heart broken. It was a sweet summer read, that started and ended in winter. I’d read it again, in either season.

4 pieces of eye candy

From a Jack to a King by Scotty Cade: Exclusive Guest Post, Excerpt, Release Day Review and Giveaway

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New York Times best-selling mystery writer Bay Whitman leads the life of a celebrity—at least on the surface. In public he’s self-assured and in control. Women hang on his every word, while men envy his confidence and swagger. But in reality, Bay is a loner. He’s shy and introverted, and his life consists of sitting in a dimly lit room writing his famous Jack Robbins mystery novels. His one vice—gambling. Winning an escort in a poker game will change Bay’s life in ways he never imagined.

Matthew “King” Slater is one of the hottest tickets in gay porn. He spends his days in front of the camera and his nights as a highly paid escort to the rich and famous. Deep down, he craves romance and a real connection, but his past makes it hard to separate the needs of his body from those of his heart. For now, it’s easier to think of sex as just a job. But while doing a shoot in Vegas, King is hired for a tryst at a famous hotel and casino, and his handsome client might blur the line between work and play.

Title: From a Jack to a King
Author: Scotty Cade
Release Date: July 3, 2018
Category: Contemporary
Pages: 194

Amazon

Dreamspinner Press

iTunes

Barnes and Noble

Kobo

Happy July 3 to you and Happy Release Day to me!

Firstly, I’d like to thank Two Chicks Obsessed with Books and Eye Candy for having me stop in today. I truly appreciate your support.

I’m here to bring a little attention to my new release “From a Jack to a King.” The blurb pretty much gives you all the information you need, but I’ll add a little flavor to sweeten the pot. Here goes: Bay Whitman is a New York Times Best Selling mystery writer who loves nothing more than hiding away within the confines of his New York apartment writing his “Jack Robbins” mystery novels. He avoids the spotlight as much as he can, but the sudden success of his “Jack Robbins” series has thrown his life into a tailspin and he can no longer simply hide away. His one vice is gambling so when he has to go to Las Vegas for a book signing, he decides to make the best of it and sit in on a couple high stakes poker games. And lucky for him he wins big, including an escort for the evening.

King Slater is a strong but sensitive man with a past. He’s currently the hottest ticket in gay porn and while doing a shoot in Vegas gets a call for an escort job. When he knocks at the door to Bay’s room, he wasn’t the least bit prepared for the handsome man standing on the other side. But all is not as easy as it seems. Bay is practically asexual and although he’s fallen into a couple experiences with women, sex was never at the top of his list. For the record, nothing goes as planned that night and a story starts to unfold that will hopefully keep you very interested.

Now I’ll leave it here to avoid any spoilers and let you read an excerpt. But before I let you go, I’d like to know if you were a gambler would you accept an escort as part of your winnings at a poker game? I mean…I guess your personal circumstances would play a part in your answer but if you had no attachments and no significant other would you go for it? If you post, you’ll automatically be entered into a drawing for an e-book of “From a Jack to a King.”

Thanks for spending the time with me and I wish you and yours a wonderful and relaxed 4th of July weekend.

Now here’s your excerpt and lot of other stuff about where to find me and my books, especially “From a Jack to a King.”

It was just before eleven and they’d been at it for almost six hours. Rich and Zeke had excused themselves a little while ago, and Bay and Paul had agreed to one more hand. The night had been mostly in Bay’s favor, and he had over a half-million dollars in chips in front of him. On the other hand, the night hadn’t been as kind to Paul. From Bay’s best calculations, the poor guy was in the red almost as much as Bay was in the black, and he was down to four one-thousand-dollar chips.

Bay and Paul were at the river stage of the last hand. There was $80,000 in the pot, and Bay knew Paul must have an impressive hand since he continued to bet when his funds were so depleted. But Bay had an impressive hand as well. Very impressive.

Bay locked eyes with Paul as the croupier removed the burn and prepared to flip the river card faceup and add it to the flop. Already on the table were a six of clubs, seven of spades, ten of clubs, and three of hearts. Bay saw the makings of a straight and figured that’s what Paul was working up to. The croupier flipped the card and laid it on the table. Three of clubs. Bay saw a definite twinkle in Paul’s eye and figured he had the straight.

This time it was up to Paul to raise, call, or fold. Bay felt certain there would be no folding since Paul had come this far, but in order to raise, he needed $5,000. He had only $4,000 on the table, and unless he had chips in his pocket, all he could do was call.

“I’ll raise,” Paul said.

The croupier looked at Paul. “Excuse me, Mr. Gilman, but you need $5,000 to raise.”

Paul slid the four chips to the center of the table and looked at Bay. “I have an escort worth a grand scheduled to join me at the hotel in an hour. Will you take that as collateral for the final thousand?”

Bay thought for a second. He had no use for an escort. He was pretty inexperienced in that department, but what the hell? He was in Las Vegas—and what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas. Right? Besides, he couldn’t remember the last time he’d had sex. He’d had offers, of course, but he’d turned them down all but a couple of times, never knowing if they were made because of his celebrity or, even worse, his Jack Robbins persona. An encounter with an escort should be pretty cut-and-dried. Wham, bam, thank you, ma’am.

“Sure,” Bay said before he could stop himself.

Since Paul was out of chips, Bay had no reason to raise again, so he called.

Paul flipped over his two cards. One was a nine of clubs and the other was an eight of spades. “Straight,” he said, smiling.

Bay smiled back and flipped his cards over. “Four threes.”

The blood drained out of Paul’s face, and he hung his head briefly. When he raised it again, he was smiling. “Definitely not my night,” he said, standing. “But hey. You win some. You lose some.”

He offered his hand to Bay. Bay accepted it and the two men shook. “It was a pleasure, Paul. I hope we get to do it again.”

“Likewise,” Paul said. “Oh! I almost forgot. What is your room number?”

“It’s 3001,” Bay said. “Why?”

“Because your escort will be there at midnight.”

Bay was about to protest when he changed his mind. He was still undecided, but he simply said, “Thanks.”

Paul turned and walked out of the game room without another word.

“Can you verify your winnings with me, Mr. Whitman, before I call the cashier to cut you a check? Or would you prefer a wire transfer?” the croupier asked.

“Certainly. And a check will be fine.”

Bay had just returned to his suite and put his rather large check in the safe when he heard a knock at his door. He walked through the foyer and then stopped dead in his tracks. Shit! The escort. He nervously smoothed the front of his jacket, then opened the door. When he saw the person standing on the other side, his mouth fell open and stayed there. He blinked twice to make sure he wasn’t imagining things. He wasn’t, and he could neither move nor speak.

One of the things that I enjoy most about any Scotty Cade book is that he writes characters and stories that are often vastly different than anything the reader might find in the m/m romance genre. The characters are multi-layered, and often in unique situations. His book Losing Faith, which I loved, is just one example of this. His newest release also hits all those buttons for me.

With From A Jack to a King, which interestingly is a very polar opposite to Losing Faith, Scotty finds a way to bring several layers to these two MC’s. This includes a layer that would seem to be very much at odds with the MC’s chosen line of work, but which the author somehow makes work on a level I would  not have expected. Both MC’s lead very different lives, and yet what drives them, behind their lives, their insecurities and day to day issues, come from very similar pasts.

I found myself questioning how King was able to separate himself so much from his work, but he made it work, and Bay made it work, as they moved forward with establishing a relationship. It did make me wonder if part of where Bay was coming from was a deep need to have that connection, and having only have found it with King, he was willing to do whatever he could to keep it. Yet, Bay’s character proved me wrong by continuing to become more self-confident, and able to deal with the outside world more. His connection with King made him stronger, not weaker.

There wasn’t much in the way of angst, and the book didn’t have a big blow up moment, but what it did have was two characters who found they were better together, than they ever were on their own, and how it was able to progress to that HEA, and bring their lives full circle. They became the strong independent men they wanted to be, once they were able to allow themselves to be with each other. A sweet, love story, with some small twists, and a perfect movie happy ending. 🙂

4 pieces of eye candy

Scotty Cade left Corporate America and twenty-five years of Marketing and Public Relations behind to buy an Inn & Restaurant on the island of Martha’s Vineyard with his partner of over twenty years. He started writing stories as soon as he could read, but just eight years ago for publication.  With the Inn and restaurant now sold, you can find him in Greenville South Carolina where he and his husband are restoring a hundred-year-old house or in Charleston South Carolina on their boat simply hanging out.  Being from the south and a lover of commitment and fidelity, all of his characters find their way to long healthy relationships, however long it takes them to get there.  He believes that in the end, the boy should always get the boy.

Here’s where you can find me:

www.scottycade.com

www.facebook.com/scotty.cade

www.twitter.com/ScottyCade

scottycade@gmail.com