http://boroughspublishinggroup.com/authors/susan-mac-nicol
Blog Tour, Review and Giveaway: Piece by Piece by Teodora Kostova
Where to buy
The last few chapters in the book were the toughest for me, and I found myself wishing they had been longer, and more detailed. So much of this book focused on Riley’s grief and how it expressed itself. Yet when it came time to actually deal with that, it was almost entirely dealt with “off-screen”, and at the very end. I would have really liked to have had the chance to see how these two would be able to handle the separation with more than a handful of emails between them. Many months pass in only a chapter or two, which is the intent of the author. However, as a reader, I would have liked to see a bit of how they each handled that separation.When I’m procrastinating, I like to go to the gym, cook Italian meals (and eat them), read, listen to rock music, watch indie movies and True Blood re-runs. Or, in the worst case scenario, get beaten at every Nintendo Wii game by a very inventive kid.
Release Day Review: Day and Knight by Dirk Greyson
Blurb:
As former NSA, Dayton (Day) Ingram has national security chops and now works as a technical analyst for Scorpion. He longs for fieldwork, and scuttling an attack gives him his chance. He’s smart, multilingual, and a technological wizard. But his opportunity comes with a hitch—a partner, Knighton (Knight), who is a real mystery. Despite countless hours of research, Day can find nothing on the agent, including his first name!
Former Marine Knight crawled into a bottle after losing his family. After drying out, he’s offered one last chance: along with Day, stop a terrorist threat from the Yucatan. To get there without drawing suspicion, Day and Knight board a gay cruise, where the deeply closeted Day and equally closeted Knight must pose as a couple. Tensions run high as Knight communicates very little and Day bristles at Knight’s heavy-handed need for control.
But after drinking too much, Day and Knight wake up in bed. Together. As they near their destination, they must learn to trust and rely on each other to infiltrate the terrorist camp and neutralize the plot aimed at the US’s technological infrastructure, if they hope to have a life after the mission. One that might include each other.
Guest Post: Dirk Greyson
Hello all. I’m Dirk, the romantic suspense and paranormal alter ego for author Andrew Grey. Andrew created me because he wanted to write different types of stories. My first story, Day and Knight is very different form what Andrew’s stories. For one thing I have a different voice than he does. Andrew’s stories tend to be on the sweet side, where mine are definitely edgier. Also, Day and knight is planned as the start of a new series that will feature the same main characters through a number of stories. That’s a departure from what Andrew does. So he decided to create me. I’m the action, adventure, lust, and love with emphasis on action both in and out of the bedroom. 🙂 I really love writing those parts of the story. For Day and Knight I created two alpha heroes, strong and independent. However they both have their issues. Knight is quiet and keeps to himself. He’s also the seasoned operative and tends to look at Day as a rookie, which really pisses him off. Day is a near genius. Data and computers sing to him and he can find anything anywhere. her they make a formidable pair, if they don’t kill each other first.See what I mean? Day and Knight is a different type of story. And I expect the adventures will continue in late 2015 with their second story Sun and Shadow.Dirk’s Bio:Dirk is very much an outside kind of man. He loves travel and seeing new things. Dirk worked in corporate America for way too long and now spends his days writing, gardening, and taking care of the home he shares with his partner of more than two decades. He has a Masters Degree and all the other accessories that go with a corporate job. But he is most proud of the stories he tells and the life he’s built. Dirk lives in Pennsylvania in a century old home and is blessed with an amazing circle of friends.
You can contact him at: dirkgreyson@comcast.netFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/dirkgreysonTwitter: @dirkgreyson
Purchase Link:
Amazon: http://amzn.to/1AzlZhk
Dreamspinner Press: http://bit.ly/1dGslXo
Denise’s Review:
When Dirk Greyson (aka Andrew Grey) told me in April that this was coming out, and it was going to be something different, I had to say I was a bit nervous. I mean you know what to expect with an Andrew Grey book. Great characters with flaws, but always finding their HEA by the end of the book. Very different things happening (the man does some amazing research!) from book to book, and yet at the core is love. So, why mess with a good thing???
Well, have no worries!!! Think of this as an Andrew Grey novel, but just drawn out. The characters have a HFN, but the reader leaves the book knowing there is more to come for them. When we met Day, I wasn’t sure what to think of him. I think at first I thought he might be a mousy nerdy technical analyst, and Knight would be the big bad alpha male. Turns out, I was half right. These men both had alpha drawing you in. And it was quite the ride to get there.
Both very closeted, prior to their cruise adventure to the Yucatan area, they end up in bed, and learning more and more about each other along their short journey. It would have been too much to expect these men to be “in love” in just a few short days. However, you know they are on a path to being partners in all senses of the term.
With lots of action, things blowing up, sexual tension that you needed a machete to cut through, and some deep grief to be worked through, these men have quite the road to their HEA, but I am so excited to see where Mr. Greyson is taking us on this ride.
Final determination is 4.5 pieces of eye candy, and I honestly cannot wait to see what is next for Day and Knight.
Blog Tour Stop Review and Giveaway: Fourth and Long by Michele Micheal Rakes
Synopsis:
Irus Beaumont, cornerback for the Highlanders, has an issue with his nemesis: wideout for the Pirates, Jackson McCoy. Partly jealous over Jackson’s skill and ability to scrub coverage, Irus also struggles against an unbearable attraction to the receiver. Firmly ensconced in the closet, Irus also has a no football player rule, leaving his desires for Jackson unfulfilled. Anti-gay sentiment in the league keeps Irus closeted, even though he’d rather be out and proud.
When Jackson McCoy suffers a gay bashing at the hands of his team mates after winning the national championship, he finds himself traded to the Highlanders. Spring training brings out Jackson’s competitive nature, eliciting the aggression of his new team’s cornerback, Irus Beaumont.
In practice, Irus hurts Jackson badly. The injury places Jackson on the reserve roster. Jacks has plenty of time to contemplate his life, career, and his attraction to the sexy cornerback. Off to Orlando for the best rehab where guilt inspires Irus to call him every evening, Jackson can’t stop thinking about Irus, or what the season holds for his team.
I
happened upon this book and author when my peer blogger Bec from Bike
Book Reviews (bikebookreviews.blogspot.com) raved about it. I read
something about hot men on men action, football and a nice size length
(he he) and decided that this was a book that needed my immediate
attention. So I was excited to get on this blog tour.
will admit that I didn’t read Saving Kane, the first in this series, so
I came into this book blind but it can definitely be read as a stand
alone. **Warning, there is discussion of childhood sexual abuse.**
These two men, both broken in different ways, were able to find in each other a missing piece to heal the other.
How Jackson and Irus get together is not your typical m/m romance setup. After a gay bashing, Jackson is traded to Irus’s team, and they become something alongside adversaries. Irus injures Jackson, and they bond following that, as Jackson heads to Florida for rehab.
There are several storylines here that converge, to bring these men to their HFN. Coming out in a sport that is notoriously violent, and being gay just makes it even more challenging. A sexual abuse case that rivals the Penn State one is prevalent. My favorite though, is Miss Beulah, who you will meet through Irus. What a fantastic character, and honestly left me wanting more of her story. I loved that Mikey gave her more purpose than just a side character who pops in and out for moral support. She does that, but has a much bigger place in the story, and I love that Mikey went there with her.
This book is a HFN, as there is more to come for these characters, and the football team. There will be resolution for the football teams, and I forsee a legal trial ahead. However, it was great to see Jackson make good strides ahead in his issues, as he found a soulmate in Irus, who epitomized the big scary football player with a heart of gold. I cannot wait to see where these characters end up.
If I hadn’t known there was another book coming, I might have rated this book 4 pieces of eye candy for leaving us out in the cold at the end. But fortunately the author has been redeemed as book 2 is in the works. 🙂
So, this was an easy 5 pieces of eye candy for me. Hot men, football and an involved and long story. All the things I absolutely love about reading.
Michele Rakes Guest Post: Sex in Romance Novels
that great paragraph on page 69? Some novel by Kathleen Woodwiss with the
reluctant heroine? The man she was to fall in love with her captor and when he
forces himself upon her… Instead of suffering a tragedy, she blossoms under his
one scornful love.
excitement from reading something that usually took place off stage left? There
is a debate on sex in romance novels, either gay or straight, and everyone has
an opinion. Yes, like assholes, but everyone is entitled to that opinion. We
want what we want and we like what we like. Some of us want lust. A few of us
crave the carnal. There are characters meant to suffer and survive. Desire
motivates a lot of people in reality and art seems to imitate that, badly at
times.
hours kept in the dark. As well as those of us who chomp at the bit to see the
guy lashed to the bed with a bit in his mouth. Some of us have dark desires and
some of us have lovey squishy yearnings… And there’s books for all of us.
what books are for which readers. Desire is a base instinct within humans. Animal
lust. Initial attraction is fueled by this desire. Gay. Straight. Bisexual. We
have people in our lives we love and desire. When a couple first gets together,
there is that flush of heat, the insatiable need to live in each other’s skin.
like that kind of reality in the books I read. Have I read books with too many
sex scenes? Yes. Only because they no longer propelled the characters forward
in their arc. Each scene needs to grow something between the main characters,
whether it’s hate and anger, love and lust, or the heartfelt desire to spend
the rest of their lives joined at the hip. Sex in a novel must be there for
more than just the feels. We love the feels, but we need movement. We must have
our characters moving in time or else the story becomes stagnant. No amount of
sex is going to save a stagnant story.
when you’re writing about a character addicted to sex what’s a writer to do?
Make sure every scene accomplishes something vital to the characterization or
plot. A beta reader sent me an honest critique. It was for Fourth and Long. He said
(a paraphrase), “I was thinking, oh not another sex scene, but then I was
surprised. The character’s had grown. They changed. Irus became less selfish.
The scene was about Jackson.” This made it new. Made it more about the feelings
of the two characters involved. There was depth. Emotion. Growth.
violence, death, and sex affect real people. For someone involved, it matters,
and for fictional people, it should matter too. There are people who read these
books because they like the idea of sex, just not the real form and function.
These scenes sweep them away into a world of love, lust, and emotion. A world
they either gladly or unhappily watch from outside the window, looking in with
glorious wonder.
bogged down in sex scene after sex scene. Even one is too much. They want plot.
The good guys pitted against the bad with love winning out in the end. The
feels are enough.
us. If your characters are wanting to fuck like bunnies, let them, but only
show us the most important moments.
Extended Excerpt:
If you didn’t get to read the Extended Excerpt posted on TCO’s page recently, check it out here:
http://www.twochicksobsessed.com/2015/04/extended-excerpt-and-giveaway-fourth.html
Giveaway:
Purchase Links:
Author Bio
Michele Micheal Rakes lives in a small town in the shadow of a big
mountain. She works as a surgical technologist assisting in the removal of
tonsils and testicles. She has three grown children, two psychotic Egyptian
Mau’s, a husband with hair down to his ass, two Harley’s, and a ferret named
Teeny Tiny Ferret Feet (husband insists her name Little Feet, we all know he’s
wrong).
Contact Michele Rakes:
Five-ish Good Questions: Alexa Land
questions with Alexa Land
on Two Chicks Obsessed with Books and Eye Candy)
varieties. I heard from a birdie that “exotic” fruit might turn Zan into a
baseball pitcher. What fruits has he said “Bloody Hell No” to?
introducing interesting things into his diet. He tries tangelos and kumquats,
but a fruit called Buddha’s hand really pushes Zan over the edge and he tries
to send the fruit flying. Who can blame him, really? Take a look at this bad
boy! See why he calls it a mutant space octopus?!
very reclusive, musician. What would his theme song with Gianni be?
by Darren Hayes (formerly of Savage Garden). Darren wrote that song for his
husband, and the lyrics are just gorgeous. Give it a listen!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0HpA7UZvWdc
Dombruso POV. He seems to be someone who likes to help. What do we need to know
about Gianni?
nursing school because of self-doubt, but that nurturing side is still very
much a part of him. At the same time, he’s always felt he needs someone to take
care of him because he thinks he can’t make it on his own. It was great to see
him evolve over the course of Belonging!
TCO: So, I hear that Zan
might look a little like Jared Leto…is that pre or post haircut? Any other
Jared Leto features that come into play here?
not only because of his (former) long hair and those incredibly soulful eyes,
but because of how relaxed and perfectly at home he is on stage, performing in
front of a crowd of thousands. Here’s one of the photos that inspired me when I
was writing Belonging. I’m not a huge fan of the beard, but those eyes just
kill me!
Mama again. What is she learning this time around?
AL: She’s never really stopping being a mother. Nana raised her
sons, then her grandsons, Gianni, Dante, Vincent and Mikey, after their parents
were killed. Later on, she started taking in young gay men whose families
disowned them, including Jessie, her limo driver and assistant. In this book,
Nana adds a puppy to the mix, a big, rambunctious mutt she gets from the
shelter. Nana has a huge heart, it’s evident in all she does!
$3.99 on Amazon and Smashwords:
Cover Reveal and Giveaway: Secret by Kindle Alexander


a few minutes of staring at Dylan, who hadn’t looked his way since he entered
the conference room, Tristan cleared his throat, stopping the flow of the
presentation. “Can you all give me a few minutes alone with Mr. Reeves?”
could feel every eye turned his way. Dylan was slower to respond. He’d been
reading from the contract and lifted his head, business clearly on his mind.
But the minute their gazes met, Tristan got why Dylan had avoided eye contact.
His gaze held a mixture of both heat and need. Sparks flew between the two of
them and Tristan smiled.
heard him,” Landry said and began shooing everyone out. As the last person
left, Landry came to the center of the table, standing between the two of them.
He clearly thought Tristan’s request hadn’t included him.
I need a private discussion with Mr. Reeves,” Tristan said, rising from his
seat at the end of the table. Landry came immediately to him, standing in front
of him, blocking Dylan from seeing or hearing anything he said.
don’t think that’s a good idea,” Landry whispered so quietly Tristan barely
heard him. “We almost have them, I can see it.”
cut his eyes over to Landry’s and motioned with his head for him to move along
out the door with everyone else. Landry’s brow furrowed and he started to shake
his head. Tristan stared at him with intense attitude until he finally left the
room. Tristan had no doubt he’d stand right outside that door. There wasn’t too
much of Wilder, Inc. that Landry wasn’t included in, and he certainly wouldn’t
like being put out of a meeting he’d orchestrated. Tristan moved to a chair
directly beside Dylan who hadn’t uttered a single word since his request for
privacy.
look nice today,” Tristan said quietly, smiling as Dylan’s cheeks grew red.
that why you made everyone leave?”
of course not. I could have just told you later, but that whole look’s perfect
on you. The hair’s hot. Pinstripes fit your frame remarkably well. You look
taller, more intimidating. Great look for negotiations or the cover of GQ. You
could do both.” Tristan scooted closer. “Did you get my flowers?” he asked even
quieter.
did. Thank you, but that was a risky move,” Dylan said, clearly ignoring the compliment.
wrote and sealed the card myself. What did you do with the flowers?” Tristan
leaned forward, then moved in a little more, smelling Dylan’s cologne. That had
Dylan pushing back in his chair.
gave them to the concierge that helped me this morning,” Dylan answered and
then backtracked. “I didn’t think I’d be in my room very much and didn’t want
them to go to waste.”
figured you’d do something like that. It’s why I picked those colors. So that
means you’re coming with me tonight?” Tristan asked, his eyes still focused
directly on Dylan’s.
see how things go today. I’m not sure about all this. You lowballed me and I
was just reading about the staffing…” Dylan started, but Tristan lifted a hand
to Dylan’s lips to stop his words. He let his fingers linger as he spoke.
don’t want to talk business yet. I honestly was only informed of the changes to
personnel when I walked in today. From this point forward, you and I will
decide how this sale goes, no one else, but before we do, I want to put
personal before business because they are two separate entities between us.
Will you please go with me tonight? I need to cancel some things if you’re not coming,”
Tristan added at Dylan’s skeptical look.












































