Two Chicks Obsessed with Books & Eye Candy

Sharing our love of M/M Romance

2.5 stars

Under Pressure (Love and Football, Book 1) by Lauren Ashley: RB, Excerpt, Release Day Review and Giveaway

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Rookie quarterback, Drew Carmichael, is under pressure like never before.

When Drew abruptly and unexpectedly comes out of the closet, his life is upended. The media is hounding him. Fans and haters are scrutinizing him nonstop. Worst of all, team management is wary of him, unsure if he’s worth all the hassle.

He’ll do anything to stay on his homestate’s NFL team, including pretending to be in a serious and committed relationship. The only problem is his fake boyfriend is Scott Hunter-the irresistible pop-country music star and his secret teenage crush.

Scott Hunter is used to being under pressure. He’s dealt with it his whole life, handling it all with grace and an unwavering smile on his face.

When his manager presents him with the long-awaited opportunity to come out of the closet, he jumps on it, no questions asked. Pretending to be Drew Carmichael’s boyfriend should be easy. Simple. Fun.

He never expected or wanted to start caring about the golden boy of football. That’s definitely not part of the plan. Neither is fooling around with him on a football field…

Touchdown.

Under Pressure by Lauren Ashley

Series (name + # in series):  Love and Football, Book 1

Publisher:  Self-Published

Release Date (Print & Ebook):  October 8th, 2019

Length (Print & Ebook): approx. 50,000

Subgenre:  Contemporary Romance; LGBT romance, sports romance

Warnings: Brief mentions of religious upbringing/unsupportive parents, past sibling death from car accident.

Amazon US – Kindle Unlimited

Goodreads

 

My stomach suddenly rumbles, loud enough for Scott to hear, ruining the moment.

“Hungry?” he asks knowingly.

My stomach rumbles again.

“Maybe just a little,” I joke, already feeling my cheeks heat up. So much for not blushing.

“We’d better get you fed.” There’s an easy, amused smile on his face that puts me at ease.

“Let’s see what breakfast essentials you picked up,” I declare, rubbing my hands together. “This is going to be the true test of compatibility. I take my breakfast foods very seriously,” I say, half-jokingly, wiggling my brows up and down in an exaggerated manner.

“Bring it on.” He leans back slightly, casually crossing his arms over his chest, and watches as I lean over the kitchen counter.

I grab one of the three medium-sized white boxes, using my powers of deductive reasoning to determine that they contain the much needed breakfast essentials. I pop the box open and am surprised to see six donuts topped with just about everything you could think of. Cereal, crumbled candy bars, marshmallows, gummy bears, candied bacon bits, icing, and powdered sugar.

I groan, tempted beyond belief. My football career calls for a pretty strict diet, but at heart I’m a sugar addict.

“Do the other two boxes have donuts in them as well?” I ask, curious.

“Yup,” Scott confirms. “There from a local favorite of mine. A place called Baked N’ Glazed.”

“Good to know I’m not the only one with a sweet tooth.” Between Mary Alice’s cupcakes, last night’s Oreos, and now these, I’m slowly but surely turning into a fatass. My trainer is going to fucking kill me come Monday morning.

“I have no idea what you’re taking about,” Scott denies. If it weren’t for the twinkle in his eyes, I might actually believe him.

“This is a judgment-free zone. You could admit that you dip French fries in milkshakes or that you put pickles in peanut butter sandwiches and I wouldn’t even blink.”

This was cute. An overly sanitized, pretend boyfriend romance between a rookie quarterback and a country music star. Of which, I am guessing, the author knows nothing about.

What we get is a nearly perfect world. Where the just out of college rookie quarterback not only rarely goes to practice, but he is also the first string starter. There’s a brief mention of some of his team mates not being happy that he is out and proud, but other than that there are no repercussions whatsoever. Not from his team, not from other teams, not from the media or the fans. Lucky him. Even his conservative all American Texas family is totally fine with it.

Same with Scott. Although he has been in the spotlight for several years, when he suddenly announces he is gay, with a hot football boyfriend, there is no back lash. I’d like to live in this perfect world.

The fake boyfriend ruse doesn’t last long as it is pretty much love at first sight. Nerves? Nah. Freak outs? Definitely not.

It had a good premise and could have gone somewhere, but this was like the Mr. Roger’s Neighborhood version of a gay romance.

2.5 pieces of eye candy

 

Lauren Ashley discovered her love for books at an early age. She is a hopeless romantic at heart and believes that everyone deserves their happily ever after. An East Coast native hailing from the Tri-State area, Lauren hates the cold weather, but loves her chunky sweaters and cups of coffee. When she’s not writing, she can be found traveling, binge-watching TV, spending time with loved ones, and obsessing over all things Harry Potter.

Instagram: www.instagram.com/authorlaurenashley

Twitter: www.twitter.com/authorlashley

Goodreads: www.goodreads.com/user/show/100794438-lauren-ashley

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Conspiracy Theory (Hamarsson & Dempsey #1) by Elle Keaton: New Release Review and Giveaway

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Years of grueling police work have left Niall Hamarsson jaded and disillusioned with life…although it’s likely he’s been that way all along. The last straw lands when the DA refuses to try a case Niall worked for years to bring to justice. Within hours he finds himself heading to the only place he’s ever been able to call home—a place he knows he doesn’t belong.

Mat Dempsey returned to Piedras Island after his father’s death. These days he’s Island County’s sheriff. He’s happy enough, even if moving home from San Francisco effectively forced him back into the closet. Mat’s well-ordered universe collapses when a local’s body is discovered floating in the cold waters of Hidden Harbor’s marina. All hell breaks loose in the community, and accusations fly…all coinciding with Niall Hamarsson’s return.Niall and Mat have a history, and it’s not one Mat’s proud of. He owes Niall an apology, even if it means getting down on his knees. However, Mat’s first priority is investigating the murder before his community tears itself apart and he may have to ask the aloof Niall Hamarsson for help.

Push apart, pull together, yes or no… The chemistry crackles between them but will the two men be able to put aside their pasts and embrace a future?

Maybe.

Length: 78,000 words approx.

Cover Design: Garrett Leigh @ Black Jazz Design

Amazon US

Amazon UK

Okay… there’s a lot to go over here, so first, we meet Hamarsson when he’s handing in his resignation letter to his boss (which she doesn’t accept), and he’s hitting the road/ferry, back to the island of Piedras where his grandparents took him to live after his mother disappeared, leaving him in a closet for an undetermined amount of time. Now, I do love a good wounded bird and Hamarsson, who’s name is Niall, has a lot of baggage from his childhood…. So much so that he can’t even sleep inside the small cabin he’d once lived in, he slept out in a tent in the yard, in snowy weather… but, we’ll come back to that.

Now, leaving the city, his job, his now kind of ex boyfriend that we didn’t meet, he’s back on the island at the cabin that he inherited after his grandparents passed and he’s upset to find that it hasn’t been taken care of like he’d thought. With nothing else to do while he hides away on the island, he starts fixing it up, but injures himself, leaving him with nothing to do at all. That’s when he hears of the goings-on in town that just so happened to have started around the time he got to town.

A murdered young woman, a conspiracy theorist group, a generations-long feuding historical family, a closeted sheriff and a wounded and hiding homicide detective are all thrown together and seriously, it’s just one big ol’ coincidence after another for Sheriff Dempsey. The small island never sees much crime and certainly nothing like murder and conspiracy… but Mat Dempsey’s got his work cut out of him with a mediocre department and a meddling blast from his past that he’s at odds with more often than not.

I am going to say that it took me way too long to get into this one, as the two guys never really got together and didn’t even kiss until 97% in. I figured it was the start of an upcoming series and I liked the fact that the two have history. Not only did they kind of grow up together, Hamarsson didn’t have the upbringing Mat did, even though his grandparents did try their hardest to love him all better, he just didn’t trust… especially when leaving the abuse and neglect from his mom to the tormentors of the town bullies and school and being the weird kid, I could understand that chip on his shoulder. It made me want him to get a happily ever after that much worse! I think I shipped Nial and the dog more than anyone else because Niall and Mat didn’t get along the majority of the book and when they did admit it and attempt to do something about it, the book was over!

The big conspiracies were also hard for me to get into because they just seemed too many to be believed. It spanned both mens families, exes, random women in town and Niall hadn’t been back to the island in ten years and how did everyone know everyone? It was just a jumbled mess for me and I hate that I couldn’t follow along because two cops? The wounded bird syndrome, a big protective pupper, a wonderful, loving, accepting mother, karmic death of bigoted bad guys… I mean, these are all my favorite things!

I want to say that I might give the next one a chance, because I do feel like the next one will tie so much together that I felt was missed out on in this one, but I”ll have to wait until Spring of next year to find out and to be honest, I just don’t know if I have the patience; not only to wait until spring of next year, but also to get through a whole other book to get some sort of happy for Hamarrson.

At least the bad guys didn’t get away with being bad guys?

2.5 Pieces of Eye Candy

Thanks for stopping by, I’m Elle Keaton and I hail from the northwest corner of the US where we are known for rain, rain and more rain. I write the Accidental Roots series, set here in the Pacific Northwest featuring hot mm romance and the guarantee of a happy ending for my men. They start out broken, and maybe they end up that way too, but they always find the other half of their hearts.

I started writing way back when but only began publishing about two and a half years ago and now have nine books out. Each features a couple in my little universe, sometimes there is added mystery and suspense.

Thank you for supporting this Indie Author,

Elle

Find me, follow me, friend me:

Website: https://www.ellekeaton.com/

Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/ElleKeatonWrites

Facebook Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/HighwayToElle/

BookBub: https://www.bookbub.com/profile/elle-keaton

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/elle.keaton_author

Twitter: https://twitter.com/PirateQueenRdz1

Amazon: https://amzn.to/ek-amazon-profile

Goodreads: https://bit.ly/ek-gr-profile

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Chef vs. Chef by M.J. O’Shea: RB, New Release Review and Giveaway

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Bobby Diaz has worked his whole life to get where he is – running a restaurant with his two closest friends, no boss, and generally content. When his best friend Baldwin gets the gig of a lifetime, he asks Bobby to take over the restaurant while he’s gone. He’ll miss his friend, but he’s excited to put himself to the test. He can’t believe he’s getting the chance to finally run his own kitchen.

Cal Mayer is thirty and starting over. His last relationship was a failure. His job went down the drain. So when his cousin Pete, a.k.a Baldwin Powell celebrity chef, offers him a gig in his restaurant, he can’t help but to jump at the offer to reinvent himself.

Bobby and Cal don’t exactly hit it off—to put it lightly. Bobby resents getting Cal dumped in his lap. Cal doesn’t appreciate Bobby’s frosty attitude. They’re stuck together day and night, and their chemistry is undeniable… but will it be sweet summer love or a case of too many chefs in the kitchen?

Cover Design: L.C. Chase

Amazon – Kindle Unlimited

 

Amazon US

Amazon UK

Universal Link

This was totally meh. It’s readable, but utterly forgettable.

Quite a bit of the book is spent before the two main characters even meet each other. Both went through a big change in their lives so it is them (separately) getting their feet under them again.

Then they do meet and because of a stupid misunderstanding, one hates the other.

Then finally, FINALLY, they kiss. And it’s like this fast forward through all of the fun stuff. “Spring turns to summer…”. Uh, ok. What about THEM? As a couple? Dating? Cute flirty stuff?

Even during the hate period, it wasn’t even competitive fun hate. It was just one guy being a total jerk.

Weak storyline that really had potential. Weak characters. Weak romance.

Just meh.

MJ O’Shea has never met a music festival, paintbrush, or flower crown she can stay away from. She loves rainstorms and a perfect cup of tea, beach days, music, bright colors, and more than anything a cozy evening with a really great book.

She is from the Pacific Northwest. While she still lives there and loves it, MJ has the heart of a wanderer. So she puts all her dreams of far off places and extraordinary people in her books.

Except for every once in a while when she does what all travelers have to do on occasion… come home.

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Chef vs. Chef (Sizzling in the Kitchen Book 2) by M.J. O’Shea: New Release Review

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Bobby Diaz has worked his whole life to get where he is – running a restaurant with his two closest friends, no boss, no stress. When his best friend Baldwin gets the opportunity of a lifetime, he asks Bobby to take over the restaurant while he’s gone. Bobby will miss his friend, but he’s excited to put himself to the test. He can’t believe he’s getting the chance to finally be in charge.

Cal Mayer is thirty and starting over. His last relationship was a failure. His job went down the drain. So when his cousin Pete, a.k.a Baldwin Powell celebrity chef, offers him a gig in his restaurant, he can’t help but to jump at the offer to reinvent himself.

Bobby and Cal don’t exactly hit it off—to put it lightly. Bobby resents getting Cal dumped in his lap. Cal doesn’t appreciate Bobby’s frosty attitude. They’re stuck together day and night, and their chemistry is undeniable… but will it be sweet summer love or a case of too many chefs in the kitchen?

Amazon – Kindle Unlimited

This was totally meh. It’s readable, but utterly forgettable.

Quite a bit of the book is spent before the two main characters even meet each other. Both went through a big change in their lives so it is them (separately) getting their feet under them again.

Then they do meet and because of a stupid misunderstanding, one hates the other.

Then finally, FINALLY, they kiss. And it’s like this fast forward through all of the fun stuff. “Spring turns to summer…”. Uh, ok. What about THEM? As a couple? Dating? Cute flirty stuff?

Even during the hate period, it wasn’t even competitive fun hate. It was just one guy being a total jerk.

Weak storyline that really had potential. Weak characters. Weak romance.

Just meh.

2.5 Pieces of Eye Candy

Rex (Walkers of Coyote Ridge Book 6) by Nicole Edwards: Release Day Review

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Whether it was due to lack of funds, lack of desire, or one lame excuse after another, Rex Sharpe has managed to ignore the one and only dream he’s ever had: turning his family’s dilapidated old farmhouse into a bed and breakfast. Until now. When his cousin Travis Walker decides to invest in a venture that will help revitalize the small town of Coyote Ridge, Rex knows it’s time to put up or shut up.

They say third time’s a charm, right? Jack Cunningham learns that’s not always true. When his world is unexpectedly tipped on its axis, Jack does what he does best. He runs. Only this time, he doesn’t get far. A one-night encounter with a sexy cowboy has Jack’s already topsy-turvy world spinning even more, and he soon learns, it’s only the beginning.

Amazon

I read quite a few Nicole Edwards books back in the day. Now that I pretty strictly read MM, I read Ethan a few years ago and Beau last year. I enjoyed Ethan, Beau was ok. But this one was really, meh. I was bored.

The first three chapters are just first, Rex trying to talk himself into something, then the next is Jack trying to talk himself into something and then Rex again. Rex was trying to convince himself to work on his dream project. Turning his generational family home into a bed and breakfast. Not for nothing, but if you have had this dream since you were 13, probably you wouldn’t have to talk yourself into it.

Jack is trying to convince himself to go inside his apartment. Where fiance number 3 is. But he doesn’t want to. He should have listened to himself.

Jack and Rex meet at a bar. Cliche. Jack gets wasted and Rex drives him- a complete stranger- back to his hotel. But don’t worry, Rex would never take advantage of a drunk straight guy! He will let him nap for an hour or so first. *eye roll*

And now because there aren’t any hotel rooms anywhere around him, Jack ends up in Rex’s spare bedroom. Uh huh.

Have hot sex- walk away and ignore it. Flirt heavily- then turn a cold shoulder. Get in a big fight- hide in your room.

I really, really hate to say this. But the dynamic between Jack and Rex was much like that of het couples in traditional romances I won’t read anymore. Because of all of this bs.

I felt no connection, no chemistry between them. Boring.

Besides the completely unbelievable happenings of a huge influx of money from family investors into a B&B that has no business plan at all.

Rex has trauma from his past. Because of that trauma, the town shunned him and his brother. His brother left when he was 18, but Rex stuck around. Because B&B dreams. (And Rex is one of the least likely guys to seem to want to open a B&B, but whatevs). But he doesn’t seem to have any issues with nosy townspeople now.

I made it to the end. Barely. I don’t know if I could read another by this author. Honestly, I think she should stick with MF romances.

2.5 Pieces of Eye Candy