Two Chicks Obsessed with Books & Eye Candy

Sharing our love of M/M Romance

3.5 stars

Out, Proud and Prejudiced by Megan Reddaway: RDB, Release Day Review and Giveaway

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One’s proud, one’s prejudiced, and they can’t stand each other.

Quick-tempered Bennet Rourke hates Darius Lanniker on sight. Darius may be a hotshot city lawyer, but that doesn’t give him the right to sneer at Bennet, his friends, and their college. It doesn’t help that Bennet’s restaurant job has him waiting at Darius’s table. So when his tutor recommends him for an internship at Darius’s Pemberley estate, Bennet isn’t sure he wants it. He’s also not sure he can afford to turn it down.

Darius is a fish out of water in the small college town of Meriton, but something keeps pulling him back there. He’s helping out a friend with business advice, nothing more. If he’s interested in Bennet, it’s not serious. Sure, Bennet challenges him in a way no other man has. But they have nothing in common. Right?

Wrong. Their best friends are falling in love, and Bennet and Darius can’t seem to escape each other. Soon they’re sharing climbing ropes and birthday cake, and there’s a spark between them that won’t be denied. But betrayal is around the corner. Darius must swallow his pride and Bennet must drop his prejudices to see the rainbow shining through the storm clouds.

A modern retelling of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice.

Amazon

This is a retelling of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, where Bennet is the main hero who is slowly drawn towards Darius, a snobbish lawyer who treats our hero pretty shabbily from the get go. Bennet swears to have nothing to do with Darius, but because his best friend Jaime is dating Darius’ best friend Tim, the two would-be enemies keep finding themselves thrown together. They slowly learn to see past the superficial first impressions and find spots of common ground. And still some things manage to get in the way. But if you’re a fan of P&P, you’ll enjoy the ride knowing you’ll be satisfied in the end.

I really liked this book. I love retellings of classics. It’s so fun to see how much the author changes, what is kept the same and how it’s all modernized. It’s fun all around. In many ways it’s pretty faithful to the original, with minor twists. Instead of the five Bennett sisters, there are four roomates (poor Mary) whose personalities match the girls very well. There’s still scandal, and miscommunication, and oh how fun is Darius’ “I hate myself for loving you” speech? Love how this author changes things up.

3.5 pieces of eye candy


MEGAN REDDAWAY lives in England and has been entertained by fictional characters acting out their stories in her head for as long as she can remember. She began writing them down as soon as she could.

Since she grew up, she has worked as a secretary, driver, barperson, and article writer, among other things. Whatever she is doing, she always has a story bubbling away at the same time.

For news of Megan’s gay romance releases and two free stories, visit her website: http://meganreddaway.com
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Tomb of the God King by Julia Talbot: Exclusive Excerpt and Release Day Review

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Englishman Christian Hewler travels to 1920s Egypt as the man Friday to an eccentric American millionaire, hoping to make history and establish his name in archaeology. What he doesn’t count on is meeting brash hired gun Eric Lawless, an American cowboy working for a rival team, or the paranormal mystery that draws them in and has them facing down crazy archaeologists, dark entities, and even ancient gods.

From dark tombs to the burning-hot desert of the Egyptian landscape, Christian has to prove his mettle. During this dangerous game of cat and mouse, the reluctant partnership between Christian and Eric blossoms into more—maybe even a love that can last beyond the deception and terror hidden deep in the tombs of the Valley of the Kings.

First Edition published by Torquere Press, October 2006.

Title: Tomb of the God King
Author: Julia Talbot
Release Date: May 11, 2018
Category: Historical (TBC)
Pages: 142

Amazon

Dreamspinner Press

 

Hey y’all!

I’m Julia Talbot, and I’m here to talk about Egyptology and Tomb of the God King, which is a book I wrote a while back and that Dreamspinner is being kind enough to re-release for me.

I have an exclusive excerpt for y’all today, and it’s worth noting that this is my only long piece in first person.

Hope you love it!

***

“You are indelicate,” I said. “Some of these children might be the mayor’s.”

“Then he should see to it that they have something else to do.” Lawless rolled his shoulders. “’Sides, I’m not the one who leaves a man right after the loving.”

“Oh, for goodness’ sake!” I threw my hands up, whirling toward the stall that held pots, knowing they would need them for milk and water. “I knew it. I knew you could never be civilized about this. I cannot fathom why I even thought you could.”

His hand clamped on my shoulder like a vise. “Tell me, Christian. Tell me what scared you off.”

Fully intending to give him a glorious speech, I turned and opened my mouth, only to have it fall even farther open when I saw the figure behind Lawless.

Dressed in tattered beggar’s robes, the thing had the gaunt, swarthy face of an Egyptian, complete with fly-ringed eyes and yellowing teeth. But the hand the man held out was not human; it was a great claw, scaly like a slithering snake, and as I backed away, it extended toward us until I thought it must surely snatch Lawless and rend him limb from limb.

It did not.

Lawless yelped as the scaly appendage touched him and was suddenly at my side, facing the beggar with his six-gun drawn.

“What the hell is that thing, Chrissy?”

“I haven’t a clue.” Really, I was so addled I could hardly even register the insulting nickname.

The thing shambled toward us, and I could see Lawless about to squeeze the trigger when something dropped on the ground before us and the beggar’s hands turned into those of a thin man, nothing but dirty nails to fear from them at all.

My eyes felt on fire, and I blinked just enough to make sure I did not have sweat in them, distorting the image.

The beggar turned away, leaving us in a stunned tableau until finally Lawless broke the silence by clearing his throat. “Was I imagining things, buddy?”

“If you were, I had the same hallucination. How very… odd.”

***

Thanks for reading, y’all!

XXOO

Julia Talbot

This was really a fun read! It takes places in 1920s Egypt — I mean, how often do you get to read an m/m (or any??) romances set there? Tomb robbing (or is it archaeology?), murder plots, greed, Egypt, mummies curses. Fun! Also? There is like a ton of sexy times in this book (which is never, ever a complaint from me.)

Christian is an English archaeologist hired by a wealthy American; Eric is the hired gun for a rival excavation. The two fall into bed almost right away, but honestly Eric seems a little clingy to me at first. Christian is likewise wary, but as the dig progresses, the two continue to find themselves thrown together. They encounter creepy messengers, dig accidents, and a possible curse and grow closer in the process.

This was an easy fun read with laughs, some suspense, lots of sexy times (did I mention that already?). It’s told from the POV of Christian, and I kind of like him even though he can be sort of uptight at times. There were also a few spots where the relationship between the two heroes was spoken of so openly, I couldn’t imagine that would happen in real life? It didn’t take away from the book for me, though.

3.5 pieces of eye candy

 

www.juliatalbot.com

https://www.facebook.com/juliatalbotauthor

 

 

King Consort by J.R. Gray: Release Day Review and Excerpt

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Avoiding sleeping with women was my specialty, an art form even. As the future King of England I couldn’t be caught sleeping with men. My whole life played out in front of the paparazzi, and they didn’t miss a thing.

I had a carefully crafted womanizing persona to maintain. My life came with rules, all of which I broke when I couldn’t resist a one night stand with the enemy: A beautiful paparazzo with a heart of gold. He may be the only person who doesn’t want me for my title, and he can never be anything more than my secret.

But secrets have a way of coming out and not only will they scare him away, but they’ll lose me the crown.

Amazon

 

“Don’t move,” he said in a whisper.

“What are we doing?”

“I want these for me. I’ll sign whatever you want so you know I’ll keep them to myself, but I get a different you. One only I see, and I want it on film.”

It was the most romantic thing someone had ever said to me.

“I want to be able to look at them and remember this. You.”

“I want a copy.”

“Sure.” He brushed his fingers over the small of my back, sending a spark up my spine. “Now stand still.”

I indulged him and stayed in place. He unzipped the bag and slid out his DSLR. He changed something and then held it up to his face and clicked the shutter. Taking a look at the screen, he moved ever so slightly to the left and held it to his face again.

“Look at the fire.”

I did as I was told. He came close and moved my arm with the drink a fraction and placed my other arm over the back of the sofa.

Click. Click. Click.

He set the camera aside and took a seat on the edge of the chair next to me.

“Done with my repayment so soon?”

There was a light in his eyes. “Not a chance.” He looked me over, his eye stopping on the top two buttons of my shirt which remained undone. “But you’ll want that photo. To release for something. You look too alluring and regal to not have it. It was more for you than for me.”

I was shocked. “Let me see.”

He picked up the camera again and leaned closer to me to show me the screen. I looked like something out of a novel. Mysterious and alluring. I liked it. And I didn’t like many photos of myself.

“You’re quite talented.”

He sat back, keeping the camera in his lap. “How much liberty are you giving me?”

I mirrored him and looked him over, taking my time with my answer. “Why are you asking?”

Lust crossed through his gaze. “Take off the shirt.”

I obliged him, slowly working my fingers down the buttons. I slid it off and set it aside. He looked me over, hungry. My cock stirred at the look. I’d never felt so desired by another person. He slid forward on the seat and brought the camera back to his face. I stayed as I was until he told me to move.

“Sit on the edge of the table,” he said breathless.

I was glad this was getting to him as much as it was me. It was entirely foreign to give someone such a thing over me. To allow someone to take these photos. It was daring and exhilarating. I’d have to be careful or I’d get addicted to the acting out like some bored teenager.

I sat on the edge of the table closest to the fire, and he moved back to take a few shots. I looked up when he hadn’t said anything in a few moments to find him just watching me. The fire illuminated his scar, and I wanted to kiss the length of it, from his brow to his lips. I licked my lip and my chest rose as I inhaled fully, trying to calm myself. He snapped another photo.

“What do you see?” I asked, unable to stand wondering a moment longer. I wanted to know how he saw me.

“I see hunger,” he said as he came closer. “The way you look at me.” The camera hung at his side as he stalked closer.

This was sort of a mixed bag for me. I liked the premise but wondered how it would go: American paparazzo meets closeted English prince, sexy times, soul searching. Oh dear, the prince is going to be in the dark the whole time as to what the American’s job entails but was pleasantly surprised that everything is out on the table between them right away. I read through the first quarter of the book before bed, which was a good sign. Then life got in the way and when I went back to it, I was a bit slower. It’s a first person alternating POV and I think I got confused about whose POV I was reading at times, but truly I think this was user error — I was pretty tired all week. At times I was confused by the conversations between the two, but again, I think it’s me not the book. I’m sort of shallow and don’t always follow the heavily worded feels portion. Like, wait what are you trying to say to each other? What did he mean by that? What drove me truly batty though were a number of typos, word omissions and incorrect homophone usage (steal vs. steel; whole vs. hole etc.)

Overall this wasn’t a bad story. I always like seeing how the heroes find their HEA, especially with elevated stakes such as the future King of England, who’s constantly in the spotlight and expected to provide the throne with an heir. I liked Louis and Xavier and how they grew to trust and support each other. There was only a little bit of angst (the angstier the better, I say) and maybe the ending seemed a little rushed, but it was a fun read.

3.5 pieces of eye candy

When not staying up all night writing, J.R. Gray can be found at the gym where it’s half assumed he is a permanent resident to fulfill his self-inflicted masochism. A dominant and a pilot, Gray finds it hard to be in the passenger seat of any car. He frequently interrupts real life, including normal sleep patterns and conversations, to jot down notes or plot bunnies. Commas are the bane of his existence even though it’s been fully acknowledged they are necessary, they continue to baffle and bewilder. If Gray wasn’t writing…well, that’s not possible. The buildup of untold stories would haunt Gray into an early grave, insanity or both. The idea of haunting has always appealed to him. J.R. Gray is genderqueer and prefers he/him pronouns.

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Robbie Riverton: Mail Order Bridge by Eli Easton: Exclusive Excerpt, Blog Tour, Review and Giveaway

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Being a fugitive in the old west shouldn’t be this much fun.

The year is 1860. Robby Riverton is a rising star on the New York stage. But he witnesses a murder by a famous crime boss and is forced to go on the run–all the way to Santa Fe. When he still hasn’t ditched his pursuers, he disguises himself as a mail order bride he meets on the wagon train. Caught between gangsters that want to kill him, and the crazy, uncouth family of his “intended”, Robby’s only ally is a lazy sheriff who sees exactly who Robby is — and can’t resist him.

Trace Crabtree took the job as sheriff of Flat Bottom because there was never a thing going on. And then Robby Riverton showed up. Disguised as a woman. And betrothed to Trace’s brother. If that wasn’t complication enough, Trace had to find the man as appealing as blueberry pie. He urges Robby to stay undercover until the danger has passed. But a few weeks of having Robby-Rowena at the ranch, and the Crabtree family will never be the same again.

Cover Design: Dar Albert @ Wicked Smart Design

Length: 65,000 words approx.

Amazon

 

TCO Exclusive Excerpt – Robby Meets Rowena

By Eli Easton

AUTHOR’S NOTE – In “Robby Riverton”, set in 1860, a young actor is forced to go on the run after witnessing a murder. He ends up disguising himself as a mail order bride to escape his pursuers. In this scene, Robby meets Rowena, the mail order bride whose identity he will steal to save his own life.

“Why do you keep watching behind us?” Miss Fairchild asked. “You got someone chasing you, Mr. Smith?”

Robby’s fellow passenger in Stoltz’s wagon was a young lady. She was statuesque, well-bred, and finely dressed. She had light-brown hair that flirted with the idea of being red and a starry sky’s worth of freckles on her nose and cheeks. Her current dress was a green brocade, though she had six trunks filled with gowns and parasols and hats and other folderol. They took up an annoying amount of space. She wore a lacy ecru shawl about her person, always, despite the heat. She sat at the back of the wagon where the tarp was open, enjoying the scenery.

Said scenery was nothing but endless green woods and flies, and Robby couldn’t be bothered. Besides, he was still nervous about being seen.

“As a matter of fact, I’m being chased by a Russian countess whose heart I broke,” Robby said dramatically. “She sent a regiment of Cossacks to drag me back to her side.”

Miss Fairchild stared at him blankly for a second then laughed. “Oh, you! My Aunt Fanny! But I can believe you’re leaving behind a broken heart. Or a dozen. You’re what my mama would call a bonny lad.”

“Ack, would she now, your sainted mother?” Robby switched to his best Irish brogue.

Miss Fairchild grinned with delight. “Lands, that’s good. Are you Irish?”

“Not even a wee little bit. Not a blessed hair on me head.”

She studied him, amused. “What are you, then? Your clothes, your hands… You’re no laborer. You don’t look stuffy enough to be a preacher or a teacher, and you’re too young and handsome to be a politician. Are you a poet, sir?”

Robby laid his finger alongside his nose and then pointed at her and winked. “Close, dear lady. I’m an actor.”

“Oooh, I’ve never met an actor before! Mama took me to poetry readings last summer and the gentleman who did them, Roe Farley? He was exceedingly handsome too. Do you know Roe Farley?”

“Can’t say as I’ve had the pleasure. And what about you? What adventure are you off to all on your lonesome, Miss Fairchild?”

He’d wondered about Miss Rowena Fairchild. At first, he’d assumed she was with Mr. Stoltz. But Stoltz paid her even less mind than he did Robby. Which was to say, he ignored them both, going off to take his meals elsewhere, sleeping out in a bedroll under the wagon, and spending his days driving the team.

Her chin lifted defiantly. “I’m going to meet my husband.”

Wasn’t it Miss Fairchild? Robby blinked in confusion. “Ah. And when did Mr. Fairchild go out West?”

She started to speak, hesitated. A mischievous gleam lit her eyes. “Can you keep a secret?” she whispered.

“I know not a single soul on this wagon train but you. And it’s awfully tight quarters for secrets.”

“That’s true. Besides, there’s only so long I can hide this if you and me are sharing this wagon all the way to Santa Fe.” Moving her shawl to the side, Miss Fairchild revealed a very definite mound at her waistline.

“Ah,” Robby said.

“I told Mr. Stoltz I was going to join my husband. But the truth is… Here. This will explain better than I can.” She drew out an envelope from her tasseled purse and leaned over.

Robby hurried forward to take the missive, worried about her straining her belly. He joined her at the back of the wagon and, after checking again that there was nothing but a long chain of wagons behind them and no hint of the Bowery Boys, he took out the letter and attached contract and peered at it.

“A mail-order bride?” he said in surprise. “Well, that’s certainly adventurous. What do you know about this…” He scanned for a name. “This Mr. Clovis Crabtree?”

Miss Fairchild palmed her stomach and relaxed against the edge of the tarp. “He’s twenty-five, his family owns a wealthy ranch, and he’s clean, godly, and a hard worker. That’s what it said in the letter. We’re to be married just soon as I get to Flat Bottom. That’s a town north of Santa Fe.”

“And so ingeniously named. Does Mr. Clovis Crabtree know about your delicate circumstance?” Robby asked, seeing no reason to play coy.

Miss Fairchild blushed, but the way her eyes sparkled, it was more with pleasure than shame. “But that’s what’s so very clever of me! I have it all planned out. You see, I managed to hide this before I left since I wasn’t showing much.” She touched her belly which, to Robby’s eye, was showing more than a little, but maybe she’d always been round there. “No one back home’s the wiser. And at my biggest, I’ll be on this wagon train where no one knows me. By the time we reach Santa Fe, I’ll have had the baby. I hope so anyway.” She frowned slightly. “They say it’ll take three months to get there, and that’s about right.”

It sounded like a horrible ordeal to Robby, delivering a baby on a wagon train. But he figured it would help nothing to say so.

“And then, what I’ll do…” She looked delighted with herself. “I’ll say to Mr. Clovis Crabtree, I’ll say, ‘Why, sir, it’s a downright tragedy! A nice Christian lady on the wagon train died having this babe. And I couldn’t leave him to the wolves, now could I?’” Miss Fairchild batted her eyes innocently.

It was bold, Robby had to give her that. “What about the baby’s father?”

“What?”

“The good Christian lady who had the babe on the wagon train. Wasn’t she traveling with her pious husband? Wouldn’t he want custody?”

“Oh shush!” Miss Fairchild gave a dismissive wave. “I’ll just say he was eaten by a bear. Anyhow, no man wants to raise a baby alone.” She appeared to think better of it though, as she amended brightly, “I have it! I’ll say the daddy was struck dumb with grief and couldn’t bear to touch the child.” She raised her arm dramatically across her brow.

Robby figured any man who didn’t suspect a tall tale when his young bride appeared with an infant was a fool indeed. But who was he to interfere? And anyway, there was every chance Miss Fairchild’s intended wasn’t particularly bright. After all, he lived in the New Mexico Territories. And what sort of man went in for a mail-order bride?

“I even managed to slip my chaperone, Aunt Edna,” Miss Fairchild continued. “I told her the wagon train left in the afternoon and snuck out while she snored away in the hotel. That’s why no one on this earth will ever be the wiser!”

“Do you plan to kill everyone on the wagon train, then?” Robby asked, just to be contrary.

She gave him a dirty look. “Don’t be silly! The West is a big place. Chances of me and Mr. Crabtree ever running into any of the folks I meet on the trail is no bigger than a mite on a flea.”

Miss Fairchild was likely correct. Though, by the line of worry on her brow, Robby had given her doubts. He could picture the well-mannered Miss Fairchild going around and slitting all their throats in their bedrolls just to make her “plan” even more clever. The thought amused him.

“Who’s the real father?” he asked, before he could think better of it.

Miss Fairchild got a sour expression. “A traveling salesman. He was selling Bibles. Can you believe it?”

“Doesn’t surprise me a whit.”

“Mamma and Poppa were out making calls and our maid, Drusilla, was sleeping away in the kitchen like most afternoons. When Joseph came knocking, he was so handsome, I let him in.”

Miss Fairchild did seem to have a weakness for “handsome,” Robby decided. But then, so did he.

“I know it was foolish, but he had such a silver tongue. The things he said to me!” She stared out the back dreamily.

“I know just what you mean.”

“And I did everything a sensible girl ought to to keep this from coming to pass,” she insisted hotly.

“Oh? What did you do?”

“Why, right after I dallied with that man, I ran up to my room and washed real good. And I commenced to jumping up and down for ages! It was a good hour at least. And then I went to bed, but I woke up twice in the night and fretted, so I got up and jumped around some more.”

“I can’t say as I ever heard of jumping as a means of contraception.”

“Contra-what?” She looked at him like he was teasing her. “No, silly, it’s for stopping babies.”

“Ah.”

“Guess this one was just determined to come.” She stroked her belly fondly, looking down at it with a smile.

“Well, I wish you the best, m’lady. And if I can assist you in any way, consider me your cohort.”

“My what?”

“Your co-conspirator, companion in arms, your fellow seaman on the good ship Deceit.” Robby gave her a cheeky salute. “If you ever need an eyewitness account, that is to say. To my eyes you are as slender as a reed.”

Miss Fairchild’s brown eyes grew sparkly. “Aw. That’s the nicest thing anyone’s ever offered to do for me! I admit, I was afraid coming on this trip all alone. But now that I’ve met you, Mr. Nick Smith, I know God’s looking out for me, despite the error of my ways.”

“Indeed,” Robby said uneasily. The false name had been a necessary evil. He hoped the Bowery Boys would finally lose his trail.

“Do you have a sweetheart, Mr. Smith?” Miss Fairchild lowered her eyelashes coyly.

There was no mistaking her meaning. Robby forced a smile. “I’m afraid my heart is not my own.”

Miss Fairchild’s disappointment was brief. “Oh well. Then we shall be the best of friends!”

“Given our close quarters, I think you shall be my sister in the end,” Robby said. He hoped Miss Fairchild had some cards in one of those trunks or at least liked to read aloud. It was going to be a very long three months.

As it turned out, all of Miss Fairchild’s machinations were for naught. She fell for Mr. Traymore, a bookish and sensitive young man a few wagons back. He was heading to Dodge City to start up a new bank. Smart girl, Miss Fairchild. When Stoltz’s wagon continued west, Rowena, her belly like a full moon, stood next to Traymore at the Dodge City stockyard, smiling and waving.

“Good-bye, Mr. Smith,” she called out to Robby. “Good-bye!”

She gave Robby her contract with the Crabtrees, along with a letter to deliver to her intended at the end of the trail. The letter was a poetic treatise on the undeniability of true love with fervent wishes for Mr. Clovis Crabtree’s own future happiness.

Robby hoped the ranchers in Santa Fe weren’t inclined to shoot the messenger.

Westerns are such fun. Throw in m/m using an actor on the run, mistaken identity, and a sexy future brother in law, and I’m so happy. I liked this one, it was a light and cute read. Robby is an up and coming actor on the New York stage when he witnesses a murder. He escapes out of town and befriends a young mail order bride on the wagon train to New Mexico. She falls in love with someone else along the way and decides to settle with him at one of the towns but asks Robbie to give her apologies to the man she was supposed to marry. At the same time, the men he witnessed committing murder are after him and he poses as the bride in order to evade them at the end of the line. But before he can make a clean getaway, he’s met by his future brother-in-law, Sheriff Trace Crabtree.

I’ll spoil you and tell you that Trace recognizes that Robby is a man pretty much right away. And thank goodness because I cringe at the thought of 200 pages of him not knowing, the internal confusion it would cause, etc. Instead they have immediate mutual attraction, but of course there are various reasons why they can’t do anything about it right away.

I liked Robby a lot. He forms a bond with Trace’s somewhat-odd family as they welcome him into their clan. He learns to handle Trace’s father who is well-meaning but is cranky about having things his way. Robby is encouraging and kind to his “groom” Clovis. His sisters-in-law are bolstered by his independence and the kids love him. Trace loves his family but he needs some distance from them, but as Robby spends more time with them all, and Trace’s father reveals a secret, Trace is able to let go of parts of his past that has haunted him.

I was nervous about some things though: How is Robby going to get out of this marriage? What will Trace’s family do if and when they find out he is not a she? How are two men in the Wild West going to be together?

This book has laughs, sexy times, and a little sad (for me, some things rang very true) and angst. Totally cute book.

3.5 pieces of eye candy

Having been, at various times and under different names, a minister’s daughter, a computer programmer, a game designer, the author of paranormal mysteries, a fan fiction writer, and organic farmer, Eli has been a m/m romance author since 2013. She has over 30 books published.

Eli has loved romance since her teens and she particular admires writers who can combine literary merit, genuine humor, melting hotness, and eye-dabbing sweetness into one story. She promises to strive to achieve most of that most of the time. She currently lives on a farm in Pennsylvania with her husband, bulldogs, cows, a cat, and lots of groundhogs.

In romance, Eli is best known for her Christmas stories because she’s a total Christmas sap. These include “Blame it on the Mistletoe”, “Unwrapping Hank” and “Merry Christmas, Mr. Miggles”. Her “Howl at the Moon” series of paranormal romances featuring the town of Mad Creek and its dog shifters has been popular with readers. And her series of Amish-themed romances, Men of Lancaster County, has won genre awards.

In 2018 Eli hopes to do more of the same, assuming they reschedule the apocalypse.

Her website is www.elieaston.com

You can email her at eli@elieaston.com

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April 26 – Loves Bytes

April 28 – Padme’s Library 

April 30 – My Fiction Nook

May 2 – The Novel Approach

May 4 – MM Good Book Reviews

May 7 – Diverse Reader

May 9 – Two Chicks Obsessed

May 11 – Scattered Thoughts & Rogue Words

May 14 – Joyfully Jay

May 16 – Bayou Book Junkie

 

 

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As I Am by Melissa Collins: Exclusive Excerpt, Release Day Review and Giveaway

by

Chase Hansen. Broke. College drop out. Male stripper.

My life wasn’t at all what I imagined it would be. I should have been finishing up college, interning with a well-respected business, partying with my friends. But instead, I was raising my seventeen year old brother, struggling to make ends meet. Love wasn’t even on my radar. Besides, what did I have to offer? A few crumpled singles pulled from my G-string? Defeated and exhausted, I knew I had zero chance of finding someone to love me just as I am.

Noah Carpenter. Angry. Betrayed. Doctor.

Just when I thought my life was going exactly as it should, everything turned upside down. With my final rotation in medical school complete, I finally achieved my lifelong dream of becoming a doctor. What I never expected was to catch the man of my dreams in our bed with the man of his. Beyond infuriated, I struggled to piece together the remnants of my life. Just when I’d decided to give up on love altogether, I found a man who loved me just as I am.

Cover design: Sommer Stein at Perfect Pear Creative Covers

Photography: Christopher John at CJC Photography

Models: Sam Wiles and Aaron Michael Bell

Amazon

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The piece of art hanging on the wall on the east end of the hospital cafeteria had, by my best calculation, twelve hundred and eighty-two one-by-one-inch tiles of varying shades of blues and greens.

This was what my life had come to. Counting fucking tiles.

“Hello?” Wes’s voice snapped me out of my newfound habit of counting random shit to distract me. “What the hell?” he asked, taking a sip of his coffee. “I asked you how the wedding was like five minutes ago and you’re just sitting there staring at that mural like it’s a naked woman.” After another quick sip, he corrected himself, “Man. I mean a naked man.”

And just like that, the twelve hundred tiles morphed from the ocean lapping against the shore into Chase’s naked body, standing before me, waiting for me to do what I want with it.

Sexual frustration was a bitch like that.

“Oh, uh, good. It was good.” The usually shitty coffee tasted even shittier.

Wes laughed, dropping the conversation I so clearly didn’t want to have. We ate in silence, leaving ten minutes later to start our day in the emergency room. As usual, work offered me the only worthwhile distraction from the numbness of my life. Between the long and drawn-out break up with Rob, to the turmoil over the last month in dealing with how I felt about Chase and what was bubbling between us, it had been far too long since I felt like my life was my own.

Ten hours later, I found myself in a very similar situation. Wes and I were walking to the cafeteria, grabbing our hundredth cup of coffee for the day. “So, are you finally going to talk to me about whatever the hell is bothering you, or are we going to draw it out for weeks and weeks like last time, until you’re ready to blow?”

Like some pathetically frustrated teenager, even the mention of the word blow had me hardening behind my long, white lab coat. “Option B?” I joked, more asking than telling.

“Nice fucking try.” Wes pulled a chair out next to me. After peeling back the plastic lid to his Styrofoam cup, he blew on the hot liquid. “Talk,” he demanded, pressing his lips to the rim. “Now,” he added, before taking a small sip.

As if my friend possessed a magic power over me, the story about what happened over the weekend—about Rob showing up with Chase, about Chase ditching me after he took care of Katie, about me feeling ridiculously lost and confused—all the words fell from my lips with an ease that surprised even me.

“There we go,” he goaded. “So, what are you going to do about it?”

One question. So plain and simple, yet so loaded. Shrugging, I sipped my coffee, hoping it held the answer to all my life’s issues. No such luck, I guessed. “I don’t know.” I huffed. “I just don’t know.” The worst part was, that was the truth. I had no clue how to get what I wanted out of my life. On the surface, everything looked like it was perfect. But on the inside, it was the exact opposite. Working was the only thing that gave me purpose.

Wes pulled his phone from his pocket, presumably because it had buzzed. He wasn’t one to randomly scroll through pointless social media in the middle of a shift, or the middle of a conversation with a friend. He was good people like that. After punching out a quick text, he slid it back into his pocket and then focused his attention back on me. “Look, this may sound like something I’ve already told you, but dude, fucking go for it.”

Again, so simple, yet so complicated.

He continued, without letting me get a word in. “You like the guy, right?” It was a rhetorical question. “You want to see where it goes, so go for it.” Much to my surprise, Wes stood from his chair, seemingly annoyed with this very one-sided conversation. “I need to get back, and then I’m going to go home and kiss the baby goodnight. Maybe make love to my wife.”

Something about the certainty with which he spoke his words, about the permanence of his routine, made me jealous. It was a blind stupidity that fueled me through the last few hours of my shift. And by the time sixteen hours had passed, I trudged my way out of the hospital, hoping the solace of my bed would somehow make everything about the chaos of the last few days go away.

As I pulled up into my driveway, it was almost as if my bed was calling to me, my muscles aching so much with every step up the walkway. “I’m getting so fucking old,” I cursed to myself, adjusting my messenger bag over my sore shoulder.

As I punched the numbers into the keypad, I waited for Katie to bark, knowing she’d be itching to get out. Even though the dog walker I’d hired had been here today, Katie would be anxious to see me after an exceptionally long day.

Except, after hitting the fourth button, I heard nothing. Odd. Maybe I forgot to set it. Maybe the dog walker forgot. The second option was the more likely one. I guess that would have to be something I’d need to take up with her another day. Since I didn’t have the energy to deal with it right now, I let my exhaustion take over and made my way up to my bedroom. Surely Katie had to be curled up on my bed, waiting for me there.

“Katie girl,” I called out, pushing open the door to my bedroom.

A shock like I’d never known washed over me as the light from inside my room flooded my senses. “Fucking hell,” I cursed, clutching my chest as if my heart had actually jumped out of my skin.

“Hey.” A sexy, and gravelly voice spoke. Blinking away the bright lights offending my eyes, I tried to make sense of it all, but it was pointless.

“What the?”

“It’s me,” the voice said again, this time moving toward me. “Chase,” he clarified, though I didn’t need the clarification at this point.

“What are you doing here?”

He laughed at my pointless question before answering, “I used the code you gave me last week, and I’m waiting for you in your bedroom.” He moved toward me, each step an agonizingly slow process. When he was no more than only a few centimeters in front of me, his toes nearly next to mine, he finally touched me. His hand cupped my jaw, his thumb softly grazing over my lower lip. “I think my intentions are pretty clear. No?” A glint of humor flashed in his eyes before his mouth crashed into mine. There was nothing soft about the moment. The feel of his lips, tasting, demanding, invading, it was too much to bear.

Stepping back from him, my mind raced. He all but broke into my house. He was lying in my bed. All nice and fucking cozy. “But,” I protested.

“I know.” Without letting me finish, Chase spoke, and his words were already soaked in guilt. “It’s not the most traditional way of going about seeing you. But… I… uh…,” he stammered. This time I moved toward him, cupping his face, running my thumb along his jaw. He closed his eyes and let out a slow exhale, his lips barely parting. “I wanted you,” he admitted, his voice real and raw.

And at that moment, all my concerns, all my questions, washed away.

They melted into his skin as my body pressed against his.

Then, all at once, every restriction I’d ever felt, coursed through my blood as if they were cursing their very existence—screaming, yelling, raging, to be released. I’d like to say that I actively decided to let go of whatever had been holding me back over the last few days, hell, over the last few years.

But nothing could explain the raw animalistic power possessing my body.

Letting the passion I needed to experience flow through my veins, I pushed Chase down onto the bed. The pause I took to register the shock on his face was brief, at most. But somehow, seeing his eyes widen in shock, and his mouth part as he took in the extra oxygen his lungs so desperately craved, it fueled my need that much more.

My body fell into his, the soft mattress beneath us a cushion, enveloping our bodies as we writhed together in a hazy cloud of power and desire. With a fury I hadn’t realized I’d possessed, I pulled his shirt from his body, nearly tearing the fabric in the process. Pressing my hips into his, I kept my face less than an inch from his face. My breath, coming out in short, heated puffs, filled the limited space between us. “I want you, too,” I admitted.

With a roughness that was foreign even to me, I gripped his jaw, pulling his mouth up to my own as if my next inhale was dependent upon his exhale. “I don’t even care how you got in here.” The honesty coating my words was as genuine as the rock-hard erection pressing against Chase’s. “Just that you’re here, that’s all I need right now.”

And with that admission, I attacked his body as if it were the last meal I’d ever be offered.

Amazon

Ok, here’s the deal. I am a fan of Melissa Collins and her books. I follow her on social media, etc. So as much as I wanted to love this book, I just didn’t. And that pains me.

I questioned too many things. Why does the story begin with Chase crushing on his best friend? That story line goes no where in the book. How does this guy get a job stripping with no dance experience, not a great body, etc? Noah (the other main character) goes from resident with crazy hours, to basically office hours in no time. And he has a giant house? Because brand new doctors make a ton of money? And apparently since he now works regular office hours, he has plenty of time to drink his sorrows away. Great thing for a doctor.

Ok, besides those things. I felt no connection. Not TO the characters or between the characters. The only connection I felt was between Chase and his brother Benny. That is the relationship that Chase seems to want to cultivate and make better. He is really trying hard for his brother, but at the same time he is so self pitying.

There were good parts. The lap dance. A couple of the sex scenes. But the romance was lacking.

I won’t give up on this author, as I said I’ve loved her previous books. But this one just didn’t do it for me.

3.5 pieces of eye candy
 

Melissa Collins has always been a book worm. Studying Literature in college ensured that her nose was always stuck in a book. She followed her passion for reading to the most logical career choice: English teacher. Her hope was to share her passion for reading and the escapism of books to her students. Having spent more than a decade in front of a classroom, she can easily say that it’s been a dream.

Her passion for writing didn’t start until more recently. When she was home on maternity leave in early 2012, she read her first romance novel and her head filled with the passion, angst and laughter of the characters who she read about it. It wasn’t long before characters of her own took shape in her mind. Their lives took over Melissa’s brain and The Love Series was born.

 

Rhoades-Undeniable (Man Up Book 2) by Felice Stevens: New Release Review

by

Rhoades
Loneliness. The pain doesn’t simply go away with time. It’s been years, and they tell me I need to move on. But I can’t.
Blame and regret are my constant companions. Until I see him in the spotlight and everything changes. Night after night, I watch him dance. Thinking about him.
What he’d feel like.
What he’d taste like.
And now that I know, I want him even more.
And maybe…just maybe, he might want me too.
But not yet.
Not before he knows he’s more than a pretty face. Not before he knows what he means to me. I need him by my side.
The two of us.
Together.

Austin
Why can’t I forget him? His hands touching me. His mouth on mine. Kissing me. Rendering me mindless.
Breathless.
Every night I lay awake burning for him. Dreaming. Thinking. Needing him.
No—I don’t. I don’t need anyone.
I lie.
I want him.
I want more. I am more. He’s seen that, and now here I stand with my dream on the horizon. All I need to do is take that first step. Trust him.
Trust myself.

Rhoades begins immediately where Austin, Book one, left off

Amazon

 

Hmm… Well.

I didn’t **love** book 1. I liked it. I liked it enough to want to read this installment. Book 1 was a tease, an appetizer to book 2. Undeniably the main course. I don’t understand why they are two books though.

Anyway…..

I felt like book one stumbled a bit. And book two started that way. But then it founds it’s groove. It wasn’t nearly as angst ridden as I expected given the backgrounds of both guys.

I think the story for me changed once Austin stood up for himself. For what he wanted and didn’t want. Instead of just going with the flow to make ends meet until “something” happened that would catapult him into adulthood.

And while Rhoades still held back- he let more and more out to Austin.

It was a slow simmer until the sexual pot boiled over. It was worth the wait.

Rhoades made some grand gestures that weren’t really necessary and over the top. But he seems like an all or nothing kind of guy.

I do feel like we were left hanging a little bit in regard to one of the side characters. But perhaps there will be a book 3 for him.

3.5 Pieces of Candy