Two Chicks Obsessed with Books & Eye Candy

Sharing our love of M/M Romance

4 stars

Saddle Up (Clean Slate Rach book 3) by AM Arthur: New Release Review

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Reyes Caldero keeps his past buried deep and his emotions buried deeper. But what he doesn’t say he always makes up for with his actions. When the hot chef he once saved from an abusive ex turns up at Clean Slate Ranch, the quiet cowboy is happy to act on their sizzling chemistry, even if he’s not ready to share his secrets—or his heart.

Miles Arlington needs to get the hell out of San Francisco, and heading north for a job near Clean Slate Ranch seems like just the thing. It doesn’t hurt that his secret crush slash onetime rescuer happens to work at the ranch. Miles has never been one for the outdoors, but the superhot Reyes has him ready to saddle up.

Reyes is happy to keep things casual, even though his heart has other ideas. And when Miles is forced to confront his past again, Reyes and Miles will have to put all their trust in each other if they want any chance at building a future together.

Amazon

Carina Press

Please read the first two books in the series. It isn’t 100% necessary, but it will make this one all the more enjoyable.

That being said, I couldn’t wait for Reyes and his story. Always quiet, never with much to say, but always there for his friends. Reyes and Miles have been avoiding flirting since book 1. Avoiding it so much that it was obvious to everyone. And when Miles gets a job at the ghost town and the only available bed is in the 2 man cabin with Reyes, it won’t be easy to avoid each other.

But they do. Their relationship really grows as friends. Miles is up front in that he doesn’t want a relationship but he does want to be friends. Reyes readily agrees because he doesn’t feel worthy of love.

So while this isn’t really a friends to lovers trope, they definitely grow their friendship. And I loved that.

Reyes and Miles have big secrets. Secrets that even their best friends don’t know. And when they finally tell each other- it is painful. Especially Reyes’ secret. I wasn’t expecting that.

OF COURSE A.M. Arthur made me cry. The tears of her readers feed her. But don’t worry, there is a happily ever after.

4 Pieces of Candy

Love Spell by Mia Kerick: Blog Tour, New Release Review, Excerpt and Giveaway

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Chance César is fabulously gay, but his gender identity—or, as he phrases it, “being stuck in the gray area between girl and boy”—remains confusing. Nonetheless, he struts his stuff on the catwalk in black patent leather pumps and a snug-in-all-the-right (wrong)-places orange tuxedo as the winner of this year’s Miss (ter) Harvest Moon Festival. He rules supreme at the local Beans and Greens Farm’s annual fall celebration, serenaded by the enthusiastic catcalls of his BFF, Emily Benson.

Although he refuses to visually fade into the background of his rural New Hampshire town, Chance is socially invisible—except when being tormented by familiar bullies. But sparks fly when Chance, Pumpkin Pageant Queen, meets Jasper (Jazz) Donahue, winner of the Pumpkin Carving King contest. Chance wants to be noticed and admired and romantically embraced by Jazz, in all of his neon-orange-haired glory.

And so at a sleepover, Chance and Emily conduct intense, late-night research, and find an online article: “Ten Scientifically Proven Ways to Make a Man Fall in Love With You.” Along with a bonus love spell thrown in for good measure, it becomes the basis of their strategy to capture Jazz’s heart.

But will this “no-fail” plan work? Can Chance and Jazz fall under the fickle spell of love?

Title:  Love Spell

Author: Mia Kerick

Publisher:  NineStar Press, LLC

Release Date: September 17, 2018

Heat Level: 1 – No Sex

Pairing: Male/Male

Length: 43300

Genre: Contemporary YA, contemporary, YA, non-binary, bullying, homophobia, coming-of-age, humorous

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NineStar Press, LLC  

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Just call me brazen.

It occurs to me that brazen—unabashedly bold and without an inkling of shame—is the perfectly appropriate word to describe moi right about now. It is, however, the only perfectly appropriate part of this evening. Which is perfectly appropriate, in my humble opinion. So get over it.

I lift my chin just enough to stop the stiff orange spikes of glitter-gelled hair from flopping forward onto my forehead. Who can blame me? These spikes are razor sharp—best they stay upright on my head where they belong. And gravity can only do so much to that end.

Okaaaayyyy…sidetracked much? Forces rebellious thoughts on business at hand.

Chance César is a brazen B.

I stare ’em down, but only after I pop the collar of the blinding “Orange Crush” tuxedo I’m rockin’ and shrug my shoulders in a sort of what-the-fuck fashion. Rule of thumb in this queen’s life—first things must always come first.

Pop, shrug, and only then is it kosher to stare. I clear my throat.

“Eat your ginger-haired heart out, Ed Sheeran.”

Based on the buzz of scandalized chatter blowing about in the crisp evening breeze, I’m reasonably certain that nobody in the crowd heard me speak. And although several of the girls currently gawking at me may do double backflips over my red-haired counterpart across the pond, they don’t give a rat’s ass about Chance César. In fact, I have a sneaking suspicion that they view my atomic tangerine locks as more reminiscent of Bozo the Clown than of the smexy singer-songwriter.

They are, however, completely unaware that this carrot top is going to make Harvest Moon Festival history tonight.

Refusing to succumb to the impulse to duck my head, I take a single shaky step forward onto the stage that’s been set up on the dusty ground beside a vast—by New England standards—cornfield. The stage doesn’t wobble, but my knees sure as shit do. Okay, I’m an honest diva and I tell it like it is. And I’m what you might call a freaking wreck.

Nonetheless, this brazen B takes a deep breath, blows it out in a single gush, and starts to strut. This boy’s werkin’ it.

Smi-zeee!! Yeah, my smile is painted on, just like my trousers.

Chance, you are by far the edgiest Miss Harvest Moon this ramshackle town has ever had the good fortune to gaze upon. I am a major fan of positive self-talk.

Using the feigned British accent I’ve perfected—thanks to long hours of tedious practice in my bathroom—I dish out my next thought aloud. “I wish I’d put in a tad more practice walking in these bloody heels before going public in ’em.” And despite one slight stumble—a close call to be sure—the clicking sound my pumps make is crisp and confident. I saunter out onto the catwalk.

#TrueConfessions: Faking foreign accents is a hobby of mine. I can yammer it up in improvised French, German, Mexican, Russian, and plenty more accents, but I don’t mimic Asian languages, as it seems too close to ridicule. My plan for the rest of the night is to continue vocalizing my abundant thoughts in Standard British, with a hint of Cockney thrown in for charm. After all, New Hampshire is the “Live Free or Die” state, and I’ll do what I laaaa-like. Yaaasss!

First: Teenagers are ridiculous.
Second: It makes me feel incredibly old to say that.
Third: Chance is exhausting but in the cutest ways

Chance is voted Miss something or other in his towns Miss Something or other pageant, cuz kids are mean, and they thought it would be funny for the boy to be queen… didn’t they realize he’d own it?! If they didn’t, they got schooled….cuz he owned it.

I couldn’t imagine being an openly gay, genderfluid teenager, confused about his gender identity and having to navigate high school in today’s world. People are so intolerant, and ignorant, that it had my heart hurting for the things that he had to put up with. And if we know anything about my rants, its when people get away with being terrible, and those A-holes made high school hard for him, and I hated reading that… Thankfully, Chance has his bestie Emily, and she’s more than just a bestie, she’s the family he doesn’t have. His parents are awful too…. They’re not abusive in any typical sense of the word, but there’s no love there, and that made me sad for him too.

Now, at the miss whatever pageant (it was a cute and clever name, I just don’t remember what it was called), he meets Jasper, who he aptly nicknames Jazz… Jazz is sweet and shy and about fifteen kinds of adorable. His mom works any spare second she can, and Jasper is left juggling school, a job and helping raise his little sister…. Is that not just the cutest?! Chance is quite smitten with him at first site, even though they’ve been going to the same school together, forever.

Unfortunately, two things happen…. One, Jazz already likes Chance but doesn’t just come out and tell him…and two… Chance and Emily come up with the most ridiculous list of ways to make Jazz fall in love with him. Now, some of these were downright stupid, and I couldn’t believe that they A. believed it would work, or B. attempted to try them. No wonder Jazz got the wrong idea, the suggestions were terrible and terribly executed lol though it was entertaining (at times) (other times, exhausting)

So, when the list is almost finished, the only two things left are the only suggestions that he’d have needed all along, it was too late…. Or was it? There are a couple really good lessons in this story, and it would be one I’d let my newly “out” thirteen year old read…. If he could understand the lingo… I’ll admit, there were a couple times I had to be like…what in the world does that mean?!…. You’ll get there though.

If you enjoy YA, overly dramatic, sarcastic and sassy, gender-confused and charming…..or the quiet and shy, simple boy…. Give this one a chance, <wink wink>

4 pieces of eye candy from me

Mia Kerick is the mother of four exceptional children—one in law school, another at a dance conservatory, a third studying at Mia’s alma mater, Boston College, and her lone son still in high school. She has published more than twenty books of LGBTQ romance when not editing National Honor Society essays, offering opinions on college and law school applications, helping to create dance bios, and reviewing English papers. Her husband of twenty-five years has been told by many that he has the patience of Job, but don’t ask Mia about this, as it is a sensitive subject.

Mia focuses her stories on the emotional growth of troubled young people and their relationships. She has a great affinity for the tortured hero in literature, and as a teen, Mia filled spiral-bound notebooks with tales of tortured heroes and stuffed them under her mattress for safekeeping. She is thankful to NineStar Press for providing her with an alternate place to stash her stories.

Her books have been featured in Kirkus Reviews magazine, and have won Rainbow Awards for Best Transgender Contemporary Romance and Best YA Lesbian Fiction, a Reader Views’ Book by Book Publicity Literary Award, the Jack Eadon Award for Best Book in Contemporary Drama, an Indie Fab Award, and a Royal Dragonfly Award for Cultural Diversity, among other awards.

Mia Kerick is a social liberal and cheers for each and every victory made in the name of human rights. Her only major regret: never having taken typing or computer class in school, destining her to a life consumed with two-fingered pecking and constant prayer to the Gods of Technology. Contact Mia at miakerick@gmail.com or visit at www.miakerickya.com to see what is going on in Mia’s world.

Website | Facebook | Twitter

http://www.miakerick.com/

https://www.facebook.com/mia.kerick

 

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Charity Parkerson’s Sugar Fighter (Sugar Daddies #1): Quick Review

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Zeke is the older man. The richer man. The man who plans to give Korey the world.

As MMA’s Light Heavyweight champion, Zeke’s million-dollar matches and multi-million-dollar sponsorships have given him the freedom to do whatever he likes. It pleases him to spoil Korey. Before Zeke’s best friend Charlie was deployed two years ago, he made Zeke swear he’d care for his brother Korey if anything happened to him. When Charlie is killed by a roadside bomb, Zeke takes the young college student in, determined to give him everything he requires to succeed. He never expects to end up hoping he can keep Korey under more than his roof. He needs Korey beneath him.

If Korey had been in his right mind after Charlie’s death, he would’ve turned down Zeke’s offer. By the time he realizes his mistake, he’s already addicted to Zeke’s powerful presence. He never meant to end up dependent on the man’s smiles and hot glances. The money, Korey could live without. The man has him hooked. There’s only one problem—neither man wants to cross the line from friends to lovers, ruining what they have.

Sugar Fighter is a short introduction to a new series by Charity Parkerson, Sugar Daddies. This series will feature male/male May/December romances where the men are hot, rich, naughty, and don’t like to be told no.

Amazon – Kindle Unlimited

Hmmm, hot older guy and the younger brother of his best friend from the army who had passed…. Sounds good right? I thought so too!

So, first, we have Korey, who when he lost his brother, he lost the last person he had. Having moved to a new state where he didn’t know anyone just before, he was surprised that his brother’s best friend Zeke stepped up and offered him a place to stay so he could continue school…..He had plenty of money and plenty of room, and he’d promised to look after Charlie’s little brother.

Zeke was a professional MMA fighter and a good one at that. He had more money than he knew what to do with, so it allowed him to take care of Korey; and he loved doing it. He had feelings for Korey and wanted to be the one that he relied on. Korey was in the same boat, but never imagined Zeke would return his feelings.

That was, until hiding their feelings was too much on both of them and they finally gave into each other. Should’ve been great, right? But of course it wouldn’t be that easy…. Zeke reacted badly and Korey got his feelings hurt, and the more Zeke messed up, the more he didn’t know how to fix it.

I really felt for Korey, who hasn’t had that one unrequited love? It’s the most painful feeling to know that your heart is with someone and then them not feel the same way. Of course, Zeke did, but it took a while for him to admit it to not only himself but to Korey.

With the help of Maverick, though…. They got there. Overall, it was a short and sweet read… I’m looking forward to Maverick’s story… he deserves someone amazing. I have a feeling his story will be just as bittersweet.

4 pieces of eye candy from me!

Three Stupid Weddings by Ann Gallagher: Exclusive Friday 5-ish Questions and Pre-Release Day Review

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On the heels of a painful and long overdue breakup, what Victor Nelson needs is time to lick his wounds. What he doesn’t need is everyone in his family trying to play matchmaker so he can find someone new… which is exactly what they’ll do at the three stupid weddings he has to attend this summer.

Fortunately, it’s Dominic Lowe to the rescue. Dom is more than willing to come along to all the weddings as his best friend’s “boyfriend”… even if he’d much rather be there as Vic’s real boyfriend.

Convincing people they’re a couple is easy. The charade is miserable for Dom, though, after years of being madly in love with Vic. But maybe those three weddings are a rehearsal for the relationship he knows they could have for real.

This asexual M/M romance is approximately 38,000 words long.

Trigger warnings: eating disorder, discussions of verbal/emotional abuse

Amazon – Kindle Unlimited

Thank you to Ann Gallagher, AKA L.A. Witt, for stopping by and answering my Friday 5-ish questions. Her answers are just AMAZE-BALLS!!!!

  1. You seem to have plot bunnies, that make more plot bunnies. They seem to replicate like real bunnies! 🙂 Tell us about your inspiration for Three Stupid Weddings.

They really do replicate like real bunnies. I literally have rainbow plot bunnies tattooed on my arm because, well, plot bunnies are my world. I am constantly sending emails to myself with story ideas, jotting notes in my phone’s notepad or on scraps of paper–there are bunnies everywhere, and they always find me.

Three Stupid Weddings came from seeing some tweets from readers who enjoy the “fake boyfriend” trope, and I realized it was one I’d never written before. I’d also been wanting to write another asexual romance, so I started playing with the idea of an ace fake boyfriend. The story pretty much fell together after that.

  1. You have several pen names. You chose Ann Gallagher as the pen name for Three Stupid Weddings, even as it is M/M. What makes you choose one pen name over another? Is there a method to this madness?

LOL Oh yeah the pen name madness. It’s…well, madness is a good word. There is a method to the madness, though if I had my career to do over again, I might have done things differently. I didn’t foresee writing so many genres, or that I would branch out into pairings beyond M/M and M/F. Initially it was L.A. Witt for M/M and Lauren Gallagher for M/F, and then I write an M/M/F and realized it wasn’t that simple anymore. So when a book blurs the line between two names, I have to make a decision.  In the case of Three Stupid Weddings, it was actually easy: Ann Gallagher writes sweet romances. Since Three Stupid Weddings has no on-page sex (none off-page either), it was clearly an Ann Gallagher book. Where it gets tricky is when I’m writing a sweeter — but not 100% sweet — romance, and it feels more L.A. Witt than Ann Gallagher. Because heaven forbid I make things easy for myself.

  1. Following you on twitter (Peeps! If you don’t you should!) I know you have been doing research on incel, as well as terrible bosses. What can you share about your current WIPs?

The terrible bosses research is for a non-fiction book that I’m hopefully not botching too terribly, and as for the incel research…Oh Lord, I am so glad to be done researching that “community”. That was SUCH a toxic experience. In the end, though, I’m pleased with the resulting suspense novel, INCEL, which will be out later this fall. It’ll be under my fourth pen name, Lori A. Witt, because of course it will. That name used to be exclusively for more mainstream SFF, but I decided to expand to mainstream suspense too; INCEL has a romance subplot, but it’s not really the focus of the book. That and by its very  nature, the subject matter meant delving into some hardcore misogyny and rape culture, and I decided the book (and the other books in the series) should be under the name that focuses less on romance.

Anyway, that book is in edits right now. I’m currently working on a historical novella to go with a Christmas-themed multi-author series later in the year, as well as the final book in my Cruising trilogy (a fluffy M/M trans vacation romance).  My main WIP, however, is a M/M contemporary that will also be playing with the fake boyfriend trope, and I’ve assembled A DREAM TEAM OMG of narrators for the audio version, so I’m basically writing it with their voices in my head. No details on that one yet. 😉

  1. Is there a plot bunny that you’ve had that you were afraid/concerned to write, or maybe felt you couldn’t do justice to it, if you did write it? Why?

Oh, there have been a few. Once Burned involved a character who’s an undocumented immigrant at risk of deportation. When I wrote Static waaaaaaay back in like 2012 I was terrified I’d screwed up the genderfluidity, trans characters, etc. I literally had nine trans* beta readers for that one. Lead Me Not, a Christian M/M romance, was definitely a risk for me because I had no idea how anyone — the Christian community, my readers, my Christian readers, etc — would take it.

So yeah, sometimes it’s scary diving into a book, but I’ll usually write it anyway, and just make sure I have someone else read it.

  1. Always the fun questions! What cartoon character best represents your personal philosophy?

I’m probably some very weird mix of Sterling Archer and Stewie Griffin…

Ah-stinkin-dorable!

This was short, but oh so sweet. The fake boyfriend trope will just never grow old with me. And because these guys are asexual, there was no drunken sex that they felt guilty about after even though they both wanted it.

Instead it was like a slow romance. Building with each wedding they went to. Best friends who slowly acknowledge that they really are in a relationship and love each other.

The book was separated by wedding, which was fun. Besides the beginning of the story establishing character, the rest of it takes place at each of the three weddings.

There is a little bit of angst with Vic dealing with the repercussions of a caustic relationship he is newly out of, but nothing that bogged down or turned the story serious.

This was the perfect, fluffy, sweet, romantic book that is short enough to be a nice fast read, but in depth enough to make you care about the characters.

4 Pieces of Candy

Somebody to Die For by Kris T. Bethke: Exclusive Guest Post and Release Day Review

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Dying is easy. New love is terrifying.

Avery Wagner quit ghostwalking when he lost his beloved anchor to cancer. Now teaching others who have the ability, he’s beginning to live again—but he’s not looking for another lover, not now, maybe not ever.

But then he meets Jameson… younger, talented, dedicated, almost perfect, even though his mouth sometimes opens ahead of his brain. And Jameson wants Avery desperately, though he’ll settle for friendship if he can’t have more.

When an emergency demands they work together in the field, Avery discovers just how perfect Jameson is. But he had a perfect love once before, and he’s scared to even consider that he might have a chance at another. Can he trust Jameson with his newly healing heart?

Title: Somebody to Die For
Series: Requiem Inc.: Book 3
Author: Kris T. Bethke
Release Date: September 4, 2018
Category: Paranormal: Ghosts, Dreamspun Beyond
Pages: 212

Amazon

Dreamspinner

 

Hey there! I’m Kris T. Bethke, and I’m here to bring a little insight into my latest release, Somebody to Die For. The third book in the Requiem Inc. series and part of the Dreamspun Beyond line.

When I wrote the first book in the Requiem Inc. series, I didn’t actually know it was going to be a series. Writing that first book, though, gave me secondary characters who started screaming for their own story.

Avery Wagner was one character whose story needed to be told.

The challenge with a series is to make each book different. No one wants to read the same story twice, even if they have different MCs. So I needed to find a different angle. And really, once Jameson Parker came into the picture, I knew exactly what the story should be.

Avery had the One True Love. But that doesn’t mean he can’t love again. It doesn’t even mean that the new love isn’t as amazing as the first. But Avery has baggage, and he’s been through a lot. So he had to have a different kind of love this time around.

Ghostwalking is integral to Avery’s life. But he just doesn’t know how much until he’s forced to do it again. With Jameson at his side, the experience is different than when Avery ghostwalked with his anchor and bonded. Jameson is everything Avery needs at this stage in his life. And at the same time, Avery is everything Jameson needs.

I packed this book with some of my favorite tropes: hurt/comfort, age gap, friends to lovers, and new love after loss. But I only used them because they fit the characters I had created and the story that needed to be told. It’s not an easy journey, to be sure. There’s definitely a slow burn going on. And there has to be. Avery has healed a lot since he lost his bonded and husband. But that doesn’t mean he’s ready to jump in with both feet. He and Jameson get off to a rocky start, and it’s just the sort of push they need to get going. First as friends, and then as so much more.

For Jameson, the attraction is instant. He knows the moment he sees Avery that he wants him. For Avery, on the other hand, things progress much slower. He has to come to terms with his feelings for Jameson, and what that means for his heart.

I loved writing this story, and continuing in the world I created. I hope you get a chance to check it out. Somebody to Die For is out now!

Once again, I will say, as I said in the last two reviews I did of the books in this series…I don’t normally read these types of books. And yet, I have enjoyed the world of this series so much. The author created a parallel world to what we live in, giving us characters to care about, and ones to root for.

This one is a bit different than the last two books.

**Side note** In Kris’ guest post she talks about how writing this series, and writing all of the character’s with different stories was important. As I was reading this third book, I had actually been thinking how very different she had made the stories for each of these books. And I’m so glad she did!

This one is different because Avery doesn’t ghostwalk anymore, after his bonded love and anchor died of cancer. His grief was so all consuming the thought of doing it was just too much. Meanwhile, he was slowly falling in love with someone who was in training to be an anchor, with no ghostwalker as a match. Perfect scenario for Avery to freak out…again and again. And he did, and yet Jameson was so patient and loving with Avery, never giving up on him, even when Avery continued to push him away.

A couple things that I really appreciated about this book are often not portrayed in other books. The first…books often have the “I love you” before the end. Now, don’t get me wrong, I love that moment, it makes me so happy. But in the case of this book, it was so appropriate for Avery as he continued to deal with grief and guilt over moving on from his bonded, Luke. Even at the end, (and this is a tiny tiny spoiler) there is a comment about Jameson “staying” with Avery, versus living with him, purposefully so that Avery could get used to the idea. It was exactly what this relationship needed.

Second, the author didn’t write to pretend that Avery’s bonded hadn’t died, and there wasn’t still grief and fear. She wrote Avery as someone who fought against the idea of “replacing” Luke. Yet, the author created a world where it was okay to love again, even as you wonder and question. And it is. Humans need to love, and Avery found the chance again, despite all his efforts to the contrary. The time when Avery goes to his bonded’s cemetary…yeah…I was crying…on my way into work. I need to pick and choose the times when I am reading something I am sure will make me cry much better. 🙂

I highly recommend this series…even if you aren’t necessarily a paranormal fan. It is grounded in the real world, and in real life emotions, and at the heart of it is finding love in all its varieties.

4 pieces of eye candy

Kris T. Bethke has been a voracious reader for pretty much her entire life and has been writing stories for nearly as long.  An avid and prolific daydreamer, she always has a story in her head.  She spends most of her free time reading, writing, or knitting/crocheting her latest project.  Her biggest desire is to find a way to accomplish all three tasks at one time.  A classic muscle car will always turn her head, and naps on the weekend are one of her greatest guilty pleasures.  She lives in a converted attic with a way too fluffy cat and the voices in her head.  She’ll tell you she thinks that’s a pretty good deal. Kris believes that love is love, no matter the gender of people involved, and that all love deserves to be celebrated.

Find her on her site https://kristbethke.com Facebook https://www.facebook.com/people/Kris-T-Bethke/100014524539852 or on Twitter https://twitter.com/kristbethke

*** Disclosure of Material: I received a copy of this book from the Author/Publisher with the hope that I would voluntarily leave unbiased and unsolicited feedback. I was not asked, encouraged, or required to leave a review – nor was I compensated in any way. I am posting this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising. *** 

Feel: An Omegaverse Story (Breaking Free Book 6) by AM Arthur: New Release Review

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Single omegin Brogan Dale is jealous of the loving, stable relationships his omega friends have with their alpha mates. For years, he’s longed to find his own bondmate and create a family, but that hasn’t been in the cards. Just when he’s determined to take the first alpha who’ll provide for himself and his young son Peyton, Brogan scents him across a crowded coffee shop. Too bad his bondmate is the unstable alpha who nearly killed Brogan’s best friend last year.

Mikel Tovey is taking it one day at a time, adjusting to life on his own, away from the oppression and abuse of his cruel sire. All he wants is to complete his probation, make sure his omegin and brothers are safe, and find a way to live with all the mistakes he’s made. When he scents his omega bondmate, Mikel is initially terrified of the older omegin and his adorable toddler. But Brogan is handsome, kind, and Mikel is completely enamored of little Peyton.

With his bondmate in his sights, Brogan does everything in his power to prove Mikel can be a good alpha, a good mate, and a fantastic father to Peyton. But when Brogan’s past comes roaring into his present and puts Peyton’s future at risk, Mikel’s resolve is shaken. He wants to love and support his omega during this crisis, but he doesn’t know how. With Brogan surrounded by friends and chosen family who love him, he doesn’t need Mikel’s insecurities weighing him down, too—but Brogan has found his mate, and he isn’t letting Mikel walk away without a fight.

This time, Brogan has too much to lose…

NOTE: This is a non-shifter Omegaverse story with alpha/omega/beta dynamics, heats, knotting, and mpreg. In this world, omegas are second-class citizens with few civil rights and almost no protections under the law—although times are changing for the better. Trigger warnings for physical, emotional, and sexual abuse. This series is best read in numerical order.

Amazon

 

AM Arthur has me completely sucked into her Omegaverse books! I had only ever read one before hers- and wasn’t impressed- but since I love her books, I gave book 1 a shot as soon as it came out. Or maybe I had an arc. Either way, I fell in love with these guys. And I am still in love. Even though she makes me cry every. damned. time.

Brogan was the last Omega from the fight ring who hadn’t found his mate. Although he and his son were living with amazing beta guardians, Brogan was ready to mate and move on. He was even flirting with placing an ad for a mate, even if he wasn’t his bondmate.

We met Mikel in the previous book as a hook up of Jaysan’s. There was a lot more to that story but I won’t go into it in case you haven’t read it. I mean read it YET. Mikel is a broken man and he wants to fight his bond with Brogan but he just can’t.

Brogan and Mikel decide to pursue a friendship at first. I love that Brogan was totally ok with that. As much as he wanted a mate, and then to find his bond mate but still be willing to wait- I thought it was great.

It wasn’t all roses though with Brogan’s group of friends because of what had happened between Mikel and Jaysan. But they were all willing to give him a chance. They were wary, but willing. They call Mikel out when he has shades of being an alphahole, but some of the other alphas explain to Brogan where Mikel is coming from.

And for those who like seeing cameos, every single previous character makes an appearance. These guys are interwoven and can’t be separated.

I have a couple of nit picky things- but nothing that takes away from the story at all. And I really really enjoyed this story. And of course I want the next book RIGHT NOW!

You cannot read this as a stand alone. Trust me. I’ve read them all and I still have to think back at times to what happened when. Start with book 1. Even if you’ve never dove into the Omegaverse pool, you will really enjoy these stories.

4 Pieces of Candy