Two Chicks Obsessed with Books & Eye Candy

Sharing our love of M/M Romance

5 stars

Intoxicating by Onley James: Excerpt and New Release Review

by

Lincoln Hudson has just been handed the easiest job in the world. Babysit the spoiled son of a conservative senator, keep him out of trouble, and receive a six-figure paycheck, a paycheck he desperately needs. Wyatt’s father claims he needs Linc’s firm hand and discipline. One look at him and Linc agrees. Wyatt needs discipline.

Being the closeted gay son of a family values senator has left Wyatt Edgeworth with a reckless streak and a love of partying that just cost him eight months of his life and might cost his father his re-election. So now he has a babysitter. A very sexy babysitter. 

When Wyatt drunkenly tells Linc he’d make an excellent Daddy, they reach an understanding. Wyatt gets a Daddy and Linc gets a paycheck, then they go their separate ways. For this to work, discretion is key, but with a reporter dogging Wyatt’s every move, that might prove impossible.

Staying together was never an option, but with each passing day, their feelings only grow. Will they risk it all for what’s supposed to be a harmless fling?

Intoxicating is the first book in the Elite Protection Services Series and contains age-gap, Daddy-kink and BDSM elements complete with a HEA and no cliffhangers. Warning: This book contains scenes which may trigger some people including, self-harm, suicide attempt, past and present physical abuse and implied past sexual violence.

Intoxicating

Elite Protection Services Book 1

Onley James

M/M Contemporary/Age-Gap/Daddy Kink/BDSM

Release Date: 07.08.19

Amazon – Kindle Unlimited

 

He had a right to pout, he assured himself. His balls ached and his cock was hard enough to break a window yet some stupid part of him was still desperate to please his Daddy. If Linc wanted to punish him, Wyatt couldn’t stop him, but that didn’t mean he had to be happy about it. 

He was the opposite of happy and it was his right to behave accordingly.

He side-stepped Linc, hitting him with the most frigid look he could muster. “Fine, then I’ll just go take a cold shower… Linc.”

Using Linc’s name was petty, but it gave him a small measure of satisfaction as he sauntered past. Linc caught him by the upper arm, his other hand swatting Wyatt’s backside twice. He bit his lip to keep from moaning, even as his cock leaked, betraying him. Linc spun him back around. “If you need to shower, you can shower with me so I can keep an eye on you. I won’t have you getting yourself off all alone in there.”

“I wouldn’t,” Wyatt fumed.

Linc snickered. “Oh, you would. Instead, I think you should get on your knees and blow me.”

Wyatt glowered at him. “Oh, do you?”

Linc smirked. “Mm hmm. Right now.”

Wyatt cocked his head to the side, lips pursed. “No.”

“Are you disobeying me again?” Linc questioned, threading a hand in Wyatt’s hair, forcing his head back.

Why did he like this so much? “I’m already being punished. What does it matter?” 

Linc grinned, stepping into Wyatt’s space, pressing kisses into his throat and along his jaw. “Do you think I can’t make it worse? I could bend you over this bed and spank your bottom until its raw, jerk myself off while I tell you all the things I would’ve done to you if you’d just behaved, put your cock in a cage, make sure you don’t come again for a week, maybe more. Is that what you want? Me, using you for only my benefit? That doesn’t sound like much fun for you?”

I am a huge fan of daddy kink so I was so excited when I read the synopsis and let me tell you, Olney James did not disappoint. This one is scorching hot!

Linc’s new assignment is to watch over Wyatt until his father can be re-elected. It’s explained to Linc that Wyatt is a spoiled brat, always seeking attention with horrendous behavior when nothing can be further from the truth. Once Linc gets to know Wyatt he has a hard time keeping his hands off of him and needs to decide if this “fling” can last longer than the election season.

I loved everything about this book; the story, the character… The plot was fast moving but never predictable. The characters were well developed, even the supporting characters had depth. Wyatt’s best friend Charlie was a hoot, she had such a big personality and a ton of charisma. Wyatt’s Dad on the other hand, I have never hated a fictional character more in my life. Ugh…

Onley James takes you on a wild ride of emotion, from shear desperation to love, despair and then all encompassing happiness. I believe this is the start to a really great series.

5 pieces of eye candy

Onley James is the pen name of YA author, Martina McAtee, who lives in Florida with her daughter, her daughter-in-law, and a menagerie of animals, both good and evil. When she’s not writing m/m romance or supernatural LGBT young adult books, she’s running 7 Sisters Publishing and attempting to maintain both her sanity and her full-time job as an RN.

When not at work you can find her mainlining Starbucks refreshers, whining about how much she has to do and avoiding the things she has to do by binge-watching unhealthy amounts of television in one sitting. She loves ghost stories, true crime documentaries, obsessively scrolling social media and writing kinky, snarky books about men who fall in love with other men. 

Facebook: www.facebook.com/OnleyJamesWrites

Facebook Reader Group: www.facebook.com/groups/OnleysOubliette

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/onleyjames/

Twitter: www.twitter.com/OnleyJames10

Instagram: www.instagram.com/OnleyJames10

Website: www.onleyjames.com

 

Eyeliner and Lace by Ruby Moone: RB, Excerpt and New Release Review

by

The day Ryan Fulton realises he’s in love with Jamie Holt is the day he knows he’s losing him. With blue-tinted white blond hair, eyeliner, and a personality to match, Ryan knows he’s a bit much. But can he change? Can he tone it down and, if he does, can he live like that? He’d never suspect Jamie of cheating, but maybe his closeted boyfriend decided flamboyant Ryan wasn’t worth the effort.

But Ryan isn’t going to take it lying down. Determined to win Jamie back, Ryan even decides to get rid of the black and blue lace undies he just bought.

Then Jamie comes home and says they need to talk.

Length: 4,067 words

Publisher: JMS Books

Amazon US

Amazon UK

JMS Books

Universal Link

An hour or so later, the door slammed, and there was Jamie. He looked tired. His tie was loosened, and the top button of his white shirt undone. Rain curled the ends of his dark hair. They’d been living together for two months now, and it still made Ryan’s chest feel all achy when Jamie came home from work and smiled as though he was happy just to see him.

Jamie shrugged wearily out of his jacket and hung it up, then, when he spotted Ryan, his face just lit. Just as it always did. “Hey, you.”

Jamie held out his arms, and Ryan walked into them. They held each other tight, and Ryan kissed Jamie’s jaw. He was shorter than Jamie, skinnier, so he fit perfectly into his arms. He gave the best hugs. Hard, but warm and safe. All the craziness melted away when Jamie held him. Maybe things weren’t as bad as he thought.

“I’ve planned dinner,” he said, kissing him again.

Jamie nuzzled his neck and made a soft humming sound. “What’s for dessert?”

Ryan pulled back and smiled up at him. “Wait and see.” He gave him a suggestive wink, patted his backside, and set off for the kitchen with a swish. He glanced back to see Jamie checking his phone. When he noticed Ryan watching, he slid it into his pocket.

“Who was that?” Ryan tried to keep his voice normal. He opened the fridge door and concentrated on pulling salad things out rather than look at him.

“No one.”

Ryan’s chest hurt. He paused and closed his eyes for a second before speaking again. Making sure his voice was even.

“Do you want to shower before dinner?” he organised the food on the counter.

“Yeah. Why not.” Jamie stood behind Ryan, pulled down the neck of his T-shirt, and nibbled the nape of his neck sending shivers all over him as always. “Won’t be long.” He squeezed Ryan’s arse cheek and headed for the bathroom.

Ryan tapped the cucumber against his lips for a moment, they shoved all the salad stuff back in the fridge.

He gave Ryan chance to get into the shower, then ran up to the bedroom, stripped off, and followed him. The shower had been Jamie’s idea. A walk-in affair, definitely big enough for two. He watched Ryan. He was so beautiful it was hard to breathe. He had his back to him as he rubbed soapy bubbles over his chest, under his arms, around his neck. Muscles rippled across his back, and his backside clenched when he soaped further south. Ryan’s mouth went dry.

Short but so, so sweet!

Ryan and Jamie are an already established couple, living together for the last couple of months and everything had been going great up until recently. Sneaky phone calls, distracting texts, changing of passwords and leaving without explanation of where or with who, has Ryan an insecure, heartbroken mess. All signs lead to Jamie losing interest, after-all, he’s so much different than Jamie, right?

Where Jamie is shy and keeps to himself, Ryan is out there, living his best life, with his blue hair, gorgeous eyeliner and bold and bright clothes. Ryan thinks that maybe he’s a bit too much and if it means losing Jamie, he can tone it down some, right? Strip the blue and lose the eyeliner, it would be boring and he’d feel plain and simple, but he’d do it for Jamie.

I cried all the tears! All of them! At four in the morning, because I hated that Ryan felt like he had to change himself to be what someone else wanted. How often do people do that? It kills me every time.

Just when Ryan realized he couldn’t live without Jamie, he was convinced he was going to lose him.

All is not as it seems though, and though I won’t give the rest away, I will say that I adored Jamie and his love for Ryan and I wish so badly that there was more to this couple…. I’d read them all day! I would love to know how they started out together….

Wait, this is a first for me from this author, so I’m going to have to go look… but even if not, just read this one… it’s so sweet, a little heartbreaking for a quick minute, but it ended in the best possible way. I need more of them!

5 pieces of eye candy

My name is Ruby Moone and I love books. All kinds of books. My weakness is for romance, and that can be any kind, but I am particularly fond of historical and paranormal. I decided to write gay romance after reading some fantastic books and falling in love with the genre, so am really thrilled to have my work published here. The day job takes up a lot of my time, but every other spare moment finds me writing or reading. I live in the north west of England with my husband who thinks that I live in two worlds. The real world and in the world in my head…he probably has a point!

Website – www.rubymoone.com

Facebook Page – https://www.facebook.com/RubyMoone/?ref=bookmarks

Twitter – https://twitter.com/RubyMooneWriter

Instagram https://www.instagram.com/rubymoone/

 

 

Nothing Special by Jay Northcote: New Release Review

by

When Noah’s insecurity threatens their fledgling relationship, can Sol convince Noah that he’s enough?

Noah thinks he’s nothing special. Average height, a bit on the skinny side, and cute but rather geeky, he’s relentlessly ordinary. He certainly doesn’t expect to be noticed by Sol, the gorgeous dark-haired stranger Noah usually sees on his commute home.

When a friend persuades Noah to take a big risk in a bid to get Sol’s attention, things turn out better than Noah dared to hope. But Noah doesn’t believe he’s interesting or sexy enough to hold Sol’s attention.

As Sol tries to get closer, Noah tries to protect his heart by pulling away. If their relationship is going to survive, Noah needs to accept that Sol sees him very differently to how Noah sees himself. Because to Sol, Noah is something very special indeed.

Cover Design: Garrett Leigh @ Black Jazz Design

Amazon – Kindle Unlimited

Ahh… this book was a pure and simple love story. It was incredibly refreshing to read about two young men, with their own sets of insecurities, finding each other, loving each other, and just being happy together.

Noah is a tall, skinny, too pale (all in his own words) and shy book nerd. Every evening, on his way home from work, he sees a man who is golden skinned, handsome, and exudes confidence. Noah yearns to find the confidence to approach his golden stranger, but fears rejection, or worse, a beating if the man happens to not be gay. With some urging from his best friend, Noah takes a huge risk and catches his golden stranger’s attention in a somewhat unusual manner.

Sol is a golden skinned, slightly short, well muscled ex gymnast turned zookeeper. Every evening, on his way home from work, he sees a cute, skinny, shy bespectacled man. Sol yearns to make a connection with his pale bookworm, but isn’t quite sure how to approach the adorable man. Then, one day, he opens his favorite newspaper and finds a very interesting advertisement..

I really enjoyed the simplicity of this book. Noah and Sol build an extremely realistic relationship, quickly falling head over heels for each other. Everything is going well until both men’s personal insecurities begin to get the best of them. In a classic romance novel twist, the issue all comes down to that ever present lack of communication. I loved the fact that there wasn’t this massive and dramatic plot twist that pulled the characters apart. Everything that happened in this book is such a mirror to what comes between so many real life relationships, that I found myself identifying with both men from the first word!

I give this book 5 pieces of eye candy!!

Jay lives just outside Bristol in the West of England. He comes from a family of writers, but always used to believe that the gene for fiction writing had passed him by. He spent years only ever writing emails, articles, or website content.

One day, Jay decided to try and write a short story—just to see if he could—and found it rather addictive. He hasn’t stopped writing since.

Jay writes contemporary romance about men who fall in love with other men. He has five books published by Dreamspinner Press, and also self-publishes under the imprint Jaybird Press. Many of his books are now available as audiobooks.

Website
Twitter
Facebook profile
Facebook author page
Facebook author group
Newsletter
Jay’s books

Waited So Long by J.M. Dabney: Blog Tour, Excerpt, New Release Review and Giveaway

by

What happens when your best friend’s son comes home and he’s all grown up?
Devon Hoffman has a secret. He’s wanted a Daddy all his own, but when you’re pushing fifty, you’re completely over the hill. Newly divorced and trying to be single again after an almost thirty-year relationship, he’s lost and needs someone to ground him. Except he’s anxious and his depression intensifies until Bern returns after leaving the service and the younger man suddenly takes interest. Can he let his guard down and risk losing his best friend or should he do whatever is needed to keep his secret safe?

Waited So Long

J.M. Dabney

Genre: MM Daddy Kink/Light Age Play/Domestic Discipline Romance

Release Date: 06.18.19

Cover Art by J.M. Dabney

Cover Image – Golden Czermak/Furious Fotog

Cover Model – Caylan Hughes

Amazon

“Bern.”

“You know you want to say it, just say it.”

“Daddy,” I whispered the word and marveled at the freedom I felt. As if decades of weight lifted from my chest with a few syllables.

“Yes, baby?”

“Don’t hurt me.”

“There is plenty I want to experience with you, give you and none of them has anything to do with hurting you. I’ve waited way too long.”

I loved his gruff voice and the conviction I heard in it. I truly believed he wanted me and that shocked me. Bern could have any man he wanted and he freely admitted that it was me. No one had desired me in years, I’d always been lacking because of what I required. But I’d hidden those needs and the opportunity was right there, offered freely to me.

“I’ll be there when you get off the plane and then we’ll come home, I’ll hold you and you can ask me all the questions you want.”

“Okay.”

Devon and his Daddy.

What would it be like to love a married man and wait for him for over a decade? I couldn’t imagine it. Devon had been with his husband for almost thirty years and he treated him awful. There were things that Devon needed that he never put a voice too, but he also withheld the little things, like his love and affection. I’m not sure how everyone stayed quiet over the years, especially when they all saw how unhappy he was. I’m a big mouth, if my friend seems unhappy, I’ll be the first one to say it… especially if it’s so blatant that they’re unhappy and being cheated on. I didn’t understand why nobody said anything…

But, when Bern got wind that Devon’s husband up and filed for divorce, he knew he couldn’t stay away any longer. Having been in love with Devon since he was 15, every fantasy he’d ever had included Devon and the kind of relationship he wanted with him. An overheard experience opened up a whole new world for Bern, and he loved what he now knew Devon needed.

I loved the way Bern took care of Devon, because he’d spent so much of his life not getting what he needed from anyone else. He deserved all the happy. I feel like the age play, like cartoons and playtime was sprinkled in just for effect, because it wasn’t paid attention to much, but the way Bern took care of Devon and D/s aspect of their relationship wasn’t BDSM’y, which I’m really not a fan of, so I appreciated that… and it was just about being what the other needed and showing each other that they loved each other in the way that they both needed, and I loved that.

My heart broke for Bern’s dad, but I’m glad things started getting better for him at the end. I like when everybody gets their HEA, and though nothing could bring the love of his life back, he was doing what he could now to move on and keep living, all while remembering this big love that he’d have forever. I adored that.

Overall though, this is just yet another short and sweet read by an author that’s an instant one-click for me. I’m never disappointed….and hello…. Bern was hot when he got all growly and Daddy-like. I’d have read it for that alone…. Having all the love and feels was just a bonus!

I’m also glad the ex got to see Devon being treated the way he deserved. I’m glad it made him mad and I’m glad it got rubbed in his face a little bit. I’d be interested to see if Jeff could get a story, I’d be all about that !!! Hopefullly this is just the beginning of another great series. Would love to read more.

5 pieces of eye candy

J.M. Dabney is a multi-genre author who writes mainly LGBT romance and fiction. They live with a constant diverse cast of characters in their head. No matter their size, shape, race, etc. J.M. lives for one purpose alone, and that’s to make sure they do them justice and give them the happily ever after they deserve. J.M. is dysfunction at its finest and they makes sure their characters are a beautiful kaleidoscope of crazy. There is nothing more they want from telling their stories than to show that no matter the package the characters come in or the damage their pasts have done, that love is love. That normal is never normal and sometimes the so-called broken can still be amazing.

Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/J.M.DabneyAuthor/

Twitter – https://twitter.com/jmdabney_author

Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/authorjmdabney/?hl=en

Reader Group – https://www.facebook.com/groups/585182991553194/

Amazon Author Page – https://www.amazon.com/J.M.-Dabney/e/B006QZIFLE

Mailing List – http://eepurl.com/dzWnIn

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Change of Heart by K.M. Neuhold: Blog Tour, Excerpt, New Release Review and Giveaway

by

Does my husband’s heart still miss me now that it beats in the chest of another man?
Lub-dub
A heartbeat more familiar than Easton’s own

Lub-dub
He vowed to love his husband until death do they part. And then the worst happened.

Lub-dub
His heart kept another man alive. River. A stranger in the world with Easton’s husband’s heart pumping the blood that warms his skin. Does his heart ever miss Easton without knowing why?

Lub-dub
Sweet, kind, beautiful, River. Easton never meant to meet him…never meant to know him…never meant to fall for him.

Lub-dub
Easton loved River’s heart long before he ever met him, but is it possible he’s falling in love with his mind and soul too?

***Change of Heart is a stand alone story with strong hurt/comfort themes, mild bisexual awakening themes, and a HEA

Change of Heart

KM Neuhold

M/M Romance

Release Date: 06.17.19

Amazon – Kindle Unlimited

The cool night air wraps around me, the din of the bar fading as soon as the door closes behind me, leaving only the scattered sound of cars passing and the occasional drunken laugh escaping into the night. An overwhelming emotional exhaustion hits me, and the task of walking the half-block to my car seems insurmountable. I lean against the rough brick outside of the bar and tilt my head back, looking up at the expansive night sky. The light illuminating the bar entrance flickers, and I close my eyes as an inescapable feeling of loneliness hits me square in the chest and nearly brings me to my knees. I drag in a harsh breath, putting a hand over my heart, and wonder for the millionth time about my heart donor. Did he love someone so much he could hardly breathe? Is there someone out there still who loved him the same?

I drag my fingers to the center of my chest, tracing the raised edges of my scar through the soft fabric of my shirt. I can feel the beat, steady and even against my palm, and I think about the man who saved my life. I don’t know a damn thing about him, but that doesn’t stop me from wondering who he was, what kind of a life he lived, who loved him but selflessly made the sacrifice to save the life of a complete stranger?

Change of Heart is an amazing story involving two men and one very special heart. Easton lost his husband, the love of his life, in a tragic construction accident. River nearly lost his life due to a virus that attacked and weakened his heart. When River was days away from death’s door, he received the miraculous news that a heart was available for transplant. Fast forward five years… River is questioning whether he’s living his best life and Easton is stuck in a horrible cycle of grief and wondering just what happened to his husband’s heart.

OMG! This story was beautiful from start to finish. Ms. Neuhold took us on a journey through grief, love, betrayal, and ultimately happiness. River is a bisexual man who has never explored the same sex aspect of his bisexuality. Easton is a man who, even five years later, is still deeply mourning the loss of his husband. When Easton makes the decision to find out who received his husband’s heart, he discovers River. This story is about how one heart manages to bring two men together. River and Easton’s relationship grows slowly but surely through the entire story and both men also begin to grow and heal in their personal lives.

There is, of course, a moment of reckoning in this story, but as Ms. Neuhold is known for an HEA is most definitely on the horizon. The journey River and Easton complete in this book takes you through all of the emotions. I enjoyed this story immensely and while I didn’t cry (I am not a crier) I did feel all the feels with this story. I give it five gold and shining stars!

5 pieces of eye candy

Author K.M.Neuhold is a complete romance junkie, a total sap in every way. She started her journey as an author in new adult, MF romance, but after a chance reading of an MM book she was completely hooked on everything about lovely- and sometimes damaged- men finding their Happily Ever After together. She has a strong passion for writing characters with a lot of heart and soul, and a bit of humor as well. And she fully admits that her OCD tendencies of making sure every side character has a full backstory will likely always lead to every book having a spin-off or series. When she’s not writing she’s a lion tamer, an astronaut, and a superhero…just kidding, she’s likely watching Netflix and snuggling with her husky while her amazing husband brings her coffee.

SOCIAL MEDIA

FACEBOOK

NEUHOLD’S NERDS (FAN GROUP)

TWITTER

WEBSITE

NEWSLETTER

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Melting For You by A.M. Arthur: Exclusive Guest Post, Excerpt, Blog Tour and New Release Review

by

After his father’s heart attack, Isaiah Morrell gave up cooking in his own high-end Atlanta restaurant to return home to Reynolds, North Carolina, in order to help his father Thomas heal and to keep an eye on his business Neighborhood Shindig. A collection of food trucks and other small businesses, Shindig is a popular destination in this college town, but Isaiah longs for the fast pace of a big-city kitchen. Until he meets Joel…

Joel Fisher has been out of commission from a serious illness for the better part of a year, but now he’s ready to reclaim his life—except his apartment has been sublet, his partner is missing, and their shared food truck is stripped of everything not attached. In short, Joel has nothing. After an uncomfortable night sleeping on the food truck floor, Isaiah and Thomas Morrell give Joel an offer he can’t refuse: a rented room in their house, as well as their help creating a new food truck concept. Joel hates accepting charity, but he’s hit rock bottom and has nowhere to go but up.

Working with seemingly uptight Isaiah is actually pretty fun, and the pair bonds over a challenge to create a unique grilled cheese sandwich. Light flirting melts into a deeper connection neither man expects, but Isaiah isn’t in Reynolds for much longer, and Joel can’t get attached to the gorgeous professional chef. As Isaiah’s feelings for Joel strengthen and grow, he entertains the idea of staying in Neighborhood Shindig for good—but Joel hasn’t asked him to…

Welcome to Neighborhood Shindig, a friendly place where you can snack on a lamb kebab while getting your hair done, pick up your favorite herbal tea blend, and then go listen to live music under the pavilion. We’re happy to have you.

Melting For You

Neighborhood Shindig Series, Book #1

A.M. Arthur

Contemporary MM Romance

Release Date: 06.13.19

Cover Designer: Sloan J Designs/https://www.facebook.com/sloanjdesigns/

 

Amazon – Kindle Unlimited

Hey, y’all! Thank you for having me at Two Chicks Obsessed. I’m A.M. Arthur, and I write LBGTQ+ romance across the spectrum of both sexualities and subgenres. I’m here today to celebrate the recent release of my brand-new food truck-centered series, Neighborhood Shindig. The first book in the series, Melting For You, kicks it off with Joel Fisher, a young guy with a run of bad luck, and Isaiah Morrell, the spoiled son of a locally renowned chef. Together, the pair hatch a plan to open up a gourmet grilled cheese food truck, and naturally shenanigans ensue—and the pair falls in love.

Now Neighborhood Shindig probably sounds like an odd name for a romance series, and it’s named after the main location of the books. Set in the fictional down of Reynolds, North Carolina. Shindig is a fenced-in private lot with six stationary food trucks, eight small business shops (called pods), and a big open-air pavilion in the middle with picnic tables for guests. It’s an eclectic place with no two businesses alike, and also a safe space for people to come, enjoy live music while snacking on a bowl of gourmet nachos, and maybe get your nails done while you’re at it (after the nachos, of course).

One of my favorite aspects of writing series romance is being able to use a setting as a character in and of itself. To give a location its own personality and make readers feel as if they’ve visited it simply because the characters have. Heidi Cullinan did this so well for the town of Logan in her Minnesota Christmas series, and by the end of book one (Let It Snow) I felt like I’d been to Logan myself. K.A. Mitchell made Baltimore, Maryland, come alive in her Bad in Baltimore series (book one Bad Boyfriend) by featuring locations well-known to locals, while still putting a creative spin on things. Also, the town of Zebulon leapt to life in Keira Andrews’ Amish books (starting with A Forbidden Rumspringa).

I tried to make Neighborhood Shindig as a location come alive for readers by giving it fun characters, unique food truck concepts (admittedly some more than others), as well as interesting small business pods to shop in. I hope I’ve intrigued you enough to pay your own visit to Shindig and dive into Melting For You!

What are some of your favorite book series where the location is just as important a character as the people on the page?

Joel found a parking spot near his building and got out, grateful to stretch sore, aching limbs. Long car rides were more difficult for him now, and he’d tried to stop as infrequently as possible, so eager to surprise Steve. Joel scanned the lot for Steve’s hatchback. It was midday on Tuesday, so the Shindig lot was closed—it gave not only the small business owners who rented pods, but also the owner/manager one full day off a week. Didn’t mean Steve had to be home, though.

Their unit was on the fourth floor, no elevator, and Joel hated that he was panting a bit by the time he got there. Definitely needed to start working out more, get back into shape. He was already tall and lean, but he’d lost about fifteen pounds of muscle this past year.

Excitement rolled through his belly as he put his key into their unit’s lock and turned—except it didn’t unlock. He double-checked, but yeah, right door and right key.

That’s weird.

Maybe Steve had needed to change the locks for some reason? He pushed the doorbell and waited, trying to fight back a big smile. The knob rattled and a chain slid back. The door opened about a foot and a dark-haired woman stared at him. “Can I help you?” she asked.

Joel blinked hard. “Um, does Steve Winslow live here?”

Don’t I live here?

“Not since the first of the month,” the woman replied. “He had to move suddenly, so I’m sub-leasing it through the end of the month, until my place is ready downstairs. Who are you?”

“Joel. I live here.”

“Oh, right, you’re the ex he mentioned.”

“Ex?” Ex what? He’d texted Steve yesterday about frivolous things, and Steve hadn’t said a damned thing about sub-leasing their place. A place Joel had paid this month’s rent on. “What do you mean ex?”

“He said you guys broke up, so you moved back to live with your parents in Virginia, and he’s moving…somewhere, I don’t think he said where. But your stuff is still here. He packed it up and left it in the hall closet.”

Joel did not understand what was happening right now. “We didn’t break up. We have a business together for God’s sake. I don’t understand.”

“Listen, do you want to come inside and sit? You look pale.”

“Um, yeah, thanks.”

The apartment was small, one-bedroom and only about six hundred square feet. It had come furnished, so none of the big stuff was his, and he’d taken clothing and his electronics with him to Virginia. Those personal things were in his car right now, waiting to be unpacked.

He sat on the familiar sofa, legs suddenly trembling, and tried to wrap his brain around what was happening.

The woman appeared with a bottle of water. “Here. I’m Emily, by the way.”

“Joel.” Had he already said that? “Steve never told me he moved out.”

“Oh, wow, that’s harsh. He ditched your place without telling you?”

“At least the lease isn’t up until August.” It gave him time to plan, even if it meant a strange female roommate for a few weeks. He couldn’t really afford the place on his own, and he still had no clue what was going on with the food truck.

“Um…” Emily chewed on her bottom lip. “The lease is month-to-month. It’s over in, like ten days, and I have a document with the landlord stating I’m the tenant.”

Joel gaped. “But…this is my place.”

“My place, dude, and no offense, but I do not know you, and I make it a point not to live with strange men.”

“How the hell can he change the lease without me…signing…? Fuck.” Because he dealt with college students, the building’s manager had multiple lease options. Year-long, which is what Joel always signed, but also college-term leases that lasted the length of the college’s school year, and then month-to-month options for the summer, or for temporary tenants. When Steve said he’d renewed the lease last summer while Joel was sick, Joel had assumed he’d done another full-year contract.

Joke’s on me.

“If you don’t believe me, I can get a copy of the lease,” Emily said.

“I believe you. I just don’t understand why he’d do this. Why he wouldn’t at least call and tell me he was leaving, or that if I came back I’d be homeless.”

What a great start to A.m. Arthur’s Neighborhood Shindig series! Now, to be fair, A.m. Arthur is absolutely in the top five of my favorite m/m authors, so I’ll admit to a little bit of bias, but the world that A.m. Arthur has created in the Neighborhood Shindig is absolutely endearing!

Ok.. So, Melting For You, here are your characters. First, you have Joel, a 20-something young man who is just returning to Reynolds, North Carolina after spending a year living with his parents while he was extremely ill. Then, you have Isaiah who’s come home to help care for his estranged father, who just happens to be the owner of Neighborhood Shindig. When Joel arrives in Reynolds, it quickly becomes clear that his former business partner and casual lover, has stolen from Joel, left Joel homeless, and left their jointly run food truck a barren disaster. But all hope is not lost. Enter, Isaiah and his father.

Isaiah is not quite sure where he belongs anymore. He’s managed to work his way to the top of the restaurant business in Atlanta, but now that he’s back home in Reynolds he finds himself questioning whether or not Atlanta and the restaurant he co-owns is really where his passion is best served.

In Melting for You, Isaiah and Joel become friends first, then lovers, and together they begin a journey into finding a place that feels like home. As they work together to get Joel’s food truck back up and running, they begin to learn just what it means when a place feels like home. This is a sweet and simple story of two men, a lot of grilled cheese, and a city square full of food trucks and family. Welcome, my friends, to Neighborhood Shindig… Oh, and fair warning, this book will leave you hungry, lol!

5 pieces of eye candy to A.m. Arthur’s Melting for You.

 

A.M. Arthur was born and raised in the same kind of small town that she likes to write about, a stone’s throw from both beach resorts and generational farmland.  She’s been creating stories in her head since she was a child and scribbling them down nearly as long, in a losing battle to make the fictional voices stop. She credits an early fascination with male friendships (bromance hadn’t been coined yet back then) with her later discovery of and subsequent love affair with m/m romance stories. A.M. Arthur’s work is available from Carina Press, SMP Swerve, and Briggs-King Books.

 

When not exorcising the voices in her head, she toils away in a retail job that tests her patience and gives her lots of story fodder.  She can also be found in her kitchen, pretending she’s an amateur chef and trying to not poison herself or others with her cuisine experiments.

 

Email: am_arthur@yahoo.com

Site: http://amarthur.blogspot.com/

Twitter http://twitter.com/am_arthur

Tumblr http://www.tumblr.com/blog/am-arthur

Newsletter: https://vr2.verticalresponse.com/s/signupformynewsletter16492674416904

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/A.M.Arthur.M.A

Facebook group Pot O Gold: https://www.facebook.com/groups/300209733646247/

a Rafflecopter giveaway