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Gabriel and the Devil by Robert P. Rowe: Exclusive Guest Post and Release Day Review

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Flirting with the devil can lead to a helluva good time.

Gabriel is a regular angel. The former altar boy plans to graduate from college, become an accountant, get a good job, find a wife, and live a faithful Catholic life.

But one Halloween night, the devil pops in out of nowhere, challenges everything he believes, and heats up Gabriel’s lonely life.

Marcello is full of the devil. He’s lusted after Gabriel forever, but what he really wants is Gabriel’s eternal soul. Still, his mischievous sense of humor, along with his tricks and jokes, leads to a misunderstanding that could condemn him to hell on Earth. Only the truth will let these souls find true love and happiness.

Title: Gabriel and the Devil
Author: Robert P. Rowe
Release Date: January 4, 2019
Category: Contemporary
Pages: 104

 

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Guest Post by Robert P. Rowe

Spirituality:

It’s pretty hard to write about the devil without including more than a few nuggets of spirituality. I’m a recovering Catholic who has embraced a healthy dose of New Age philosophy. I’ve even included some reading resources in the back matter of this novella for those curious about the topic.

New Age philosophies can help one to understand gay romance. Reincarnation is a big part of the philosophy along with learning various lessons in each and every life. In one life one might be slave master and in the next life a lowly slave. This allows us all to see the world from multiple points of view. And we don’t always come back with the same gender. Often men are expected to experience a power roll in life while women are expected to be more subservient. Yet we’ve all met that alpha woman who dominates all around her, sometimes by size and sometimes by shear force of presence. Perhaps she has spent most of her previous lifetimes as a man and has come back to experience life as a woman?

In the same way a gay man may enter this world in search of that soul mate who just so happens to be gay too. Our souls are much more fluid and free than our mortal bodies.

Dreamspinner Press has one of the most amazing editorial departments. Each author is assigned a senior editor and then three more editors will also review the manuscript. I pay close attention to these experts, especially when one doesn’t quite understand something I’ve written.

That was the case with my use of the term soul mates. For many New Age thinkers soul mates are understood to be anyone whom we share a close spiritual tie to here on Earth. We likely share the same tie on the other side. But one editor believed that soul mates were exclusively romantic love interests. Because she questioned the term I realized that others might too. That gave me a chance to further develop my characters with the question while educating my readers with the answer.

My sister is one of my soul mates here on Earth. We can simply think to hard about the other and the phone will ring. But she’s not alone. I’ve shared that same psychic connection with a number of my friends and exes. A therapist once told me about a patient who didn’t believe in ghosts, yet felt he’d had a close encounter with one. The therapist explained that you don’t have to believe the unexplainable, you just have to accept it.

I’m sure that Alexander Graham Bell would find today’s mobile phones unbelievable, but who among us doesn’t simply accept them?

It’s the same with faith. Faith is a belief in something that cannot be proven. My characters have faith. They follow their hearts to do what they feel is right. Hopefully they can share their faith with you and maybe even can capture your heart.

Well, I’m not going to lie, I didn’t see that coming. 🙂 Which is to say I was pleasantly surprised at the turn of events with Gabe and Marcello.

Gabriel had a lot of learning and growing to do, and although Marcello helped him to understand more about himself, and who he loved, I think Father Christopher had an even bigger impact. I was so surprised and fascinated with the turn that Father Christopher took, and helped to bring Gabriel back around.

This love story started one way, and completely turned on me, and I couldn’t have been happier. I was disappointed with Gabriel, and his mental method of closing off that side of him, and yet Gabriel, and later Father Christopher helped him to open up his mind, and his heart even more.

I can’t say anything more, because honestly you need to read it to understand…plus no spoilers here…but taking a story that starts lighthearted and fun, and turning it into a spiritual journey, and still touching the reader…that was not an easily task Robert P. Rowe set for himself, but he came through on it.

4 pieces of eye candy

Robert P. Rowe has spent his entire career as a storyteller making an incredible leap from Disneyland ride operator to show-designer and art director at Walt Disney Imagineering. Immersive storytelling presents a distinctive challenge unlike that of live theater, film, radio, or print media. He is currently on staff as an art director for Universal Orlando. His many other works can be found around the world, primarily in Disney and Universal Studios parks.

His “real” job takes up much of his time, but his active imagination can’t stop dreaming up new stories. Whenever time permits, he’s writing about new characters off on their own incredible journeys.

Additionally, his outside interests include all aspects of architecture, with a specific fascination for the theatrical design of homes from midcentury movies and television. He has a keen enthusiasm for midcentury science fiction.

Website: www.robertprowe.com

A Whole Latte Sass by Marguerite Labbe: Exclusive Guest Post and Excerpt, Release Day Review

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It’s no secret cosplayer Felipe Suero is looking for his happily ever after—in his love life as well as his career. He’s getting his degree so he can quit his miserable job and start his own costume business. Now he just needs to land the sexiest silver fox to ever attend a con.

Trask Briscoe’s life revolves around staying clean and sober, running the Magick Den, and attending local cons. His rules haven’t left much room for romance. But he can’t deny Felipe has caught his complete attention. He’s just not sure what he can offer a man so full of joy and sass.

When Trask finally accepts Felipe’s offer for a cup of coffee, he soon finds himself on a second date and a third. Between cosplay projects and roleplaying games, they discover a deeper connection than either of them expected. And Trask realizes that sometimes rules are made to be broken.

Now Felipe just has to convince his family—and Trask—that Trask has more love to offer than he ever dreamed.

Title: A Whole Latte Sass
Series: Geek Life: Book 2
Author: Marguerite Labbe
Release Date: January 1, 2019
Category: Contemporary
Pages: 284

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Dreamspinner Press

A Whole Latte Sass and Holiday Traditions

Happy New Year’s everyone. Thank you for coming out to check on my release for A Whole Latte Sass. I love this time of year. As Felipe says it’s a non-stop party from Halloween to New Year’s Day. When I was younger, I thought of New Year’s Day as that sleepy holiday where nothing happened when you recovered from being up too late the night before. You couldn’t go anywhere because everything was closed. Little did I know that New Year’s Day would change my life. Sixteen years ago today, my son was born. So now we have a whole new set of traditions that mostly revolve around him and I can say it’s never boring.

A Whole Latte Sass takes us through the holidays. Felipe’s family is like mine. It’s a sprawling, noisy, multigenerational affair. Every day after Christmas we drive down to Charleston and stay until after Christian’s birthday. The whole family is there. For Felipe, his home is the gathering place, all of the aunts, uncles, and cousins come and join him and his immediate family including his grandparents. For Thanksgiving they start with the Macy’s Day Parade and ends with some kind of family board game. Trask’s holidays are more low-key. Growing up he didn’t have a happy home life and all of his good memories come from his grandmother. Once he got clean, he often spends his holidays with a friend from Narcotics Anonymous.

When families merge you have the opportunity to mingle traditions and create your own. One tradition my husband picked up from my family is the la benediction paternelle, where the head of the household blesses each member individually on New Year’s Day. One tradition we picked up from him was setting out a couple presents from Santa unwrapped under the tree after midnight. That was a whole lot of fun when our son was little.

Trask is a vegetarian and a bachelor loner, so for the holidays he orders the special from Marie’s Diner down the street, but with extra mac-n-cheese and apple pie instead of turkey. He’s a man who shows his caring through deeds instead of words. He takes his holiday time and uses it to make things for others whether it’s helping to winterize Old Joe’s home or rehabbing a crafting table for Felipe. For him that’s a celebration and he doesn’t feel like he’s missing out. He’s more worried about feeling like he’s intruding on other families.

For Felipe family is everything, even when they piss him off he’s home for holidays and he can’t let anger linger through that time even if that anger is sometimes justified. And he’s determined to show Trask that having a family doesn’t mean it has to be dysfunctional, even when you’re not getting along. On Christmas Eve, he returns home to surprise his family by lighting up the tree and setting out the post-Mass snacks and finds his grandfather thinking along the same lines and they have a long overdue heart-to-heart. Sometimes the person you butt heads with the most is the one you’re most like.

I’d like to share a little holiday excerpt and then please, drop me a note and tell me about some of your holiday traditions.

“Oh yes, Abby. The girl who stole your crayon.” Lola’s husky voice enveloped Felipe in a thousand comforting memories.

Felipe cracked a smile at her oh-so-serious tone that meant she was gently teasing him. All around them their family buzzed, talking over each other in cheerful chaos, the way they did at every family holiday. The little ones ran all over the living room, tumbling over each other and squabbling. The teenagers sat in their little spheres of isolation, their faces over their phones, except Mariana, who flitted from one group to another, like she hadn’t seen anyone in decades when they’d all gotten together just on Labor Day and they’d see each other again at Christmas and New Year’s. Felipe’s family was never far away.

“That would be the one,” Felipe admitted.

“The same Abby who dated the gentleman you were pining for in tenth grade.” Lola’s memory was as sharp as ever.

He wished Trask had come. Mariana had asked about Trask’s whereabouts more than once, much to his parents’ discomfort. Felipe pulled out his phone and curled in closer to his grandmother. “Smile, Lola. I need to send a picture to a friend of mine.” He snapped a photo and admired the image before sending it to Trask. Thinking of you. Happy Thanksgiving.

“The young man you were telling me about?”

“He’s not that young, Lola.” Felipe felt that he had to point that out. Not that Trask was as ancient as everyone else complained about either.

She laughed her warm, rich laugh. “At my age everyone is young.”

His phone dinged, and Felipe pulled up the picture of Trask with Sophie, curled up on the floor of his apartment. Miss you too, imp. Felipe’s heart panged. He really wished he was with the aloof twerp. He had so many emotions where Trask was concerned, deep emotions that he’d once longed for but now wasn’t sure what do with. He wanted to talk about it with his grandmother, but he couldn’t with the bedlam surrounding them.

Lola took the phone from Felipe and examined Trask’s picture through her bifocals. “He considers you an imp?” She gave Felipe a fond glance. “I think that name just might serve.”

Felipe loved the way Trask said imp. There was a warmth and affection in his tone when he did, as if he didn’t wish Felipe to be any other way. “Yeah, I’m his imp, and he’s my Tin Man.”

“He has kind eyes.” She handed the phone back to Felipe. “The eyes don’t lie, Felipe.”

The title of this book, A Whole Latte Sass, could not be more perfect for the main character, Felipe. That man has sass going on! And the calming influence of Trask was the perfect foil for Felipe’s high energy personality.

This was a May December romance, which highlighted their differences very well. I really loved their very distinct personalities. Felipe was a confident young man who knew what he wanted, and worked to get it, no matter what it was he wanted.

Trask meanwhile was a bit set in his ways. Running his business, not allowing anyone new in his life, whether canine or human. Then Felipe comes into his life, and turns his life on end, simply by making sure Trask knew he was wanted, and encouraging him to give him a chance.

I thought the book was a bit longer than it needed to be, incorporating things that maybe could have been cut, or used as additional scenes. Overall though, an enjoyable read!

3.5 pieces of eye candy

 

His Cursed Prince by Ryan Loveless: Exclusive Guest Post, Excerpt and Release Day Review

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TCO is mad excited to have Ryan Loveless here discussing His Cursed Prince, her latest novella. From the synopsis on, you know you are in for a wild ride with this one, and I just love that Ryan gives us a little touch of what happened the day before these two connect. I hope you guys enjoy this!

Three facts about Tuckington Belle:

1. Given the choice between illegally scaling the royal castle’s walls to steal flowers for a client at his family’s dress shop or going on a date with a girl his brother set him up with (“He’s fertile, and he can sew!”), Tuck will scale the wall like a spider after a fly.

2. If, upon knocking himself unconscious when he falls off the wall, Tuck wakes up bruised, blindfolded, and inside the castle, where—based on the unearthly wails heard nightly—the prince no one has seen in ten years is probably a ghost, Tuck would still choose this over a date with a girl.

3. Tuck thinks it’s time to admit he’s gay.

Three facts about Prince Frederick George Deor (Read and approved with great reluctance by Lord “Protocol is Protocol. Stop Being a Pain About It” Todd):

1. He brought a curse upon himself and now bears the skin of a snake.

2. He can’t take his eyes off the injured thief recovering in the castle.

3. Friendships born from lying and insisting the other person wears a blindfold can blossom into true love—which he needs to break the curse.

Title: His Cursed Prince
Author: Ryan Loveless
Release Date: December 28, 2018
Category: Fantasy
Pages: 98

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Dreamspinner Press

I love plotting and writing exercises. Before I start a story, I spend weeks or more filling out worksheets on various and sundry. I even made a special Scrivener file for it that incorporates worksheets from different writing books that I’ve read. (That’s another thing, I love books on writing.) A favorite writing exercise of mine is to write out what each of the characters was doing the day before the story begins. It helps me find a jumping off point for where my story should start. Let me share with you now what Tuck and Frederick did on The Day Before.

 

Tuckington: Tuck stared dejectedly at the empty till. “This won’t keep the shop open past the holidays.”

“The money’s in your hand, doofus,” his brother said.

“Including that. We have to do something special to get the customers in. A gala or a ball–”

“Or a royal wedding. If Prince Jasper were engaged–,” their mother interjected.

“If he were, he wouldn’t get married in the castle here, not with all the banshee-wailing that goes on. People who live near say it keeps them awake all night.” Daniel eyed Tuck. “No, we need a wedding closer to home. A fine young lady of the town matched with an enterprising young lad. A shop owner. She’ll want all the finery for herself and her maids of honor, which we will provide at a reasonable, but profitable, rate.”

Tuck put the money into a bank envelope and closed the till. He avoided looking at Daniel.

Daniel settled his hand on Tuck’s shoulder and squeezed. “And I’ve got just the lad. What do you say, Tuck?”

 

Frederick: Frederick lay in the center of his bed. Although it was large enough for six of him, he curled tight, trying to be as small as possible. It shouldn’t matter. It’s just an animal. Like me. He clutched his dark cloak, pulling it tighter. The hood covered his face.

“Your Highness? KitKat is sorry. You just surprised him is all.” Gracie sounded plaintive on the other side of the door. “Can we come in?”

She was probably holding the cat. It had been sitting pleasantly in Gracie’s lap, but when Frederick approached to pet it, the thing hissed and reared up. Frederick had taken off in one direction, the cat in another.

“I wish to be alone,” he shouted.

“But–”

“Leave me!” He rose up to roar, then collapsed back down, intending to stay there until he died.

“I’ll leave your dinner out here,” Gracie said after a moment. Frederick laid still, sulking, until the door opened, this time without a knock. Lord Todd entered and moved around the room, doing whatever he did while Frederick ignored him. Frederick hid beneath his hood and wished himself away.

“George has invited me back this evening,” Tuck said after working up the courage. (Sir Michael did not invite comfortable chatter, and they were nearly stopped before Tuck found his nerve.)

“Did he, now?” Sir Michael said. Tuck couldn’t tell if he was disinterested or annoyed. “Going on inviting thieves back, is he? Not giving us a chance to screen them and all, is he?”

Tuck judged that this addendum was not meant for his ears and remained quiet. He did need to clear up one thing, though. “Is he a servant or…. I don’t wish to get him into trouble. If I’m not to return, please tell me.”

When Sir Michael turned in his saddle to look at him, his face was such a mask of power that Tuck gripped his saddle horn a little tighter to distract himself from the need to cower. “George is no servant,” Sir Michael said. “He is held in especial affection by His Royal Highness Prince Frederick. You will consider a request from George as an order from your prince. What time did he request you this evening?”

The information Sir Michael poured on him was enough to make Tuck overlook the concluding question. “Prince Frederick is alive?” He was certain his eyes were bugging out, but there was nothing to be done about it.

“He is.” Sir Michael said nothing more. Tuck had it on the tip of his tongue to tell him about the rumors, what people said outside the castle grounds, but one look at the tightness around Sir Michael’s eyes quelled him into silence. Almost before he knew it, they arrived at the wall and the door that Prince Frederick had once closed on him. Then Tuck was on the cobblestone walkway outside the grounds, flowers in hand, with directions to return to the same door exactly two hours after sunset. The heavy latch had closed before Tuck realized he wanted to ask where the prince was, even though he was certain Sir Michael would not answer.

Tuck turned away and hurried down the hill. Prince Frederick was alive. He swallowed this truth down and hid it away in a place safe in his belly. Sir Michael hadn’t forbidden him from telling it, but something told Tuck that he should keep it to himself and never even hint at this knowledge.

 

Thank you all for reading. I hope you will buy His Cursed Prince and if you do, let me know what you think!

I’m going to keep this short and sweet. Grab this! Even if you aren’t into fantasy (I’m normally not!), even if you don’t like historical (which this has pieces of, but there’s still things like cell phones, so go figure), and even if the idea of a crying prince makes you want to cry yourself, grab this!

I completely enjoyed this. It was sweet, with some genuinely funny parts. And I loved that Tuck really just didn’t care, even knowing what he knew when his blindfold came off, he still only cared about the prince. Meanwhile, the prince needed to learn to care about himself.

On top of it, there is a twist on the curse, that I didn’t see coming, that I absolutely loved even more! So, once again, I will say…GRAB THIS! 🙂

4.5 pieces of eye candy

Ryan Loveless is the author of numerous M/M romance novels and short stories. She is honored to be recognized as a Rainbow Book Award winner (several titles), Epic eBook Award finalist (In Me an Invincible Summer), and a Florida Author and Publisher Association Awards bronze medalist (Ethan). She lives in New York with her family, a sentence that brings her great joy to write.

Twitter: @ryanloveless

FB: https://www.facebook.com/ryanlovelessbooks/

Operation Toy Rescue by Sarah Hadley Brook: Exclusive Excerpt, Blog Tour, Review and Giveaway

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When Jules Evergreen lands in trouble at the North Pole and gets shipped off to Snow Hope Island for ninety days, he never expects to take up the cause of the forgotten toys waiting for new homes. Falling for his new boss is not on the agenda either, but his heart has other ideas.

Felix Winterson has grown up on Snow Hope Island and now runs the place. He isn’t thrilled when party boy Jules arrives, and Felix tries hard to ignore the man’s charms. He has other problems, anyway. For years he’s tried to get Santa to look at the growing inventory of damaged toys in the warehouse, to no avail.

When Jules comes up with a plan to save the toys, the men find themselves working closely together. As Christmas Eve looms, there’s a lot at stake. Can they save Snow Hope, convince Santa to rescue

Length: 29,000 words approx.

Publisher: JMS Books

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Amazon UK

JMS Books

Jules popped a pepperoni pizza into the oven and settled into his recliner with the puppy in his arms, eager to watch the news and relax. He’d have to figure out what to do with her in the morning. He wasn’t even sure who to notify. The puppy snorted, and he petted her soft fur, feeling her sink against his chest. He grinned. It wasn’t a bad way to end the day. A warm puppy. Pizza. Maybe he’d call his buddy, Emmanuel, and check out how things were going at the North Pole.

Things were usually ramping up by then. The contracts with toy stores had to be completed soon in order to make sure the Big Guy had enough to deliver across the globe. The reindeer were in full workout mode, ready for the one night of the year they actually worked. Jules chuckled. Those guys had it easy. They were spoiled rotten all year, but he had to admit, they worked their asses off on Christmas Eve.

The elves would be reviewing letters to Santa, sorting through the “Naughty” and “Nice” lists. Another news flash: Santa rarely put anyone on the “Naughty” list. Not a child, anyway—he believed everyone deserved second chances. However, he’d been known to put a few teenagers on the list. One too many tacky Santa memes and it pissed off the Big Guy.

If only Santa would have applied that chance to Jules, he wouldn’t be stuck on the miserable island. He sighed and silently chastised himself. That wasn’t really fair to the Big Guy. Over the years, he’d given Jules more than enough chances to do the right thing, yet he always made the wrong choice. Ending up on Snow Hope was his own fault, and even though it was hard to swallow, Jules knew it.

The timer on the oven beeped. Starving, Jules hurried to take out the pizza, sleepy puppy still in hand. He’d worked through lunch, even when Eve had tried to get him to take a break, because he’d wanted to finish all the new shipments. Admittedly, he also wanted to show Felix he wasn’t a goof-off and could complete a task on time and do a good job. He was pretty sure Felix knew why Jules had been shuffled to the island and, for the first time, his reputation bothered him. He didn’t know why he cared what Felix thought, but for some reason, he did.

And that just pissed him off more.

He cut the pizza and piled a couple of slices onto a plate before resettling in the recliner. Eating dinner alone in front of the TV had become his new norm, and as much as he preferred his privacy, he felt a little lonely. The puppy had already drifted off to sleep on his chest and he smiled. For the first time since arriving on the island, Jules had a dinner companion.

Operation Toy Rescue is the second story I’ve read by Sarah Hadley Brook, but I saw how adorable the blurb was, and I needed it!

What an absolutely cute story. I loved how Jules was pretty forward about what he wanted, meanwhile Felix knew what he wanted and was very shy about it. And with Jules finding his “niche”, and creating such a great option for everyone on the island. It was a very good premise.

Fun, cute, and oh so Christmas-y. Everything you want in a story like this.

3.5 pieces of eye candy

Dec 15 – OMG Reads, Dec 17 – Mikku-chan, The Blogger Girls, Padme’s Library, Dec 19 – Megan’s Media Melange, Two Chicks Obsessed, Dec 21 – Scattered Thoughts & Rogue Words, MM Good Book Reviews, Dec 24 – Valerie Ullmer, Bayou Book Junkie, Making It Happen, Drops Of Ink

Sarah Hadley Brook lives smack-dab in the middle of the Heartland and is the mother of two wonderful young men, as well as two cats. During the day, she works in the nonprofit world, but reserves evenings for her hobby-turned-passion of writing, letting the characters she conjures in her mind take the lead and show her where the story will go. When not working or writing, she can be found reading, working on dollhouses, trying her hand at new recipes, or watching old movies and musicals. In her ideal world, Christmas would come at least twice a year, Rock Hudson and Doris Day would have costarred in more than three movies, and chocolate would be a daily necessity. She dreams of traveling to Scotland some day and visiting the places her ancestors lived. Sarah believes in “Happily Ever After” and strives to ensure her characters find their own happiness in love and life.

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Homebird by Amy Lane: Exclusive Guest Post, Tour and Release Day Review

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TCO is so glad to have Amy Lane with us today with an exclusive author guest post, all about traveling with friends. I completely agree with Amy here. Going somewhere once in a while by yourself is fun, but if you don’t have someone to be snarky with, is it really worth going? 🙂 Check out what she has to see about her MC’s from Homebird, her most recent release. Thanks for joining the blog today Amy!

Crispin Henry isn’t an adventurer. He learned early on that the world is a frightening place and that home is rare and precious. If his friends didn’t drag him to sports games and ill-advised trips to Vegas, he wouldn’t get out at all—and his trip to Munich for Oktoberfest is no exception. But it’s there that he meets Luka Gabriel, and he learns to take a chance.

Luka is a free-spirited world traveler, working at Oktoberfest to feed his enchantment with new places and new people. His only possessions fit in his backpack, and he depends on the kindness of strangers for a place to sleep. Crispin should know better—but he takes Luka’s hand anyway, and together they turn three nights in Munich into the relationship neither of them has been brave enough to risk—and neither can let go of.

When Luka turns up on Crispin’s doorstep before the holiday season, Crispin takes him in on hope alone. Yes, he knows the odds are good Luka will flutter out of his life again and leave him bereft, but isn’t it worth it to see if Luka is a homebird after all?

Title: Homebird
Author: Amy Lane
Release Date: December 18, 2018
Category: Holiday
Pages: 188

 

Amazon

Dreamspinner Press

 

A Little Hope from My Friends By Amy Lane 

I’ll be honest here.

While I love a good romance, I’ve never really been big on the “lone tourist” scenario.  I mean sure, I love to wander a place—but if someone’s not there to get my jokes about myself dorking about an unfamiliar location, I feel a little adrift.

It’s why I love traveling with my husband or my children. Even the salt flats of Utah are interesting if there’s someone there to go, “Oh my God, is that a SHARK that’s popping out of the salt flats?” And then watch avidly until the Loch Ness Monster appears.

Having a friend, a compadre, a buddy to explore with is, for me, really half the fun.

The inspiration of HomeBird came from my husband’s trip to Germany with his friends. They all sort of fell in love with their waiter—because he was beautiful and fun and single, and they were mostly married and settled and in their forties. So it was natural to put Crispin, our traveler into foreign lands, in the company of friends.

But more than that, the friends were his support system. They were the reason he felt comfortable traveling in the first place. I mean seriously, if this was about a homebody traveling to find an adventurer, there’s only a few ways to get him out of the house as it is. But beyond that, if that homebody is attracted to the adventurer, is he really going to act on that attraction if there’s even a possible nobody’s going to check on him when he disappears?

And besides the physical safety, there’s the emotional reinforcement. Even if your friends are uncertain—“Are you sure you want to spend a night with this virtual stranger?” if they really are your friends, you know they’ll be there in the morning to go, “Okay, do we hate him? Are we going to egg his house? Do we need a witch to curse him? I know someone!”

Or, even better, “I’m so glad you had a good time. Give me details. Not the gross ones. Just tell me why it was good.”

And of course, you need someone when you get home, to say, “Oh, hey, you’re still talking to that guy? That’s great!” and when you tell your friends and family at home that he’s visiting, they can say, “Don’t worry! He’s not a psycho killer, we met him!”

And of course, in a year, you need your friends to say, “Hey, do you want to go on another trip? I mean, you met the love of your life on the last one, right? Let’s see what else we can do!”

Although, you know, all of those scenarios are if you’re Crispin and get hauled away to Germany to meet the love of your life.

But even if you’re not Crispin and getting hauled to Germany to meet the love of your life, it’s still nice traveling with friends.

For one thing, the more people with you, the more likelihood someone’s phone will be working at the end of the day. The more options you have to find a suitcase to stow that last valuable that won’t fit in yours. The better chance you have of someone to talk you into buying that souvenir you really really want but aren’t sure you can afford.

The more people with you, the more conversation, the more appreciation, the more excitement.

So yes—I make a big deal out of Crispin’s friends when he goes traveling. Because his friends take care of him, and when he meets Luka he has a gold standard for which to judge a companion.

And isn’t he delighted when Luka exceeds that standard and brings some perks of his own!

This was a cute little story. Crispin (bravo on the unique name) and his friends go to Germany for a long weekend of Oktoberfest. Although Crispin works with these guys, hangs out with them and goes on vacation with them, he somehow thinks they don’t know he is gay. Mmmhmmm. So when they tell him that, ya, they know, go get laid, it’s kind of cute. You all want to have friends like that.

Crispin was adopted when he was 5 after his parents died. And then as a very young adult, his adopted parents died. Whoa. Besides needing the security of his house, he really isn’t that messed up. His adoptive parents had a daughter soon after he was adopted and they grew up as siblings. He calls her his sister, but never calls his parents his. They are always his sister’s parents. That was odd.

Anyway. Off the boys go on a long weekend to Germany. From California. I’m going to let that go. On their first night, Crispin catches the eye of a waiter in one of the beer tents. And after not having a relationship in forever, says he will go home with him for the night. And basically spends his vacation with Luka.

Luka is the opposite of Crispin though. His parents also died, but he needs to continually travel and not set down roots. He is originally from Fiji, but spent a lot of his childhood in New Zealand, but now travels with world with a backpack. But he does end up on Crispin’s doorstep a few months later.

Except for the sexy times- and they are dirty (not complaining)- this was very much like a Hallmark Channel Christmas movie. Sure the first half was Oktoberfest, but Luka shows up in California in time for Christmas.

Even with 3 sets of dead parents between them, there really isn’t much angst at all. Just a sweet book.

3 pieces of eye candy

Amy Lane lives in a crumbling crapmansion with a couple of growing children, a passel of furbabies, and a bemused spouse. She’s been nominated for a RITA, has won honorable mention for an Indiefab, and has a couple of Rainbow Awards to her name. She also has too damned much yarn, a penchant for action-adventure movies, and a need to know that somewhere in all the pain is a story of Wuv, Twu Wuv, which she continues to believe in to this day! She writes fantasy, urban fantasy, and gay romance–and if you accidentally make eye contact, she’ll bore you to tears with why those three genres go together. She’ll also tell you that sacrifices, large and small, are worth the urge to write.

The Christmas Lights Battle by Skylar M. Cates: New Release Review and Giveaway

by

For a single dad and his neighbor, the Christmas competition is on!

Julian Moss wants to give his children a happy Christmas. Since his divorce, Julian has no time for a social life; he’s been doing the tiring work of two parents while his cheating ex-husband dodges his responsibilities. If that isn’t stressful enough, he has to deal with his new—and ridiculously good-looking—neighbor and his noisy dogs. Christmas used to be Julian’s favorite holiday, but lately all he sees is the cost. Then Julian’s young son tells him about a Christmas lights competition with a much-needed prize.

Leo Adams is going to be alone for Christmas…again. All he’s ever wanted is to be accepted by his family, but he knows that will never happen. Deciding to focus on his career as a personal trainer, Leo develops a boot camp program on the beach, but he needs publicity. The lights competition offers Leo a way to get some free press, and if it annoys his snooty neighbor Julian—all the better.

The battle is on, and both Julian and Leo want to win. The stakes are high, the reward is great, and the neighbors are in it to win it. There’s nothing like a little competition to make Christmas at Shelby Beach extra merry and bright.

Amazon – Kindle Unlimited

I LOVE CHRISTMAS!!!

Too much? Sorry …. This one really put me in the Christmas spirit. First, we meet Julian and his two adorable kids, Charlie and Sadie. I don’t need to tell anyone how much I adore a hot single dad and his babies. They’re my favorite!

After his divorce, (and y’all, you will hate the cheating, verbally and emotionally abusive ex-husband, here’s your warning)…. Julian is doing everything he can to just make life easy for their children, who both suffer from emotional issues, like anxiety and aggression. Julian is so patient and easy with them, he loves them more than anything….so seeing them hurt time and again by the ex, hurts him too. Never one to stand up for himself, especially with the ex, I was so glad to see him finally do it….

Now, Leo is house/dog sitting for a close friend who just happens to be Julian’s nextdoor neighbor. They don’t get along at first, but it’s short-lived and kind of entertaining… I hated that it hurt Leo, even a little bit, because he’s been hurt so much, I just didn’t want anymore for him… Leo is charming and gorgeous and generous and sweet… it’s easy to become smitten with him… and he’s good with the kids. As a single parent, you can’t ask for anything better than that.

When the small town of Shelby Beach, holds a Christmas Lights competition, both of the men are intent on winning. Julian, so he can give the kids a good Christmas, and maybe do something fun with them, and Leo, because he’s still trying to make a name for himself in Shelby Beach, and getting the exposure and his name out there could go a long way in his want to start his own business. But, as the competition gets on and the guys call a truce, an unfortunate, tiny little accident has Julian needing Leo’s help, and Leo being all in to help out, and even to merge the competition.

I don’t want to give everything away, but I just adored this story. It’s sweet and light and fun, and I loved these two together. I loved Julian’s family and what they could give Leo, because he so desperately needed the love that his own family failed to give him. I loved how accepting they all were, if even a little nutty, Julian’s family and Leo’s best friends… I loved how the ex- seemed to just go away and we never saw him again… and I loved the little happy for now we get, that could promise so much more for these two in coming books. Which I’m very much hoping for. Overall though, it was just the perfect little Christmas read on this cold and rainy day for me, and I loved it.

FAVORITE LINE: “If Falling in love is insane, I want to be crazy every day of my life.”

4 Pieces of Candy

Skylar M. Cates loves a good romance, especially ones that are steamy and emotionally satisfying. She is quite happy to drink coffee,  curl up with a good book, and not move all day. Her bestselling novels feature strong, passionate men. Skylar loves to craft stories where realistic men are challenged with emotional situations. Skylar’s character-driven series will often feature close-knit familes, animals, and loyal friendships being tested.

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Skylar M. Cates has offered a copy of her other holiday story, The Holiday Hoax. Simply leave a comment on this blog post.