The Inside Reader: Astrid Amara

Show me the books he loves and I shall know the man far better than through mortal friends - Silas Weir Mitchell

Since her name means "star" in italian (Astro is a fashionable way to say "Stella" = "Star") and since her recent release is a seasonal story, who better than Astrid Amara could be my "Christmas" Inside Reader? So, welcome Astrid, and Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you and my friends!

Thanks Elisa for inviting me!

I will read pretty much anything other than vampire/werewolf stories and so it´s hard to pick out just the m/m titles since I spend more time reading science fiction, mystery, and yes, even literary fiction (although I often throw those across the wall going WHAT WAS THE POINT OF THAT???).

I therefore put my highlights of gay fiction that I have read and then stuck in a few that aren´t because I couldn´t let them go without a mention.

The LGBT titles:

1) Wicked Gentlemen by Ginn Hale. Okay, yes, she´s a friend, and yes, a co-writer of our Hell Cop series, but I still can´t help but recommend this book, because it´s so good. The world-building, the subtlety of the romance, the action, the emotion that is kept so in check... it has all the elements I want in a good story.

Perfect Paperback: 222 pages
Publisher: Blind Eye Books (May 14, 2007)
Publisher Link: http://www.blindeyebooks.com/wicked.html
ISBN-10: 0978986113
ISBN-13: 978-0978986117
Amazon: Wicked Gentlemen

Belimai Sykes is many things: a Prodigal, the descendant of ancient demons, a creature of dark temptations and rare powers. He is also a man with a brutal past and a dangerous addiction. And Belimai Sykes is the only man Captain William Harper can turn to when faced with a series of grisly murders. But Mr. Sykes does not work for free and the price of Belimai’s company will cost Captain Harper far more than his reputation. From the ornate mansions of noblemen, where vivisection and sorcery are hidden beneath a veneer of gold, to the steaming slums of Hells Below, Captain Harper must fight for justice and for his life. His enemies are many and his only ally is a devil he knows too well. Such are the dangers of dealing with the wicked.

( books from 2 to 10 )

That´s it from me! Actually, I try to keep my Goodreads shelf up to date so check it out for more of what I like:

http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1204165.Astrid_Amara

And thanks Elisa for hosting... I´m developing a growing TBR pile thanks to your site!

Astrid

About Astrid Amara: Astrid Amara lives in Bellingham, Washington. She spends her days working as a civil servant, her nights sleeping, and the time in between either writing, riding horses, hiking around, or staring at the wall.

She has no unusual facial features.

Carol of the Bellskis by Astrid Amara
Publisher: Loose Id
Publisher Link: http://www.loose-id.com/Carol-of-the-Bellskis.aspx
ISBN: 978-1-60737-527-2

Blurb: Paralegal Seth Bellski is tired of being the secret lover of his boss, Lars Varga, founding partner of Finch & Varga Law. So when he asks Lars to spend Hanukah with Seth's family at their kosher B&B in Whistler, B.C., and Lars refuses, Seth realizes he will never get his self-conscious boss out of the closet. So Seth prepares to spend his Hanukah holiday alone in the B&B. Instead he finds himself running the place, as his aunt and uncle are missing, and seven demanding, peculiar, and danger-prone guests have arrived. To make matters worse, Lars shows up, begging forgiveness. Lars's touches remind Seth of why he put up with his boss's behavior in the first place. If only the words that came out of that beautiful mouth were as sweet as his kisses. But how can Seth find time to fix his broken relationship when the guests are demanding kosher, gluten-free diets, losing their pet terriers, and hitting their heads on the ice? Seth and Lars find themselves put through the paces of being a married couple, all while still broken up. But then again, if they can survive this Hanukah, surely their relationship can withstand anything?

The Inside Reader: Astrid Amara

Show me the books he loves and I shall know the man far better than through mortal friends - Silas Weir Mitchell

Since her name means "star" in italian (Astro is a fashionable way to say "Stella" = "Star") and since her recent release is a seasonal story, who better than Astrid Amara could be my "Christmas" Inside Reader? So, welcome Astrid, and Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you and my friends!

Thanks Elisa for inviting me!

I will read pretty much anything other than vampire/werewolf stories and so it´s hard to pick out just the m/m titles since I spend more time reading science fiction, mystery, and yes, even literary fiction (although I often throw those across the wall going WHAT WAS THE POINT OF THAT???).

I therefore put my highlights of gay fiction that I have read and then stuck in a few that aren´t because I couldn´t let them go without a mention.

The LGBT titles:

1) Wicked Gentlemen by Ginn Hale. Okay, yes, she´s a friend, and yes, a co-writer of our Hell Cop series, but I still can´t help but recommend this book, because it´s so good. The world-building, the subtlety of the romance, the action, the emotion that is kept so in check... it has all the elements I want in a good story.

Perfect Paperback: 222 pages
Publisher: Blind Eye Books (May 14, 2007)
Publisher Link: http://www.blindeyebooks.com/wicked.html
ISBN-10: 0978986113
ISBN-13: 978-0978986117
Amazon: Wicked Gentlemen

Belimai Sykes is many things: a Prodigal, the descendant of ancient demons, a creature of dark temptations and rare powers. He is also a man with a brutal past and a dangerous addiction. And Belimai Sykes is the only man Captain William Harper can turn to when faced with a series of grisly murders. But Mr. Sykes does not work for free and the price of Belimai’s company will cost Captain Harper far more than his reputation. From the ornate mansions of noblemen, where vivisection and sorcery are hidden beneath a veneer of gold, to the steaming slums of Hells Below, Captain Harper must fight for justice and for his life. His enemies are many and his only ally is a devil he knows too well. Such are the dangers of dealing with the wicked.

( books from 2 to 10 )

That´s it from me! Actually, I try to keep my Goodreads shelf up to date so check it out for more of what I like:

http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1204165.Astrid_Amara

And thanks Elisa for hosting... I´m developing a growing TBR pile thanks to your site!

Astrid

About Astrid Amara: Astrid Amara lives in Bellingham, Washington. She spends her days working as a civil servant, her nights sleeping, and the time in between either writing, riding horses, hiking around, or staring at the wall.

She has no unusual facial features.

Carol of the Bellskis by Astrid Amara
Publisher: Loose Id
Publisher Link: http://www.loose-id.com/Carol-of-the-Bellskis.aspx
ISBN: 978-1-60737-527-2

Blurb: Paralegal Seth Bellski is tired of being the secret lover of his boss, Lars Varga, founding partner of Finch & Varga Law. So when he asks Lars to spend Hanukah with Seth's family at their kosher B&B in Whistler, B.C., and Lars refuses, Seth realizes he will never get his self-conscious boss out of the closet. So Seth prepares to spend his Hanukah holiday alone in the B&B. Instead he finds himself running the place, as his aunt and uncle are missing, and seven demanding, peculiar, and danger-prone guests have arrived. To make matters worse, Lars shows up, begging forgiveness. Lars's touches remind Seth of why he put up with his boss's behavior in the first place. If only the words that came out of that beautiful mouth were as sweet as his kisses. But how can Seth find time to fix his broken relationship when the guests are demanding kosher, gluten-free diets, losing their pet terriers, and hitting their heads on the ice? Seth and Lars find themselves put through the paces of being a married couple, all while still broken up. But then again, if they can survive this Hanukah, surely their relationship can withstand anything?

Sometime it's not necessary to give a complex explanation if not the love of books

Just yesterday I was interviewed again, and again the question was: how did you end up reading Gay Romance? and again I searched for a good answer, other than the simple, I like them. But sincerely there isn't, and then, other before me better explained it.

So, before leaving for my Christmas lunch with family, I will leave you with the word of one of those person, you can easily put a "gay" in front of "romance", and it explain perfectly what I feel:

DANGEROUS MEN AND ADVENTUROUS WOMEN

ROMANCE WRITERS ON THE APPEAL OF THE ROMANCE

Jayne Ann Krentz – Introduction

Few people realize how much courage it takes for a woman to open a romance novel on an airplane. She knows what everyone around her will think about both her and her choice of reading material. When it comes to romance novels, society has always felt free to sit in judgment not only on the literature but on the reader herself.

The verdict is always the same. Society does not approve of the reading of romance novels. It labels the books as trash and the readers as unintelligent, uneducated, unsophisticated, or neurotic.

The fact that so many women persist in reading and enjoying romance novels in the face of generations of relentless hostility says something profound not only about women's courage but about the appeal of the books.

No one who reads or writes romance expects to be able to teach critics to appreciate the novels. As any romance reader or writer will tell you, a reader either enjoys the novels or she does not. If she does, no further explanations of the appeal of the books are necessary.

The same is true of the other genres. A reader who does not intuitively respond to horror or science fiction novels cannot be persuaded by logic or argument to enjoy either genre. The difference is that the person who does not like to read horror or science fiction is unlikely to criticize the genres or chastise and condemn the readers who do love them but simply shrugs and accepts the fact that the stories hold no personal appeal.

Amazon: Dangerous Men and Adventurous Women: Romance Writers on the Appeal of the Romance (New Cultural Studies Series)

Sometime it's not necessary to give a complex explanation if not the love of books

Just yesterday I was interviewed again, and again the question was: how did you end up reading Gay Romance? and again I searched for a good answer, other than the simple, I like them. But sincerely there isn't, and then, other before me better explained it.

So, before leaving for my Christmas lunch with family, I will leave you with the word of one of those person, you can easily put a "gay" in front of "romance", and it explain perfectly what I feel:

DANGEROUS MEN AND ADVENTUROUS WOMEN

ROMANCE WRITERS ON THE APPEAL OF THE ROMANCE

Jayne Ann Krentz – Introduction

Few people realize how much courage it takes for a woman to open a romance novel on an airplane. She knows what everyone around her will think about both her and her choice of reading material. When it comes to romance novels, society has always felt free to sit in judgment not only on the literature but on the reader herself.

The verdict is always the same. Society does not approve of the reading of romance novels. It labels the books as trash and the readers as unintelligent, uneducated, unsophisticated, or neurotic.

The fact that so many women persist in reading and enjoying romance novels in the face of generations of relentless hostility says something profound not only about women's courage but about the appeal of the books.

No one who reads or writes romance expects to be able to teach critics to appreciate the novels. As any romance reader or writer will tell you, a reader either enjoys the novels or she does not. If she does, no further explanations of the appeal of the books are necessary.

The same is true of the other genres. A reader who does not intuitively respond to horror or science fiction novels cannot be persuaded by logic or argument to enjoy either genre. The difference is that the person who does not like to read horror or science fiction is unlikely to criticize the genres or chastise and condemn the readers who do love them but simply shrugs and accepts the fact that the stories hold no personal appeal.

Amazon: Dangerous Men and Adventurous Women: Romance Writers on the Appeal of the Romance (New Cultural Studies Series)

Roberto Bolle: An Athlete in Tights by Bruce Weber

Roberto Bolle is an Italian treasure and we are very proud of him. It's not the first time I feature him in my journal, but this time it's even more right to do so, since he has a photographic book out by Bruce Weber who is also one of the best photographer out there (all the famous Abercrombie & Fitch catalogues are by him).



( Roberto Bolle by Bruce Weber )

Amazon: Roberto Bolle: An Athlete in Tights

First recognized by Rudolf Nureyev, Roberto Bolle is renowned for his athletic ability, stylistic grace and a sizzling movie star presence. Possessing broad appeal, his performances draw acclaim from the dance world and general public alike. This stunning book is the culmination of a three-year collaboration between Bolle and the photogrpahic superstar Bruce Weber. Weber's masterful images capture the dazzling charisma of a world-class talent.

The book features writing from Bolle, as well as texts by Elsa Morante and illustrations by Paul Cadmus and Jeremiah Goodman.

Roberto Bolle on Fiuggi commercial (Italian mineral water), Ballet: "Excelsior" by Ugo Dell' Ara, Set: Reggia di Caserta, Music: Tchaikosky

Roberto is not shy of his beautiful body and as such he danced naked on the ballet Giselle for the San Carlo of Naples





And apparently neither shy is his friend Massimiliano Neri who posed naked for a charity calendar:

Roberto Bolle: An Athlete in Tights by Bruce Weber

Roberto Bolle is an Italian treasure and we are very proud of him. It's not the first time I feature him in my journal, but this time it's even more right to do so, since he has a photographic book out by Bruce Weber who is also one of the best photographer out there (all the famous Abercrombie & Fitch catalogues are by him).



( Roberto Bolle by Bruce Weber )

Amazon: Roberto Bolle: An Athlete in Tights

First recognized by Rudolf Nureyev, Roberto Bolle is renowned for his athletic ability, stylistic grace and a sizzling movie star presence. Possessing broad appeal, his performances draw acclaim from the dance world and general public alike. This stunning book is the culmination of a three-year collaboration between Bolle and the photogrpahic superstar Bruce Weber. Weber's masterful images capture the dazzling charisma of a world-class talent.

The book features writing from Bolle, as well as texts by Elsa Morante and illustrations by Paul Cadmus and Jeremiah Goodman.

Roberto Bolle on Fiuggi commercial (Italian mineral water), Ballet: "Excelsior" by Ugo Dell' Ara, Set: Reggia di Caserta, Music: Tchaikosky

Roberto is not shy of his beautiful body and as such he danced naked on the ballet Giselle for the San Carlo of Naples





And apparently neither shy is his friend Massimiliano Neri who posed naked for a charity calendar: