Hard Candy by Amanda Young

Man Candy by Amanda Young

So, reading the title, I was especting a novel about beautiful men with gourgeous bodies... And instead you have an ultraromantic story that happen to be M/M.

Aaron is a shy man, short, skinny and a little geeky. He works to pay is education and now he has graduated and has a new job and has to say to his previous boss that he will go with the end of the week. No problem that that he is deeply in love with his boss. And he has never in four years admit his feeling to him. Cause Logan, his boss, is a straight married man.

Aaron has choosen the wrong brother, cause instead Jack, the Logan's identical twin, is gay and lately he has also made some move on Aaron. So when Jack suddently kiss him and Aaron give him an entusiastic blow job, everything seem all right, but a little particular: is not Jack who receives a blowjob, is Logan, is straight married boss... isn't he? Married? Straight?

This is a short story with some point I like very much in my stories: the geek who falls in love with the handsome man, the old fashined cliche of the boss with the personal assistant... in short I like it, but... I would like to read more about Logan: how a straight man arrives to share an hot sex session with a gay man? what happen next? and Jack?

http://www.loose-id.net/prod-Man_Candy-487.aspx

Candy Man by Amanda Young

This is one very sexy scene. No more than that. But, hey, sometime you need only this.

Aaron and Logan from Man Candy are back for a Halloween Night. Aaron, red head and geeky, and Logan, sturdy and storng, are bored to give candy to the kids, and decide to give candy to each other. Better if the chocolate is eaten on the body of pale and lean Aaron.

Brief, sexy and enjoyable. Better if read after Man Candy, cause the characters in this brief story are not fully describe, and I remember they are pretty interesting.

http://www.loose-id.net/prod-Candy_Man-566.aspx

Eye Candy by Amanda Young

What happens when the villain of a story becomes the main character of another story?

Actually Jake is not a very villain, but he is for sure a bad boy; in Man Candy he is the bad twin, the one who searches only easy sex without commitment, and instead his twin brother Logan is the one who conquers and wins Aaron's heart.

Now in Eye Candy we have the chance to know some of the reasons behind Jake's behaviour, how he was betrayed by his first and young lover Kane when he was sixteen years old, and how he has chosen long ago to give up to love, preferring heartless sex. But now Kane is back in town, and all the old feelings are still there. Only that Jake has spent too many year behaving like a don juan, and Kane is not willing to accept a quick fuck, he wants all or nothing.

It's strange to see how Kane, who was the first to do wrong, now arrogates himself the right to judge Jake's behaviour. But it is also tender to see Kane's son, tries to matchmake his dad with his first love, giving Jake all the reasons to prove that Kane has loved only Jake in all those years.

Eye Candy is a simple and smooth book, enjoyable and with a good mix of sweet and sex. Maybe the end arrives a bit in a hurry, I'd like to read a bit more on Jake and Kane re-blossoming relationship, and also Jake interactions with Brock, Kane's son. Maybe Amanda Young shold think to write more on these two characters.

http://www.loose-id.com/detail.aspx?ID=663

Amazon: Hard Candy (print book)

Reading List:

http://www.librarything.com/catalog_bottom.php?tag=reading+list&view=elisa.rolle






Cover Art by April Martinez

Daywalker Legacy by Amanda Young

Secrets and Lies by Amanda Young

Here a book which is a good mix between paranormal suspense and light comedy. Blinking an eye to the Dark Hunters of Sherrilyn Kenyon, Amanda Young tells us a vampire story introducing two vampire breeds, the Daywalkers and the Nighfeeders.

The Daywalkers are the original ones, men born vampires, almost immortal, who are a lot stronger than normal vampires. But if they "infect" a simple human, they produce a Nightfeeder, a lesser vampire weaker than them and with all a sort of allergies, like that to sun.

Teague and Cadge are among the last Daywalkers. They live among humans, hiding their nature to avoid the same death of their parents, killed by unknown hand for the only guilt to be a Daywalkers. Before the story starts, Cadge lost his lover Adrian, and now lives like an hermit, searching to unveil who killed his parents; I quite didn't understand if Adrian killed himself or if he was killed. Anyway the only link with the world for Cadge is his brother Teague.

Teague is a club owner and a bit of a heartless type, or so he wants to show. He has a lover, Kyle, whom he meets only on Saturday night for a quick fuck on the backroom of his club. He doesn't want commitment and usually he prefers to not have repeat performances with the same man, but his body seems to disagree with his mind, and every Saturday night it pretends to have its moment with Kyle. And Teague lets his body lead everytime he sees Kyle.

But Kyle is not so content with the relationship. Even if he enjoys every encounters with Teague, he is not a man for no string attach relationship. He wants to build something steady, he even wants maybe to have a family sooner or later. And so, even if the sex is fantastic, he is of the idea to have a clean break with Teague. But before one of the two can take the final decision, Teague's dangerous life claims its toll and involves also Kyle.

The story is good, of the right lenght, 160 pages, it lures you into this paranormal world but manages also to be enough funny to not be too compelling. At first Kyle seems a quite steady and prim and proper man, but when he is around Teague, he becomes a bit of a twink, all cuddle and whines, but not so much to be annoying. Kyle has the right dose of weakness to be the perfect partner of Teague, that is not the perfect alpha male hero; Teague is a bit of a cracked hero, probably the real alpha man is his brother Cadge. Teague is more a man of body than mind, he is lead by his instinct more than his intellect. It's good sometime to read of men who are not so persuade to be always right.

Probably Amanda Young plans to tell us also the story of Cadge and Red in the next future, actually even if this story has an end, it's not so definitive to close all the points, there is still space for a bit more on Teague and Kyle, both on their own, or like supporting characters of another story.

http://www.loose-id.com/Secrets-and-Lies.aspx

Amazon: Daywalker Legacy (print book)

Reading List:

http://www.librarything.com/catalog_bottom.php?tag=reading list&view=elisa.rolle

Best Historical Novel (3° place): Bee Among The Clover by Fae Sutherland & Marguerite Labbe

It was an hard fight against myself to convince me to read this book. When first I saw it released I had almost an immediately compulsive need to click the buy button, but then I wavered, and made a pro and and cons list: pro, it's an historical, I know the authors and liked what I read by them, it's a new epublishers and I like to try new things; cons, for sure there will be a rape. 3 against 1 and my compulsive clicking stopped. I was in the right mood to read about rape? and even if I managed to go through it, what about the obvious menages? Yes since the story is about two men who find themself enslaved by the same lord, and so this lord should be consider in the total... And so I admit, I didn't buy it since someone told me: why haven't you read it? And I felt guilty, since I hadn't given to a book, and to the authors, a chance they deserve, given that it's not simple to write an historical with a rape... late (and very missed) Kathleen E. Woodiwiss and her The Wolf and the Dove still bear the weight after 25 years.

Roman is a bed slave for a northern English thane (actually the authors never mention English or England, but I need to place him, and don't know enough of English ancient history). Roman, as the name let guess, was the young son of a Roman citizen who made a huge mistake some years before and now is a lifetime slave; it's quite interesting to read how the proud but careless young roman turned in an apparently willing pet for his master. Maybe it helps that Wulfgar (yes, same name as the main character of The Wolf and the Dove) is not a truly villain... oh, yes, he is merciless and he first forced Roman, and now Aron, into slavery; not only that, he used them without remorse, in bed and out of it, parading them as beautiful pets, his treasures, as he calls them. But we have not to forget that Wulfgar is a warlord of a pre-medieval period, it can't be a gentleman, he has to be pitiless and strong. And clever.

Cleverness is something that Wulfgar knows well, on the contrary of young Aron. Aron is the son of a crofter who didn't pay what he was due to the thane; when Wulfgar comes to ask reasons, Aron challenges Wulfgar's champion and loses. Wulfgar gives Aron two options: burn down his father's home or being Wulfgar's thrall for an year, serving him in anything he wishes... and here is where Wulfgar is clever and Aron not, since Aron doesn't ask to Wulfgar what he meant in details and accepts to be a thrall. And so Aron finds himself forced to share Wulfgar's bed. His only aid is Roman, who can only mitigate the discomfort, but not prevent the rape, since of rape, even if we don't read it, we are speaking: doesn't matter that Wulfgar was not a bad character, doesn't matter that he is true to his history setting, it's a rape, but well, what else can you expected? The unlikely expedient that Mrs Woodiwiss used 25 years ago (who read the book knows it); no, sorry, even if I'm a romantic at heart, that was an expedient that clashed with all the historical reason, and I loved it, but it was not realistic.

And so also Aron faces his sad fate, but he does it in a very different way than Roman; he didn't surrender like him. Roman is a cultured man, he is strong but he is also very proud, and culture and proudness together would have killed him if he hadn't found a way to shield himself from the reality: Roman killed his proud self to not kill himself. Aron is as proud as Roman, but he is less cultured; I don't want to say that he is not intelligent, only that he is not so fine like Roman, and maybe even less careful, and so he fights against Wulfgar, and yes, maybe Wulfgar feels guilty for what he did to Roman, and so he treats Aron in a different way, he doesn't try to break him, but allows him to take his proud, even if he steals him the possess of his body.

Anyway there is a love story, and the love story is between two men, Aron and Roman, and Wulfgar is not part of it. When the love is still absent, there is in some way a threesome, with Wulfgar in the role of the puppeteer and Aron that is still driven by his body and by his newfound desire for a man, Roman. When love comes between them, both for Aron than for Roman, having Wulfgar between them becomes almost intolerable, but they still can't do nothing to prevent it. With their bodies... but with their minds it's all another question, and yes, even if in a world that is only for lovers, they find a way to be faithful to each other, even if with their bodies they still have to play the role of Wulfgar's pets.

The story is very long, I can't possible write all it left me, but is enough to say that the book, and the authors, convinces me that they deserve the chance I gave them; I'm happy to have read it, maybe since it reminded me so much a genre I was very fond of, the savage romance.



http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/product_info.php?cPath=55_149&products_id=1724

Amazon Kindle: Bee Among the Clover

Reading List:

http://www.librarything.com/catalog_bottom.php?tag=reading list&view=elisa.rolle


Cover Art by Anne Cain

I Saw Daddy Kissing Santa Claus edited by Lori Perkins

Christmas Morning by Derek Clendening: In a very short seasonal story a single dad has to explain to his 8 years old son why he kissed Santa Claus. There are three potential problems: one, make understand the boy that, even if his dad is in love when another person, this doesn’t mean that he has forgot his mom; two, let him digest the notion that a family now always has a dad and a mom, but maybe there is also the chance to have two daddies; three, the most risky problem of all, how to explain that Daddy kissed Santa Claus without letting him stop to believing in the magic of Christmas. I quite like the fact that all these were presented to the boy with the same importance, in this way the parents didn’t steal the boy innocence, he is still an 8 years old and the two Daddies know that.

I Saw Daddy Kissing Santa Claus by Ryan Field: In this short story Ryan Field proves that a same sex couple with kids is exactly the same of a het couple. Dennis and Mario are together since 15 years, and they even adopted two little girls. They are in love, they have two good jobs, a beautiful house, a fancy new car and even a satisfying sex life. So, what it lacks? Maybe the unexpected? Dennis is not thinking to find a solution in other men, but maybe he would like to be reassured on his sex appeal. He is more than happy to be Mario’s life partner, but he would like to be also his lover, not only the Daddy of their daughters. In few words, Dennis is facing an advanced middle life crisis, but Mario will find the way to prove him that they still think alike, like they did 15 years ago.

The Best Christmas Ever by Clancy Nacht: The same theme of before, Daddy kissing Santa Clause, it’s seen and told by the eyes of a little girl. From her small perspective she saw her Dad suffer through a divorce, and she saw him happy again when Brad, Daddy’s friend, came to live with them. Mira understood that material things are not important, that gifts are nice, but the family harmony is more important. And so, when she sees Daddy kissing Santa Claus, Mira is not happy, she doesn’t care of the gifts Santa Claus just brought to them, she wants that her Daddy kisses only Brad. A 10 years little girl understands things better than most adult: it’s not important the sex of who you kiss, it’s important if that person is part of a happy family.

Just Like Santa by J. L. Merrow: This is a little and sweet romp. And how couldn’t it be, since one of the men in it is a nursery teacher? Jason has a crush on Alec, the single dad of one of his 3 years old students, Poppy, but he has never had the courage to pursue it. Maybe Jason is shy, maybe he thinks to not being at Alec’s level, and maybe he is not sure that Alec is gay. Then a little help from Santa Claus, or better, from the Santa Claus’ costume he has to wear on the Christmas party they hold for the kid, allows Jason a more personal approach to Alec and this leads to an even more personal dinner date at Alec’s house. It’s Christmas and it’s a sweet story, and Poppy is only 3 years old, and so she still finds an exciting adventure to discover that Jason and Santa Claus have the same underwear… and she is not at all worried from the fact that Jason spent the night with them.

Christmas Post Boy by Liz Coldwell: Maybe this story is a little less sweet and seasonal feeling than the previous ones. Wayne is mourning not only the betrayal of his former partner, but also the loss of the two sons of him, loosing his lover meant also being excluded from the kids life. Wayne is not in any Christmas mood and he doesn’t feel like party. Then Cameron, 20 years old and employee in Wayne’s firm, comes asking him why he is not at the firm’s party, and Wayne finds a way to stop thinking to Christmas and kids and instead focused on being Dom and debauching Cameron’s innocence: speaking of how to change completely perspective.

Santa Claus is Coming by Adrian Harper: Two Daddies play Naughty or Nice on the Christmas Eve after Nick puts to sleep their little daughter. It’s all a joyous play, and a perfect family picture: Christmas songs are playing in the background; Ethan is trying to cook a typical Canadian dinner for his Canadian lover while the said Canadian is playing a mix of Santa Claus, Kris Kringle and maybe some other seasonal character for their daughter; and when the kid is asleep the game for the adult starts, and even a Santa Claus’ costume can give them “naughty” thoughts… after all, love is in the air.

http://www.ravenousromance.com/m/m/i-saw-daddy-kissing-santa-claus.php

Amazon: I Saw Daddy Kissing Santa Claus: An Anthology

Amazon Kindle: I Saw Daddy Kissing Santa Claus

Reading List:

http://www.librarything.com/catalog_bottom.php?tag=reading list&view=elisa.rolle

I Saw Daddy Kissing Santa Claus edited by Lori Perkins

Christmas Morning by Derek Clendening: In a very short seasonal story a single dad has to explain to his 8 years old son why he kissed Santa Claus. There are three potential problems: one, make understand the boy that, even if his dad is in love when another person, this doesn’t mean that he has forgot his mom; two, let him digest the notion that a family now always has a dad and a mom, but maybe there is also the chance to have two daddies; three, the most risky problem of all, how to explain that Daddy kissed Santa Claus without letting him stop to believing in the magic of Christmas. I quite like the fact that all these were presented to the boy with the same importance, in this way the parents didn’t steal the boy innocence, he is still an 8 years old and the two Daddies know that.

I Saw Daddy Kissing Santa Claus by Ryan Field: In this short story Ryan Field proves that a same sex couple with kids is exactly the same of a het couple. Dennis and Mario are together since 15 years, and they even adopted two little girls. They are in love, they have two good jobs, a beautiful house, a fancy new car and even a satisfying sex life. So, what it lacks? Maybe the unexpected? Dennis is not thinking to find a solution in other men, but maybe he would like to be reassured on his sex appeal. He is more than happy to be Mario’s life partner, but he would like to be also his lover, not only the Daddy of their daughters. In few words, Dennis is facing an advanced middle life crisis, but Mario will find the way to prove him that they still think alike, like they did 15 years ago.

The Best Christmas Ever by Clancy Nacht: The same theme of before, Daddy kissing Santa Clause, it’s seen and told by the eyes of a little girl. From her small perspective she saw her Dad suffer through a divorce, and she saw him happy again when Brad, Daddy’s friend, came to live with them. Mira understood that material things are not important, that gifts are nice, but the family harmony is more important. And so, when she sees Daddy kissing Santa Claus, Mira is not happy, she doesn’t care of the gifts Santa Claus just brought to them, she wants that her Daddy kisses only Brad. A 10 years little girl understands things better than most adult: it’s not important the sex of who you kiss, it’s important if that person is part of a happy family.

Just Like Santa by J. L. Merrow: This is a little and sweet romp. And how couldn’t it be, since one of the men in it is a nursery teacher? Jason has a crush on Alec, the single dad of one of his 3 years old students, Poppy, but he has never had the courage to pursue it. Maybe Jason is shy, maybe he thinks to not being at Alec’s level, and maybe he is not sure that Alec is gay. Then a little help from Santa Claus, or better, from the Santa Claus’ costume he has to wear on the Christmas party they hold for the kid, allows Jason a more personal approach to Alec and this leads to an even more personal dinner date at Alec’s house. It’s Christmas and it’s a sweet story, and Poppy is only 3 years old, and so she still finds an exciting adventure to discover that Jason and Santa Claus have the same underwear… and she is not at all worried from the fact that Jason spent the night with them.

Christmas Post Boy by Liz Coldwell: Maybe this story is a little less sweet and seasonal feeling than the previous ones. Wayne is mourning not only the betrayal of his former partner, but also the loss of the two sons of him, loosing his lover meant also being excluded from the kids life. Wayne is not in any Christmas mood and he doesn’t feel like party. Then Cameron, 20 years old and employee in Wayne’s firm, comes asking him why he is not at the firm’s party, and Wayne finds a way to stop thinking to Christmas and kids and instead focused on being Dom and debauching Cameron’s innocence: speaking of how to change completely perspective.

Santa Claus is Coming by Adrian Harper: Two Daddies play Naughty or Nice on the Christmas Eve after Nick puts to sleep their little daughter. It’s all a joyous play, and a perfect family picture: Christmas songs are playing in the background; Ethan is trying to cook a typical Canadian dinner for his Canadian lover while the said Canadian is playing a mix of Santa Claus, Kris Kringle and maybe some other seasonal character for their daughter; and when the kid is asleep the game for the adult starts, and even a Santa Claus’ costume can give them “naughty” thoughts… after all, love is in the air.

http://www.ravenousromance.com/m/m/i-saw-daddy-kissing-santa-claus.php

Amazon: I Saw Daddy Kissing Santa Claus: An Anthology

Amazon Kindle: I Saw Daddy Kissing Santa Claus

Reading List:

http://www.librarything.com/catalog_bottom.php?tag=reading list&view=elisa.rolle

Daywalker Legacy by Amanda Young

Secrets and Lies by Amanda Young

Here a book which is a good mix between paranormal suspense and light comedy. Blinking an eye to the Dark Hunters of Sherrilyn Kenyon, Amanda Young tells us a vampire story introducing two vampire breeds, the Daywalkers and the Nighfeeders.

The Daywalkers are the original ones, men born vampires, almost immortal, who are a lot stronger than normal vampires. But if they "infect" a simple human, they produce a Nightfeeder, a lesser vampire weaker than them and with all a sort of allergies, like that to sun.

Teague and Cadge are among the last Daywalkers. They live among humans, hiding their nature to avoid the same death of their parents, killed by unknown hand for the only guilt to be a Daywalkers. Before the story starts, Cadge lost his lover Adrian, and now lives like an hermit, searching to unveil who killed his parents; I quite didn't understand if Adrian killed himself or if he was killed. Anyway the only link with the world for Cadge is his brother Teague.

Teague is a club owner and a bit of a heartless type, or so he wants to show. He has a lover, Kyle, whom he meets only on Saturday night for a quick fuck on the backroom of his club. He doesn't want commitment and usually he prefers to not have repeat performances with the same man, but his body seems to disagree with his mind, and every Saturday night it pretends to have its moment with Kyle. And Teague lets his body lead everytime he sees Kyle.

But Kyle is not so content with the relationship. Even if he enjoys every encounters with Teague, he is not a man for no string attach relationship. He wants to build something steady, he even wants maybe to have a family sooner or later. And so, even if the sex is fantastic, he is of the idea to have a clean break with Teague. But before one of the two can take the final decision, Teague's dangerous life claims its toll and involves also Kyle.

The story is good, of the right lenght, 160 pages, it lures you into this paranormal world but manages also to be enough funny to not be too compelling. At first Kyle seems a quite steady and prim and proper man, but when he is around Teague, he becomes a bit of a twink, all cuddle and whines, but not so much to be annoying. Kyle has the right dose of weakness to be the perfect partner of Teague, that is not the perfect alpha male hero; Teague is a bit of a cracked hero, probably the real alpha man is his brother Cadge. Teague is more a man of body than mind, he is lead by his instinct more than his intellect. It's good sometime to read of men who are not so persuade to be always right.

Probably Amanda Young plans to tell us also the story of Cadge and Red in the next future, actually even if this story has an end, it's not so definitive to close all the points, there is still space for a bit more on Teague and Kyle, both on their own, or like supporting characters of another story.

http://www.loose-id.com/Secrets-and-Lies.aspx

Amazon: Daywalker Legacy (print book)

Reading List:

http://www.librarything.com/catalog_bottom.php?tag=reading list&view=elisa.rolle

Hard Candy by Amanda Young

Man Candy by Amanda Young

So, reading the title, I was especting a novel about beautiful men with gourgeous bodies... And instead you have an ultraromantic story that happen to be M/M.

Aaron is a shy man, short, skinny and a little geeky. He works to pay is education and now he has graduated and has a new job and has to say to his previous boss that he will go with the end of the week. No problem that that he is deeply in love with his boss. And he has never in four years admit his feeling to him. Cause Logan, his boss, is a straight married man.

Aaron has choosen the wrong brother, cause instead Jack, the Logan's identical twin, is gay and lately he has also made some move on Aaron. So when Jack suddently kiss him and Aaron give him an entusiastic blow job, everything seem all right, but a little particular: is not Jack who receives a blowjob, is Logan, is straight married boss... isn't he? Married? Straight?

This is a short story with some point I like very much in my stories: the geek who falls in love with the handsome man, the old fashined cliche of the boss with the personal assistant... in short I like it, but... I would like to read more about Logan: how a straight man arrives to share an hot sex session with a gay man? what happen next? and Jack?

http://www.loose-id.net/prod-Man_Candy-487.aspx

Candy Man by Amanda Young

This is one very sexy scene. No more than that. But, hey, sometime you need only this.

Aaron and Logan from Man Candy are back for a Halloween Night. Aaron, red head and geeky, and Logan, sturdy and storng, are bored to give candy to the kids, and decide to give candy to each other. Better if the chocolate is eaten on the body of pale and lean Aaron.

Brief, sexy and enjoyable. Better if read after Man Candy, cause the characters in this brief story are not fully describe, and I remember they are pretty interesting.

http://www.loose-id.net/prod-Candy_Man-566.aspx

Eye Candy by Amanda Young

What happens when the villain of a story becomes the main character of another story?

Actually Jake is not a very villain, but he is for sure a bad boy; in Man Candy he is the bad twin, the one who searches only easy sex without commitment, and instead his twin brother Logan is the one who conquers and wins Aaron's heart.

Now in Eye Candy we have the chance to know some of the reasons behind Jake's behaviour, how he was betrayed by his first and young lover Kane when he was sixteen years old, and how he has chosen long ago to give up to love, preferring heartless sex. But now Kane is back in town, and all the old feelings are still there. Only that Jake has spent too many year behaving like a don juan, and Kane is not willing to accept a quick fuck, he wants all or nothing.

It's strange to see how Kane, who was the first to do wrong, now arrogates himself the right to judge Jake's behaviour. But it is also tender to see Kane's son, tries to matchmake his dad with his first love, giving Jake all the reasons to prove that Kane has loved only Jake in all those years.

Eye Candy is a simple and smooth book, enjoyable and with a good mix of sweet and sex. Maybe the end arrives a bit in a hurry, I'd like to read a bit more on Jake and Kane re-blossoming relationship, and also Jake interactions with Brock, Kane's son. Maybe Amanda Young shold think to write more on these two characters.

http://www.loose-id.com/detail.aspx?ID=663

Amazon: Hard Candy (print book)

Reading List:

http://www.librarything.com/catalog_bottom.php?tag=reading+list&view=elisa.rolle






Cover Art by April Martinez

Best Historical Novel (3° place): Bee Among The Clover by Fae Sutherland & Marguerite Labbe

It was an hard fight against myself to convince me to read this book. When first I saw it released I had almost an immediately compulsive need to click the buy button, but then I wavered, and made a pro and and cons list: pro, it's an historical, I know the authors and liked what I read by them, it's a new epublishers and I like to try new things; cons, for sure there will be a rape. 3 against 1 and my compulsive clicking stopped. I was in the right mood to read about rape? and even if I managed to go through it, what about the obvious menages? Yes since the story is about two men who find themself enslaved by the same lord, and so this lord should be consider in the total... And so I admit, I didn't buy it since someone told me: why haven't you read it? And I felt guilty, since I hadn't given to a book, and to the authors, a chance they deserve, given that it's not simple to write an historical with a rape... late (and very missed) Kathleen E. Woodiwiss and her The Wolf and the Dove still bear the weight after 25 years.

Roman is a bed slave for a northern English thane (actually the authors never mention English or England, but I need to place him, and don't know enough of English ancient history). Roman, as the name let guess, was the young son of a Roman citizen who made a huge mistake some years before and now is a lifetime slave; it's quite interesting to read how the proud but careless young roman turned in an apparently willing pet for his master. Maybe it helps that Wulfgar (yes, same name as the main character of The Wolf and the Dove) is not a truly villain... oh, yes, he is merciless and he first forced Roman, and now Aron, into slavery; not only that, he used them without remorse, in bed and out of it, parading them as beautiful pets, his treasures, as he calls them. But we have not to forget that Wulfgar is a warlord of a pre-medieval period, it can't be a gentleman, he has to be pitiless and strong. And clever.

Cleverness is something that Wulfgar knows well, on the contrary of young Aron. Aron is the son of a crofter who didn't pay what he was due to the thane; when Wulfgar comes to ask reasons, Aron challenges Wulfgar's champion and loses. Wulfgar gives Aron two options: burn down his father's home or being Wulfgar's thrall for an year, serving him in anything he wishes... and here is where Wulfgar is clever and Aron not, since Aron doesn't ask to Wulfgar what he meant in details and accepts to be a thrall. And so Aron finds himself forced to share Wulfgar's bed. His only aid is Roman, who can only mitigate the discomfort, but not prevent the rape, since of rape, even if we don't read it, we are speaking: doesn't matter that Wulfgar was not a bad character, doesn't matter that he is true to his history setting, it's a rape, but well, what else can you expected? The unlikely expedient that Mrs Woodiwiss used 25 years ago (who read the book knows it); no, sorry, even if I'm a romantic at heart, that was an expedient that clashed with all the historical reason, and I loved it, but it was not realistic.

And so also Aron faces his sad fate, but he does it in a very different way than Roman; he didn't surrender like him. Roman is a cultured man, he is strong but he is also very proud, and culture and proudness together would have killed him if he hadn't found a way to shield himself from the reality: Roman killed his proud self to not kill himself. Aron is as proud as Roman, but he is less cultured; I don't want to say that he is not intelligent, only that he is not so fine like Roman, and maybe even less careful, and so he fights against Wulfgar, and yes, maybe Wulfgar feels guilty for what he did to Roman, and so he treats Aron in a different way, he doesn't try to break him, but allows him to take his proud, even if he steals him the possess of his body.

Anyway there is a love story, and the love story is between two men, Aron and Roman, and Wulfgar is not part of it. When the love is still absent, there is in some way a threesome, with Wulfgar in the role of the puppeteer and Aron that is still driven by his body and by his newfound desire for a man, Roman. When love comes between them, both for Aron than for Roman, having Wulfgar between them becomes almost intolerable, but they still can't do nothing to prevent it. With their bodies... but with their minds it's all another question, and yes, even if in a world that is only for lovers, they find a way to be faithful to each other, even if with their bodies they still have to play the role of Wulfgar's pets.

The story is very long, I can't possible write all it left me, but is enough to say that the book, and the authors, convinces me that they deserve the chance I gave them; I'm happy to have read it, maybe since it reminded me so much a genre I was very fond of, the savage romance.



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Amazon Kindle: Bee Among the Clover

Reading List:

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Cover Art by Anne Cain

The Inside Reader: Charlie Cochrane

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

One of my most cherished treasure is the Chariots of Fire soundtrack by Vangelis. I also planned to go and visit the beach in St Andrew, Scotland, where the famous free run with all the characters of the movie is set. It's not a gay-themed movie, but guys, all those young boys at the beginning of the century? So full of life and integrity? Mmm, they gave me idea. And probably they did also to Charlie Cochrane, since the same feelings I had watching that movie, I had reading her books about the Cambridge Fellows. So I'm really happy to have Charlie as guest today, and her list is like an extension of those cherished memories and feelings. Enjoy Charlie's Inside Reader List!

I’ll start with the ‘Caveat emptor’ bit. Before anyone claims I’ve broken the Trades Descriptions Act, I will state here and now that this list of ten ‘novels’ contains one play and a collection of short stories. I’m unrepentant about it.

1) Maurice by E.M. Forster. A work that’s beautifully lyrical, understated and full of wonderful characters; most of the things I’d like to say about Maurice have already been said by better folk than me. I’ll just add one note – this book was written by a gay man, yet it resembles (style, pacing, slowly building and hesitant romance) some of the gay romances which originate from a female pen. To me, it’s one of the great pieces of evidence to counter the ‘men don’t write like women do, they understand gay relationships differently’ argument. Some men clearly do/did think and write this way.

The extent to which Maurice is autobiographical (or at least based on EMF’s experiences) is a matter for debate – the author said that Maurice was very different from him - but I see EMF when I read it….

Paperback: 224 pages
Publisher: Penguin Putnam~trade (June 25, 1992)
ISBN-10: 0140180826
ISBN-13: 978-0140180824
Amazon: Maurice

Completed in 1914, this novel is a condemnation of the repressive attitudes of British society and a plea for emotional and sexual honesty. Aware that its publication would cause a furore, Forster ensured that it did not appear until after his death in 1970.

( books from 2 to 10 )

About Charlie Cochrane: “I write what's mainly a mix of history, romance and mystery - if men falling in love with other men offends you then you won't like my stories.”

Lessons in Seduction by Charlie Cochrane
Publisher: Samhain Publishing (February 16, 2010)
Publisher Link: http://samhainpublishing.com/coming/lessons-in-seduction-2
ISBN-13: 978-1-60504-901-4
Amazon: Lessons in Seduction: Cambridge Fellows Mysteries, Book 6

This time, one touch could destroy everything…

Cambridge Fellows Mysteries, Book 6

The suspected murder of the king’s ex-mistress is Cambridge dons Orlando Coppersmith and Jonty Stewart’s most prestigious case yet. And the most challenging, since clues are as hard to come by as the killer’s possible motive.

At the hotel where the body was found, Orlando goes undercover as a professional dancing partner while Jonty checks in as a guest. It helps the investigation, but it also means limiting their communication to glances across the dance floor. It’s sheer agony.

A series of anonymous letters warns the sleuths they’ll be sorry if they don’t drop the investigation. When another murder follows, Jonty is convinced their involvement might have caused the victim’s death. Yet they can’t stop, for this second killing brings to light a wealth of hidden secrets.

For Orlando, the letters pose a more personal threat. He worries that someone will blow his cover and discover their own deepest secret… The intimate relationship he enjoys with Jonty could not only get them thrown out of Cambridge, but arrested for indecency.

The Inside Reader: Charlie Cochrane

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

One of my most cherished treasure is the Chariots of Fire soundtrack by Vangelis. I also planned to go and visit the beach in St Andrew, Scotland, where the famous free run with all the characters of the movie is set. It's not a gay-themed movie, but guys, all those young boys at the beginning of the century? So full of life and integrity? Mmm, they gave me idea. And probably they did also to Charlie Cochrane, since the same feelings I had watching that movie, I had reading her books about the Cambridge Fellows. So I'm really happy to have Charlie as guest today, and her list is like an extension of those cherished memories and feelings. Enjoy Charlie's Inside Reader List!

I’ll start with the ‘Caveat emptor’ bit. Before anyone claims I’ve broken the Trades Descriptions Act, I will state here and now that this list of ten ‘novels’ contains one play and a collection of short stories. I’m unrepentant about it.

1) Maurice by E.M. Forster. A work that’s beautifully lyrical, understated and full of wonderful characters; most of the things I’d like to say about Maurice have already been said by better folk than me. I’ll just add one note – this book was written by a gay man, yet it resembles (style, pacing, slowly building and hesitant romance) some of the gay romances which originate from a female pen. To me, it’s one of the great pieces of evidence to counter the ‘men don’t write like women do, they understand gay relationships differently’ argument. Some men clearly do/did think and write this way.

The extent to which Maurice is autobiographical (or at least based on EMF’s experiences) is a matter for debate – the author said that Maurice was very different from him - but I see EMF when I read it….

Paperback: 224 pages
Publisher: Penguin Putnam~trade (June 25, 1992)
ISBN-10: 0140180826
ISBN-13: 978-0140180824
Amazon: Maurice

Completed in 1914, this novel is a condemnation of the repressive attitudes of British society and a plea for emotional and sexual honesty. Aware that its publication would cause a furore, Forster ensured that it did not appear until after his death in 1970.

( books from 2 to 10 )

About Charlie Cochrane: “I write what's mainly a mix of history, romance and mystery - if men falling in love with other men offends you then you won't like my stories.”

Lessons in Seduction by Charlie Cochrane
Publisher: Samhain Publishing (February 16, 2010)
Publisher Link: http://samhainpublishing.com/coming/lessons-in-seduction-2
ISBN-13: 978-1-60504-901-4
Amazon: Lessons in Seduction: Cambridge Fellows Mysteries, Book 6

This time, one touch could destroy everything…

Cambridge Fellows Mysteries, Book 6

The suspected murder of the king’s ex-mistress is Cambridge dons Orlando Coppersmith and Jonty Stewart’s most prestigious case yet. And the most challenging, since clues are as hard to come by as the killer’s possible motive.

At the hotel where the body was found, Orlando goes undercover as a professional dancing partner while Jonty checks in as a guest. It helps the investigation, but it also means limiting their communication to glances across the dance floor. It’s sheer agony.

A series of anonymous letters warns the sleuths they’ll be sorry if they don’t drop the investigation. When another murder follows, Jonty is convinced their involvement might have caused the victim’s death. Yet they can’t stop, for this second killing brings to light a wealth of hidden secrets.

For Orlando, the letters pose a more personal threat. He worries that someone will blow his cover and discover their own deepest secret… The intimate relationship he enjoys with Jonty could not only get them thrown out of Cambridge, but arrested for indecency.