The Inside Reader: Ethan Day

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

I think that, if I was a gay man, I would be like Ethan Day ;-) No, I'm not turning into a stalker, it's only that, I believe to have a lot in common with Ethan, the love for good comedy, both in books than movies, above all. And I think that we "want" to believe in romance and happily ever after, and we want to see the good in people, or at least we try. So, I'm more than happy to guest Ethan and his list today. Enjoy!

Before settling in for my Inside Reader, I wanted to extend my thanks to Elisa for allowing me to post some of my own reviews and ramblings on her site.

For my ten list I wanted to cut through all the criteria that I hope and pray make it into every book I write: great characterization, romance, and to emotionally move the reader – whether it be with a few laughs or a few tears. Getting down to the very basic thing I want more than anything else, which is to entertain the reader. I always cross my fingers, hoping that reading one of my books is like going out on a really great date. And with any luck, have the reader ready to turn around and go out with me again.

With that thought in mind, I sat down and chose ten books (more actually as several are part of a series) which fit that criteria for me as a reader. They aren’t listed in any particular order so much as how they came to me when I sat down to write this. Let me also say that I’ve stumbled across a great many wonderful authors throughout 2009, which was a particularly good year for me, considering I was fortunate enough to have a few books of my own published. Some of those writers are on this list – to the great many that aren’t – keeping in mind the limitation of ten books – don’t hate me because you didn’t fit! : )

1) Midnight in the Garden of Good & Evil by John Berendt – Despite not being fiction, I think one of the best lesson’s I learned as a writer from reading this book, was how important a colorful secondary cast of characters could be. I was so entertained by the southern charm of all the quirky characters that I continuously had to keep reminding myself that someone had been murdered! The movie version of course sucked-ass due to the Hollywood cliché of inserting a het-romance in some lame attempt to dial down the homosexuality, but the book is a gem and the cast of real-life characters, the envy of this writer. Who knew real people could be so interesting? : )

Paperback: 400 pages
Publisher: Vintage (June 28, 1999)
Publisher Link: http://www.randomhouse.com/catalog/display.pperl?isbn=9780679751526
ISBN-10: 0679751521
ISBN-13: 978-0679751526
Amazon: Midnight in the Garden of Good & Evil

Shots rang out in Savannah's grandest mansion in the misty,early morning hours of May 2, 1981. Was it murder or self-defense? For nearly a decade, the shooting and its aftermath reverberated throughout this hauntingly beautiful city of moss-hung oaks and shaded squares. John Berendt's sharply observed, suspenseful, and witty narrative reads like a thoroughly engrossing novel, and yet it is a work of nonfiction. Berendt skillfully interweaves a hugely entertaining first-person account of life in this isolated remnant of the Old South with the unpredictable twists and turns of a landmark murder case. It is a spellbinding story peopled by a gallery of remarkable characters: the well-bred society ladies of the Married Woman's Card Club; the turbulent young redneck gigolo; the hapless recluse who owns a bottle of poison so powerful it could kill every man, woman, and child in Savannah; the aging and profane Southern belle who is the "soul of pampered self-absorption"; the uproariously funny black drag queen; the acerbic and arrogant antiques dealer; the sweet-talking, piano-playing con artist; young blacks dancing the minuet at the black debutante ball; and Minerva, the voodoo priestess who works her magic in the graveyard at midnight. These and other Savannahians act as a Greek chorus, with Berendt revealing the alliances, hostilities, and intrigues that thrive in a town where everyone knows everyone else. Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil is a sublime and seductive reading experience. Brilliantly conceived and masterfully written, this enormously engaging portrait of a most beguiling Southern city has become a modern classic.

2) First You Fall: A Kevin Connor Mystery by Scott Sherman – I found this author after reading a review he wrote of one of my books on Amazon. I hadn’t read his book at the time I e-mailed to thank him for his kindness. It was something I soon rectified and was so happy I did. Kevin Connor is sweet, sexy, funny, and a hooker? A combination I never would have imagined would’ve worked for me had Sherman not decided to put pen to paper. What made this story so fresh was the fact that Kevin’s career path wasn't the focus of the story. Sherman created a delightfully fun, frisky, and at times laugh-out-loud funny book. A second installment should soon be available, and I for one, can’t wait to fall all over again.

Paperback: 224 pages
Publisher: Alyson Books (June 1, 2008)
Publisher Link: http://www.alyson.com/9781593500597.html
ISBN-10: 1593500599
ISBN-13: 978-1593500597
Amazon: First You Fall

When his friend’s death is ruled a suicide, Kevin Connor—a hustler by trade, sleuth by default—sets out to prove a case of murder. It doesn’t help matters that the victim’s grown children, who disapproved of their father’s gay lifestyle, are only concerned about their inheritance. But they are not Kevin’s only problem. His high-strung mother has moved in with him—and she knows nothing about his questionable . . . job. Scott Sherman has written for Newsweek, Genre, Instinct, and The Washington Blade. He is the host of the number-one rated The Digital Photography Show on The Podcast Network.

( books from 3 to 10 )

About Ethan Day: “I am a gay man living in Missouri...I can hear the gasps already!! How very un-chic of me, yes I know. It was here I was born and here I have stayed.

I'm currently single but always looking for that special someone that makes my heart skip a beat...in addition to being able to put up with my neurotic ass. The worst thing about being a romance writer is finding a real life hottie that can live up to the fantasy I create in my head and subsequently thrust upon him before actually getting to know the real him. I can hear you getting all judgie...it's an occupational hazard!! To all my past and future boyfriends, my sincerest apologies...I can't help myself!

I was the youngest of four children and the only boy, so needless to say, I was spoiled rotten. I've always had an extravagant fantasy life. When I played with my Star Wars action figures as a child, I liked to make up my own stories. Naturally, Luke Skywalker and Han Solo were totally meant for each other, and Princess Leia made a bitchin' wise cracking Fag Hag.

I somehow managed to survive high school living in a small racist town in Southeast Missouri and emerged unscathed, realizing life was too short to pretend to be anything other than who I was. I was the little homo that could...so damn it, I did! It was all very Lifetime Movie Network meets After School Special I assure you.

After a few stints in college, I eventually signed up for a Creative Writing course. I took the class because there were no tests. For once my scholastic laziness paid off, and I found an outlet for all the fantasies running amuck in my head. It was love at first write, and I've been doing it off and on ever since.

Now I've decided its time to un-barricade the doors and unleash my imagination onto the world. So very sorry world!! With the help of the lovely and talented team at Loose Id and MLR Press, my fantasy life is now available for public consumption. I'm desperately hoping your really, really hungry.”

Dreaming of You by Ethan Day
Paperback: 248 pages
Publisher: Loose Id, LLC (September 28, 2009)
Publisher Link: http://www.loose-id.com/Dreaming-of-You.aspx
ISBN-10: 1607374161
ISBN-13: 978-1607374169
Amazon: Dreaming of You

Restaurateur Aden Ingle has been in love with the perfect man since his fourteenth birthday. Unfortunately, his perfect boyfriend only exists in his dreams. But Aden’s always believed it was his destiny to meet his dream man, and he's perfectly content to wait around for him to walk into his real life. When he meets Logan Price at a Hotel/Restaurant Trade Show, he finds himself drawn to this man who shakes him out of his dream world. Pretty soon, the flesh and blood reality is becoming more appealing than the fantasy. The only problem is Logan lives half way across the country in California. Aden's going to have to choose whether to give up everything he’s built for himself professionally and uproot his whole life for Logan, or wait for the man from his dreams to become a reality.

Enter Sandman by Leigh Ellwood

Take a very normal event, especially in today crisis era, insomnia, and turn it in a paranormal experience.

As the title suggests, this is the introduction story of a new series, Crane, nickname Sandman, is a sleep therapist, a man who, with some special oils and his wonderful hands, helps people find the lost sleep. And if, in doing so, he also frees the environment from some nasty demons, well, it’s not mandatory that the unwilling guests of those demons are aware of that.

Len is a very worried accountant: he is preparing a financial report for the firm he works for, and depending on the results in that report, other people will loose or not their jobs. Not exactly a good position for Len, and all the stress is turning in him losing sleep. One Friday night his friends literally drag him on their usual nightclub, and here Len has the chance to speak with his dreamdate, Andrew Gibbons, nickname Gibbs. Typical, when you are at the lower level of your attractiveness, the man you are dreaming on for months decide to pay you attention. But Gibbs apparently is not searching for a one night stand; instead he is offering Len with a solution to his problem, the help of The Sandman, a very special friend.

It’s only a short story, and I think that the author is using it only as preface for the real story: Len and Gibbs are not even the true main characters, Crane and Sven are. This is like a transition step, the link between reality, represented by Len and his sleep problem, and the otherworld, Crane and his hunt for the sleep demons. Being like that, even if there is the hint of paranormal, this short story is still more on the reality side, Len is still a very normal man, with a very normal crush on Gibbs, and Gibbs, even if he knows someone special to help Len, is still more interesting in Len as a man, and in Len’s body, than in any paranormal event. So the wrap up is an ordinary one, a lazy Saturday late morning / early afternoon in bed, two new lovers and their possible future right there, at hand reach; the unordinary stuff is delayed to the next appointment.

http://www.king-cart.com/Phaze/product=Enter+Sandman/exact_match=exact

Buy at 1 Romance Ebooks

Amazon Kindle: Enter Sandman

Reading List:

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

Enter Sandman by Leigh Ellwood

Take a very normal event, especially in today crisis era, insomnia, and turn it in a paranormal experience.

As the title suggests, this is the introduction story of a new series, Crane, nickname Sandman, is a sleep therapist, a man who, with some special oils and his wonderful hands, helps people find the lost sleep. And if, in doing so, he also frees the environment from some nasty demons, well, it’s not mandatory that the unwilling guests of those demons are aware of that.

Len is a very worried accountant: he is preparing a financial report for the firm he works for, and depending on the results in that report, other people will loose or not their jobs. Not exactly a good position for Len, and all the stress is turning in him losing sleep. One Friday night his friends literally drag him on their usual nightclub, and here Len has the chance to speak with his dreamdate, Andrew Gibbons, nickname Gibbs. Typical, when you are at the lower level of your attractiveness, the man you are dreaming on for months decide to pay you attention. But Gibbs apparently is not searching for a one night stand; instead he is offering Len with a solution to his problem, the help of The Sandman, a very special friend.

It’s only a short story, and I think that the author is using it only as preface for the real story: Len and Gibbs are not even the true main characters, Crane and Sven are. This is like a transition step, the link between reality, represented by Len and his sleep problem, and the otherworld, Crane and his hunt for the sleep demons. Being like that, even if there is the hint of paranormal, this short story is still more on the reality side, Len is still a very normal man, with a very normal crush on Gibbs, and Gibbs, even if he knows someone special to help Len, is still more interesting in Len as a man, and in Len’s body, than in any paranormal event. So the wrap up is an ordinary one, a lazy Saturday late morning / early afternoon in bed, two new lovers and their possible future right there, at hand reach; the unordinary stuff is delayed to the next appointment.

http://www.king-cart.com/Phaze/product=Enter+Sandman/exact_match=exact

Buy at 1 Romance Ebooks

Amazon Kindle: Enter Sandman

Reading List:

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

Tommy Femia stars in NORMA DOESMEN by Stephen M. Stahl

My friend Ryan Field (ryan_field) sent me the link to a very interesting Broadway's show, Norma Doesmen. Both actor, Tommy Femia, than director, Stephen M. Stahl, live in New Hope, between NYC and Philadelphia, a little town I had the pleasure to visit last September. Obviously I don't have the change to see it, but I'm gladly recommend my friends to go.



Stephen Maxamillion Stahl, award winning film and theatre director, producer, writer and teacher has been called "a superb artist" who fills his work with "sincerity and passion", according to critics worldwide. For more than 30 years this Philadelphia native has been delighting audiences with his powerful direction and writing as well as sharing his knowledge and experience with students of all ages. To read more about him: http://www.stephenstahl.com/

Tommy Femia, the 7-time Manhattan Association of Cabarets & Clubs (MAC) Award-winning impersonator, is a mainstay of Manhattan’s top clubs and concerts nationwide with his incomparable portrayal of the legendary Judy Garland. He made his Off Broadway debut in The New American at The Nat Horne Theatre, and toured the country, as “Linus” in You're A Good Man Charlie Brown. In Bucks County, he appeared as “Tallulah Bankhead” in the musical Tallulah! and in New York City as “Bette Davis” in A Very Bette Christmas. He also starred in the hit Off Broadway production of the Drama Desk Award-winning Whoop-Dee-Doo! at the Actors' Playhouse, and starred as Judy Garland in the one-man show I Will Come Back at The Players Theatre. Television credits include: "The Facts of Life," "One Day at a Time," "The Montel Williams Show," CNBC's "Real Personal" with Bob Berkowitz, "The Jane Whitney Show" and he co-hosted a special edition of "Geraldo" with Geraldo Rivera.

NORMA DOESMEN
Written and directed by Stephen M. Stahl
Through March 28th
At the Abingdon Theatre
(112 West 36th Street, sixth floor)
For tickets, call 212-868-4444

If you want to read more: http://www.chelseanow.com/articles/2010/03/11/arts/doc4b994a02adb92768206112.txt

Tommy Femia stars in NORMA DOESMEN by Stephen M. Stahl

My friend Ryan Field (ryan_field) sent me the link to a very interesting Broadway's show, Norma Doesmen. Both actor, Tommy Femia, than director, Stephen M. Stahl, live in New Hope, between NYC and Philadelphia, a little town I had the pleasure to visit last September. Obviously I don't have the change to see it, but I'm gladly recommend my friends to go.



Stephen Maxamillion Stahl, award winning film and theatre director, producer, writer and teacher has been called "a superb artist" who fills his work with "sincerity and passion", according to critics worldwide. For more than 30 years this Philadelphia native has been delighting audiences with his powerful direction and writing as well as sharing his knowledge and experience with students of all ages. To read more about him: http://www.stephenstahl.com/

Tommy Femia, the 7-time Manhattan Association of Cabarets & Clubs (MAC) Award-winning impersonator, is a mainstay of Manhattan’s top clubs and concerts nationwide with his incomparable portrayal of the legendary Judy Garland. He made his Off Broadway debut in The New American at The Nat Horne Theatre, and toured the country, as “Linus” in You're A Good Man Charlie Brown. In Bucks County, he appeared as “Tallulah Bankhead” in the musical Tallulah! and in New York City as “Bette Davis” in A Very Bette Christmas. He also starred in the hit Off Broadway production of the Drama Desk Award-winning Whoop-Dee-Doo! at the Actors' Playhouse, and starred as Judy Garland in the one-man show I Will Come Back at The Players Theatre. Television credits include: "The Facts of Life," "One Day at a Time," "The Montel Williams Show," CNBC's "Real Personal" with Bob Berkowitz, "The Jane Whitney Show" and he co-hosted a special edition of "Geraldo" with Geraldo Rivera.

NORMA DOESMEN
Written and directed by Stephen M. Stahl
Through March 28th
At the Abingdon Theatre
(112 West 36th Street, sixth floor)
For tickets, call 212-868-4444

If you want to read more: http://www.chelseanow.com/articles/2010/03/11/arts/doc4b994a02adb92768206112.txt

From Afar by Ava March

Regency Vampires is a very thriving genre, and usually the stories are quite gothic and dark, and not only since, obviously, they are set at night. Reading the blurb of From Afar I was expecting nothing different, the story of the vampire Raphael and his unrequited love for nobleman Aleric; Raphael is forced to turn Aleric when the man is mortally wounded by some thieves and now he fears the man will hate him.

But since the beginning, the story reveals to be quite different from expected. First, it begins with a very sexy scene, Raphael perched on a tree spying Aleric with a female prostitute… well, yes, it’s a sexy scene, especially when Raphael starts to masturbate, but indeed I was also worried for Raphael’s safety, wondering if he was risking to fall down the tree. I don’t know but this scene revealed a lot of Raphael, of how, despite being a 36 years old vampire, he is really still the young 21 years old boy he was when turned. Raphael is not a strong and mourning vampire; he is instead a young man who is searching for love. 3 years before he fell in love for Aleric, but like a very “ordinary” unrequited love, he has never had the courage to reach for it; truth be told, I felt like what restrains Raphael is more the moral sin, they are both men, than the vampire thing: even if Raphael was human, I think that he the same would not acknowledge his existence to Aleric.

When he is forced to turn Aleric to save his life, at first Raphael feels guilty; he did nothing to mortally wound Aleric, but indeed it was a good chance for him. But then to Aleric takes very few time to accommodate to his new status, maybe helped in that from the fact that he was totally destitute, without any real chance, and if not for Raphael’s independent wealth, he would have no idea how to pay his debts. It’s not clearly stated, but this is a winning turn of the evens for Aleric from all perspectives: Aleric has always had forbidden desires for men, but he has never had the courage to really indulge in them… now he has an handsome young man all for himself; Aleric has no money and no way to gain them, and instead Raphael has plenty; Raphael feels guilty for turning Aleric and so he is willing to grant any whim of the man.

There are odd but very nice contrapositions in the story: Aleric is the nobleman, but it’s Raphael who has the money; Aleric is the less experience in man love of the two, but he is the one who is more sexually driven to explore; Raphael, turned at 21 years old and with 36 years of experience as vampire, is the oldest between them, but it’s Gabriel who seems to be the “leader” in the relationship (even if, as I said just before, it’s Raphael who has the money). All of them (and maybe some other I forgot), make the characters multilayered and original, and so, even if this is only a novella that spans for only 2 nights in the life of the men, it has a wider breath.

http://samhainpublishing.com/romance/from-afar

Amazon Kindle: From Afar

Reading List:

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

From Afar by Ava March

Regency Vampires is a very thriving genre, and usually the stories are quite gothic and dark, and not only since, obviously, they are set at night. Reading the blurb of From Afar I was expecting nothing different, the story of the vampire Raphael and his unrequited love for nobleman Aleric; Raphael is forced to turn Aleric when the man is mortally wounded by some thieves and now he fears the man will hate him.

But since the beginning, the story reveals to be quite different from expected. First, it begins with a very sexy scene, Raphael perched on a tree spying Aleric with a female prostitute… well, yes, it’s a sexy scene, especially when Raphael starts to masturbate, but indeed I was also worried for Raphael’s safety, wondering if he was risking to fall down the tree. I don’t know but this scene revealed a lot of Raphael, of how, despite being a 36 years old vampire, he is really still the young 21 years old boy he was when turned. Raphael is not a strong and mourning vampire; he is instead a young man who is searching for love. 3 years before he fell in love for Aleric, but like a very “ordinary” unrequited love, he has never had the courage to reach for it; truth be told, I felt like what restrains Raphael is more the moral sin, they are both men, than the vampire thing: even if Raphael was human, I think that he the same would not acknowledge his existence to Aleric.

When he is forced to turn Aleric to save his life, at first Raphael feels guilty; he did nothing to mortally wound Aleric, but indeed it was a good chance for him. But then to Aleric takes very few time to accommodate to his new status, maybe helped in that from the fact that he was totally destitute, without any real chance, and if not for Raphael’s independent wealth, he would have no idea how to pay his debts. It’s not clearly stated, but this is a winning turn of the evens for Aleric from all perspectives: Aleric has always had forbidden desires for men, but he has never had the courage to really indulge in them… now he has an handsome young man all for himself; Aleric has no money and no way to gain them, and instead Raphael has plenty; Raphael feels guilty for turning Aleric and so he is willing to grant any whim of the man.

There are odd but very nice contrapositions in the story: Aleric is the nobleman, but it’s Raphael who has the money; Aleric is the less experience in man love of the two, but he is the one who is more sexually driven to explore; Raphael, turned at 21 years old and with 36 years of experience as vampire, is the oldest between them, but it’s Gabriel who seems to be the “leader” in the relationship (even if, as I said just before, it’s Raphael who has the money). All of them (and maybe some other I forgot), make the characters multilayered and original, and so, even if this is only a novella that spans for only 2 nights in the life of the men, it has a wider breath.

http://samhainpublishing.com/romance/from-afar

Amazon Kindle: From Afar

Reading List:

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