2017 Rainbow Awards Honorable Mention: A.M. Arthur As I Am (All Saints #3)

1) The author has written a great story where the MCs find love in spite of their painful pasts.

A.M. Arthur As I Am (All Saints #2)
Gay - Contemporary Romance
Series: All Saints (Book 3)
Mass Market Paperback: 368 pages
Publisher: Carina Press (February 21, 2017)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 133501490X
ISBN-13: 978-1335014900
Amazon: A.M. Arthur As I Am (All Saints #3)

Will Madden is healing.

Thanks to therapy and a growing support system, he's taking baby steps into a promising future. One of those steps leads him to an online chat room, where he quickly bonds with fellow PTSD sufferer Taz Zachary.

Despite their virtual connection, Taz is initially freaked out at the idea of meeting Will face-to-face. A sexual relationship may be the last thing on his mind, but his craving for human interaction—and more of the way Will makes him laugh—gives him the courage he needs to take the next step.

In person, the chemistry between them is undeniable. But Will is hurt when Taz doesn't seem to be in any rush to get him into bed. Still, acceptance, love and happiness all seem within reach for the first time in forever—until demons from the past threaten the future they both finally believe they deserve.

Book three of the All Saints series.

2017 Rainbow Awards Honorable Mention: Mason Winters & Olivette Devaux Like a Rock

1) I was thoroughly invested in the characters and felt I walked in their shoes, or I wanted to. I experienced the story unfold through their eyes and the authors moved me to feel emotions as if I were right there. I can' t praise these books too highly. I was disappointed to finish this book. I want to read more by the authors. I'd like more set in this world and more about these characters.  For me, the one criticism is that I would have liked more detail within each book. These books could have been twice as long, padded with more details about the characters and the settings. It's a credit to the writers that I just wanted to dwell for longer in each scene.

Mason Winters & Olivette Devaux Like a Rock (Disorderly Elements #1)
Gay - Alternative Universe/Reality
File Size: 3066 KB
Print Length: 123 pages
Simultaneous Device Usage: Unlimited
Publisher: Mugen Press (January 14, 2017)
Publication Date: January 14, 2017
Amazon: Mason Winters & Olivette Devaux Like a Rock (Disorderly Elements #1)

WHEN EARTH AND WATER MOVES – Fresh out of school, architect Cooper Anneveinen tends bar by night and chases small clients by day. He sees what lies hidden underground. The unexplained, wild images complicate his life and drive him to seek medical help – but not even antipsychotic drugs make him “normal.”

Ash Ravenna talks to water, and water sometimes obeys his wishes. Using his gift in a pollution clean-up effort, he hires Cooper to help with an old industrial property by the river. The handsome young architect turns his crank like nobody else – and his hidden talent is an unexpected asset.

Ash hopes to teach Cooper control over his newfound earth-sense. Cooper puts everything on the line to learn. All goes well, until their their sizzling chemistry throws them a curve neither expects. If Cooper fails, more than just their love is on the line.

LIKE A ROCK is a paranormal gay romance adventure with explicit scenes and a happy ending.

2017 Rainbow Awards Honorable Mention: Mason Winters & Olivette Devaux Like a Torrent

1) I was thoroughly invested in the characters and felt I walked in their shoes, or I wanted to. I experienced the story unfold through their eyes and the authors moved me to feel emotions as if I were right there. I can' t praise these books too highly. I was disappointed to finish this book. I want to read more by the authors. I'd like more set in this world and more about these characters.  For me, the one criticism is that I would have liked more detail within each book. These books could have been twice as long, padded with more details about the characters and the settings. It's a credit to the writers that I just wanted to dwell for longer in each scene.

Mason Winters & Olivette Devaux Like a Torrent (Disorderly Elements #2)
Gay - Alternative Universe/Reality
File Size: 3041 KB
Print Length: 171 pages
Publisher: Mugen Press; 1 edition (June 25, 2017)
Publication Date: June 25, 2017
Amazon: Mason Winters & Olivette Devaux Like a Torrent (Disorderly Elements #2)

Navigating a new relationship? Hard. Doing so as an ill-trained elementalist? Impossible – but odds improve when well-meaning family steps in.
Ash, the water-whisperer, and Cooper, the earth elementalist, seek help from Cooper’s grandparents while at their small farm in upstate New York. Fessing up to grandma might lessen the horror of their power control issues. When Ash and Cooper are together, the earth moves and the rivers rise to flood stage.
Keeping their relationship going without leveling the city pales in comparison to facing off with the greedy Brian Clegg and his gang. Brian works for the environmentally destructive frackers, threatening Pittsburgh like never before.
Two men. Their love. Their leadership. Will they rise to the occasion? And will Pittsburgh survive their struggle to set an evil deed to rest?
Book 2 in the Disorderly Elements series, LIKE A TORRENT features paranormal battles, a spicy romance with two hot guys in love, and a Japanese sword with a mind of its own. For adult audiences only.

2017 Rainbow Awards Honorable Mention: Smoking Mirror Pelaam

1) Stunning world building and compeling descriptions, an intriguing premise of an coexisting Aztec Empire and modern but victorian England. Only reason its not gathering more points from me its because I felt the initial overwhelming attraction between the two main characters a bit sudden on Draco's side. In the end, that meant just more fun for us, the readers, when the slow burn took over. I warmly recommend this book, great read.
2) Really enjoyed the steampunk aspects and the alternative Aztec Empire world-building.

Smoking Mirror Pelaam
Gay - Sci-Fi / Futuristic
Paperback: 286 pages
Publisher: Fireborn Publishing, LLC. (August 3, 2017)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 194600491X
ISBN-13: 978-1946004918
Amazon: Smoking Mirror Pelaam

When Draco attends a ball held by the Aztec emperor to celebrate his victory over sky pirates, Draco meets the attractive and enigmatic Yolotli. However, a vindictive act sees Draco forced to captain a unique ship, the Nephele. The first ship designed to sail the oceans of space, and built by the combined forces of the British and Aztec Empires. Draco is obligated to take Yolotli with him, bound under an oath by the emperor. Their lives, as well as their burgeoning love, are beset with dangers neither man could imagine. Even if they survive the mission, their love may not endure when the truth is revealed.

2017 Rainbow Awards Honorable Mention: To Love and To Cherish Addison Albright

1) The perfect light read, with the plot taking enough unexpected twists and turns that the story got never boring. Very nice. :-)
2) This book was nearly a perfect romance in my opinion. Good plot development with trope twists that somehow managed to be surprising and fresh. Setting was generaly well developed, but accent was on character development and wow, author did a great job of it too! It had funny parts, alert dialogue/ plot development, in the same time keeping track of the emotional part too. Great book, good job! A 'stayed all night to read it' book if you like fluffy believable romances like I do.

To Love and To Cherish Addison Albright
Gay - Contemporary Romance
Paperback: 224 pages
Publisher: JMS Books (November 26, 2016)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1539675270
ISBN-13: 978-1539675273
Amazon: To Love and To Cherish Addison Albright

Companion to Til Death Do Us Part

Jilted by his fiancé two weeks before their wedding, Nash Marino’s outlook on life in general, and love in particular, is jaded. After months of couch-surfing, Nash is fed up. He’s sick and tired of his living conditions, worn out by the demands of his nursing job, and despairs of ever finding love again. In fact, he doesn’t think he’s capable of true love. Monogamy, commitment, companionship, and regular sex ... that’s all he wants, and the sooner, the better.

When Nash crosses paths with a like-minded man who’s also in need of a live-in nurse for a beloved relative, Nash figures all his problems are solved. But matters are complicated by a freak accident and amnesia. When Nash’s marriage of convenience scheme is muddied by notions of love after his memory reboot, will their plans go awry, or will Nash’s new outlook on life be just what the doctor ordered?

2017 Rainbow Awards Honorable Mention: Adrift (Staying Afloat #1) Isabelle Adler

1) I must admit I’m a sucker for a good sci fi book. I really liked this story. It’s one I’ll read again and will go back and buy to have on my kindle. I’ll also be keeping an eye out for future books in this series.
2) An entertaining SciFi space adventure with just a hint of gay romance, a plot that worked, and a contrast between the main characters that generated interest and sparks. Looking forward to the next in the series.
3) Clever, well thought plot with fast paced action. A strong developed bisexual male character in an everchanging sci fi setting, a book filled with twists and turns, some of them yet to be taken advantage off and promissing good things in regard to later books in the same universe. There are still plenty of questions left unanswered and information just not used yet so the possibilities for follow ups are there and shining. That being said, this book has a satisfactory conclusion, interesting debates and is an interesting read. The relationship between the main characters was a bit too sudden and at times I would have welcomed the Ryce's perspective too but Matt observations did a good enough job of setting things clear.  You can feel that it's not a romace or anything else but a sci-fi, futuristic space opera and it works. Great read. Will be watching for the next one.

Adrift (Staying Afloat #1) Isabelle Adler
Bisexual - Sci-Fi / Futuristic
Series: Staying Afloat
Paperback: 192 pages
Publisher: NineStar Press (January 26, 2017)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1945952555
ISBN-13: 978-1945952555
Amazon: Adrift (Staying Afloat #1) Isabelle Adler

Some jobs are just too good to be true. Captain Matt Spears learns this the hard way after a mysterious employer hires his ship to hunt down an ancient alien artifact but insists on providing his own pilot. Ryce Faine is handsome and smart, but Matt has rarely met anyone more obnoxious. With tensions running high, it isn’t until they are attacked by the hostile Alraki that Matt grudgingly begins to respect Ryce’s superior skills, respect that transforms into a tentative attraction. Little did he know that their biggest challenge would be reaching their destination, an abandoned alien base located on a distant moon amid a dense asteroid field. But when Matt learns that Ryce isn’t completely who he says he is and the artifact is more than he bargained for, he is faced with a difficult choice. One that might change the balance of forces in the known galaxy. Matt doesn’t take well to moral dilemmas; he prefers the easy way out. But that might not be possible anymore, when his past comes back to haunt him at the worst possible moment. When faced with a notorious pirate carrying a personal grudge, the fragile connection Matt has formed with Ryce might be the only thing that he can count on to save them both.