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Good sexy story, maybe I was a little sad to see it end so soon, it’s a novella length and it’s basically all developed around 3 encounters between short-tempered Irish-American cop Brendan, and naïve and inexperienced doctor Stephen.Brendan is hot, but not exactly a dream-date and indeed his current boyfriend dumps him; doesn’t matter Brendan was thinking to do the same, when that happens he needs to prove a point and he decides to kidnap Kent in a closet and teach him a lesson. But the one kidnapped is not Kent, but Stephen. This is an erotic romance bordering in erotica, and so the focus is the sex; it will not be a one night stands for Brendan and Stephen, but the authors didn’t indulge in the details of how they plan to date or the anticipation of their meetings, and instead focus on what they do when they are alone, i.e., sex!
For me it’s a first time of both authors, and there is definitely a lot I like in their styles, Brendan is a faulted hero, the one I preferred. There is no drama in this story, but you understand that Brendan has the potential to be a beautiful troubled romance hero. If I have to find a fault in him, and in the story, is the hint of threesome (m/m/m) at the end of the novel: I didn’t know enough the characters, and the evolution of their story, to be able to understand if they were ready for that.
Amazon Kindle: Manhandled
Publisher: Lyonnesse (April 26, 2012)
Updates: http://www.goodreads.com/user/updates_rs
I really enjoyed the third, and for now, last installment in this series, Xavi comes out like this hedonistic, but so cute, top from the bottom character that is able to conquer Andreas’s heart completely and unavoidably.
Once you understand this is not a realistic cop/thriller novel but a comedy, then you are ready to read it, and as comedy goes, it’s pretty good.
In perfect harmony with all the series that is now a classic among the gay romance fans, The Red Zone plays again the card of the hot cop falling in love for the younger college student who needs to be reined (a little like the story of Preston and Wyatt). Actually Sebastian Price is Wyatt’s former boyfriend, the one that in Wyatt’s story doesn’t make a really good impression on the readers: he is abusive, prone to shifts in moods that make him unreliable. Only that now Sebastian is trying to make amend, and he is involved in various supporting groups for LGBT youths, plus he is the quarterback of his college football team. Being him on the spotlight as poster gay boy is also making him an easy target for homophobic pranks that escalate in danger, until the time police is involved and Nicholas Stevens enters the scene. A werewolf, he soon recognizes Sebastian as his mate.
At first I wasn’t sure about the novel, usually cop novels are more gritty, almost dry; this one was light and funny, more like a college frat boys story. Indeed State trooper Ethan Brandt has to go undercover as a college student, and he was picked for the job basically cause he is 24 years old and looking younger, and fit and hot, that is another must if you have to bust a pay-per-view website.
Hill Valley is like a town without time, like one of those Christmas villages insider a crystal bowl, perfect and beautiful, but tiny and fragile. This was my feeling reading this story, that Zach ended in a fairy tale place, but the story is not a fantasy and maybe these small towns still exist. Place where people care for each other, where the town cop really works for the community.
If I’m not wrong, More is the first book I read by Sloan Parker, long back ago, and so, sincerely, when I started this one, How to Save a Life, I didn’t remember of Walter Simon. It didn’t ring something, but admittedly, I avoid to read reviews and co, and in the blurb there was no connection; I was well into the story when we meet Matthew and Luke and suddenly everything was clear. Also was clear why I was enjoying this so much, indeed I liked a lot More, one of the first ménages a trois that rang true to my ears.
What I admired most of this story is how the author managed to mix mystery/thriller with erotic romance, having both side strong in equal measure. When we are not reading about the relationship between Gavin and Ben, the tone is dry and clean, and the plot developed in a smooth way; when the story starts, Gavin is married, and sincerely I wasn’t able to see how the author could make his interest for Ben legit without falling in a cheating husband situation. I will not give out the story, but enough to say that my worries were not only completely dispelled, she also managed to have Gavin out as a winner with flaming colors.
A very nice reverse cinderfella theme, meaning that, the Prince Charming here is the one needing to be rescue by the “peasant”. Gavin Montgomery is the middle son of a very wealthy family; his older brother is already presenting the good boy façade for the society, and his younger sisters are one the rebel and the second the social/political climber… no stereotype remains for Gavin who is basically living in the shadow. Sure he is gay, but in today modern “good” society, that is no more a scandal, above all when his father decided that could be a good promo and became a supporter of Marriage Equality.
Nice and easy romance, went down smoothly like a drink of fresh water in summer; yes, that was the feeling, something good, not exotic, but nevertheless satisfying; Justin is a cop, but just an ordinary one, not an hero, even if, most of the things he does are hero stuff, like saving a school bus full of children, or assisting people injured in a car accident: those acts can make the first page of the local paper, but they are soon forgotten to the bigger audience, but not to whom those acts saved the life.
This is the second book centering on the same characters, Roan McKichan and Dylan, in a series that is at its fourth chapter, so yes, I paused before deciding to directly read this one skipping the others. Sincerely I don’t have the feeling I missed anything in the story, maybe I would have liked to read how Roan and Dylan met, I suppose that is in the previous book, but nevertheless the story plot in this one is complete.
Romance in full swing. That is probably the entire review in 4 words, but I will add more, don’t worry. Christie (that despite the name and the looks is a man) is the unexpectedly single father of Frankie, unexpected since a) Christie is completely gay and b) he was supposed to be only the biological father, a favour he was doing to his best friend Caro and her partner Liss. But then Caro and Liss died in a car accident and Christie is the father of Frankie, and of course he has to take care of her, doesn’t matter Christie is a career soldier soon to be deployed. He strikes the lottery when he meets State Trooper Robert Lindstrom, that not only is the Norwegian god the name suggests, he is also ready to be part of an already made family and has a lot of relatives ready to give an hand if necessary.
This novel is dark and gritty, very hard to digest, and it’s more a cop novel than a romance, and that is probably an advice I’m passing to many readers: if you want something real, something that, even if it’s giving you a romance, it’s not forgetting this is real life you are reading about, than Latin Boyz is the novel. It’s not making no discount, and it’s targeting you heart, for good and bad.
A light historical romp on a Gentleman Thief, the 1930s prototype of a twink and an handsome detective… and no, don’t worry, this is not a ménages a trois.
Very short and sexy story about yet another Rawlings man, an English family whose men seem to have two characteristic in common: being constable and gay with a penchant for BDSM kinky sex. But this time there is a difference, this Rawlings man, Dane, is petite and almost feminine; only that you have not to mistaken him for weak, he is also a boxing champion. This time the constable is Ross, one of Dane’s cousins colleague and to return the favour to the family he babysits Dane one night when the man is involved in an arson accident. From babysit to dinner to hot sex the time is short and the passion burning brighter and brighter. But with Dane is not possible to have a casual fling, first of all since Ross needs to gain Dane’s trust, and it’s not simple, and second since, once he goes beyond Dane’s barrier, he meets the strong wall that is Dane’s family, with them it’s full commitment or nothing.
It’s not the first time Dorien Grey manages to have me worry for a character who we readers haven’t really met. I think last time was for the missing man of His Name is John, and this time is Victor, the man Dick Hardesty is hired to find. From pieces of info here and there, it comes out the character of a man I wouldn’t have minded to know, and I bet you will be moved almost to tear when you will reach to toy truck point and its sad story. As often in a Dorien Grey’s mystery, the pace is quiet more than hurried, and it’s mostly a thing of Dick meetings and having lunch with a variety of different men, from former lovers, friends, suspects and so on. The net of people around Dick Hardesty is tight and filled like a metro at hit time, and he has an ace for every occasion.
It’s strange since I didn’t usually like too much thriller, especially not when there are a lot of killings and blood, but I have to say that I quite enjoyed Dirty Kiss. Maybe since the love story was oddly sweet, oddly since you don’t expect sweetness among all that blood, but Cole and Jae managed to maintain their love story, in a way, innocent. Now the innocent is not about the lack of sex, on the contrary the sex is there, and it’s good, but it was more about their feelings, and their expectations, they were mostly behaving like teenager with their first love, tentative and sometime even stupid, but nevertheless in love.
The second in the Fool’s Odyssey trilogy if for me the better for now; I liked the previous book, but if I remember well the romance was not as much developed as it’s in this one. Andreas and Xavi are now a couple, Xavi went under the transition that made him a vampire, but he has not yet learned the boundaries of this new situation, and of course, as soon as Andreas has to leave him for a few days, he got himself into trouble.
When I started Tomorrow’s Headline, I had the feeling I opened the wrong book. Sure the names were mostly the same, but the story was completely different from the once I imagined reading the blurb. The blurb implied a mystery/thriller/adventure novel, implied, more or less, a romance between suspected murderer Mike Andrews and police detective Alex Barone, and that was good, I was all for this plot, but that was not where the novel seemed to lead. Sure Mike is the main suspect in the murder of Allison, but we also know, since the author is clear on that, that Mike is innocent since he was with his lover Ryan the night of the murder. Sure, one of my thesis was that Ryan was lying to protect Mike, but in any case, Mike’s love interest was all for Ryan, no space for Alex whatsoever. Plus also Ryan seemed a really nice man, very much in love with Mike, so I would have been pissed if in the end, Mike dumped him for someone else.
I usually prefer to start a series from the beginning, but in this case my feelings are mixed: I really liked the main character Tim Snow and I’d love to read about him in the previous 3 books, but I have also learned some info on his past that make me reluctant to revisit it. I will not going into specifics since it would spoil who is willing to go back to that 3 books, enough to say that at the beginning of this book, Tim is in a long-term relationship with Nick (they are talking of getting married) and I suppose they met in Russian River Rat (Nick is from up there) and Tim is recovering from an accident that, again, I think was part of the previous book plot.
M. Christian started with a mystery and ended with a psychological thriller. There is a mad man out there picking gay men, drugging them and cutting their pinkie finger. Nothing else. It doesn’t seem a great crime, but it’s still a crime, and the police had to investigate. Problem is that the only main trait of all victims is to be gay, aside from that they are black and white, young and old, poor and rich. People is scared, private clubs close down every day and in the meantime, day after day, a new victim joins the club… since now, being a victim of the Cutter is trendy, if you are not one, then probably you have something wrong. Now it’s not only the police that is searching for the Cutter, they are the same victims who WANT to be found. In a kind of ironic twist, the villain becomes the hero, and the reader starts to understand that everyone can be the villain, as everyone could have been the victim.
A Change of Tune is pretty much a story of good feelings and happily ever after, there is no drama, no angst, only love, passion and plenty of fun.
I’m not sure I liked Bryn, the Magick Club owner, as I’m not sure I like Detective Rutland, the police officer who has the task to investigate on a murder happened behind the club. Both of them have an attitude towards life and people that I found a little disturbing, since it seemed detached. But then you start to pick some details, like how Bryn is almost a protector for the ones working with him (he is more than ready to defend them when Detective Rutland starts questioning around), or like the same Detective Rutland (gay) talks about Nick, the young man hanging around Magick Club, clearly turning tricks to live, and no, he is not talking about him in a sexual way (or maybe a little) but more like someone who is regretting to see a young life like that one going waste. And in the end I think I loved them, with all their very bad side and nasty comments and even sometime offensive behaviour.
First of all, I have probably to warn who usually reads my blog that this is not a romance and neither a gay novel. If someone wants to probably label it in the LGBT field, than maybe it could be a bisexual mystery/thriller. That is probably not a surprise for who is used to John F. Rooney’s novels, they know he is not actually a writer of gay novels, aside for a novel, The Rice Queen Spy, about a retired gay spy for Her Majesty’s secret service, who was cruelly outed and tortured 
Usually I don't like anthologies. The simple reason is that I can't be satisfy by too short stories, and when I like the characters is even worst, since I always felt like they are gone too soon. So it's always with a bit of prejudice that I start an anthology, and the reason why I choose to read it is always different, but usually since there is at least an author in the anthology that I like.
"Lions and Tigers and Snares" & "Cold Hands, Warm Heart" : Byron is an agent who has to discover an illicit traffic with dying big felines. So he works undercover in a shelter, playing the role of volunteer and looking around. But more than looking to illicit traffic, he is looking at Kendall, the man who leads the shelter and that probably is head to foot involved. But Byron sees how Kendall loves the big cats and he is sure the man can't be the ones who sells them to certain death.
"A Cold Night's Sleep" & "Fire": Sandy is a retired cop. He had a very bad experience during a fire and he still blames himself for the death of a little child. Plus he is scarred by the fire, inside and outside. He prefers to live alone in a cabin with a cat and no one to care who can leave him like his former lover did. Tanner is an ex con who arrives to the cabin during a storm and Sandy offers him a shelter to the bad weather. Also Tanner has his scars, they are only inside, but they are not less painful. And from a scarred man to another, Tanner can see beyond Sandy claims to want to be alone. But probably Tanner needs to set something in his life and it's not time for him to stop with Sandy. And Sandy is not yet ready to forget and move one. Maybe not now, maybe not ever.
"Haunted", "Slide into Desire", "Walking the Blue Line", "Deep Trouble Undercover", "A Question of Taste", "Dangerous Days" & "Tropical Daze": all these stories are about Steven and Conrad. Steven is a undercover cop, he is searching proofs of a drug dealing during the rave parties. Conrad is the man who organizes the raves. It should be a simple mission, not a very dangerous one, they are dealing mostly with young kids, college animals... But Steven cares too much, since he falls in love with Conrad. Conrad is an half spanish half cuban guy, sexy and smooth talking; he lures Steven inside his world and in his bed. Steven is new to all this, he can't even imagine to fall in love with a man, but here he is and in love. But Conrad? it's only sex? and then there is the little problem that Steven should do his work and his work probably will lead Conrad in prison.
Sheperd: Felipe is a good guy who ends in prison. He is not gay, but two years in captivity could change a man. This is not a love story, maybe it's more a life journey, the surviving tale of a man who sees his world collapse and needs to refocuses his priority and beliefs.
"Bruised", "Back in the Saddle" & "Horsing Around": another pretty long and so very satisfying story. Marcus is a man who has loved and lost. He is still mourning but maybe he is ready to be back in the saddle. David is a vet student who helps Marcus in his horse farm during summer. He is young and innocent and so tempting. He sees and wants Marcus and with his joy of life forces Marcus to live again, to want again, to want David. But David is soo young, and new to real love, plus Marcus is his first man, before him David never thought possible for him to love a man. Family and future seem big handicaps in their ride to life.
Irish Cream: an old man remembers a lost lover, a love born and died when they can't even think for it to last, but if death didn't call, what could be? Now he has only memories, sad and cold, but cherished.
I have to admit that cop novels are not usually my cup of tea, even if I can sympathize with the imaginary seeing a cop like a perfect lover. But this cop in particular, Cristian Flesh, or simply Flesh, is at the opposite of your common idea of a police detective: unapologetically gay, and that is the point I liked the most, he is also pretty open on what he likes and doesn’t like; he likes sex and more is good, and so, probably for the first time in a novel, I found a detective that slept at least once with co-workers, victims, suspects, defensive lawyers… in a way the reader could guess who was involved in the plot by the fact that Flesh has slept with him. 
From the dedica of this novella (To taking a chance, even after you’ve been hurt) to the following development, I think the author wanted to launch a message to someone, in a nice and direct way: Detective Sergeant Alasdair Grant is a good cop, he is gay, out and proud, but he was burned in the past and so now he doesn’t trust so much domineering man and that is an issue when you are a sub, 
Maintaining the light BDSM tone of all the series, and maybe exaggerating a bit in having gay cops all in the same family and working for the same department (but that is also the nice side of this novellas series, you start to have a lot of familiar faces around), Kim Dare adds a little bit of introspective plot with the story of Ed Rawlings, who is so good in doing his undercover job that he is losing his same self in that. 
I was taken a bit aback from this novel since at the beginning it seemed so much similar to the previous book I read by Rob Rosen, Diva Las Vegas, that I had to go back to that book to check if maybe I hadn’t forgotten some supporting characters there who were having here their own story. Like in the previous book, a young and pretty gay man who suddenly is without a steady job; thank to a lucky cash availability he decides to spend a good share of that sum in a classy holiday with his best gay friend. In the previous book the two partners in crime are Em and Justin, here are Chase and Brandon, like in the previous book they become unwillingly involved in a thriller subplot while at the same time trying to get laid as much as possible, even if one of them has indeed a crush on a fascinating, but a bit mysterious man. And of course when the things go barrelling into danger, our two gay heroes decide to take out their drag costume and impersonating the perfect femme fatale. 
In the recent polemic of who is writing for whom, most of Stormy Glenn’s books are probably aimed more to a female target (and I think that you all know that for me this is not a negative point). 
A Promise Given is not only the sequel of A Promise Kept, following the story of Cooper, the friend with benefits of Mason and Jack, but it has also a common theme: a love that is lasting for years even if the lovers didn’t have the chance to enjoy it. 
Chasing Smoke is about how you never forget your first love and about a little spoiled teenager. 
Do you know what can happen when you buy a book only thank to the trust you have on the author? That a nice surprise can wait you. I didn’t read Downtime’s blurb, I read Tamara Allen, the author of Whistling in the Dark, the book who came first in the Rainbow Awards, and a book I really liked, and I bought the book. I didn’t know what Downtime was about, but thank to the nice cover I was expecting a late nineteen century historical novel. So I was quite surprise from finding me reading about Morgan Nash, an FBI agent in special mission in today London. Well after the first puzzlement, I stubbornly continued to read, without again bothering to check the blurb, truth be told, Morgan seemed a nice character and I was already wandering what could be his story. That Leonard London police detective was not a bad character, could be him Morgan’s love interest? And then Reese, Morgan’s American boyfriend, even him was not a bad chance… I was already immersed in the story, and building in my mind Morgan’s possible story development, when the unexpected happened… Time-Travel! 
Reading this book it was like going back on the same place and time when Bogard and Bergman, as Rick and Ilsa, kissed in front of an airplane in Casablanca. 
Bill is an apparently rather boring San Francisco gay bookstore manager, and being gay in San Francisco is just enough to be ordinary, if then you add the bookstore related job, well, it seems that here of sparkling there should be only the wrapping card for the books. But Bill’s situation soon changes, with also his name, he prefers to go for Em, when the bookstore place is sold in block and the owner gives him 30 thousands dollars as good exit. No work and still too young to retire, every other man, gay or not, would have probably put a thoughts or two on what he wants to do with his life, and instead Em decides to spend most of the money to buy back an very ugly vase who was in his family for year, and sold on a front yard sale for a few dollars, and that now is valued almost 30.000 thanks to an appreciation from Antiques Roadshow. 
Murder on Camac was not an easy book to start reading since it’s almost 400 pages long, and I was there thinking, well, it’s a mystery, not exactly the genre of book I like, and it’s soo long… will I have the patience to finish it? So I waited and waited, till the moment I was at home, quiet and with a lot of time, and gathering all the patience I have, starting reading and… it was fast and easy and light… it was light, something that I have almost never found in a mystery. And there was also a romance, or maybe two, or three, or… I lost the count and all the romances have the same man, Marco Fontana. 
I’m not new to read a cop themed novel, and even if it’s not my preferred genre; some of them are very good. But there is a thing that usually let me a bit cold, when the cops are self-righteous perfect hero, maybe with a baggage of bad experiences in the past, but always so damned perfect. Truth be told, sometime, they are so perfect that they are also boring, sincerely I’m not for the big bang-come here baby type of men. In Personal Demons, James Buchanan managed to avoid all of above, without making the heroes losers. 
I remember with pleasure the first book in the Dangerous Ground series since it was probably the one by Josh Lanyon with the best romance in it. And it was not only a good romance, it was also quite sexy. Both these aspects I found again in this second book. 
The Deadly Mystery series by Victor J. Banis is probably the only gay mystery series out there where the romance part of the book is good as well as the mystery one. In the four books we saw the evolution of their relationship, from being casual lovers and probably having no chance to be nothing else, to tentative long term partners, to the almost apex of happiness in book 3. Then the abrupt end of that novel, with a Tom, the strong man in the couple, scarred and for the first time weak. And maybe also a bit castrated from the fact that this time, it was not him who saved Stanley. They have their roles in the relationship, Tom is the protector and Stanley the one in need of protection, you can't change that, otherwise Tom doesn't know what is his place. Tom is a simple person, he is a man who reasons and acts more with his gut (and heart) than his mind, he is not stupid, but he is not one to brainstorming too much. If you take away from him his role, what he is for Stanley, what is his added value to the relationship. But as simple as Tom is, it's also simple for him to realize that even if scarred, he is still the same man as before, and that Stanley need him. 
All right, I'm sincere, I don't know if I personally like how the series evolved in the last chapter. Please take a good look to that "personally" word, this is an opinion of mine, and it's totally based on my personal taste, it's not a judgment on the value of the writer or the story.
