Author Archives: Nikyta

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About Nikyta

I'm pretty boring but shhh don't tell anyone!

Book Review: Blue Days by Mary Calmes

Reviewed by Nikyta

5Title: Blue Days
Author: Mary Calmes
Heroes: Dwyer Knolls/Takeo Hiroyuki
Genre: M/M Contemporary
Length: 98 Pages
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Release Date: November 5, 2014
Available at: Dreamspinner Press, Amazon and Barnes & Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: Falling for a coworker is rarely a good idea, especially for a man getting a last chance at salvaging his career. But from the moment Dwyer Knolls sees the beautiful but socially awkward Takeo Hiroyuki, he seems destined to make bad decisions.

Takeo’s life is a string of failed attempts to please his traditional Japanese father. Unfortunately, succeeding in business turns out to be just as difficult for Takeo as changing from gay to straight. In fact, the only thing Takeo seems to truly excel at is taking notice of Dwyer Knolls.

When Dwyer and Takeo head to Mangrove, Florida on a real estate buying trip, their tentative friendship combusts and becomes much more. Is their sudden connection real enough to bank their futures on, or should they chalk the whole thing up to the daze inspired by the blue ocean breeze?
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Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, LGBT, Nikyta's Reviews, Published in 2014 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Josh Lanyon Week Review: The Boy With the Painful Tattoo

Reviewed by Nikyta

1Title: The Boy With the Painful Tattoo
Author: Josh Lanyon
Series: Holmes & Moriarity #3
Heroes: Kit/J.X.
Genre: M/M Contemporary/Mystery
Length: 228 Pages
Publisher: Just Joshin
Release Date: October 25, 2014
Available at: Amazon and Barnes & Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: It’s moving day at Chez Holmes. Somehow, against Kit’s better instincts, he and J.X. are setting up house together. But while J.X. is off at a writing conference, Kit unpacks a crate that should contain either old books or new china. It doesn’t. Within the mounds of green Styrofoam popcorn is a dead body. A very dead body.

There goes the neighborhood.
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Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Author Week, Book Review, LGBT, Nikyta's Reviews, Published in 2014 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: Beyond the Rift by Alana Ankh

Reviewed by Nikyta

1Title: Beyond the Rift
Author: Alana Ankh
Series: Elemental Lovers #1
Heroes: Behnivyr ‘Ivy’ erethe/Kristelien Fezenda
Genre: M/M Fantasy
Length: 260 Pages
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Release Date: October 27, 2014
Available at: Dreamspinner Press, Amazon and Barnes & Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: Across the centuries, the Nikari, a race of vicious elemental mages, have built an empire, bringing an entire continent to its knees. The course of history seems set… until one innocent Andari mage changes everything and claims a greater prize—the heart of the Nikari emperor.

Behnivyr ‘Ivy’ Erethe knows his duty is to wed another Andari Pure-Blood. Craving one moment of freedom before his loveless bonding, he escapes his father’s suffocating protection and goes to a masquerade ball, only to unexpectedly meet a mysterious Nikari named Kris. Kris makes Ivy ache with a need he barely dares to acknowledge. One kiss, one dance—and Ivy’s life changes forever. Unbeknownst to Ivy, Kris is actually Kristelien Fezenda, the Nikari emperor. Forced to make a difficult choice, Ivy picks love over duty and becomes Kris’s concubine.

Poorly prepared for the whirlwind of emotion Ivy summons inside him, Kris now faces the hardest battle of his life. In a ruthless world where all weakness is exploited, where allies become enemies in the blink of an eye, where love can mean death, he will have to defeat more than his own personal demons to breach the rift between him and Ivy.
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Categories: 4.5 Star Ratings, Book Review, LGBT, Nikyta's Reviews, Published in 2014 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Early Review: The Highland Dragon’s Lady by Isabel Cooper

Reviewed by Nikyta

21897519Title: The Highland Dragon’s Lady
Author: Isabel Cooper
Series: Highland Dragon #2
Heroine/Hero: Regina Talbot-Jones/Colin MacAlasdair
Genre: M/F Historical Fantasy
Length: 352 Pages
Publisher: Sourcebooks Casablanca
Release Date: December 2, 2014
Available at: Amazon and Barnes & Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: Regina Talbot-Jones has always known her rambling family home was haunted. She also knows her brother has invited one of his friends to attend an ill-conceived séance. She didn’t count on that friend being so handsome… and she certainly didn’t expect him to be a dragon.

Scottish Highlander Colin MacAlasdair has hidden his true nature for his entire life, but the moment he sets eyes on Regina, he knows he has to have her. In his hundreds of years, he’s never met a woman who could understand him so thoroughly… or touch him so deeply. Bound by their mutual loneliness, drawn by the fire awakening inside of them, Colin and Regina must work together to defeat a vengeful spirit – and discover whether their growing love is powerful enough to defy convention.

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Categories: 3.5 Star Ratings, Book Review, M/F, Nikyta's Reviews, Published in 2014 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: The Best Corpse for the Job by Charlie Cochrane

Reviewed by Nikyta

22741222Title: The Best Corpse for the Job
Author: Charlie Cochrane
Heroes: Adam Matthews/Robin Bright
Genre: M/M Contemporary/Mystery
Length: 298 Pages
Publisher: Riptide Publishing
Release Date: November 24, 2014
Available at: Riptide Publishing, Amazon and Barnes & Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: Tea and sympathy have never been so deadly.

Schoolteacher Adam Matthews just wants to help select a new headteacher and go home. The governors at Lindenshaw St Crispin’s have already failed miserably at finding the right candidate, so it’s make or break this second time round. But when one of the applicants is found strangled in the school, what should have been a straightforward decision turns tempestuous as a flash flood in their small English village.

Inspector Robin Bright isn’t thrilled to be back at St. Crispin’s. Memories of his days there are foul enough without tossing in a complicated murder case. And that handsome young teacher has him reminding himself not to fraternize with a witness. But it’s not long before Robin is relying on Adam for more than just his testimony.

As secrets amongst the governors emerge and a second person turns up dead, Robin needs to focus less on Adam and more on his investigation. But there are too many suspects, too many lies, and too many loose ends. Before they know it, Robin and Adam are fighting for their lives and their hearts.

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Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, LGBT, Nikyta's Reviews, Published in 2014 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Book Review: Cupids and Wardrobe Malfunctions by Jackie Nacht

Reviewed by Nikyta

1Title: Cupids and Wardrobe Malfunctions
Author: Jackie Nacht
Series: Holiday Jobs That Don’t Suck #4
Heroes: Cooper/Derek
Genre: M/M Contemporary
Length: 52 Pages
Publisher: Extasy Books
Release Date: February 2013
Available at: Extasy Books, Amazon and Barnes & Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: Cooper from Bewitched at the Pumpkin Patch is back and is now having his own holiday hell.

Cooper is one of the happiest guys around, except for the last month. He’s been crushing on the assistant in the training room, Derek Kent, but when he goes to ask him out, Derek instead pledges the fraternity. Cooper doesn’t want him to become a target, so he tries to wait his attraction out.

Now it’s time for Cooper to be in charge of the fraternity’s annual Valentine’s date party. He knows he’s going to have to make sure the kegs are filled, the music works, no fights break out, and keep the fourteen pledges in line. However, it’s hard for him to keep his mind on his job when he sees Derek coming into the party wearing nothing but Cupid’s wings and boxer briefs. Cooper knows as an active member he shouldn’t touch the pledge, however, every man has his breaking point. Will this be his?

Authors Note: This book may be read as a stand-alone story but for better reading enjoyment, you may want to read secondary characters, Hayden and Lawson’s story in Bewitched at the Pumpkin Patch.
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Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, LGBT, Nikyta's Reviews, Published in 2013 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Book Review: When Ryan Came Back by Devon McCormack

Reviewed by Nikyta

1Title: When Ryan Came Back
Author: Devon McCormack
Heroes: Steven/Ryan
Genre: M/M Paranormal
Length: 230 Pages
Publisher: Harmony Ink Press
Release Date: October 16, 2014
Available at: Dreamspinner Press, Amazon and Barnes & Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: Steven’s life changes forever the day he discovers his childhood friend and lifelong crush, Ryan Walters, standing in his bedroom. The problem? Ryan Walters committed suicide just days earlier.

Ryan tells Steven that he didn’t kill himself. He believes he was murdered and that his death is linked to an article he was working on for the school paper. Steven sets out to solve the mystery, but as the story unfolds, so does Ryan’s secret life of sex with guys and depression. Steven realizes suicide is more plausible than Ryan’s conspiracy theory, but he struggles to convince Ryan of the real cause of his death. And despite revelations of his friend’s closeted life, he must face the truth that Ryan doesn’t—and never will—love him.

*This review may contain spoilers. Proceed with caution.*
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Categories: 3 Star Ratings, Book Review, LGBT, Nikyta's Reviews, Published in 2014 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Early Review: Alliance by Annabelle Jacobs

Reviewed by Nikyta

1Title: Alliance
Author: Annabelle Jacobs
Series: Torsere #3
Heroes: Ryneq/Nykin
Genre: M/M Fantasy
Length: 284 Pages
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Release Date: November 17, 2014
Available at: Dreamspinner Press and Amazon
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: King Ryneq and his dragon rider consort, Nykin, return to Torsere to defend the kingdom against the lowland armies already camped along Torsere’s borders. Seran wants the dragons, and with a new witch in his ranks, war is inevitable.

With the elves of Hervath now helping them, Ryneq has a chance at holding Seran at bay. But the witch is using old dark magic, and as Nykin and the dragon riders battle her deadly attack, unexpected betrayal forces Ryneq to make a difficult decision.

Faced with the prospect of losing his kingdom, Ryneq gambles on a plan that could ultimately save Torsere, if they can stay alive long enough to see it through. With Ryneq standing against Seran and his witch, time is of the essence, and Nykin must make a sacrifice to end the war. Only then will Ryneq and Nykin be able to start a life together.
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Categories: 4.5 Star Ratings, Book Review, LGBT, Nikyta's Reviews, Published in 2014 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: There’s Something About Ari by L.B. Gregg

Reviewed by Nikyta

1Title: There’s Something About Ari
Author: L.B. Gregg
Series: Bluewater Bay #2
Heroes: Buck Ellis/Ari Valentine
Genre: M/M Contemporary
Length: 95 Pages
Publisher: Riptide Publishing
Release Date: November 10, 2014
Available at: Riptide Publishing
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: Buck Ellis’s future seems pretty damn bright. With a full college scholarship in hand, he’s going to ditch Bluewater Bay and pave the way for his kid brother Charlie to do the same. The only fly in Buck’s ointment is his ten-year addiction to his best friend since second grade, his true love, and his Achilles heel: Ari Valentine, Mr. Least Likely to Succeed.

But then Buck’s mother dies, changing everything, and five years later, his future is still on hold. It’s a struggle to keep food on the table, a roof over their heads, and Charlie on the straight and narrow. Buck can’t afford any temptation, especially in the form of the newly returned, super hot, super confident, super successful television star Ari Valentine.

ADHD poster-child Ari Valentine left for Hollywood and lost everything, including his bad reputation. Then the breakthrough role of his skyrocketing career lands him back in Bluewater Bay, to the stunned disbelief of, well, everyone. But there’s only one person Ari longs to impress—the only person who ever really mattered to him, the person he left behind: Buck Ellis.
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Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, LGBT, Nikyta's Reviews, Published in 2014 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: A Chaotic Range by Andrew Grey

Reviewed by Nikyta

A Chaotic Range (Range, #7)Title: A Chaotic Range
Author: Andrew Grey
Series: Range #7
Heroes: David/Brian
Genre: M/M Contemporary
Length: 200 pages
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Release Date: November 7, 2014
Available at: Dreamspinner Press, Amazon and Barnes & Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: Most of the time ranchhand David rescues stray cattle, but this time he and his fellow cowboys Wally and Haven save a stranded motorist. David is surprised to find his former high school classmate nearly frozen in his car. After learning that Brian Applewright’s boss fired him from his ranch for being gay, they invite him back to theirs to take a job.

David and Brian moved in different social circles at school, but working together brings them closer. However, David has a rocky history on the ranch. The foreman is his ex, and he only recently returned after a heartbreakingly unsuccessful attempt to find greener pastures. He can’t risk his heart getting close to anyone.

But on a ranch, nature has a way of forcing an issue. When a snowstorm threatens, David and Brian head out to mend a fence and round up some stray cattle. David gets injured, and they must survive in the snow, cold, and wind. It might be the start of a relationship… or the end of their lives.
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Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, LGBT, Nikyta's Reviews, Published in 2014 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment