Book Review

Book Review: Shadowing the Light by Miranda Turner

Reviewed by Nikyta

Title: Shadowing the Light
Author: Miranda Turner
Series: The Bearer of Truth #1
Heroes: Gabriel & Evander
Genre: M/M Urban Fantasy
Length: 273 pages
Publisher: Self Published
Release Date: December 17, 2018
Available at: Amazon
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: “Everybody has their own agenda. Everybody.”

Hunted for the unique blood that runs through his veins, half-angel, half-demon Gabriel Sinclair lives without expectations. On the run from forces on both sides of an ancient conflict, he searches for strength and peace in a world which only seeks to use him.

When Gabriel is forced to stop running, assigned a team—and a mate—he doesn’t want, and reluctantly tasked with a mission, he must overcome obstacles both real and imagined. Otherwise, the world as he knows it, and the mate he’s reluctantly come to care for, may cease to exist.

“I will do as the Creator bids me. Always.”

Evander Ryan is special, and he knows it. The final handcrafted immortal warrior for the light, he is the Creator’s greatest masterpiece. For fifty-eight years, he’s lived his life in black and white, coddled by his Maker, while leading his team to countless victories against their enemies. Those fights were easy. Working with a new, uncooperative mate who sees the world in shades of gray? Less so.

As Evander’s eyes are opened to the existence of light warriors who are not good, dark warriors who are, and the wider world of supernatural beings, he learns nothing is as he thought it was, and his mate isn’t who he thought he was either. Maybe there’s something to be said for not always following the rules. . .
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Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, LGBT, Nikyta's Reviews, Published in 2018 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Book Review: Haste Ye Back by R. Quincy Cameron

Reviewed by Ami

Title: Haste Ye Back
Author: R. Quincy Cameron
Series: 2018 Advent Calendar – Warmest Wishes
Heroes: Aaron
Genre: M/M Contemporary
Length: 31 pages
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Release Date: December 1, 2018
Available at: Dreamspinner Press & Amazon
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: The situation seems ideal: a month off work and a sweet deal to extend his stay in an unexpected paradise. Needless to say, Aaron is thrilled to snag an extra few days in Scotland after his work conference to soak up the magic of the country.

However, his plans to tourist his way around Edinburgh before his January 1st flight home are thwarted by a strange influx of people into the capital. Add in trains that don’t run on New Year’s, fireworks, first-footing, and running into the same gorgeous stranger as he exits every other shop, and Aaron really should have googled what “Hogmanay” was before he found himself whisked into the whirlwind of Scottish revelry and the impossible draw of that sexy stranger who tastes like scotch and, impossibly, already feels like the beginnings of home. Continue reading

Categories: 2 Star Ratings, Ami's Reviews, Book Review, Guest Reviewer, LGBT, Published in 2018 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: Purrfect Holiday by Jana Denardo

Reviewed by Ami

Title: Purrfect Holiday
Author: Jana Denardo
Series: 2018 Advent Calendar – Warmest Wishes
Heroes: Tony & Javier
Genre: M/M Contemporary
Length: 46 pages
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Release Date: December 1, 2018
Available at: Dreamspinner Press & Amazon
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: Tony Gatti had his life planned: get his veterinarian license and go to work with his dad and uncle. Soon after achieving his goals, he learned the shadows and blurriness in his vision went beyond needing glasses. Retinitis Pigmentosa is a genetic mutation with no cure. With his sight almost gone, he moves into his grandmother’s St. Augustine, Florida home with his guide dog, Raven, to start life over. Nonna Concetta thinks she knows the perfect job for him. Her vet is looking for someone to destress the cats at a local rescue.

Javier didn’t plan to hire a cute former veterinarian to fill the role of cat cuddler, but Tony couldn’t be more perfect. Worried his attraction is inappropriate and knowing the holiday season always depresses him, Javier wonders if he should ask Tony out, or if he’d just be spreading the gloom to someone who already has enough of his own. But if he takes the plunge, could it turn out to be the best holiday ever?  Continue reading

Categories: 3.5 Star Ratings, Ami's Reviews, Book Review, Guest Reviewer, LGBT, Published in 2018 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Book Review: Tutus and Tinsel by Rhys Ford

Reviewed by Nikyta

Title: Tutus and Tinsel
Author: Rhys Ford
Series: Half Moon Bay #2.5
Heroes: Deacon & Lang
Genre: M/M Contemporary
Length: 79 pages
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Release Date: December 21, 2018
Available at: Dreamspinner Press & Amazon
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: Zig Reid-Harris has everything an eleven-year-old girl could ever want: a great home, two fantastic fathers named Deacon Reid and Lang Harris, and all the books she could possibly read.

When a school assignment about holiday traditions unexpectedly broadsides her, she discovers burying the past isn’t as easy as it looks, and the stark reality of her life before her adoption sinks in. Ashamed of the bleakness and poverty she came from, Zig struggles with the assignment until an epiphany strikes the whole family—it’s time to start their own traditions.

Zig and her fathers plunge into the insanity of holiday joy, exploring everything the season has to offer and learning how precious family truly is along the way.

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Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, LGBT, Nikyta's Reviews, Published in 2018 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: Colina de Lavanada by August Li

Reviewed by Nikyta

Title: Colina de Lavanada
Author: August Li
Series: Warmest Wishes – 2018 Advent Calendar
Heroes: Edward & Shu
Genre: M/M Historical America/Paranormal
Length: 50 pages
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Release Date: December 1, 2018
Available at: Dreamspinner Press & Amazon 
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: Lord protector of whores, thieves, sorcerers, and deviants.

Owning a parcel of land the railroad needs to cross means Edward gets to run the border town around the station as he sees fit. What starts as a place to indulge his varied appetites becomes a haven to society’s castoffs, and if Edward encourages legends about its founder to flourish, well, he’s not so much a liar as a man who wants to protect all the cultures living in peace. Being mayor means folks might ignore his vices, but they also expect him to fix what goes wrong.

When a crushing heat wave and drought threaten not only the town’s diverse holiday celebrations but its very existence, Edward must turn to the one man he’d rather french kiss a timber rattler than face—the icily elegant Cantonese mage Edward walked out on but never stopped loving. Continue reading

Categories: 3 Star Ratings, Ami's Reviews, Book Review, Guest Reviewer, LGBT, Published in 2018 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: From These Ashes by Davidson King

Reviewed by Nikyta

Title: From These Ashes
Author: Davidson King
Series: Haven Hart Universe #4
Heroes: Black & Quill
Genre: M/M Paranormal
Length: 204 pages
Publisher: Self Published
Release Date: November 28, 2018
Available at: Amazon
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: A product of his past, Black spends half his time saving lives and the other half taking them. Every day, a hard choice must be made and he’s the man to make it. Long ago, he vowed to never love again; one-night stands with a willing body was all he ever needed. But along came Quill, and Black’s life is irrevocably changed. He never expects something as simple as Quill’s persistence to alter the way he not only sees the world, but how he lives it.

Quill has bad taste in men and equally horrible luck. Growing up wasn’t easy, surviving is even harder. When his past and present collide, he’s convinced he’ll finally witness his own destruction. But when an unlikely antihero steps in to protect him, his life is turned on its head. He’s spent months flirting with the man of his dreams and hoping he’d take notice. But it turns out, being on Black’s radar isn’t all it’s cracked up to be, and his idea of protection varies greatly from Quill’s.

Unknowingly sharing the same goal—burying their own pasts deeper than the fires of hell can reach—they’re both unaware that jumping into that fire will do more than ignite their feelings, it could lead to their own demise. Will Black and Quill be consumed by the flames, or from these ashes, will they find their own happily ever after?
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Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, LGBT, Nikyta's Reviews, Published in 2018 | Tags: , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: Operation Toy Rescue by Sarah Hadley Brook

Reviewed by Nikyta

Title: Operation Toy Rescue
Author: Sarah Hadley Brook
Heroes: Felix & Jules
Genre: M/M Paranormal
Length: 29k words
Publisher: JMS Books
Release Date: December 15, 2018
Available at: JMS Books & Amazon
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: When Jules Evergreen lands in trouble at the North Pole and gets shipped off to Snow Hope Island for ninety days, he never expects to take up the cause of the forgotten toys waiting for new homes. Falling for his new boss is not on the agenda either, but his heart has other ideas.

Felix Winterson has grown up on Snow Hope Island and now runs the place. He isn’t thrilled when party boy Jules arrives, and Felix tries hard to ignore the man’s charms. He has other problems, anyway. For years he’s tried to get Santa to look at the growing inventory of damaged toys in the warehouse, to no avail.

When Jules comes up with a plan to save the toys, the men find themselves working closely together. As Christmas Eve looms, there’s a lot at stake. Can they save Snow Hope, convince Santa to rescue the toys, and fall in love all at the same time?
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Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, LGBT, Nikyta's Reviews, Published in 2018 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Book Review: Make a Circle by Elliot Joyce

Reviewed by Ami

Title: Make a Circle
Author: Elliot Joyce
Series: Warmest Wishes – 2018 Advent Calendar
Heroes: Lucas & Oliver
Genre: M/M Contemporary
Length: 33 pages
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Release Date: December 1, 2018
Available at: Dreamspinner Press & Amazon
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: Pagan punk musician Lucas is fully prepared to spend this Yule with the rest of the band and his beautiful bass guitar when Oliver, his boyfriend of almost a year, asks if he wants to join the rest of the Han family for their annual winter celebration. It comes as a shock since Ollie has gone to great lengths to keep the two apart, and Lucas always assumed he was the reason. Since they’re planning to be together long-term, Lucas can’t say no to meeting Ollie’s parents, but he better brush up on his manners and his Mandarin because this is going to be a holiday season like no other—and it has some surprises in store for both of them.
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Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Ami's Reviews, Book Review, Guest Reviewer, LGBT, Published in 2018 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: Trusting Jack by Ruby Moone

Reviewed by Nikyta

Title: Trusting Jack
Author: Ruby Moore
Series: MC Securities #1
Heroes: Jack & Michael
Genre: M/M Contemporary
Length: 181 pages
Publisher: Self Published
Release Date: December 10, 2018
Available at: Amazon
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: With only a few days to go until Christmas, Michael Cross has to admit there is something amiss about his latest employee, Jack Whelan. Quiet, jumpy, thin… he never seems to eat. He is also incredibly gorgeous with dark spiky hair that Michael aches to touch. But as his boss, Jack is off limits. And when it comes to relationships, he…well, he sucks.

Jack Whelan is at the end of his tether. He’s living rough in the middle of winter, and paying off a massive debt, so getting a job with MC Securities is a lifeline. His new boss is also the hottest guy ever. Geeky, broody, and scarily clever.

When Michael stumbles upon the reality of Jack’s life, he offers to help. But as Michael’s feelings deepen, and Jack’s terrible past catches up with him, Michael has to decide between believing in the awful truth that is staring him in the face, or trusting Jack.
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Categories: 3.5 Star Ratings, Book Review, LGBT, Nikyta's Reviews, Published in 2018 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: The Night Sky Festival by S.A. Stovall

Reviewed by Nikyta

Title: The Night Sky Festival
Author: S.A. Stovall
Series: 2018 Advent Calendar – Warmest Wishes
Heroes: Zach
Genre: M/M Contemporary
Length: 24 pages
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Release Date: December 1, 2018
Available at: Dreamspinner Press & Amazon
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: Photographer Zach is happy to pack up his gear and head to the Mojave Desert over the holidays. Ever since his ex-husband filed for divorce a day before Christmas, it’s safe to say this isn’t Zach’s favorite time of year.

Fortunately, he stumbles upon a town where the residents seem to agree. The good people of Baker would much rather celebrate the possibility of extraterrestrials as they dance under the stars in their unique “Night Sky Festival.” The locals are interesting, to say the least, and they want Zach to join them.

But is Zach ready to let go of his holiday bitterness? And if so, whose invitation should he accept: the cute cashier, the burly single dad, or the sexy fun-loving cop? Continue reading

Categories: 3 Star Ratings, Ami's Reviews, Book Review, Guest Reviewer, LGBT, Published in 2018 | Tags: , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment