Book Review

Book Review: Angel Without by Rhiannon Ayers

Reviewed by JustJen

1Title: Angel Without
Author: Rhiannon Ayers
Series: For Love of Authority #2
Heroes/Heroine: Maddox Henley/Riley Jones/Amber Whitman
Genre: MMF Contemporary
Length: 106,377 Words
Publisher: Siren Bookstrand, Inc.
Release Date: August 5, 2014
Available at: Siren Bookstrand, Inc.
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb:  When Amber Whitman’s fiance suddenly turns violent, she flees back home—only to be told she has no choice but to marry the bastard. Refusing to live her life as an abused woman, Amber takes off in the dead of night. But now she’s out of money, out of options, and out of ideas. She has no place to turn…or does she?

All these years, Amber thought her beloved adopted brother, Allen, was dead. When she discovers he’s not only alive, but living in the same city, she runs to him for help. Fortunately, Allen and his lovers have a plan to keep Amber safe. Allen brings his little sister to stay with Maddox Henley, a Dom with a dark past, and Riley Jones, an ex-soldier with a dark secret. Together, these two strapping construction workers have the balls and ability to keep a young woman safe from all outside threats.

But can they keep her safe from the threat they pose to her heart?
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Categories: 3.5 Star Ratings, Book Review, JustJen's Reviews, LGBT, M/F, Published in 2014 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Mobster Week Review: Choosing Happy by Aria Grace

Reviewed by Susan65

iTitle: Choosing Happy
Author: Aria Grace
Series: More Than Friends #3
Heroes: Steve/Joey
Genre: MM Contemporary
Length: 222 Pages
Publisher: Aria Grace
Release Date: March 15, 2014
Available at: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, All Romance eBooks and iTunes
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: Zach’s ex, Steve, is living in Portland with many regrets. He has alienated the people he cares most about by making bad choices that continue to haunt him. When he meets a kid that’s in a bad relationship and needs some help, Steve reluctantly offers it, knowing it’s his chance to redeem himself. What he doesn’t expect is to find happiness. It’s there, all he has to do it choose to accept it.
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Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, LGBT, Published in 2014, Susan65's Reviews, Theme Week | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Mobster Week Review: Mexican Heat by Laura Baumbach and Josh Lanyon

Guest Reviewed by Candace

iTitle: Mexican Heat
Author: Laura Baumbach and Josh Lanyon
Heroes: Crimes & Cocktails #1
Heroes: Gabriel Sandalini, aka Giovanni Contadino, and Antonio Lorenzo, aka Miguel Ortega
Genre: M/M Contemporary
Length: 272 Pages
Publisher: MLR Press
Release Date: October 26, 2008
Available at:  MLR Press, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, All Romance Ebooks and Kobo
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb:  A new romantic crime series from the combined talents of popular award winning authors Laura Baumbach and Josh Lanyon. Tough, street-smart SFPD Detective Gabriel Sandalini is willing to do whatever it takes to bring down West Coast crime boss Ricco Botelli — including a dangerous, deep undercover gig as one of Botelli’s hired guns. But Gabriel’s best laid plans may come crashing down around him when he falls hard for the sexy, suave lieutenant of a rival Mexican drug lord. Turns out his new love interest may have a few secrets of his own: secrets that could destroy both men and the fragile bond between them.
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Categories: 4.5 Star Ratings, Book Review, Guest Reviewer, LGBT, Published Before 2010, Theme Week | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: Flesh Cartel 19: Promise by Rachel Haimowitz and Heidi Belleau

Reviewed by JustJen

iTitle: The Flesh Cartel 19: Promise
Author: Rachel Haimowitz and Heidi Belleau
Series: The Flesh Cartel #19
Heroes: Mat/Doug
Genre: MM Contemporary
Length: 56 Pages
Publisher:  Riptide Publishing
Release Date: August 4, 2014
Available at: Riptide Publishing, Amazon and Barnes & Noble
Add it to your shelf:  Goodreads

Blurb:  In the exciting final season of the Flesh Cartel . . .

With the help of the FBI, Mat Carmichael has let himself be re-taken by the Flesh Cartel. Objective? Rescue his brother, exact revenge, and destroy the entire organization from the inside.

FBI Special Agent Nate Johnson will be playing backup, of course, but to get Dougie out alive, Mat will need to make sure his brother is out of Allen’s clutches before calling in the troops. Now that Mat’s back in bondage, though, there’s no way he can do it alone. He’ll have to ask for help from the only man within the Cartel who cares about Dougie’s welfare: Nikolai. And even knowing it will destroy him, Nikolai delivers.

Bringing down the Cartel should have been the hardest part, but it doesn’t take long to realize that the real challenge has only just begun. Dougie doesn’t know how to be free anymore, and Mat is forced to admit that he may no longer be strong enough to help himself, let alone his brother. But with loved ones in their corner and their love for each other banked but not extinguished, Mat and Dougie learn that you can come home again, no matter how desperate the circumstances you’ve left behind.
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Categories: 5 Star Ratings, Book Review, JustJen's Reviews, LGBT, Published in 2014 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: Baby, It’s You by Jane Graves

Guest Reviewed by Ami

cTitle: Baby, It’s You
Author: Jane Graves
Series: Rainbow Valley #2
Heroine/Hero: Kari Worthington/Marc Cordero
Genre: M/F Contemporary Romance
Length: 400 Pages
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Release Date: May 27, 2014
Available at:  Grand Central Publishing, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, All Romance Ebooks and Kobo
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb:  With only the wedding dress on her back and her honeymoon luggage in the car, Kari Worthington is running away. Determined to put her controlling father, her rigidly structured life, and the uptight groom she left at the altar in her rearview mirror, she escapes to the Texas Hill country . . . and lands on a tall, dark, and gorgeous winery owner’s doorstep. All she needs is a job and a place to live until she can get back on her feet. So why is she fantasizing about losing herself in his powerful arms?

For Marc Cordero, freedom is so close he can taste it. He’s devoted his life to managing the family business and being a single dad. Now with his daughter away at college and his brother taking over the winery, Marc is ready to hop on his Harley for parts unknown-until a runaway bride bursts onto the scene. Free-spirited and tantalizingly sexy, Kari excites him like no other woman has before. But when irresistible passion turns into something more, will Marc give up his future to take a chance on love?
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Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, Guest Reviewer, M/F, Published in 2014 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Mobster Week Review: Hired Muscle by Hank Edwards

Reviewed by Heather C

22735074Title: Hired Muscle
Author: Hank Edwards
Heroes: Barry & Vinnie
Genre: MM Historical Romance
Length: 58 pages
Publisher: Hank Edwards Books
Release Date: July 9th, 2014 (2nd edition)
Available at: Amazon, Barnes & Noble and All Romance eBooks
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: In October 1941, the violence of Baltimore’s warring mob families is escalating. The danger has decimated many of the businesses around DuMochelle’s restaurant where Barry waits tables. When a mob boss and his family begin to frequent the restaurant, a romantic relationship develops between Barry and Vinnie, a bodyguard. Vinnie resists, fearing for Barry’s safety and concerned that Barry will want nothing to do with him if he discovers his role in the family. But their passion cannot be denied, and Vinnie is trapped between the love he wants and the only life he’s known. As the rival mob family moves in for the kill, Vinnie and Barry find themselves caught in the crossfire.

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Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, Heather C's Reviews, LGBT, Published in 2014, Theme Week | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Mobster Week Review: The Pharaoh’s Concubine by Z.A. Maxfield

Guest Reviewed by Gyn

eTitle: The Pharaoh’s Concubine
Author: Z.A. Maxfield
Heroes: Dylan Anderson/William Memo Escobar
Genre: M/M Contemporary
Length: 374 Pages
Publisher: Samhain Publishing
Release Date: January 11, 2011
Available at:  Samhain Publishing, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, All Romance Ebooks and Kobo
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb:  Beauty is only skin deep until love reveals what lies beneath.

As mob boss Yvgeny Mosko’s open secret, Dylan Anderson is happy enough with a passionate, if loveless, arrangement that affords him a life of luxury. But at thirty-six, he wonders how committed Mosko will be to an aging lover.

He finds out when a rival gang kidnaps him in a turf war everyone s sure to lose. Mosko unleashes deadly force, leaving no one alive except for a young man whose dark eyes tug at Dylan s heart and the conscience he thought he d excised long ago.

Though he tried to stop the kidnapping, William Memo Escobar knows Mosko will use what s left of him to send a powerful message to his rivals. When Mosko s pampered pretty boy risks everything to help him escape, he can t believe his luck.

William figures he s better suited to life off the grid, but as the days go by he begins to realize Dylan s beauty is more than skin deep. And as Dylan coaxes more and more beguiling smiles from William, he yearns for things like family ties he d thought were best forgotten.

Yet behind their newfound happiness lurks the certain knowledge that no matter how careful they are, Mosko will come for what s his.Warning: This book contains a mob boss, a kept man, and a reluctant kidnapper who will never have to hear the words, Size doesn t matter.
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Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, Guest Reviewer, LGBT, Published in 2011, Theme Week | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Book Review: Blood & Thunder by Charlie Cochet

Reviewed by Susan65

gTitle: Blood & Thunder
Author: Charlie Cochet
Series: THIRDS #2
Heroes: Sloan/Dex
Genre: M/M Paranormal
Length: 240 Pages
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Release Date: August 4, 2014
Available at: Dreamspinner Press, Amazon and All Romance eBooks
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: When a series of bombs go off in a Therian youth center, injuring members of THIRDS Team Destructive Delta, and causing a rift between agents Dexter J. Daley and Sloane Brodie, peace seems unattainable. Especially when a new and frightening group, the Order of Adrasteia, appears to always be a step ahead. With panic and intolerance spreading and streets becoming littered with the Order’s propaganda, hostility between Humans and Therians grows daily. Dex and Sloane, along with the rest of the team, are determined to take down the Order and restore peace, not to mention settle a personal score. But the deeper the team investigates the bombings, the more they believe there’s a more sinister motive than a desire to shed blood and spread chaos.

Discovering the frightful truth behind the Order’s intent forces Sloane to confront secrets from a past he thought he’d left behind for good, a past that could not only destroy him and his career, but also the reputation of the organization that made him all he is today. Now more than ever, Dex and Sloane need each other, and, along with trust, the strength of their bond will mean the difference between justice and all-out war.
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Categories: 5 Star Ratings, Book Review, LGBT, Published in 2014, Susan65's Reviews | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: Cowboy Take Me Away by Jane Graves

Guest Reviewed by Ami

eTitle: Cowboy Take Me Away
Author: Jane Graves
Series: Rainbow Valley #1
Heroine/Hero: Shannon North/Luke Dawson
Genre: MF Contemporary Romance
Length: 464 Pages
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
Release Date: April 30, 2013
Available at:  Grand Central Publishing, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, All Romance Ebooks and Kobo
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb:  FIRST LOVE BURNS HOTTER

Rainbow Valley, Texas, has always been a refuge for animals, and Shannon North, director of the local shelter, intends to keep it that way. But with donations drying up and more pets in need of a loving home than ever before, Shannon’s beginning to fear she’s not the savior the shelter needs. When a tall, dark, and handsome cowboy from her past comes to the rescue, she knows that accepting his help may come with a high price: her heart.

THE SECOND TIME AROUND

Bad boy Luke Dawson shook the dust from this little town off his boots years ago. He walked away from everything…except the memory of the one night of passion he shared with Shannon. Now, a few wins away from becoming the world bull-riding champion, Luke’s headed for fame and fortune. But then a crisis calls him back to Rainbow Valley, and Luke is reunited with the good girl who stole–and broke–his heart. As their rekindled relationship deepens into desire, old secrets resurface, and Luke must choose between the future he’s always dreamed of and the only woman he’s ever loved.
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Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, Guest Reviewer, M/F, Published in 2013 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: Snake Charmer by Carol Lynne

Reviewed by Susan65

gTitle: Snake Charmer
Author: Carol Lynne
Series: Cattle Valley #31
Heroes: Gabrielo “Snake” Barbas/Riley Banks
Genre: MM Contemporary
Length: 30,229 Words
Publisher: Totally Bound
Release Date: August 8, 2014
Available at: Totally Bound
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: Sometimes it takes an opposite to see the beauty within ourselves.

When security consultant and ex-mercenary, Gabrielo “Snake” Barbas, thwarts an attack of one of his co-workers, Riley Banks, he takes it upon himself to keep the smaller man safe. His job is made harder when he discovers the attacker is actually Riley’s ex-boyfriend, a ruthless man from a very wealthy and powerful family.

After a night of passion, Snake decides to take Riley far away from Richmond, Virginia to a town in Wyoming for the annual Cattle Valley Days celebration. He should have known that sex with Riley wouldn’t be enough, but he feels he has nothing else to give such a nice guy. Riley is the sexiest man Snake’s ever taken to his bed despite Riley’s claim otherwise.

Riley knows he’s average-looking at best, so why does Snake continue to flatter him? It’s obvious he’s not going to kick Snake out of bed, even after Snake informs him that sex is all he has to give. So, how can Snake see him so differently than the rest of the world?

While Riley is busy trying to figure out the man who touches him like no other has before, Snake is busy trying to protect him from a monster from his past.
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Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, LGBT, Published in 2014, Susan65's Reviews | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment