Challenge Book Week

Challenge Week Review: Billy’s Bones by Jamie Fessenden

Posted on March 22, 2014 by justjenbo

Reviewed by JustJen

Title: Billy’s Bones
Author: Jamie Fessenden
Heroes: Kevin Derocher/Tom Langois
Genre: M/M Contemporary
Length: 254 pages
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Release Date: July 22, 2013
Available at: Dreamspinner Press, Amazon, All Romance eBooks & Barnes and Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads & Booklikes

Blurb: Kevin Derocher was thirty-two when he walked into Tom’s office, newly married, a baby on the way, and the collar of his red flannel shirt pulled up to hide the bruises around his throat from when he hanged himself in his garage. After his initial consult, therapist Tom Langois believes he’ll never see Kevin again—but Kevin turns up three years later to make repairs on Tom’s new house.

Kevin and Tom become fast friends, and Tom begins to suspect Kevin may be interested in more than friendship. However, Kevin remains haunted by something from his childhood—something so terrible he blocked it from his mind. These suppressed memories make it impossible for Kevin to get close to anyone without panicking and lashing out, sometimes violently. But as his past begins to surface, it becomes apparent that Kevin may hold the key to a twenty-five-year-old mystery: what happened to Billy? Continue reading →

Categories: 4.5 Star Ratings, Book Review, Challenge Book Week, JustJen's Reviews, LGBT, Published in 2013 | Tags: Billy’s Bones, Contemporary, Dreamspinner Press, Friends to Lovers, GFY, Jamie Fessenden, M/M, Mystery/Suspense, Past Abuse, PTSD, The Blogger Girls | 1 Comment

Challenge Review: Shoes & Ties by Jena Wade

Posted on March 19, 2014 by Heather C

Reviewed by Heather C

Title: Shoes & Ties
Author: Jena Wade
Series: Shoes & Ties #1
Heroes: Ashten Brody & Trent Cole
Genre: M/M Contemporary Romance
Length: 33,500 words
Publisher: Loose Id
Release Date: October 2013
Available at: Loose Id, Amazon, All Romance eBooks & Barnes and Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: Ashten Brody is a chef fresh out of college. He lands his dream job working as a personal chef to Trent Cole, local luxury hotel owner. As it turns out, Trent is also his dream man.

After working together, the two are unable to deny their attraction. One late night they can’t hold back any longer. Too bad Ashten rushes off soon after.

In the weeks that follow, it appears to Ashten that he has landed his dream man and his dream job. He and Trent appear to be on the path to a serious relationship and life-long happiness. Life seems to be just too perfect… Continue reading →

Categories: 3.5 Star Ratings, Book Review, Challenge Book Week, Heather C's Reviews, LGBT, Published in 2013 | Tags: Contemporary Romance, HEA, Jena Wade, Loose Id, M/M, M/M Contemporary Romance, series, Shoes & Ties, Shoes & Ties Series, stalker, The Blogger Girls | 2 Comments

Challenge Week Review: Coming to Terms by A.R. Moler

Posted on March 19, 2014 by Nikyta

Reviewed by Nikyta

Title: Coming to Terms
Author: A.R. Moler
Heroes: Aidan & Kris
Genre: M/M Contemporary
Length: 17,000 words
Publisher: MLR Press
Release Date: November 2013
Available at: MLR Press, Amazon, All Romance eBooks & Barnes and Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads & Booklikes

Blurb: When Aidan Sterling has been to hell and back doing his duty to his country, who will help him come to terms with what happened?

Sometimes, inevitably, life hits a snag. What if love turns up at the same time? Aidan Sterling’s life has hit one of those moments-the times when things might just change whether he wants it to or not. Outside of the inherent paranoia of his active career in covert ops, he’s recovering from some serious physical and emotional trauma from a mission gone disastrously wrong. His bosses aren’t sure if he’s up to returning to active fieldwork—and neither is he. And Kris Jameson is the kind of guy who’ll take the time to understand and care about Aiden. He’s a regular guy with a large heart. Kris is a carpenter and a part-time bouncer, easy going and hardworking. But not all danger can be found overseas, and nice guys aren’t always safe even here at home. Continue reading →

Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, Challenge Book Week, LGBT, Nikyta's Reviews, Published in 2013 | Tags: A.R. Moler, Coming to Terms, Contemporary, emotionally damaged, healing, injury, JustJen's Challenge Week, M/M, military, MLR Press, physically damaged, physically scarred, PTSD, semi angst, The Blogger Girls | 1 Comment

Challenge Week Review: Gangster Country by Kade Boehme

Posted on March 18, 2014 by susan65coug Miss Behaving

Reviewed by Susan65

Title: Gangster Country
Author: Kade Boehme
Heroes: Logan Marshall and Gianni Rodriguez
Genre: M/M Contemporary
Length: 204 Pages
Publisher: Self-published
Release Date: December 10, 2013
Available at: Amazon & Barnes and Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads & Booklikes

Blurb: Logan Marshall moves to New York to be a social worker where he feels he’s needed most. Logan’s always had it good. His Daddy is a preacher, sure, but he preaches a laid back, tolerant congregation who accepted Logan’s sexuality gracefully. He’s from a ranch in nowhere, Texas, which makes him a hot ticket in the clubs with his tight, work strengthened body and his cute accent. He’s out of his element in New York, not looking for Mr. Right Now but Mr. Right.

Gianni Rodriguez grew up in Brooklyn. Nothing could be further from the way he was raised than innocent, good hearted Logan was. Gianni is fascinated that people like Logan even exist. And parents that not only are God-fearing, but also accepting?

As second in command of Los Cuervos, his brother’s not-so-merry band of drug runners and pimps, Gianni’s life would be in serious jeopardy if anyone ever knew the truth. That’s why his growing attachment for Logan is a bad thing.

When Logan’s work collides violently with Gianni’s life, Gianni has to decide if the man is worth risking everything, even his family– the man that may not even want him once he realizes what a monster the man he’s been sleeping with really is. Could Logan be Gianni’s reason to go straight? Or will they both go straight to an unmarked grave? Continue reading →

Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, Challenge Book Week, LGBT, Published in 2013, Susan65's Reviews | Tags: Abduction, Abuse, criminals, dark, Domestic abuse, Family Drama, Gang Member, Gangster Country, Graphic Violence, Homophobia, Hurt-Comfort, In-the-Closet, interracial, JustJen's Challenge Week, Kade Boehme, Kidnapping, Law Enforcement, M/M Contemporary, Self-Published, The Blogger Girls | 2 Comments

February Author Week + Recap!

Posted on February 23, 2014 by thebloggergirls

Well, now we’ve got a busy post today!

Last month we mentioned our desire to dedicate one week to a certain author each month. By mutual agreement, we all agreed that Heidi Cullinan would be February’s Author! Yay!

Since she is re-releasing the second book in her Special Delivery series, Double Blind, this week, we thought it would be a great idea to pimp out a few of her other books at the same time 😀

In addition to our regular reviews, we’ll be having a giveaway and even a uniquely different type of review (which was totally Heidi’s idea and we aren’t afraid to admit it :P) so stick around for it all!

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Now, with that out of the way, let’s talk about Challenge Week. We all enjoyed our picks (thanks Coug and the voters!) so it wasn’t too bad of a week! Here’s a quick recap of what was picked:

Susan65 picked:

Beyond Complicated by Mercy Celeste for Heather C (3.5 stars)
A Casual Weekend Thing by A.J. Thomas for JustJen (4 stars)
A Reason To Believe by Diana Copland for Nikyta (3 stars)

Voters’ Pick for Susan65:

The Fall by Kate Sherwood (4 stars)

Not a bad week, all in all! Keep a look out for a new poll coming out to help pick JustJen’s challenge book for next month!

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Last but not least! Today is the last day to sign up for the giveaway to win an eBook copy of You Can See Me by A.E. Via!

The giveaway ends at 11:59 pm EST TONIGHT so don’t forget to go to the giveaway post and comment with your email address to be put into the drawing.

Winner will be picked after the giveaway closes and announced tomorrow morning (Monday, February 24, 2014).

So, don’t forget to sign up!

And good luck!

Categories: Author Week, Challenge Book Week, Giveaways, Recaps | Tags: A.E. Via, February Challenge Week, Heidi Cullinan, Heidi Cullinan Week, Susan65's Challenge Week | Leave a comment

Challenge Week Review: Beyond Complicated by Mercy Celeste

Posted on February 22, 2014 by Heather C

Reviewed by Heather C

Title: Beyond Complicated
Author: Mercy Celeste
Heroes: Liam, Kel & Seth
Genre: M/M Contemporary Romance
Length: 88,800 words
Publisher: Self Published
Release Date: November 30, 2012
Available at: Amazon, All Romance eBooks & Barnes & Noble
Add it to your shelf at: Goodreads & Booklikes

Blurb: Liam McGuire has the perfect life–his job is a nightmare, his apartment was swank back in the eighties, and he has a secret so painful it could destroy him. What can top that? Meeting his son’s new boyfriend, that’s what.

For former porn star Liam McGuire, life is pretty tame, except that his twenty-one year old son is now dating the love of Liam’s life. At the ripe old age of thirty-eight, Liam’s entire world is collapsing around him, his past catching up with him, his secrets and his lies are coming back to bite him. All because Kel had to go and fall in love with Seth.

Continue reading →

Categories: 3.5 Star Ratings, Book Review, Challenge Book Week, Heather C's Reviews, LGBT, Published in 2012 | Tags: Beyond Complicated, Contemporary, deception, emotionally damaged, Family Drama, kinky, lots of sex, M/M, M/M Contemporary, Menage, Mercy Celeste, pseudo incest, romance, Self-Published, The Blogger Girls | 8 Comments

Challenge Week Review: A Casual Weekend Thing by A.J. Thomas

Posted on February 22, 2014 by justjenbo

Reviewed by JustJen

Title: A Casual Weekend Thing
Author: A.J. Thomas
Heroes: Christopher/Doug
Genre: M/M Contemporary
Length: 310 pages
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Release Date: May 13, 2013
Available at: Dreamspinner Press, Amazon, All Romance eBooks & Barnes and Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads & Booklikes

Blurb: Doug Heavy Runner left the life of an openly gay Miami police officer and returned to his home on the Salish-Kootenai Indian Reservation when his mother got sick. In the two years since she passed, he’s carved out an empty life as a small-town deputy, relying on out-of-town one-night stands to keep him sane. Then he meets Detective Christopher Hayes, and they share a wild night so incredible Doug breaks his own rule and allows a one-night stand to grow into a weekend of amazing sex.

When Christopher travels from San Diego to Montana to deal with his abusive brother’s suicide, he doesn’t expect to find the man he spent the weekend with to be handling his brother’s case. He certainly doesn’t mind spending more time with Doug—but then an arsonist destroys the house Christopher inherited from his brother, and Christopher and Doug discover they are the primary suspects.

As they investigate, they discover Christopher’s dead brother has set them on the trail of a psychotic pedophile who will stop at nothing to silence his last victim. However, the search for the victim goes horribly wrong, leaving Doug hospitalized and Christopher at the mercy of the killer… Continue reading →

Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, Challenge Book Week, JustJen's Reviews, LGBT, Published in 2013 | Tags: A Casual Weekend Thing, A.J. Thomas, Contemporary, Cops, criminals, Dreamspinner Press, February Challenge Week, insta love, M/M, Past Abuse, The Blogger Girls, Thriller | 1 Comment

Challenge Week Review: The Fall by Kate Sherwood

Posted on February 20, 2014 by susan65coug Miss Behaving

Reviewed by Susan65

Title: The Fall
Author: Kate Sherwood
Heroes: Joe Sutton and Scott Mackenzie
Genre: M/M Contemporary
Length: 214 Pages
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Release Date: December 16, 2013
Available at: Dreamspinner Press, Amazon, All Romance eBooks & Barnes and Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads & Booklikes

Blurb: Every relationship leaves something behind. Dumped by his sugar daddy, part-time model Scott Mackenzie somehow ends up owning an abandoned church in rural Ontario. He dreams of using it for gay weddings, even if he’ll never have one of his own.

Joe Sutton is trying to keep his family together after his parents’ deaths. Between the family ranch, his brother’s construction company, and commitments around town, he doesn’t have time for a relationship. But Mackenzie is hard to ignore.

As both men fight their growing attraction, challenges to Mackenzie’s business threaten their relationship. If he can’t make it work, he’ll have to crawl back to the city in defeat. But the only solution involves risking the ranch Joe loves, and each man has to decide how much he’ll sacrifice for the other. Continue reading →

Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, Challenge Book Week, LGBT, Published in 2013, Susan65's Reviews | Tags: Blue-collar, Contemporary, Dreamspinner Press, Family Drama, February Challenge Week, Kate Sherwood, M/M, Men with pets, Men-with-children, Model, Rancher, series, The Blogger Girls, The Fall, The Fall Series | 1 Comment

Challenge Book Review: A Reason To Believe by Diana Copland

Posted on February 17, 2014 by Nikyta

Reviewed by Nikyta

Title: A Reason To Believe
Author: Diana Copland
Heroes: Matthew Bennett & Kiernan Fitzpatrick
Genre: M/M Contemporary/Paranormal Mystery
Length: 81,000 words
Publisher: Carina Press
Release Date: October 22, 2012
Available at: Carina Press, Amazon, All Romance eBooks & Barnes and Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads & Booklikes

Blurb: Detective Matthew Bennett doesn’t believe in ghosts. So when the spirit of a murdered child leads him to her body, he’s shaken to the core–and taken off the case. Unable to explain his vision, or to let go of the investigation, Matthew turns to renowned medium Kiernan Fitzpatrick. Though he has doubts about Kiernan’s claims to communicate with the dead, Matt is nevertheless drawn to the handsome psychic, who awakens feelings he thought were long-buried.

Haunted by the lingering spirit of the little girl, Kiernan is compelled to aid in the search for her killer. The chance to get closer to the enigmatic Matt is an unexpected bonus. Although Kiernan’s been betrayed by people who turned out to be more interested in his fame than in himself, with Matt he’s willing to risk his heart. As the two men grow closer, Kiernan helps Matt rediscover that life offers no guarantees–but love offers a reason to believe… Continue reading →