TBG: When we first decided that Mary Calmes would be the focus of our first Author Week, we immediately thought of Laura from The Tipsy Bibliophile. Like Nikyta, she has an obsession with anything that Mary Calmes happens to write. So, when we asked Laura to be our Honorary Blogger Girl for the day and write a recipe review for one of her favorite MC books, she thankfully agreed! Her reviews have a unique flare that mixes a review with a recipe, and wine, specific to the story. We enjoy her creations as much for the review as for the tasty recipes she offers and we hope you enjoy them as much as we have! Take it away, Laura! Continue reading
Published in 2012
Mary Calmes Week Review: Steamroller
Reviewed by Heather C
Title: Steamroller
Author: Mary Calmes
The Heroes: Vincent Wade & Carson Cress
Genre: M/M Contemporary Romance
Length: 34, 288 words
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Release Date: May 7, 2012
Available at: Dreamspinner Press, Amazon, All Romance eBooks & Barnes & Noble
Add it to your shelf at: Goodreads & Booklikes
Blurb: About the last thing Vincent Wade expected was for Carson Cress to ask him out. Vince is a dedicated biology student and a bit of a loner. Superstar quarterback Carson is larger than life, and he lives under a public microscope. There’s no way they should work. But Vince is learning that sometimes people just come steamrolling into your life and all you can do is hang on for the ride or lose your heart in the process. If their relationship can survive the fallout when an injury derails Carson’s future plans, maybe Vince can finally find something to believe in. Continue reading
Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Author Week, Book Review, Heather C's Reviews, LGBT, Published in 2012, Uncategorized
Tags: Athlete, College, Dreamspinner Press, football, HEA, insta love, M/M Contemporary Romance, Mary Calmes, Mary Calmes Week, Novella, out for you, Sports, Steamroller, The Blogger Girls
1 Comment
Mary Calmes Week Review: Mine
Reviewed by JustJen
Title: Mine
Author: Mary Calmes
Heroes: Trevan/Landry
Genre: M/M Contemporary
Length: 220 pages
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Release Date: March 5, 2012
Available at: Dreamspinner, Amazon, All Romance eBooks & Barnes and Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads & Booklikes
Blurb: Trevan Bean has a job that’s going from illegal to frightening, a boyfriend who may not be in his right mind, and a guardian angel who might actually be evil incarnate. Add to that the reappearance of his boyfriend’s estranged family, death threats, kidnapping, and the struggle of saving money to realize a dream, and Trevan has a lot on his plate. But Trevan is up to the challenge: he promised Landry a happily ever after, and Landry’s going to have it if it kills him!
It just might.
Landry Carter was a broken doll when they met two years ago but has grown into a partner who can stand at Trevan’s side… most of the time. Now that Trevan’s life just got scary—and Landry just got himself kidnapped—Trevan has to hope Landry’s love stays strong through this newest challenge, because the happily ever after won’t happen if Trevan has to go it alone. Continue reading
Book Review: In These Words, Vol 1 by TogaQ & Kichiku Neko
Reviewed by Heather C
Title: In These Words, Volume 1
Author: TogaQ (art) & Kichiku Neko (script) Guilt|Pleasure
Series: In These Words
The Hero: Asano Katsuya
The Villian: Shinohara Keiji
Genre: Manga/Suspense, M/M
Length: 200 pages
Publisher: 801 Media, Inc
Release Date: June 26, 2012
Volume 1 is available in print at: Amazon (maybe?)
Individual chapters are available in print at: Guilt|Pleasure
Individual chapters are available in eBook at: Kobo
Add it to your shelf at: Goodreads & Booklikes
Blurb: Asano Katsuya is a US trained psychiatrist who has been recruited by the Tokyo Police Department to provide a profile through the victims’ data. Based on Asano’s profile and recommendation, an elaborate plan is put into place to lure the serial killer out – a plan that bore successful results! Now, after three years and twelve victims, Shinohara Keiji is finally in police custody. Shinohara has promised a thorough confession, however, on the absolute terms that Asano has to be the one to receive it. Besides the curious request by the killer whom Asano was only familiar with on paper, disturbing nightmares begin to plague him as soon as he’s given the case… Continue reading
Categories: 4.5 Star Ratings, Book Review, Heather C's Reviews, LGBT, Published in 2012
Tags: BDSM, blood play, Guilt|Pleasure, In These Words, M/M, Manga, Non-Con, Set in Japan, suspense, The Blogger Girls, Yaoi
1 Comment
Challenge Book Review: Widdershins by Jordan L. Hawk
Reviewed by Nikyta
Title: Widdershins
Author: Jordan L. Hawk
Series: Whyborne & Griffin #1
Heroes: Percival Endicott Whyborne & Griffin Flaherty
Genre: M/M Paranormal Historical
Length: 85k+ words
Publisher: Self-published
Release Date: December 3, 2012
Available at: Smashwords, Amazon, All Romance eBooks & Barnes and Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads & Booklikes
Blurb: Some things should stay buried.
Repressed scholar Percival Endicott Whyborne has two skills: reading dead languages and hiding in his office at the Ladysmith Museum. After the tragic death of the friend he secretly loved, he’s ruthlessly suppressed any desire for another man.
So when handsome ex-Pinkerton Griffin Flaherty approaches him to translate a mysterious book, Whyborne wants to finish the job and get rid of the detective as quickly as possible. Griffin left the Pinkertons following the death of his partner, hoping to start a new life. But the powerful cult which murdered Glenn has taken root in Widdershins, and only the spells in the book can stop them. Spells the intellectual Whyborne doesn’t believe are real.
As the investigation draws the two men closer, Griffin’s rakish charm threatens to shatter Whyborne’s iron control. When the cult resurrects an evil sorcerer who commands terrifying monsters, can Whyborne overcome his fear and learn to trust? Will Griffin let go of his past and risk falling in love? Or will Griffin’s secrets cost Whyborne both his heart and his life? Continue reading
Categories: 4.5 Star Ratings, Book Review, Challenge Book Week, LGBT, Nikyta's Reviews, Published in 2012
Tags: closet cases, deception, Historical, injuries, Jordan L. Hawk, M/M, magic, mystery, paranormal, Pets, private investigators, Self-Published, series, suspense, Whyborne & Griffin Series, Widdershins, working together
15 Comments
Challenge Book Review: The Nothingness of Ben by Brad Boney
Reviewed by JustJen
Title: The Nothingness of Ben
Author: Brad Boney
Heroes: Ben/Travis
Genre: M/M Contemporary
Length: 248 Pages
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Release Date: November 23, 2012
Available at: Dreamspinner Press, Amazon, All Romance eBooks & Barnes and Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads & Booklikes
Blurb: Ben Walsh is well on his way to becoming one of Manhattan’s top litigators, with a gorgeous boyfriend and friends on the A-list. His life is perfect until he gets a phone call that brings it all crashing down: a car accident takes his parents, and now he must return to Austin to raise three teenage brothers he barely knows.
During the funeral, Ben meets Travis Atwood, the redneck neighbor with a huge heart. Their relationship initially runs hot and cold, from contentious to flirtatious, but when the weight of responsibility starts wearing on Ben, he turns to Travis, and the pressure shapes their friendship into something that feels a lot like love. Ben thinks he’s found a way to have his old life, his new life, and Travis too, but love isn’t always easy. Will he learn to recognize that sometimes the worst thing imaginable can lead him to the place he was meant to be? Continue reading
Young Adult Week! Review: Under the Bridge by R. Cooper
Reviewed by JustJen
Title: Under the Bridge
Author: R. Cooper
Heroes: Chris/Nick
Genre: M/M Young Adult
Length: 24 Pages
Publisher: Self-published
Release Date: October 15, 2012
Available at: Smashwords
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads
Blurb: Grad night is supposed to be a night of carefree celebration before growing up and leaving childhood behind, but after graduation Chris is spending his night wandering streets alone with a black eye and a split lip. Beat up yet again for being out and proud, he is contemplating how glad he’ll be to leave his childhood, and this town, behind, when he stumbles across the town’s other outcast, his childhood best friend, Nick. Chris hasn’t spoken to Nick in years. When Nick was thirteen his family moved away, and when they came back to town a year later, Chris had a new stepfather, a new set of bruises, and no interest in being friends with Chris or anyone else. He’s spent high school getting into trouble and breaking hearts while Chris has been getting ready for college. On the surface they couldn’t be more different, but it isn’t long before Chris starts to see that Nick is just as scared and lonely as he is, and just as used to pain. Continue reading
Categories: 4 Star Ratings, JustJen's Reviews, LGBT, Published in 2012, Theme Week
Tags: Abuse, Bittersweet, Coming Out, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, R. Cooper, Self-Published, Under the Bridge, Young Adult, Young Adult Week
1 Comment
Young Adult Week! Review: Throne of Glass by Sarah J. Maas
Reviewed by Nikyta
Title: Throne of Glass
Author: Sarah J. Maas
Series: Throne of Glass #1
Heroes/Heroine: Celaena Sardothien, Chaol Westfall, & Prince Dorian (Sorta)
Genre: M/F YA Fantasy
Length: 404 pages
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Release Date: August 7, 2012
Available at: Bloomsbury, Amazon & Barnes & Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads & Booklikes
Blurb: In a land without magic, where the king rules with an iron hand, an assassin is summoned to the castle. She comes not to kill the king, but to win her freedom. If she defeats twenty-three killers, thieves, and warriors in a competition, she is released from prison to serve as the king’s champion. Her name is Celaena Sardothien.
The Crown Prince will provoke her. The Captain of the Guard will protect her. But something evil dwells in the castle of glass–and it’s there to kill. When her competitors start dying one by one, Celaena’s fight for freedom becomes a fight for survival, and a desperate quest to root out the evil before it destroys her world.
Categories: 5 Star Ratings, Book Review, M/F, Nikyta's Reviews, Published in 2012, Theme Week
Tags: action, assasins, Bloomsbury, criminals, cruelty/abuse, deception, demons, emotionally damaged, fantasy, injury, m/f, magic, mystery, Pets, royalty, Sarah J. Maas, series, suspense, Throne of Glass, Throne of Glass Series, warriors, yearning, Young Adult, Young Adult Week
2 Comments
Book Review: On A Lee Shore by Elin Gregory
Reviewed by Heather C
Title: On A Lee Shore
Author: Elin Gregory
The Heroes: Lt Christopher “Kit” Penrose & Captain Griffin
Genre: M/M Historical Romance / Adventure
Length: 110,000+ words
Publisher: Etopia Press
Release Date: December 14, 2012
Available at: Etopia Press, Amazon, All Romance eBooks & Barnes and Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads & Booklikes
Blurb: “Give me a reason to let you live…”
Beached after losing his ship and crew, and with England finally at peace, Lt Christopher Penrose will take whatever work he can get. A valet? Why not? Escorting an elderly diplomat to the Leeward Islands seems like an easy job, but when their ship is boarded by pirates, Kit’s world is turned upside down. Forced aboard the pirate ship, Kit finds himself juggling his honor with his desire to staying alive among the crew, not to mention the alarming—yet enticing—captain, known as Le Griffe.
Kit has always obeyed the rules, but as the pirates plunder their way across the Caribbean, he finds much to admire in their freedom. He deplores their lawlessness but is drawn to their way of life, and begins to think he might just have found a purpose. Dare he dream of finding love too? Or would loving a pirate take him too far down the road to ruin? Continue reading
Categories: 5 Star Ratings, Book Review, Heather C's Reviews, LGBT, Published in 2012
Tags: Adventure, challenge read, Elin Gregory, enemies to lovers, Etopia Press, HEA, held captive, Historical, historical romance, LGBT, M/M, On a Lee Shore, pirates, romance, sailors, slow burn
1 Comment
Book Review: Beyond the Edge by Elizabeth Lister
Reviewed by JustJen
Title: Beyond the Edge
Author: Elizabeth Lister
Heroes: Tate Mackenzie, James Lucas & Sebastian Doucette
Genre: M/M BDSM
Length: 290 Pages
Publisher: MLR Press
Release Date: September 21, 2012
Available at: MLR Press, Amazon, All Romance eBooks, & Barnes and Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads & Booklikes
Blurb: Tate Mackenzie has signed on for a weekend of kinky fun at the hands of respected Dom, James Lucas. However, James has invited another man, twenty-four year-old Sebastian Doucette, to join in. Thrown together under James’ expert tutelage, the two men experience an instant attraction and begin a tentative relationship on their own time. But James hasn’t been entirely honest with the boys and soon Tate finds himself the focus of two infatuated men. How will he choose the man he wants or the lifestyle he desires to pursue? Continue reading
Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, JustJen's Reviews, LGBT, Published in 2012
Tags: BDSM, Beyond the Edge, Elizabeth Lister, M/M, M/M/M, MLR Press
4 Comments
Favorite Reads So Far of 2017
Heather C's Fav:
JustJen's Fav:
Nikyta's Fav:
Susan65's Fav:
JustJen's Fav:
Nikyta's Fav:
Susan65's Fav:
Grab Our Badge:
The Blogger Girls 