Published in 2014

Book Review: Waiting for Rain by Susan Mac Nicol

Reviewed by Susan65

Title: Waiting for Rain
Author: Susan Mac Nicol
Heroes: Rain Engel and Toby Prentiss
Genre: M/M Contemporary
Length: 280 Pages
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Release Date: February 24, 2014
Available at: Dreamspinner Press, Amazon, All Romance eBooks & Barnes and Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads & Booklikes

Blurb: The village of Stamford, the quintessential chocolate box English scene, seemed an impossible dream for foster kid Toby Prentiss. Now he’s found a home among the haystacks and village fairs as the general manager for the Duck and Drake Hotel. With the fears and demons from his youth hidden away in this bucolic oasis, he’s very protective of who he lets in. Until he stumbles across shirtless carpenter Rain Engel building the hotel’s new custom-designed bar.

Working in the countryside, Rain prepared to face his biggest fear: sheep. He didn’t expect to deal with his second biggest fear: commitment. Toby’s controlled, tough guy façade coupled with his “find happiness where you can” optimism calls to Rain like nothing before. While Rain may be an exhibitionist, his romantic history forces him to hold his emotions close. As their relationship develops, secrets from their pasts drive a wedge between them: the ex-boyfriend who tore apart Rain’s trust and Toby’s history with the law. But can the secrets hiding among the quirky villagers bring them together? With missing sheep, pole dancing at the winter festival, and a crippling drought, everyone is waiting for Rain. Continue reading

Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, LGBT, Published in 2014, Susan65's Reviews | Tags: , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Book Review: Ice by L.J. LaBarthe

Reviewed by Nikyta

Title: Ice
Author: L.J. LaBarthe
Heroes: Koby & Mircea
Genre: M/M Futuristic Fantasy
Length: 30,000 words
Publisher: Less Than Three Press
Release Date: February 5, 2014
Available at: Less Than Three Press, Amazon, All Romance eBooks & Barnes and Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: Koby is a graduate student specializing in the cohabitation of dead and living cells in a single body, a course of study that requires he spend two years working in the labs at the parium mines in Antarctica, where he will assist in experiments conducted on the vampire prisoners kept there.

Expecting little more than a tedious assignment, despite the dangers of the environment and the dangerous vampires sentenced to the mines for life, Koby instead discovers a dome of horrors, where the persons in charge cannot be trusted and the greatest victims are the prisoners—and the most incongruous place to discover a new love. If he cannot solve the problems destroying the dome from the inside, the vampires won’t be the only ones to die. Continue reading

Categories: 3 Star Ratings, Book Review, LGBT, Nikyta's Reviews, Published in 2014 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Heidi Cullinan Week: Reminisce Review of Double Blind

Reviewed by Nikyta

Title: Double Blind
Author: Heidi Cullinan
Series: Special Delivery #2
Heroes: Randy Jensen & Ethan Ellison
Genre: M/M BDSM Contemporary
Length: 350 pages
Publisher: Samhain Publishing
Re-Release Date: March 4, 2014
Available at: Samhain, Amazon, & Barnes and Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads & Booklikes

Blurb: Know when to show your hand…and when to hedge your bets.

Randy Jensen can’t stand to just sit by and watch as a mysterious man throws money away on the roulette wheel, especially since Randy’s got his own bet going as to the reason this guy is making every play like it’s his last day on earth. The man’s dark desperation hits Randy right in the gut. Half of him warns that getting involved is a sucker’s bet, and the other half scrambles for a reason—any reason—to save the man’s soul.

Ethan Ellison has no idea what he’s going to do with himself once his last dollar is gone—until Randy whirls into his life with a heart-stealing smile and a poker player’s gaze that sees too much.

Randy draws Ethan into a series of wagers that leads to a scorching kiss by midnight, but he isn’t the only one with an interest in Ethan’s vulnerability. Soon they’re both taking risks that not only play fast and loose with the law, but with the biggest prize of all: their hearts.

This book has been previously published and has been revised from its original release.

Product Warnings:

This story contains high-stakes poker, gangsters with a weakness for kittens, foursomes, and kinky consensual sex.

Continue reading

Categories: 5 Star Ratings, Author Week, Book Review, LGBT, Nikyta's Reviews, Published in 2014 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Early Review: Being Chase by J.J. Scotts

Reviewed by JustJen

Title: Being Chase
Author: J.J. Scotts
Series: The Chase Series #1
Heroes: Liam/Chase
Genre: M/M Contemporary
Length: 164 pages
Publisher: Self-Published
Release Date: February 24, 2014
Available at: J.J. Scotts’ Site
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: Wouldn’t it be nice to be a celebrity?

Liam Collins is desperate for a job. Forced to jump to the big city, he can’t believe his luck when he suddenly gets an offer from a prestigious publishing company. Absolutely ecstatic, Liam doesn’t even bother reading the details. But on his first day of work, he isn’t ushered to a quaint cubicle. Instead, he’s brought to a classy high-rise and told that he’s been hired to be the face of the best-selling author, Chase Preston.

When Liam first meets Chase, he’s so captivated by the mysterious man’s imposing figure and deep-set eyes. Maybe Liam really did get lucky.

All Liam has to do is go to fan meetings and award events as a stand-in for Chase. It actually doesn’t sound bad, but Liam soon realizes that being with Chase is harder than it appears. Despite the challenges of Chase’s arrogant attitude, Liam puts up with it. What he finds difficult to put up with is Chase’s sexy body and brilliant blue eyes.

Even worse, the feeling may be mutual. Continue reading

Categories: 3.5 Star Ratings, Book Review, JustJen's Reviews, LGBT, Published in 2014 | Tags: , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: The Saucy Minx by Manda Olie

Reviewed by Nikyta

Title: The Saucy Minx
Author: Manda Olie
Heroes: Jack & Chris
Genre: M/M Contemporary/Paranormal
Length: 60 pages
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Release Date: January 29, 2014
Available at: Dreamspinner Press
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads & Booklikes

Blurb: With a touch of the magic that gives his recipes a culinary kick, Jack Killian has been running his restaurant, the Saucy Minx, for nearly a decade—almost as long as there’s been a spell out there promising to knock him off his feet should he ever meet the other half of his whole. Each day Jack delights his clientele by magically imbuing his food with taste and emotion, even as he slowly loses hope that the man of his dreams even exists.

But when he hires a new dessert manager, his whole life turns upside-down, because his dream man does exist—and he just strolled into the restaurant on someone else’s arm. While conducting business as usual, Jack struggles through what it means when destiny hands you the perfect man on a platter you’re not allowed to touch. Continue reading

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

Book Review: Valentine Shower by John C. Houser

Reviewed by Nikyta

Title: Valentine Shower
Author: John C. Houser
Heroes: Reuben & Terry
Genre: M/M Contemporary
Length: 56 pages
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Release Date: February 12, 2014
Available at: Dreamspinner Press
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads & Booklikes

Blurb: For Reuben, numbers are everything people are not: rational, predictable, and soothing. Outside of this family, his boss, Terry, is the one person he feels connected with. In the years they’ve worked together, listening to Terry’s jokes and stories over coffee has become a reliable part of his routine. But he’s missed having family nearby since his parents retired to Florida, and figures he’ll need a woman to correct the problem. He’s hurt and confused when Terry not only refuses to help, but announces he won’t be coming around much anymore. It’s up to Reuben’s no-nonsense sister Yaffa and his therapist, Dr. Greenberg, to help him understand Terry’s feelings—and his own.

A part of the “A Valentine Rainbow” set of 14 holiday stories. Continue reading

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

Book Review: Confessions of a Gay Rugby Player 4 by Patrick Darcy

Reviewed by JustJen

Title: Confessions of a Gay Rugby Player 4
Author: Patrick Darcy
Heroes: Conor Murphy
Genre: M/M Contemporary Erotica
Length: 54 pages
Publisher: Wilde City Press
Release Date: February 19, 2014
Available at: Wilde City Press
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: Things could not be better for star rugby player Conor Murphy. He has a hot boyfriend that worships him and he is back in his rightful place, leader of the Dublin Chiefs Rugby team.

His new boyfriend Oisin has the hottest ass in town and yet things are not right. There is pretense between them. Not on Oisin’s side, no, the man loves him. It’s Conor who is not tackling straight. His mind is filled with thoughts of another. Sean, the love of his life, is single again and Conor can’t help but think what if.

What if he had the courage to end things with Oisin and take a punt with Sean. Self doubt fills Conor’s mind. Can he really do this to Oisin? Doesn’t he deserve better? Does Sean even feel anything for him?

It’s time to decide what he wants, Oisin or Sean? Will he do the right thing or follow his heart? Continue reading

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

Book Review: The Grendel Affair by Lisa Shearin

Reviewed by Nikyta

Title: The Grendel Affair
Author: Lisa Shearin
Series: SPI Files #1
Hero/Heroine: Makenna Fraser & Ian Byrne
Genre:  M/F Urban Fantasy
Length: 304 pages
Publisher:  Ace Books
Release Date: December 31, 2013
Available at: Penguin, Amazon & Barnes and Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads & Booklikes

Blurb: We’re Supernatural Protection & Investigations, known as SPI. Things that go bump in the night, the monsters you thought didn’t exist? We battle them and keep you safe. But some supernatural baddies are just too big to contain, even for us…

When I moved to New York to become a world famous journalist, I never imagined that snagging a job at a seedy tabloid would change my career path from trashy reporter to undercover agent. I’m Makenna Fraser, a Seer for SPI. I can see through any disguise, shield, or spell that a paranormal pest can come up with. I track down creatures and my partner, Ian Byrne, takes them out.

Our cases are generally pretty routine, but a sickle-wielding serial killer has been prowling the city’s subway tunnels. And the murderer’s not human. The fiend in question, a descendant of Grendel—yes, that Grendel—shares his ancestor’s hatred of parties, revelry, and drunkards. And with New Year’s Eve in Times Square only two days away, we need to bag him quickly. Because if we don’t find him—and the organization behind him—by midnight, our secret’s out and everyone’s time is up. Continue reading

Categories: 5 Star Ratings, Book Review, M/F, Nikyta's Reviews, Published in 2014 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Series Review: 52 First Dates by A. Lusch

Reviewed by JustJen

Title: The Man Plan
Series: 52 First Dates #1
Author: Algenon Lusch
Hero: David
Genre: M/M Contemporary
Length: 37 pages
Publisher: Self-published
Release Date: August 4, 2013
Available at: Smashwords, Amazon & All Romance eBooks
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: Now that David’s heading towards his mid-30s, he’s finally realised that it’s time to find a husband. But with so many men and so little time, he realises he’s going to have to be strategic if he’s ever to find his soulmate.

Thus, 52 First Dates is formed; a challenge, a scheme, to go on a date with a new man, every week, for a year. If it pays off, he’ll be in marital bliss. If it doesn’t, he’ll know that he’s fated with being the eternal bachelor. With everything to live for, David plunges into the world of dating in search of the perfect man. Continue reading

Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, JustJen's Reviews, LGBT, Published in 2013, Published in 2014 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: Five Ways a Boy Can Break Your Heart by Cate Ashwood & Skylar M. Cates

Reviewed by Nikyta

Title: Five Ways a Boy Can Break Your Heart
Authors: Cate Ashwood & Skylar M. Cates
Heroes: Trey & Liam
Genre: M/M Contemporary
Length: 116 pages
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Release Date: February 12, 2014
Available at: Dreamspinner Press
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: When Trey and Liam meet in boarding school, they couldn’t be more different. Liam is a classical violinist with a scholarship, and Trey is a punk rocker with famous parents. Despite their conflicting backgrounds, they hit it off and bond over their love of music. But after spending every waking hour together, Liam is devastated when Trey leaves school without an explanation. Worse yet, Trey capitalizes on a song they wrote together.

Seven years later, they bump into each other at a charity benefit in New York. Old sparks fly, but Liam hasn’t quite recovered from the pain Trey caused. Liam doesn’t know if any explanation Trey can offer will be enough, or if he can find it in his heart to forgive the only man he’s ever really loved. Continue reading

Categories: 3.5 Star Ratings, Book Review, LGBT, Nikyta's Reviews, Published in 2014 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment