4 Star Ratings

Vampire Week Review: The Circle Unbroken by Belinda Burke

Reviewed by Nikyta

https://www.totallybound.com/image/cache/data/Covers/C/thecircleunbroken_exlarge_PNG-210x336.pngTitle: The Circle Unbroken
Author: Belinda Burke
Series: Eight Kingdoms #2
Heroes: Macsen Cadoc/Bran Fionnan
Genre: M/M Fantasy
Length: 55k+ words
Publisher: Totally Bound
Release Date: October 24, 2014 (Now available for early download)
Available at: Totally Bound
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: A prince, a king, an oath to bind and an oath to break. Can something begun in darkness survive the light? Or does the shape of that oath define love…and the circle unbroken?

Three months have passed since Macsen Cadoc’s rescue of Bran Fionnan—three mortal months, three days in Macsen’s Red Kingdom. Bran has begun to seek a place for himself—as sidhe, as Summer’s Prince and as Macsen’s consort. The Red King has begun to balance the thirst of his own nature with the love that now moves him just as much. Yet when Bran is reminded of an oath that was made between them when he was just a child, that which has so far held them together may end up tearing them apart.

While the strength of their love is tested, a mortal enemy is once more in motion. Focused only on their destruction, Dealla seeks to step into the place of her dead father–to rule over the Milesians and fulfil the oaths of crown and country. To do so, she must find a way to hurt two foes…one new and openly deadly, the other ancient and its enmity long asleep. Allies appear in unlikely places, armed by their own motives to seek the same destruction Dealla desires…but the price of success may be higher than the cost of failure—higher than any plot or plan allows.

What is the price of an oath fulfilled? Is love born from nothing, or does it wear a path that can be traced?
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Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, LGBT, Nikyta's Reviews, Published in 2014, Theme Week | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: Black Wings by Christina Henry

Reviewed by Nikyta

1Title: Black Wings
Author: Christina Henry
Series: Black Wings #1
Heroine/Hero: Madeline Black/Gabriel Angeloscuro
Genre: M/F Paranormal
Length: 295 Pages
Publisher: Ace
Release Date: November 30, 2010
Available at: Ace, Amazon and Barnes & Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: She’s an Agent of Death who really needs to get a life.

As an Agent of Death, Madeline Black is responsible for escorting the souls of the dearly departed to the afterlife. It’s a 24/7 job with a lousy benefits package.

Maddy’s position may come with magical powers and an impressive wingspan, but it doesn’t pay the bills. And then there are her infuriating boss, tenant woes, and a cranky, popcorn-loving gargoyle to contend with.

Things start looking up, though, when tall, dark, and handsome Gabriel Angeloscuro agrees to rent the empty apartment in Maddy’s building. It’s probably just a coincidence that as soon as he moves in demons appear on the front lawn. But when an unholy monster is unleashed upon the streets of Chicago, Maddy discovers powers she never knew she possessed. Powers linked to a family legacy of tarnished halos.

Powers that place her directly between the light of Heaven and the fires of Hell…
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Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, M/F, Nikyta's Reviews, Published in 2010 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Book Review: Bad Things by Varian Krylov

Reviewed by JustJen

1Title: Bad Things
Author: Varian Krylov
Heroes: Xavier/Carson
Genre: MM Contemporary
Length: 410 Pages
Publisher: Varian Krylov
Release Date: September 15, 2014
Available at: Amazon and Smashwords
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb:  Xavier makes a lot of people nervous. The rest, he flat-out scares. More than his hulking, tattooed body, it’s his predator’s gaze that makes people feel vulnerable, as if he had the power to read their thoughts and see their soul. For his lovers, it’s Xavier’s ravenous appetite for all things carnal—for the taste of flesh under his tongue and the feel of a trembling body under his control, for whispered pleas and muffled cries—that makes him dangerous.

But recently, driven by a festering rage against the men who attacked his sister a decade ago, Xavier has developed a taste for a different kind of hunt and conquest: stalking men who do truly bad things and punishing the predators he sniffs out. The problem with vigilante justice, though, is sometimes the man in your trap is innocent.

Carson suspects he’s playing a risky game with dangerous men. But the lies are convincing, especially when they’re slipped to him among hundred dollar bills. He never guessed how big and dark the secret hidden under all the lies and money could be. And he has no idea he’s not the predator, but the prey, until it’s too late.

And you can’t beg for mercy when there’s a gag in your mouth.

But when Carson escapes from Xavier’s trap, he’s forced to accept that Xavier is far from his most dangerous enemy. Xavier may even hold the key to overcoming the painful past that has kept Carson prisoner for almost two decades.
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Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, JustJen's Reviews, LGBT, Published in 2014 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Vampire Week Review: Dare to Love Forever by J.C. Wallace

Reviewed by Susan65

1Title: Dare to Love Forever
Author: J.C. Wallace
Series: New Vampire Justice #1
Heroes: Carson Locke/Lincoln Samuels
Genre: MM Paranormal
Length: 230 Pages
Publisher: Amber Allure
Release Date: June 30, 2014
Available at: Amber Allure, Amazon and Barnes & Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: Carson Locke is a Tabula Rosa vampire—a dangerous rarity in the world of vampires. With one bite, he can wipe clean a vampire’s mind, creating a mindless drone. Because of this, Carson has spent his entire twenty-three years sheltered at home. That changes, however, when his entire family is murdered. On the run and near death, Carson meets Commander Lincoln Samuels, a beautiful vampire who tries to heal him. In doing so, Carson is bonded to Lincoln and turned into something the vampire world has never seen.

Lincoln is a Sanatore vampire with the ability to heal other vampires. He heads a team in the New Vampire Justice police force in Utica, NY. Late one night, he’s called to a local Vampire Blood Market where a starving Tabula Rosa vampire is about to be executed by one of his officers. Feeling a strong connection to Carson, Lincoln wants to heal the broken man despite knowing the risk in doing so—it could destroy Lincoln and cost him the chance to love again. And he soon discovers there’s a greater evil threatening to take Carson from him.

Can two vampires who have loved and painfully lost in the past learn to trust one another, defeat the evil rising against them, and dare to love forever?
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Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, LGBT, Published in 2014, Susan65's Reviews | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: A Taste for Poison by Aleksandr Voinov

Guest Reviewed by Gyn

1Title: A Taste for Poison
Author: Aleksandr Voinov
Series: Memory of Scorpions #3
Heroes: Kendras/Adrastes
Genre: MM Historical Fantasy
Length: 265 Pages
Publisher: Riptide Publishing
Release Date: October 13, 2014
Available at:  Riptide Publishing, Amazon and Barnes & Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb:  Even a king gets stung when he reaches for a scorpion.

After barely surviving an assassination attempt, King Adrastes is a changed man—one who mistrusts even his allies and friends. He readies his Empire for war against an enigmatic enemy, the Elder of Vededrin, but not everyone approves. While courtiers dare only to whisper dissent, an outrider called Death foments rebellion in the mountains, aided by a prophecy that promises he’ll stop the Black King.

Kendras—former lover to Adrastes and leader of the Scorpions—is sent with his elite mercenary force to bring Death to justice. But when Kendras learns who’s hiding behind the mask, he must choose between his lover Graukar, newly-appointed general to the king—and King Adrastes himself.

With no man to call master, the Scorpions could flee the danger and intrigue. But Kendras cannot abandon the man he once loved—or the man he’s growing to love—without first uncovering the real threat to the Empire.
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Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, Guest Reviewer, LGBT, Published in 2014 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: Facing Demons by Lynley Wayne

Reviewed by JustJen

5Title: Facing Demons
Author: Lynley Wayne
Series: Scars #3
Heroes: Seth Dempsey/Cameron Reyes
Genre: MM Contemporary
Length: 379 Pages
Publisher: MLR Press
Release Date: October 3, 2014
Available at: MLR Press, Amazon and Barnes & Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb:  When demons from his past interfere with his present, Cam knows Seth is the only one he can trust to help him face them.

At the age of fifteen, Seth Dempsey gave his heart to Cameron Reyes. Three years later, Cam shattered it when he walked away. When Cam blows back into Seth’s life years later, Seth knows he will do whatever it takes to ensure Cam doesn’t slip away again. Even if it means going up against a corrupt DEA agent and a drug cartel.

Cameron Reyes was born on the wrong side of the tracks. He fell in love with Seth, but knew the only way to keep him safe was to leave, no matter how much it hurt. Eleven years later, when his life implodes, he knows the only person he can trust is the boy whose heart he broke all those years ago.

While they fight to stay one step ahead of everyone and clear Cam’s name, can they learn to work together in order to face down the demons of the past and find the happily ever after they have dreamed of?
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Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, JustJen's Reviews, LGBT, Published in 2014 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Vampire Week Review: Venomoid by J.A. Kossler

Reviewed by Nikyta

Venomoid: Book One of the Night Code SagaTitle: Venomoid
Author: J.A. Kossler
Series: Book One of the Night Code Saga
Heroes: Lorin/Lex
Genre: M/M Paranormal
Length: 280 Pages
Publisher: Riverdale Avenue Books
Release Date: June 9, 2014
Available at: Riverdale Avenue Books, Amazon and Barnes & Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: In Book One of The Night Code Saga, Venomoid, paranormal creatures are governed by the IPO, a secret police force that ensures vampires, zombies, and others follow all required public safety regulations. Among the officers is 17 year-old Lorin, the IPO’s most skilled cadet. His co-workers distrust him, however, and in extreme cases barely tolerate him. As a vampire, he must follow the rules — including turning a blind eye to the IPO’s practice of torturing prisoners — or face death by sunlight exposure.

On one intense dragon-hunting mission, Lorin encounters Lex, a handsome but flesh-eating paranormal who is quickly intrigued by the young vampire. Lorin fears this hunter, but as an unexpected friendship unfolds between the two, an even more unlikely romance blossoms. The problem is Lex is on the IPO’s radar, and when they capture him for scientific experimentation, Lorin must risk his life to overthrow the organization he’s always feared in order to save his love.
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Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, LGBT, Nikyta's Reviews, Published in 2014, Theme Week | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: Liesmith by Alis Franklin

Reviewed by Nikyta

1Title: Liesmith
Author: Alis Franklin
Series: Of the Wyrd #1
Heroes: Sigmund Sussman/Lain Laufeyjarson
Genre: M/M Urban Fantasy
Length: 308 Pages
Publisher: Hydra Publication
Release Date: October 7, 2014
Available at: Random House and Amazon
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: Working in low-level IT support for a company that’s the toast of the tech world, Sigmund Sussman finds himself content, if not particularly inspired. As compensation for telling people to restart their computer a few times a day, Sigmund earns enough disposable income to gorge on comics and has plenty of free time to devote to his gaming group.

Then in walks the new guy with the unpronounceable last name who immediately becomes IT’s most popular team member. Lain Laufeyjarson is charming and good-looking, with a story for any occasion; shy, awkward Sigmund is none of those things, which is why he finds it odd when Lain flirts with him. But Lain seems cool, even if he’s a little different—though Sigmund never suspects just how different he could be. After all, who would expect a Norse god to be doing server reboots?

As Sigmund gets to know his mysterious new boyfriend, fate—in the form of an ancient force known as the Wyrd—begins to reveal the threads that weave their lives together. Sigmund doesn’t have the first clue where this adventure will take him, but as Lain says, only fools mess with the Wyrd. Why? Because the Wyrd messes back.
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Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, Debut Authors, LGBT, Nikyta's Reviews, Published in 2014 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: Bone Dry by Kim Fielding

Reviewed by Heather C

23206076Title: Bone Dry
Author: Kim Fielding
Series: Bones #1
Heroes: Ery & Karl
Genre: M/M Paranormal Romance
Length: 214 pages
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Release Date: October 10, 2014
Available at: Dreamspinner Press & Amazon
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: Ery Phillips’s muse is MIA. He’s pretty sure his job as a graphic designer is to blame, because let’s face it, what kind of muse wants to draw grocery store logos and catheterized penises?

When Ery’s friends Dylan and Chris head off on a European vacation, Ery jumps at the chance to stay on their farm, hoping a stint in the country will encourage his muse to reappear. To be sure, the farm has attracted a few oddities—Dylan is a werewolf and the place was recently haunted—but Ery isn’t canceling his plans just because his friends warn him that there’s something strange going on in their pond. What he doesn’t expect is Karl, a beautiful naked man who appears at the water’s edge.

With Karl as his inspiration, Ery creates amazing paintings and begins to achieve the success he had previously only dreamed of. But Karl comes with certain challenges, causing Ery to question his own goals. Creating the life of his dreams with an unusual beloved may be more challenge than Ery can handle.
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Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, Heather C's Reviews, LGBT, Published in 2014 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: Forgiving Thayne by J.R. Loveless

Reviewed by Nikyta

1Title: Forgiving Thayne
Author: J.R. Loveless
Series: True Mates #2
Heroes: Nicholas Cartwright/Thayne Whitedove
Genre: M/M Paranormal
Length: 290 Pages
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Release Date: October 1, 2014
Available at: Dreamspinner Press, Amazon and Barnes & Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: Nicholas Cartwright has done everything in his power to forget that night six months ago in Senaka, when his true mate rejected him, leaving him shattered and disillusioned. Burying himself in his work, he pushes himself to the point of exhaustion while finding the touch of another unbearable. Suddenly his mate needs his help, and he may be asking for more than Nicholas can find it in himself to give.

Thayne Whitedove has always been a wanderer, spending his days on the road and his nights wrapped in the arms of whatever random hookup he meets, until a fateful mistake sends him rushing for the comforts of home. To his utter dismay, the only way to correct his error in judgment is to accept the one thing he’s never wanted… his mate. Thayne must decide whether to keep running or to stay and fight for Nick’s forgiveness.
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Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, LGBT, Nikyta's Reviews, Published in 2014 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments