JustJen’s Reviews

Book Review: Pounding Skin by L.A. Witt

Reviewed by JustJen

Title: Pounding Skin
Author: L.A. Witt
Series: Skin Deep Inc. #2
Heroes: Jon Russell/Matt Huffman
Genre: MM Contemporary
Length: 304 Pages
Publisher: St. Martin’s Press/Swerve
Release Date: July 11, 2017
Available at: Amazon and Barnes & Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb:  A Skin Deep, Inc. Novel

Fighter pilot Jon Russell never sleeps with the same man twice. Known for his lack of shame when it comes to hooking up, Jon has no interest in commitment—even friends with benefits sounds like too much work.

Matt Huffman has slept with lots of women. He’s had loads of girlfriends. So why does the hot as hell pilot getting a tattoo as the result of a lost bet stop his breath? And how come he can’t stop thinking about him, even after he’s gone?

When Jon returns to Skin Deep the second time, he doesn’t want another tattoo. He wants to hook up with the gorgeous artist he spent hours agonizingly close to, and Matt wants to explore some curiosity about men. Fulfill the desire he can’t stop fantasizing over. And he wants to do it with Jon.

As their casual hook up becomes more than just skin deep, both Matt and Jon are faced with questions they don’t want to answer. Matt understands he’s bi—but are these feelings he has typical of hooking up with a man? Or is it only Jon that can make his heart pound? If Jon wanted nothing more than a fling, why does he find himself needing not just Matt’s body, but all of him? And can their relationship withstand the hardships that makes Jon avoid them in the first place?

The Skin Deep, Inc books can be read in any order—come enter a world where gorgeous tattoo artists and hot Navy men find passion, pleasure, and a happily ever after together.

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Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, JustJen's Reviews, LGBT, Published in 2017 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book/Audio Review: The Dark Side by Laura Baumbach

Reviewed by JustJen and Susan65

 

Title: The Dark Side
Author: Laura Baumbach
Narrator: Joel Leslie
Series: Reese Holt #1
Heroes: Reese Holt/Alex Throne
Genre: MM Contemporary
Length: 240 Pages / 8 Hours, 20 Minutes
Publisher: MLR Press
Release Date: October 14, 2016 / May 15, 2017
Available at: Amazon and Audible
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: Kidnap victim Alex Throne literally drops into the arms of security specialist Reese Holt, pulling Holt into a battle against a ruthless drug cartel, personal betrayal, and a specter from Holt’s CIA past.

Holt agrees to put his team of specialists on the trail of Alex’s assailants while he takes on the personal job of protecting the life he inadvertently saved, motivated, in part, by a romantic attraction.

Keeping his mind on protecting Alex could prove difficult, especially when he can’t keep his mind off Alex’s body.
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Categories: 3 Star Ratings, 4 Star Ratings, Audio Review, Book Review, JustJen's Reviews, LGBT, Published in 2016, Published in 2017, Susan65's Reviews | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: Haven’s War by Parker Williams

Reviewed by JustJen

Title: Haven’s War
Author: Parker Williams
Series: Safe Haven #2
Heroes: Haven/Sammy
Genre: MM Contemporary
Length: 411 Pages
Publisher: Pride Press
Release Date: June 11, 2017
Available at: Amazon and Barnes & Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb:  With Haven on an extended honeymoon with Sammy, bad guys around the world are breathing a lot easier. No one is better at permanently removing these lowlifes who target children—and the brutal murder of two teenage girls makes clear it’s past time to return to work. Haven’s first assignment back results in a new family member and a renewed sense of urgency to protect and avenge the innocent.

There is nothing ‘usual’ about the business of hunting predators, but when several of Haven’s fellow agents are killed, a pattern emerges. The hunters have become the prey, tools in a bitter vendetta for a perceived wrong.

Despite years of working alone, when the target shifts to someone unexpected, Haven calls in reinforcements—a friend to stand between the family he loves and a ruthless killer. Teamwork may be the only way to win this fight—unless it’s already too little, too late.

Haven tries to approach this as he would any other assignment. Find your enemy and make sure they suffer before you eliminate them. But when a member of his team goes off-book and ends up dead, everything changes. It’s no longer a battle.

Now it’s war.
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Categories: 4.5 Star Ratings, Book Review, JustJen's Reviews, LGBT, Published in 2017 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: Damaged Like Us by Krista and Becca Ritchie

Reviewed by JustJen

Title: Damaged Like Us
Authors: Krista and Becca Ritchie
Series: Like Us #1
Heroes: Maximoff Hale/Farrow Keene
Genre: MM Contemporary
Length: 352 Pages
Publisher: K.B. Ritchie
Release Date: June 27, 2017
Available at: Amazon and Barnes & Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb:  Don’t date your bodyguard.
It was the one rule he had to break.

Maximoff Hale is a force of nature. A ship unwilling to be steered. Headstrong, resilient, and wholly responsible — the twenty-two-year-old alpha billionaire can handle his unconventional life. By noon, lunch can turn into a mob of screaming fans. By two, his face is all over the internet.

Born into one of the most famous families in the country, his celebrity status began at birth.

He is certified American royalty.

When he’s assigned a new 24/7 bodyguard, he comes face-to-face with the worst case scenario: being attached to the tattooed, MMA-trained, Yale graduate who’s known for “going rogue” in the security team — and who fills 1/3 of Maximoff’s sexual fantasies.

Twenty-seven-year-old Farrow Keene has one job: protect Maximoff Hale. Flirting, dating, and hot sex falls far, far out of the boundary of his bodyguard duties and into “termination” territory. But when feelings surface, protecting the sexy-as-sin, stubborn celebrity becomes increasingly complicated.

Together, boundaries blur, and being exposed could mean catastrophic consequences for both.

The Like Us series is a true series, one continuous timeline, that follows a family of wealthy celebrities and the people that protect them. Damaged Like Us can be read and enjoyed without reading any of Krista & Becca’s other novels.
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Categories: 4.5 Star Ratings, Book Review, JustJen's Reviews, LGBT, Published in 2017 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Book Review: Promises Part 3 by A.E. Via

Reviewed by JustJen

Title: Promises Part 3
Author: A.E. Via
Series: Bounty Hunters #3
Heroes: Dana/Ford
Genre: MM Contemporary
Length: 260 Pages
Publisher: Via Star Wings Books
Release Date: June 23, 2017
Available at: Amazon and Barnes & Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb:  A bounty hunter’s partners to lovers’ story.
The hunt is on… and he’s the prey.

Bradford (Ford) King was sure he had the rest of his life mapped out. Though he was no longer a SEAL Lieutenant, his brother was home safe and he had a job that still allowed him to satisfy his hunger for hunting bad guys. Life was simple, no distractions or complications – at age forty-six – that’s all Ford wanted. What he didn’t want was his work partner, sniper/watchman, Dana, giving him s**t all the time.

Dana Cadby had grown up labeled a roughneck from the wrong side of the tracks. He’d fought, scrounged, and survived despite a father that constantly told him he couldn’t. Dana pulled himself up by his own boot straps and made a name for himself in the marksman community. He’d been Duke’s bounty watchman for five years. It was his job to ensure their safety, watch their backs. At thirty-three, he was trusted, well respected by his peers, his bosses, his friends… so why couldn’t he earn the same respect from his partner?

Dana knew he was bisexual before he graduated high school. He also knew he was attracted to the huge, 6’3”, SEAL from the moment he and his brother came to join their team. It wasn’t easy for him to tamp down his immediate reaction to Ford’s thick muscles, full beard, and dark eyes. Still, Dana exhibited nothing but professionalism towards him, not wanting to make his ‘straight’ partner uncomfortable. So why did Ford constantly give him hell?

After Dana took back his ex-girlfriend, he’d noticed an intensification in Ford’s bad attitude. One that turned aggressive and downright antagonistic, and Dana was damned if he’d just lay down and take it. He was gonna make that man respect him if it was the last thing he did.

When Duke sends Dana and Ford out to track down their most dangerous bounty yet, they both embrace the fact that they make one hell of a team… but they fight tooth and nail against the powerful intimacy brewing between them.

Beware: If Ford and Dana connect completely, god help the fugitive who’s in the sights of the hunter and his watchman.

This story is a part of a series but can stand alone. It does not end on a cliffhanger and has a HEA.
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Categories: 4.5 Star Ratings, Book Review, JustJen's Reviews, LGBT, Published in 2017 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: Chief’s Mess by L.A. Witt

Reviewed by JustJen

Title: Chief’s Mess
Author: L.A. Witt
Series: Anchor Point #3
Heroes: Noah/Anthony
Genre: MM Contemporary
Length: 291 Pages
Publisher: Riptide Publishing
Release Date: June 19, 2017
Available at: Amazon and Barnes & Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb:  Anthony Talbot is in Anchor Point to visit family, but after two days of strife, he needs a break. A local gay bar is calling his name.

When Chief Noah Jackson sees that red head stroll into the club, he immediately wants him. They’re perfectly matched, and before long, they’re burning up the sheets. Noah can’t get enough. Anthony can’t stay in Oregon for long, but as soon as he leaves, he’s counting down the days until he can fly back for more. And between his increasingly frequent visits, there’s always phone sex, sexting, webcams . . . anything they can get.

But Noah’s got a carefully crafted façade, and Anthony can’t help noticing the slowly forming cracks. The scent of alcohol in the middle of the day. The extra drinks at dinner. The hint of red in his eyes. Anthony knows what it means. He doesn’t want to believe it, but he’s seen this before, and there’s no denying it. If Noah doesn’t get his downward spiral under control, he’s going to lose both his career and the first man he’s ever really loved.
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Categories: 3.5 Star Ratings, Book Review, JustJen's Reviews, LGBT, Published in 2017 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Book Review: Liar, Liar by T.A. Moore

Reviewed by JustJen

Title: Liar, Liar
Author: T.A. Moore
Heroes: Simon/Jacob
Genre: MM Contemporary
Length: 216 Pages
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Release Date: May 12, 2017
Available at: Amazon and Barnes & Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb:  Just another day at the office.

For some people that means spreadsheets, and for others it’s stitching endless hems. For Jacob Archer a day at the office is stealing proprietary information from a bioengineering firm for a paranoid software billionaire. He’s a liar and a thief, parlaying a glib tongue and a facile conscience into a lucrative career. He just has one rule—never get involved with a mark.

Well, had one rule. To be fair though, Simon Ramsey is dark, dangerous, and has shoulders like a Greek statue. Besides, it’s not as though Jacob’s even really stealing from Simon… just his boss and his brother-in-law. Simon didn’t buy that excuse either after he caught Jacob breaking into the company’s computer network.

That would have been that—one messy breakup, one ticket to Bali booked—but it turns out that the stolen information is worth more than Jacob thought. With his life—and his ribs—threatened, Jacob needs Simon to help him out. Or maybe he just needs Simon.
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Categories: 4.5 Star Ratings, Book Review, JustJen's Reviews, LGBT, Published in 2017 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: Unsettled by Zach Jenkins

Reviewed by JustJen

Title: Unsettled
Author: Zach Jenkins
Series On the Strip #1
Heroes: James/Evan
Genre: MM Contemporary
Length: 222 Pages
Publisher: Self Published
Release Date: May 22, 2017
Available at: Amazon and Barnes & Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb:  He’s a cop who looks like a cowboy and I just have to see his gun.

I’ve refused second dates for years because I’m too much of a mess to hope for any relationship to work out. After one wild, impulsive, and let’s face it, pleasantly filling night with James, I’m ready to throw all of that out the window.

Men are for drinking buddies and dirty jokes… and now, so much more.

Evan is the first man I’ve ever slept with. If I get my way, he’ll be the one I’m with forever. I’m not sure how I’ll tell the other guys at the police station, but I’ve got bigger problems to worry about.

Someone is attacking people on The Strip in August, GA, and they are working way too close to the club where Evan is a DJ. I’ve got to catch whoever is responsible so that I can protect Evan, the man who taught me everything about love.

Unsettled is a steamy, standalone, first time with a man, romantic thriller novel with no cliffhangers.
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Categories: 3.5 Star Ratings, Book Review, JustJen's Reviews, LGBT, Published in 2017 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: Shaded Chains by Jack L. Pyke

Reviewed by JustJen

Title: Shaded Chains
Author: Jack L. Pyke
Heroes: Alex Gardner/Ross McKendrik
Genre: MM Contemporary BDSM
Length: 102 Pages
Publisher: Fantastic Fiction Publishing
Release Date: June 13, 2017
Available at: Amazon
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb:  “Say my fucking name.”

Alex Gardner is a psychiatric nurse, Ross McKendrik a tattoo artist: both know the fears and strains of caring for an old man with dementia: Ross’s father. When lines between father and son are crossed and trust is broken between Alex and Ross—between a sub and Dom—Ross is in a fight for his life to earn the right to hear his sub say his name again. Only having grown up in the Scottish Highlands, Ross’s methods are a little… dangerous, his methods are a little… dark. Love is about to get very, very tough.
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Categories: 4.5 Star Ratings, Book Review, JustJen's Reviews, LGBT, Published in 2017 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: Action by Quinn Anderson

Reviewed by JustJen

Title: Action
Author: Quinn Anderson
Series: Murmur Inc. #2
Heroes: Pet Griflow/Kyle Darko
Genre: MM Contemporary
Length: 366 Pages
Publisher: Riptide Publishing
Release Date: June 5, 2017
Available at: Amazon and Barnes & Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb:  Pete Griflow is the last person anyone would suspect of being a porn star. He’s quiet, gawky, and can’t even talk to guys without turning red. But on camera, he’s a different person. In the porn world, he’s Jaden Prime, a coquettish power bottom who’s been tantalizing fans for over a year now.

Pete is in a rut, though, and he knows it. And what’s worse, his boss knows it. If he can’t reignite his passion for the biz, he’s going to have trouble paying his none-too-cheap college tuition.

When Pete is given the opportunity to star in a huge summer production, sparks fly between him and his costar, Kyle Darko. Kyle is Pete’s opposite: he’s daring, achingly sexy, and in love with the sex industry. Their chemistry is palpable on and off screen, but dating on a porn set is tricky. Even pros struggle to separate fantasy from reality, especially with a script dictating their seduction. But what’s building between them can’t be ignored, and it’s so much more than getting some “action.”
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Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, JustJen's Reviews, LGBT, Published in 2017 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment