Posts Tagged With: Abuse

Book Review: Names Can Never Hurt Me by Wade Kelly

Guest Reviewed by Morgan

iTitle: Names Can Never Hurt Me
Author: Wade Kelly
Heroes: Nick Jones/Raffael Coppola
Genre: MM Contemporary
Length: 340 Pages
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Release Date: August 11, 2014
Available at:  Dreamspinner Press
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb:  What if sexuality wasn’t a definable thing and labels merely got in the way?

Nick Jones can’t remember a time when he wasn’t part of the in crowd. Everywhere he goes, he stands out as the best looking guy in the room, and women practically fall into bed with him. Then, after kissing Corey on a dare led much more and on many occasions, Nick’s “screw anything” reputation escalated, but he didn’t care.

When Nick meets RC at the restaurant where he works, it throws his whole life out of whack. Overweight, always sweaty, gay, and hairy like a bear, RC lives up to his dubbed nickname “Scruffy Dude.” He seems Nick’s complete opposite, but Nick can’t get him out of his head.

Because of peer-pressure and his fears about defining his sexuality, Nick struggles with stepping out of his comfort zone and caring about someone different than himself. If he’s lucky, somewhere between arrogance and ignorance, Nick might find out what it means to be an adult, but if he’s wrong, he could lose everything.
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Categories: 4.5 Star Ratings, Book Review, Guest Reviewer, LGBT, Published in 2014 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Audio Review: Racing for the Sun by Amy Lane

Guest Reviewed by Morgan

iTitle: Racing for the Sun
Author: Amy Lane
Narrator: Nick J. Russo
Heroes: Jasper “Ace” Atchison/Sonny Daye
Genre: M/M Contemporary
Length: 8 hrs, 32 min
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Release Date: July 23, 2014
Available at:  Dreamspinner Press, Amazon, Audible and iTunes
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: I’ll do anything.” Staff Sergeant Jasper “Ace” Atchison takes one look at Private Sonny Daye and knows that every word on paper about him is pure, unadulterated bullshit. But Sonny is desperate, and although Ace isn’t going to take him up on his offer of “anything”, that doesn’t mean he isn’t tempted.

Instead, Ace takes Sonny under his wing, protecting him when they’re in the service and making plans with him when they get out. Together, they’re going to own a garage and build race cars and make their fortune hurtling faster than light across the desert. Together, they’re going to rewrite the past, make Sonny Daye a whole and happy person, and put the ghosts in Ace’s heart to rest.

But not even Sonny can build a car fast enough to escape the ghosts of the past. When Sonny’s ghosts drive them down and run their plans off the road, Ace finds out exactly what he’s made of. Maybe Sonny was the one to promise Ace anything, but there is nothing under the sun Ace won’t do to keep Sonny safe from harm.
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Categories: 5 Star Ratings, Audio Review, Guest Reviewer, LGBT, Published in 2014 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Mobster Week Review: Choosing Happy by Aria Grace

Reviewed by Susan65

iTitle: Choosing Happy
Author: Aria Grace
Series: More Than Friends #3
Heroes: Steve/Joey
Genre: MM Contemporary
Length: 222 Pages
Publisher: Aria Grace
Release Date: March 15, 2014
Available at: Amazon, Barnes & Noble, All Romance eBooks and iTunes
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: Zach’s ex, Steve, is living in Portland with many regrets. He has alienated the people he cares most about by making bad choices that continue to haunt him. When he meets a kid that’s in a bad relationship and needs some help, Steve reluctantly offers it, knowing it’s his chance to redeem himself. What he doesn’t expect is to find happiness. It’s there, all he has to do it choose to accept it.
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Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, LGBT, Published in 2014, Susan65's Reviews, Theme Week | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: Snake Charmer by Carol Lynne

Reviewed by Susan65

gTitle: Snake Charmer
Author: Carol Lynne
Series: Cattle Valley #31
Heroes: Gabrielo “Snake” Barbas/Riley Banks
Genre: MM Contemporary
Length: 30,229 Words
Publisher: Totally Bound
Release Date: August 8, 2014
Available at: Totally Bound
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: Sometimes it takes an opposite to see the beauty within ourselves.

When security consultant and ex-mercenary, Gabrielo “Snake” Barbas, thwarts an attack of one of his co-workers, Riley Banks, he takes it upon himself to keep the smaller man safe. His job is made harder when he discovers the attacker is actually Riley’s ex-boyfriend, a ruthless man from a very wealthy and powerful family.

After a night of passion, Snake decides to take Riley far away from Richmond, Virginia to a town in Wyoming for the annual Cattle Valley Days celebration. He should have known that sex with Riley wouldn’t be enough, but he feels he has nothing else to give such a nice guy. Riley is the sexiest man Snake’s ever taken to his bed despite Riley’s claim otherwise.

Riley knows he’s average-looking at best, so why does Snake continue to flatter him? It’s obvious he’s not going to kick Snake out of bed, even after Snake informs him that sex is all he has to give. So, how can Snake see him so differently than the rest of the world?

While Riley is busy trying to figure out the man who touches him like no other has before, Snake is busy trying to protect him from a monster from his past.
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Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, LGBT, Published in 2014, Susan65's Reviews | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: Secrets in the Air by Liz Borino

Reviewed by Susan65

1Title: Secrets in the Air
Author: Liz Borino
Heroes: Rhett/Kaden
Genre: M/M Contemporary
Length: 50,000 words
Publisher: Liz Borino
Release Date: July 16, 2014
Available at: Amazon
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: Wealthy family…

Childhood tragedy…

A love defying all odds…

Secrets in the Air

Flying is in Rhett O’Neil’s blood. And nothing makes this pilot fly higher than wrapping himself in his husband Kaden’s arms. He’s thrilled when his grandfather entrusts him with O’Neil Airways, the family’s charter airplane business. With a mix of humanitarian and corporate clients, Rhett plans a bright future where his success improves the world.

Elise, Rhett’s mother, begins offering advice to “help” her son through the transition into increased responsibility. As evidence surfaces that her words are escalating into devastating actions, the truth comes out about the death of Rhett’s sister Annabelle. Kaden has to race to protect his husband and himself from the consequences of the Secrets in the Air before it’s too late.
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Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, LGBT, Published in 2014, Susan65's Reviews | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Lisa Henry Week Review: He Is Worthy

Reviewed by JustJen

1Title: He Is Worthy
Author: Lisa Henry
Series: Warriors of Rome #2
Heroes: Novius Senna/Aenor
Genre: MM Historical
Length: 124 Pages
Publisher: Riptide Publishing
Release Date: November 12, 2012
Available at: Riptide Publishing, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, All Romance eBooks and Kobo
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb:  Rome, 68 A.D. Novius Senna is one of the most feared men in Rome. He’s part of the emperor’s inner circle at a time when being Nero’s friend is almost as dangerous as being his enemy. Senna knows that better men than he have been sacrificed to Nero’s madness—he’s the one who tells them to fall on their swords. He hates what he’s become to keep his family safe. He hates Nero more.

Aenor is a newly-enslaved Bructeri trader, brutalized and humiliated for Nero’s entertainment. He’s homesick and frightened, but not entirely cowed. He’s also exactly what Senna has been looking for: a slave strong enough to help him assassinate Nero.

It’s suicide, but it’s worth it. Senna yearns to rid Rome of a tyrant, and nothing short of death will bring him peace for his crimes. Aenor hungers for revenge, and dying is his only escape from Rome’s tyranny. They have nothing left to lose, except the one thing they never expected to find—each other.

This title is part of the Warriors of Rome collection.
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Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, JustJen's Reviews, LGBT, Published in 2012 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Lisa Henry Week Review: The Boy Who Belonged

Reviewed by Susan65

1Title: The Boy Who Belonged
Author: Lisa Henry
Series: The Boy #2
Heroes: Lane Moredock/Derek Fields
Genre: MM Contemporary
Length: 205 Pages
Publisher: Loose ID
Release Date: December 17, 2013
Available at: Loose ID, Amazon, Barnes & Noble and All Romance eBooks
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: Twenty-one year-old Lane Moredock finally has a normal life. Six months after he was wrongly made a suspect in his parents’ Ponzi scheme, he’s settled down with his older boyfriend, Derek, and is working and attending school. But his happiness is threatened when his mother launches a Christmastime PR campaign to help appeal her prison sentence, and asks introverted Lane to be part of it.

Derek Fields has his hands full taking Santa photos, bird-sitting his sister’s foul-mouthed macaw, and helping Lane prepare for a television interview neither of them wants him to do. As he eases Lane through his anxiety, he worries that Lane sees him as a caretaker rather than a boyfriend, and that their age difference really does matter. He and Lane compensate for the stress in their lives by taking their D/s relationship to new levels–a relationship that Lane’s mother insists he should be ashamed of.

As Christmas draws nearer, the pressure builds. Pushy elves. Snarky subs. A bad fight. A parrot in peril. How the hell is Derek going to give Lane a perfect Christmas when the Moredock legacy threatens to pull them apart before the new year?
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Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, LGBT, Published in 2013, Susan65's Reviews | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: The Ex Factor by R.J. Scott

Reviewed by Susan65

1Title: The Ex Factor
Author: R.J. Scott
Series: Bodyguards, Inc. #2
Heroes: Ben Collins/Daniel Lincoln
Genre: MM Contemporary
Length: 172 Pages
Publisher: Love Lane Books
Release Date: June 27, 2014
Available at: Love Lane Books, Amazon, Barnes & Noble and All Romance eBooks
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb:  When Bodyguard, Ben Collins, finds Daniel Lincoln in a room, hiding and hurt, he doesn’t immediately think Daniel is the victim of abuse. Daniel is good at pretending and being a finalist in a TV singing competition he seems like he has it made.

But something about Daniel calls to Ben’s need to protect and he hands Daniel a card to contact him if ever Daniel needed help. Abruptly, after one frightened phone call from Daniel, Ben is racing to Daniel’s aid and what he finds is a horror he can’t imagine.

Daniel is trapped in a relationship where anger and controlling hate are the only emotions he is given. When his boyfriend crosses the line and leaves Daniel vulnerable and broken there is only one man that he wants to call.

The sexy bodyguard who promised he could help him.
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Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, LGBT, Published in 2014, Susan65's Reviews | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Early Review: Behind the Scandal by M.A. Stacie

Guest Reviewed by Ang

Behind the Scandal (Reluctance, #2)Title: Behind the Scandal
Author: M.A. Stacie
Series: Reluctance #2
Hero/Heroine: Taylor & Libby
Genre: M/F Contemporary Romance
Length: 202 pages
Publisher: TWCS Publishing House
Release Date: July 31, 2014
Available at: TWCS Publishing House, Kobo, and iBooks
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: Sent to the family ranch to overcome his addiction, Taylor Reese is angry and hurt. Feeling rejected by his father and brother, Taylor throws himself into ranch life to help him forget. He struggles with his addiction, though he refuses help. But it isn’t long before it hits him hard how much his life has spiraled out of control. He begins to question every aspect of his life, and the confusion leaves him floundering and looking for something, or someone, to cling to.

Libby Karlin is cautious, wary of Taylor’s presence. His brutal honesty and lack of respect claw at her composure. Her dark past makes her reluctant to let anyone near her family, but when Taylor strikes up a friendship with her son, Libby finds herself drawn to the sadness within him. His experiences are no secret to her. She sees where his world turned upside down and offers him a helping hand. But her own secrets stay buried, locked away until a knock on her door has her gasping for breath.

Libby’s fear paralyzes her as she comes face to face with her demons and, determined to stay strong, she battles for a way out.

Could dealing with their pasts really give them a future?
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Categories: 3 Star Ratings, Book Review, Guest Reviewer, M/F, Published in 2014 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: Storm’s Eye by Dean Gray + Giveaway!

Reviewed by Susan65

22043892Title: Storm’s Eye
Author: Dean Gray
Heroes: Jordan/Zane
Genre: MM Contemporary
Length: 181 Pages
Publisher: eXtasy Books
Release Date: May 1, 2014
Available at: eXtasy Books, Amazon and All Romance eBooks
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: In spite of all the bad memories and fears, Jordan had dutifully returned home to Mt. Desert Island, Maine to look after his ailing mother. Now, financially devastated by her care and emotionally exhausted by her death, Jordan tries to pick up the pieces of his life and rebuild his floundering career as an illustrator. While working on a new commission, he finds a man unconscious at the local lighthouse. When the man regains consciousness, he has no memory.

The only clue to his identity is a limited edition hardcover copy of Storm’s Eye, a mystery novel by Jordan’s favorite author and client. Inside is a scrawled dedication, ‘To Zane’. What is this man’s story? And why, since meeting him, has Jordan’s life strangely paralleled the plot of the book that he carried? Will Jordan weather the harrowing trials of ‘Storm’s Eye’? Or will he become a casualty of the mysterious stranger to whom he opened his heart?
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Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, Giveaways, LGBT, Published in 2014, Susan65's Reviews | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 9 Comments