Posts Tagged With: Contemporary

Book Review: Dumped in Oz by Andrew Grey

Reviewed by Susan65

Title:  Dumped in Oz
Author: Andrew Grey
Series: Tales from Kansas #1
Heroes: Lyle Powers and Roger Kypers
Genre: M/M Contemporary
Length: 164 Pages
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Release Date: January 15, 2014
Available at: Dreamspinner Press, Amazon, All Romance eBooks & Barnes and Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads & Booklikes

Blurb: Because of an opportunity he’d be a fool to turn down; Lyle Powers transfers to his company’s warehouse in central Kansas. The last thing he expects is to meet another gay man in the small town, let alone one who captures his interest.

Roger Kypers is a recovering alcoholic with a twelve-year-old daughter he only gets to see for part of the summer. Neither Lyle nor Roger is looking for a relationship, and they fumble at the start, yet emotions build as Roger shows Lyle the landmarks of Oz.

But when Roger’s wicked witch of an ex-wife threatens to take his daughter away for good if he doesn’t act “normally,” he’s faced with the challenge of letting her get away with it, or fighting to accept himself and standing up for what he knows is right. Continue reading

Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, LGBT, Published in 2014, Susan65's Reviews | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: The Fall by Kate Sherwood

Reviewed by Nikyta

Title: The Fall
Author: Kate Sherwood
Series: The Fall #1
Heroes: Scott Mackenzie & Joe Sutton
Genre: M/M Contemporary Romance
Length: 214 pages
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Release Date: December 16, 2013
Available at: Dreamspinner Press, Amazon, All Romance eBooks & Barnes and Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads & Booklikes

Blurb: Every relationship leaves something behind. Dumped by his sugar daddy, part-time model Scott Mackenzie somehow ends up owning an abandoned church in rural Ontario. He dreams of using it for gay weddings, even if he’ll never have one of his own.

Joe Sutton is trying to keep his family together after his parents’ deaths. Between the family ranch, his brother’s construction company, and commitments around town, he doesn’t have time for a relationship. But Mackenzie is hard to ignore.

As both men fight their growing attraction, challenges to Mackenzie’s business threaten their relationship. If he can’t make it work, he’ll have to crawl back to the city in defeat. But the only solution involves risking the ranch Joe loves, and each man has to decide how much he’ll sacrifice for the other. Continue reading

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

Early Review: Bonds of Denial by Lynda Aicher

Reviewed by JustJen

Title: Bonds of Denial
Author: Lynda Aicher
Series: Wicked Play #5
Heroes: Rock/Carter
Genre: M/M Contemporary
Length: 281 pages
Publisher: Carina Press
Release Date: February 3, 2014
Available at: Carina Press & Amazon
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: It’s been twenty years since Rockford Fielding’s father punished him for kissing another boy. Now a grown man with a military career behind him, Rock continues to deny his true desires, even while working security at The Den, the most decadent sex club in town. But after a year of watching gorgeous Carter Montgomery come and go on the arms of other men, Rock can no longer resist the cravings he’s denied for so long.

Carter has just four months left on his contract with an escort agency, and he doesn’t know whether to feel relieved or afraid. Being an escort is all he knows. Adding to his confusion is the way his latest client, the sexy but stoic Rock, makes him feel things he hasn’t wanted in years.

One charmingly awkward date turns into two and soon the men are meeting off the clock. But with Rock in the closet and Carter unsure how to pursue a real relationship, how can they build a future both in and out of the bedroom? Continue reading

Categories: 4.5 Star Ratings, Book Review, JustJen's Reviews, LGBT, Published in 2014 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Book Review: Rare by Garrett Leigh

Reviewed by Susan65

Title: Rare
Author: Garrett Leigh
Series: Roads #2
Heroes: Ash Fagin and Pete Adams
Genre: M/M Contemporary
Length: 240 pages
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Release Date: January 17, 2014
Available at: Dreamspinner Press, Amazon, All Romance eBooks & Barnes and Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads & Booklikes

Blurb: Paramedic Pete Adams lived through the year from hell watching his lover, Ash, fall apart, and the precarious balance between work and home is becoming more strained. His heart is always home, with Ash, but the dark side to his job is weighing him down.

Tattoo artist Ash Fagin is recovering from a nervous breakdown triggered by revelations about his traumatic childhood. His battle with mental illness is far from over, but with Pete by his side, he’s feeling good again, so good he doesn’t notice something missing until it walks right into his living room.

Ash believes he’s had enough coincidence in his life, but when a voice from the past comes looking for him, it takes the devastating injuries of the one he loves most to convince him to let a ghost become the family he never knew he wanted. Continue reading

Categories: 4.5 Star Ratings, Book Review, LGBT, Published in 2014, Susan65's Reviews | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: A Better Man by Jaime Reese

Reviewed by Heather C

ABetterMan-400x600Title: A Better Man
Author: Jaime Reese
Series: The Men of Halfway House #1
The Heroes: Matthew Doner & Julian Capeletti
Genre: M/M Contemporary Romance
Length: 69,034 words
Publisher: Romandeavor, Inc
Release Date: January 16, 2014, 2nd edition
Available at: Amazon, All Romance eBooks & Barnes and Noble
Add it to your shelf at: Goodreads

Blurb: Matthew Doner is starting over. After a five-year prison term that alters every aspect of his life, he receives a bequest from his aunt with the stipulation that he use the money to make things right. Breaking free of the long-standing role he’s played and inspired by the few who support him, he decides to create a safe place where people like him can find purpose and start a new life.

Julian Capeletti likes challenges. He is confident, brash, stubborn, and just what Matt needs. Desperate for work after a downturn of luck, he accepts the job to renovate Matt’s crumbling building.

Over the course of a year, romance simmers between them as they restore the house. But there’s a bigger renovation that must take place in their hearts. To become better men, they need to learn to trust each other even with secrets and painful memories they fear may rip them apart. Continue reading

Categories: 4.5 Star Ratings, Book Review, Heather C's Reviews, LGBT, Published in 2014 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Book Review: Sense of Place by N.R. Walker

Reviewed by JustJen

Title: Sense of Place
Author: N.R. Walker
Series: Thomas Elkin #3
Heroes: Tom and Cooper
Genre: M/M Contemporary
Length: 34,701 words
Publisher: Totally Bound
Release Date: January 7, 2014
Available at: Totally Bound
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: Designing homes is easy. Finding home is something else entirely.

Thomas Elkin and Cooper Jones finally have the support of their families together, and their love grows stronger every day. Now living together, they thought nothing could stand in their way.

But there are outside influences trying to pull them apart.
Cooper encounters a man, closer to his age and with connections high up the property development chain. Tom encounters discrimination and a hidden agenda from a fellow senior-partner.

No matter what the world throws at them, Tom and Cooper are the real deal. Age differences aside, Tom has finally found his sense of place. His one true center, his home. Continue reading

Categories: 5 Star Ratings, Book Review, JustJen's Reviews, LGBT, Published in 2014 | Tags: , , , , , , , , | 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

Categories: 4.5 Star Ratings, Author Week, Book Review, JustJen's Reviews, LGBT, Published in 2012 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Mary Calmes Week Review: After the Sunset

Reviewed by Nikyta

Title: After the Sunset
Author: Mary Calmes
Series:  Timing #2
Heroes:  Stefan & Rand
Genre: M/M Contemporary Romance
Length:  174 pages
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Release Date:  August 17, 2011
Available at: Dreamspinner, Amazon, All Romance eBooks & Barnes and Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads & Booklikes

Blurb: Two years after riding off into the sunset with ranch owner Rand Holloway, Stefan Joss has made a tentative peace with his new life, teaching at a community college. But the course of true love never does run smooth. Rand wants him home on the ranch; Stef wants an exit strategy in case Rand ever decides to throw him out. Finally, after recognizing how unfair he’s being, Stef makes a commitment, and Rand is over the moon.

When Stef gets the chance to prove his devotion, he doesn’t hesitate—despite the risk to his health—and Rand takes the opportunity to show everyone that sometimes life’s best surprises come after the sunset. Continue reading

Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Author Week, Book Review, LGBT, Nikyta's Reviews, Published in 2011 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Book Review: Special Delivery by Heidi Cullinan

Reviewed by Susan65

Title:  Special Delivery
Author: Heidi Cullinan
Heroes: Sam Keller and Mitch Tedsoe
Genre: M/M Contemporary
Length: 379 pages
Publisher: Samhain Publishing
Release Date:  February 4, 2014
Available at: Samhain Publishing & Amazon
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: Sam Keller knows he’ll never find the excitement he craves in Middleton, Iowa—not while he’s busting his ass in nursing school and paying rent by slaving away in a pharmacy stockroom. Then Sam meets Mitch Tedsoe, an independent, long-haul trucker who makes a delivery to a shop across the alley. Innocent flirting quickly leads to a fling, and when Mitch offers to take him on a road trip west, Sam jumps at the chance for adventure. Mitch is sexy, funny and friendly, but once they embark on their journey, something changes. One minute he’s the star of Sam’s every x-rated fantasy, the next he’s almost too much a perfect gentleman. And when they hit the Las Vegas city limit, Sam has a name to pin on Mitch’s malady: Randy.

For better or for worse, Sam grapples with the meaning of friendship, letting go, growing up—even the meaning of love—because no matter how far he travels, eventually all roads lead home. Continue reading

Categories: 4.5 Star Ratings, Book Review, LGBT, Published in 2014, Susan65's Reviews | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Mary Calmes Week Review: Heart of the Race

Reviewed by Nikyta

Title: Heart of the Race
Author: Mary Calmes
Heroes: Varro Dacien & Brian Christie
Genre: M/M Contemporary
Length: 91 pages
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Release Date: June 1, 2013
Available at: Dreamspinner, Amazon, All Romance eBooks & Barnes and Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads & Booklikes

Blurb: Varro Dacien spends his life riding toward the next adventure. Brian Christie, his best friend and touchstone, the one person who’s always truly seen him, plays sidekick on these madcap adventures and subsequent trips to the hospital until he can’t take it anymore. While Brian can see Varro, Varro has never caught on that he’s breaking his best friend’s heart.

Without Varro, Brian builds himself a life that’s all about just getting by, doing his best to ignore the hole in his heart and his life. Without Brian to balance him, Varro pushes harder and takes more risks to reach that ultimate high. His job racing high-octane bikes on suicide-level courses makes it easy to get that rush… until it’s no longer enough and Varro realizes it’s not the race, but who’s waiting at the finish line that truly matters. Now he just has to convince Brian to be there. Continue reading

Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Author Week, Book Review, LGBT, Nikyta's Reviews, Published in 2013 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment