Posts Tagged With: Contemporary

Book Review: Swann’s Revenge by Shira Anthony

Reviewed by Nikyta

Title: Swann’s Revenge
Author: Shira Anthony
Series: Dreamspun Desires
Heroes: Graham & Dan
Genre: M/M Contemporary
Length: 224 pages
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Release Date: February 6, 2018
Available at: Dreamspinner Press & Amazon
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: Can a swan make peace with his ugly duckling past?

Chubby geek Jimmy Zebulon’s heart broke the day his high school crush, Danny Parker, looked on as his teammates tormented Jimmy. Fifteen years later, Jimmy is long gone, and from his ashes has risen Graham Swann, a movie-star-handsome law firm owner. Graham thinks Jimmy and his past are long forgotten—until attorney Dan Parker shows up for his first day of work.

Getting injured playing college ball was the best thing that ever happened to Dan. It turned his future in a better direction and allowed him to emerge from the closet that trapped him.

Graham wants to believe his childhood dream can come true, but he can’t bring himself to tell Dan who he really is—and their pasts might ruin any chance for a happily ever after…. Continue reading

Categories: 4.5 Star Ratings, Book Review, LGBT, Nikyta's Reviews, Published in 2018 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: Regularly Scheduled Life by K.A. Mitchell

Reviewed by Susan65

Title: Regularly Scheduled Life
Author: K.A. Mitchell
Series: Ohio Books #1
Heroes: Sean/Kyle
Genre: MM Contemporary
Length: 296 Pages
Publisher: K.A. Mitchell
Release Date: June 1, 2009
Available at:  Amazon and Barnes & Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: It’s a long way back to happily ever after.

Sean and Kyle have enjoyed six perfect years of what their friends called a disgustingly happy relationship. But what happens one sunny Tuesday morning in October might be more than even the most loving couple can survive.

When the bell rings that morning in chemistry teacher Sean Farnham’s first-period class, a terrifying sound fills the halls – gunshots. Without considering the consequences, Sean runs to tackle the shooter, sustaining a bullet wound to his leg. Despite his actions, he is unable to save the lives of the principal and two students.

Architect Kyle DeRusso hears about the shooting on the radio, and in the flash of an instant finds his life irrevocably altered. Everything – especially his heart – hangs suspended in a nightmare until he finds out Sean is alive. It doesn’t matter that Sean will be left with a permanent limp. Kyle’s just relieved the worst is over.

Or is it? Putting that day behind them isn’t as simple as it sounds. As Sean struggles to make something positive out of the tragedy, Kyle fights to save their relationship from the dangers of publicity – and Sean’s unwillingness to face how the crisis has changed him.
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Categories: 5 Star Ratings, Book Review, LGBT, Published Before 2010, Susan65's Reviews | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Audio Review: For the Living by L.A. Witt

Reviewed by Morgan

Title: For the Living
Author: L.A. Witt
Narrator: Charlie David
Heroes: Jay Warren/Scott Lawson
Genre: MM Contemporary
Length: 8 Hours, 4 minutes
Publisher: Self-Published
Release Date: October 26, 2015
Available at: Amazon and Audible
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: For the last year, Jay Warren has struggled to find the nerve to tell his wife he’s gay. He’s ashamed of hiding it all this time and he doesn’t want to hurt her, so every time he gets the chance to tell her, he freezes up. The guilt has been almost unbearable, but when his wife dies suddenly, Jay’s conscience threatens to eat him alive.

Funeral director Scott Lawson deals with the bereaved every day of his life, and he’s also all too familiar with the inside of the closet. He offers Jay some much-needed compassion and understanding, and from that connection comes a friendship that quickly—perhaps too quickly—turns into something more.

But are grief, guilt, and loneliness the only things tying them together? Or will Scott get tired of being used as an emotional crutch before Jay realizes what he has?
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Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Audio Review, LGBT, Morgan's Reviews, Published in 2015 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: Dante’s Unglued by Jocelynn Drake and Rinda Elliott

Reviewed by Susan65

Title: Dante’s Unglued
Authors: Jocelynn Drake and Rinda Elliott
Series: Ward Security #2
Heroes: Shane/Quinn
Genre: MM Contemporary
Length: 255 Pages
Publisher: Self-Published
Release Date: January 26, 2018
Available at:  Amazon and Barnes & Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: When private investigator, Shane Stephens, is hired by the mayor of Cincinnati to track down the hacker who has been threatening him, Shane is sure this is the opportunity to launch the Merleau Detection Agency into the big time. He even convinces Rowe Ward of Ward Security to loan him one of his best IT specialists, Quinn Lake.

Shane, a man who prefers casual intimacy, is surprised by his attraction to the moody computer geek, but when Quinn suggests they have fun for the month he’s on loan, Shane happily agrees. Both men are expecting nothing more than a good time.

But the investigation takes an unexpected turn and they quickly discover they are facing more than a hacker out to ruin the mayor’s re-election chances. And as they spend more time together, they realize their relationship may be a lot more than just a good time.

With only weeks until the election, Shane and Quinn race to gather the proof they need while dodging bullets and possibly…falling in love.
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Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, LGBT, Published in 2018, Susan65's Reviews | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: Trick Roller by Cordelia Kingsbridge

Reviewed by JustJen

Title: Trick Roller
Author: Cordelia Kingsbridge
Series: Seven of Spades #2
Heroes: Levi/Dominic
Genre: MM Contemporary
Length: 299In Pages
Publisher: Riptide Publishing
Release Date: January 29, 2018
Available at: Amazon and Barnes & Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb:  It’s the height of summer in Las Vegas. Everyone believes the serial killer Seven of Spades is dead—except Levi Abrams and Dominic Russo—and it’s back to business as usual. For Levi, that means investigating a suspicious overdose at the Mirage that looks like the work of a high-class call girl, while Dominic pursues a tough internship with a local private investigator. The one bright spot for both of them is their blossoming relationship.

But things aren’t so simple. Soon Levi is sucked into a dangerous web of secrets and lies, even as his obsession with the Seven of Spades intensifies. Dominic knows that Levi isn’t crazy. He knows the Seven of Spades is still out there, and he’ll do anything to prove it. But Dominic has his own demons to battle, and he may be fighting a losing war.

One thing is certain: the Seven of Spades holds all the cards. It won’t be long before they show their hand.
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Categories: 4.5 Star Ratings, Book Review, JustJen's Reviews, LGBT, Published in 2018 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: Home Is Where You Are by Emjay Haze

Reviewed by Ami

Title: Home Is Where You Are
Author: Emjay Haze
Series: States of Love
Heroes: Eric & Phil 
Genre: M/M Contemporary
Length: 95 pages
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Release Date: January 26, 2018
Available at: Dreamspinner Press & Amazon
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: For a chance at a future filled with love, he’ll have to face a painful past.

Eric, recently dumped by his boyfriend, is summoned home after his dad suffers a stroke. His family farm in rural Vermont holds memories he’d rather forget, but he—with his degree in agricultural business—is needed to clear up a predicament with the bank. In trying to forget the bad, Eric has also lost sight of the good: green meadows dotted with grass-fed dairy cows and the sugar maples that once produced the area’s finest maple syrup. With Eric’s help, they will again.

A captivating farmhand named Phil tempts Eric to give the countryside another chance, but before they can consider being together, Eric must move past more than his feelings for his ex-boyfriend—he’ll need to stand up to the ghosts that sent him running from the farm in the first place…. Continue reading

Categories: 3 Star Ratings, Ami's Reviews, Book Review, LGBT, Published in 2018 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: Jared’s Fulfillment by Riley Hart

Reviewed by JustJen

Title: Jared’s Fulfillment
Author: Riley Hart
Series: Jared & Kieran #2
Heroes: Jared/Kieran
Genre: MM Contemporary BDSM
Length: 385 Pages
Publisher: Riley Hart
Release Date: November 29, 2017
Available at: Amazon
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: Kieran

My relationship with Jared has lasted too long. He’s mesmerizing, beautiful in his devotion, pure in his need. He reaches parts of me I thought no longer existed, places I’d never known were there. His submission is a gift. His cries of pleasure and pain call to the most primal parts of me. I want to inhale him, own him, mark him as mine. He’s my boy and I need to be his Daddy, but my fear holds me back. I’ll fail him like I’ve failed everyone else I’ve loved. Before that happens, I’ll walk away.

Jared

I’ve never known security, love, or true pleasure before Kieran. With every touch, every command, every second of blissful, torturous pain, my heart grows and my soul is at peace. He protects me, spoils me, gives me what I need. Still, in some ways, he’s closed off and won’t let me in. But Kieran’s given me strength. I’ve evolved, and won’t accept less than I deserve…and I won’t let Daddy accept less than he deserves, either.

It’s a delicate balance: give and take, pleasure and pain. Together we can break each other down to our purest forms and build each other up again. Kieran always says I’m stronger than I think, but I know that together we’re invincible…if only he’d believe me.

We have two choices: say goodbye or fight for what’s always been out of both our reaches…fulfillment.
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Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, JustJen's Reviews, LGBT, Published in 2017 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: Dream by Garrett Leigh

Reviewed by Susan65

Title: Dream
Author: Garrett Leigh
Series: Skins #1
Heroes: Dylan & Angelo
Genre: M/M Contemporary
Length: 244 pages
Publisher: Fox Love Press
Release Date: January 23, 2018
Available at: Amazon
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: I can’t sleep…

When unrequited love leaves Dylan Hart sleepless and nursing his wounds, instinct draws him to the one place he’s found mindless respite in the past—Lovato’s. It’s a place for every fantasy — for crazy-hot encounters — where a night of insane NSA sex brings relief to Dylan’s fragile feelings.

It should be a perfect escape, and for one magical night it seems that way, but then worlds collide, and reality bites when his hookup desperately needs a friend. Surely Dylan can’t trust his instincts when friendship has bruised his heart so badly before?

It’s burying me alive…

The deck is stacked against former ballet dancer Angelo Giordano ever finding real love. At least visiting Lovato’s offers respite from a life defined by illness; a glimmer of light in the dull grey of his so-called life without dance. But then he encounters Dylan — a glorious ray of the brightest sunshine — who makes his heart pound once more with purpose.

Angelo’s mind is blown by this man, but the disease that ended his career won’t let him bask in new love. He’s drowning, and Dylan can’t save him while insecurities swamp them both. The only way to make it means confronting their demons.

If Dylan can turn his back on the past, and Angelo can face his uncertain future, maybe they can chase their dreams together.
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Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, LGBT, Published in 2018, Susan65's Reviews | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: Regret by Christina Lee

Reviewed by Susan65

Title: Regret
Author: Christina Lee
Series: Under My Skin #1)
Heroes: Brian “Brin” Schubert/Nicholas Dell
Genre: MM Contemporary
Length: 235 Pages
Publisher: Self-Published
Release Date: June 25, 2017
Available at:  Amazon and Barnes & Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: When Brian “Brin” Schubert’s condo floods, he takes his co-worker up on the offer to stay on his crappy futon for a while. The last thing he expects is for his friend’s roommate to be the one guy he despises the most. The same guy who stomped on his heart senior year of high school. And by the looks of the girl on his arm, the same man who’s still deep inside the closet.

Nicholas Dell never predicted that eleven years later, one of his greatest regrets would show up on his doorstep down on his luck. Nick has made some terrible mistakes—story of his life—and he’s been paying for them ever since. And if the guilt and shame aren’t enough, his first crush had to turn into one of the sexiest men he’s ever laid eyes on.

Nick and Brin have weeks to steer clear of each other. Weeks to avoid strangling each other. But when stubbornness leads to skyrocketing sexual tension, hate-sex doesn’t seem like such an awful way to work through their frustration. Except hate is a powerful emotion, especially when it’s turned inward. And in Nick’s case he’s been drowning in a sea of self-loathing for so long, he can’t see his way out.

As Brin reconnects with Nick, his perception of what really happened in their past begins to change. He’s finally ready to forgive him and take a second chance on the one guy who stirs him like no other. But Nick’s demons are complicated, heart-wrenching…demanding. So devastating, he might never allow himself true happiness—even with the one man who’s always owned his heart.
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Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, LGBT, Published in 2017, Susan65's Reviews | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: That Rat, Carter Janson by Amy Spector

Reviewed by Ami

Title: That Rat, Carter Janson
Author: Amy Spector
Series: State of Love
Heroes: Felix/Peake/Carter Janson
Genre: MM Contemporary
Length: 106 Pages
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Release Date: January 19, 2018
Available at:  Amazon and Barnes & Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb:  Every man has secrets, but some are bigger than others….

Felix Peake escaped a shady past to carve out a successful career as an expert in Mesopotamian art and gain the respect of the Chicago art community. But when an assistant curator—a man Felix could easily see himself falling for—asks him to reauthenticate a cuneiform tablet to avoid a looming scandal, Felix’s carefully constructed life could crumble.

The tablet is a fake, and Felix is intimately familiar with the artist. Master forger Carter Janson—Felix’s ex and first love—disappeared from his life six years before without a word of explanation. Now, to hold his world together, Felix must find the original tablet, steal it back, and replace the forgery—all before the museum exhibit debuts. It’ll mean slipping back into a role Felix wanted to leave behind and risking his promising future. But even then, he can’t do it alone. He’ll have to confront that rat, Carter Janson.

States of Love: Stories of romance that span every corner of the United States.
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Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Ami's Reviews, Book Review, LGBT, Published in 2018 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment