Posts Tagged With: PTSD

Book Review: Choked Up by Hank Edwards

Reviewed by Susan65

31922003Title: Choked Up
Author: Hank Edwards
Series: Up to Trouble #4
Heroes: Mark Beecher/Aaron Pearce
Genre: MM Contemporary
Length: 355 Pages
Publisher: Hank Edwards
Release Date: September 7, 2016
Available at:  Amazon and Barnes & Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: Mark Beecher is still recovering from his abduction on Barbados. He and his boyfriend, FBI Special Agent Aaron Pearce, have a lot to process due to those traumatic events, and in the months since, both have experienced accomplishments and setbacks.

When a case in Detroit calls Pearce back to the city where the two met, he grudgingly leaves Mark on his own. The case involves the murders of four gay men, all strangled, and all with a note in one hand. These notes contain clues that point to a case from Pearce’s past, and proves what he already fears: Robert Morgan, terrorist mole within the FBI and Pearce’s former lover, has invited Pearce back to Detroit to finish things between them.

With Pearce gone, Mark focuses on his recovery, a process that accelerates once he sees a news report from Detroit and realizes the toll this new case is taking on Pearce. Mark decides it’s time to stop letting fear control his life. He will join Pearce in Detroit, and together they will stop Morgan once and for all.
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Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, LGBT, Published in 2016, Susan65's Reviews | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: Friendly Fire by Cari Z

Reviewed by Susan65

30799159Title: Friendly Fire
Author: Cari Z
Heroes: Elliot McKenzie/Lennox West
Genre: MM Contemporary
Length: 252 Pages
Publisher: Riptide Publishing
Release Date: October 17, 2016
Available at:  Amazon and Barnes & Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: Elliot McKenzie is the king of reinvention. Five years after losing his job and his lover and almost going to prison, his self-help program, Charmed Life, is more successful than he’d ever dreamed. He thinks he’s put his sordid past firmly behind him, until he starts receiving cryptic threats . . . and realizes it might not be as over as he’d hoped.

Security expert Lennox West has been lost since a deadly skirmish in Afghanistan led to his forced retirement from the Army. His PTSD makes helping his ex raise their daughter a challenge. When his ex’s sister asks him to set her boss up with a security system, Lennox isn’t expecting anyone like Elliot McKenzie—a man who captures his attention and makes him feel relaxed for the first time since leaving the service.

But Elliott is dangerously stubborn. Even as the threats against him escalate, he refuses to involve the police, and Lennox fears that stubbornness could kill him. A battle of wills ensues that brings them closer to each other than either man expected. But if the threats turn real, they might not live long enough to get their future together.
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Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, LGBT, Published in 2016, Susan65's Reviews | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Audio Review: Model Citizen by Lissa Kasey

Reviewed by Morgan

31307696Title: Model Citizen
Author: Lissa Kasey
Narrator: Mike Pohlable
Heroes: Oliver “Ollie” Petroskovic/Kade Alme
Genre: MM Contemporary
Length: 7 Hours, 53 Minutes
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Release Date: July 26, 2016
Available at: Amazon, Audible and iTunes
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: Oliver “Ollie” Petroskovic’s life as an international supermodel was heading in the right direction. He worked part-time for his brother at his detective agency—Petroskovic Haven Investigations—and had just bought his dream house. But all that changed when he found his brother dead, a victim of PTSD-induced suicide.

Almost a year later, Ollie is trying to keep his brother’s business afloat, but can’t get his PI license. Then his brother’s best friend, Kade Alme, shows up, fresh from the battlefield after a close brush with death. Kade is looking for a new life, in more ways than one, and with PI license in hand, he’s exactly what Ollie needs to keep PHI running.

When one of Ollie’s childhood friends gets in trouble, Ollie feels he has to help. Kade insists on investigating if only to keep Ollie safe. Neither realizes the danger they’re in as someone tries to tear them apart before they can find solid ground together.
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Categories: 2.5 Star Ratings, Audio Review, LGBT, Morgan's Reviews, Published in 2016 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: Collateral Damage by J.T. Cheyanne

Reviewed by JustJen

30229681Title: Collateral Damage
Author: J.T. Cheyanne
Heroes: Trevor Garrett/Logan Andrews
Genre: MM Contemporary
Length: 269 Pages
Publisher: Laz & Lachi
Release Date: May 31, 2016
Available at: Amazon and Barnes & Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb:  Fleeing the questions and horrific memories in Miami-Dade, Trevor Garrett accepts a deputy position in the small town of Rolling Fork, Mississippi. Plagued by anxiety attacks and an abhorrence to being touched, Trevor rebuffs his best friend’s attempts to set him up. He has no desire for any type of relationship; until the local golden boy strolls into his line of sight at the neighborhood dive…

Logan Andrews just wants to take care of his mama. After years of serving his country in the Army Special Forces, Logan resigns when he learns his mother is suffering from advanced stages of Alzheimer’s disease. A night out with old friends turns heated when the newest deputy in town catches his attention…

When a sexually deviant killer sets his sights on the gay men in the area, Trevor is assigned the case. In a wicked twist, all evidence points to Logan. Can Trevor’s past be repeating itself? In a race against a killer, Trevor struggles to overcome his own insecurities and clear the man whose touch sets him on fire. Will he succeed or will their budding relationship become Collateral Damage?
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Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, JustJen's Reviews, LGBT, Published in 2016 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: Two Silent Cries by T.N. Tarrant

Reviewed by Susan65

30743594Title: Two Silent Cries
Author: T.N. Tarrant
Heroes: Micah Valery/Santiago Curtis
Genre: MM Contemporary
Length: 114 Pages
Publisher: MLR Press
Release Date: July 1, 2016
Available at:  Amazon and Barnes & Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: Micah Valery meets veterinarian Santiago Curtis over Micah’s unconscious service dog.

Micah Valery is hearing impaired and unable to speak. As if that didn’t make life interesting enough, he also suffers from a panic disorder that regularly disrupts his life. With a wonderful assistance dog named Goldie, however, he manages to live independently, and comfortably.

When something goes wrong with Goldie, he meets Dr. Santiago Cruz, a veteran veterinarian with issues of his own to cope with. Still, the attraction is strong enough to explore, and a new romance blooms.
Enter Micah’s estranged family, attempting to deprive him of his inheritance.
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Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, LGBT, Published in 2016, Susan65's Reviews | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: Life After Living by Max Vos

Reviewed by JustJen

30408089Title: Life After Living
Author: Max Vos
Heroes: Vance Spence/Wade Farmer
Genre: MM Contemporary
Length: 333 Pages
Publisher: Max Vos
Release Date: June 16, 2016
Available at: Amazon and Barnes & Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb:  Two men: each trying to cope with PTSD.

Vance Spence is suffering from yet another loss. The episodes are becoming more and more frequent. Only time will tell if he will be able to cope with yet another person leaving him.

Wade Farmer recently returned from Afghanistan only to have his family disown him for loving another man. He also is suffering from loss.

When the two are put together, neither are comfortable with the situation, but agree to give it a try. Two different lives. Two different men. Two different experiences, but common ground gives each of them understanding. Are they strong enough to battle their own demons as well as the others? Only time will tell.
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Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, JustJen's Reviews, LGBT, Published in 2016 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: 24/7 by J.A. Rock

Reviewed by JustJen

26174748Title: 24/7
Author: J.A. Rock
Series: The Subs Club #4
Heroes: Gould/Kel/GK
Genre: MFM BDSM
Length: 283 Pages
Publisher: Riptide Publishing
Release Date: June 4, 2016
Available at: Amazon and Barnes & Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb:  We started the Subs Club to make the kink community safer for subs. Except now the others are so busy chasing their happy endings, it’s like they’ve forgotten what Bill did to Hal and the fact that he got away with it. They used to think I was betraying Hal’s memory by hooking up with the owners of the club where he died. Now they don’t seem to care about any of it anymore.

Maybe I am sometimes angry with GK and Kel for giving Bill a second chance, but they’ve been mentoring me for a year now, and whatever else they’ve done, they make me feel incredibly safe. So I want to try something: I want to offer them my complete submission, 24/7. To serve the people who forgave Bill. That’s the way I want to hurt.

Except I’m starting to care about them in a way I never meant to—and I think they feel the same way. But after Hal, I don’t know if I want to be in love again. Because what I really need, more than anything, is to see Bill brought to justice. Even if I have to do it myself. Even if it means losing GK and Kel.
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Categories: 3.5 Star Ratings, Book Review, JustJen's Reviews, LGBT, M/F, Published in 2016 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Audio Review: Violated by Jamie Fessenden

Reviewed by Morgan

41KQuoOUQML._AA300_Title: Violated
Author: Jamie Fessenden
Narrator: K.C. Kelly
Heroes: Derek Sawyer/Russ Thomas
Genre: MM Contemporary
Length: 9 Hours, 42 Minutes
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Release Date: March 21, 2016
Available at: Amazon, Audible and iTunes
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: Derek Sawyer thinks he has it all—a high-salaried position, a boyfriend, a dog, even a new cabin on the lake—until a business trip with his manager and best friend, Victor, shatters his world.

One night of drunken horsing around in their hotel room leads to the most intensely personal violation Derek has ever endured. As if the humiliation of working under his attacker every day isn’t enough, Victor reports Derek for sexual harassment. Now he’s without a job, without a boyfriend, and the mortgage on the cabin is due.

Officer Russ Thomas has worked with rape victims before, and it doesn’t take him long to sort out the truth in Derek’s tale. With his support, Derek finally reports the crime, months after it happened. But restraining orders and lawyers further Victor’s anger toward him, and even though a relationship develops between Derek and the policeman, Russ can’t be there to protect him all the time.
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Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Audio Review, LGBT, Morgan's Reviews, Published in 2016 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: Strong Medicine by J.K. Hogan

Reviewed by JustJen

unnamedTitle: Strong Medicine
Author: J.K. Hogan
Heroes: Cameron Fox/Jonah Radley
Genre: MM Contemporary
Length: 278 Pages
Publisher: Wilde City Press
Release Date: May 11, 2016
Available at: Amazon
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb:  Two men who meet in a psychiatric institution couldn’t possibly find happiness together—could they?

The world seemed to be telling disgraced former child star and singer Cameron Fox that he would never be happy again. A drunken car accident gets him sentenced to a work-release at Riverbend Behavioral Health Facility.

Reclusive, traumatized writer Jonah Radley has an entire graveyard of skeletons in his closet. Jonah regularly hospitalizes himself for psychotic episodes caused by a horrific childhood trauma, his biggest secret—one he refuses to speak about in therapy.

Jonah and Cameron form a bond inside the hospital, forged in mutual pain and hope for a better life. Once they leave the hospital, they must decide if they are brave enough to explore the intricacies of living with mental illness—and find a new normal together.
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Categories: 4.5 Star Ratings, Book Review, JustJen's Reviews, LGBT, Published in 2016 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: Werewolves of Chernobyl by K.A. Merikan and L.A. Witt

Reviewed by Susan65

30114819Title: Werewolves of Chernobyl
Authors: K.A. Merikan and L.A. Witt
Heroes: Quinn/Dima/Nazar
Genre: MMM paranormal
Length: 266 Pages
Publisher: Wing and Fang
Release Date: May 5, 2016
Available at:  Amazon
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: — Being kidnapped by two werewolves is an adventure after all, right? Right?! —

 

Quinn

If Quinn wants to get the best photos for his travel blog, no gate is too tall, and no ‘do not enter’ sign actually means he won’t go in. What he finds in a hidden exclusion zone by Chernobyl blows his mind. Mutants? Monsters? He doesn’t know, but he is bound to find out when not one but two of them break into his hotel.  Too bad the rules and attitudes they have toward sex don’t match Quinn’s at all.

Dima

Born with a disabled hand, smaller than the other werewolves, Dima is the lowest of the low in his pack, but when he meets the loveliest human he’s ever seen, he knows his luck has changed.  The last thing he expects though is his beloved friend Nazar turning on him once Dima’s affection for Quinn deepens, and he refuses to be mounted by Nazar anymore.

Nazar

Nazar is a high ranking soldier in his pack, but in his powerful body hides a gentle soul, and all he wants is to escape the pack with Dima. But once Dima claims Quinn as his, secrets Nazar has so far kept hidden rear their ugly head.  The werewolf language doesn’t have words to describe what they crave, so Quinn might be the only one to help them solve the puzzle of the desires that go against the rules of their pack.
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Categories: 3.5 Star Ratings, Book Review, LGBT, Published in 2016, Susan65's Reviews | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment