Posts Tagged With: PTSD

Book Review: Scars and Secrets by Avril Ashton

Posted on May 3, 2016 by justjenbo

Reviewed by JustJen

29383384Title: Scars and Secrets
Author: Avril Ashton
Series: Loose Ends #1
Heroes: Donovan/Levi
Genre: MM Contemporary
Length: 218 Pages
Publisher: Sinner’s Haven Publishing
Release Date: April 29, 2016
Available at: Amazon and Barnes & Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb:  After an undercover assignment that changed his life forever, FBI agent Donovan Cintron is barely hanging on to sanity. His new mission is to forget, by any means necessary, so he tries his hardest. Pills. Booze. The warm bodies that never quite measure up to what he’d had. What he’d lost. It’s almost a relief when he learns his identity might be compromised—except he’s not the only one exposed. So is the husband he hasn’t stopped needing all these years later. He’d been aching to die, but for Levi Nieto, Donovan will live. To protect. To regret. To remember.

The realization that everything he loved was a farce sent Levi Nieto spinning out of control, and running away from the memories. Now Donovan is back in his life, still fully entrenched in darkness. Their physical connection is one thing, but the truth of who they are to each other remains trapped among the anger, violence and lies suffocating them. Fixing what’s broken will take more than each man exposing his scars. Secrets—and blood—must be spilled.
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Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, JustJen's Reviews, LGBT, Published in 2016 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: Dare to Hope by T.M. Smith

Posted on April 14, 2016 by justjenbo

Reviewed by JustJen

29623825by T. Title: Dare to Hope
Author: T.M. Smith
Series: All Cocks #4
Heroes: Tristan/Gabriel/Micah
Genre: MM Contemporary
Length: 200 Pages
Publisher: TTC Publishing
Release Date: April 7, 2016
Available at: Amazon and ARE
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb:  Tristan is the second oldest of the Brennan brothers and the odd man out. Most of the Brennan men have careers in law enforcement, but as a psychiatrist, Tristan chooses to help people in a different way. Quiet and restrained, he is content to hover in the background of his more gregarious brothers. Then he meets two men, each broken and damaged from losses beyond their control.

Gabriel Simenson is mourning his lover’s death. The random act of violence that took Gio’s life has left everyone at All Cocks reeling. The only thing keeping Gabe from drowning in misery is the friendship he’s forged with Micah, the newest model at All Cocks. He continues to struggle, and at the urging of his All Cocks family Gabe agrees to counseling with Tristan under one condition: Micah must go with him.

Micah Solo can relate to unbearable loss, having lost his leg and so much more in Iraq. The past two years he has been alone, adrift and vulnerable — the memories of war haunting his dreams, spilling over into his daily life. At All Cocks, Micah has found the acceptance he craves and the family he lost, but still he yearns for happiness and peace within.

The friendship between the three is instant, the mutual attraction evident. They circle each other, wanting more, yet unsure if it is truly possible. Is life the mundane reality they’ve each come to accept for themselves or do they dare to hope?

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Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, JustJen's Reviews, LGBT, Published in 2016 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: Merle by Catherine Lievens

Posted on March 24, 2016 by thebloggergirls

Reviewed by Morgan 

29522482Title: Merle
Author: Catherine Lievens
Series: Gillham Pack #10
Heroes: Merle/Nootaw
Genre: MM Paranormal
Length: 117 Pages
Publisher: eXtasy Books
Release Date: March 15, 2016
Available at:  Amazon
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb:  Monsters aren’t always the obvious ones.

Merle isn’t the wolf he was before, and who could blame him? He was sold to the labs, then Tom, Alpha Erskine’s second, kidnapped and tortured him, leaving him for dead. Merle’s body has been healed, but his mind hasn’t, and he’s struggling with everyday life and nightmares. Add to that an overbearing mother, and his life is a mess.

Nootaw left his wendigo tribe a year before, but even though he hasn’t hurt anyone since then, people still regard him with fear and disgust. Not even moving to Gillham changed that, but he’s use to it by now. When Nootaw is asked to help find Merle, he doesn’t expect Merle to take a sniff at him and tell him they’re mates. Nootaw isn’t sure what to do with Merle, because everyone knows wendigoes don’t have mates.

Merle insists on giving Nootaw a chance, even though he might lose his mother over it. Then Nootaw disappears, reappearing with someone Merle hadn’t expected. Will Merle be able to leave his nightmares behind and be the man Nootaw needs him to be? And will Nootaw manage to get used to a life he’d never thought he could have?
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Categories: 2.5 Star Ratings, Book Review, LGBT, Morgan's Reviews, Published in 2016 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: Give Yourself Away by Barbara Elsborg

Posted on February 21, 2016 by thebloggergirls

Reviewed by JustJen

26173634Title: Give Yourself Away
Author: Barbara Elsborg
Heroes: March/Caleb
Genre: MM Contemporary
Length: 284 Pages
Publisher: Samhain Publishing
Release Date: February 9, 2016
Available at: Amazon and Barnes & Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb:  One guy intent on caution. One an adrenaline junkie. Love could be one risk too many.

March is determined to lose the numbness that accompanies a history of loss and blame. Desperate to feel something—anything—the adrenaline junkie base jumps off cliffs, soars on hang gliders, and embarks on dangerous sea-borne rescue missions. But any release he feels is fleeting, and when you play Russian roulette with fate, eventually you come crashing down.

No matter how hard Caleb tries to forget his past, a dark shadow is always behind him. When a bizarre turn of events results in him being trapped in a sea cave, Caleb wonders how his mantra—safety at all costs—could have failed him. On the point of drowning, he’s stunned when March surfaces in the cave.

March’s disregard for the rules saves Caleb’s life but gets March into a heap of trouble. Not least of which is the guy shivering in the boat next to him. March tries to ignore Caleb but it’s already too late. Together, they take small, awkward steps toward love. But Caleb’s past is waiting to sink in its claws…and this time, it could drag him to his death.

Warning: This book contains difficult flashbacks of child abduction and sexual violence, but also the incredible perseverance of two men who never give up on love—or each other. Bring your tissues and a heart that believes in the resilience of the human spirit.
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Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Book Review, JustJen's Reviews, LGBT, Published in 2016 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Audio Review: Daylight Again by S.E. Jakes

Posted on February 9, 2016 by thebloggergirls

Reviewed by Susan65 

27786243Title: Daylight Again
Author: S.E. Jakes
Narrator: Adam North
Series: Hell or High Water #3
Heroes: Prophet/Tommy
Genre: MM Contemporary
Length: 6 Hours, 57 Minutes
Publisher: Riptide Publishing
Release Date: December 16, 2015
Available at: Amazon and Audible
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: Before Prophet Drews can have a future, he must first put his past to rest.

Prophet Drews is a man on the edge, and he’s pulling Tom Boudreaux, his partner on the job and in real life, right over with him. When his old CO calls in a favor, Prophet asks Tom to join the off-the-grid rescue. But the mission raises all of Prophet’s old ghosts: CIA assassins, the terrorist Sadiq, and most importantly, John—traitor, former teammate, and Prophet’s first love.

To help bury those ghosts for good, Prophet and Tom gather the members of Prophet’s former SEAL team . . . and a spook named Cillian who’s been tailing Prophet for years. In the process, Prophet is forced to face his team’s shifting loyalties, ghosts who refuse to stay dead, and scariest of all, his own limitations.

With everyone’s lives in danger, Prophet and Tom must unravel a tangled knot of secrets, including their own. Prophet must decide how much to reveal to Tom, while Tom must decide how far he’s willing to go to help Prophet lay his ghosts to rest.
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Categories: 4 Star Ratings, Audio Review, LGBT, Published in 2015, Susan65's Reviews | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Audio Review: Long Time Gone by S.E. Jakes

Posted on February 7, 2016 by susan65coug Miss Behaving

Reviewed by Susan65 

27785877Title: Long Time Gone
Author: S.E. Jakes
Narrator: Adam North
Series: Hell or High Water #2
Heroes: Prophet Drews/Tom Boudreaux
Genre: MM Contemporary
Length: 7 Hours, 52 Minutes
Publisher: Riptide Publishing
Release Date: December 16, 2015
Available at: Amazon and Audible
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: When a tornado meets a volcano, nothing is safe.

Soldier of fortune Prophet Drews always worked alone—until Tom Boudreaux became his partner. But when Tom walked away three months ago, ostensibly to keep Prophet safe, Prophet learned the true meaning of being alone. Everyone knows that Prophet, a Navy SEAL turned CIA spook turned mercenary, can look after himself. Which means he must’ve driven his lover away.

Even with half a world between them, Prophet can’t get the man out of his head. Maybe that’s why he’s in New Orleans in the middle of a hurricane, protecting Tom’s aunt. But the only looter around is Tom, bursting back into Prophet’s life. It turns out that Prophet’s been stuck in Tom’s head—and heart—too.

Their explosive reunion gets even hotter when Tom is arrested for murder. As they fight to clear his name, they delve deep into his past, finding enemies among everyone they meet. Staying alive in such a dangerous world is hard enough, but they soon discover that fighting to stay together is the most difficult thing they’ve ever done.
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Categories: 3.5 Star Ratings, Audio Review, LGBT, Published in 2015, Susan65's Reviews | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Audio Review: Ball & Chain by Abigail Roux

Posted on January 11, 2016 by susan65coug Miss Behaving

Reviewed by  Susan65

27785384Title: Ball & Chain
Author: Abigail Roux
Narrator: J.F. Harding
Series: Cut & Run #8
Heroes: Ty/Zane
Genre: MM Contemporary
Length: 10 Hours
Publisher: Riptide Publishing
Release Date: December 15, 2015
Available at: Amazon and Audible
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: Home from their unexpected deployment, the former members of Marine Force Recon team Sidewinder rejoin their loved ones and try to pick up the pieces of the lives they were forced to leave behind. Ty Grady comes home to Zane Garrett, only to find that everything around him has changed—even the men he went to war with. He barely has time to adjust before his brother, Deuce, asks Ty to be his best man. But that isn’t all Deuce asks Ty to do, and Ty must call for backup to deal with the business issues of Deuce’s future father-in-law.

Nick O’Flaherty and Kelly Abbott join Ty and Zane at the wedding on an island in Scotland, thinking they’re there to assuage Deuce’s paranoia. But when bodies start dropping and boats start sinking, the four men get more involved with the festivities than they’d ever planned to.

With the clock ticking and the killer just as stuck on the isolated island as they are, Ty and Zane must navigate a veritable minefield of family, friends, and foes to stop the whole island from being destroyed.
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Categories: 5 Star Ratings, Audio Review, LGBT, Published in 2015, Susan65's Reviews | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: Scars by Lynley Wayne

Posted on January 2, 2016 by susan65coug Miss Behaving

Reviewed by Susan65

15986965Title: Scars
Author: Lynley Wayne
Series: Scars #1
Heroes: Jace/Nathaniel
Genre: MM Contemporary
Length: 300 Pages
Publisher: MLR Press
Release Date: September 14, 2012
Available at:  Amazon and Barnes & Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb: Jace, an injured ex-soldier suffering from PTSD, saves Nathaniel, a nineteen-year-old street kid, from a beating. In doing so, he has no way of knowing that he will find his own salvation.

Jace came home from the war scarred in more ways than one. The physical scars that he carries are nothing compared to the mental ones. Struggling with PTSD, he has closed himself off from the rest of the world. The last thing that he ever thought to do was fall in love… Nathaniel has lived on the streets since he was thirteen. When he wakes up in a strange apartment after being badly beaten, he has no idea how he got there. Little does he know that his rescuer, the large man with scars crisscrossing his face, could hold the key to healing the scars that they both have.
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Categories: 2.5 Star Ratings, Book Review, LGBT, Published in 2012, Susan65's Reviews | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Book Review: KAGE Unmasked by Maris Black

Posted on October 29, 2015 by justjenbo

Reviewed by JustJen

27275994Title: KAGE Unmasked
Author: Maris Black
Series: KAGE Trilogy #3
Heroes: Michael/Jamie
Genre: MM Contemporary
Length: 164 Pages
Publisher: Maris Black Books
Release Date: October 25, 2015
Available at: Amazon and Barnes & Noble
Add it to your shelf: Goodreads

Blurb:  Kage and Jamie have finally come to terms with their feelings for each other, but there is still plenty of drama to work through. Friends and family don’t want to let them be, and now that Kage has his UFC contract, his uncle is worried that the public will find out about his nephew’s boyfriend. Will the drama be too much to handle? Will the stakes be to high?

Discover just how far Kage and Jamie will go for love.
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Categories: 5 Star Ratings, Book Review, JustJen's Reviews, LGBT, Published in 2015 | Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment