A Bear on Books

"Bonds of Earth"

2012-02-25T22:25:00.002-05:00

Review - "Bonds of Earth" by G.N. Chevalier

Fantastically moving historical piece

Very Highly Recommended

The Great War was not kind to any of the men who were involved, but those who survived came back with horrible scars, both mental and physical. And Michael McReady is no different. He was an ambulance driver, and worked with veterans of the war in a hospital as a rubber, a masseur, helping with physical therapy.

But the past couple of years he's been working in a bathhouse, doing massages and having an outlet for the desires that could get him arrested. Because sodomy is illegal in 1919 New York. When he runs afoul of his uncle, who threatens to tell his only sister about his...proclivities...he agrees to take a job out of the city as a gardener.

While there, he meets the nephew of the matron who owns the estate, John Seward. Another victim of the war, his wounds are physical as well as emotional. And when Michael sees him, he feels pity. Knows he can help. But John's personality and attitude makes sympathy difficult.

But when he finally breaks through and takes matters into his own hands, forces John to take his help, the results are amazing. Rewarding. As the two men learn to connect, their bond grows. And soon spills over into passion, which send Michael running away, the pain of caring too much.

Will these two men reconnect? Will either move past the ghosts of war that come between them?

Typically, I have not been one for historical books or romances, but I will definitely have to reconsider after reading this. G.N. Chevalier has given us a damned miracle here. This is a book that sings - a romance that grabs first at the mind, then at the heart. Treats both respectfully and with dignity.

Michael is a wonderful character. He is edgy, ahead of his time, and a wonder to behold. His bravado masks a huge wounded heart, and as we slowly get to see what caused that pain, we are amazed. Because he is such a wonderful, caring and loving man. But oh so very broken.

And John. All gruff and bark and sharp corners. But at heart, another sensitive broken romantic, loosed on the world only to have it break him. Wound his body and break his spirit. But not irreparably.

These two guys, they were made for each other. I hung on every work, every sentence, hoping for them. Because I was moved, so very moved, by the hurt and the pain and the passion and the rightness of them being together.

God, this book was just so good. I sound like a broken record, I know, but please, if you only buy one book this month, make it this one.

Tom

"An Unsettled Range (Range #3)"

2012-02-25T17:56:00.000-05:00

Review - "An Unsettled Range (Range #3)" by Andrew Grey

Worthy and fine addition to the series

Very Highly Recommended

After walking and hitching for days with little food or water, it's all Liam can do to put one foot in front of the other. When one driver after another ignores him, he just...collapses where he stands and hopes for a quick ending. He's vaguely aware when he's lifted up and settled into a truck by two guys.

When he wakes up, he finds he's been rescued by two kind men. Gay men, like him. He feels such relief, and then acceptance. Hope, where he has only had despair. And he's offered a job by Wally, a vet who is partners with Dakota. Dakota and Haven own the ranch, and it's a bit of an anomaly - a safe place for a gay ranch hand.

On his second day at the ranch, Liam investigates strange smoke in the air and wanders up on Troy. Who promptly pulls a gun on him and orders him off his property. Doesn't make a great impression on Liam, that's for sure.

But the two men run into each other several times, and there is an attraction. One that Troy fights, because he believes he doesn't deserve to be happy, after ruining his life, and his family's life the way he did. So he resists the heat he feels for Liam. Because Liam, he know, he KNOWS, deserves better than him.

When Liam puts himself in jeopardy looking out for Troy, however, a small door opens for Troy. Maybe, just maybe, there can be something there.

When Dakota and Haven's ranch might be threatened by a mining company looking to use the ranch's water rights, and people from his and Troy's troubled past reappear, will Liam's new-found home be in danger? Will he and Troy manage to find a life of their own, or will their ghosts overwhelm them?

Andrew Grey has returned to give us more the "Stories from the Range" series, and this one is a winner. It's always a pleasure to visit with Wally and Dakota, Haven and Phillip, and he's added two memorable guys to the mix here with Liam and Troy. This is a well told, thoughtful and warm tale of two injured and hurting men who realize there is strength in sharing the load.

Mr. Grey has done what he does so well - created characters who make us think and feel, and put them in situations where they are forced to confront their fears and shortcomings. But they also come to realize they are not so unlovable after all. That love is deserved, freely given and received, and that they are, indeed, worthy.

Troy is one of Mr. Grey's strongest characters yet. So self loathing, but so willing and open to want and need and have, once he gets he deserves it. And that he has so much to offer.

And Liam - what a sweetheart of a young man. Hated for what he is, abused, thrown away. But so much stronger than his father ever gave him credit for. Bent, but never broken.

These two men were terrific together, and I hope we see more of them as the series progresses.

I truly cannot say enough about the skill with which Mr. Grey writes about his broken men. In all of his series, he creates character after character I would love to know. And I savor every book of his that comes my way. But I truly love the "Tales from the Range" series.

Great job.

Tom

"Hard as Teak"

2012-02-25T16:28:00.000-05:00

Review - "Hard as Teak" by Margie Church

Good, solid effort

Recommended

A nature photographer who is gaining a name for himself, Kevin is in a bit of a rut. His success is growing, but everything else feels...off. His work is beginning to bore him. His relationship with his girlfriend is stagnant and he is having trouble completing sex with her. And he's picturing men in his fantasies.

So he decides to pack it all in and take a working vacation to his cabin in Minnesota and gain some perspective. As he gets there, he meets Drew, a local guy, and then Teak. Teak, who takes his breath away, and inspires him to take new chances in his work. And in his personal life, especially when he finds himself sexually attracted to Teak.

The two share sparks, which soon ignites into a passionate affair that scares and excites Kevin. The two men live in different states, have different lives. And Kevin will be going back home in a few short weeks.

If he starts something with Teak, will it last? What will happen with Kevin's girlfriend? His gallery back home? His life as he knows it?

Margie Church created some very nice characters in a hard situation. One straight, in a relationship with a woman, but questioning his sexuality. One bi and out, proud and certain of who and what he is. And they are thrust into a highly charged situation where they have a mutual attraction.

I can understand Kevin's questioning. He's not satisfied in any area of his life, and is looking for more. That strikes us all, and I admire his strength in taking the steps to break out of that rut he's in. And there the story works for me. It's very relatable, very straightforward.

I loved the two men, and hoped to see more of Drew. They were all great, fleshed out, interesting. All good men in their own right. I think a great book could be built around any of these three guys. There was potential and chemistry.

Where the book falls a little bit short for me is in the execution of the story.

I was left feeling a bit disconnected from some of the relationship aspects of Kevin and Teak. Teak was very masculine and in-your-face, but then was doubting and...not manly. Almost against character. I found there to be a gap with his giving the power in the relationship to Kevin.

And Kevin. Kevin wasn't a very sympathetic character to me. He had a girlfriend he was stringing along, and he entered into a sexual relationship with a man. Granted, Teak is a hottie, but Kevin had no experience with men and he seemed to be ready to jump without looking.

There was also a large time lapse in the last weeks of their relationship, before Kevin went home. That, to me, would have been an ideal time to reinforce the care they were building for each other. Instead, there was nothing.

I enjoyed the book, there is no doubt about that. It was funny, there were moments of shot-to-the-heart "Oh Hell"'s and I was genuinely moved a couple of times. And yeah, I would recommend it. I just wish that the blanks had been filled in a little more for me.

Ms. Church is a good writer with great ideas. Keep 'em coming!

Tom

"Flamingo"

2012-02-25T14:46:00.000-05:00

Review - "Flamingo" by Sarah Black

Short, rich, beautiful

Highly Recommended

When he was a young man, William was strongly urged by his father to move to New York City where he might fit in better, find more "like him". Because William sinned in the worst way. He failed his Army physical and was gay. So off he went, attending college and eventually taking over the bookstore he loved so much.

Now, at 61, he predates the Stonewall Riots but is too old to do much more, be much more, than the owner of his little fading bookstore. And enjoy the occasional night with Tommy, the young man who goes to school on GI bill benefits. Tommy loves his books, and spends the night with William sometimes, when he is short of cash for food and has a need.

And so it goes, until Tommy's sometime boyfriend, Marley, gets them all involved in trouble. Something that threatens all their safety. And it may be up to William to be the man, the hero, he has always been afraid to be.

This wonderful little short story from Sarah Black knocked me off my feet. It is a wonder - a gentle hymn to one man's strength and caring and, yes, redemption.

Because William has given up, in his own way. Happy to have crumbs, he doesn't dare ask for a whole slice of life. And Tommy, the beautiful young man who is everything he could ask for, is right within his grasp. All he has to do is reach...

The prose in this story wowed me like nothing else recently.

"His evenings with Tommy were like bright flowers, like sunshine in a life the color of fog."

"It felt more like Tommy was his great love, and they'd missed each other somehow in another life."

"Tommy came sneaking into his heart on little cat feet, like Carl Sandberg's fog, and curled there warm and safe. William just tried to hold very still and quiet, so he wouldn't scare him away."

And, oh my God,

"Betrayal was the most painful way for the heart to break."

I loved this story. I read it through once, then again. Then I came back to it two or three more times to hold it close to my heart so I could break the chill on it's warmth and hope.

Good job, Ms. Black. You made winter more bearable for me this year.

Tom

"Latakia"

2012-02-25T13:45:00.001-05:00

Review - "Latakia" by JF Smith

Utterly fantastic take on honor and courage

Very Highly Recommended

"Courage is faith and trust, Matt."

Matt is a great guy - just ask any of his friends in Richmond. He takes food to sick friends, works with Doctors Without Borders as a volunteer, uses his talents to help set up tracking and record-keeping for childhood immunizations. Plays softball on a gay league. And has a hot boyfriend, Brian, to whom he would give the world if he only asked.

When he's offered the opportunity to use his talents to assist DWB in their mission in Syria, he jumps at the chance and will be leaving for a two week assignment. Before he leaves, he begins to have doubts about how Brian feels, especially when Brian accuses him of being distant. Picking fights and leaves him stuck with the check for dinner, again, the night before he's to leave.

So when he's kidnapped and fearing for his life, locked in a dark room alone, he resolves the be the man Brian deserves, to never doubt him again. And when he's rescued by a group of Navy SEALS, his relief and gratitude are immense. Even when he's confronted with what he thinks is homophobia and bigotry by the guys that risked their lives to save him. But then he meets and talks to one of his rescuers, Mope - Travis - and some of what he thought he saw and felt, he begins to question. How he acts, how he views the world.

But when he's given the opportunity to repay that rescue, to risk himself, will he? And what will be the cost be to himself? His relationship with Brian? To his preconceived notions about the men who rescued him - Mope, Petey? And will he find he has more in common with these men than ever thought possible?

I have to just out it out there. This book blew me the f**k away.

When I saw it in Amazon for $0.99 I thought, nice, I'll get a short story that will be a quick and hot read, based on the blurb. But what I got was so very much more. This is a fully realized novel, and I would gladly have paid ten times the cost for the honor of reading this jewel.

JF Smith has written a quiet, amazing and satisfying book about one man's journey of honor, courage and self worth. Matt is a revelation - a gay man who is already whole and complete and loveable. And when thrust into a horrible situation, not only survives it but grows so much in the process.

There are so many themes in this book that could have gone so terribly...sideways. The role of the military. The men who serve our country. Patriotism. Honor. Courage. Settling for what we as gay men can get in our relationships. And every damn single one of these issues, Mr. Smith stands at the plate and knocks them out of the stadium.

As a reader, I can see what Matt can't, or won't, and at times, that's very frustrating. We all know that Brian is a tool, and playing Matt. But Matt, being the gentle man he is, doesn't believe it. So when Matt, as he grows and opens his eyes, literally and figuratively, there is a huge payoff for him and the reader.

I love where Matt landed. The man deserves a happily ever after, and I won't spoil the story and say what happens, but it's just so satisfying. Hopeful. And real.

And the supporting cast. Has there ever been such richness from what we first see as testosterone fueled muscle heads? Travis is a man with a giant heart and we grow to adore him. His relationship with Matt, as his friend and confidante, begins an arc I loved.

But Petey almost stole the story away from Matt. This guy - who is initially, we think, a homophobe and idiot - has the biggest heart and, I think, the biggest pain. I loved him by the last page and wanted this book to go on and on and never stop.

That's the sign of a good book and a fantastic writer. When I am so wrapped up in the world they create, so immersed in the characters that I don't want to say goodbye. I hope Mr. Smith has plans for a sequel, and I hope Petey plays a huge part of it.

They don't get much better than this. I'm so glad I stumbled into this fine, fine work.

Tom

"Chase in Shadow"

2012-02-25T12:38:00.006-05:00

Review - "Chase in Shadow" by Amy Lane

Heartbreaking, real, and oh-so-damned good

Very Highly Recommended

Chase is a college student, working on his degree. A baseball jock. The All American boy. Struggling, living with his girlfriend Mercy, the two work hard to maintain an apartment, and school, and plan, and save for a future.

Chase comes from a harsh background. Raised by his father after his mother committed suicide when he was a young boy, he’s struggled to be the perfect son. His father’s scorn drives him to be more, have more, make no missteps.

So when his friends mention a local gay filmmaking company that’s scouting talent, he thinks it may be a way to make some quick cash. Not to mention, a way to fulfill the part of him longing for another man’s touch. His fumblings with his best friend Donnie aside, he’s only ever been with Mercy.

Johnnie’s, the porn site, is glad to have him. He’s mentored before his first shoot by Dex, and the two form an immediate friendship. Then his first day on the set, he catches sight of Tango. Hot, devilish, full of life, there’s an immediate attraction. Chase – or Chance, his porn alter ego – fits right in with these guys. He has no trouble with the performance. Revels in it.

Before long, he has the opportunity to meet and talk to Tango on a shoot. The chemistry is there, but more, another friendship is struck. They begin to get closer, and when tragedy strikes Tango, Chase is the first he calls to help and be there.

So begins a series of events that splits Chance in two. On the one hand, he’s the dutiful boyfriend and fiancé to Mercy. On the other, he’s in a fledgling relationship with his soul mate, Tommy. One he fights and which may ultimately blow up in his face. Because he’s struggling to keep secrets from his childhood, live two separate lives, and keep his head above the red water that threatens to drag him under.

What will happen when his two worlds collide?

This book – this beautiful, tragic and stunning book - was at once a revelation, a blessing, and a stake through my heart.

A little background. I’m a 50 year old single gay man living in the suburbs of Atlanta. I’ve been in a couple of relationships, the most recent one for thirteen plus years. I’ve lost two men in my life to suicide, one a best friend and one a love who was living a double life. And I’ve worked with abused teens in a residential setting as CFO for a nonprofit agency.

So the issues in this book hit me hard. Young people with mental health issues. Suicide. Men living double lives. Men who like other men, trying hard to live a straight lifestyle.

I respect the hell out of Amy Lane. She takes on these hard issues and makes them bearable. Relevant. Painful but so damn… I don’t know, I can’t find the words for it. Brutally accessible?

I remember when “The Thornbirds” came out, and the legend behind it always struck me. The bird stayed silent its whole life, searching for the thorn tree. When it finds it, the bird pierces its breast on it and, as it dies, sings a song so sweet even God stops to listen.

And that’s how I feel about Chase. So repressed, so bottled up, and then, then when he finally sings, we all stop and gasp; want to hold him and heal him and make him our own. My own.

“God. No wonder it was so easy. He’s been bleeding since he was a baby.”

This was a hard book to read for me. And I would read it every day, just to hear Chase sing that hauntingly aching, soul searing song.

Bless you, Amy. Now I’ll go wipe my eyes and take a deep breath and celebrate one sweet man who made it.

Tom

(Originally written for the Paranormal Romance Guild, where I am a sometime reviewer)

"The Decisions We Make"

2012-02-18T21:45:00.002-05:00

Review - "The Decisions We Make" by RJ Scott

Great and wholly unexpected YA book

Very Highly Recommended

Daniel Keyes was a very young boy when he entered foster care, and was placed with the Walker family. A quiet and sensitive young man, he likes nothing better than to play his piano and stay unnoticed. But in this household, that's not a possibility. And with a boy, Jamie, his own age in the house, he's dragged into all the things normal boys do. Making trouble for their brothers. Video games. Mischief.

As the two grow up, Daniel takes a different road than his foster brother. Where he's still the more sensitive of the two, Jamie is the outgoing one. Daniel is more bookish, where Jamie is popular and an athlete. But he has come out of his shell somewhat. Made friends. Adjusted.

Realized he's gay. And attracted to Jamie.

After one ill advised but wholly passionate kiss, Daniel is eaten by guilt. But for Jamie, some of his feelings are clarified. He realizes he loves his foster brother in a wholly un-brotherly fashion.

When a violent and hateful incident threatens one of the brothers, their attraction is brought out into the light. Will the two manage to stay friends? Family? Lovers?

RJ Scott delivers the goods one more time in this quietly stunning beauty. She grabbed my attention on page one and my heart on page two. And never let either one go.

Daniel is a wonderful young man. At first self contained edges and angst, he blossomed as a character with all the love heaped oh him. And by the end of the story, he was a young man I wanted to wrap my arms around and hold.

But Jamie, this young lad stole my heart. He has the purest heart and I swear, I bled for him in this story. So innocent, so whole and young and pure. And then so...damaged. But still with that big wonderful heart.

I loved this story. I know I've shared before in other posts, I worked with kids in foster care for ten years, and they hold a very special place in my heart. Any writer that takes the time to give one a story, and a happy ending is halfway to heaven in my book anyway.

But to do it with such love, tenderness and grace, well, I'm a fan. For life.

Bless you.

Tom

"The Rosas of Spanish Harlem"

2012-02-18T18:07:00.001-05:00

Review - "The Rosas of Spanish Harlem" by Johnny Miles

Steamy and sexy

Highly Recommended

Tracey McCarthy just turned 18 and is ready to be a man. It's 1977 and he's still living at home, stealing his sister's make up and panties, and fantasizing about how to lose his pesky virginity. It's the summer after he graduated and he has nothing better to do, although his mother is after him to work with her at the factory.

But he's young and horny and...well, 18.

So one hot summer day he heads out to the beach, bakes his body and watches the hot men. And is rewarded when he sees a hot Latino have sex with his girlfriend right there in the open while he pretends to be asleep. Afterwards, he heads to the restroom and finds out why the men coming and going look so satisfied.

And discovers his first glory hole. Has his first encounter. Then the hot young man from the beach comes in and Tracey is smitten. When their hook up is interrupted, the young man - Angel Rosa - tells Tracey to look him up in Spanish Harlem.

When Tracey does, he ends up meeting more than just Angel. He meets Angel's father and brother William. His attraction to the Rosa men is immediate, but he finds himself drawn to William.

When he discovers the Rosa's aren't the men he thought, though, it may be too late. And he is placed in danger in a situation he never planned on. Will he be okay, or will his obsession with the Rosas be more than he can handle?

Johnny Miles surprised me here. Pleasantly. His writing is steamy, erotic, and sensual and his men boldly sexual. Tracey is a firecracker - all the bravado of 18 and the heart of a lion. Brave, silly and full of himself, he's so ready to be part of a world he barely understands. Ah, to be young again.

And the Rosa men. Angel, the beauty of an angel and the soul of the devil. Robinson, the father, whose mask is the most fully in place and the most...disturbing of the bunch. But William - he is a bear of a man. So unsure of himself, but so ready to be the man Tracey needs.

This is a highly erotic read, and probably not for everyone. The sex is hot, and totally appropriate for the times. The characters are sharply drawn, and there is one scene that may disturb some readers because it flirts with dubious consent. But damn, I thought it a wonderful read.

Mr. Miles writes in that thin line between romance and erotica. I enjoy both, and appreciate that he fulfills the romantic in me while satisfy the horndog that likes a good sex scene. And he does it so damned well!

I loved Tracey, adored William, and would love to see Angel, well, get what Angel deserves.

Great job, Mr. Miles.

Tom

"Ranch Hands 2" Jerry's Season"

2012-02-18T16:23:00.000-05:00

Review - "Ranch Hands 2: Jerry's Season" by S.L. Danielson

Fine sequel to "Ranch Hands"

Highly Recommended

Jerry Evans is turning his life around. After having caused more than his share of trouble, heartache and grief, he turned the corner when he saved Roger's life. That one act of selfless caring made him wake up and realize there's more to life than drinking, boozing and whoring.

When Roger's partner Sid asks him to marry him, the couple ask Jerry to be their best man. So begins Jerry's quest to be the man he used to be. The one that loved Patrick, his boyfriend in high school. The man who cared about his friends. Who rose above the tragedy of his parents' deaths.

Sid and Roger have taken him under their wings. Helped him by giving him a job on their farm, fixed his teeth, given him hope. So when Patrick returns to town, and a large farming conglomerate wants to buy out all the farms in the area, Jerry is turned up side down and inside out.

Will the two lovers be reunited, or will the past be too much to overcome for Jerry? And will he have his greatest wishes in his hands, only to lose them all?

S.L. Danielson has written a worthy and fun sequel to Ranch Hands. I loved Sid and Roger, and hated what Jerry did in the first book in the series. That he was the one to save Roger from his ex was ironic, and the first step in his redemption.

But what is so good about this book is the slow path Jerry takes in his redemption, and how realistic it was. His self doubt, while wearing, was done well. There is no way a man who had done the amount of drugs and partying that he had would be able to turn his life around in a day. And that showed in his actions. He constantly questioned himself, his worth, and why people would want him.

That took a lot of guts. Ms. Danielson didn't make him easy and loveable and whole right away. She let us see his struggle, but at the same time, gave us his happy ending.

And that's what we really want when we read a good romance isn't it? A happy ending?

We get one here - a nicely told story of a redeemed man. Good for him. And good for us!

Tom

"The 51st Thursday"

2012-02-18T15:43:00.000-05:00

Review - "The 51st Thursday" by Mercy Celeste

Hot, sexy, sweet

Highly Recommended

Deacon's Place has come to be something of a shelter for Shelby Bainbridge. The damaged man limps into the bar one Thursday and finds...peace. Well, as much peace as he can, given what happened. So he comes in every Thursday, has a couple of beers and then heads home.

What he doesn't know is he's been noticed. Deacon has seen this man and is intrigued. Wonders about him, and what his story is. The fact he's hot as hell - an added bonus. So he's taken to watching out for him every Thursday.

When a hurricane forces most of his regulars out on the 51st Thursday, Deacon doesn't know if Thursday, as he's come to call his hot man, will be in. When he does, and can't find a taxi to take him home, Deacon makes his move. And the attraction he feels for Thursday - Shelby - well, it's returned.

But when they wake up the next morning, will anything have changed? And will the secrets that are exposed pull them together, or apart?

Mercy Celeste outdid herself with this steamy, sexy, hot but surprisingly sweet story. The sex is some of the hottest I've read, and as I got to know these two men, the romance some of the sweetest. This is a short story, so there's not time to flesh out all the daily things that make a relationship. Didn't matter to me - I enjoyed the hell out of this.

Because these two men are broken and vulnerable, and try hide it hide it behind their rugged exteriors. But at their hearts, they are so very tender and wanting.

And that's Ms. Celeste's wheelhouse - sexy hot men. Strong. Damaged. Hiding. Tender. She takes all these things, does her magic and creates men who I want to know. Want for my own.

Very, very nice.

Tom

"Enduring Instincts"

2012-02-18T14:37:00.000-05:00

Review - "Enduring Instincts" by S.J. Frost

Fantastic story for Daniel and Ryu

Very Highly Recommended

Daniel Valente is struggling. After centuries of being the sometime lover of his Master, vampire Titus Antonius Calidus, he is on his own. Cal - Titus - has met his love, Andreas, and the relationship between Daniel and Titus had to change. Daniel ventures back to England, trying to find some normalcy for himself.

But the feeling of being watched, followed, sends him back to America and Titus. But Titus has a plan in mind. He calls in Ryunosuke Kimura, the Japanese Samurai vampire who has loved Daniel for untold years. Because the threat to Daniel is very real. Isaac, the leader of a group of rogue younger vampires, is seeking revenge on Daniel for what he did to his lover, Troy.

At long last the passion between the two men flares and becomes something real, something...possible. Something fine. But then, he threat to Daniel and his friends explodes and puts Daniel is the worst possible straits of his ling life.

Will the lovers be split? Will Ryu lose his love forever?

These two characters drew my attention in "Natural Instinct", the excellent first book in this series, and I was thrilled they were getting their own tale. Ah, but then, S.J. Frost created this fantastic, touching and heartfelt story for Daniel and Ryu, and it is one of those rare sequels that surpasses the original.

Daniel is a fascinating character - originally introduced as a somewhat capricious, self-centered diva, he was hard to take. But Ms. Frost kept adding shading and layers and texture to him, and he wormed his way into my heart. I wanted a happy ending for him.

Ryu is the quiet heart of this tale. His backstory is so original, so tragic. And the very real longing he felt, but hid, for Daniel was beautifully told. The love story wove its way around me and pulled me in, mainly because the strengths these two men have compliment each other so well. And the needs and wants make the romantic in me cry out for them to be happy.

But what really impresses me is the time Ms. Frost takes to tell her stories. There is nothing wasted, no red herrings, nothing superfluous in the telling. Just well told, lovingly crafted stories with fully imagined characters who make me root for them.

As a reader, this is nirvana. Ambrosia.

I can't wait to see where Ms. Frost takes me next, because I guarantee this - I will be along for the ride.

Tom

"Ty's Obsession"

2012-02-06T20:29:00.001-05:00

Review - "Ty's Obsession" by SJD Peterson

They just keep getting better

Very Highly Recommended

"Wanting is a bitch, isn't it?"

Ty Callahan is furious. After being used and abused by his last Dom, he thought he found someone who might want him. Treasure him. Need him and love him back the way he wants. Quinn Taylor, he thought, was that man.

Until Quinn tossed him aside like yesterday's garbage when his ex Lorcan James came strolling back into the picture. Then, Ty's anger has him at his breaking point. In his mind, Lorcan was to blame. If he were not in the picture, Quinn would be free to be Ty's again. And his anger at Quinn and Lorcan builds.

"You think you're the first person to walk away from me?"

Because how could that girly looking boy ever give Quinn what Ty knows he craves. Lorcan can't give Quinn the pure gift of his pain and submission - he would break under the weight of Quinn's needs. Not like Ty. His mind made up, Ty begins a campaign against Lorcan to win Quinn back. And it seems to be working, at least initially. He can see the doubt in Lorcan, but Quinn is always there to make it better for him. Be there for him. Like no one has ever been there for Ty. And his desire for revenge grows.

But when Blake Henderson catches Ty in a compromising position, his plan may be in jeopardy. Until the man, the son of the rancher who tried to kill Quinn, begins to pursue him. Thinks he may be able to give Ty the peace he craves. And he makes Ty an offer.

"One week, Ty. Nothing heavy, and you have your safewords. All you need to do is focus on me and my needs and be honest in your reactions."

Because Blake is a Dom. He can sense the struggle, the rage and jealousy that consumes and threatens Ty. And he thinks - no, knows - he can help this bitter and broken man find a center. Before he is lost in his fury and does something he will regret forever.

Will Ty accept Blake's offer? Or will his demons prove too strong for them both? And will Blake find redemption for his tragic past with Ty?

SJD Peterson has delivered a stunning character study of two men haunted by the losses in their lives who may find a chance at redemption. This third book in the "Whispering Pines Ranch" series starts with the dull embers of Ty's hurt, and builds to the full inferno of what happens when love becomes obsession. I was awed by the depth of the pain, only hinted at when we met Ty In "Quinn's Need". How the layers upon layers of hurt heaped on him left Ty on the precipice of doing something horrific.

And then we meet Blake, all solid and sure of himself. We think. And as he takes Ty in hand and soothes the flames of hate and hurt in him, we then get to see the broken man living behind the hero. And lose our hearts one more time to one of Ms. Peterson's sharply drawn and lovingly crafted men.

I'm not sure there are many writers in the genre out there right now who take such time and care in building their men from the ground up. Make them complete and fully realized, and force me react so honestly and so deeply to them. Quinn, Lorcan, Jesse, Ty, now Blake. I feel almost guilty feasting on the buffet of richly imagined men.

Almost, I say. But don't tell Ms. Peterson. Let it be our little secret and maybe we'll get Jesse's story...

Tom

"Light of Day"

2012-02-05T22:16:00.000-05:00

Review - "Light of Day" by Sue Brown

More of Max and Robert's story

Very Highly Recommended

In "The Night Porter", we are introduced to Max, the titular night porter of a small hotel in London. Max is all about safe, non-committal encounters with men who never ask for more than a good time while visiting the city. Until he meets Robert Armitage. A young actor in London a few days early to prepare for his upcoming wedding, Max and Robert form a quiet friendship over the course of the handful of days that blossoms into a sexual encounter.

But Max finds his heart engaged in this tryst in ways he never expected, and when he has to face the man he has fallen for, he runs. Calls out sick so he won't have to face Robert again. Only, he is called in to replace a day staffer, and has one last encounter with Robert, sending him on his way to marry his fiance.

So ends "The Night Porter", and begins "Light of Day".

A year later, Max has moved home to Texas to lick his wounds but finds he can't move past his feelings for Robert. At once relieved and yet utterly destroyed, he wonders if he meant so little to the man that he wouldn't even try to look for him when his marriage ended after just six months. And is so tired of waking from dreams of the man, waking with tears on his face.

Until the day Robert shows up at his Mom's house looking for him.

What follows is a flat out terrific story of two men taking one weekend to explore their passion for each other, all the while asking themselves the hard questions. Can this work? I love you but is that enough? Can Max live with the constraints Robert's career puts on the relationship?

Sue Brown has taken two of my favorite characters and given me some resolution of the bittersweet parting from "Night Porter". And I adore her for it. She has the gift of delving into a man's sorrow and letting us watch him heal and grow from it. And she knows, not every ending is happy and sometimes all you can expect is to walk away in one piece and live to fight another day.

But here, Ms. Brown gives me what I wanted. Maybe not Happily Every After, but certainly Happy for Now.

And I am okay with that. Because, damn it, she gave let me share another exquisite few days with my boys.

Thank you.

Tom

"The Price of Falling"

2012-02-05T21:34:00.002-05:00

Review - "The Price of Falling" by Melanie Tushmore

Fantastic, gentle love story

Highly Recommended

To anyone looking, Mike Miller was an average high school kid. A jock, not too bright but not a dumb kid either. He dated, hung out with his buds drank and partied. Average for any kid in 1988. He was in his senior year, within a few months of graduation. Then he caught sight of Jason Reilly.

Red headed, pale skinned stoner Jason Reilly. The kid who cut classes, hung out with the strange kids and listened to weird music. Left in cars with strange men. That Jason Reilly.

And Mike became intrigued, but he wasn't sure what he wanted. Till he found out what Jason did in those cars for those guys. Then he had to have it for himself. Try to scratch the itch he never knew he had. But once Jason agrees, and Mike pays for his services, he is hooked.

Thus begins Mike's obsession with Jason. One that has him spending all of his cash, his college funds, and which may cost him his family. Because when it gets out what he has been doing, and who with, there is a huge price to pay.

Melanie Tushmore has crafted a remarkably sweet and romantic tale about two total opposites who discover they have more in common than just money. Mike and Jason find themselves, reluctantly and oh-so-bittersweetly, in love. I was drawn into Mike's life and world immediately, and utterly charmed by his naivety.

Because Mike is the loyal, one man kind of guy we all hope for. Shy but bold, sweet but silent, he so desperately wants to be liked by the object of his affections, and is so very clueless as to what he is wanting. My heart ached for him, and I found myself rooting for him and finding an unlikely hero.

And Jason, if there was every anyone so apparently undeserving of a man like Mike, it was him. Until, until we meet him on his turf and discover all his secrets and desires. He is as hidden as Mike, only so much more in-your face about it. And such a tragic boy. What happens when he thinks Mike deserted him broke my heart.

Ms. Tushmore wrote her heart out with these two, and I would love to see some follow up to their story. For all that these two boys, then men, are so strongly drawn, there is such a lovely fragility and quiet to their love story. I found myself holding my breath in places, afraid a noise might scare them away.

This book will stay with you, making you want to revisit it again and again.

Loved every word.

Tom

"Something Like Summer"

2012-02-05T20:05:00.002-05:00

Review - "Something Like Summer" by Jay Bell

An Instant classic about love, acceptance and youth

Highly Recommended

"Life isn't meant to be hidden away and life is too short for shame."

That's the way Ben has tried to live his life. He's openly gay in his high school, and can't wait to finish up and move out into the real world. Away from the piss ant Texas town where the only boys who want to have anything to do with him are in it for sex only, and don't know him in the light of day.

When he sees a new boy around during his summer break, he makes it his mission to find out who he is. He doesn't recognize him and begins stalking him. Well, following him around at least. Discovers he is a new student at the high school and runs with the jock crowd.

After a run in with the boy - literally - he helps him, Tim, home and discovers he's home alone for two weeks while Tim's parents are traveling. When Tim's sprain sidelines him from school and driving, Ben worms his way into helping out. And soon falls for the boy. only to have his interest returned.

But Tim isn't willing to admit to being gay, or really even bi. That leaves Ben in a moral dilemma - stay true to his principles or be Tim's dirty little secret. When circumstances force the boys closer to being out, Tim and Ben find themselves at a crossroads. And Tim chooses.

Over the next decade, the two move from lovers to enemies to reluctant friends, with huge gaps of time in between. The course of love never runs smoothly, but will these two find their way back to each other? Will Tim ever find the strength to be true to himself? And will Ben forgive the past?

Jay Bell has crafted a timeless classic here. He's taken all the hot button items of a young gay teen - acceptance, puppy love, heartache - and carried the themes through into adulthood. His hand is sure as he guides us through the rollercoaster of emotions involved in loving someone not willing to be proud of that love. The laughter and tears, along with the bruised heart.

Ben is a wonderful character, so full of youthful optimism, piss and vinegar. And when his heart is broken, we ache along with him because who among us haven't been there? Felt that sense of betrayal and questioning at loving a "Straight" guy who won't come out.

And Tim. I find him easily the most fascinating character in the book. By turns loveable and caring, then despicable and manipulating, he has the toughest road to travel. Self centered and a coward, he has the most to lose and the most to gain.

I loved Jace. A writer with less talent would have made him brittle, shrill or two dimensional. But Mr. Bell has rounded him out and made me love him. I cared that he and Ben were happy, and what happened to him was important. And made the story even richer and more meaningful.

This is a terrific book about first and long lasting love, being true to one's self, and discovering the strength in love.

Just damn good.

Tom

"Little Boy Lost: Escaped (Book 5 of Little Boy Lost)"

2012-01-22T22:16:00.000-05:00

Review - "Little Boy Lost: Escaped" by JP Barbaby

Fantastic addition to the series

Very Highly Recommended

***This is the fifth in the six book series detailing the story of Brian and Jamie. While it is not necessary to have read the preceding books, it is HIGHLY recommended. There may be spoilers involved otherwise.***

Brian McAllister has finally gotten the love of his life, Jamie Mayfield, back with him. Out of the clutches of Steven, the man who rescued him off the streets, but who hooked him on drugs and forced him into a life of porn and abuse.

But Jamie is a wreck. Physically, mentally and emotionally. The last bout of drugs and assault have left him addicted and in pain. Weak. So it is up to Brian to keep him safe. Well, Brian and all the boys at the boarding house. And Leo. These guys watch out for trouble and keep them safe until Jamie is well enough to move.

Because Brian has rented them an apartment together so they can begin their lives. He will work in porn a little longer to allow Jamie to heal and kick his habit. Then they can figure out what to do with the rest of their loves. Lives they can plan together.

Only Jamie is afraid. Afraid Steven will find them and kill Brian. Afraid he can't kick the drugs. That he is too broken for Brian.

Things so smoothly for a while for the two. Until the oxy Jamie is taking for his pain begins to run out, and he makes a horrible choice. One that could leave the two dead.

JP Barnaby has added the best book of the series so far to her resume. This book hits every topic out of the ball park. Jamie's self worth issues. Brian's dogged devotion to Jamie. How toxic the love between the two boys has become. How love might not be enough.

These characters are so strong - the whole crew of boys, now men. And the family that Brian has managed to create around himself. So very touching and realistic for a kid who is so young and vulnerable. Contrasted with the hell that Jamie's life became, he of the traditional nuclear family.

I was heartbroken by some of the developments, yet encouraged by others. I want so much for these boys to be together, whole and happy. I am invested in their happiness.

And THAT Is the sign of a fantastic author. One who can pull me in and make me care and react and want for the characters.

So good, so wonderful and so frustrating that I have to wait for the final book in this groundbreaking, heartbreaking and humbling series.

Read them all.

"Thirst"

2012-01-22T21:29:00.000-05:00

Review -"Thirst" by Lisa Worrall

Vampires and revenge and love OH MY

Highly Recommended

Max Bowman made a big mistake. A cop should know better. But he let the pretty guy buy him one too many drinks then followed him out into the alley. And got the crap stomped out of him, robbed and left for dead.

When he wakes up, he is in bed. A strange man's bed. With only fuzzy memories of what happened to him. But the physical reminders will be with him for a while. Bruises, ribs sore as hell, barely able to stand at first.

Then he meets Carter, his savior. Intense. Gorgeous. Lethal.

When Carter tells Max he eliminated his attackers - killed them - the news staggers him. As does the knowledge that Carter is a vampire. A hundred year old sexy vampire who is immediately attracted to this...human.

Carter knows it's a mistake to not drain this man and eliminate the danger to himself. But he can't bring himself to. There is a connection there he cannot deny. So he send his home and trusts it is done.

But Max is not done with Carter yet. The connection they share is strong. A link. And he is shocked to find he can feel Carter's presence. This is a dangerous thing for Max, because he is investigating a string of murders where the victims are drained of blood.

Surely it can't be. Not Carter.

Unable to fight the connection, the two meet and the passion spills over. Neither expect it, but they cannot deny they are made for each other. Lust for each other. But is has no future, Carter thinks. He has no interest in seeing Max age and die, and he cannot bear to turn him.

But with danger breathing down on him from the vampire who made him, he may not be able to protect himself, let alone Max.

Will the two find a way to be together, or will Carter's past prove lethal? Will Max let his soul mate slip through his fingers? And will either live to see another day?

Lisa Worrall has crafted a smart and interesting story of soul deep connection and love against a backdrop of vampires, retribution and loss. This is a hot and sexy romance first and foremost, and we never forget it. Max and Carter steam the ink off the pages.

Ms. Worrall's strength lies in the characters she creates. Strong, wonderful and complete men who dare to love. Max is all bluster and cop attitude, but underneath a man searching for someone strong enough to make him his. And Carter, so resigned to his life and how it has to play out, but so wanting and needing of a connection.

The background characters are wonderfully written also. Lyle and Boyd add tension and interest. Especially Lyle. I would like to see his story told next.

Hot. Rich. Sexy.

Great job, and another great book from Ms. Worrall.

Tom

"Phoenix"

2012-01-22T19:57:00.001-05:00

Review - "Phoenix" by C.R. Guiliano

Betrayal, love and redemption

Highly Recommended

Thirteen years ago, Thad's world imploded. He finally told his best friend, Haydin, that he loved him. For that, he got punched in the face and cursed out. Called horrible names. Then, when he got home, he made the mistake of telling his parents what happened. And got thrown out for being gay. He left his Kentucky home for California.

Now an investigative reporter, he is recovering from wounds suffered by a deranged rapist he managed to track down. In constant pain, at least he can walk. And now, his parents have died and he is called home to Kentucky to bury them and see to the estate. Whatever that may be - he thought himself disinherited.

Upon his return home, he finds he is the owner of his father's company, which is now highly successful and worth millions. The guardian of his teen sister. And to his surprise, and dismay, he will have to deal with the CEO of company. Who is none other than Haydin.

When he sees Haydin out in public kissing his lover, his very MALE lover, it is more than he can bear. Almost breaks his heart. But then, meeting with Haydin on business, the sparks reignite and the two share passion. Because Haydin has never gotten over Thad. And is committed to having him as his.

Will the two lovers reunite for good, or will Thad be unable to forgive Haydin for ruining his life thirteen years ago? And will a tragic accident come between the couple?

C.R. Guiliano is a writer I have been following for a little while, and I have been excited to see grow and find her voice. And in this wonderful and rich story, she has come into her own.

This is a nicely understated, heartbreakingly simple study of how one man can rise above the circumstances that shaped his life and somehow, find room in his heart for forgiveness and love. Ms. Guiliano's characters are richly drawn, believable and textured.

With a heavier hand this would be melodramatic and angsty. But she has reined herself in and let the story tell itself. And a wonderful story it is. Love. Betrayal. Redemption. Tragedy.

Well done. I hope to see more from Ms. Guiliano.

Tom

"The Gallows Tree"

2012-01-22T19:04:00.000-05:00

Review - "The Gallows Tree" by RJ Scott

Broken man, healing, ghosts, love

Highly Recommended

Cody Garrett is a man on the run. After almost being killed by Vince, the man he thought he could trust to guide him and love him as a newly out gay man, he is again stalked and threatened by him.

After months and years of dodging, moving and running around the country only to be found time and time again, he decides to visit his family's home in England and look into remodeling the Mill cottage. The work will allow him to fight the panic attacks that grip him, and give him space to heal his bruised soul.

What he didn't count on is meeting the Toulson-Brown brothers. One a cleric. One the man he chooses to remodel the cottage And then there's Sebastian.

As he begins to feel emotions and stirrings he thought buried, he also finds himself experiencing visions. Hearing voices. And discovering that he may hold the key to unraveling the mystery surrounding two long dead lovers who died tragically.

Will Cody allow Seb into his life and heart? Will he be able to lay the spirits of the lovers to rest? And will be survive it when Vince re-enters his life?

This book is fantastic. Flat out great. RJ Scott has interwoven the story of an abused guy looking for peace in his soul with the mystery surrounding two young people tragically separated in the past who are looking for that same peace. And it works so well.

Cody is wonderful - broken, scared off his ass, but so much stronger than he thinks. And Seb - bubbly, caring, sexy and just what Cody needs. When the two are together, there is a sweetness and a heat that is fun and exciting.

Ms. Scott was very crafty here. She introduced the ghost story but allowed the more powerful story of Cody and his healing to guide and dominate the canvas. We never lose sight of the really important issues at hand - love, healing, peace.

Even the background characters echo that theme. The ghostly lovers get their resolution, as does Vince.

Just so nicely, nicely done.

Tom

"Betrayed"

2012-01-22T18:02:00.000-05:00

Review - "Betrayed" by DC Juris

Twisted and dark tale of betrayal

Highly Recommended

Set in a world of ogres, elves, men and war, Meldrick is a captive. Sent to war, in his arrogance and belief he can lead the kings men to easy victory, he instead is wounded and captured. Along with a group of soldiers, he becomes the unwilling tool of the enemy, forced to brutalize his own men in order to protect them and keep them alive.

All that keeps him going is the memory of his love with Faldor, healer to the armies of the king. That allows him to keep the secrets the ogre want.

But when his captor provides proof that his love is no more, that his Faldor is dead, he has no reason left to live. So he betrays his king. And is set free.

For two years, he lives in the forest, a broken shell of a man. Until he spots Faldor. Can it be? Is his love alive? When he shows up at his own door, the house and home he shares with Faldor, he learns his betrayal was based on a lie.

Will Meldrick be able to resume his life with Faldor, or has his captivity broken him for good? Has his act of treason ruined his chance for love? And will he manage revenge upon those who used him?

DC Juris has written an edgy and violently twisted look at the darkness that lingers in a man's heart and soul, and how love may not be enough to redeem him. I was gripped by the levels of betrayal this man survived, and how he managed to swim among the shark infested waters of his memory, and remain a man. This book is not for everyone, as is includes scenes of torture and rape. But is is so very, very satisfying.

Mr. Juris has gotten under the skin of this man and shown us the anger, the fear and the strength of the man, but also the aftermath of his choices, however manipulated and sometimes ill-advised they were.

I was completely in his hands, and trusted Mr. Juris to take me there and back.

Take a chance and plumb the depths here. It is gritty and dark, but oddly hopeful.

Highly recommended.

Tom

"Lily"

2012-01-22T17:35:00.000-05:00

Review - "Lily" by Xavier Axelson

Dreamy and obsessive nightmare

Highly Recommended

A little over a year ago, Pryor's life changed for good. His daughter, Lily, was dragged into the forest by a wolf, not to be found. His life ground to a halt.

Until he met Ned. An artist, a silversmith. Pryor had never really been attracted to a man before, and neither had Ned. But they find a mutual desire and end up together,

But Pryor has been hearing Lily's voice on the wind. A promise that she will return one day. And once Ned sees the white wolf who may be Lily in the woods, his doubts lessen. So the two men fashion a plan to keep Lily there for more than one day.

Will Lily return? Will she be the same girl her father remembers? And can they keep her with them?

This dreamy, fantastical story of grief, werewolves and a father's love for his child had me mesmerized. I felt stuck in Pryor's grief and secret obsession, and wondered to the last is he was wishing or something magic and dark was abound.

Xavier Axelson has the gift of breathing life into dark and broken characters and healing them through love, time and belief. His men are strong, flawed and searching. And his stories are often tragic but never without hope and love.

Read this wonderful short work and enjoy.

Tom

"Jumping at Shadows"

2012-01-15T21:10:00.002-05:00

Review - "Jumping at Shadows" by R.G. Green

Good psychological tale of obsession

Highly Recommended

Eric Geller is on top of the world. The case he has been working on for so long against Victor Kroger is in the hands of a judge. He has the love of a good man. A home with him. A career he is proud of.

And then the case gets thrown out of court. Suspiciously. The judge throwing out key pieces of evidence, leaving no case.

T.J. Briscoe is there to pick up the pieces and keep his man together while he figures out what's next. Married for seven years, he is the rock Eric's life is built on.

So when he has the tacit approval to continue the investigation from his boss, Eric puts his team back together. The investigation targets the judge who made the ruling. If he gets caught, though, it will be looked at as a rogue investigation - no support from official channels.

But when photos arrive at his home of Eric and T.J. in various settings, spread out over the course of months, Eric is sure he is being watched. Targeted.

And that makes him mad.

As unexplained occurrences continue to happen, Eric begins to look everywhere, at everything. He is sure he is being tailed. And T.J. has to be safe too. He is doing all this to make sure he and T.J. are safe.

When he starts making mistakes, though, even T.J. has to look and think twice. Is what Eric is sure happening real? Is he being targeted? Are the cars he sees following him then disappearing a set up?

This is a tense and sexy tale of what happens when dedication turns to obsession. Eric is a smart man, dedicated, committed, but his vow to take down Victor Kroger nearly costs him everything dear to him.

The sex is hot, the action suspenseful and the underlying unease pervasive. I was drawn in to this psychological thriller and wined, dined and sent home happy. The passion these two men had for each other gave the story depth and meaning. Because Eric, by story's end, was so deep into his obsession that even that underpinning felt weak.

This is a great cautionary tale for those who lose focus on what is really important. And for what happens when the line between vigilance and paranoia blurs.

Great read.

Tom

"Galley Proof"

2012-01-15T20:22:00.003-05:00

Review - "Galley Proof" by Eric Arvin

Fantastic, romantic, funny

Very Highly Recommended

Logan Brandish is a successful, accomplished writer. Not a mega star, but with enough imagination and talent to have a nice career. But lately he has been in a bit of a rut. His writing has stalled and he has been running though editors. And meeting his new one, he hoped to present a good front and maybe fake his way through it.

In walks Brock Kimble, a man as unlikely as his name. Good looking, hot, smart, unexpected. And he pulls no punches in shaking things up for Logan. Telling him that lately his is crap and challenging him to do more and better. And flirting all the time. Keeping Logan on his toes.

And Logan reacts. Changes up his writing. Breaks up with his safe and predictable boyfriend. Start us an affair with Brock. Starts to fall in love.

Oh hell.

Logan's writing is tied to his moods. When it is going well, it flows. Then when things start to fall apart, so does his writing.

And when it all goes to hell - his love life, his writing, his mind - he jumps ship and hauls tail to Europe and lands in Italy.

Will breaking his routines revive Logan's writing? Will he get over Brock? Will he ever go home again?

Eric Arvin doesn't fool me one bit. He is an unabashed romantic. This hilarious romp of a book is also one of the most insightful and touching books I have seen in a while. All the while he is tickling our funny bones, he is aiming more for our heartstrings. And damn, but he succeeds.

Logan is a wonderful character - snug in his safe world, safe little town, safe home, safe relationship, safe career. All the while thinking he has everyone fooled, perhaps even himself, he is really an open book for anyone who cares enough to see to read.

And Brock. All that energy, fun and sparkle masking a sad and lonely work in progress.

Both men yearn for the connection, for the love and passion. When it it right in their hands, right there for the taking, both bail and run away so fast their heads spin.

Along the way these two learn so many lessons.

Lessons about relationships:
"In real life, kisses are never as sweet and assholes only stretch so far."

Lessons about life:
"...if he could just stare a little bit harder at a problem he might find the solution. But solutions to those types of problems are hard to find, because they're so locked up in other people's minds and hearts."

Lessons about themselves:
"...it's a trap of my own making. I want the attention, you see, but I'm scared to death when it's there."

And lessons about love:
"...as if love was a great blanket we were slowly unfurling through the night, appreciating every stitch and every thread. Every intricate and unique pattern. We kept ourselves warm wrapped up in it."

This is one of those books that is like that great blanket. I take it and appreciate it and wrap it around me and learn about myself some too.

And then:

"She nodded her head in approval and hesitantly shut the book, breathing a reader's sigh. That wonderful inhale/exhale reaction one does after finishing a book that has somehow touched you. Completion. Inner peace. Separate peace."

So did I. It did.

Tom

"Six Degrees of Lust"

2012-01-14T23:32:00.003-05:00

Review - "Six Degrees of Lust" by Taylor V. Donovan

Suspenseful, hot and romantic

Highly Recommended

Sam Shaughnessy is a complex man. He is the team leader of an elite group of FBI agents tracking a serial killer preying an gay men. He is a family man, committed to his sister and his nephew, who he is on his way to fetch after his abusive brother in law takes it one step too far. He is the still grieving father and ex husband. And he is the flirt who has one night stands and never lets his heart come into play.

In the airport on his way to get his sister and nephew, he meets Mac O'Bannon. Mac is a simple man with a complex life. Gay but in the closet to protect his conservative family. Gay but working for a gay boss looking to open a gay club. Gay but the manager of a sports bar. Former firefighter. Looking for fun until his deal with his family us up.

The two hook up and their one night stand...falters and sputters. Sam misunderstands a conversation he overhears.

But Mac takes a chance, Sam takes a chance and the two share another encounter. Then another. Then the two decide to put some rules in place around their relationship that isn't a relationship. Friends with benefits. Monogamous friends with benefits.

And all the while, gay men are dying at the hands of this deranged killer.

It seems Mac and Sam have more in common than they know. Friends interlink with friends, and the large cast of characters are all one step away from knowing each other.

All they way up the line to the killer.

When Sam and Mac take a vacation together, will it lead to a new understanding of their non-relationship? Will Sam and his group find the killer in time to stop another murder? Will the families of both men blow up on themselves?

Taylor Donovan is the devil. No, she really is.

She has written a hot, sexy, romantic yet totally captivating character study of two men who slowly, surely are on the downhill slide into love. And are fighting it tooth and nail.

And has created a stunningly involving suspense mystery involving a wide array of characters who are all within six degrees of separation. There are easily fifteen characters to map and track and yet I had no problem keeping the relationships in my head.

And those character. Very fully realized, interesting, funny, tragic, flawed. And all operating in each others spheres and so totally, totally clueless.

I almost threw my Kindle across the room when Ms. Donovan left me with a HUGE cliffhanger and panting and wanting the next book nownownow.

She is the devil, I tell you.

And she has me trapped!

Tom

"Boys of Summer"

2012-01-14T22:40:00.000-05:00

Review - "Boys of Summer" by Cooper Davis

Beautiful falling in love story

Very Highly Recommended

Hunter Willis has a problem.

He is in love with his best friend.

His name is Max, and the two met through other friends while Hunter was with his then girlfriend. The two became fast friends, and spent a lot of time together. Everyone knows Max is gay, and that doesn't bother Hunter. Everyone thinks he is straight, including Hunter himself.

But when they go on what amounts to a date, and share a kiss, everything changes. Now Hunter is spending the night at Max's home. Sleeping in his bed. But Max is still a virgin, and isn't ready to commit himself to any man who won't be there for him all the way.

As in out. Out of the closet and ready to love him in plain view.

Now the two men are vacationing together, on the beach thousand of miles from home. And Hunter has a choice to make. Can he be enough for Max? Can he come out and tell all their friends he loves Max?

I adore this book, plain and simple. There is something so lovely and touching about this beautiful and meaningful story of two men who find each other and slowly, shyly take that fall into love.

The story is written from Hunter's point of view, and gives us such insight into how he thinks. All his fear, hopes, wants, needs. And how utterly and solidly he is in love with and trembles for Max.

And Max. Such a vulnerable yet strong man. He knows what he wants and even though he obviously loves Hunter, he isn't willing to settle for less than he wants and deserves.

I found myself with a sense of quiet wonder reading this book. It was like a spell was woven and I didn't want to wake up. And it was such a sweet and loving dream too.

This one is a classic. Great job, Cooper Davis.

Tom

"A Very Good Year"

2012-01-14T21:59:00.000-05:00

Review - "A Very Good Year" by Patricia Logan

Fine follow up for Dmitri

Highly Recommended

***This book involves characters first introduced in "Captive Lover". As such, this review may contain spoilers for that book. I recommend reading it first, but it is not required in order to enjoy "A Very Good Year"***

When Dmitri Hernandez was eleven years old, he was kidnapped by Marcus Tucker,a vicious pedophile and brutalized for the next seven plus years. He had given up hope, becoming numb, removed and a drunk to hold back the pain and fear and loss. Until his captor made a mistake and was going to hurt another young boy, Jared Yates. That brought Dmitri out of his daze and gave him the power to stand up and take his life back.

Getting hurt in the process, he was cared for by Dylan Yates and Connor Black, the older brother of the boy Marcus has targeted and the man Dylan forced to kidnap and hold for ransom. The three, along with Jared, became friends and support for each other.

After his recover, reunion with his family, and four years of college, Dmitri is back in Texas to become the new vintner for the Lazy E Vineyard and Dude Ranch. His hard work has earned him a fine reputation, and he looks forward to this new chapter in his life. After all, he will be working for the daughter of a now deceased professor from college, one who had a great influence on his young career. And no one knows his past here.

What he did not expect to find was sexy cowboy Maverick Walker. His years of abuse at the hands of Marcus left him divorced from his sexual side, and with an empty well where his heart was. Mav awakes the lust in him and he begins an affair with the gruff cowboy. But he warns Mav, he won't be falling in love.

When Italian billionaire wine expert Carlo Degli Esposti arrives at the Lazy E to write an article on Texas wines and vineyards, the owner is ecstatic at the opportunity afforded the ranch. And she counts on Dmitri to make a good impression and make every effort to accommodate Carlo. But the beautiful Carlo ignites more than passion in Dmitri, driving him to distraction.

Will the newly ignited flames of lust Dmitri feels for both Mav and Carlo lead to more? Or will the years he suffered Marcus' abuse keep him from opening his heart and allowing love to light him up? And how will he choose between the two men after his heart?

Patricia Logan has written a fine follow up to "Captive Lover" and given us Dmitri's tale. And what a tale it is. Passion, hot sex, and hot cowboys fire up this fine take of Dmitri's gradual reawakening to love.

Ms; Logan has an excellent feel for damaged men and how they grieve, hurt and need human contact. She shows us their hearts, their pains and, bless her, their souls. And gently and with care allows them to heal and find happiness again.

And if anyone deserves happiness it is Dmitri. This poor man thought he was beyonnd redemption, and I was so happy he was getting his cowboy. Then pissed when the smooth Italian playboy come on the scene. I was prepared to hate him. How dare he play with my Dmitri?

And then I realized, she had me hooked and protective of this man. How did she manage that?

By writing characters who matter, who care, who have the same doubts and fears and wants and needs as I do.

Damn her, she got me. Bless her.

Tom

"The Island"

2012-01-14T20:04:00.001-05:00

Review - "The Island" by Lisa Henry

Intense, heart pounding nightmare

Very Highly Recommended

The nightmare starts with Adam Shaw flying in to the small island owned by Vornis off of Fiji. He is to broker a deal to sell a stolen masterpiece to the criminal boss. The deal will open doors for him to make connections to other of Vornis'...stature.

When he settles in on the island, Shaw is introduced to Vornis' toy, a young American agent captured in a botched operation on his stronghold in Colombia. The boy is broken. Little more than an animal, a dog. It amuses Vornis to give him to Shaw for his use while he verifies the authenticity of the painting. And he will introduce Shaw to some of his acquaintances who are due at the end of the week.

It is obvious the boy has been beaten, tortured, starved, and raped. Shaw is not a good man, but he is not a monster. While he is attracted, he will not rape him. Quietly he tries to draw the boy out a little. But the drug and beatings have taken a toll.

"What's the first thing you remember?"

It is what the boy tries to make himself remember every day. One more day that he retains a little of himself before the torture and drugs beat him back into nothingness again.

Shaw does what he can, knowing he is being watched. But he is there to do a job. And nothing will get in the way of that. As long as he keeps focus, he will be fine. And he cannot let the boy take away his focus. Not even if he has to lie to himself. Or be honest about what kind of man he really is.

"Jesus, everybody had some delusion they clung to pathetically to convince themselves they were better than the next guy."

Every day with Shaw brings the boy back a little. He remembers. His name is Lee. He dares to remember a little more. Dares to hope.

"What was he risking now, except his hope? And how much was hope worth?"

But when Vornis starts taking his toy back for use every day, and returning him...used...he starts to fade a little more again. And while Shaw says he will send out a message to his agency, it may be too little too late. They both know it.

And when Vornis' guests start to arrive, it looks as if time may be up.

Will Shaw be able to help Lee, or will business come first, as always? And will the arrival of his guests spell the end of Lee's time? Will the island and the ocean claim him?

This book, this intense, grab you by the throat and choke you, hell of a book is one of the most intense and horrifying stories I have ever read. The claws grabbed me from the first few pages and dug deeper into my gut as the pages were turned. By the halfway point until two thirds of the way through, I was one moment, one page, one sentence away from vomiting from the ball of dread in my throat and stomach.

And. I. Loved. It.

I hated it, I hate losing hope and looking at the edge of a cliff and knowing what lay at the bottom of the hill, or even worse, not knowing and having it hinted at. And yet I couldn't put this spellbinding and amazing book down. I ate it, devoured it over the course of one night and feared nightmares. Could taste the bile.

And then, then Lisa Henry flipped me over and fed me some hope. She had me and I would have been okay, hated it but would have been okay since she wrote the HELL out of this book, but I would have understood. But crafty lady that she is, she put out her hand and pulled me away from the wreck, let me lay my head on her shoulder and take a deep shuddering breath and remember hope.

"Zev wasn't with them in the dream. It was just the two of them, their fingers entwined. Just the two of them and the Pacific and the stars. Stay with me, Lee. And they drifted together in the Milky Way."

God, I drifted up to the stars with Shaw and Lee and it was just a bad bad dream again.

Tom

"Burn"

2012-01-14T12:47:00.002-05:00

Review - “Burn” by TJ Klune

Fantastic, original work

Very Highly Recommended

“My name is Felix Paracel, and when I was nine, I became angry with my mother and killed her with fire that shot from my hands.”

There are perhaps 5,000 elementals in the United States. Fire, earth, air, water – elementals have the innate power to control and manipulate one of the forces that make up the universe. Felix is an elemental.

His dreams of fire and death and destruction make no sense. Whose voice speaks in his head? What does The Tree have to do with him? Why is his mother secretly training him in his affinity with fire?

No one knows the secret he keeps. He can control two elements - fire and air. And that makes him dangerous. And wanted. And his mother is one of those who want to use his power for her own ends.

So he lashes out and sets her on fire. But he gets trapped in fire of his own making, and is rescued by a huge teen who seems to know him. There is an immediate connection. And this is the first time Felix meets Seven.

“You are not alone in this.”

Fast forward almost 16 years. His world has changed. Felix Paracel is now Atticus Vanesco. In the aftermath of the fire, after being left by Seven, he and his father have fled to Terra City, taken on new identities, started new lives. Made new friends, like Jason, who took Addy under his protection.

And the world outside has changed too. The public is afraid of elementals. There is legislation moving through Congress to restrict their rights. The Mayor of Terra City is sponsoring the Elemental Registration Act. And only one person knows about Addy. Or so he thinks.

As he approaches his 25^th birthday, Addy’s world is work, Dad, Jason and all the one night stands he has. But it all explodes. And when it does, his whole life will change. All of his assumptions will be tested. The truth of his life will be revealed. And he will be reunited with Seven.

“Somehow I knew that my old life was over and a new one was about to begin.”

Now that Addy – no, Felix – knows the truth and has met others of his kind, he begins to recognize how rare his powers are. How much of a responsibility. And how Seven will fit in his life. Be his life. His strength. His heart. The Iuratum Cor to his Findo Unum.

But there are still secrets and before Felix can make this new life work, he must trust – in Seven, in the Council that governs his kind, in his new friends, and most of all, in himself. Because that voice in his head is back, stronger than ever, still talking about The Tree and fire and secrets and lies and destruction. And Seven is there, in his heart, his mind and his soul, to soothe him.

“My world had crumbled around me, and he’d laid the foundation for something new. Now, he began to build it back up, piece by broken piece, brick by shattered brick.”

But will that be enough? When all the secrets are laid bare, will his Heart, his Findo Unum, be enough? Will lies and betrayals and deaths break him? Tear him from his mission, his fate and his destiny? And most of all, will it separate him from his beloved Seven?

This sophomore effort from TJ Klune is an instant classic. This is a wildly inventive tale set in a brave new world of fickle gods, superhuman powers and grand themes – love, friendship, secrets and the lonely shouldering of responsibility and fate.

Mr. Klune grabbed me by the throat and dragged me - very very willingly - into this funny and heart-wrenching and glorious tale. I was taken from laughter to tears to grief; this book moved me with the sacrifices and the secrets and lies and surprises. I wanted to hunt him down and drag answers from him, hug him for the beauty that blossomed unexpectedly like roses, and rip his heart out like he did mine.

And the characters. Felix is a red hot mess, an Ice Queen thrust unwillingly into a fate not of his choosing, so afraid and halting, but always willing. Seven, so heroic and sure and solid. And then they merge into each other and learn each others’ strengths and hopes and weaknesses and learn to lean on each other. And find they are mates in the purest sense of the word – made for each other, the missing piece of each others souls.

The supporting characters are so well drawn, each locking into place and completing the puzzle of this world. This world so close to our own, where any minority (gays) could be feared and vilified and gentled out of sight and then out of existence.

The themes are universal - love, sacrifice. The triumph of good over evil.

But does it?

Read and find out.

One warning. This is NOT Bear, Otter and the Kid, remix. Don’t expect it. You will be disappointed.

But this is the real thing. I kid you not. This is a step forward, sideways and through the rabbit hole.

Enjoy the ride.

Tom

"Delsyn's Blues"

2012-01-12T19:51:00.001-05:00

Review - "Delsyn's Blues" by Lou Sylvre

Fantastic sequel, might be better than the first

Very Highly Recommended

Luki Mililani Vasquez loves Sonny Bly James.

After the events of the previous summer, where former ATF agent and now private security consultant Luki and weaver and artist Sonny faced certain death, the two have moved forward with their relationship. They share humor, smart ass attitudes, passion, and love for each other. Luki has basically moved in with Sonny and Delsyn, Sonny's nephew, who managed to survive being bled nearly to death in the same events that almost killed Luki and Sonny.

But now Delsyn is dead. Having overhead something he should never have, he was betrayed by someone...familiar.

Left behind is a shattered Sonny, an exiled Luki, and a huge mystery. Who wanted him dead? Why? What purpose did it serve?

As Luki and Sonny love, fight, implode, explode and do everything couples do, they discover that, ultimately, the only ones that can count on are each other.

Lou Sylvre has done a bad, bad thing. She has taken two characters I loved and built them up and broken them down. She made them hurt, gave them hope and then tore out their hearts. She made them laugh and then she made them cry.

And she showed us every beat of their wide open, shut down hearts.

Especially Luki. The ice cold man with the warm heart only for Sonny. And Delsyn, of course. But really, he only has eyes for Sonny.

"If the heart can truly cry, Luki's did. It hurt with overwhelming and bittersweet joy."

And that's the blues. Sorrow transformed into joy through tears and pain. Sung from the heart, regretful, defiant, triumphant.

"'Well, it's kind of like weaving, you know? When you make a tapestry, you've got an idea and a bunch of colors. Sometimes you weave them together to effect another shade, sometimes you carry one behind the other. A lot of times you just have to set them side by side and hook them up. It isn't until you figure out how each ties in to the others that you have the whole picture.'"

We get the whole picture. Delsyn's gift. The blues. His life and death brought meaning through the love of the two men who mourn his loss.

Beautiful sadness.

Tom

"Stolen Summer"

2012-01-12T18:26:00.000-05:00

Review - "Stolen Summer" by S.A. Meade

Wonderful insightful story

Very Highly Recommended

Evan Harrison moves from story to story, location to location in his career as a journalist. Some places are dangerous, but he always gets the story. He survives a bombing in Afghanistan by the skin of his teeth, and comes home to file the story. But that just pushes him to chase after another angle, to chase down a warlord in Pakistan who supplies weapons to the insurgents.

At the same time, he begins to wonder about his feelings for his girlfriend as well as for college professor Colin Williams. When Colin, his best friend since his college days, tells him he is in love with him, he questions if that might be why his relationships with women never quite work out.

The two men explore their feelings for each other, and Evan is surprised by how natural it feels. And how right they are together. He promises Evan that this will be his last trip and his last time to put himself in harms way.

So he leaves, and the worst happens. He is kidnapped and held captive, wondering for four long months if he will face the same fate as Daniel Pearl. And wishing he could just share one more moment with Colin. Tell him what he didn't before he left - that he loves him.

He manages to make it home, but will he manage to keep his word? Will this be it for him and danger, or will he break his word, and Colin's heart, and leave one more time? And will Colin be there if and when he comes back?

This book FLAT. OUT. ROCKS. S.A. Meade has given us a beautifully layered look at a man who is so smart and insightful, but so very very blind. Evan is able to peer out at the world and understand and explain it so well, and then stumble and hurt the one closet to him so badly.

I appreciated how it had taken Colin years to admit to his feelings and take the chance of blowing his friendship with Evan out of the water. And then, when he did, he committed with his whole heart and expected the same.

And then Evan, with his logic and clueless nature, just makes assumptions. That love is enough. That Colin will understand. That he knows best. That the Truth is worth the sacrifices he chooses for them both.

He is just such a...man.

And Ms. Meade takes him, and us, on the real adventure. What happens when you open your heart and life to another person. When decisions are for two, not one. And when you finally, finally get that love is about making the rest of your life about about putting a smile on your partner's face and peace in his heart.

So very good.

Tom

"Always Faithful"

2012-01-11T13:02:00.000-05:00

Review - "Always Faithful" by William Neale

Full of heart and care

Highly Recommended

***This is a sequel to "A New Normal". It would be helpful to read it first, but it is not required. But be aware, there may be spoilers from the next sentence on...***

Friends since a young age, Mark and Cade saw their relationship turn into love after their graduation from high school. After committing to each other, they spoke vows to each other at the lake house Mark's father owns. In front of the stars, Jake, his partner Cliff and each other, the two pledged their love, trust and fidelity.

Then Mark left for college, and Cade started Basic Training and a four year stint in the Army.

As "Always Faithful" begins, Mark is almost ready for graduation after four years in college, and is waiting for Cade to come home from the last leg of his tour in Afghanistan. They will have a relaxing week or so together, then Cade will spend the rest of his time in the States, safe until the two can be together.

Jake and Cliff are still together, and a happy couple. Only Jake is spending way too much time at work. As the Chief Operating Officer for the VA hospital, he has trouble delegating responsibilities. And letting go. Cliff is determined to have his man's full attention. After all, his job as owner of a growing and busy residential building contract firm keeps him busy but he makes time for what is important.

Mark is committed to his happily ever after with Cade, but Cade is withholding information from him. Information that could change their future together. And Cliff has about had enough of being second in Jake's life.

When Cade finally comes clean with Mark, and Jake blows off his commitments to Cliff one too many times, will either relationship survive? Can two men who mean well and have the hearts of lions remember what drew them to their men in the first place? And will love be enough?

I very much enjoyed "A New Normal", and was very excited to see the characters revisited. And with just cause. This is a worthy, beautifully imagined and skillfully executed tale of what happens when lovers take their eyes off of the ball. William Neale writes with his heart wide open, and always manages to draw me in with rich, full characters, romance, hot sex and believable situations.

All four of these men are worthy, loving and caring. But sometimes they forget. Forget that happiness comes from their love for each other, not from their work, excitement, other men's notice. But it is what they do with the knowledge, and how they redeem themselves that defines their characters. And these men - their characters are fine.

I appreciate Mr. Neale. He is unafraid to be sentimental, have his men express their feelings, and fight for their love.

Great job.

Tom

"The Librarian"

2012-01-10T18:59:00.000-05:00

Review - "The Librarian" by Lee Brazil

Fun and fabulous

Highly Recommended

When Valentine Michaels and Adrian Gray were in college years ago, they were roommates. Both gay, both experiencing life away from home. Adrian's family was supportive, Val's ignored him. Adrian was rather straight laced and conservative, Val has blue hair.

They became good friends, and Adrian listened and supported Val through boyfriend problems. For one brief week, they became more than friends. Then Val moved on to his next boyfriend, breaking Adrian's heart. But he decided to remain a good friend.

So for the next ten years, Adrian did just that. Listened to stories and griping about Val's many, many boyfriends, all muscular jocks, just like the guy he dumped Adrian for. When Val becomes a cosmetologist and works at a salon, then buys it, Adrian faithfully gets his hair cut there every Friday.

So when Val breaks up with his latest boy toy and swears off men, vowing to remain celibate, Adrian sees his opening. He has been observing Val for all these many years and knows what he did wrong. So he plans, plots and makes his move. He will make Val his.

Will his plan work? Or will Val shoot him down one more time?

This is a great and gratifying, fun and fabulous story about knowing what you want and going for it. Adrian is cat - laying back and waiting for his chance then swooping in and getting his prize. And Val, such a clueless guy who thinks he has all the answers. So sweet and stuck.

This is a short work, but Lee Brazil packs a novel's worth of feeling, joy and heart into it. He always manages to create memorable characters in...unusual...situations, and I always have a smile in my face and warm feeling in my heart when I finish one of his works.

Very very good.

Tom

"Love Means...Family"

2012-01-09T21:27:00.002-05:00

Review- "Love Means...Family" by Andrew Grey

Comfortable and comforting

Highly Recommended

Robert Edward Hawkins, know as "Arie" to his family and friends, is at a serious crossroads. His beloved sister has died in a terrible accident, which took his niece and brother in law's lives too. His parents want him to marry and have another heir. Forget the fact that he is gay. And his music career is in limbo at the moment.

So he takes some time to get away and visit his friend Robbie and all the wonderful folks at Geoff and Eli's farm in Michigan. Being away from the stresses at home gives him time to think and make some choices about his life.

Office Duane Keenan is just doing his job when he pulls over Arie for a moving violation. And promptly gets nicknamed Officer Hunky for his troubles. Of course, that just makes him chase after the hottest guy he has seen in a long while even harder. And Officer Hunky has Mom problems of his own too. As in her denying he is gay.

But closer the two do get, in spite of the fact that Arie is only visiting for a couple of months. Both men are fighting hard to protect their hearts. And failing. And fighting. And making up. And then there is the little matter of the bullets that keep finding themselves WAY too near Arie for Duane's comfort.

Will Duane manage to keep Arie safe until he discovers who is behind the attempts on his life? Can the two manage to protect their hearts? Does their love have a future?

Andrew Grey has given us a warm, inviting, comfortable and comforting tale. His characters always are well rounded, emotionally available both to the reader and to each other, and very genuine. His books are sweet without being saccharine, gentle without being maudlin, and altogether comforting.

Once again, Mr. Grey delivers a home run with two men who are made for each other, who take risks and are willing to put their hearts on the line. There is a sub plot of slight danger, and it adds the the nice romantic feel of the book.

And best of all, we get to re-visit old friends from the "Love Means..." series. Geoff and Eli get to welcome new addition Jakey. And I got to spend some time with characters as comfortable as my favorite flannel shirt on a cool winter's day.

Good job.

Tom

"Blood Howl"

2012-01-09T19:48:00.000-05:00

Review - "Blood Howl" by Alex Kidwell and Robin Saxon

Funny, touching and great!

Highly Recommended

Jed Walker is many things - gun for hire, loner, smartass, slut. He is used to going in, getting the job done, and getting out. No entanglements, no feelings, just work. Same with sex. Of course, that's the only time anyone really sees him anyway.

Redford Reed has lived alone in the house he inherited from his grandmother. He has had no interactions with other people, other than getting food and necessities, since he was five years old.

So when a new client, Fin, hires Jed to take the most valuable thing in Redford's house, it should have been easy. Then he figures out the kicker - Red is what the client wants.

Not gonna happen.

So he takes Red and decides to protect the man and figure out what the heck is going on. It doesn't hurt that Red is a good looking man. And so very...different. And then when they are attacked, all bets are off.

And then Red drops the biggest bombshell. He is a werewolf. And the full moon is the next night.

No. Damn. Way.

But when Jed sees Red change with his own two eyes, everything changes. It suddenly explains why Red is wanted by this mysterious Fin. With the attraction between the two sparking brightly, Jed promises to do everything in his power to keep Red safe.

But when his new found feelings making Jed uncomfortable, will he be able to deliver on that promise? Or will Fin get what he wants?

This book knocked me off my feet. It is a funny, exciting and altogether fun lovethrillermysteryromance. Jed is a pistol - cracking jokes, blowing up things, flirting like crazy, but at heart a vulnerable guy scared of getting close.

And Red. What a character. Innocence with a dry wit. A pup who learns to bite back. And just what Jed fears hardest and needs the most.

"There was a difference, Jed was learning, between being content and being happy."
And that's what sets this wonderful and touching book apart. It made me happy.

Tom

"Blue Notes"

2012-01-08T20:12:00.000-05:00

Review - "Blue Notes" by Shira Anthony

Like a jazzy fall night, smooth and satisfying

Highly Recommended

After walking in on his fiance and a strange man in his bed, Jason Greene needs a break. A long break, far away from his Philadelphia home. So he arranges a two month sabbatical from the law firm he is with, and makes plans to stay at his sister's apartment in Paris.

Yes, two months in Paris, the city of lights and love could be just what he needs.

On his first night there, he stumbles on a small jazz club, and decides to stay for the show. The relaxation is just what he needs, and jazz soothes his damaged soul. And there, he meets Jules, one of the jazz trio playing that night. Their music is a revelation, as is the man.

Seeing Jules standing in the rain waiting for the next bus, Jason makes the impetuous decision to invite him home with him. And somehow Jules ends up staying. And the two become fast friends, exploring Paris. As it turns out, Jason lived in Paris and knows is better, some ways, than even Jules.

As the friendship between the two deepens, so does the attraction. Before either can think, they fall into a passionate affair. Jason is new to loving a man, but has thought about it before. Jules is gay, and no stranger to it.

But both are surprised by how quickly the attraction flames into more. Could it be love? For Jules, for sure. But Jason is only there for two months.

Will the two be able to make an affair into something more permanent? Or will the past that haunts Jules, and, indeed Jason's past, come between the two? And can a long distance relationship work with them?

Shira Anthony has composed a bluesy take on love and relationships with this relaxed, sure riff. She has created two very likable characters in Jules and Jason. I wanted them to come together, and I wanted them to stay together.

The chemistry is hot, and the romance and sex hotter. For Jason, it is a revelation, as he explores what it is to reconnect with his passion. For music, for life and for love.

And Jules. He is a genuine man. At once so sure of himself, then so vulnerable. The perfect mate for Jason's strength and surety.

This book was as sweetly satisfying as a night of wine, John Coltrane and beignets.

Give it a read.

Tom

"Blue Moon"

2012-01-08T19:20:00.000-05:00

Review - "Blue Moon" by Rowena Sudbury

This caught me by surprise!

Very Highly Recommended

Brad Fraser is young man floating through life. He is a success on the B level wrestling circuit, but allows his restlessness to get him in trouble. His latest mistake - allowing a drug dealing bully on the tour to use him a little too roughly. Because that's what Bruiser does - traded drugs for sex and favors.

Until Scott O'Doul steps in and makes a deal. He will take Brad under his wing and maintain the illusion of control, and in exchange Brad will have Scott's protection. Scott will use him for pleasure, their mutual pleasure.

This arrangement works well for over a year. They have fun, pleasure, a good time.

But is that all it is?

This is a very short tale, but OH so effective. I have read novels ten times the length that did not touch me one tenth as much. The two men are drawn so sharply, and there is a tight, controlled sense of wonder to this fantastic story.

Because this is a story about how love is about belonging rather than control. Surrender means strength not weakness. And two men can fall into love if only they allow themselves.

Beautifully written. Short and so very very sweet.

Tom

"Stolen Moments"

2012-01-08T18:46:00.000-05:00

Review - "Stolen Moments" by Ariel Tachna

Very nice coming out story

Highly Recommended

Jacob Peters tried. He really did. He thought he had met the man of his dreams, and he would have his happily ever after. But living in East Nowhere Alabama, neither man could come out without consequences. Jacob is a schoolteacher at a conservative Christian private school. And his man, Beau Braedon, is a judge. So they have to manage their time together very carefully. Very discreetly.

When Beau cancels their infrequent meetings one too many times, Jacob has had enough. He calls, leaves Beau a message that he will be going out and will pick someone up and have some fun. He doesn't hear from Beau, and as a result, he is now married, to a woman, and has a beautiful son he adores.

But it's not enough. He misses Beau still. And is still furious with him.

Beau is a country judge, deathly afraid that someone will find out about him being gay. He has lived in the closet all life, and sees that continuing. He pushed Jacob away out of fear. His mother is ill with Alzheimer's, in a nursing home, and he has to be nearby for her. He doesn't want to face what might happen if he comes out.

But living without Jacob is hell. And he wants him back. So he calls Jacob, wanting a second chance. Asks for a meeting, so they can talk.

It might be the worst idea ever, but Jacob can't forget Beau any more than he can forgive him. But when Beau proposes a deal - give him six months. Six months to prove that he can work out a way for them to be together. Worst. Idea. Ever.

So of course Jacob agrees.

As they embark on an affair, will Jacob be able to forgive Beau? Will Beau be able to convince Jacob it can work? And when it all threatens to blow up in their faces, will their love be strong enough to keep them together in their conservative Alabama town?

This is a thoughtful, loving look at two men who learn to be enough for each other. Ariel Tachna has created a beautiful story of two men who prove the idea of synergy - that the sum of two coming together is so much more than the individual strengths.

Jacob is the strong one at the beginning of the tale, and Beau, seemingly, is the lesser of the two. In fact, Beau is rather unlikable. And as they move through the story, Jacob stumbles, and it is up to Beau to be the strength in the relationship. And to my surprise, Beau stepped up and proved proved his meddle. Be the pillar Jacob needed.

That is what love is all about. Being there for each other, sharing strength and weakness and joys and sorrows. And Ms. Tachna has gently shown us that.

And without beating us over the head, she shows us that one should never underestimate people in a small town. As a black police officer tells the two:

"I know what hatred look like. I've stared it in the face since I was old enough to know what I was looking at. It wasn't right when they hated me because I was black. It ain't right that they're hating you because you're gay."

Well done.

Tom

"Truth in the Dark"

2012-01-07T21:57:00.001-05:00

Review - "Truth in the Dark" by Amy Lane

Beautiful take on Beauty and the Beast

Very Highly Recommended

In a small coastal town on the Archipelago, Naef was born. Club footed, awkward, pained and shunned, he was nonetheless loved and cherished by his sister Gwen and his mother. Gwen was his protector, companion and confidant. He could at least feel normal with her.

Then, when he was but twelve, the young men of the village, in the way such boys will do, attacked and violated Naef. In that moment, the young man decided there must be no value to him. So he started to become as twisted and pained inside as he appeared on the outside.

And his sister Gwen, ever the guardian, took her knives and settled the score. Nobody would harm her brother again. And he took up his knives, apprenticed to the woodworker of the village, and grew very adept at making finely carved items and small little knives to keep those who wished for trouble in line. And took on the nickname the silly children have him - Knife.

So he grows up, more and more isolated and bitter.

"My insides matched my outsides...I had spent years...I had spent my entire life twisting myself inside so that I could match the body and the face with the fates the fates plagued me with."

And then one day, Gwen meets a nice young man, a captain on a ship from the harbor. He wants to marry her but she won't leave Knife. So Knife strikes a deal - Gwen's suitor has a cousin looking for a companion for a year. He would get paid and leave, Gwen would marry her beau, and his mother would leave the village and they would have a happy life without him.

And when Airie-Smith shows up to strike the deal, Knife sees he is cursed in his own way. Because Airie-Smith is under a curse, forced into the shape of a lion who can walk and talk like a man. So Knife agrees to the bargain. He will accompany the man to his home on an island south, and at the end of one year, perform on small, regrettable and unpleasant task.

So off he goes, and when he nears the island, he discovers that all the people on the island are cursed to take the form of animals, like their Lord. And the task he is to do - it will help break the curse. And when the sailors on the ship carrying him turn into monkeys, he himself wakes to find...he is in the body of his dreams.

The two grow closer, as friends, then more, as the year progresses. When the deadline approaches, Knife discovers what the small regrettable task he is to perform is.

Will he be able to do it? Will the curse be broken? And what will the costs be to everyone involved?

Amy Lane has taken the Beauty and the Beast legend, twisted it like Naef's leg and spine and created a work of beauty, pain and richness. The love, the sacrifice, the terrible cruelty of the task - all combined to make this beautifully imagined and lovingly executed tale one of the most touching pieces I have read. Ever.

This stunning book grabbed me from page one had had me in tears - real tears - in the first five minutes of reading.

And the prose. Just so damned good.

"Every beat of my heart ached like an abscessed tooth."

"What must it be like to have such faith in the world, in plans, in your own ability to control your fate? It was contagious, that's what it was. I could not help it. I caught his hope like a plague."

"I could not disparage - not even in harsh jest - a man who offered me the kindness of touch."

"A man like me...a man like me did not take kindness for weakness. Kindness in the face of all the tiny knives the world had to throw at a body - that was real strength."

And then, then the one that was a knife in my heart.

"It was the capacity for love that made me beautiful after all."

I felt beautiful.

Tom

"Life After Joe"

2012-01-07T18:47:00.000-05:00

Review "Life After Joe" by Harper Fox

Two broken souls who heal each other

Highly Recommended

Matt was dumped. His partner Joe decided to bow to family pressure and settle down with a woman, have kids, the whole dream come true. So he left his committed relationship with Matt, cheated behind his back with a woman, proposed to her and then calmly told Matt he was leaving him.

And that did it. Drove Matt over the edge, and six months later he is drinking every night, sleeping with any man he can find, and getting very close to blowing his residency at the hospital and not becoming a doctor. And it is when he is out drinking and looking for the lay of the night that he sees Aaron.

Aaron is a mystery. Handsome, built, sure of himself. But he never does more than exchange pleasantries with the men who try to chat him up, and never leaves with anyone. But when Matt catches his eye, drunk, getting tossed out of the bar for having sex in public, he breaks his own rules and gives Matt a hand up and a walk home.

And right then, Matt takes a look at himself, his decisions, his behaviors. Joe's wife drops by to tell him he needs to sell the home he and Joe shared, as Joe wants his equity out. And decides it's enough. No more limbo. No more drinking and whoring.

"No point in an autopsy, picking over all the points at which my life had slowly died."
And so the two become lovers and friends. Matt hears Aaron calling our for Rosie in his sleep, and assumes he has a wife, another life. But the attraction is strong, and he knows he wants Aaron. For as long as he can have him.

"It was welcome, protest at the size of him, wild-excitement - a sudden grief that, of all the men I'd let inside my body, for the first time I wanted one."
Then Joe reappears, wanting Matt back. Will Joe go back? Or will he take a chance on Aaron? And will Aaron tell Joe the truth about Rosie?

Harper Fox has written a gentle and joyful book about two broken men who somehow find their way to each other and find the strength to love again. Their pains shape them, both men thinking they would ever emerge from it. And when they do, man, it is beautiful.

I loved this book. The quietness and care and love shine through.

Fine job.

Tom

"Shades of Gray"

2012-01-07T17:26:00.000-05:00

Review - "Shades of Gray" by Brooke McKinley

Exciting, thrilling and touching read

Highly Recommended

Danny Butler is a criminal. End of subject. A means to an end. The lieutenant to a drug lord, he is the key to bringing down the head honcho.

And that is something Miller Sutton has as a fact in his black and white world. He has been building the case against Roberto Hinestroza for years, and he will do whatever to takes to finish the case, put the man behind bars and move on to the next scumbag. That is his life, his mission, and who he is.

But when he has to protect Danny when he enters the Witness Protection Program, the certainty that Miller feels comes into question. The black and white, not so clear cut anymore. Because he begins to see the shades of Danny. Gets the story of Danny's life, sees the man behind the rap sheet.

And it challenges his world. His straight laced, factual, passionless world. Because behind the job, the badge, the case, the fiance, there is an attraction he feels for Danny. Because Danny is loyal, spontaneous, fun, passionate. Vibrant colors to Miller's cold whites and blacks.

"You're always so quick to think people are all one way, Miller. It's more complicated than that."

Miller embarks on an affair with Danny, and it turns his world upside down. It is a betrayal of his job, his commitment to his fiance. But it feels so right. And it awakens things in Miller he had kept hidden for years.

Will the two men have a future together, or will Danny's criminal past catch up with him? Will the very real danger to Danny's life keep them apart forever?

This is a terrific, exciting and surprisingly touching book. The two main characters are so dissimilar, and yet when they come together, they fit so well. Danny is all sparks and fire, honest in his feelings and sure of who he is. Miller is quiet, strong but so very self contained and insular.

But when they come together, they begin to move towards a center, and the two extremes begin to fade away. Danny gains some of Miller's strength, and Miller loosens up and allows Danny's fire to warm the stillness and cold in him.

And the prose is so beautifully written, the voice so clear. When Danny fears that he and Miller cannot be together, it is so gorgeous.

"'Then what's the point?' Danny demanded. 'What's the point of trying to do anything different?'"

"The point is...it's like this old patchwork quilt my momma used to have...each piece on that old quilt meant something. And some of those pieces were the damn ugliest things you've ever seen...but some of the pieces were so beautiful they hurt my eyes to look at...That's the best you can hope for, Danny. That your life turns out like that patchwork quilt. That you can add some bright, sparkling pieces to the dirty, stained ones you've got so far. That in the end, the bright pieces might take up more space on your quilt than the dark ones."

When a writer can create a character who speaks words like this, it is remarkable. And this is a fine, fine book written by a talented writer with a beautiful heart.

I cannot wait for Brooke McKinley to let her voice loose again.

Tom

A Bear's Take on the Best of M/M and Why the Genre Grows

2012-01-01T14:45:00.002-05:00

A Bear’s Take on Why M/M Grew in 2011

Simple. The quality of the books just keeps improving, and there are AMAZING writers in the genre who know how to captivate, enthrall, touch and, most of all, entertain us. That being said, I came up with 25 reasons 2011 rocked, and why I am looking so forward to 2012. In alphabetical order:

1. Woke Up In A Strange Place by Eric Arvin. I am not sure anything touched me more than did this powerfully simple book about death, forgiveness and TRULY happily ever after.

2. The Incident by Xavier Axelson. Cop in danger of sliding under the waves into the darkness, finds an unexpected chance at love. Great writing and great characters.

3. Moonlight, Tiger and Smoke by Connie Bailey. This book took six children, kidnapped at a young age, inducted into a brutal secret society and wove a touching love story. So well done.

4. Nothing Ever Happens by Sue Brown. Nobody can tell the story of denied love like Sue. And then to have a second chance. Just so damn good.

5. Amor Prohibido by Ellis Carrington. Beautiful story about recovering from abuse, finding love and making sacrifices. Not nearly long enough!

6. In From the Cold by Mercy Celeste. There were moments of quiet wonder mixed in with unbearable tension in this fantastic book. My hands clenched and my neck ached by the time this book ended.

7. Maybe with a Chance of Certainty by John Goode. Very few writers understand what it’s like to be a young gay man. John does. The sequel, The End of the Beginning, is just as wonderful.

8. Simple Gifts by L.B. Gregg. Two broken men reunite after one night together ten years before. Then must part again to heal. The story is so hopeful. Origami in prose.

9. Ty Hard by Laura Harner. Cowboys. Hurt and damaged men. Suspense. Damn, Laura knows how to put a story together.

10. Of Wolves and Men by G A Hauser. Fascinating new take on shape shifters and voodoo. Cowboys, federal agents. Fantastic. And The Order of Wolves, the sequel, explains so much more.

11. When Love is Not Enough by Wade Kelly. A suicide. His best friend and his lover, who have never met, come together in their pain and discover his secrets. And maybe love. So intimate and powerful

12. Blood Howl by Alex Kidwell and Robin Saxon. Funny, gritty and altogether hot take on shifters. The characters are so skillfully drawn – made me fall in love with both guys.

13. Bear, Otter and the Kid by TJ Klune. Boy forced to be a man too soon, falls for his best friend’s older brother. But boy isn’t gay. Is he? Skillfully drawn and unforgettable characters. Best of the year.

14. Living Promises by Amy Lane. Jeff is everybody’s uncle, taking care of the family he has struggled to put together for himself. But he deserves love too, and Colin might make him see it.

15. Boots by Angel Martinez. Take a fairy tale and spice it up with male on male (well, demon) fun and you have a fun, original work that delights and touches..

16. Secret Light by Z.A. Maxfield. Man meets man in 1950s California. Secrets abound, and can be deadly Tense, slow building and so damn satisfying.

17. Quinn’s Need by SJD Peterson. Continues Lorcan’s Desire and shows us four men, all strong and all with flaws. Sometimes love means letting go and sometimes it means waiting.

18. Caregiver by Rick Reed. AIDS in the 90s and how we all dealt with it. And how love can bloom amidst tragedy. Rick has taken a very hard time for us and shown us the hope.

19. Ink by Isabelle Rowan. Tattoo artist falls in love with vampire. But Isabelle brings humanity to the characters, and shows us it Is never too late for love, forgiveness, and hope.

20. Maroon: Dugal agus Jimmy by PD Singer. Leonardo was not the only man to find love against the backdrop of the Titanic. So shyly and boldly done.

21. Visible Friend by K.Z. Snow. A child’s imaginary friend come to life. Love story like you haven’t seen before. So touching, and with an epilogue that will leave you in tears.

22. Hot Head by Damon Suede. Firemen. Best Friends. Love. This funny, thoughtful and very satisfying story was so good. The 9/11 towers falling analogy is heartbreaking.

23. To Adam with Love by Adrienne Wilder. Harsh world of dragons who take the form of men, half breeds and what keeps up human. The next in the series, Worth, shows abuse and hope hand in hand.

24. Unshakeable Faith by Lisa Worrell. Amnesia victim finds his soul mate. Then gets his memory back and finds he really is a cold prick. Lisa shows a light hand and a romantic heart and tells us love matters and will find a way.

25. Candy G by Carol Zampa. Cop trying to take down a gangster falls in love with his ex-lawyer. Carol has such a romantic voice, and it makes her story shine.

So if you haven’t given these artists a chance, do! And if you have suggestions for books you would like to see featured on my blog, please let me know.

Tom

"Secret Light"

2012-01-01T00:03:00.000-05:00

Review - "Secret Light" by Z.A. Maxfield

Tense, tight and terrific

Highly Recommended

Rafe Colman is handsome, slick, personable. He is the top commercial real estate salesman at his agency, perpetually Salesman of the Month. Everybody likes Rafe. But he is a man with secrets. A fraud. And is 1955 Los Angeles, having the kind of past Rafe does can be dangerous. Even more dangerous than being perceived as German, with the hard feelings lingering after WWII.

When his home is vandalized, Officer Ben Morgan investigates what could be a crime motivated by Rafe's Germanic background. When he sees Rafe's dog, it is love at first sight. Then he catches sight of Rafe, and thinks he sees a glimmer, a glint of commonality. But he cannot be sure, and his partner's bigoted comments keep driving home how dangerous it could be for HIM. Because there are no out gay cops. It just doesn't happen.

As the two men become friends, the attraction is there. But the secrets the two men have make this a difficult and potentially deadly dance. But when Rafe is violently attacked, Ben knows he has to do more. Be more. Protect Rafe.

But how? How can he be what he wants to be, have what he wants to have, make Rafe his? And will Rafe be able to overcome his past and trust Ben? Or will the man who has it out for Rafe succeed in his vendetta?

This book takes Z.A. Maxfield into a new ballpark. And she knocks this out of the park. The grasp she has of the times, the fears and tensions, the barely hidden xenophobia and homophobia, the tension that permeates anything and anyone different is superb. How even the hint of gayness could ruin a man forever.

The claustrophobia and tension in this story are choking. And it is sustained from the beginning through almost the last page. Make no mistake, this is a romance and a love story, but DAMN, the tension ratchets up the attraction Makes it feel more intense. Deeper.

This is what happens you let a master at characterization loose in a new area and let her have free reign. You get a diamond.

Take a chance here - this is not what you might expect, but so very much more.

Tom

"Twelve Days"

2011-12-31T23:19:00.002-05:00

Review - "Twelve Days" by Isabelle Rowan

Great follow up, and fine Christmas story

Very Highly Recommended

Featuring characters and situations from "A Note in the Margin", so there may be slight spoilers. Be forewarned...

As Christmas approaches, John and David prepare for their first holiday together. John still owns Margins, the bookstore in which he first met David, and as the two, along with Jamie, his employee and the son of the previous owner, prepare for Christmas, they all have wishes for Christmas. Challenges. Wants and needs.

John wants David to be happy and content. Ever since the two have been together, and David moved in off the streets, it has been a challenge. Because David still has his good days and his bad days. Being homeless will do that to a man, and John is patient and loving with this delicate, fragile but tough man.

David is wary. He remembers how the holidays used to be. Back when he had a family, and he spent it with his son Adam. Took him to see the lights, the storefronts, and bought and made him presents. This year will be...different. Even though they are slowly building the bridge back to each other, there is a lot of history to overcome.

And Jamie wants a man of his own. Seeing the love between John and David makes his heart hungry. And there is a cute young man at the shelter. Could this be the one for him?

As Christmas Day approaches, David starts an advent calendar for the kids. For Jamie. For John. And for himself. But will the memories overwhelm him? Will John and his relationship be enough to9 guide him through this minefield? And will Jamie get his Christmas wish?

The beautifully crafted work of love reminds me why I love these characters so much. And how truly gifted a writer is Isabelle Rowan. Her gentle, understated treatment of these men is so sure, so pure. And the way she understands David - explains him to us, shows us the broken parts and the healing and the parts that still press inside him with jagged edges and sharp points. Just perfect.

I can't wait to see where she takes us next. The relationship between John and David is so beautiful, Jamie so fun and lonely, and Adam...I want to see Adam and David reunited and whole.

If you haven't read "A Note in the Margin", go get it today. Treat yourself.

Wonderful.

Tom

"Zero at the Bone"

2011-12-31T22:09:00.000-05:00

Review - "Zero at the Bone" by Jane Seville

Fantastic thriller and love story

Very Highly Recommended

Dr. Jack Francisco witnessed something he wishes he had not. An assassination by members of a drug cartel. But he is a brave man, and decides to testify. Do the right thing. So he goes into the witness protection program and is in hiding in Las Vegas. Until he walks into his home one day and there sits his worst nightmare.

D is a hit man. He only takes those jobs where the target is a bad man - child molesters, murderers, gangsters. But someone has information on him. Pictures of him making hits. So they are forcing him to take out Jack.

But that goes against everything D still believes in. That which still keeps him...a man. A person. And even though he has been alone for ten years - TRULY alone, no touching, no contact - he just can't kill Jack for no good reason. So he makes the decision to grab Jack and run. Find out who is after him, and keep Jack safe.

And he finds out Jack is a good man. Too good for the likes of him. And the carefully constructed vault he has built to hold his secrets, his pains and his past is threatening to burst open. And the things in there, they are not good. Things about his family. His kills. His wants...

Can D keep Jack safe, and keep himself safe at the same time? Will the feelings blossoming between D and Jack turn into love, or will the danger tear them apart? And can they ever be together, for real?

This book is flat out amazing. A thriller, a romance, a love story. A character study of two men, one coming slowly back to life, and the other allowing himself to feel and explore. Both feeling their way out of the dark into something new and fragile and so very very tender.

Jane Seville has created such a gentle love story here. The slow exploration of the building relationship is so beautifully done. The shyness of the physical explorations, the fumbling touches, the long waited first kiss. The opening up of D as we learn more about his life before. When he was Anson. Before he became the killer D. And then, then he opens up and SEES Jack.

"Jack stared at his lowered profile. 'Thanks for my life.' D lifted his head and met Jack's eyes, and for the first time, Jack could see Anson looking back at him, the facade that he called D worn thin and threadbare. 'Thanks for mine.'"

Ah, so sweet. Damn.

And then, when they are to be separated, and might never see each other again...

"'What would it have been like?' Jack whispered."

Heartbreaking.

But what I loved best - this book did not stop when it could have. No - Ms. Seville took us past the obvious. Into the what's next. And made the story so much more, so rich, so textured, so good. This is an emotionally rich roller coaster of a ride. And there aren't many out there better than this.

If you haven't already read it, get it today.

Tom

"Finding Zach"

2011-12-31T17:24:00.002-05:00

Review - "Finding Zach" by Rowan Speedwell

Great story of redemption and rebirth

Highly Recommended

"Hate can make you strong; I know it did me."

Zach Tyler has been missing for five long years. Kidnapped at 15, taken from his family and loved ones, he has endured...lived through pain, abuse, neglect, rape, hate. Then a rescue attempt by US forces in Venezuela for kidnapped scientists turns up a young man, starved and beaten and abused, collared and on a leash. The pet of a cruel and dangerous petty tyrant. Zach.

"Evil people want to damage beauty - they don't understand it."

David has known Zach his entire life. Four years older than Zach, he watched him grow from a little boy into a young man. And when Zach kisses him, it triggers feelings and panic and fears in David. So he and Zach's parents think it best if Zach has some time away. And that is when he is kidnapped. And David is frantic. Blaming himself. Guilty. Grief ridden. As he lives his life, unable to move past his feelings for Zach, he cannot find a man who moves him like Zach.

And when Zach is found, David is ecstatic. Until Zach refuses to see him. For two long years, Zach tries to heal. Physically, mentally, emotionally scarred, Zach is not the same and never will be.

"It's like he's being born, only it's taking months instead of hours."

When David moves back home, he knows he may run into Zach. After all, his mother is the housekeeper for Zach's family, and the two families are tight, old friends. But when he finally sees Zach, it is in a bar. And Zach has changed. He is a hard, angry man. Can the two reconnect? Be friends? Lovers? Or will what Zach suffered and the secrets he holds from his capture come between the men and keep them apart?

This is a rare and wonderful book. Rowan Speedwell has taken a young man and subjected him to horrors which would break most men, then brought him back. Shows him to us with all his pains and fears and anger and doubts. And then shows us another young man who has felt the pain of guilt, separation and fear. Then she reunited the two and makes us watch all the love and pain and hate and grief play out.

This is an amazing study of how love can survive against all odds. How the human spirit is so much stronger than hate. How hope can bloom in desert soil. And how life and love and living go on and thrive in the face of secrets and fear.

Such a fantastic book. Savor it.

Tom

"Protection"

2011-12-31T16:36:00.004-05:00

Review - "Protection" by S.A. Reid

A heartbreaking revelation

Very Highly Recommended

Gabriel MacKenna is a hard man. Sentenced to life in prison for a double murder, he is determined to be nobody's boy. He will do whatever is necessary to protect himself; no man will force him into a homosexual act, and he will yield to no one. In 1931 England, prison is a hard reality. And Gabriel will be the hardest man there.

Dr. Joseph Cooper enters Wentworth Prison sentenced for a mistake. A God awful mistake. Killing a woman and her unborn baby. He walks into prison with his head held high, innocent, not knowing the danger all around him. Young, handsome, and very vulnerable.

When Gabriel sees Joey, he decides he needs punishing, and as head man at Wentworth, he is just the man to do it. So when Joey enters the showers, Gabriel follows and takes what he wants, leaving Joey a broken, bloody, raped mess. And then adds insult to injury and becomes his cellmate.

Joey would rather die than face rape again. And tells Gabriel so. And then tells him his story. What got him in prison, what destroyed his life. All men in prison are innocent - it is the oldest story in the book. But something...touches Gabriel and changes his mind. He desires Joey, like he has never desired anything in his life. But he will not take it. He will protect him, but not force. Not again.

As time passes, the two forge a truce of sorts. But will Joey ever forgive Gabriel? hat drove Gabriel to commit the murders that have him in prison? And what kind of future is there for these two men in the life in which they are trapped?

This book, this stunning, harsh, broken heart of a book, took me to places I did not want to go, showed me things I did not want to see, but then. Then it taunted me with hope and love and redemption and pain and heartbreak. And damn it, I wanted it. I wanted these two men to have a future, against the odds and the circumstances and the realities. I wanted like they wanted.

"But because in this place where he'd lost so much, when nearly every comfort had been taken away, he alone had the power to forgive Gabriel. And with the realization of his power came the sweet temptation to use it."

Power where least expected. Love and romance where most dangerous. Where can it all lead? Somewhere bittersweet, somewhere fine, somewhere terrible.

Read this with your heart. S.A. Reid has made me open mine, grabbing me and never letting go.

Tom

"Pit Road (Running Under Caution #1)"

2011-12-31T15:54:00.000-05:00

Review - "Pit Road (Running Under Caution #1)" by Anah Crow and Dianne Fox

Unexpectedly deep and sensitive story of love and healing

Highly Recommended

Denny is a sprint car driver. Quick to race, quick to temper. He has risen above his trailer trash roots, and is gaining a foothold in the racing world. He is a private man, quietly afraid to let anyone know the real him.

Sully is a great mechanic - can fix anything, make anything better. Tall and masculine, a real man's man, he's part of Denny's pit crew. Takes care of Denny's car, his engine. And his heart.

When a wreck causes more damage than anyone knows, Denny is faced with a harsh new reality. Will the damage done to Denny leave him able to race again? Or will the damage to his relationship with Sully be damaged the worst?

This book was SUCH a great surprise. I expected a book about two racing guys who hook up, have hot sex and move on with each other after a racing accident. But this sensitive, insightful and very real book sat me back on my heels with its depth.

Anah Crow and Dianne Fox have created two beautiful, flawed, simple and just...wonderful characters with Denny and Sully. Denny is all thorns and tight sharp corners and shutters, so scared. Scared of not being able to drive again. Of losing his home. Of losing Sully.

And Sully. Such a strong and understanding man. Sure of himself. But at the core, so very vulnerable and loving. The perfect partner for a man like Denny. Someone who can take the fear and darkness and pain, respect and acknowledge it and help Denny carry the load.

And together, they can face anything.

"The shadow that was always over everything was old and threadbare, letting in some light."

This book is like that - a ray of sunshine, spreading light and warmth when least expected. Ms. Crow and Ms. Fox have done good (as we Southerners say).

Tom

"Mute" and "Road Work Ahead"

2011-12-24T21:59:00.000-05:00

Review - "Mute" and "Road Work Ahead" by Raymond Luczak

Stunningly intimate poetry

Very Highly Recommended

I was approached last month by Raymond Luczak, a published author, poet and playwright, out of the blue. Mr. Luczak had read some of my reviews, and wondered if I would be open to reading and perhaps reviewing two of his books of poetry. After taking some time to go to his website (www.raymondluczak.com), look at some of his works and learning about this remarkable man, I made the decision to take a risk and accept his offer.

You see, Mr. Luczak is a deaf gay man. I am sure he would tell you this makes no difference at all as to how he works and writes and communicates. I agree, to a point. But I grew up with a father who was, at best, hard of hearing and now at 88 is 90% deaf. I know the struggles he has, the frustrations on both his and my parts to get the simplest of points across sometimes, and how much of communication is nuance of speech. And yet his command of reading body language and lips makes it possible, and this old coot of a dad of mine understands so much more than I ever thought and gave him credit for.

So, yes, I was interested in seeing this man's work. And a little scared, to be fully honest. Because my younger brother is the poet in the family, and I find it fascinating, beautiful and intriguing - somewhat like I view the Italian language - lovely on the ear and something that makes me weak in the knees but which I only catch about every 50th word and understand. So bear with this Bear as I venture onto new ground.

"Mute"

"Mute" is a series of poems on Mr. Luczak's experiences being deaf, being gay, being a man, and being a gay deaf man. And it is powerful, eloquent and ever so touching. The command of language here is stunning. I read these poems to myself both silently and aloud, and was amazed that the two experiences matched up so snugly and completely.

Because here is a man who bares his weaknesses, his heart, and his hopes and fears. Each poem stands alone, each in a different style, and each complete and haunting. Because the frustration, the pain, the joy and the sorrows of connections made and lost, of promises kept and broken and dreams imagined and trampled roll off of the page and into my heart and soul. I was so genuinely moved.

And the imagery - so simple and yet so profound.

From "You Died Today" -

"Words fail when hands alone bleed".

From "International Deaf Leather 2002" -

"My eyes gulped down that whiskey
of signs I never had growing up.
I drank in your supple hands,
but your flask was much too slender.
I kept clicking my parched tongue for more."

From "Instructions to Hearing Persons Desiring A Deaf Man" -

"Let your hands be your new passport,
for he will stamp it with approval.

A deaf man is always a foreign country.
He remains forever a language to learn."

And from "How to Fall For A Deaf Man" -

"Do not be startled by how
much eye contact he requires.
Do not be afraid of his face."
...
"As you drive home alone, notice how rhythmic
telephone poles and corner signs are.
Wonder why no one ever thinks of making music
for eyes alone."

Sublime. Incredible.

"Road Work Ahead"

This is a newer work, and a totally different focus and journey for Mr. Luczak. For this brilliant, balls-out and heart-wide-open series of poems are about relationships. Friends and lovers, beginning and ending, joys and sorrows. Mr. Luczak pulls no punches here, confronting both himself and others with incisive, brutal honesty.

From "Farewell to A.R. 1990"

"When I saw you, my entire body wanted to leap and go
wherever you'd go. But did I want a lover?
I didn't know, but how your curious eyes could easily unpack
the bundles of my soul...Never in my twenty-three
years had I felt so scared by anyone walking close to my heart."
...
" Now someone else wants to unpack me as his lover;
no longer twenty-three, I've become cautious with my heart.
You remain a closed suitcase. It's time I go."

And my favorite - "There We Are" -

"There we are: you have your routines
and I have mine. We are well-oiled machines.

You think of the palate, the tongue,
as you read cookbooks, both old and young.

I nurture lines dirtying the screen.
I polish my craft until its sheen is clean.

Comfortable in our own way, we sit
on either side of the wall. Nothing to it.

How time flies in the face of familiarity,
and how we learn to turn blind to whom we see."

That speaks so loudly and personally to me - how the slow coming together of two men in love can drift, the comfort and sameness strangling and dooming the relationship. How simply put, how accurate, how deadly.

Mr. Luczak absolutely nails all the banality, the joys, the fears, the comfort and the strangeness of two people interacting.

I recommend this tough and tender ode to love and loss to anyone.

Give this talented and wonderful poet a read. I did, and want more.

Tom

"Woke Up In A Strange Place"

2011-12-22T14:48:00.000-05:00

Review - "Woke Up In A Strange Place" by Eric Arvin

Stunning and a revelation

VERY Highly Recommended

Joe wakes up in a field of barley. Naked, alone and with no memory of anything except his name. He knows he is dead, but of his life prior to this - nothing. He's not scared, just curious.

As he begins looking around, he sees a dog in the distance, and is greeted by a man he doesn't know, whom he dubs The Stranger. Strangely familiar, he senses a connection, but The Stranger tells him he will remember in time, everything in time. And he will be waiting. When The Stranger leaves, Joe senses a restlessness and begins to walk. Starting his journey. And has his first memory - he is a little boy, walking with his mother and spies another little boy with his mother. Louis.

He soon comes upon a huge, wonderful tree, with a house built among the branches. The sound of music draws him in, and there he meets Bailey, who will be his Guide through this journey. He is expected.

And so begins Joe's journey to reclaim the memories of his life, and to discover truths, some familiar, some long buried and forgotten. Some painful, some joyful. Some a revelation, some obvious.

"It's interesting," Joe said, "how a heart can break just as easily in heaven as it can on earth."

The best writers keep their ideas simple, their narrative clean and uncomplicated, their characters honest and within themselves, and treat the reader with respect and integrity. And Eric Arvin delivers.

Take a man. Have him relive the memories of the people and events most important in his life. Have him come to peace with them. So utterly simplistic, so cunningly devastating. And so heartbreaking. And, but oh Christ did this book break my heart. This simple, joyous, stunning jewel of a book, just took it and splintered it and put it back together and make me whole.

This book was quite simply a revelation.

The characters were amazing - from Joe to Bailey to 3P to Grandpa Joe to his Grandmother, Violet, Declan, Guy. Again, simple. The people that color and give texture to his life (our lives), laid bare in burst after burst of love and family and friendship and pain and joy and life. All the "ah hah" minutes. The misunderstandings, the losses, the hurts. And he has a chance to forgive, heal, celebrate.

And the prose. Mr. Arvin takes the words and makes hymns, love songs to my heart and soul. Quiet, gentle truths.

"No, if there were a true hell, it lay at the bottom of the sea, and was populated by every regret one ever had."

"He felt a connection forming between them, like a bridge being built with invisible but sturdy stones."

"And they realized forgiveness was the greatest gift they could give themselves or anyone around them."

And then, and then we find out all that we want to know at the end. How Joe died. What happened to Lou. Who Bailey is. Who The Stranger is. Answer after answer, brick after brick, tear after tear. Till this beautiful, loving man - not special, just one of us - is whole again, complete with his soul mate and his family.

"All of it but a simple, longed-for embrace neither time nor death could contain."

Please, let us all have this. Because if Mr. Arvin can dream it, can't it be?

If you haven't read this book, do yourself a favor. Buy it. Read it. Share it.

Tom

"Foundation of Love (Love #4)"

2011-12-22T13:17:00.000-05:00

Review - "Foundation of Love (Love #4)" - by Scotty Cade and Z.B. Marshall

Fine story of a man discovering his attraction to a man

Highly Recommended

"Make a choice to live an authentic life."

Wes Stanhope left Charleston, his family and friends years before to escape his father's control. The Colonel insisted Wes attend The Citadel and join the family business. Instead, Wes went to medical school, became a pediatric oncologist and settled down in the Pacific Northwest to practice. His practice and the demanding life of a doctor makes relationships difficult, and he never really connects with the women he dates. No big loss, right? Then his mother dies, and he is forced to return to Charleston for the funeral. And to a new opportunity.

It seems his father wants to leave a legacy for his mother's memory - a children's hospital to be funded with family money. To be designed, built and overseen by Wes. While the idea excites him, he is unsure he wants to be back home again, and under the eye of The Colonel. But the more he considers it, the better it sounds, and as he explores it, he discovers he wants to honor his mother. So he accepts the job and calls in his old friend and colleague Brad, who now lives in Alaska with his partner Mac, to ask advise and to consult. Brad introduces him to Tyler Williams, up and coming architect, who agrees to consult on the project also. So the four head to Charleston to check out the site.

"I deserve the same opportunity for happiness as anyone else."

During the week the four stay in Charleston, Wes reconnects with friends and family, particularly old friend Alicia and her father, The Colonel's best friend. Alicia has always had a crush on Wes, and welcomes the opportunity to see if it is reciprocated. But Wes finds himself oddly attracted to the openly gay Ty. So attracted that he imagines the two of them together. And when he discovers the attraction is mutual, he decides to see if Ty will date him. But Ty won't be an experiment, or go back in the closet. For anyone. As they explore their feelings, will Wes be able to find the strength to come out? Or will he let this opportunity for happiness pass him by?

"How could I have spent half my life without this, without you? How could I have not known?"

This is a gently written, solid and meaningful exploration of how one man can discover an attraction to another man later in life. Wes was so clearly drawn - all of his strengths and flaws so slowly and lovingly uncovered, his awakening attraction so very sweet and realistic. And Ty struck just the right notes. Solid, strong yet sure of himself without arrogance. The two of them make a very good pair, and I appreciated the bond that was allowed to grow between the two of them before they became physical. A very nice foundation of support, attraction and friendship.

The supporting characters in this fourth chapter of Scotty Cade's "Love" were well written - seeing Mac and Brad from "Wings of Love" is always nice, and Mac's support as a man who was married before his relationship with Brad happened was a great touch. Alicia was a difficult character to portray sympathetically, I am sure. She could have easily been a shrill caricature, but her forgiveness and care came through. The Charleston characters were so very true to the city. A native Southerner and frequent traveler to the city, I can personally attest to the "Old South" feel and ways.

This is a fine, fine addition to Mr. Cade's collection, and I can see the touches Z.B. Marshall brought with her. Good collaboration and good job.

Tom

"Ink"

2011-12-22T12:20:00.003-05:00

Review - "Ink" by Isabelle Rowan

Fantastic take on the vampire legend

Very Highly Recommended

Dominic is old. Tired. Alone. His existence tires him, makes him withdraw from the human contact he craves, but fears. It has been so long since he has felt a lover's touch, care, love. He sits across the street from Ink and watches the humans go in and out, smelling the blood and sweat. And sees a good looking young man who stirs things in him that he hides from.

Michael is a tattoo artist at Ink, funny, smart, young, handsome. When the attractive man comes in to the shop as it is ready to close and asks for a tattoo, he notices, is attracted, but has fear mingled with attraction. Once the tattoo is finished, Dominic makes him forget.

But Michael doesn't. Not completely. He is drawn to the smooth skin, the sadness, the emptiness. Even when he shouldn't be. So he tracks Dominic, watches for him, and is drawn to him in spite of himself. And when Dominic pushes him away, he cannot help but trace him again and again.

When Dominic decides to end his existence rather than harm Michael, Michael calls upon all of his caring and tracks him, finds him and restores him. And makes Dominic admit he wants. Needs. But to take Michael to his bed, that is impossible. He would kill the man.

Will Michael push Dominic to open himself to feelings he has denied himself? How can they be together? And when Dominic's maker returns for his "son", will he be able to keep Michael safe, or will the new found love be crushed out?

This wonderful, dark and yet hopeful take on the vampire legend is just terrific. Isabelle Rowan has crafted a memorable and inventive love story between two men drifting, not allowing themselves to connect with another fully, and yet who forge an instant and powerful connection. The build is slow, the pacing masterful, and the characters fully developed, believable and whole. Dominic is tragic, a man with a long history of denying himself love and comfort. The slow awakening of his heart is so true and honest to his character. And Michael is just wonderful - stubborn, young yet mature, the polar opposite and yet the perfect compliment to Dominic.

The supporting characters in this book are so good also. Ben and Abby work with Michael at Ink, and are his best friends. They figure hugely in the last half of the book and are so well imagined. And Galen, Dominic's maker. I think he was the most interesting character in the book. So evil, it seems. And yet, so fragile and human, broken and flawed, just fascinating.

This is a strong strong book. It grabbed me by the throat and, strangely, by the heart. Funny, and I didn't mind either.

Grab it for a different experience.

Tom

Christmas with Lisa Worrall

2011-12-21T19:22:00.000-05:00

Review - Two Christmas Stories by Lisa Worrall

Hot and sexy Christmas Fun

Highly Recommended

"Too Much Christmas Spirit"

Adam has been away from the ranch visiting his family for his annual holiday visit to New York. Every year, he leaves Vance, his partner and a country boy at heart, behind and they miss each other like crazy and spend the next week making it up to each other.

This year, when Adam comes home an hour early, he is treated to a Christmas surprise - Vance preparing a surprise homecoming surprise for him. What ever will explain the mess in the kitchen?

Damn, Ms. Worrall packs a LOT of hot sexy cowboy action in a very short tale. I got the relationship instantly, the attraction, the fun and the love the guys share. And I will NEVER look at egg nog in quite the same way again.

Write a full length story for these two hot guys. Maybe the story about how they met (hint hint).

"Mr. Popsalos"

Luke is young, has a promising career in advertising, a great family. He is also a gay single dad. And hasn't been on a date in...well, he has almost forgot how to spell the word.

Two weeks before Christmas, he meets Jamie while out for a drink with his co-workers. Christmas is great, but also a hard time for him. He misses his best friend, the mother of his son Reggie. After one magical night together, he is sure Jamie will give him the same blow off every other man does when they find out he has a son. So he takes it upon himself not to give Jamie a chance to make an excuse.

Has he made a huge mistake? Will he have a second chance with Jamie? And will he ever meet the mysterious Mr. Popsalos, the new giant of a teacher's aide in Reggie's class?

What a nice, sexy and heartwarming short Christmas story this is! Ms. Worrall has again created two very nice characters who I would like to see more of, in a full length story. Luke is a warm, intelligent, giving man who deserves a man of his own to complete his family. Jamie has lots of potential - a gay man who works with and likes children. This is a great story to spend a good half hour or so with while drinking a nice cup of hot chocolate - makes you warm and cozy in more than one way!

Great reads for your holiday season. Get em both!

Tom

"Worth"

2011-12-19T12:58:00.000-05:00

Review - "Worth" by Adrienne Wilder

Painful, horrific, achingly true and hopeful story

Highly Recommended

When Liam was twelve, his mother died right in front of him. He knew it was happening when she had the aneurysm, and knew life was about to change for him and his two younger brothers. Because he knew Richard, his estranged stepfather, the biological father of his two brothers, would come back into their lives. Abusive, drunken Richard always hated him, hated his repaired cleft palate.

And he was right.

Abused physically, sexually, mentally and emotionally, he made a deal with the devil at age 15. Do what you want with me, sell me, use me, but keep your hands off my little brothers. Richard agreed, and Liam could at least know he was doing what was right, even though he knew his mother would be so unhappy with him. But he can stand anything as long as Chris and Kevin are alright. Because Richard has already laid his hands on Kevin once, and the boy retreated into his own world, never really recovering from the vicious backhand, and although the doctors diagnose it as autism, Liam knows better. And fears what could happen. So he will stand between them and Richard until...well, just until.

And then Liam meets Jericho, one of the Lesser Bred, a cross breed between one of the Kin, the Dragons of the city of Atlanta, and a human. See, they live in the Gray Zone, a buffer between the Den of the Queen of Atlanta and the city proper, a place populated by humans, Kin and the Lesser Bred. Anything goes, but the Zone has its own peculiar moral code, and the boys are safe, for the most part. But Jericho calls to something in Liam, awakening a sexual want that he thought long extinguished. So he begins to see Jericho.

But when Richard reneges on the deal he has with Liam and Chris and Kevin are threatened, he knows he has to take action. But how will he manage to keep his brothers safe, deal with the strange urges and changes he seems to be having and stay alive all at the same time? And will Jericho help him, be the one for him to lean on, be more than sex?

This is a stunning, gritty and powerful tale of survival, pain and, oddly enough, hope. Adrienne Wilder has created a worthy sequel to "To Adam With Love", the first book of her Gray Zone Chronicles, with this book.

Having worked with abused and neglected adolescents for the past ten years, the descriptions and events came as no great surprise to me. I have sat with children abused, raped, beaten, sold into prostitution, and heard them describe their ordeals, and this rang so achingly true. What stunned me and had me putting the book down to breathe was its emotional honesty and integrity - how the victim can set aside the abuse and try to protect others, how the devastation becomes the norm, the profane the commonplace. In a world of inhumanity, the small things, like simple hugs, can bring you to tears.

There are terrifyingly disturbing things that happen in this world that Ms. Wilder has built, but what is amazing is, the Dragons make a beautiful kind of sense. They are alien, morally different, complex and outside our world. To be watched warily and kept at arms length. But the truly evil things are at the hands of our fellow humans. THAT is the horror story here. And what a way to drive it home.

Painful. Hard to read. Be strong, this ride is worth the price of admission.

Tom

"To Adam With Love"

2011-12-19T12:14:00.000-05:00

Review - "To Adam With Love" by Adrienne Wilder

Fantastic world of wonder, strange touching tale

Highly Recommended

When Adam was a child, his father attacked and almost killed him. His mother moved him to the Gray Zone in Atlanta to keep him safe from any further attacks. See, the Gray Zone is the area right outside the Den, the home of the Dragon Queen of the city, and is a buffer between the Kin and humankind. Dragons, or wyrms, are a different species of being, but genetically close enough to humans to allow interbreeding. And Adam is a Lesser Bred, one of the line of offspring between a human and a Kin, one of the pure blooded Dragons. To Adam's racial purist father, that is enough reason to kill him.

Ean has been raised by one of the Kin, Batu, a Dominant Male, to belong, as a part of his household. When he and Adam meet in the Gray Zone, they become friends. Ean wants to take care of Adam, for him to belong. He will always take care of Adam and keep him safe. But Ean, for all of his wanting, is human.

But Adam's father catches up to his wife and son, and Adam disappears, leaving the city and Ean. He returns to his home in the Gray Zone five years later, having testified and put his father behind bars, to begin his transformation from human to Lesser Bred. And to find Ean again. Because he loves him and wants so badly to belong to him. But will Adam be truly safe, and can he reconnect with Ean, or has Ean moved on? And will Ean become capable of loving Adam?

This story - this wildly imaginative, creative, intense and strangely touching tale - blew me away. The quality and depth of the characters, the detailed world building, the raw emotions and the sure handed story telling were just...amazing.

Adam and Ean are two wonderfully rich and textured characters, polar opposites and yet both drawn to each other improbably. Adam, raised to be human, even with his certain Lesser Bred future, and Ean, fully human but brought up with the strange, unhuman moral code of the Kin. And yet these two come together and teach the other - Adam to accept and embrace his future, and Ean to love and know his human roots. And they form something between them so different and sweet and powerful.

Adrienne Wilder has brought the oh-so-familiar city (I am a native of Atlanta) to life, but layered it with this weird and wonderful, totally alien side that is so plausible, and so strange and alien, I am just in awe. There is a danger to this world, and yet people find a way to make their lives, going about their tasks and living and loving and it just all works. Ms. Wilder includes a glossary of terms in the beginning to assist new readers to this world with common threads from her stories (this is one of a series of tales about this world), which is helpful. But I found myself so engrossed in the story, I didn't need it to take in the wonder and terror and wildness that is the Gray Zone.

And I have to comment on the ending - just killed me. "Batu put one of his massive hands against his perfect chest: "Because it hurt in here when you went away"." Holy Hell, Ms. Wilder, just perfection.

Read this and be prepared to be amazed.

Tom

"Happiness for Beginners"

2011-12-17T23:57:00.002-05:00

Review - "Happiness for Beginners" by Zahra Owens

Touching, tender story of love and longing

Highly Recommended

Jesse runs a travel agency in New York, newly separated from his business partner and lover. In a past life, he was one half of a very popular nighttime tv show about gay partners, but that was ten years before, and he hasn't seen Kaye, his co-star and best friend since then. Of course, Jesse quit the business after the show was cancelled after eight years on the air, not wanting to deal with his unrequited crush on his straight best friend.

And then right before Christmas, Kaye shows up at his door with a suitcase. Seems his third wife and he are divorcing, his show is off the air, and he has nowhere to go and nobody to see. And they are, or were, best friends.

So Jesse lets him stay. Visit with his sister and her kids. Share Christmas with him and catch up. And perhaps, share with him his secret - that he has been in love with him for years. But how will Kaye react? Will this destroy their friendship for good, or bring them closer together?

This sweet, touching, emotionally honest and oh so very effective story of unrequited love and secrets is just terrific. From the very first page, Zahra Owens had me fully engaged and curious. Was this going to be a gay for you story, or a I was secretly in love with you too, or a bittersweet no thanks tale? And, to my surprise and relief, it was none of them and all of them and something so unexpected.

Because there was so much to Kaye that was hidden, unknown, shunned. His past such a secret from Jesse, and his life, as it were, a facade. And Jesse - so sweetly understanding and patient. Love does that to a man. But every man has his limitations, and his reactions strike every emotional note just so correctly.

Kaye's story is so unexpected, so raw and painful and brave, and I read on and hurt for him and celebrated and ached. Ms. Owens is such a talented writer, and she brought out the big guns for this one.

Get this beautiful short work as a present for yourself this Christmas. You won't regret it.

Tom

"After the Sunset"

2011-12-17T22:39:00.000-05:00

Review - "After the Sunset" by Mary Calmes

Touching and worthy sequel to "Timing"

Highly Recommended

"Everybody wants to touch you all the time. I'm the only one who can't when I want to be the only one that can."

After confessing his attraction to Stefan Joss and winning the man's love, Rand Holloway has talked him into moving to his ranch and starting a new life. But Stef has been playing it safe, holding back. Because Stef is a hard man to pin down, and even harder to make stay. But that is what he wants to do for Rand. Make a home, be a family.

So when he takes a job at the local community college two years after saying he will stay, Rand is finally, finally setting down some roots. Because, just maybe, this is the real thing, and Rand will want him as much as he wants Rand.

"I won't ever tell you to pack your things and go, Stef".

So he stays. And meets more of Rand's crazy family. When Rand's cousin shows up at his door, and another calls for his assistance on his dude ranch, it will be the first introduction to Rand's father's side of the family. And the animosity that exists with his uncle. When Rand leaves to help, Stef gets a call for Rand that changes everything - gives him a chance to help Rand and the ranch, stand up as his equal partner to Rand's men, and strut his stuff at a rodeo.

But there is more involved than just showing up, and Stef finds himself in over his head, in more ways than one. Can he help Rand out, or make a mess of things worse than are? Or maybe, can he bring peace to warring family members?

Mary Calmes brings back two of my favorite characters of the past few years, Stef and Rand, in this touching, funny, wonderfully tender and worthy sequel to "Timing". Stef is the perfect man, loyal friend, sexy lover, intelligent businessman, but his feet of clay make him so much more human. And Rand, all sexy and gruff and alpha male, but weak in the knees when Stef looks at him. The two of them together - so sweet and hot and right.

The true test here is how the relationship between these two very different men holds up under the secrets that come to light. And Stef's determination to bring the family together for Rand, no matter the cost to himself. It is a joy to watch, under Ms. Calmes' firm hand, gentle touch and expert pacing, as Stef drives the action, first at the ranch, then the rodeo. His commitment to be true to his relationship with Rand is so refreshing, so clear and just so...Stef.

The astonishing thing here is how very real these two have become. They have grown since "Timing", and become settled in their skins. It would be so easy for Stef to stay the cute and cold user, and Rand the silent and stuffy jerk, but theie time together has softened the edges and allowed them to blur a little into one another.

And really, isn't that what we all want? A partner to rest and lean on when we are weak, and to be there for them when they need to be the weak one? And that is what makes Ms.Calmes' works so great - she gets that men need each other. And we need to be reminded of it.

One of my favorite works of this year. Hell, of any year!

Tom

"What Can Be"

2011-12-17T21:00:00.002-05:00

Review - "What Can Be" by Mary Calmes

Beautiful story of homecoming

Highly Recommended

Eli left California thirteen years ago with his mother for a summer vacation before school started back. His mother needed a break from the pressures of being a successful man's wife and mother, and Eli needed to be away from a crush gone wrong, and to watch out for his mother. They never came back.

Until now.

Present day, Eli, driving through his home town after hightailing it away from his lover, Craig Zhou, is spotted by his younger brother as he stops for gas. "Funny the people you forgot till you remembered". And remembered he is - he is the image of their mother. He is there, after all, to tell the truth, so he follows his brother home to be reunited with his father and other brother. Who are equally as stunned, as joyful and as blown away to see him again after all this time.

All sorts of memories, good and bad, surge to the surface for Eli. Or, as he is known now, Jake. And when he finally, finally explains the story of what happened all those years ago to his family, will Eli be able to find peace of his own? And will he be able to forgive himself and stop running?

This story is just flat out amazing. Mary Calmes created, in such limited time and space, a beautifully realized, scared, troubled, hopeful and tragic young man. His past constantly at his heels, he has been on the run, from himself, from others, from his family and from tragedy for years, and thankfully, it is time for it to end.

This story is about how family can both hurt and redeem you, how love can damage and heal you, and how running from the past can bring you directly to your future. And Ms. Calmes gets this just right - the characters, the pacing, the quiet pain and desperation and loyalty that is Eli and the calm steady love that is Craig.

"When love trumped passion, you knew you were with the right guy".

And when talent rules, you know you have the right author.

Stunning. Really.

Tom

"The Saint of San Francisco"

2011-12-17T16:57:00.000-05:00

Review - "The Saint of San Francisco" by Jerry Sacher

Flawed characters, good style

Recommended, With Qualifications

Jeremy Haniver has a love affair with San Francisco. Since he was a child, he longed to be there, especially with the man of his dreams. Unfortunately, his life so far hasn't turned out quite that way. Living in Chicago, unhappy, he makes the decision to move to the Bay and start his life fresh. Of course, the reality isn't quite what he thought there either, and late one foggy night, his unhappiness has him on the Golden Gate Bridge, ready to jump. And he tries, only to fall down at the feet of a good looking man.

Mark Caparelli, former marine and now member of the SFPD, is taking a drive late that night himself, thinking about his life, his hopes and dreams, and his relationship with Chris, the new man in his life. Or rather, how to end the new relationship - it just isn't working.

And then Jeremy falls right at his feet. And promptly vomits all over him and passes out. Rather than take him to the hospital, where a lot of uncomfortable questions will be asked, Mark decides to take Jeremy home with him, much to Chris' ire and disdain. As the two men become friends, then begin to date, Jeremy falls back into his brooding ways.

On Pier 39, he meets Tom, a young sailor in town in a weekend pass. Shy, a virgin with men, Tom makes an awkward pass at Jeremy, who passes, but does tell Tom to meet him the following day and have coffee. When Jeremy sees Tom next, he is dead, murdered in a cheap motel room, his death a case for Mark. And when Tom's family demands the case be dropped, since their son could not possibly be one of THOSE people, Jeremy decides to investigate on his own. After a couple of close calls, is the killer after Jeremy? And will he live to solve the crime?

This book shows a lot of promise - the premise is good, the locale familiar, and the characters, for the most part, interesting. Jerry Sacher has shown a nice hand for narrative, pacing and creating sharply drawn characters. Unfortunately, Jeremy is a very unsympathetic young man, and I almost have to ask myself if the "saint" part was sarcastic.

Jeremy seems very unhappy and, self-admittedly, bored with men. It is very difficult to create a sympathetic and engaging hero when he is hamstrung from the start. A suicidal, shallow main character can work, but he has to grow into something more, and it doesn't seem Jeremy accomplishes that feat completely. His loyalty in trying to solve Tom's murder is by far his most endearing characteristic. But for Jeremy to feel sorry for Chris and forgive him so quickly erodes his credibility as a character.

Mark, Chris and Tom are very interesting characters. I would have liked to have seen Tom's story fleshed out a little more.

This is a good, solid first effort by a writer who certainly has a unique style and tons of potential. I hope he hones his characters more finely for his next work. I recommend this book, and hope readers can look past Jeremy's flaws to see the talent and potential there.

Tom

"The Thirteenth Pillar"

2011-12-17T15:31:00.000-05:00

Review - "The Thirteenth Pillar" by J.L. O'Faolain

Fantastic sequel to "The Thirteenth Child"

Highly Recommended

Tuulois MacColewyn, or Mack as he is knows to most humans, is a sidhe warrior. Almost 400 years old. Exiled to the mundane world by King Oberon, formerly one of Queen Titania's guard wolves, he has lived in New York since the 1920s, working first for a mob boss, then more recently as a consultant to the NYPD.

Cole's work never seems to be done these days. After the events of "The Thirteenth Child", he has a new place to live, a new job - as a member of Section Thirteen, a secret unit investigating crimes involving fey and other supernatural beings. and a new relationship. With his boss, Inspector Joss Vallimun. Over worked, underpaid, stressed out and loaded down with crimes that never seem to stop, Cole is tasked with working with his former friend, and lover, James Corhagen.

A series of child murders has everyone's nerves on edge, and the Section Thirteen team tirelessly working to stop whoever is responsible. Then, a teacher for a local private school is murdered, and Cole is summoned to the scene of the crime at the behest of higher ups. What at first looks like just another murder leads Cole to discover that his fellow fey are in great danger. When Joss is injured in the line of duty, will Cole lose yet another human close to him?

This is a terrific, action packed and worthy follow up to "The Thirteenth Child". Cole is a fascinating, complex character, and pairing him with Joss is a great idea. The chemistry between the two, and the developing relationship, adds a new dimension only hinted at in the last book. For Cole is a touchingly tender man for all of his warrior ways, and to see him fall in love is...just so nice.

As in the previous book, the fusion of action, suspense, fantasy and romance works so well. The mythology just gets better and better, and the texture of the stories is amazingly vibrant. I am so impressed with the humor and pathos that J.L. O'Faolain weaves so deftly into this story. The horror of the child murders is juxtaposed against the over the top reality of who is committing the killings, and why. So very John Woo - the sacred and the profane, the ugly and the beauty.

This is a fantastic series, and I am looking forward eagerly to the next installment. Read "The Thirteenth Child" first, the savor this as a brilliant second course. There are so many possibilities moving forward, and damn it, what IS the deal with James' wife???

Tom

"The Thirteenth Child"

2011-12-17T13:29:00.000-05:00

Review - "The Thirteenth Child" by J.L. O'Faolain

Hugely entertaining fantasy

Very highly recommended

Tuulois MacColewyn, Cole for short, is one of the fey. An sidhe, fairy warrior, one of the wolves of Queen Titania. Banished from home by King Oberon, he now lives in New York, and survives by taking odd jobs from various fey in the city. He is also an on-again off-again consultant with the NYPD on cases involving things that make regular detectives uncomfortable. But that relationship has been difficult of late. Strained. Especially since he fell out with James Corhagen, his old contact, sometime friend and...whatever the hell else they were to each other. Now James is married, a father, and the two haven't talked in over a year.

But that changes when Cole is Summoned, drawn out of the shower into a summoning circle by James. It seems there have been a series of murders with very unusual circumstances, that require special handling and understanding and experience. Men and women killed in a most grotesque manner, their hearts literally exploding out of their bodies and yes, exploding. And worse yet, their infants missing.

Pulled right into the middle of a crime scene, Cole senses the magic involved. After a promise of double the pay, Cole reluctantly agrees to investigate the crimes. Working with James is strained, as the man is reluctant to acknowledge that Cole and he have a past. But at least they have a third to cut some of the tension - Inspector Joss Vallimun.

As the investigation deepens, it appears the murders can be traced back to one of the sidhe. Can Cole, James and Joss stop the murders, or will it be the end of an immortal?

This is a fantastic, brilliant, imaginative vision of the legend of the fey in present day New York. J.L. O'Faolain has drawn together supernatural creatures, suspense, murder, humor and yes, unlikely romance, into an exciting, unexpectedly sensitive, sometimes wistful and heady romp of a tale. I found myself swept up into this world, with its colorful undertones and dark dangerous characters. This is not just a murder mystery, fantasy novel, romance, or urban thriller, but a fiery and fun mix of all these genres.

And it rocks.

Cole is a hugely complex character, not human, but after having intermingled with them for almost a century, he is not purely fey either. His interactions and relationships are not traditional, and no single person has been able to fill the gap left in him by being exiled from home.

"It doesn't do any good to try to hold onto something as it slid impossibly through your fingers". Such is Cole's life - him never changing, those he loves growing old, away, dying.

I loved this book. It is not your mama's romance, your boyfriend's thriller, or your little brother's/sister's fantasy. It is SO much more.

Fun. Touching in an odd way. And oh, so good.

Tom

"Mercury in Retrograde"

2011-12-17T12:31:00.000-05:00

Review - "Mercury in Retrograde" by CJane Elliott

Soul mates in the making

Highly Recommended

Alex is an actor, heading surely and inevitably towards 30, wanting nothing more than to have his soul mate by his side. He has a successful career, money out the yang, houses, travel when he wants, and the promise by his astrologer that he will meet his soul mate within the next few months. When old lover Jeff shows back up in his life, he is sure Jeff is The One.

So Alex, in between movies and in need of a vacation, rents a lodge in Oregon for a week for just him and a few of his closest friends. A week in the woods, no fans, romance in the air, and nothing to do but bond with Jeff is the plan.

Ben is on staff at the lodge. He's the rafting guide, a free spirit who follows his inner voice to Oregon after finishing his degree. He trusts the little voice, whatever it is, to show him what he needs. He is 25, single and loves the outdoors. This life is good for him. For now.

The two men meet, and there is attraction and chemistry, but Alex is convinced Jeff is is soul mate, and Ben is too good a man to poach. Even when Alex gets a rude awakening. The friendship grows between the two, and when the week is over, Alex hopes they can still stay in touch when he returns to LA.

Life has a way of waylaying the best laid plans and intentions. Will a chance encounter in LA reunite these two, or drive them even further apart?

This is a sweet and touching tale of a man who knows what he wants, but is sometimes his own worst enemy in getting it. Alex is every one of us - wanting love, determined to have it but oh-so-blind about the truth in others' hearts. The heart wants what the heart wants, and poor Alex thinks he wants Jeff. Even though it has blown up in his face before, he just wants love to happen so badly he is willing to settle. And when something really good shows up in his face, he is just so blind to it.

CJAne Elliott has shown how even the smartest of us can be dense. How love can make a man blind and yes, dumb. And how good intentions can be so misguided as to almost ruin a very good thing. I alternated between wanting to knock Alex's head off and going, "Awwww". His heart was in the right place, but man, could his head use some work!

And Ben - how could a man not fall in love with him. Romantic, sexy, interesting. Everything Alex wants. Isn't it funny how misunderstandings, pride and sheer stubbornness can keep us from the very things we want?

And when Alex finally surrendered - so nice. So sweet. "He felt held - not literally with the way Ben's strong arms gripped him - but held, caressed, like his soul was being gently rocked, and it was amazing, too much almost, but perfect and terrifying and exhilarating and...right". Sigh.

Very nice story. Read it with your heart, and forgive foolish pride.

Tom

"Johnny V and the Razor"

2011-12-17T11:57:00.000-05:00

Review - "Johnny V and the Razor" by Ryssa Edwards

Gangsters with romance

Highly Recommended

Johnny V is screwed. The driver for a bootlegger, he knows his number might be up when the big, muscular guy slips in the backseat of the car instead of Donnelly. And when he is ordered to drive, he starts planning how he might survive the night.

Sloan is an enforcer, the brawn to his brother Nick's brains. He is good at eliminating threats, taking care of business and making all loose ends disappear. Until he looks at Johnny V, and sees something in the handsome younger man that makes him want to take a chance. Protect him. Make him his. "His mouth was wide, with smooth lips that could make a man think about things he shouldn't". So he does.

Sloan takes Johnny V home with him. And plans to keep him, till Nick catches wind of it. Orders him to take care of it, or he will. So Sloan has a choice to make. Will this be the end of Johnny V?

This cool and slick slice of life short tale is well crafted, with characters smoothly drawn and brought boldly to the page with mad skill by Ryssa Edwards. She brings a dark, dangerous era to life and populates it with men that are layered, damaged, tough and yet oddly hopeful and capable of love. What starts as a gangster story becomes a life long romance.

Ms. Edwards shows a sure hand here, making Sloan into a multi faceted, interesting character - a brute with a heart, smart and sure of himself. And Johnny V, a young survivor with a past that could have crushed him but which made him resilient and capable. They make a wonderful pair.

This is one of Dreamspinners' Nap Sized Dreams, and is oh so enjoyable.

Tom

"Between Love and Honor"

2011-12-17T11:23:00.001-05:00

Review - "Between Love and Honor" by E E Montgomery

Haunting, stunning, lyrical

Highly Recommended

David is a postal clerk in 1914 Australia. He loves at home, goes to church, and is the obedient and proper young man of his times. One day, he looks up and notices Carl. Smaller, more bookish, a smile and manner to die for, the two share a quick smile and a light laugh as David posts his letters.

As the days go by, the two strike up a quick friendship, and are soon sharing lunches on the riverbank. Then they are sharing more, quick kisses, assignations in the woods, then nights together, stolen in silence as David moves into the same boarding house as Carl.

War breaks out, and threatens to come between the two men. Politically. Personally. Perhaps permanently. Will their love survive the war, the times, the pitfalls of being gay in an intolerant era?

I started this very short, haunting and lyrical stunner early in the evening, and I have to admit, it ruined me for the rest of the night. The quiet gentle love these two young men shared, shy and tentative and sweet, but forbidden - "I looked at our shoes, surfaces barely kissing" - tore at me. The passions of David and Carl, so sweetly hidden, in words barely acknowledged but the feelings and love so plain. And the things hidden between them - so heartbreaking.

And then the ending - "I had to hide behind anonymous initials". Absolutely killed me. Bittersweet and brutal.

E E Montgomery has written a short masterwork here. It makes me thankful, but so beautifully sad. Just wonderful.

Tom

"Visible Friend"

2011-12-13T12:36:00.002-05:00

Review - "Visible Friend" by KZ Snow

Transcendent

Very Highly Recommended

"The map of his life was inscribed on his skin."

Chris is a smart, sensitive and caring young man. He is also a heroin addict. After making the choice to break the partnership he has with drugs, he goes into rehab and comes out seven months later clean and ready to face life again. He ha an apartment rented, a job with a landscaping, and support groups and counseling lined up. It has been so long since he has been with a man, but he hopes that will happen soon too.

"Everything has to begin somewhere."

Denny is Chris' friend. Companion. Imaginary playmate. But he has form and substance now. He has been silently, and sometimes not so silently, watching out for Chris since he was a little boy. But both are grown now, and Denny is a man. Solid. And remarkably, Denny has grown to love Chris.

"I'll never let you fall, Chris."

When Denny makes himself known to Chris, will he be able to believe what he can touch, feel, see? And as Denny becomes independent, will Chris want him still?

This book is a miracle. An answered prayer. KZ Snow has crafted something so lovely and fragile and perfect, I really am not sure I can do it any justice. Every word of this book, every line, every page - just sings to me. Chris is such a damaged soul, so beaten down, both by himself and his parents. But he has such a strength about him. And Denny - what a remarkable character. From a child's imaginary playmate to fully realized character with depth and emotions and love. Ms. Snow words just sing a love song off the page straight into my heart.

And then, and then the epilogue. And I thrown, stunned, broken apart, shattered and made whole.

"Please, he thought, give me another chance. Please."

I really can't say why this book echoes through me so strongly. But it does. And when a work has that power, it should be shared. Read and wonder - "...a hope so poignant."

Tom

"Twisted"

2011-12-10T19:48:00.002-05:00

Review - "Twisted" by Jake Mactire

Worthy and exciting sequel to "Two Sides of the Same Coin"

Highly Recommended

Jeff Donnelly inherited the Lucky Jeff Ranch from his dad when he died in a car accident. Mike Guidry worked on the Lucky Jeff, and the two had an instant chemistry. After a series of adventures, detailed in "Two Sides of the Same Coin", Jeff and Mike became partners in all senses of the word and look to expand the ranch's business by adding a dude ranch.

As the boys look to start up the Dude Ranch expansion, their ranch hand Smitty asks if his younger brother Jason can come work with them. Gay and troubled, the young man wants to make a new start, and Smitty thinks Jeff and Mike may be good role models for him. And it gets him out of town and safe; there is a serial killer, the West Coast Cutter, who is preying on young guys like Jason. And when a young man he knows falls victim, there is even more reason for him to be on the ranch.

Then Mike's father Al shows up at their door. Apparently a changed man, he wants to make amends for throwing Mike out when he was 16. Jeff won't allow Mike to be hurt again, but maybe, just maybe, he is sincere. And Mike can reconnect with his mother, brother and sister too.

When Jeff and Mike find a body while out skiing, the West Coast Cutter is closer to home that anyone thinks. Things quiet down, and with the dude ranch is a huge success, and the boys try out the gay rodeo, maybe things will be okay.

But when Mike is attacked while skiing with Jeff, will the boys be in more danger than they can handle this time? Could the unthinkable be true - could Mike's dad be the killer and out to finish his son off this time?

This is a well written, exciting and satisfying sequel. Jake Mactire has brought back all of our favorite characters from "Two Sides of the Same Coin", and added some new ones to carry the story even further. We get to see Mike's family, and gain insight into his troubled background. And he gets to have some closure on his painful past. And we get to see the honest and real love these two cowboys have grow and become more real for Mike, especially.

Especially touching, for me, was the last part of the book, when Jeff recovers from his ordeal. It is Mike's turn to be the strong partner and take care of his lover. The light touch, real emotion and loving care that Mr. Mactire has for these two characters is so spot on, so real. And this is what separates these books from so many others in the genre. When, at the end of the book, you find you still actually care for the characters and want more, that is a job well done for any writer.

Once again Mr. Mactire has filled this book with detail, adding life and texture to everyday situations and making them important. Giving them weight. And love.

I liked this book a lot. I hope you will too.

Tom

"Two Sides of the Same Coin"

2011-12-10T18:00:00.000-05:00

Review - "Two Sides of the Same Coin" by Jake Mactire

Warm, detailed and sprawling story

Highly Recommended

Jeff Connelly has run into a bit of a bad streak. His father died in a car accident - hit by a drunk driver. He has to leave his life in San Francisco to come back to the family ranch in Washington state to handle the funeral arrangements. See how things stand on the ranch. And Robert, his boyfriend, has no interest in helping. In fact, he is trying to change Jeff, wanting him to leave his cowboying and rodeo ways behind and use his accounting degree. Become "civilized".

Mike Guidry is a cast off, thrown out by an uncaring family when he was 16. Dropped off at the bus station in Nebraska by his fundamentalist preacher dad with a ticket to San Francisco and $200, told to go live with other perverts and abominations. He learned early not to trust anyone - keep other people at arm's length and they can't hurt you first. He has worked his way up in the world, finding his way through working on ranches, and has been working on the Lucky Jeff Ranch. For Jeff's dad.

When Jeff starts working the ranch and meets Mike, he is attracted. But he is with Robert, and doesn't know if Mike is gay. After deciding to stay on the ranch, breaking up with Robert, and getting closer to Mike, both of their walls start to come down. And they wonder if maybe Jeff's dad set them up a little.

Then some cattle go missing from the ranch. And then one of the ranch hands is murdered, shot in the back. Jeff and Mike do some digging, and discover that the rustling is widespread, covering quite a few ranches spread out over several counties in the area.

Between investigating the rustlings, running the ranch, starting a relationship with Mike and working on his art, Jeff is one busy man. And when his and Mike's lives are put in danger, and he is in the line of fire, will they stay safe, or will his new found happiness be taken away?

Jake Mactire has written a sprawling, involved, detailed and very entertaining book here. His characters are earthy, real, fun, and ultimately oh so human and fallible. Jeff is a cocky guy, but truly a good man at heart - supported by his dad early on, he grew up strong and sure of himself. Mike, on the other hand, grew up beaten down mentally and physically, and is so unsure of himself, but is, like Jeff, such a good man at his core. Jeff is Mike, without the abuse, Mike, Jeff with the advantages. As the title says, two sides of the same coin.

There is a huge level of detail in this book - I have read some reviews critical of this. I find it true to the characters and story. This book is about salt of the earth people, and the everyday is what is important. From meals to work to loving and sex, these are the things that make their hearts sing and their days full. To cowboys, ranchers, farmers, food and fun and a good man or woman fill the days and the nights with love. Mr. Mactire honors them and us by showing us what matters to them.

These are the men and women I grew up with. Honest, warm, loving, real. Nothing special, but oh-so-solid and good. People that hold you up when you need it and surprise you when you least expect it. Kind of like this book.

I enjoyed sitting and visiting with these folks in this book, and having a cup of coffee while I shared their days and nights with them. Jeff and Mike touched me, and I hope they will you too.

Give this book a chance - it may surprise you.

Tom

"The Winter Courtship Rituals of Fur-Bearing Critters"

2011-12-09T20:12:00.000-05:00

Review - "The Winter Courtship Rituals of Fur-Bearing Critters" by Amy Lane

Simple, tender, complicated, funny

Highly Recommended

“Simple is good,” he said. “I’ve lived through complicated. Complicated hurts. Simple sustains you. Complicated makes you hungry for simple.”

Rance Crawford is a simple man that has a simple life. His alpaca ranch and yarn spinning business is successful. He has a couple of good friends. Good employees. And a buddy he visits every few months to take the edge off when he needs it. He is also a crusty, blunt and hard-to-get-along-with man.

Ben McCutcheon moves into his dead great-aunt’s one acre farm next door to Rance. A self proclaimed “Bug Man”, he cleans up computer code for game companies. His life has been more complicated. His heart broken. So a move to the small town of Granby, Colorado may just be the best thing for him. One look at the wide open sky, open and honest all around him, and Ben is hooked.

And then he meets Rance, with his sharp edges and blunt ways and his alpacas and his knitting and his magical, beautiful yarn factory. And Rance looks at Ben and sees a younger guy who stirs things up in him about making a life together, things he hasn’t thought about before, things that make him want, and make him open and get him to thinking.

With a simple knitted hat, Rance begins his courtship dance. Stitch by stitch, slowly, surely, weaving Ben into his fabric and making Ben’s beautiful green eyes part of the color palate of his life and heart and wants and needs. “Do you have any idea how high your heart can soar in a place like this?” And with a man like this?

Amy Lane has taken the fabrics of these two men, the rough wooly whites and blacks and reds of Rance, and the softer beautiful golds and greens and browns of Ben and spins them into a lovingly crafted, exquisitely made mating dance between two very different men with gentle souls. I was right there with them – circling each other, shy signals given and received, and small tokens of affection and, dare it be, love offered.

And the prose. The beauty is in how very very simple and elegant Ms. Lane's thoughts and descriptions are. She offers such truths in such a loving way. Because, like Rance, she doesn’t knit for just anyone. "'Only folks I love,” (s)he said, trading naked heart for naked heart." And she loves us.

I always walk away from a book by Amy Lane feeling cared for, loved, and treasured. This gem of a story could not have come at a better time – treat yourself to a small gift this holiday season. Or anytime. A story from Amy Lane is a balm for the soul.

Tom (reviewed for the PRG - Paranormal Romance Guild)

"Being Screwed"

2011-12-09T19:50:00.000-05:00

Review - "Being Screwed" by GA Hauser

Fun addition to the Action! series

Recommended

Mark Antonious Richfield is a hot model, actor, advertising executive and all around hot guy. He is also turning...40. And having a major freakout. After all, Dangereux might be dropping him, he has a uberhot son in the wings, one gray hair (and you KNOW how those multiply) and a few wrinkles around those beautiful eyes.

And no amount of reassurance from Steven Jay Miller, his wonderful ex-LAPD lover, can make him feel any better about it. Neither can his other two husbands, Mark and Adam. Or Alexander, his son. But maybe Mickey and Jeff (the two hot cops from "Top Men") might be able to take his mind off of things for a minute.

And being asked to make another appearance on Forever Young, the hot and steamy cable show, might pump up that confidence some.

But when Alexander is offered his own show, Getting Screwed, will that send Mark into a funk? Will botox be the answer? Will life as he knows it end at 40? And will Alexander listen to his dad and those around him and plan for a long career, or will he follow his heart and come out?

And will ANY of these older guys take him up on his offer to get screwed?

GA Hauser has crafted a fun, sexy and relevant entry in the Action! series. These are great characters she has created, and she weaves them in and out of her books, keeping things fresh and exciting while moving the guys forward. Mark is a piece of work, in the best sense of the phrase. He has issues that real gay men face - afraid of turning 40 and getting older, fear of losing his appeal, needing attention and love. Looking at younger guys and seeing competition. Although, damn, with Steven keeping him occupied, he really should loosen up!

This series is great. I know when I pick up a book featuring these guys, I am going to get a great read with lots of hot sex, creative situations, and fun fun fun men. This one is a very satisfying meal of Mark sandwich with Steven dressing, with a side of Alexander slaw.

Buy it. Enjoy it. Have fun. And laugh with Mark as he turns 40!

Tom

Two Views of Love in the 60s

2011-12-06T20:07:00.000-05:00

Well, I am a child of the 1960s, born in 1961, and I remember how very different the country was at that time. The start of the Sexual Revolution, and I can still see all the vans and hitchhikers heading north to Woodstock as my family was on the way to Tampa to visit my Aunt on the bay. All the times we made reel to reel tapes for my brother, who was in the Marines and stationed in Viet Nam. And the slow move, here in the South, to Civil Rights (yes, even then).

So when I found two very different books about love in the 60s, I was intrigued. And wonderfully surprised.

"My Big Brother" by Ike Rose

Ed is turning 18, just registered for the draft, and having his first legal beer with his dad and another potential new stepmother. It's 1968, he's legal, a bodybuilder, and gay. And looking forward more than anything to seeing his older stepbrother Johnny (well, they aren't really anymore, since Ed's father divorced Johnny's mother several years before). Johnny protected him from bullies after their parents married, and he always had a little case of hero worship for him. He was devastated when their parents divorced, and Johnny's mom relocated them to California.

Johnny is a hero - wounded in Viet Nam saving four congressmen and several of his buddies, he is leaving the service and making good on his promise to be there for Ed's 18th birthday. He hasn't seen the younger man in four years, and doesn't know he has been bodybuilding.

That's not the only thing they don't know about each other.

When the two men see each other after all these years, that little crush explodes in a big way.

Can these two guys have more in common than they think? And can it be something real?

This fun, sexy and erotic story revisits a time when things were changing, and gay rights was just around the corner. Ike Rose takes a somewhat taboo subject and makes it adult without being smutty, sexy without being dirty. And most of all, very very sweet and loving. Some crushes can develop into something more, and some loves can grow.

"One More Soldier" by Marie Sexton

Will is a 28 year old mechanic, living in an apartment complex, and enjoying the occasional rushed coupling. It's 1963 and gay isn't acceptable. It's a hot summer, and he takes time to cool off at the complex pool.

Bran and his mother move into the complex, making a new start. Bran meets Will at the pool, and makes an immediate new friend. Even though he is just 11, Will is willing to take some time and make this young boy feel special. Wanted.

As the years pass, the two become better friends. Will helps Bran learn to swim, do his homework, makes him feel better about himself.

Then Bran drops out of school and moves away. Only to come back as a confident and sexy 18 year old.

Can Will see Bran as anything other than the young kid he was when they first met? And will something special and lasting happen, with the specter of Bran being drafted looming?

This story is so very special. So lovingly told. So hopeful. So heartbreaking.

I cannot recommend this moving and inspiring story more highly. And to tell any more about it would be to ruin it.

Buy it. NOW.

In fact, give both of these stories a read. They are vastly different treatments of the times, love and relationships, but both are worth taking a chance on.

Tom

"Maroon: Donal agus Jimmy"

2011-12-06T19:22:00.000-05:00

Review - "Maroon: Donal agus Jimmy" by PD Singer

Finely crafted historical romance

Very Highly Recommended

Donal is a carpenter, working the shipyards in 1911 Belfast, creating wonderful fixtures for two gigantic liners being built by Harland and Wolff, shipbuilders. Living near the yards, he rents a room with part of his wages, but takes the rest home for his family. The times are hard, and he has siblings to think about, especially his sister who is looking to marry her beau. Won't be an issue for him - he finds himself looking at the lads.

Jimmy is a boilermaker, working on the big steam engines and fittings. Cheery and young, he is from a local family, living with an uncle who is preparing to marry, so he has to move out soon.

Donal and Jimmy, along with 12,000 other workers on the docks, line up every week for their pay, and strike up a friendly chat while waiting on queue. Donal is quietly drawn to this handsome man, but doesn't dare do anything except smile and have a nice chat.

Donal's sister has lost her job, so he needs to send the family a little more money every week. Maybe they can meet up for a pint, be friends, maybe even...be roommates. That will solve the money problem, right? And nothing else has to happen. Jimmy isn't like that anyway, he guesses. So they move in together.

When their friendship deepens, and becomes something more, will these two young men be safe? The times are tough, they dare not be public, and the political climate in Ireland is turbulent - Home Rule is blowing in the wind, and Jimmy may be forced to act. As they formulate a plan to immigrate and Jimmy scopes out the landscape, will his voyage aboard the maiden journey for one of the behemoth liners - the Titanic - tear them apart forever?

Donal and Jimmy are such creatures of their times. Their wary and tentative romance so haltingly entered into, and the two of them so nervous about what to do with each other. Their love is slow to start but so very very believable.

This is a MUST READ. I am normally not a fan of historical fiction of any genre, but this...this was a revelation! This wonderfully rich and gentle novella was so sweetly innocent, these two young men so beautifully drawn, the relationship so nicely realized, and the detail just amazing. The time Ms. Singer took to build this story and fill it in with so much love just astounds me.

Buy this fantastic book. Today.

So very highly recommended.

Tom

"Quinn's Need"

2011-12-04T16:45:00.002-05:00

Review - "Quinn's Need" by SJD Peterson

Worthy and terrific follow up

Highly Recommended

"How does someone get an elephant out of a room without shit breaking?"

It has been a year since Lorcan made his choice to stay in Indiana with Jess and make a life. Even though he and Quinn love each other, there has been too much hurt, and he just...can't...leave Jess. So Quinn stays at the Whispering Pines Ranch and burns with anger and hurt. And drinks. And treats everyone else badly.

When Quinn finds The Push, a local D/s bar, he finally finds an outlet for his anger, using every sub who will bend for him. And meets Ty, a young man who craves the punishment Quinn is only too happy to give him. And give it to him Quinn does, taking what he needs without qualm.

When Lorcan and Jess decide to move back home to Pegasus and work Jess' family ranch, that means facing Quinn again.

"The only thing he knew for certain was that something would get broken."

The anger that each feels for the other, and the hurt, is still there. After seeing each other, they know the love and passion is still there too. But Lorcan is committed to Jess. And after one kiss, Quinn knows his heart still belongs to Lorcan, and Lorcan's to him. And, if he can use Ty's body, maybe he can make it all work.

"Only the extent of the damage was unknown."

When an accident happens, the delicate balance between all these men crumbles, and the tensions break. Will things ever be the same for these four men, and will love have a chance? Will all of the unspoken things will be faced, and all the elephants in the room be named? And how much damage, and to whom, will they leave in their exit?

SJD Peterson had crafted a fine, emotional and devastating, yet oddly hopeful, followup to "Lorcan's Desire" with "Quinn's Need". The three men - Quinn, Lorcan, and Jess - are all lovingly drawn, with faults and cracks and desires and virtues. Each has wants and needs, and each are aware that what exists between Quinn and Lorcan is still unfinished business. There is a crackling tension that carries over into this book, even a year later. Their incompleteness is so true to their characters - Jess quietly complacent in his acceptance, Lorcan internalizing and doing his version of the right thing, and Quinn scowling and physically acting out his pain.

The new factor is Ty. He is all need and want and submission. At least on the surface. And here, Ms. Peterson does what she does so well. She thrown a lump of clay on the wheel, and then gently shapes and works the material under hands until she forms something complex and layered and distinct and perfect. With Ty, we first see him as a receptacle for Quinn's pain and anger. Then he slowly takes shape, and we see a hurt and needing young man, used and abandoned, slow to trust and falling in love. Only to be crushed down one more time.

We see Quinn and Lorcan and Jess grow in their own ways, sometimes hurtfully and sometimes with joy, and we see how abandonment affects each of them, in their own ways. And we get angry with each, and then forgive them. Because, really, how can a man act against his own nature.

And what I really like here is Ms. Peterson has made these men real. Not one of them is a hero. They are just men, going through life looking for love, and hurting others in their search, sometimes intentionally, sometimes not. But there are no punches pulled here. Not quarter asked for, and none given.

And when the elephants in the room are named, they face them. Name them. And do their best to deal with them.

But not all of them. And thank God, there will be a third book in this amazing series.

I can't wait.

Tom

Derek Adams

2011-12-04T15:57:00.000-05:00

Review - Derek Adams

Short and so sweet and hot

Recommended

Let me preface this by saying, I have been getting many requests from writers to take a look at their works and offer reviews or feedback. It's surprising, an honor, and something I take very seriously. Some I have enjoyed tremendously, and some are not exactly up my alley. I have committed to be honest and fair, and only post reviews that have something positive to say, be it about the book or in constructive criticism, to the reader or the author. I hope I have lived up to that promise. Also, I receive some of the books I have reviewed free from either the author or the publisher. They are clear, as am I, that in receiving these copies at no charge, I am in no way promising a good review. Just my honest opinion.

With that bit of housekeeping out of the way, one of the unexpected emails I received recently was from Derek Adams, asking me if I would take a look at his works. He tends towards shorter works, which is a new thing for me to review. I received three emails that day asking me to look at works - I was stunned, flattered, wary. LOL So I responded, Derek send me a few of his works to look at, and when I saw I had read one before, I was excited.

Because this guy, he can write. And he can can switch up styles. He is alternately funny, touching, erotic, silly and romantic. And I would love to see what he can do with a longer work. I looked at several of his stories, including:

"Between Hell and El Paso"
Trinity is a young Texas guy, naive, good looking and gay. Kicked out of his grandmother's house, nowhere to live, he hits the road, landing in Austin with no money, no job and no friends. He quickly meets Joey, a go-go dancer at a club, gets a job there, and settles in. When he comes to the attention of a Senator and a rodeo star, his life starts to change. But will he find love, or danger?

"Love of My Life"
Billy and Wade went to high school together. Billy was poor white trash, Wade the star quarterback,
destined for big things. They had an unlikely affair, then Wade married, and Billy went to work, waiting tables at the country club where Wade and his wife go several nights a week. Will life give them a second chance, or is love passing them by one more time?

"Rich and Famous"
Jimmie Jack is young, dumb and hot. And wants to be rich and famous. When his part time booty call Sheriff kicks him out in a ditch, he meets Boyd. With his Lycra shorts, he gets his wish - to be rich and famous.

"Second Chance"
Nick is single and nursing his heart after catching his long time lover cheating on him. A lot. When he stops a robbery attempt in the neighborhood, he is interviewed by Matt, a hot detective. When he needs medical attention, Matt rushes him to the hospital. Matt is intrigued and starts looking for reasons to see this interesting young man again. Will he work up the nerve to ask him out? And can Nick give love a second chance?

"The Case of the Missing Twin - Parts 1 and 2"

Miles Diamond is a private investigator. He kind of fell into it, like he falls into a whole lot of things. Like other guys pants. When he is hired to find the supposedly dead Daniel Travis by his very much alive and secy twin brother, Miles begins a transcontinental romp that leads him from city to city, country to country and man to man. Hot men, hot fun, and tongue firmly in cheek, Miles is a red hot mess of fun.

Most of these are quick reads, all are good, some fun, some serious. Take a ride and enjoy. This guys knows what he is doing, and you are in safe hands.

Tom

"Texas Winter"

2011-12-02T21:11:00.002-05:00

Review - "Texas Winter" by RJ Scott

Nicely done sequel - with heart and love

Highly Recommended

"The world, for me, and all the world can hold, is circled in your arms, for me there lies, within the lights and shadows of your eyes, the only beauty that is never old."

With those words of love, Riley married Jack at the end of the last book in this series, "The Heart of Texas", committing himself to the relationship that started as a way to get back at his father. Jeff was able to forgive Riley for manipulating him into the marriage, and make it a real partnership.

As "Texas Winter" picks up, Riley and Jack are living on the D ranch, exploring their love, and settling into this new and passionate relationship. Riley is able to talk Jeff into taking some time off for their honeymoon, and the two share some quality bonding time together away from both families. Until Riley's peace of mind is shattered by a call from his sister Eden, informing him of the arrival of his daughter. The daughter he never knew he had.

As Jack and Riley return back home to deal with this unexpected addition to their lives, Riley also is contacted by his father, Jim, about a business...irregularity...involving his brother Jeff. As he becomes more and more distracted and upset and distant from his husband, will Jack and Riley find a way to make all these new changes work in their new and sometimes fragile relationship? Or will it all prove to be too much?

This is a worthy and, in some ways, superior, follow up to "The Heart of Texas", RJ Scott has written a true love story - about the love between two men, between family, between a father and daughter. Some of this love is quiet, some loud, some passionate, some gentle. Love grows here, and love is found. New love is formed.

We get to see Riley struggle and turn to Jack for strength. And we see Riley there for Jack, in ways he never expected. We see both men learn how strength takes many forms, how sometimes it's a touch, or a kind word, or passion, or quiet calm in the eye of the storm.

Most of all, we see the beginning of a new family. Riley grew up in a "quiet mausoleum", devoid of love except for his sister, and was given a taste of how family can be when he saw the loud love and laughter of the Campbell household. When he and Jack and their new daughter come together to bond as a family of their own, we are treated to a softening and strengthening in Riley that is wonderful to see.

While there is action in this book (the mess Jeff leaves for his brother to clean up puts Riley's life in danger yet again), this is a much more controlled, quiet ballad of a book, where "The Heart of Texas" was more a rock opera. The heart of this book is in its core - love. And really, the best reads always come back to that center.

Job well done, Ms. Scott!

Tom

"The Christmas Throwaway"

2011-12-02T19:03:00.001-05:00

Review - "The Christmas Throwaway" by RJ Scott

Beautiful, haunting, hopeful

Very Highly Recommended

So I guess a couple of things you should know about me are that I was CFO for a residential treatment center for abused adolescents for the past ten years, and that I am a gay man. Some of the kids were gay, some not. All had suffered some level of abuse - mental, physical, sexual. These were 12 - 17 year old kids, most of whom were abandoned or neglected, beaten, raped, prostituted out. We were one step down from psychiatric hospitalization, and some of the stories I could tell you...you cannot imagine. Really.

And I loved so many of these kids. The boys and the girls. But there were a few special kids, and one in particular, who was a throwaway, a young person tossed out of their homes for being gay, or for getting on a parent's nerves, or whatever, but tossed out with nowhere to go and usually no money. Mom and dad not in the picture anymore, thank God, but he and his sister were...thrown away... like some of us would throw away garbage. This particular young man had a lot of issues, and his life was hard, but he and I bonded over my dog (we could bring our pets in and he learned empathy from working with pets, and he loved my lab Samantha). He was 15 or 16, and just opening up about his sexuality, and just a beautiful and kind and sweet young man and if I could have adopted him I would have in a freakin minute.

Anyway, that is my background.

So, in this fantastic, stunningly crafted tale of humanity and hope, Zachary is a 17 year old throwaway. A young man tossed out of his home for being gay, beaten and broken, a little over a week before he turned 18, with just a few dollars in his pocket and the clothes on his back. The week before Christmas, Zachary's dad drives him out from home at gunpoint.

Ben is a police officer, working back in his hometown, fresh out of college, coming back home to work to make a difference and to keep the people in his town safe. And he chances upon Zachary, asleep on a bench in front of the local church, exhausted and tired, on Christmas Eve. When he sees this fragile young man, something in him makes him take the young man home for a meal, a shower and a warm bed, rather than rousting or arresting him.

When Ben takes him to his mother's home, Zachary sees what family can be - loving, fun, sharing, looking out for one another rather than being afraid, beaten and controlled. Will Zachary find the strength to take a stand for himself and what he wants in life? And will the budding attraction between Ben and Zachary bloom into something special?

RJ Scott has written a touching, heartbreaking and heartwarming story of hope, giving and receiving, and Christmas miracles. I was so deeply touched by the delicate, sentiment here - pure Christmas spirit without the glitter or schmaltz, tenderness without overkill. I read this novella last year, and loved it. When I brought it back up from my archive this year, I was reminded how truly special this story is.

And, to finish my story from earlier, this beautiful young man who I began to love, like a son, ran away right before Christmas from our facility, and I only saw him one more time. He was prostituting himself, living with an older man who was his pimp. When I approached him, he was strung out, looking for a fix, and recognized me. His come on stuttered to a stop, and he took off before I could get the words, "Let me help" out of my mouth.

Not all throwaways find a home.

If you can, spare a prayer for him this Christmas.

Tom

"Unshakeable Faith"

2011-12-01T00:08:00.000-05:00

Review - "Unshakeable Faith" by Lisa Worrall

Sentimental love story at its best

Highly Recommended

Brody inherited his Pappy's bar. Funny thing for a guy with an architect's degree, ready to start his career to do, but family comes first. So he puts his plans on hold and takes over the bar, building on the family success.

And one day in walks...well, he doesn't know his name. "Paul" is what they called him in the hospital, when he woke up there three months ago after being stabbed and beaten nearly to death. And with no memory of how he got there, who attacked him, or who he really is. He just knows when he overhears the doctor talking about transferring him to a long term care facility that he needs to get the heck out of there. Down to his last dollar, and with only the clothes on his back, he wandered in and met Brody.

When Brody hears the man's story, and sees how lonely (not to say handsome) he is, he makes a spur of the moment decision to offer him a job and a place to live. With him. When "Paul" accepts, Brody suggests he picks a name he might like for himself. He settles on...Nash,a name he sees in the newspaper.

Brody and Nash become good friends, and while Brody would like more, he doesn't know if Nash is gay. Hell, Nash doesn't either. Until he sees Brody being hit on, and Oh HELL no. He has to do something!

A couple of months later, they are in love. In a committed relationship. Even have a dog together. Then Nash runs an errand for the bar, and disappears. Brody and his friends frantically search for Nash for almost two weeks, then see him being taken away in a limo on tv. Seems he IS really Nash - Nash Walker, cutthroat businessman and millionaire. Who has been missing for six months. Who now has his memory back, and, it seems, now doesn't remember Brody. Nor, evidently, does he care to.

But Brody isn't willing to let Nash, his Nash go, that easily. When he tracks him down to his office, will Nash remember him, or will Brody be heartbroken one more time? And what lengths will Brody go to to get HIS Nash back?

Lisa Worrall has taken inspiration from "Random Harvest", a 1942 movie in which Ronald Coleman, a WWI vet with amnesia, falls in love with a singer only to have an accident, which restores his old memories only to wipe out his new ones. She has updated to story for a modern audience, added the "gay", but retained all the sweetness and romance of the original version.

And that is the very strength of this lovely, sweet and heartwarming reworking - the romance. Brody is a wonderful creation, tall, handsome, big-hearted and full of love for his man. And Nash, such an open and caring man, then so very closed off and harsh and cruel when he gets his memory back. What better thing to put between two men meant for each other than a broken version of one of them?

Brody is every guy's (and let's face it, gal's) dream - a big hung of a man who is willing to drop everything and chase after his man in the name of True Love. It takes talent to not make that a cliche - and Ms. Worrall has that in spades. She wields a light touch, adding in enough action - there is a sub plot involving the multiple attempts made on Nash's life - to balance the sweetness factor with some weigh. But she gets all so very very right here.

I also love the supporting characters - Wyatt can come live with me anytime. His unconditional acceptance of his lifelong friend, and eventual love of Nash is touching rather than the schmaltz it could have been. It was just so...right...what Ms. Worrall did with him, with Brody and Nash, and with all of the people in Nash's life.

This is a perfect book for this Christmas season. Unashamedly sentimental, loving, gentle, with a happily ever after for us to enjoy. Sit back, make some hot chocolate (or a cuppa for my English friends <wink>), put your feet up and just enjoy. Because, trust me, sweet sweet lovin' doesn't get much better than this.

Tom

"The Angel of Thirteenth Street"

2011-11-30T21:11:00.000-05:00

Review - "The Angel of Thirteenth Street" by Eden Winters

Stunningly beautiful work

Very Highly Recommended

Noah owns a bar on Thirteenth Street. Actually Twelfth Street, but who wants to tempt fate, right? In a tough neighborhood filled with drugs, violence and prostitution, through sheer force of will and personality he turned the place into a spot people would want to visit again. Rugged, scarred, alone, his real mission is to help get young men working the streets back home, or at least somewhere safe. On the streets, they call him, sardonically, the Angel.

Jeremy is eighteen now, aged out of the foster care system, but not finished with high school yet. Alone on the streets, he is trying to stay safe long enough to finish school, win a scholarship and go to college. He just has to dodge the street gangs and pimps looking to recruit new talent. Seems his old boyfriend Trent is a recruiter for Willie, the pimp who runs the area.

A chance encounter brings Jeremy to Noah's attention. Determined to keep the young man safe, he makes a deal with the devil to keep Jeremy safe. Seems Willie is Billy, Noah's boyfriend from his days living on the street. Can Noah save this young man's future without damning himself along the way? And can he open himself back up to love?

This book was one of those amazing perfect storms that doesn't happen very often. The characters are so sharply drawn, but disturbingly human and shaded and nuanced, the storyline engaging and relevant without pretense, the dialogue crisp, and the romance heartbreakingly painful and bittersweet. I was drawn in and grabbed from the first page, and was unable to put this book down until I had devoured it whole.

All of the main characters are so strongly constructed - Noah, Jeremy and Willie. Jeremy is the true innocent - eighteen, a streetsmart survivor, open and vulnerable without being a fool, but tough and resilient without hardening his heart. Noah is a knight with a mission; paying his savior back by helping as many young men as he can leave the sex trade. He is so wrapped up in others, he sacrifices himself and his happiness.

And the most intriguing and complex character of all - Willie. A streetwise hustler as a young man, now a ruthless and hardened pimp and procurer, he is an enigma. He both uses young men, according to his own twisted code of ethics, but also funnels runaways back to Noah for rescue, under the guise of "thinning the herds". I was both drawn to and repulsed by him, but totally, totally fascinated.

And this book is all about relationships.

Jeremy, such a young man with an old soul, self sufficient, betrayed by his one boyfriend. I would have expected him to be bitter and hardened, but Ms. Winters chooses to make him still a romantic at heart. He falls for Noah, but is it a case of gratitude and hero worship or true romantic feeling?

And Noah, so closed down to love, but so hopeful, just for others. He has dedicated himself to rescuing these young men so they have a true chance at happiness, but at the cost of shutting himself off any chance of love and hope for himself. What stirs in his gut for Jeremy cuts dangerously close to what he felt for Billy, so he clamps it down under the pretense of the age difference.

And Willie, or Billy. So quick to deny Noah his love when they were younger, and so determined to remind him he doesn't believe in love. This man appalls me, but there is just something about him that kept making me go...but...no. Noah loved him. Why?

And then we find out why, and our hearts break and we bleed along with these tragic young men and then we are put together again and made whole and get to hope for them again.

God, I loved this book. I read it through twice just to savor what it tastes like and feels like and smells like when a master prepares a feast for me.

Read this and wonder.

Tom

"Tipping the Balance"

2011-11-30T16:03:00.000-05:00

Review - "Tipping the Balance" by Christopher Koehler

Great character study of two beautiful men

Very Highly Recommended

Drew is a driven man. He is a successful real estate salesman, flips houses on the side, and has created a comfortable life for himself. He is out and proud, and has fought to be respected as such. His best friend Nick, coach of the CalPac rowing team, has found the love of his life in rower Morgan. More and more, Drew is seeing the hole in his life that not having a partner causes, and it hurts. He wants a man for himself.

Brad was on the rowing team with Morgan, but graduated. He works for his father but is dissatisfied with the job. Lives at home but hates it there. Is known as a straight party guy who has a different woman every week. But when he met Drew at one of the regattas when he was rowing, something shifted inside.

Drew has an immediate attraction to Brad, but knows he is straight. He just hopes there is maybe something more there. But he is willing to just be friends to have the big lug in his life. And Brad finds himself thinking about the man everyone knows is gay. Finds himself fascinated by him, and drawn in a way he doesn't understand. Maybe they could be friends.

When Brad's father pushes him to find someway to market the disaster of a housing development, Brad sees the perfect opportunity to make friends with Drew and find out what this strange attraction is all about. He doesn't know that Drew has been on Nick and Morgan to get Brad's contact information for weeks.

When the two finally get together for lunch and become fast friends, will be enough for either man, or prove to be too much? And will the business partnership they found grow into something more personal?

This is, hands down, one of the best character studies I have read of a straight guy who slowly acknowledges an attraction to a gay man. It was fascinating, touching, heartbreaking, empowering and so very very tough and tender all at the same time. I was drawn in immediately, thrown into this slow seduction of a book, and was never let go. The evolution and slow unveiling of what proves to be a revelation of not only Brad's awakening as a gay man, but Drew's journey towards discovering of his own heart was powerful.

First - Brad. This man touched my heart. His pain and awkwardness and fear and bravery and big heart got me, just slayed me. He was so scared, and made so so many mistakes but always, always kept his compass north facing Drew. Mr. Koehler just slammed the ball out of the park with this characterization. Told all his life that he amounts to nothing, that every action he makes isn't good enough, he learned to hide his heart and his mind and put his spirit to sleep. When being a part of Nick's squad woke his heart up, meeting Drew awakened his soul. And we got to see him blossom.

And Drew. He first saw Brad as a hunk of a man, someone to seduce and have his way with. As he put it to Nick - "You have your rower, why can't I have one?" His plan to turn the straight boy, or at least get laid out of the deal, evolved into something so much more than he ever anticipated. Because what he thought he saw in Brad initially - an intelligent, fun and sexy man - woke up his heart from its slumber also. He was forced to look inside and acknowledge that he wanted more in his life than work and the occasional bed mate also. He wanted, no, he deserved, love.

What really worked so well in this flat out winner of a tale was the wonderful growth of both men. They each were faced with challenges that sometimes broke them. Brad, with his hateful and belittling and dangerous father, was crushed emotionally and spiritually. His fear rode him until he shattered. And Drew - his unwillingness to draw back from "full out gay man" to allow Brad to some out at his own pace almost cost him everything. And the brutal assault on him almost killed him physically and spiritually.

And yet. And yet both men, survivors, scarred and hurt and broken and aching and bleeding, stood and took what was offered. They rose above, and learned to lean on each other as well as stand on their own feet as whole, strong and proud men.

And that, ladies and gentlemen, is the lesson we all can learn. So simply, strength and love come from sharing the pain.

Beautiful. Just...beautiful. These two men, just got me.

Tom

"Rocking the Boat"

2011-11-30T14:55:00.000-05:00

Review - "Rocking the Boat" by Christopher Koehler

Great story about doing the right thing and love

Highly Recommended

Nick Bedford is one busy man. He is the coach of the California Pacific College rowing team, is in grad school, teaches and works off season in construction just to get by. Approaching 30, he is still a very fit man, and could still row on one of the teams he coaches. And he is gay and in the closet. And more and more, he finds himself thinking about one of the members of his team.

Morgan Estrada is on scholarship at CalPac, majoring in Comp Lit and rows for Coach Bedford on the men's 8's. Part of the reason he keeps rowing? He has a bit of a crush on his coach. While he is not out of the closet completely, he isn't in completely either. But when he sees a man he likes, he goes after him.

There are two months before the biggest competition of the year for the CalPac team, and Nick isn't going to allow any distractions to get in the way of pushing his team to their limits, and winning. And while there is one huge distraction is his way - tall, handsome Morgan - his professional ethics will not allow him to act on his attraction. And Morgan might not even be gay. And he doesn't have time for this.

When Morgan sets his sights on Nick, will he set them both up for heartbreak? Or is love possible?

This well written, beautifully detailed and very satisfying tale of love between two men who, by all rights, should not be together is handled with a gentle hand by Christopher Koehler. He has taken a subject that has been covered by many different writers in many different ways - the relationship between a coach and an athlete that turns romantic - and brings a new insight into the struggle between what the heart wants and what the right thing to do may be. In many ways, it reminds me of "The Front Runner", but Patricia Nell Warren; the thoughtful slow build of a relationship between two men who find themselves in love but have to ask themselves, is it the right thing to do.

Mr. Koehler has created a wealth of interesting and vital characters here. Nick and Morgan are wonderfully complex, and as they struggle with their attraction to each other and the not knowing - if each other is gay, if it's the right thing to do - they show more and more shades of their personalities. And show very human flaws. The secondary characters, such as Drew, bring bright colors to the canvas and make these two more and more human and believable.

There is great tension is this story. The rules governing student athletes and their coaches are in place for a reason, as is shown with so much relevance in the situations currently with Penn State and Syracuse occupying so much of the news. As Nick and Morgan are forced to ask themselves, should they enter into a relationship that is consensual and between two adults, the reader is forced to examine those questions also. If it is driven by the athlete, should the rules apply so strictly. Or is, in fact, the power imbalance so black and white that the student, and indeed the coach, should be protected at all costs? It can be argued both ways, and there is no easy answer.

And the tension between being "out" and being closeted. Athletes perhaps find it the hardest to be out without consequences, rightly or wrongly. Nick's struggle with to be out to his crew causes him great pain, but also puts great strain on his relationship with Morgan. Morgan has had an easier path being out with his family, but Nick has different and more complex issues to take into consideration. Again, the reader is forced to look inside and ask hard questions for himself.

And that is one of the great strengths of this book. There are no easy answers. Nick and Morgan struggle and accept and fight and look around for answers and make huge mistakes and cause pain to each other. But that is how life works. It is messy and a struggle and there are great highs and terrible lows and we just ride the wonderful roller coaster and take a deep breath and make our way through. We hope we make the right choices and don't cause too much damage along the way. Just like in real life.

Because at the end of the day, the wonderful thing about this book is its believability. Nick and Morgan are two guys I have met in my life. They struggle, work, play, want, love, make mistakes, cry, laugh, and make me want to know them and, most of all, care about them.

I liked these guys. And I like what Mr. Koehler has crafted here - a fine story of two men who find each other and create something good together.

Well done.

Tom

"Simple Gifts (Cornwall Novella #2)"

2011-11-27T15:02:00.001-05:00

Review - "Simple Gifts (Cornwall Novellas #2)" by L.B. Gregg

Just a Christmas miracle

Very Highly Recommended

I will tell you a secret. Most people I know think that "Silent Night" is my favorite thing about Christmas. It is emotional, quiet, all the meanings of Christmas in one song.

But my real favorite thing, and you have to keep this just between us, is "The Little Drummer Boy". I remember as a kid seeing the stop action special on tv, and the little drummer boy all alone, playing his little heart out for the Boy King. And I thought, even then, that's me - alone, a little different, with nothing much to offer. You see, even then, before I knew what "gay" was, I knew something was different about me and it was something only God would understand. And Christmas was an especially hard time, since I never really thought I fit in with my large family.

And when I read this stunning, haunting and hopeful story, I was right back there as a kid, watching a thing of beauty and instinctively understanding that it was speaking to me, right to my heart.

Jason is an orphan, abandoned by his mother at six years old and raised in the foster care system. He learned the ancient art of origami from his mother, and now uses it to calm his soul. He has never really fit in, but he craves a family, just doesn't know how to do it. He is friends with the Sharpe family, and shared one night with Robb, the older son, before he left ten years ago.

Robb is back from his posting in the Army, home for Christmas, damaged both in body and spirit. He doesn't really want to be there, but the need to see Jason one more time rides him.

When an accident at the Sharpe Christmas party requires that someone watch over Jason overnight, Robb steps in and helps. But will their reunion bring them closer, or will the ten year absence prove too much to overcome?

To say I fell in love with these two damaged, vulnerable and solitary men would be an understatement. Ms. Gregg has done what so few can do - created fully realized, believable, sympathetic and wonderful characters in a very short novella. Robb is broken, home from the Army and in obvious physical and mental distress. And Jason, such a lovely young man, his heart hurting at every turn but capable of creating such beauty (read the description of his apartment and try not to be amazed and shattered) but so very very alone.

And after these two men come together one more time, at Christmas, Jason understands that he has to open his heart and let Robb go, to heal, and to hopefully come back to him. Someday. And Robb leaves. And then the small cranes start to fly back home, a promise.

Like Jason's origami, this simple little tale folds itself into a crane. A promise. The promise of love and reunion and family and Christmas.

If I don't get anything else for Christmas this year, my heart is happy and my soul nourished by this sweet sweet lullaby.

Tom

"Ty Hard"

2011-11-26T17:12:00.000-05:00

Review - "Ty Hard" by Laura Harner

Tough and troubled cowboys - I am in!

Highly Recommended

Ty is fresh out of the Navy. Out of the hospital, rehabbing his body, mind and spirit. He is on his way to visit his good friend. mentor and replacement father from the service, who is now the cook on a ranch. He arrives right in the middle of an emergency, and when he discovers his surrogate dad just died, it's too much for him and his mind shuts down.

Cass is the owner of the ranch, and is taken with the handsome young Ty. When Ty passes out, he immediately takes charge and takes Ty under his wing. Watching the young man grieve his friend, he finds himself caring more and more. Not knowing all of Ty's past, he tries to protect the man, give him a safe place to heal and find himself. But he WON'T fall in love, damn it.

Ty decided to stay for a while, get his bearings and see what's next. He's never been with a man before, and isn't sure what he wants. When Ty turns down one suitor and Cass kicks the guy off the ranch, things start going wrong. At first, small acts of sabotage. then the danger grows and it all points to the guy Cass got rid of. When the danger turns personal, will Ty's past catch up to him? Will he be able to recover?

This book was SUCH a pleasant surprise. When I initially bought it, I thought, cowboys - you can't go wrong with cowboys. But what I got was oh, so much more.

I got two sensitively drawn men who don't know how to give their hearts.

I got two broken, damaged, strong guys without a clue what they are doing, only that they feel something that should be pursued.

I got a lovingly visioned portrait of a guy damaged by war, not comfortable in his skin anymore, thrown away by family, convinced he can't have what he wants.

I got sweet romance, hot sex and a growing love.

I got action, suspense, and a who-dun-it.

And I got hope. Hope that Ty can leave all his hard past behind, that Cass can relax into the caring, loving man he can be, and most of all, that even the most broken of us can find our place in this world.

Ms. Harner has done herself proud with this loving tribute to tough yet vulnerable men.

As Oliver would say, Please, may I have another? Pleeeease, Ms. Harner?

Tom

"Boots"

2011-11-26T13:48:00.000-05:00

Review - "Boots" by Angel Martinez

Fun and sexy, touching adult fairy tale

Highly Recommended

Willem is at a crossroads. He has lost his job, his cheating lover, his home, and his father. He was left $300 and the family cat, Puss. Refusing to stay with his older brother, he is unsure what to do next.

Puss is really Yorukaze, a kasha, a cat demon. Banished by one of the gods, he is sent from master to master to guide and assist. Unable to return home, he is at the mercy of those who choose to take his service. And he has been led to Willem and his family.

Pasha's job, it seems, it to find Willem a home a job and a man to love. After that, Pasha will have to move on to his next assignment. But what happens if he doesn't want to go? Because Pasha, it seems, can assume a human form, and is the embodiment of what Willem is searching for. When Kasha decides to set Willem up with a nice guy, get him a sponsor for his work, and a home, will he be able to put his feelings for Willem aside?

What follows is a fun, touching and fulfilling fantasy. Willem is a sweet and strong young man, looking for love but getting used and discouraged instead. And Pasha is a smart mouthed, sarcastic bad boy of a demon. But underneath, he is like so many other hard guys - a vulnerable guy who wants someone for his own.

This is a very adult fairy tale. The characters are drawn so well. We feel how lost and sad Willem is, how much losing everything in his life has hurt him. Especially his father; even though they had fought about his being gay, they were reconciling when Horst died. And Pasha - how much loss and pain there has been in his existence. And how much he has sacrificed over the years, and how much he is still willing to give up once he finds the man he has been searching for.

Ms. Martinez has crafted something special here. This tale could be just a sex romp, or a farce. Instead, she has made this a tale of love, sacrifice, tenderness and car. I was enchanted. And isn't that what a fairy tale is supposed to do?

Just wonderful.

Tom

Five Short and Sweet Tales

2011-11-25T19:11:00.001-05:00

I am doing something a little different here. I have picked five shorter works I have read that I really enjoyed and devoted a post to them. If you haven't read them, give them a chance!!!

Five Short Books I Recommend

"My Lieutenant" – by Sharita Lira writing as BL Morticia

Nathan is an artist living in New York City. His last asshole of a boyfriend couldn’t decide what to be, gay or bi. When Nathan kicked him to the curb, he retaliates and trashed Nathan’s apartment. Only he didn’t plan on getting caught by Bryant, Nathan’s new neighbor. Newly divorced and out of the Navy, Bryant is immediately attracted to Nathan and pursues him as only a lieutenant in the service can. Will Nathan give him a chance, or is Bryant too newly out of the closet for him to take a chance on?

This is a great story about a guy who has been burned one too many times by guys who won’t commit. The ironic part comes when HE becomes the one afraid to commit when Mr. Right shows up. There is a playfulness in this story that appeals to the romantic in me – this could have been played out into a heavy angsty piece, but Ms. Lira keeps it light and fun and short. Nicely written and complete.

"A Lie I Can Live With" – by Eden Winter

Otis is the quintessential nerd – glasses, slightly overweight, a computer geek. Gay, single and looking for his Mr. Right. He doesn’t see the harm in lying a little on his profile on GetADate.com until he gets busted by a client who was interested in his false persona. When he is talked into posting an honest profile complete with pictures, he is afraid he will be alone forever. Then Garret answers his ad. Garret, the handsome, built young banker who can have any man or woman he wants. What could he see in Otis?

I am a huge fan of Ms. Winters, and especially appreciate the real emotions she brings to her works. Otis could be me, and there are NOT that many writers out there who take on characters who are anything except physical perfection. There are wonderful points made by Garret in this touching and beautiful song of love about attraction, acceptance and honesty. I liked this work a lot, and would love to see more of these characters. I think there is a book somewhere for Otis’ friend who makes him tell the truth and take a chance. He deserves his HEA too.

"Forever Dusk" – by Lisa Worrall

Jonah lets his best friend Theo talk him into coming to a club catering to vampires and wannabe’s. Getting over a break up, he thinks, why not? When he is groped by a drunk customer, he is rescued by Sebastian, the owner of the club. While the chemistry is immediate and intense, will they find any common ground?

This is a TERRIFIC short story, and has all the elements I look for in a well written work of any length. Interesting characters, hot sex, chemistry, and fun and unexpected plot elements. Ms. Worrall has a nice touch in everything she writes, and she delivers here in this surprising and effective short work for Halloween.

"A Picture Perfect Holiday" – by ZA Maxfield

Caleb in out and proud, the president of the photography club at his school and totally into the start quarterback of the football team. The same quarterback who defended him from some bullies years before. The straight quarterback who never speaks to him. Christian plays football, struggles as a student, takes care of his younger twin brothers who play soccer with Caleb’s twin brothers, and works at his father’s restaurant. When Caleb makes a CD of highlights from the brothers’ soccer games and tries to give it to Christian, will he make a bad situation worse, or open the door for a friendship between the two men?

There are very few writers who consistently deliver a satisfying, lovely and touching story with everything she touches. This is no exception. The characters are drawn so truly and perfectly, and we care immediately. This being a Christmas tale, there HAS to be a HEA, and we are not disappointed. I would love to see these two young men get a full book. They are that interesting. Please???

"Love Means…Healing" – by Andrew Grey

Len lost his partner of twenty years a few months ago. He works on the ranch they owned, watches out for the son of his heart and his new partner, and grieves quietly. He loved his partner since they were in high school, and thinks that part of his life is over with. But when he looks at Chris, something gets under his skin and bothers him. Chris is retired from the Marine Corps after thirty years of service after a loss of his own. He needs a quiet place to heal himself, and even though he has never worked a ranch before, something about the peace he finds at the ranch soothes his soul.

I fell in love with the characters in all of Mr. Grey’s Love is… series, and have been waiting for Len to get a story of his own for a while. This is a sweetly sentimental tale, perfect for Thanksgiving and the holiday season. There is healing and romance, and the maturity of the characters is respected throughout this tale. These two men are so lovingly drawn, and the respect Mr. Grey has for them shines through. This was a great Thanksgiving night read for me. Thanks for giving such a sweet and honest effort.

"In From the Cold"

2011-11-25T17:18:00.000-05:00

Review - "In From the Cold" by Mercy Celeste

Like a storm waiting to erupt

Highly Recommended

Tension. This book is all about tension.

Quinn is a country singer who has hit the big time. Since leaving his Tennessee hometown, he has battled drug and alcohol addiction, hard times, family fights and an attraction to his best friend that broke that friendship.

Nathan is a deputy in the same small town he and Quinn are from. Twice divorced, former Marine Corp, from a wealthy family, Nate is happy enough. As long as he can keep ignoring Quinn.

When a crisis involving Quinn's father, the sheriff of the town they both grew up in, forces Nate to call Quinn back home, the old pains and attractions boils back up. The tension between these two men is intense - can they find some common ground to get through this tragedy?

Ms. Celeste has created a tale that crackles with tension here. The tension between two old friends who became more than that. Between fathers and sons. Family. And when the worst happens, all that grief and old hurt and love and anger and lust and history spills out and over and consumes these two hurting men.

But the tension doesn't stop there. As the search for the man responsible for this crime intensifies, additional players come onto the scene and make Nate and Quinn even more tense. Because Quinn has been keeping secrets from everyone. Secrets that hurt Nate, bringing back all his hurts and wants. And when a TBI agent questions both men, they realize their secrets are anything but hidden.

And the tension builds.

What I appreciated most about this hot, intense and very very satisfying book was the tense interplay between Nate and Quinn, and how it relates to the reason why Quinn's father was shot. As the two lovers get closer to each other, the danger gets more real and closer to home. And when it overtakes them and one of the guys is in danger, we feel how close to the line both men are.

And just when we thought it couldn't get any harder to breathe, something even worse happens. I swear, I thought I was going to grind my teeth to powder, and the tension in my shoulders gave me a headache. Because I came to care about these two characters - their wasted years, the circumstances they let come between them, the stupid misunderstandings, the wasted pride. It is like when the air gets heavy and your lungs fill with humidity and something has to give right before a huge summer storm rolls in. All that potential and energy and you know it's going to erupt and you wait and you wait and you hope it will happen and it just keeps building and you need it to just BURST or you will.

Only when the lightening starts and the rains falls, it frees you up. Here, we just gasp and bleed and hope these two can put the pieces back together and that they will be alright again.

And hellfire, when I got to the last page, only then could I relax a little. But the tension is still there. And damn it, it's GOOD. And DAMN IT I WANT MORE.

So Ms. Celeste did her job. Left me wanting. And I really can't ask for more than that, can I?

Tom

"Desert Run"

2011-11-24T18:17:00.000-05:00

Review - "Desert Run" by Marshall Thornton

Good, gritty nontraditional m/m story

Highly Recommended

Don is an entertainer in a third rate cocktail bar in Palm Springs circa 1973. He's out of the army, single, and doesn't mind picking up the occasional hot woman and having a good time.

When Shelly walks in to the lounge, she is a hot looking blonde, in town for a convention and hot to trot. That she looks oddly familiar raises his red flags, but not enough to keep him from hooking up. After a brief few days and a lot of fun and sex, Don's past shows back up to cause a LOT of trouble.

Seems Don is really Ricky D'Amico from Chicago, ex-army, and on the run from a terrible situation that has him changing his identity and laying low, unable to contact family or friends. Shelly's revelation of who she is and that she recognizes him stuns and worries him, and then, quickly has him in the run yet again. Then, what starts as Don pool sharking to get money to stay on the run from the troubles chasing him leads to his meeting and falling into a friendship with Harlan, a young man being kept by a middle aged movie start. A male star. And what follows is an action packed, thrill ride of mobsters, movie stars, murder and memories.

This is NOT your average m/m story, and that is a VERY good thing!

This is first and foremost a story about an average guy trapped in a situation anything but average, but out of his control. What happened in Chicago starts a chain of events that has Don constantly looking over his shoulder, reacting and on edge. Shelly's stumbling across him by accident brings all that he has tried to put behind him right back in his face, and drives the action throughout the book.

And this is a great ride of a book. The action fast paced, the fear palpable and Don propelled into reactions designed to keep him safe for one more day. Mr. Thornton has crafted a very believable character in Don - a Vietnam era veteran (this is 1973) who suffers from light PTSD and flashbacks. He is brutally adaptable, able to make quick decisions, but is a man with a conscience. He is used to doing what is necessary to survive, and all of the actions he takes in this well written, excellently paced roller coaster of a book are consistent and believable.

What sets this book apart from merely being a well written action story, however, is the addition of the m/m element to the mix. While on the run, Don is thrown into a situation where he meets Harlan, a young gay man. Don's initial intention is to use him for a place to stay, never intending for anything sexual to occur. Don discovers that he has an initial connection with the guy - or at least to getting off. As he gets to know Harlan, however, he has to question himself as to whether there is something more to his attraction than Harlan's being just an easy way to get off, or if there is an emotional connection.

And that is what makes this such a relevant and exciting book for me. Don is on the run, fighting for his life. And Mr. Thornton works in a nicely told interlude where Don contemplates his sexuality. It fits seamlessly into the tale, and adds texture and depth to the character. I never questioned where Mr. Thornton was taking me or how we were getting there - I just sat back and let this masterful storyteller take me along for a fun, exciting and ultimately satisfying ride.

I wish we had more of this in the genre to choose from - action driven stories where the m/m element was secondary but important. I love me some HEA and hot sex, but there is a place for this type of book in the genre also.

Good work!

Tom

"Bear, Otter and the Kid"

2011-11-23T15:10:00.001-05:00

Review - "Bear, Otter and the Kid" by TJ Klune

They don't get much better than this

Very Highly Recommended

"This is the way my world ends."

With this opening sentence, we meet Derrick (Bear, to those who know him), and discover that, one day short of his 18th birthday, three days shy of his high school graduation, and three months away from his leaving to start college, his mother has left. Left him alone and in charge of his five your old brother Tyson (Kid). With the help of his girlfriend Anna, his best friend Creed and Creed's brother Oliver (Otter), Bear picks himself up and gets on with the business of making sure the Kid is cared for and loved.

Over the course of the three or four years covered here, we see love. Love between two brothers, between friends, between a man and a woman, and between a man and another man. We see love end, love begin, and love transformed. We see love used as a weapon, love as an excuse, and love as a means of control.

We get the Kid's definition of love. "I think it's when you can't go on another day without the other person. That they make you feel like your stomach is on fire but in a good way."

We see it when a heart is broken and love ends. "You've broken my heart, but it was mine to give."

And we have our hearts broken when Bear tells the Kid their mom deserted them. "I heard the first gasping breath come out of his little body. 'Bear!' he cried into my ear. 'What's going to happen to me? I'm not big like you! What's going to happen to me?'" And Holy Hell, didn't I choke up at that...

What happens is...I almost don't have words for it...a glorious, imaginative, sprawling, touching, living heart of a book. TJ Klune has taken these characters and built a tale of family and love. We follow Bear's story, as he deals with his mother's leaving, raising the Kid, his on and off again relationship with Anna, and his struggle with whatever it is that exists between him and Otter.

Because at heart, this book IS about Bear and Otter. How love can start and stall and transform and be something that brings two people together and yet keep them apart and take you by surprise. The question that looms over the entirety of the book is, will Bear allow himself to trust and love, and will he allow it to be Otter?

Mr. Klune has crafted this story so lovingly and so completely, and invested his characters with so much personality and life that I found myself yelling at them one moment, so angry at their denseness and stubbornness, then gasping and swallowing against the lump in my throat and fighting the prickling of tears in my eyes as their care and concern and love for one another shone through. And marveling at how true to life the feelings and reactions were.

I forgot, sometimes, in my frustration with Bear that he is still a very young man. His shouldering of the responsibility of being mother, father and brother to the Kid in many ways froze him emotionally, and didn't grant him the time to grieve and get angry and be a normal young man. I found myself aching to give this young man a hug while at the same time wanting to shake the stuffing out of him. And that is where I think Mr. Klune's genius shines through. It is almost impossible to NOT react to Bear; he is all elbows and knees and sharp corners, and they stick out and poke the reader to react with and to him. I found myself drawn again and again to the Staind song "Epiphany" when pondering him.

"I am nothing more than a little boy inside
That cries out for attention
though I always try to hide
'Cause I talk to you like children,
Though I don't know how I feel
But I know I'll do the right thing
If the right thing is revealed
'Cause its always raining in my head
Forget all the things I should have said"

He is a little boy, hurt inside, and I want to just grab him and make it all right for him.

And as much as I love Bear, I love Otter and how he fits with Bear so well. He could very well be a caricature of a gay man, but he is so shaded, so colored with depth. Sometimes the sorrow is almost palpable, and then the light shines through, and I think, God, I want a man like this for myself.

And the Kid - I hate precocious children in movies and television. But this young boy is so three dimensional, there is never a wrong or sour note struck. He is the younger brother we would all love to have - wise but so very young and so flawed and just one more heartbreak away from a catastrophe. And yet, never a misstep. Held together by Bear and Otter and Anna and Creed. Just a wonderfully conceived and executed young man.

This book is one of my favorites of any genre I have read. I adore Amy Lane's "Promise Rock" books and place this in the same category as "All time favorite if I were trapped on a deserted island and could only take one book" books, because of the shared theme of family being what you make it, not what you are born with.

Mr. Klune, you have created a fine, fine work here that will be one of my favorites for years to come. You must have a huge heart to have created such warm, alive and meaningful characters, and I bless you for it. I wish I had the skill and words and talent, as you do, to do your beautiful book justice.

Tom

"The Time of the Singing"

2011-11-22T14:23:00.000-05:00

Review - "The Time of the Singing" by Louise Blaydon

Lovingly crafted take of being true to oneself

Highly Recommended

Israfel Vacek, at an early age, learned he was different. Reserved even as a kid, with a love of learning and books and dead languages. Introspective. Attracted to other boys. His twin brother Micheal, athletic and outgoing, straight, the perfect son. When Michael discovers his twin's "perversion", worried for his soul, he sets in motion a series of events that leads to Israfel's joining the priesthood. After all, it's not a sin to be gay, just to act on it, so Rafe will be safe there, learning the self control to fight his demons.

His posting at a church in a smaller town seems like just the place to minister to his flock. Peaceful and quiet. Until he spies Nate Mulligan.

Nate, teenage son of pious parents, and his younger brother Tom serve as altar boys for the Padre. He is cocky yet devout. A believer who also is a sinner in the eyes of the church. A beautiful young man, full of life and hope and spirit, he looks at Israfel first as a man, not a priest.

And God, how Israfel wants him.

When Nate notices the interest and returns it, Israfel's buried desires surface and threaten to explode. Will his devotion be enough, or will he sin with this beautiful young man?

What follows is a startlingly well developed, well thought out and beautifully crafted crisis of faith and conscience. The pacing of this gem of a book is slow and steady, but so perfect for the issues being examined here. Not only are Istafel's reasons for becoming a priest in the first place in question, but his attraction, perhaps inappropriate, for a member of his congregation. And a much younger man - 17 years old to his 29.

I found the dynamics of his relationship with his twin to be fascinating, his willingness to defer to Michael's supposed wisdom a response to his discomfort with his homosexuality, and to how the Catholic Church views it. Israfel's innate goodness is at war with a faith that demands that he not act on his feelings - I can understand his brother's need to protect but still have a little bitterness towards him for pushing his brother into a vocation that hides his feelings rather than deals with them in any constructive way. By protecting him, he stifles him and condemns him to a future bereft of love.

The last quarter of the book really soars. The slow build to Israfel's realizations about himself, his orientation, the guilt and pain and self denial, and then the dawning of his realization that God's desire and plan for him doesn't preclude love was so lovingly laid out. His spiritual growth mirrored his growth in his personal power and confidence, and was a wonderful sight.

The last chapter, as we see his future laid out, warmed my heart. How can one not love a man like Israfel? I certainly came to love him, and his Nate. I do wish he had had one last scene with his brother Michael, but it in no way detracted from the story.

Ms. Blaydon has told a deep and rich story of love, growth and destiny while being true to oneself spiritually and emotionally. Difficult and touchy subjects, but handled oh so very well.

Nicely done. Worth the read - do not be worried by the seemingly slow start. This book build and then flies like a dove.

Tom

"Dawn in the Orchard"

2011-11-20T01:27:00.000-05:00

Review - "Dawn in the Orchard" by Coooper West

Nice slow build to a satisfying romance

Highly Recommended

Gary is a professional musician originally from a small town in the South but living in Chicago now. Not much holding him in Chicago - his closeted lover is dating women to make his family happy, he is sleeping on friends' couches, and his career is stalled since he suffers from crippling stage fright. So when his aunt dies and leaves him a farm back in North Carolina, he packs up and moves back home.

Chuck moved back home to North Carolina from Atlanta after college to help out his father. Oldest son, family expectations and needs keep Chuck firmly at home, raising his two children, running his antique store and overseeing the family businesses. And him firmly in the closet. His outlet for fun is playing fiddle at the Thursday night jam sessions at the local bar.

When Chuck and his father pay a call on Gary to make sure the agreement they have with Gary's aunt to harvest the pecans from the orchard on the farm still stands, the chemistry between the two sparks.

There are all sorts of reasons for something between the two men not to work. Family pressures. Small town narrow mindedness. Past failed relationships. Gary's music career in Chicago. Living closeted. Are there enough reasons, then, to try?

These are two men who have real life issues that must be addressed before anything real can develop between them. Gary's uncertainty about his career, then his refocused energy when his muse comes calling again. His fear of performing live. His lingering anger about his ex-partner jerking him in and out of the closet, then his hurt when the man dated a woman to keep his family happy. His ambivalence about staying in North Carolina. And most importantly, his fear Chuck would never acknowledge their relationship in public.

And Chuck. Divorced with two children to raise. A family business for which he has responsibility. A father and family who will not tolerate his being gay. And his unwillingness to step out and be what Gary needs. And have what he really wants.

Being a native Southerner, I can appreciate the sensibilities at play here, and the pressures to remain quiet about any gay relationship. The slow pace of life in the South was captured to a "T". What I appreciated was how Ms. West used our slower pacing to draw out the relationship building between the two men. So many writers have the main characters have an immediate spark which leads them into the bed and then madly in love within the first 20 pages. Not so here - we are treated to a nice slow build.

Perhaps most impressive, to me, was the realistic reactions these two men had to the pressures that wore on them. Anger, both at the circumstances and with each other. Fear, that the fragile bond they were developing would snap because of Chuck's family. Joy, at the connection their music gave them.

And then, love, slowly and gently acknowledged, a quiet surprise for both men. Ms. West used a deft hand here - these are two men I have met and known many times in my life. She got them right, and really, that is the highest best-est thing we can hope for, isn't it? That a writer shows us, as gay men, how we are, not how they think we should be. That takes love, and trust.

It's as sweet as the tea we so love here in the South. Job well done. Bravo, Ms. West.

Tom