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Congrats to Monica and Alex W, who won copies of Sidecar by Amy Lane! Sidecar is being released today by Dreamspinner Press.

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Contests

• Joyfully Jay’s giving away an ebook copy of Last Stop by Lou Harper. Contest closes 11:59 pm EDT, June 29.

• Hearts on Fire Reviews is giving away an ebook copy of Acrobat by Mary Calmes. Comment by June 30.

• Melanie’s giving away an eclectic mix of paperbacks as part of her TBR reduction (really there’s something for everyone) – go check out her list and comment by June 30.

• Joder’s giving away an ebook copy of I’ll Be Mated for Christmas by Rebecca Royce. Contest closes 11:59 pm CDT, June 30.

• Leontine’s giving away an ebook set of the Little Boy Lost series by JP Barnaby. Contest closes on July 2.

• Tracy’s giving away the following: Fulfilled by Lynda Bailey (closes 7 pm PDT, July 1); five people will win one of Carolyn Cade’s ebooks (closes 7 pm PDT, July 2); winner’s choice of ebook from Leslie Dicken’s backlist (closes 7 pm PDT, July 3).

• Ava March is giving away an ebook copy of her holiday m/m romance, My True Love Gave To Me (Brook Street #0.5). Closes midnight EDT, July 6.

• Brief Encounters Reviews is giving away m/m romances by Canadian authors in celebration of Canada Day. Contest closes 7 pm CDT, July 7.

• Blodeuedd’s giving away a copy of The Most Improper Sophie Valentine by Jayne Fresina. Closes July 15.

Bookity

• New releases and more: Elisa Rolle (LGBT), Tor.com (UF, genre-benders, scifi, fantasy), and Book Lovers Inc (romance etc).

• Book and publishing news from Dear Author and, of a more humorous bent, from Smart Bitches.

• Lots of links on self-publishing from The Book Designer.

• VacuousMinx on genre fiction and guilty pleasure reads.

• VacuousMinx’s take on the recent John Simpson fiasco at Goodreads.

• Penguin Girl on why you should support your local public library.

• LA Witt on how to write out of sequence.

• Tam tries to figure out how many publishers of m/m romance there are.

• Interesting discussion about m/m romance at Lamda Literary – make sure you read the comments, too. (via Eden Winters)

• Retro library posters. (via CRAFT)

• Terrifying book cover.

• R-rated films as children’s books.

Ebookity

• The Digital Reader compares Penguin’s history as an upstart publisher of paperbacks to their stance on ebooks today.

Think, Learn, Make, Do

• Why cheetahs are so darn speedy. (Thanks, Donna!)

• That fat-free salad dressing may be negating any nutritional benefits from your salad.

• If you’ve ever wondered why maple syrup bottles have those tiny, useless handles…

• Scientists have developed a way for people to type with their brains, no hands or voice commands required.

• How to fix the stupid things you do with your smart phone.

• If you’ve ever wondered how a microwave oven works…

• Use binder clips (or as one commenter suggests, clawed hair clips) to manage cables.

• Kraft’s getting backlash for the very cool Pride Day image it posted. Go buy some Oreos in support!

• How are you going to use your Leap Second on Saturday?

Cookity

• Nutella milkshakes. (via The Kitchn)

• Layered pumpkin cheesecake.

• Pie’n'ice cream sandwiches. (via The Kitchn)

• Sriracha lollipops. (via The Kitchn)

• Gluten-free coconut blueberry pound cupcakes.

• Pickled blueberries. (via The Kitchn)

• Roasted rhubarb and strawberries.

• Southwest chicken chop salad. (via The Kitchn) (Do you have any idea how hungry I get doing these posts?!)

• Southeast Asian spicy, tangy, and sweet rojack salad.

• Pad see ew. (via The Kitchn)

• Southern-styled pickled shrimp.

• Steak fajita bowls. (via Bron’s Pinterest)

• Non-processed mac’n'cheese for one in the microwave.

• 6 zucchini recipes.

• 10 foods to take hiking with you.

• 10 ways to eat peanut butter for breakfast. (I’m sticking with gf peanut butter toast, thanks.)

• 20 ways to enjoy summer veggies.

Drinkity

• Sparkling strawberry lemonade (with or without vodka). (via The Kitchn)

• Cantaloupe margaritas. (via The Kitchn)

Crafty

• Personalized Sharpie mugs have great gift potential. (via CRAFT)

• Crochet an angler fish.

• Crochet a cat cave (English directions at bottom). (via CRAFT)

• Sew a geek chic iPad case. (via CRAFT)

• Turn rocks into garden markers. (via CRAFT)

Cool

• Van Gogh’s Starry Night made from 7000 dominoes.

• LEGO Turing machine.

• R2-D2 yarnbomb.

• Storm trooper chair. (via The Mary Sue)

• The second episode of Doctor Whooves.

• Superhero tutus.

• Bamboo globe light.

• Blow bubble snakes instead of merely blowing bubbles. (via Apartment Therapy)

• A vintage tv turned into a cat bed (make sure you read the warning in comment #2).

• “10 badass LGBTQ characters from television.”

• If you use Chrome, you can pick a plot in Australia or New Zealand and build a little virtual LEGO something on it.

Cool or Wha…?

• Gotye/Star Wars parody video…

• “10 horror movie VHS boxes that scarred me for life.”

• Google’s artificial brain likes to watch cat videos.

Wha…?

• Let out your inner white trash self.

• Osaka, government workers, and tattoos.

• People planning to move to Canada because the US is getting universal healthcare… (Thanks, Brigitte! Are you sure you don’t them in Canada? I don’t think we’ll miss them…)

• Maybe they should’ve refunded her entire airfare…

• Leather chainsaw bag – nope, not a bag for a chainsaw.

• Zipper fashion fail.

• Jeans with a see-through pocket for your smartphone.

• Beer for dogs. (I saw a booth for this stuff at TCPride!)

• Possibly you will have nightmares.

• Eeeek! And eeeek!

LOL

• That’s my kinda grocery shopping.

• Indeed. (hover your cursor over the comic for additional text)

• Oh, snap!

• Hawk fight!

• New Simon’s Cat!

• But… Chaos hates everyone who isn’t me!

• Well, pooey.

• Hey, she should just be happy they’re using one of the cat beds.

Teh Cute

• Baby tiger! Lion and baby! Tiger and baby! Baby tiger! Tiger and baby! Kitten! Pride pup! Bunny! Jaguar and baby! Baby tigers! Leopard! Lions! Leopard and baby! Baby fennecs! Kitten! Skunk! Kitten! Baby penguins! Skunks! Bunny! Baby onager! Black kittens! Baby otter! Cat and kitten!

Reading Update
Into the Bermuda Triangle (Turbulence #1) by Jordan Castillo Price. free ebook short. serial. 5/13/2012: Very good short m/m paranormal setting the stage for future episodes of this serial about pilots who fly into the Bermuda Triangle. You are definitely left wanting more!
6/23/2012: I reread this before reading the second installment and am glad I did – not only did I get more out of it than I did the first time, it helped make things in the second installment clearer.
Autopilot Engaged (Turbulence #2) by Jordan Castillo Price. free ebook short. serial. The second installment of this paranormal m/m serial gives us more background on Dallas, how he ended up on this Bermuda Triangle flight, and what he thinks might be going on.
Boystown 4: A Time for Secrets by Marshall Thornton. ebook. Very good gay mystery in which Nick obtains information about a 25-year old murder that has dangerous current implications.
Fire on the Mountain (2nd ed) (The Mountains #1) by PD Singer. ebook. reread. Smokin’ hot m/m romance about two guys fighting forest fires together in the Rockies. I enjoyed the added flashback short story in this edition.
Fourth and Long by Chris Scully. ebook short. Sweet short timetravel romance about a guy whose life started going terribly wrong on the night of his high school prom. He doesn’t expect that to change on the night of his 20th high school reunion.
A Bar Tender’s Tale by Melanie Tushmore. ebook. Good m/m romance about a couple days in the life of a punk bartender as he progresses from a jerk boyfriend to a better boyfriend, even if said better boyfriend moves at a glacial pace.
Second Time Lucky (Middleton #2) by Ethan Day. ebook. Good m/m romance about two guys who run into each other years after things didn’t work out for them for no good reason in college. Can they keep that from happening again?
Bennie’s Wish by Xara X. Xanakas. ebook short. Good short m/m romance about a wealthy but wishy washy guy whose friends take shameless advantage of him and constantly put him down, so when a cute guy hits on him, he can’t believe it’s for real.
Half-Baked Promises (Castor Springs #1) by Erica Pike. free ebook short. Pretty good short m/m story about an auditor who has to spend a few days working in the small Texas town where he grew up, although he might never manage to finish the job if that hunky construction worker doesn’t stop making so much noise. This didn’t feel like a complete story – more like the first few chapters of a longer work.
Losing and Gaining by Heidi Champa. ebook. Ok m/m romance about a guy who’s always been obese until finally, at age 25 (two years before the story starts), he decides to reinvent himself by eating better, working out, getting a new job, and changing his name. Too bad you can’t escape the past quite that easily… I thought this had a lot of potential, but I got frustrated with the main character’s doormat nature. People using each other’s names too much in conversation was an additional frustration.

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“Why, yes, I am as mysterious as I appear to be.” -Mayhem

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Congrats to Tara R, who won Take Me Home by Sloan Parker!

Congrats to Michelle L, who won FUBAR (EMS Heat #12) by Stephani Hecht! FUBAR will be released by eXtasy Books on January 1.

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No Misadventure on Monday, which is another holiday for me!

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Contests

• Desert Island Keepers is giving away a grab bag of m/f romances and an ebook grab bag of m/m romances. Comment by midnight PST, December 31. Or comment by 7 pm PST that evening for the other grab bag of m/f romances.

• Joder’s giving away an ebook copy of Fate’s Second Chance by AJ Jarrett. Contest closes 11:59 pm CST, January 1.

• Wrapped Up in Books is giving away an ebook copy of The Forester by Blaine D. Arden. Comment by 9 pm CST, January 2, for your chance to win.

• Joyfully Jay is giving away an ebook copy of The Given & the Taken (Tooth & Claw #1) by LA Witt and an ebook copy of Noble Metals by LA Witt. Both contests close at 11:59 pm EST, January 3.

• Blodeuedd’s giving away Carrie Goes Off the Map by Phillipa Ashley. Contest closes January 5. US & Canada.

Bookity

• New releases and more: Elisa Rolle (LGBT), Tor.com (UF, “genre benders“, scifi, fantasy), AAR (romance print & audiobooks), and Book Lovers Inc (a little of everything).

• Book and publishing news from Dear Author.

• Writing and publishing linkity from Becky Black.

• Is the hashtag ruining the English language?

• Book sculptures.

• Embroider some bookmarks. (via CRAFT)

• Make a book stack necklace. (via CRAFT)

Ebookity

• You can get the newly revised 2.1 edition of Among the Living (PsyCop #1) for free through midnight CST on New Year’s Day. Go! Go now! I’ll wait… Did I mention that I just reread this one for the second time this year?

• As libraries and major publishers squabble, small publishers might be the winners.

• Dear Author’s primer for the new ereader owner.

• Spark in Darkness and Dear Author on the “entitled” reader.

• More about SOPA from Literary Escapism.

Do, Think, Learn, Make

• Simple hidden tricks that new iPad/iPhone owners should know.

• If you got a techy gadget gift for the holidays, chances are Lifehacker has a guide for setting it up.

• If you use your smartphone as an alarm clock, Winter Wake-Up will automatically wake you up earlier if it snows.

• Amazon has the 42nd fastest computer in the world… and it’s virtual.

• DrugCite makes it easy for you to look up prescription and OTC medications to check on side-effects and more.

• Glycerin or vinegar can help make itchy wool less itchy. I’ve successfully used unscented hair conditioner, too.

• The 25 films selected to be added to the Library of Congress this year. (via The Mary Sue)

• The gap between median net worth of members of Congress and the average net worth of American families continues to grow.

• Things that will cost more in 2012…

Drinkity

• Creamsicle mimosas. (via CRAFT)

• Toronto’s getting a gluten-free brewery! In the US, Dogfish Head will be releasing their gluten-free Tweason’ale four times a year.

• 6 hot toddies.

• 7 boozy desserts for your New Year’s Eve.

Cookity

• A tea strainer can make sifting powdered sugar on top of baked goods less messy.

• Chai tea eggnog cookies. (via Bron’s Pinterest)

• Eggnog pound cake. (via Bron’s Pinterest)

• Pumpkin pie cupcakes. (via Bron’s Pinterest)

• Peppermint bark cheesecake truffles. (via CRAFT)

• Nutella and sea salt fudge. (via CRAFT)

• Gluten-free cherry chocolate chip cookies.

Crafty

• Yarnbombing goes mainstream? (via KnittyBlog)

• Crocheted flower hair clips. (via CRAFT)

• Make a no-sew pet bed.

Cool

• Firefly and Neil Gaiman back free speech.

• Scrap metal Darth Vader sculpture. (via CRAFT)

• R2-Tutu. (via The Mary Sue)

• Obi-Wan’s home planet is named after Jon Stewart.

• Tardis pillows. (via CRAFT)

• Back to the Future Delorean usb flash drive.

• Interactive origami jellyfish swarm. (via CRAFT)

• Crocheted Krampus. (via CRAFT) Franklin has a knitted version of Krampus, too.

Cool or Wha…?

• Mini terrarium necklace.

• Human flamingo.

Wha…?

• Americans have purchased more than $41 billion in unused gift cards since 2005.

• The increasing number of men doing household grocery shopping means that stores are trying out “man aisles”…

• Fortunately, no one was injured when a gun went off in a teenager’s purse in a Wyoming Starbucks…

• At least I like the colors…

• For less than $200,000, you could have your very own classic Batmobile!

• In the early 20th century, you could buy radium-enhanced condoms…

• Marzipan pig.

• Eeeeek!! Eeeeeek!!

LOL

• 10 awkward text relationship fails.

• “Zombie survival tips for the holiday season” – how zombies can survive the holiday season? Or how you can survive zombie attacks during the holiday season?

• Parodies of The Dark Knight Rises trailer.

• Secret of the periodic table of the elements revealed!

• Portal Christmas tree.

• Cats as holiday tree ornaments.

• Yes, this. (via Bron’s Pinterest)

Teh Cute

• Kittens! Baby tigers! Kitten! Dalmatian and puppies! Kitten! Owlet! Kitten! Dog and cat! Dog and kitten! Kittens! Baby penguin! Kitten! Tiger and baby! Kitten! Lioness and cub! Swan and cygnets!

Reading Update
Among the Living (PsyCop #1) by Jordan Castillo Price. ebook. reread. Excellent m/m paranormal romantic suspense about a PsyCop, who can see ghosts even though he really would prefer not to. (This is one of my comfort rereads… you might’ve guessed, as it’s the second time I’ve read the book this year!)
Criss Cross (PsyCop #2) by Jordan Castillo Price. ebook. reread. Very good m/m paranormal romantic suspense that takes place a few weeks after Among the Living. Jacob’s staying with Vic while looking for a new condo, and Vic has a creepily eager-to-please new partner at work. (Second time I’ve read this book this year, too.)
Body and Soul (PsyCop #3) by Jordan Castillo Price. ebook. reread. Very good m/m paranormal romantic suspense in which Vic gets another new partner at work and Jacob continues hunting for an unhaunted place to live. (Second time this year, third time overall – as with the others.)
Secrets (PsyCop #4) by Jordan Castillo Price. ebook. reread. Very good paranormal m/m romantic suspense in which Vic and Jacob’s living situation changes dramatically and Vic stumbles upon an epic conspiracy. Do I need to repeat myself again?!
Jesse’s Christmas by RJ Scoot. ebook. Very good holiday m/m romance about a photographer who hates Christmas because his lover left him the previous Christmas, emptying his bank account and breaking his heart. Will he be able to get into the Christmas spirit for his assignment taking daily photos in “Christmasville”?? Bonus points to RJ for including a scene that matches the cover!
Home Ice by Kate Sherwood. ebook. Very good m/m romance about a closeted hockey coach trying to deal with working with his ex after not seeing him for ten years.
A Calling for Pleasure (Lars & Rael #1) (2nd edition) by JL Merrow. ebook (available 1/15/2012). Very good short paranormal m/m romance about two detectives for the Paranormal Enforcement Agency trying to track down a succubus who’s leaving a trail of dead guys behind her. The male detective (non-romantic detective pairing, not to worry!) becomes fascinated by a male succubus who’s picked up during the investigation… This was a fun start to a (currently) three-book series that I’m hoping JL adds to.
A Silence Kept by Theo Fenraven. ebook short. Very good short paranormal m/m romance about a guy who rents a place a bit off the beaten path for his summer weekend getaway after he catches his boyfriend cheating on him. He doesn’t really believe the place is haunted… at first.
Take Me Home by Sloan Parker. ebook. Good m/m romantic suspense about an author and a screenwriter who’ve been best friends since high school, even after a night together years ago left one brokenhearted and the other moving from guy to guy to avoid intimacy. As they take the train back to Ohio from Los Angeles for Christmas, they try to sort out the decades old mystery they’ve fallen into while figuring out whether they can trust each other if their relationship changes…
Puppy, Car, and Snow (Ryan & Scott #3) by Amy Lane. ebook. Good holiday m/m romance about two guys snowed in at a cabin for the holidays with one guy’s family, trying to deal with with his mom’s ongoing nasty comments to his boyfriend. I think enough background is provided in the book for those who haven’t read the previous two short stories.
Free to Fly by Belinda McBride. free ebook short. Good short kinky m/m romance about a guy who comes home from work planning to move out while his lawyer boyfriend is out of town for the weekend. But his boyfriend is still there, and their confrontation changes the course of their relationship.
Ten Things to Hate About Being a Werewolf by Vic Winter. ebook short. Good short paranormal m/m romance about a guy who was recently turned into a werewolf and hates everything about it.
Winning in a Landslide (Change #1.5) by JM Cartwright. ebook. Good holiday m/m romance that follows up on the sheriff, the rock star, and their two young adopted kids right after an extremely trying election. Something that once I noticed, I couldn’t un-notice – the two main characters just seemed to use each other’s names way too much.
Southern Winterland (By Degrees #1) by Taylor V. Donovan. ebook short. Good short holiday m/m romance about a gay guy who’s been distancing himself from his straight best friend after a drunken almost-kiss under the mistletoe the previous Christmas. This needed to be a bit longer!
The Gift of the Maggie by Belinda McBride. ebook short. Good short holiday m/m romance about a divorced rancher who has his very first boyfriend and is nervous about coming out to his kids.
A Picture Perfect Holiday by ZA Maxfield. ebook short. Good holiday m/m romance about a high school senior, president of the photography club, who has a crush on a straight football player.
Chance of Snow by Brynn Paulin. ebook short. Good short holiday m/m romance about two coworkers who share a steamy night together when their chartered bus can’t make it home during a big snowstorm.
A Summit City Christmas (Sno Ho #2.5) by Ethan Day. ebook short. Pretty good short m/m holiday romance about Wade and Boone’s first Christmas together. This really needed to be fleshed out more to be a coherent or satisfying narrative.
Nice: Christmas Mistletoe by M. Durango. ebook short. Good short holiday m/m romance about a guy who moved home to live with his parents and work at their Christmas tree lot after he was laid off. He runs into an old high school track buddy one night while he’s working at the tree lot… This felt a bit disjointed to me.
Blue River by Theo Fenraven. ebook short. Good short m/m holiday time travel romance about a photographer who walks through some mist and ends up in 1863, where he stays with an innocent young farmer and his sister. The thing I liked best about this book was that it didn’t gloss over historical details like people not bathing very often. I do have my doubts that greens stored in a root cellar would be lovely and fresh by December…
More Than Enough (More #2) by Shawn Lane. ebook short. Pretty good m/m romance about a guy in college who lives at home to run interference between his abusive alcoholic father and his younger sister. When a handsome jock asks him out, he’s sure it’s as a joke.
The Question by Sean Michael. ebook short. Good short m/m romance about two guys who’ve been best friends for years, but not romantically or sexually involved since their single disastrous attempt many years ago. This would’ve been more satisfying had it not been so very short.

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*blank* -Mayhem

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Congrats to Helena, who won Fanning the Flames (The Match Before Christmas #2) by Eden Winters! Fanning the Flames will be released by Torquere Press on May 7.

Congrats to Lynn, who won Sharing Paul (Portals #3) by Jade Archer! Sharing Paul will be released May 9 by Total-E-Bound.

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Contests

• Tracy’s giving away a copy of Tara Taylor Quinn’s It Happened on Maple Street. Comment by  7 pm PDT May 6 (today) to enter.

• Over at Amara’s place, Cat Grant’s giving away an ebook copy of her forthcoming m/m romance, A Fool for You, and a Nook. Contest closes 11:30 pm PDT, May 10.

• Amy’s giving away two tickets to see Cirque du Soleil in the Twin Cities on May 27. Contest closes midnight CDT, May 12.

• Leontine’s giving away your choice of a romance book/ebook released in May. Answer her question in the comments by May 16 for your chance to win.

Bookity

• New releases and more: Elisa Rolle (LGBT), Renee (various romance/UF/PNR), Fantasy Dreamer (ongoing list/calendar you can subscribe to for UF/PNR etc), AAR (romance audiobooks), and Book Lovers Inc (various romance/UF/PNR).

• Book and publishing news from Dear Author and book linkity from ReadReactReview.

• There’s going to be a Hyperbole and a Half book!

• Another good post from Kassa, this time suggesting that we focus on the authors who respect and do not trash reviewers instead of on badly behaved authors.

• Marie Sexton and Heidi Cullinan talk about snark online.

• Dear Author and Smart Bitches on cliffhangers. (Me? I hate them. I stopped reading Karen Marie Moning’s -fever series because of the cliffhangers.)

• Fiction Vixen explains how she keeps track of her books.

• If you haven’t read War for the Oaks by Emma Bull, go read this review at Smart Bitches to see why you should (besides that it takes place in my neighborhood!).

• For several months, Fleeting Pages will open a pop-up bookstore in an old Borders space in Pittsburgh to sell indie books.

• Make page-corner bookmarks with cute monsters on them.

• Book xylophone. (Thanks, Juni!)

• Minnesota House Majority Leader Matt Dean “launched a peculiar and unhinged attack on noted local author Neil Gaiman.” Here’s the comic book version of the incident (via Wyrdsmiths).

Ebookity

• Digital sales have increased Simon & Schuster’s profits.

Do, Learn, Make, Think

• West-central Minnesota had an earthquake last Friday!

• Some excellent thoughts from Minnesota Representative Steve Simon (DFL Hopkins/St Louis Park) on HF 1613, a proposed amendment to the Minnesota Constitution that “only a union of one man and one woman is valid or recognized as a marriage in Minnesota.” I know how I’m voting in 2012.

• Let the FCC know what you think about the proposed AT&T/T-Mobile buyout.

• A group gathered in Washington, D.C., to remind the FDA that we’re still waiting for their definition of gluten free, which was supposed to be released in 2008.

• Some foods can help keep weight off.

• Where you should live in order to avoid natural disasters.

• If you’ve always wondered how astronauts use a toilet in space…

• How to avoid spreading misinformation on the internet.

• The number of US households with tvs fell for the first time since 1992. Of course, by their definition (“TVs that aren’t hooked up to traditional programming sources don’t count as TV-having households”), I apparently don’t have a tv. *looks over at 27″ Sony non-tv*

Cookity

• Strawberry margarita popsicles sound pretty tasty, although using Mike’s Hard Lemonade means they’re not gluten-free.

• Solar system cake pops!

• Homemade Snickers bar.

• Homemade Cheez-Its.

• Use Jolly Ranchers to make some brightly colored flavored vodka.

• Extra-dark brownies.

• Gluten-free strawberry rhubarb crumble.

Crafty

• Crochet some flower coasters.

• Adding a crochet edging to tea towels gives them a vintage look.

• Make environmentally friendly cat toys.

• Surely you know a toddler who needs some knitted kitty pants?

• Make baby aprons instead of baby bibs.

• Make a vegetable patch quilt.

• Make and send tiny photo postcards!

• Make a Portal Sentry Turret egg cup.

• Geeky craft books: The Geek Dad’s Guide to Weekend Fun (NERF blowgun project), The Star Wars Craft Book, and World of Geekcraft.

Cool

• A knitted object so big it can be seen via Google Earth! (Thanks, Cheryl!)

• I’d love to see a movie about yarn graffiti.

• Cat/knitting/food linkity from Mrs. Pao.

• A wonderful quote.

• Maybe you need some new geeky wallpaper for your computer – everything from Batman to a TARDIS.

• The Popular Science DIY archives are sort of mindboggling. (via Gizmodo)

• A new Super Soaker that uses magazines to reload.

• If regular scissors just aren’t versatile enough, maybe you need Cuts+More Scissors.

• The Necono Cat Camera is now available in the US.

• Posters perfect for cat owners.

• Dr. Who shoes.

• A bottle opener with geeky gift potential.

Cool or Wha…?

• Skeletor belt.

• Elliptical bicycle.

• Anatomical fiber art.

• Soft serve ice cream tie.

• Networked Etch-a-Sketches.

Wha…?

• Did you celebrate Hairball Awareness Day (last Friday) by wearing jewelry made from cat hair? I didn’t, either.

• Creepy beetle backpack.

• Fashion mystifies me. I like the “Better” picture, though!

• Spectacularly ugly, creepy boots.

• Lobster bra.

• Kitchen sponge dress.

• Finger-nose stylus for touchscreens… (via Gizmodo) (Very Clockwork Orange-esque…)

• Loungers made from shopping carts do not look comfortable.

• Augmented reality tattoo?!

• Thermochromic urinal…

LOL

• The video in this post has one of the best (and certainly the one with the most cats) explanations of a voting system I’ve seen!

• Have you used the Lovecraft knot to tie a tie before? (Thanks, Juni!)

• I think this shall be my new favorite saying.

• Simon’s Cat super short.

• Aw, who wants to be on the rescue party!?

• LoTR-themed cat humor.

• Flee, kitteh, flee!

• Chaos is the evil twin…

• Yes, Chaos, it was my shoe…

• Whoops!

• Oh oh…

Teh Cute

• Video: Mama cat adopts baby red panda…

• Kitten silhouette! Hummingbird! Kitten! Sugar glider! Kittens! Mama and baby cheetahs! Kittens! Mama and baby jaguar! Kitten! Bull moose and cow moose! Alvin! Rainbow bee eater! Kittens! Bun! Bun! Kitten! Polar bear family! Kitten! Hedgie! Pygmy marmosets! Baby penguins! Fox kit!

Reading Update
Shifting Sands by Jet Mykles, Ally Blue, Willa Okati, JL Langley, Kimberly Gardner, & Brenda Bryce. ebook collection. Very good paranormal m/m collection about the cowboys of the Shifting Sands Ranch, who have been cursed to shift into animals from the Chinese zodiac each full moon. The stories were smoothly integrated, with the exception of one author who got carried away with the puns. Thanks to to Tam’s review for reminding me I had this one!
Some Kind of Magic by R. Cooper. ebook. Very good paranormal m/m romantic suspense about a werewolf detective who’s known for two years that the half-fairy consultant is his mate, yet hasn’t done anything about it because everyone knows that fairies don’t do anything for the long haul.
The Red Thread of Forever Love by Nicole Kimberling. ebook. Very good paranormal m/m romance about a Canadian folklorist traveling in Japan who has somehow attracted a very amorous spirit…
A Rose is a Rose by Jet Mykles. ebook. Very good m/m romance about a beautiful young man, just dumped by his sugar daddy, who becomes friends with the very sweet straight owner of his apartment complex. I got a little sniffly while I was reading this one.
Alphabet Soup by CB Conwy. ebook. Very good kinky m/m romance about a carpenter who keeps going to a BDSM club and hooking up with different Doms as he tries to get what he needs. He hasn’t been at all successful… and then he meets CK, who doesn’t behave like any of the other Doms. This story starts immediately after A Russian Bear and the free short Malaria, Cholera and Bubonic Plague takes place during this story.
Hotwired Heart (Tales from Rainbow Alley #1) by Jaime Samms. ebook short. Good short kinky m/m romance about a guy, trying to escape from his life as a gang member, who ends up in the Rainbow Alley part of town.
Finders, Keepers (Tales from Rainbow Alley, #2) by Jaime Samms. ebook. Good kinky m/m romance about a guy who’s inexperienced about bdsm and trusts the wrong Dom, who basically abuses him. This book would’ve worked better for me if it hadn’t been told in first-person, alternating between three different people. Also, stalker alert!
Fix This, Sir (Tales from Rainbow Alley, #3) by Jaime Samms. ebook. Very good kinky m/m romance about a guy who’s not doing so well recovering from a crippling injury on top of numerous other issues. I am so glad that this book was alternating third-person instead of the alternating first-person of the previous book! Made a huge difference for me. I was a little worried that this book suffered from Omniscient Dom Syndrome, but it turned out ok in the end.
A Helping Hand (Tennessee Cops #2) by Shayla Kersten. ebook. reread. This story of a closeted cop with a crush on his straight best friend was one of the earliest m/m romances I ever read, and I like to reread it periodically.
Mr. Plum by Sue Brown. ebook short. Sweet short m/m romance about two guys who always see each other at the same coffee shop and then in the train station before their morning commute. I love this cover.
Cup Check (Blue Line Hockey, #3) by Stephani Hecht. ebook short. Good short m/m romance about a deeply closet hockey player who’s terrified that coming out will ruin his chance of ever making it to the NHL.
Anything For You by Ethan Day. ebook. Good m/m romance about a deeply closeted ad exec who gets involved with a coming-out advocate. This generates some tension… Maybe it’s because they’re mostly (all?) written in first person, but Ethan Day’s books are starting to all feel the same to me.
Going the Distance (Driven to Distraction #2) by Anah Crow & Dianne Fox. ebook. Good short m/m romance following up with the professor and the mechanic who got together in Driven to Distraction as they sort out what they are to each other.
Sonoran Heat by Katrina Strauss. ebook. Good m/m romance about a guy in his 40s, recently single for the first time in nearly 20 years, who starts to date a much younger artist and student.
Wishing Star by Jambrea Jo Jones. ebook short. Cute short holiday m/m romance about a guy, sitting outside his stalled car in the middle of nowhere on Christmas Eve, who wishes on a star for true love and wakes to find himself miles away. This felt a bit rough due to some missing words and pronoun confusion.
Broken Rules (Broken #1) by Jade Buchanan. ebook. Good m/m romance about a guy who hasn’t been to his home town for ten years (ever since his parents kicked him out of the house when they discovered he was gay), but returns for his mom’s funeral and runs into his former best friend. I was frustrated by the sheer number of names introduced during the first third of the book. I’m not sure if that frustration was the reason I never fully connected with the characters or the story. Maybe.
Second Chance by Derek Adams. ebook short. Ok short m/m romance about a jogger and a cop who meet after the jogger chases down a burglar, then slowly get to know each other better.
Full Release by Marshall Thornton. ebook. Ok m/m mystery about an accountant who slowly realizes he’s being framed for a murder and tries to figure out who’s the actual killer. Unfortunately, he spent most of the book doing the most stupid thing he could in any given situation – TSTL characters frustrate me. A lot.

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“If you loved me, you would feed me right now and forget this whole ‘It’s not time for dinner’ thing.” -Chaos

Yup, linkity’s on Thursday because there won’t be a post on Friday this week. Happy New Year to all of you!

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Congrats to Tj, who won The Stroke of Twelve (Perfect Timing, Book 6) by Kim Dare! The Stroke of Twelve will be released by Total-E-Bound on January 3, 2011.

Congrats to Susmita, who won Offside Pass by Stephani Hecht! Offside Pass is the first book in Stephani’s new hockey series and will be released by eXtasy Books on January 1, 2011.

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Contest

• Tracy’s giving away a pdf copy of Karen Mercury’s m/m/f Western historical romance, Working the Lode, to someone who comments by 11:59 pm (PST), January 4.

Bookity

• New releases and more: Elisa (GLBT); SciFiGuy (UF/PNR, YA); Tor.com (UF/PNR, fantasy, scifi); and Literary Escapism (UF/PNR).

• Book linkity from Dear Author and ReadReactReview.

• Does the Library Journal article that listed some m/m romances to get libraries started on an m/m romance collection mean that the genre is gaining mainstream acceptance?

• Sign ups are now open for the 2011 M/M Romance Challenge.

• An American Editor wonders if Amazon has too much power.

• Aw, a lamp for your nightstand that’s shaped like a little house and your book becomes the house’s roof when you’re done reading for the night. Not quite so cute if you’re reading an ebook.

Ebookity

• The state of ebooks at the end of 2010. Some ebook publishing predictions for 2011 from Smashwords. The Electronic Frontier Foundation reviews its predictions from the beginning of 2010.

• Ebook readers are putting classics on best-selling (free) ebook lists.

• How to use your new ebook reader or iPad.  Helpful tips for new Kindle owners.

• How to do more with your Kindle.

• Make your own inexpensive iPad or ebook reader stand.

Think, Do, Learn, Make

• Gluten-free cookie recipes.

• Amazing bee facts! (Thanks, Jase!)

• Build a magnet-free compass from Legos.

• Two no-sew techniques for inserting a zipper into knitwear.

• Dealing with the compulsively neat person in your life.

• Turn the Christmas cards you received this year into Christmas postcards you can send next year.

• Some ideas for keeping the holiday spirit alive throughout the year.

• If you got a new gadget for Christmas, check out Gizmodo’s handy setup guides.

• You might be able to get rid of your texting plan by using one of these eight applications.

• Why one Gizmodo writer ditched iTunes for mp3s from Amazon.

• Idling your car for longer than 30 seconds isn’t a good thing.

• Are gift cards good gifts? Some tips on how not to waste gift cards.

• An infographic on the personal economics behind holiday gift giving.

• Is it better to “self insure” your pets than to buy pet insurance?

• Even if you know you’re getting a placebo, it can still work.

• Ack! The Nintendo 3DS can actually mess up kids’ eyes!

Best Of

• Craft 2010: Knitting & Crochet

• Craft 2010: Geek Crafts

• Doctor Who crafting

Belated Gift Idea

• Recreate your classic family photos.

Cool

• Fallingwater… in gingerbread.

• A rainbow making machine.

• A coffee table that splits in half to reveal storage.

• Amazing photo of running horses.

• Twenty hours of blizzard compressed into 38 seconds.

• Turn your crappy old kitchen cupboards into chalkboards.

• A Clockwork Orange Chucks!

• Nothing says geek quite like percentile dice hanging from your rearview mirror…

• Cheryl continues to outfit her Barbies in high style. (The kitty is my favorite addition to Barbieland!)

• If you’re having trouble coming up with New Year’s resolutions, this handy generator might help. (via Paperback Writer)

Huh

• 2010′s silliest sales taxes.

• Um. If it’s cold enough that you’re using the Nose Dialer instead of taking off your gloves to dial the phone, you’re probably going to get snot all over your phone…

• Male/female plug rings (not as dirty as you’re thinking)…

• CDs that look like lunch meat…

• Panther paw/claw boots…

• Pink “shoehawk” heels…

LOL

• The secret beind bad GPS directions.

• Pets and the Christmas tree…

• Poor Ceiling Cat!

• Woe the unladen swallow!

Teh Cute

• Kitties! Baby bun! Baby cougars! Kitten! Squirrels! Tiger cub! Bunny! Charlene Butterbean! Kitten! Cheetah! Kittens! Baby reindeer! Baby penguins! Kitten! Baby chinchilla!

Reading Update
Ummm… So I’ve been on vacation since last Friday and have gotten rather a lot of reading done… and I read a lot of shorts. Don’t freak.

Life Changes Everything (Life, Book 2) by T.C. Blue. ebook. Very good m/m romance mostly about Ben from Life or Something Scary Like That as he goes on with, well, life after the events of that book. This book does a nice job tying up the loose ends, even if I was kind of cranky about one of them while it was in process.
Sno Ho by Ethan Day. ebook. Reread. Very good m/m romance about a guy staying at a ski resort whose boyfriend was supposed to join him there, but instead dumped him over the phone. Funny, yet touching.
Life in Fusion (Sno Ho, Book 2) by Ethan Day. ebook. Very good m/m romance that picks up exactly where the first book left off and continues the story of Boone and Wade during the six months Boone said needed to pass before he would move in with Wade. And like the first book, this manages to be both funny and touching.
Big Balls and Trouble by Sarah Black. ebook short. Good short m/m romance about a pro football player who’s in Boise for the summer and ready to admit that he’s always loved the childhood friend he hasn’t seen for years. I found this story frustrating because it was so short – it felt more like a fragment from a longer story than something that could stand on its own.
Tooth and Nail (His Hearth, Book 2) by Mary Calmes. ebook. Very good paranormal m/m romance about a big, tough warder who takes too many chances because, according to the other warders, he doesn’t have a hearth (i.e., a mate). And then he rescues an angel…
Just One Bite (Volume 1) by Scarlett Blackwell, J.L. Merrow, Josephine Myles, Erik Orrantia, Nix Winter, & Stevie Woods. free ebook collection. Scarlett Blackwell: Very good, want more! Vampire. :: J.L. Merrow: Very good. Stone circle. :: Josephine Myles: Very good. Genie. :: Erik Orrantia: Pretty good. Mayan. :: Nix Winter: Ok. Fantasy. :: Stevie Woods: Pretty good. Vampire.
Delany’s Catch by Diana DeRicci. ebook short. Pretty good short paranormal m/m romance about a wolf shifter who walks into a bookstore to ask for directions and realizes that the proprietor is his mate.
Same Time Next Year by Eden Winters. ebook short. I’m not usually a fan of ghost stories, but this one, about a guy whose true love died when they were in college, worked pretty well, although I found it to be very sad.
Vanilla: The Dominant Ingredient by Andy Slayde & Ali Wilde. ebook. Very good m/m romance about a sub-for-hire, escaped from a bad situation, who is desperately trying to convince the man he’s staying with while he sorts out his life that he’d be the perfect sub. I want to read more about these characters!
Commanding Acquisitions (1-800-DOM-HELP, Book 2) by Christine d’Abo. ebook. Good kinky m/m romance about a dom, struggling not to lose his bookstore, who’s also lonely and needing something more than just casual encounters. He finds the mysterious 1-800-DOM-HELP business card in his office…
Floggers’ Holiday Sale by Stormy Glenn & H.C. Brown. ebook. Meh two-story kinky m/m holiday romance collection. The two stories were supposed to be about two different doms, each of whom purchased a sub at the Floggers’ (bdsm club) holiday auction, but things weren’t consistent between the two stories: in one, the dom’s not allowed to take possession of the sub until they both negotiate contracts; in the other, the club owner sends the virginal sub with the notoriously brutal dom and just tells the dom to bring the sub back to the club at the end of the week. Editing was consistently horrible across both stories, although perhaps a bit worse in the Stormy Glenn story – for the first part, “dominate” was substituted for “dominant” and “dominant” was substituted for “dominate”…
Hang a Shining Star by Ashlyn Kane. ebook short. Very good m/m holiday romance about a high school teacher who runs into a former student working at a Christmas tree lot and, discovering that the former student has no one to spend the holiday with, impulsively invites him over. My only complaint with this one was that the main characters were named Evan and Eric – I kept getting the names mixed up, as did the editor/proofer at least once!
Snow and Mistletoe by T.C. Blue. ebook short. Very good short m/m holiday romance about a guy with a really bad self-image who hasn’t had any luck finding journalism work. He starts finding mysterious presents outside his apartment door – he’s sure they’re from his friends, trying to cheer him up, because no way could he have a secret admirer…
Christmas with Danny Fit by Amy Lane. ebook. Very good m/m holiday romance about a guy who’s still living with his mother at 30, not really living his life, until his burgeoning friendship with his sexy assistant at work inspires him to start making changes.
You Can’t Choose Your Family by Zahra Owens. ebook. Very good holiday m/m romance about a couple who’s been together for 20 years. One guy’s family is fabulously accepting; the other’s was controlled by his fire and brimstone father. Now that his father is dead, will anything change?
Christmas Bells by Andi Deacon. ebook short. Very good short m/m holiday romance about an assistant professor, staying at his parents’ house for Christmas, whose brother brings home a very attractive friend from grad school who doesn’t have anywhere to go for the holidays.
Silver Thaw by Nora Catherine Price. ebook short. Very good short m/m holiday romance about next door neighbors who get the chance to know each other a bit better because of an ice storm.
Sharing Christmas by Shae Connor. ebook short. Steamy short m/m holiday romance about a guy, recently moved to Atlanta for work, whose next door neighbor invites him over to help put together packages for the homeless shelter.
The Santa Mug by Patric Michael. ebook. Very good m/m holiday romance about a guy whose boyfriend died four years ago and who’s basically retreated from the world since then, until a friend drags him along to a family Thanksgiving celebration.
A Very D Christmas by Jane Seville. ebook short. Very good short m/m holiday romance about D and Jack from Zero at the Bone, reconnecting with family, and being a bullied teenager. (Through 1/31/2011, a portion of the purchase price will be donated to the Trevor Project.)
The Christmas Visit by Marshall Thornton. ebook short. Good short m/m holiday romance about a guy returning to the small town he grew up in to see his dad at Christmas. He keeps running into the deputy who he’d had a crush on and who is now married…
Secret Santa by Deanna Wadsworth. ebook short. Steamy short m/m holiday romance about a guy waiting naked, blindfolded, and wrapped up with a bow as a present for his boyfriend, hoping to revitalize their fading relationship.
Well-Hung by the Chimney by E.M. Lynley, Ryan Field, & Chloe Stowe. ebook. Pretty good m/m holiday romance collection. I really liked EM Lynley’s story about the difficulties involved in mixing business with pleasure. Ryan Field’s story about a couple dealing with career changes and meeting family was ok. I found Chloe Stowe’s story about an Air Force colonel and a doctor at the Air Force base to be sort of confusing. I might’ve enjoyed Field and Stowe’s stories more had I realized they were about characters from a previous collection and read it first.
A Little Something for Santa by J.M. Snyder. ebook short. Ok short m/m holiday encounter about a guy waiting tables at an all-night diner who confesses to the cook that he has the hots for Santa.
A Christmas Eve Wish by Nicole Dennis. ebook short. So-so m/m holiday romance about a celebrity chef, planning to escape to his mountain cabin for a few days, who gets caught in a blizzard and discovers his cabin is trashed. This one didn’t work for me because of instalove and awkward writing.
All I Want for Christmas by Aeryn Traxx. ebook short. So-so short holiday m/m romance about a guy dreading his friends’ holiday party because his cheating ex will be there.
It’s a Calling by Mara Ismine. ebook short. Ok short paranormal m/m romance that I actually read in October, but I somehow managed to not write down the dates I read it or what I thought about it beyond “Huh.”
My Life in Your Hands by A.R. Moler. ebook short. Very good short m/m romance about an ER doctor and an undercover detective who get together.
Eyes Wide Shut by Meredith Shayne. ebook short. Very good short m/m romance about a doctor and a miner who care deeply for each other, but that’s not enough, because the miner doesn’t want anyone to know they’re together. Part of this takes place in Perth!
Of Sound Mind by Elizabeth Brooks. ebook short. Good short futuristic m/m romance about a guy who has cancer and doesn’t want to telepathically bond with his destined mate because if he dies, his mate would die with him.

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This is definitely a picture you need to click on to embiggen.

“Have a Happy New Year. Or else.” -Chaos

So the best thing about being the last person reporting in on a vacation trip is that so much has already been written about it by others. Please note that some of the links below will have NSFW components!

• Some of my snapshots, as previously posted.
• Kris on all sorts of things.
• Jen on Yaoi-Con.
• Tam on all sorts of things.
• Tracy on all sorts of things – includes video of me eating broccoli and the now infamous chocolate-covered macaroon video (it violated Photobucket’s terms of service!). (Please note that while those are my hands in the macaroon video, Tracy’s doing the voiceover.)

For some reason we took our group photo after Tracy left – from the left, me, Jen, Tam, and Kris:

And here’s Tracy at Yaoi-Con, with some yaoi clutched in her hand and a mysterious pink-haired person sitting next to her:

Does anyone know what the heck this gelatinous blob, found amongst the washed up seaweed on the beach at Carmel, could be?

Look at the tasty gf beer in a frosted glass I had at Allegro Gourmet Pizza in Carmel! (Alas, no photos exist of the delicious gf bacon cheeseburger pizza I devoured there.) (And yes, that is CarrieK‘s arm across the table – I had the chance to hang out with her for a few days, too. I think we knitted together for maybe 20 seconds or so.)

Check out the yummy gf veggie panini and gf red velvet cupcake I ate at Cafe Mariposa!

Meeting blog friends is always wonderful. I would go on vacation with them again, should I ever have the chance.

The best part about Yaoi-Con was meeting all the authors! I’m pretty sure I’ll miss someone, so please forgive me in advance. I met Clare London, Felicitas Ivey, Marie Sexton, Lynn Flewelling, Andrew Grey, Mary Calmes, Amy Lane, TC Blue, ZA Maxfield, Belinda McBride, EM Lynley, Astrid Amara, Ginn Hale, Nicole Kimberling, Rowan McBride, and… *mind goes blank*

The chocolate-covered macaroons from Hot Cookie were the best I’ve ever had… and they’re even available in less graphic shapes than the video might suggest.

San Francisco is really, really hilly. You can’t properly appreciate that until you’ve been on a death march with Kris or Tracy.

It’s hard to resist the HRC Store – such a great cause, amazing staff, and cool stuff.

I barely get motion sick at all on electric buses. Damn diesel fumes on regular buses!

NaNoBloMo may kill me, compulsive commenter that I am. Alas, NaNoBloMo peeps, I’m not going to be able to comment on all your posts, no matter how much I’d like to. In part, that’s because work is going to get progressively more crazy throughout the month.

My beloved car experienced brain death while I was on vacation. It is currently awaiting a brain transplant. Please think happy healthy car thoughts for me, ‘k? Also, why the heck would you put a woman who begged for a junker loaner into a 2011 BMW?! *takes deep breaths*

Reading Update
Bedtime Story for a Stolen Child by Anna Mayle. ebook. Excellent m/m dark fantasy about a man, stolen by the Fae when he was a child, who returns to the human world to confront the Changeling who took his place. Recommended.
The Trap by Indigo Wren. ebook. Very good m/m romance about two college roommates, best friends, who planned to start a technology company together… until one of them basically flees into the night without a word. And that’s all I’m going to say about it, because part of what really drew me into this story was having events unfold for me, without really knowing what was going to happen.
Blacque/Bleu by Belinda McBride. ebook. Very good paranormal m/m romance about a deeply closeted werewolf (because there supposedly aren’t any gay werewolves) who gets involved with a vampire… and then his pack responsibilities become more pressing.
The Strength of a Gamma (Pack Discipline, Book 2) by Kim Dare. ebook. Very good kinky paranormal m/m romance about two gamma wolves who are best friends with deeper feelings for each other, but one of them doesn’t believe that he’s good enough to be the other’s mate.
Almost Heaven by Kimberly Gardner. ebook. Very good m/m romance about a guy who’s training for the priesthood and teaching at a parochial high school until his reaction to the much older brother of one of his students has him doubting his chosen path. I had a small niggle about this one, which could’ve been handled with one sentence about how the Ryan situation was resolved.
Trust Me by Jeff Erno. ebook. This m/m romance was a very mixed read for me. I really liked the base story, about two boys, one extremely religious, growing up in the 80s and trying to come to terms with their attraction to other boys. But I kept feeling as if I were being drawn into the story, only to be shoved out again, perhaps because there was too much telling and not enough showing? Additionally, the story had these odd, very meta-feeling lecturey interludes that did not work for me at all.
Manfred’s Curse by Shawn Lane. ebook short. Cute short paranormal m/m romance about a guy getting freaked out by the weird storm he’s weathering alone, with only his black cat Manfred to keep him company…
Eat Me by Mia Watts. ebook short. Good short paranormal m/m romance about a man who was cursed 400 years ago to live as domestic lynx belonging to a family of witches. All that remains of the family is a single male descendant, who doesn’t seem to have any curse-breaking magic… I wish this story had been just a bit longer, because the ending happened way too fast.
Oliver and Angus (Shifting Perspectives, Book 1) by Nerine Petros. ebook short. Short paranormal m/m romance with lots of potential that wasn’t quite realized, primarily because too much story was crammed into too few pages, giving the story a very choppy feel. Hopefully the next story about the dingo shifters who’ve sought asylum in a wolf shifter-controlled town in the Australian Outback will be longer, or at least have more transitions and exposition.
Unbound (Bonded II) by Jay Lygon. ebook. Good paranormal m/m romance continuing the story of Viking vampire and romance novelist, Brandr, and his vampiric go-go boy housemates. Read the other books first, because in this one, questions are answered and it will make more sense if you know the questions before you get the answers.
Faerie Bound by Jenna Castille. ebook. Good kinky paranormal m/m romance about an Alpha wolf shifter and pack leader who’s been hiding his need to be mastered because other shifters would think him weak and challenge him. How will he balance his needs and those of his pack as he seeks his mate? I’m pretty sure there are additional books planned, based on where part of the storyline was left at the HFN end of the book.
The Horror in Dunwich Hall by Johnny Murdoc. ebook short. Good steamy short Lovecraftian m/m story. I absolutely love the first two lines: “There was a naked jock on my bed and a thing with tentacles coming out of my toilet. One of these things did not belong, and if you tell me that it was the naked jock, you shouldn’t be reading this story.” You can read it for free online.
I Take Thee by Zoe Nichols. ebook short. Good short m/m romance about a guy, addicted to E and pot, whose boyfriend has just returned from treatment and is dedicated to staying clean.
Chainbreaker by Kate Roman. ebook short. Very good short m/m romance about a San Francisco bike messenger and his boyfriend.
Someplace in This World, edited by Lee Benoit. ebook collection. Good m/m romance collection about finding the place (or person) where you belong and feel safe and happy.
What You Can’t Live Without by Eden Winters. ebook short. Doctors Without Borders Charity Sip Blitz. Sweet m/m romance about a rich doctor who can’t understand why the doctor he desires has chosen to return home to El Salvador to help his family, rather than staying to become rich in the US.
Where a Hand Is Always Needed by Kara Larson. ebook short. Doctors Without Borders Charity Sip Blitz. Good short m/m story about a teenager visiting family in the Outback, trying to sort out whether he’s gay.
Marked by Sean Michael. ebook. Ok paranormal m/m romance about two werewolves who are mates, but who have been separated for ten years, living half lives, because one can’t shift and was cast out from the pack. If the word “mate” had been used half as many times, it would still have been excessive. Unpleasant as this cover image is, it’s an actual, unmodified stock photo. Ewww!
A Real Boy by J.L. Merrow. free ebook short. Enjoyable (and free) twisted m/m retelling of Pinnochio, with a few other stray fairy tales thrown in around the edges.
Pricks and Pragmatism by J.L. Merrow. ebook. Very good m/m romance about a guy who’s almost done with his university degree. He has no money, so he’s been staying with various guys, basically exchanging sex for food and lodging. But what’s up with the nerdy engineer he’s just moved in with, who doesn’t seem interested in him in that way?
Corruption by Jack Greene. ebook short. Steamy short m/m romance about a straight guy who finds himself unaccountably drawn to a woman dancing in the club Corruption… even after he realizes the woman is actually a twinky boy.
My Girl by Stormy Glenn. ebook. Why do I torture myself so?!? Meh m/m romance about a guy hiding as a woman in witness protection. The weird references to GA Hauser and her books were annoying (rather like a GA Hauser commercial) and the plot holes were classic Stormy Glenn.
Needing Harte (1-800-DOM-help, Book 1) by Marilu Mann. ebook. So-so kinky m/m romance about a closeted cop who’s intensely attracted to a submissive stripper during an investigation and is subsequently given the 1-800-DOM-help number to help him learn about bdsm. This would’ve been much better without the insta-love and an odd bit of woo-woo related to the 800 number.
At Piper’s Point by Ethan Day. ebook. Ok m/m romance about a guy who finally returns to the island where he spent his childhood summers with his unorthodox grandmother. He’s planning to quietly spread her ashes and set her house in order before he leaves in the fall, but things don’t quite go as he’d hoped. I would’ve enjoyed this book more if it had been a bit shorter and more focused.
Blood Heat (Dangerous Ground, Book 3) by Josh Lanyon. ebook. Good romantic suspense in which our agents try to bring in a suspected terrorist and everything that can go wrong does.
River of Need (Tennessee Cops, Book 4) by Shayla Kersten. ebook. Ok m/m romance about a cop who bails out his ex, who’s been picked up for prostitution. I wanted a bit more from this story – a bit more length, a bit more depth.

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…..zzzzzzzz….. -Mayhem

Apparently May’s plan to stake out my suitcase and prevent me from leaving again was more exhausting than she anticipated…