Tag Archives: TC Blue

Ebook giveaway: The Butt Ninjas from Hell anthology by Kage Alan, JP Barnaby, Ally Blue, TC Blue, Shae Connor, Jevocas Green, Kiernan Kelly, & Eden Winters [CONTEST CLOSED]

Many thanks to Eden Winters for donating an ebook copy of the Butt Ninjas from Hell anthology by Kage Alan, JP Barnaby, Ally Blue, TC Blue, Shae Connor, Jevocas Green, Kiernan Kelly, & Eden Winters for a lucky commenter to win!

Porn stars, holy emissaries, demons, and even just plain human – ­ninjas come in all forms and from all kinds of Hell in this erotically charged comedic Wilde City anthology! Whether it’s the world of second-rate television, fluttering ninja stars, obsessions over a bronzy-olive toned soldier, or magic backsides, your authorial guides will take you where few readers have ever dared to go…without protection.

Kage Alan, JP Barnaby, Ally Blue, TC Blue, Shae Connor, Jevocas Green, Kiernan Kelly, & Eden Winters bring you…Butt Ninjas From Hell.

You’ll Never Hear Them Coming!

Contest Rules

  • To enter, leave a comment below stating that you are entering the contest. Contest closes 7 pm CDT, Tuesday, April 29.
  • By entering the contest, you’re confirming that you are at least 18 years old.
  • If you haven’t commented before, your comment will not be visible until after I moderate it. Please do not leave a second comment because your first doesn’t show up! The blog gnomes will decide your comments are spam and then only luck and counterintuitive espionage will salvage your entry…
  • If your comment is actually an advertisement or if your CommentLuv link turns it into an advertisement, your comment will be deleted. (Most of you do not need to worry – this refers to some pretty clever comment spam.)
  • Winner will be selected by random number.
  • You must leave a valid email address in the “Email” portion of the comment form.
  • Please make sure that your spam filter allows email from stumblingoverchaos.com!
  • If a winner doesn’t respond to my congratulations email within 48 hours, I will select another winner.
  • If you win, please respect the author’s intellectual property and don’t make copies of the ebook for anyone else.
  • This contest is open worldwide!

Chaos apparently can’t decide if he should purr or make someone bleed…

“You’ll just have to wonder until it’s too late.” -Chaos

Alas, poor linkity, we knew it well



Since I never heard back from the first winner, Jaime Samms is the new winner of Ambush (True Colors #2) by Clare London!

Congrats to Dorome, who won The Rare Event by PD Singer! The Rare Event is being released today by Dreamspinner Press.

Congrats to Cole, who won For the Living by L.A. Witt! For the Living will be released on April 1 by Amber Allure.

Congrats to Erica Pike, who won Queen’s Man by K.D. Sarge! Queen’s Man will be released by Turtleduck Press on April 1.



Contests

Bookity

Ebookity

Think, Learn, Make, Do

Cookity

Crafty

Dangerity

Cool

Cool or Wha…?

Wha…?

LOL

Teh Cute

Reading Update
A Ring and a Promise by Devon Rhodes. ebook short. Very good short m/m romance about two guys in the military who start a friends with benefits relationship as cadets… but what will happen after they’re commissioned and sent in different directions? I got a little sniffly on this one.
Cold Turkey by Zebbie. free online. Very good m/m romance about two guys who dance around their attraction to each other, but are too stubborn and proud to admit to any such weaknesses. Be aware that this just barely has an HFN ending.
No Other Life Than This by podga. free online. Very good m/m romance about a fifty-ish guy who’s resistant when his best friend wants to set him up with a date for said best friend’s third wedding. This could’ve used a bit of groveling and explaining near the end, but it managed to work without that.
A Year Full of Days by seventhswan. free online. Very good m/m romance that follows up with Nate from The Side Effects of Forgetting, who isn’t doing very well at all watching Kellan date Will.
I Know What I’m Doing by AzanianHeat. free online. Very good m/m romance about a guy on holiday who unexpectedly runs into the straight guy he once made out with in university five years prior… the straight guy who fled, but hasn’t been able to forget their encounter. Set in South Africa, which was a refreshing change of pace.
Gambling on Maybe (The GlitterBomb #1) by Fae Sutherland. ebook short. reread. Very good short m/m romance about a delightfully flamboyant guy who decides he needs to add some sparkle to a closeted cop’s life. My only complaint was that I wanted more!
Games Boys Play (The GlitterBomb #2) by Fae Sutherland. ebook short. Cute short m/m romance following up on “the gayest of the gay boys” Zach and “Officer Hotness”. As others have mentioned, it was just too short – these two could’ve filled a novel. 🙂
Coming Out With the Truth by zolia_lily. free online. Good m/m romance about a writer who moves to a small town after he’s dumped by his boyfriend for a woman, then gets involved with someone deeply closeted.
The Good Old Boy by Carson Shepherd. free online. Good m/m romance about a guy who returns to the small town he grew up in (and fled years ago) after he loses his job, gets dumped by his boyfriend, and breaks his arm.
I Read a Lot by lill_street_writer. free online. Sweet m/m romance about an intense guy who mostly reads during his free time, not really needing to be around others until he meets an intriguing bookstore clerk. This story had some missing words and letters that were an ongoing, lowgrade annoyance.
Life Between Day and Night by podga. free online. Good, but very short, m/m romance about dancing around the edges of attraction, not wanting to ruin a friendship.
All That Matters by podga. free online. Good short m/m romance about two closeted colleagues, one of whom is married, who work for an international corporation and travel a lot.
Chicks Just Get in the Way by Carson Shepherd. free online. Steamy short m/m/m scene that takes place when things don’t go at all as the scheming friend planned. Be aware that there’s dubious consent in this one.
Happy World by Kiernan Kelly & Tory Temple. ebook. Good m/m romance about a guy who works at Happy World (basically Disney World) and rigidly follows the rules until a free-spirited trainee disrupts his routine and gets under his skin.
Dharma Cafe by Jessica Freely. ebook. Good paranormal m/m romance about sorcerers and demons and food magic and dreams that you should possibly not read if french fries are your favorite food. The writing was very simplistic, but I got sucked into the story anyway.
Po’ Boys by Lydia Nix, Kiernan Kelly, TC Blue, Julia Talbot, & BA Tortuga. ebook. Ok collection of m/m romance stories (one paranormal) set mostly in New Orleans. I mostly kept reading because I was feeling too lazy to not keep reading…
Fire by DWSimon. free online. Meh short m/m romance about a closeted firefighter who never sleeps with the same guy twice. There was plenty of poorly written sex, instalove, and the arson subplot wasn’t resolved.


“This spot was a lot more pleasant when the heat was on…” -Mayhem

Linkity of the Doomed



Congrats to Fehu, who won Crescendo (Song of the Fallen #2) by Rachel Haimowitz!

Congrats to SueM, who won Men Under the Mistletoe by Ava March, Josh Lanyon, Harper Fox, and KA Mitchell! Men Under the Mistletoe will be released on December 5 by Carina Press. (The stories will also be released separately.)

Congrats to Tracey D, who won While Under the Influence (Perfect Timing #8) by Kim Dare! While Under the Influence will be released by Total-E-Bound on December 5.


Not enough linkity for you today? You could check out last week’s poor neglected linkity… 😉



Contests

Bookity

Ebookity

Think, Do, Make, Learn

Holidity

Gift Guidity

Cookity

Crafty

Cool

Cool or Wha…?

Wha…?

LOL

  • Toilet paper personality types. (Hmm. I have to keep the toilet paper in the cabinet under the sink, protected by a childproof lock, or Chaos turns it into confetti.)

Teh Cute

Reading Update
Men Under the Mistletoe by Ava March, Harper Fox, Josh Lanyon, & KA Mitchell. ebook collection. Another exceptional collection of holiday-themed m/m romance from Carina Press. Ava March’s historical was very good. (Poor Sasha! Then… poor Thomas!) Harper Fox’s story drew me in slowly, then seduced me utterly. So good! Its excellent epilogue should serve as the standard to which all other epilogues should strive. Josh Lanyon’s story was a pretty good read, but left me with too many unanswered questions to be truly satisfying. Finally, KA Mitchell’s story kept me wondering how things were going to turn out until the absolute end.
Winter Warmers by Clare London, Chrissy Munder, Lou Harper, Josephine Myles, & JL Merrow. ebook collection. This m/m romance holiday collection is perfectly titled – these are heartwarming, cozy tales that will help you find your holiday spirit as you curl up on your couch with your ebook reader. (Yes, they are also sexy tales. I know you were wondering!) 😉
Simple Gifts (Cornwall Novellas #2) by LB Gregg. ebook short. Very good short m/m holiday romance about an emotionally closed off bar owner who’s dragged to a holiday party, where he runs into the guy who loved and left him for the military without a word ten years ago.
Dudleytown (Cornwall Novellas #1) by LB Gregg. ebook short. reread. Very good Halloween-themed m/m romance about some college students taking a “shortcut” on their drive home for the weekend. Things go a bit more spectacularly awry than is usual for such shortcuts… Plenty of trademark L.B. humor and insight make for an entertainingly suspenseful read.
Trompe L’oeil by KC Burn. ebook. Very good paranormal m/m romance about a history professor who’s been a bit of a hermit since he dumped his cheating boyfriend six months ago. When he moves into a new apartment, his sister gives him a mysteriously compelling nude portrait of a Depression-era artist…
“A Calling for Pleasure” (Lars & Rael #1) by JL Merrow (from The Care and Feeding of Demons). short from ebook collection. I just read “A Calling for Pleasure” because it’s the first story in an m/m paranormal romance series by J.L. Merrow about two detectives for the Paranormal Enforcement Agency. In this short, the detectives are after 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 (why didn’t they just call him an incubus?!) who’s picked up during the investigation…
A Blast from the Past (Lars & Rael #2) by JL Merrow. ebook. Good short paranormal m/m romance in which the detectives are trying to catch a demonic firestarter.
A Wish Too Far (Lars & Rael #3) by JL Merrow. ebook. In this one, our detectives are after a mysterious person who’s making and pushing pills that grant wishes… slightly twisted.
Broken Memories (In the Shadow of the Wolf #2) by Diane Adams & RJ Scott. ebook. Good paranormal m/m romance about the wolf shifter rescued at the end of the last book, who’s terrified of shifting and can’t remember much from before his rescue. I don’t think this book was long enough for the amount of story being told. At times, things seemed to jump ahead inexplicably, as if parts were missing.
Someone Special by TC Blue. ebook. Good holiday m/m romance about a photographer working as a Santaland elf who gets involved with a somewhat prickly, time-crunched guy also working as an elf. This started out much stronger than it finished – the last 1/4 of the book got painfully sugary and repetitive.
Tribe (Todd Mills #2) by RD Zimmerman. Pretty good gay mystery in which an old friend of Todd’s reveals secrets kept since their college days as some creepy fundamentalists with nefarious intent close in. I didn’t like this as much as I liked the first book – way too much time spent with the creepy fundamentalists.
Working It Out by Sara York. ebook. Meh m/m romance about a gym owner whose partner died six months ago. He’s surprised to find himself with feelings for a handsome closeted doctor. Such a frustrating read! The main characters’ intentions and emotions seemed to flip flop on every page. There were not one but two psycho women intent on seducing the gay main characters. The writing was choppy and simplistic. *sigh*


“What a long week! I’m exhausted!” -Mayhem

The land that linkity forgot



Congrats to jayhjay, who won Broken Memories (In the Shadow of the Wolf #2) by RJ Scott & Diane Adams! Broken Memories will be released by Silver Publishing on November 26.

Congrats to Brandi R, who won More Than Enough (More #2) by Shawn Lane! More Than Enough will be released by Amber Allure on November 27.



Contests

Bookity

  • Alas, Anne McCaffrey died this week. My very first hardcover purchase was her book The White Dragon, which I still have. It cost… $8.95 and appears to be valued a bit above that now.

Ebookity

Think, Do, Learn, Make

Holidity

Cookity

Cool

Cool or Wha…?

Wha…?

LOL

Teh Cute

Reading Update
Cop Out by KC Burn. ebook. Very good m/m romance about a straight cop who, after his partner on the force is killed in the line of duty, discovers that his partner was gay and had been in a long-term relationship. As he helps his dead partner’s boyfriend, he finds himself reevaluating his own sexuality…
Private Dicks by Katie Allen. ebook. reread. Well, um, it’s the second time I’ve reread this book this year and the fourth time I’ve read it in the past two years. Do I need to say more? 🙂
Hide Out (Private Dicks #2) by Katie Allen. ebook. reread. Third time I’ve reread this one, second time I’ve reread it this year. 🙂
The Second Door by TC Blue. ebook. Good holiday m/m romance about a guy who has a crush on his best friend and downstairs neighbor. He doesn’t want to chance their friendship, so he has to watch as his friend makes bad dating choices over and over…
Make a Right by Willa Okati. ebook. I’m pretty sure I cried for 2/3 of this book. I’m pretty sure I’ll have a crying hangover in the morning, too. The struggling couple in this m/m romance just got to me, over and over… and I can’t even tell you that it was anything other than a decent, angsty read, because I can’t step back far enough from the emotional impact it had on me. Your mileage will definitely vary. 🙂
It’s Not Shakespeare by Amy Lane. ebook. Sweet m/m romance about a community college professor who becomes involved with a younger mechanic introduced to him by one of his students.
This Rough Magic (A Shot in the Dark #1) by Josh Lanyon. ebook. Good m/m mystery set in the 1930s about a young man who fears that his sister’s thuggish boyfriend has stolen a valuable Shakespeare folio, so he hires a private investigator to find the folio. Sadly, this read too much like every other Josh Lanyon mystery.
The Closer You Get (The Distance Between Us #2) by LA Witt. ebook. Good m/m romance about an unrepentantly slutty bartender who befriends a virginal college student and helps him get rid of that pesky virginity, then panics when he realizes he’s developed feelings for his friend. I struggled a bit with this one because I had been frustrated by the previous book, The Distance Between Us.
The Name of the Game (Game #1) by Willa Okati. ebook. reread. Good m/m romance about a gay DJ who has a crush on his straight cop roommate. In an attempt to get rid of his psycho girlfriend, the cop decides to pretend to be gay and the DJ’s boyfriend and things get a bit complicated…
Starch Contrast (A Choose Your Own M/M Romance Story) by Deanna Wadsworth. free ebook short. Cute short story about a shy m/m romance author who goes to a gay romance conference in Idaho. (Sorry, you’re just going to have to read it to find out why there’s a potato on the cover…)
Altered Heart by Kate Steele. ebook. reread. Pretty good paranormal m/m romance about a werewolf enforcer who kills a psychotic alpha werewolf and rescues the young man/werewolf being kept as a pet by said psychotic alpha werewolf. It felt like the author was setting things up for a second book, but it doesn’t appear to exist.
Imperfect by Cassidy Ryan. ebook. Ok m/m romance about two cops who are partners at work and bed partners off duty. But one is prickly and erratic and just might explode… This had a lot of potential; however, the book wasn’t long enough for that potential to be realized, so it ended up feeling abrupt and not exactly believable.


“Why are you calling me a green-eyed monster?!” -Chaos

Epic Linkity of Epicness



Congrats to Linda E, who won Finding Eden (Eden #2) by Kele Moon! Finding Eden is being released today Ellora’s Cave.

Congrats to Jennifer, who won Song of Oestend by Marie Sexton! Song of Oestend will be released August 22 by Total-E-Bound.

Congrats to jayhjay, who won On the List (Changing Plans #3) by L.A. Witt! On the List will be released on August 21 by Amber Allure.



Contests

Bookity

Ebookity

Do, Make, Think, Learn

Cookity

Crafty

Cool

Cool or Wha…?

Wha…?

LOL

Teh Cute

Reading Update
Breaking Cover (Life Lessons #2) by Kaje Harper. ebook. Excellent m/m romantic suspense that takes place a year after Life Lessons. Things have been going well for out teacher Tony and closeted police detective Mac up until now, but Tony’s increasingly frustrated by the constraints on their relationship… and then they hit the crisis point.
Man Falls Down by Eric Arvin. ebook short. Very good, very surreal, very short story about a guy who wakes up from an odd dream… and can’t really shake the feeling from the dream.
Crying for the Moon by Sarah Madison. ebook. Very good paranormal m/m romance about a vampire who’s tired of living with other vampires, so he moves to a remote area with the assistance of his werewolf friends. Too bad the vet living up the road is so persistently friendly…
Shift Happens by Storm Grant. ebook. Very good paranormal m/m romance about a Canadian anthropologist who heads to the Colombian rain forest to do some research with his mentor, but gets entangled in illegal drug manufacturing. When he runs into the hot guy he met on the plane to Colombia, things start to get really weird… (This could’ve been tightened up a bit in the middle, which might’ve turned it into an excellent read.)
Wolf Unexpected by Vic Winter. ebook short. Good, but extremely short m/m paranormal romance about a guy who gets really itchy and turns into a werewolf, with no clue what was happening. This really needed at least a few more pages to feel complete.
Guava Red: Almost Paradise by TC Blue. ebook. Good m/m romance about two guys who meet as teens but lose touch due to circumstances, then run into each other years later.
In His Hero’s Shadow (EMS Heat #10) by Stephani Hecht. ebook. Sweet m/m romance about two medics who are always at each others’ throats when their paths cross… well, almost always. 🙂
Twisted Rose by Amber Kell. ebook. Ok kinky m/m romance about a cop who agrees to be a bdsm club owner’s sub in order to help stop a serial killer who’s leaving bodies outside the club. This felt like it needed to be fleshed out a bit more… and it had a critical comma shortage.
Room Number Twelve by Rebecca Leigh. ebook short. Steamy short m/m paranormal that’s basically a sex scene between two vampire cowboys.
Simple by SJD Peterson. ebook. Ok m/m romance about two very insecure guys in a relationship together, neither thinking he’s good enough for the other, and both waiting for the other shoe to drop. This was a bit too sweet for me, and, unfortunately, I found the guys annoying.


“I didn’t want that stinky old nip toy, anyway. This scratcher is much better.” -Mayhem

In which we have linkity and no one is surprised at all



Congrats to Lora G, who won Smart Ass: Close Quarters from LB Gregg!

Congrats to Marie, who won the Uniform Appeal anthology, courtesy of Dreamspinner Press! Uniform Appeal will be released on April 11.



Contests

Bookity

Ebookity

Do, Think, Make, Learn

Cookity

Crafty

Cool

Wha…?

Randonymity

  • Long ago (in the mid-1990s), I lived with a guy who made videos for local bands. I have a very, very tiny cameo in one of them: I’m at 44 seconds in the video for “Smile” by Arcwelder. Check out my long, spiral-permed hair (complete with crazy white streak from the sun) and my Lennonesque glasses. 🙂

LOL

Teh Cute

Reading Update
Taste (Horizons #2) by Mickie B. Ashing. ebook. Very good m/m romance about a San Francisco architect visiting friends (Jody and Clark from Horizons) when he meets a cute tattooed guy working at Taste of Chicago.
Mandarin Orange: Sweet and Sour by T.C. Blue. ebook. Good m/m romance about a guy who eventually realizes he might not be as straight as he’d always believed after he meets the guy who will be living in the apartment downstairs.
Three Alarm Fire (EMS Heat #8) by Stephani Hecht. ebook. Sweet m/m romance about an EMT who was in an abusive relationship a few years ago and since then has been afraid to let anyone that close to him.
Wrong Number, Right Guy (Celebrity #1) by Mia Watts. ebook. Cute m/m romance about a guy who misdials and doesn’t realize that he’s talking to a closeted movie star in town for a film shoot.
Getting Off the Ground (Postcards from Paradise #1) by L.A. Witt. ebook. Good m/m romance about a guy who was left at the altar by his live-in boyfriend of six years. He decides to use one of the honeymoon tickets to go to Hawaii by himself and meets a very intriguing man in the airport when their flight is delayed. Please note that this is just the first part of the story – the second part will be released in a few weeks.
Anything in a Skirt (Gay Until Graduation #2) by Kim Dare. ebook short. free. Very good short kinky m/m romance following up on the two guys from Gay Until Graduation (G-A-Y #3). (I took that photograph at Twin Cities Pride 2010!)
Handcuffs & Ball Gags (Rawlings Men #6) by Kim Dare. ebook short. Good kinky short m/m romance about a police constable who gets upset when his flatmate attends a potentially dangerous environmental rally, which leads to a most interesting discussion…
Cut & Run (Book 1) by Madeleine Urban & Abigail Roux. ebook. reread. Good m/m romantic suspense about two wildly different FBI agents who are tossed together to try to catch a serial killer. I think this would’ve been a better read if it had been tightened up – parts of it seemed to drag.
Sticks & Stones (Cut & Run #2) by Madeleine Urban & Abigail Roux. ebook. Very good m/m romantic suspense two FBI agents who can’t go back out in the field until they pass their psych evals, so their boss sends them on vacation to relax for a few weeks… Usually Urban & Roux’s headhopping doesn’t particularly bother me, but it did a few times in this book.
Fish & Chips (Cut & Run #3) by Madeleine Urban & Abigail Roux. ebook. Excellent m/m romantic suspense in which our two FBI agents are sent on a cruise to impersonate a high rolling couple. As usual, nothing much goes as planned.


“Put the computer down and feed me now and no one gets hurt… much.” -Chaos

Ebook Giveaway: Mandarin Orange: Sweet & Sour by TC Blue [CONTEST CLOSED]



Congrats to Anna, who won Shane’s Fury (Lost Shifters #10) by Stephani Hecht! Shane’s Fury is being released by eXtasy Books today.



Many thanks to TC Blue for donating an ebook copy of her forthcoming m/m romance, Mandarin Orange: Sweet & Sour, for a lucky commenter to win! Mandarin Orange: Sweet & Sour will be released by Torquere Press on March 23 30.

Riley has never been the kind of straight guy who sneers at gay men. Hell, most of his best friends are gay, and it doesn’t matter except when Riley wants to drink a plain old beer at the froufy bars they drag him to. He can look and appreciate, but dudes just don’t do it for him. Or so he thinks, right up until the new downstairs tenant arrives almost literally on Riley’s doorstep.

The raging storm and motorcycle crash with which Kelly makes his entrance pale in comparison with the battle inside Kelly himself, once he gets to know Riley. Riley is damnably hot and nice, and exactly Kelly’s type, except for one little thing – according to all the evidence, Riley’s straight.

Is love truly blind, or does it just wear blinders? Riley and Kelly need to figure it out before the labels and categories drive them irrevocably apart.

Mandarin Orange: Sweet and Sour is the sequel to Lemon Yellow: Making Lemonade and Lime Green: Margarita Mondays.

Other Books

About TC

I was raised in and around Washington, DC, and therefore I don’t write about politics. A two year stint as a motorcycle courier, followed by varying amounts of times spent as an office worker, server, hair dresser, retail slave, casual student, and chef have led to possessing a smattering of knowledge in many areas. A Jack of all trades and Master of none, I currently live in the suburbs outside DC, accompanied by animals and people of interest. Really.

You can visit TC at her blog.

Contest Rules

  • To enter, leave a comment stating that you are entering the contest. Contest closes 7 pm CDT, Tuesday, March 22 29.
  • By entering the contest, you’re confirming that you are at least 18 years old.
  • If you haven’t commented before, your comment will not be visible until after I moderate it. Please do not leave a second comment because your first doesn’t show up! The blog gnomes will decide your comments are spam and then only luck and ritual dust bunny sacrifice will salvage your entry…
  • If your comment is actually an advertisement or if your CommentLuv link turns it into an advertisement, your comment will be deleted. (Most of you do not need to worry – this refers to some pretty clever comment spam.)
  • Winners will be selected by random number.
  • You must leave a valid email address in the “Email” portion of the comment form.
  • Please make sure that your spam filter allows email from stumblingoverchaos.com!
  • If a winner doesn’t respond to my congratulations email within 48 hours, I will select another winner.
  • If you win, please respect the author’s intellectual property and don’t make copies of the ebook for anyone else.
  • This contest is open worldwide!

“Nobody understands me.” -Chaos

Should auld lang linkity be forgot…

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


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.


Contest

Bookity

Ebookity

Think, Do, Learn, Make

Best Of

Belated Gift Idea

Cool

Huh

  • 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…

LOL

Teh Cute

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.


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

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

http://squee.icanhascheezburger.com/2010/12/28/cute-baby-animals-when-worlds-collide/

Lasso up some linkity!

Congrats to Eden Winters, who won Counterpoint (Song of the Fallen, Book 1) by Rachel Haimowitz. Also, Guiltless Pleasure Publishing is offering 10% off on Counterpoint through October 16 to Stumbling Over Chaos readers who use coupon code CHAOSCOUNTER. Thanks, GPP!



Contests

Bookity

Ebookity

Learn, Make, Do, Think

  • If you use your laptop on your lap, please use a laptop stand/desk! Not only will it help keep your laptop from overheating (a major cause of laptop death), it will also keep you from developing Toasted Skin Syndrome. Ewww… (Although my current laptop has a built-in stand, I used to use one of these.)

Knitting

Cool

  • We had inadvertent land carpet growing up – my mom didn’t feel like really carpeting our bedrooms, so she bought all sorts of carpet samples.
  • Surely there’s someone on your holiday shopping list who would love an FU t-shirt?

Huh

LOL

  • Knitters with cats: I really wouldn’t recommend trying this.

Teh Cute

Reading Update
Lime Green: Margarita Mondays by T.C. Blue. ebook. Very good m/m romance about an interior designer with trust issues who has friends over every Monday. After a noise complaint and confusion literally bring security guards crashing through his door one Monday night, he finds himself unwillingly attracted to one of the security guards. (I hope that TC’s going to write Riley’s story very soon, although so far she seems to mostly be taunting me about it on Goodreads.)
The Beach House by Shawn Lane. ebook. Sweet, good m/m romance about a model who overdosed and was sent to rehab. Post-rehab, his agent rents him a quiet house on the beach for the summer, to get him away from bad influences and help him figure out how to have a more normal life.
Get What You Need by Janey Chapel. ebook. Very good m/m story about a cop and an ex-con who connect briefly, with unexpected depth. Be aware that this doesn’t have a HEA or even necessarily a HFN ending – it’s a good read anyway.
Code Blue (EMS Heat, Book 5) by Stephani Hecht. ebook. Good m/m romance about a firefighter/EMT who’s hostile and deeply suspicious of motives when a friend’s ex-boyfriend shows up unexpectedly.
Temptation by Kim Dare. free ebook short. Sweet short m/m romance about an initiate, about to be consecrated to the goddess Artemis, who wanders away from the group on the way to the temple.
Ellery’s Duty (Thrown to the Lions, Book 3) by Kim Dare. ebook. Very good kinky paranormal m/m romance about a human dominant who allows himself to be “thrown to the lions” because he wants to make sure that the subs who go through the process are treated well. He certainly doesn’t expect to meet the innocent and atypical werelion Kefir…
Gayish (G-A-Y, Book 12) by Kim Dare. ebook short. Very good short kinky m/m romance about a dominant who spots a young man huddling in the rain at the bus stop across from a gay pride rally and goes over to talk to him… (I’m sad that this is the last book in this series!)
The Jitters by Fabian Black. ebook. Two cute short stories about Trevor and Luke, who have just purchased a house and moved in together. Alas, things aren’t going so smoothly…
Backwoods by Cara McKennea. ebook. Very good, gritty m/m story about a straight bar owner who auditions a musician and is completely unprepared for (and not so happy about) his attraction to the man. Be aware that this doesn’t have an HEA or even HFN ending.
After Anna (Book 1) by Theda Black. ebook. So-so m/m story about a police detective who’s not doing so well after his girlfriend dies and he learns she was a junkie. His partner and best friend is always there for him… and things get complicated. The style made this more oblique and confusing then it needed to be, but I was drawn into the story anyway. Be aware that there’s no HEA or even HFN.
Touch Like Breathing (After Anna, Book 2) by Theda Black. ebook. Ok m/m romance continuing the story of two police detectives who aren’t doing so well with their attraction to each other. While there was an awful lot of back and forth, on again, off again (to the extent that it seemed excessive), I still got drawn in and had to find out how things turned out. (Yes, you’re right, that’s Candy Cane Guy on both covers!)
Island of Temptation by Claire Thompson. ebook. Ok m/m romance about two guys, one bi, one straight, who end up stranded on a desert island after their cruise ship sinks. I definitely like Claire Thompson’s newer stuff better than the older… and yet I can’t stop myself from reading the older stuff. Make of that what you will!
His Dirty Little Secret (Sammy & Friends, Book 3) by Stormy Glenn. ebook. Meh m/m romance about a black police detective who sets up a fuck buddy relationship with a white nurse in their extended group of (gay) friends, under the condition that no one can find out about it. This was more spectacularly trainwrecky than the usual SG – it seemed as if the plot holes and character inconsistencies exceeded all previous levels.
Dreggers Deep by J. Rocci. ebook short. Ok short m/m story that probably would’ve been more interesting to me if I were following the Dregs series by J. Rocci.


“I can’t believe the big kitty said that stripey socks aren’t what life’s all about. He’s just jealous that he doesn’t have any stripey socks.” -Mayhem

Ebook Giveaway: Margarita Mondays by TC Blue [CONTEST CLOSED]

Today is a two-contest day, so make sure you enter the contest to win Code Blue by Stephani Hecht! (Plus there’s a really cute picture of Mayhem…)


Many thanks to TC Blue for donating an ebook copy of her forthcoming m/m romance, Lime Green: Margarita Mondays, for a lucky commenter to win! Lime Green: Margarita Mondays will be released by Torquere Books on September 29.

A simple noise complaint to Safe Haven Security ends in a broken door when Jeremy misinterprets something he hears coming from inside Troy Ballard’s home. It also starts the two men on a path of high resistance, as neither of them wants a ‘relationship,’ and especially not with each other. Their lives are too different.

Unfortunately, their hearts insist on wanting exactly what their minds know to be impossible. With the dubious help of their friends, Jeremy and Troy start to discover that sometimes ‘impossible’ is anything but.

Lime Green: Margarita Mondays is the sequel to Lemon Yellow: Making Lemonade.

About TC

I was raised in and around Washington, DC, and therefore I don’t write about politics. A two year stint as a motorcycle courier, followed by varying amounts of times spent as an office worker, server, hair dresser, retail slave, casual student, and chef have led to possessing a smattering of knowledge in many areas. A Jack of all trades and Master of none, I currently live in the suburbs outside DC, accompanied by animals and people of interest. Really.

You can visit TC at her blog.

Contest Rules

  • To enter, leave a comment stating that you are entering the contest. Contest closes 7 pm CDT, Tuesday, September 28.
  • If you haven’t commented before, your comment will not be visible until after I moderate it. Please do not leave a second comment because your first doesn’t show up! The blog gnomes will decide your comments are spam and then only luck and ritual dust bunny sacrifice will salvage your entry…
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  • Winners will be selected by random number.
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  • Please make sure that your spam filter allows email from stumblingoverchaos.com!
  • If a winner doesn’t respond to my congratulations email within 48 hours, I will select another winner.
  • If you win, please respect the author’s intellectual property and don’t make copies of the ebook for anyone else.
  • This contest is open worldwide!

“Back off. Don’t make me use my toe-jitsu on you!” -Chaos