Category Archives: Reviewettes

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Lachrymose linkity

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Congrats to Matthias, who won End Game by Jennifer Brooks!

Congrats to Tina, who won Snow on the Mountain (The Mountains #2) (2nd ed) by PD Singer! Snow on the Mountain is being released today by Dreamspinner Press.

Congrats to Ladypessi, who won Texas Heat (Texas #3) by RJ Scott! Texas Heat will be released by Silver Publishing on August 18.

Congrats to Ami, who won Nothing of a Son by L.A. Witt! Nothing of a Son will be released by Amber Allure on August 19.

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Reading Update
Blind Eye (Benjamin Justice #5) by John Morgan Wilson. Very good gay mystery in which Ben’s been given an advance to write his autobiography and is trying to track down a priest who made a big impression on his preteen self… These mysteries are good, but Ben goes through so much… and so much of it he brings upon himself.
Moth and Flame (Benjamin Justice #6) by John Morgan Wilson. Very good gay mystery in which Ben is hired to finish a brochure for the city of West Hollywood after the original writer was murdered. I realized after finishing this that the really horrific things have happened to Ben in the odd number books (excluding the first), so now I’m nervous about reading book 7…
Rhapsody in Blood (Benjamin Justice #7) by John Morgan Wilson. Very good gay mystery in which Ben and Templeton stay at a hotel notorious for being the location of the murder of movie star 50 years ago and the suicide of her daughter 25 years later. Templeton’s there to report on a film about the movie star’s life being shot at the hotel… and then things get messy.
Into the Flames by Mel Bossa. ebook. Engrossing but disturbing gay literary fiction in which Bossa skillfully pulled together her seemingly disparate plot threads. I’m still not sure what I think about this book. On one hand, I did sit down and read it straight through. On the other, I’m absolutely sure I’ll never reread it and I was reminded why I don’t particularly enjoy literary fiction. Your mileage may vary…
Connecting Flight (Turbulence #4) by Jordan Castillo Price. free ebook short. Very good short paranormal m/m romance in which we get to see both Paul and Dallas on their home turf after returning from Bermuda.
Locks of Love: A Modern Gay Fairy Tale (2nd ed) by Jordan Castillo Price. ebook short. Good short m/m fairy tale about a guy who can convince locks to open… but there have to be doors for his talent to work.
Hot August Nights by Kate Roman. ebook short. Ok short m/m romance about a grad student from New York who’s in Austin, Texas, for a week-long spring vacation and meets the cowboy of his dreams. This was very instalovey, which just didn’t work for me.

Can you figure out this Mayhem puzzle?! The white spot is on her chest, if that helps…

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Lack of lemurs lowers linkity

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Since I never heard back from the original winner, elaing8 is the new winner of Four Corners by Kate McMurray!

Congrats to maygirl7, who won the Lashings of Sauce anthology donated by Josephine Myles!

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Reading Update
Diving in Deep (Florida #1) by KA Mitchell. ebook. reread. Very good m/m romance about getting a second chance with that guy you had a crush on as a teenager, who’s grown into an emotionally unavailable adult. I definitely got sniffly on this one.
Collision Course (Florida #2) by KA Mitchell. ebook. reread. Really well done m/m romance about a social worker and a paramedic who has a lot of issues with social workers.
No Souvenirs (Florida #3) by KA Mitchell. ebook. reread. Very good m/m romance about an ER doctor who takes an impulsive dive vacation in Belize when things go awry in his life. He gets to know the dive instructor really well…
By the River (Elementals #1) by Katey Hawthorne. ebook. Good m/m paranormal romance about a guy in his mid-twenties who feels drawn to return to his home town, where he becomes enthralled by a mysterious and naive college swimmer. As MandyM noted, while this was beautifully written, the HFN ending felt very tenuous… as if the “for now” might only be a few minutes or days.
In Search of Saints by Harper Fox. ebook short. Good short m/m romance about an academic who’s been too obsessed by his ex’s betrayal to realize what he has with his new boyfriend.
Inertia (Impulse #1) by Amelia C. Gormley. ebook. arc. Good m/m romance about an isolated handyman who hasn’t been with anyone since he was a teenager and started taking care of his sick grandparents. Then he’s hired to install some shelves by a sexy and strangely skittish accountant who might be flirting with him… While I enjoyed how things developed between the two men, the story seemed to bog down a bit during the last third. And I was a bit surprised when the story ended – it left me with the feeling that this might develop into a serial. 🙁
Dine & Dash (Cut & Run #5.5) by Abigail Roux. free ebook short. Steamy short m/m homecoming scene.
Fireman’s Carry (Carry Me #1) by Charlie Richards. ebook. Ok m/m romance about a gay firefighter who’s recently left his cheating ex and moves in across the street from a straight divorced cop and his kids. I read this after reading a beautifully written book, and the difference in writing between the two was a bit painful. Stalker alert. (So. Tired. Of. Stalkers.)
The Thirteenth Sigil (Section Thirteen Case Files #3) by JL O’Faolain. ebook. So-so paranormal m/m romance continuing the story of Cole, an exiled sidhe who works for a secret, paranormally focused division of the NYPD. The case in this one was pretty weird, the “romance” didn’t really work, and the sex scenes were p0rny and euphemistic. (Check out my status updates at Goodreads for specifics on the last.)
Picking Up the Spare by Heidi Champa. ebook. I read 3/4 of it and was too bored to continue. Plus the name overuse in conversation was irking me.

“…zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz…” -Mayhem

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Linkity lumps it

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Congrats to Cheryl H, who won Earthly Desires by Keira Andrews and Leta Blake!

Congrats to Jonathan, who won His Gift by Clare London!

Congrats to Linda C, who won Indulging Ivan by Kim Dare!

Congrats to Juliana, who won Finding Forever (Sutter’s Bay #4) by Shawn Lane! Finding Forever will be released by Amber Allure on August 5.

Sorry that Linkity was late today! My web host had an upgrade go terribly awry last night, right as I was about to push the button to schedule the post.

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Reading Update
LA Heat (LA #1) by PA Brown. ebook. Very good gay mystery with a titch of romance about a sexy, slutty IT geek accused of murder and the deeply closeted cop conflicted between attraction and duty. Be aware that there are some graphic descriptions of mutilated bodies…
LA Mischief (LA #2) by PA Brown. ebook. Good gay mystery in which David and Chris and their relationship (or lack thereof) definitely take precedence over the rest of the story. Two steamy short stories are tacked on to the end of the book.
LA Boneyard (LA #3) by PA Brown. ebook. Very good gay mystery with a titch of romance in which I wanted to smack David for 90% of the book; for the other 10%, I wanted to smack Chris.
LA Bytes (LA #4) by PA Brown. ebook. Very good gay mystery with a titch of romance. In this one, Chris is trying to track down a hacker who nearly kills both he and David.
Bermuda Heat (LA #5) by PA Brown. ebook. Good gay mystery in which Chris and David go on vacation to Bermuda to check out a startling revelation about David’s past. Their vacation goes downhill after David is arrested for murder… This was definitely my least favorite of the series – I’m not a fan of books in which the main series characters are accused of murder. It worked ok in the first book with Chris because it was the start of the series; not so much now.
The Limits of Justice (Benjamin Justice #4) by John Morgan Wilson. Another very good and very dark gay mystery that starts about a year after the previous book. Ben’s not taking very good care of himself, but then he’s hired to ghostwrite an expose of a guy who writes sleazy bios of recently dead celebrities… and things get complicated. Now waiting for the library to get in the next book in the series!
Calling the Show by JA Rock. ebook. Very good kinky m/m romance about an extremely uptight and socially awkward stage manager for a college production who’s upset about a last minute technical staff change, but who slowly warms to the cute new guy running lights…
Indulging Ivan (The Whole A-Z #5) by Kim Dare. ebook short. Very good kinky short m/m romance about a dom who’s staying with a friend while he looks for work. He’s also trying to avoid the temptation of the friend’s younger brother, without much success…
Catching Kit by Kay Berrisford. ebook. Good paranormal m/m romance about a guy who works for the British government, capturing Ethereal Beings (aka elves). When he unexpectedly becomes close to one of his captives, everything changes. I was a bit frustrated by the epilogue, which took place a year after the main story, because all the stuff that was mentioned in the epilogue as having occurred during the intervening year seemed like it needed to be a story in itself!
Bossy and the Brat (Men of Holsum College #5) by Daisy Harris. ebook. Good m/m romance about an almost college senior from a conservative small Kansas town who can barely admit to himself that he likes guys… but he can’t keep his eyes off the dance major who lives across the hall in their dorm.

This is Chaos, pissed off about being at the vet. You can only see one of his eyes because he’s in pirate mode – he managed to scrape the cornea on his right eye, so he’s been wandering around with only his left eye open! He’ll be fine, but since I do have to put ointment in his eye four times each day for a week, I might not be…

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Linkity at your service

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Congrats to Vicki T, Tina, and Lauren L, who won the Three Fates anthology by Mary Calmes, Andrew Grey, and Amy Lane. Three Fates is being released by Dreamspinner Press today.

Congrats to Pat N, who won Accounting for Luke (Dangerous Lovers #2) by Amber Kell!

Congrats to Sally, who won Summer School by Tam Ames! Summer School will be released by Silver Publishing on July 28.

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Reading Update
Wacky Wednesday by JA Rock. ebook. Very good kinky m/m romance about a dom and his younger sub who haven’t been connecting very well recently… and then they wake up to find they’ve switched bodies, which definitely gives them the chance to understand each other better!
Daddio (Horizons #3) by Mickie B. Ashling. ebook. Very good m/m romance that picks up six months after the second book as Lil and Grier settle into their relationship – Lil learning to parent, Grier working to control his anger, and both of them learning to communicate and compromise. Jody and Clark are back, too! Plus there’s plenty of smutty goodness to go around. 🙂
Marlowe’s Ghost by Sarah Black. ebook. Very good paranormal m/m romance about a former Marine turned history scholar who goes to England at the request of a professor to check up on the professor’s sickly, scholarly nephew and perhaps shepherd him back to the US. The lyrical writing was vaguely scholarly and packed with info about Christopher Marlowe, yet didn’t have the brain dump quality that some of Black’s other works have had.
A Better Man (The Men of Halfway House #1) by RJ Scott & Jaime Reese. Very good m/m romance about a contractor who’s been unable to find work and is about to be homeless, so he answers an ad for a handyman job that turns out to be much, much more. And what’s up with his secretive, prickly, and attractive new boss? I’m glad there’s a sequel planned, because I want to see what the next chapter of their lives looks like!
The Auspicious Troubles of Chance (The Auspicious Troubles of Love #1) by Charlie Cochet. ebook. Very good historical m/m romance about a guy who lost everything that mattered to him and has been living on the edge ever since. He knows he can’t keep going on as he has been, so… he joins the French Foreign Legion.
Roses in the Devil’s Garden (Fallen Rose #1) by Charlie Cochet. free ebook short. Very good short historical m/m romance about two NYC Prohibition agents who constantly have to be on the lookout for agents on the take. Definitely looking forward to reading the next book!
Lost in My Waking Dream by Charlie Cochet. ebook short. Good short sort of historical romance, sort of not (can’t say more without being spoilery) about a guy who feels as if he’s surely been going crazy since the Great War.

Latin Boyz by PA Brown. ebook. Good but unevenly paced m/m suspense with a tiny bit of almost romance thrown in. Actually, this reminded me of an Oprah book – the depressing stuff tended to overwhelm the happy moments and… it did not end so well.

People periodically ask how I get such good pictures of Chaos and Mayhem. (Aw, thank you!) The secret is to take lots and lots of pictures, crop, and don’t be afraid to tweak the pictures to make them more interesting (plus tweaking can hide a multitude of problems). I’m all about simplicity when I work on pictures – I use a simple photo editor to crop and then tweak in Picasa. Here’s a crappy original:

Here’s the crappy original cropped to focus on the cats:

And here’s the cropped and tweaked final version (still crappy, but more interesting):

“Quit taking my picture! I’m outta here.” -Chaos

“Yeah! What the big kitty said! You are trying to steal our souls!!” -Mayhem

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That week when linkity got so crazily out of hand, I don’t even know what to say

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Congrats to Zanara, who won The Wish (2nd ed) by Eden Winters! The Wish is being released today by Dreamspinner Press. And don’t forget that a new edition of Valentine Wish (Wish #3) is available as a free read today!

Congrats to Majken, who won A Better Man by RJ Scott and Jaime Reese! A Better Man will be released by Silver Publishing on July 21.

Congrats to Erica, who won Daddio (Horizons #3) by Mickie B. Ashling! Daddio will be released by Dreamspinner Press on July 23.

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Reading Update
Red-Eye Dawn (Turbulence #3) by Jordan Castillo Price. free ebook short. Very good installment of the serial in which Paul starts to freak out about their situation, but gains calm from an unexpected source.
Temporal Driftwood by Stephen Osborne. ebook short. Cute short m/m romance about a guy who’s shown two possible futures for himself… Can he believe he deserves the good one?
An Oral Fixation by Piper Vaughn. free ebook short. Cute short m/m romance about a college student who’s had a crush on his bisexual roommate for years, but the timing hasn’t worked out to say anything about it.
Naked Truth (Sun, Sea & Submission #3) by Kim Dare. ebook short. Good short kinky m/m romance about a nudist who seems determined to disrupt the (closeted at work) life of the Pendragon Hotel’s manager.
Final Atonement (Doug Orlando #1) by Steve Neil Johnson. Good gay mystery set in NYC in the early 90s about a cop, ostracized by his peers for trying to do the right thing, who’s trying to figure out who murdered a universally disliked rabbi.
Player and the Prude (Men of Holsum College #4) by Daisy Harris. ebook. Good m/m romance about a wealthy and slutty business major who takes a bet from a friend to seduce a gawky, repressed film student.
Skin Deep (Gray Zone #3) by Adrienne Wilder. ebook. Pretty good paranormal m/m romance about a guy who returns home one day to discover that his boyfriend is very, very sick… and is then plunged into a nightmarish world he can barely comprehend. This was a very mixed read for me – it’s a Bittersweet Dreams title, so it doesn’t exactly end happily. And I couldn’t quite relate to the main character – many of his actions seemed TSTL to me.
Come Cuddle Me by Missy Welsh. ebook short. Ok short m/m romance about a naive young man who posts his address along with an invitation to “come cuddle me” and is rescued from his foolishness by the bearish neighbor he’s been crushing on.

“I can’t believe you called me a thug, Mom. Look at how sophisticated and refined I am!” -Chaos

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Linkity and a larch walk into a bar…

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Congrats to Melinda, who won Owner of My Heart (Mending the Rift #2) by Valentina Heart! Owner of My Heart (Mending the Rift #2) will be released by Silver Publishing on July 14.

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Reading Update
Simple Justice (Benjamin Justice #1) by John Morgan Wilson. Very good gay mystery set in the mid-90s about a former newspaper reporter who’s been working the occasional freelance job to make ends meet since it came out he’d fabricated the story for which he won a Pulitzer. When his former editor tracks him down about working on a story, he doesn’t want to… but he slowly gets sucked in.
Revision of Justice (Benjamin Justice #2) by John Morgan Wilson. Very good gay mystery in which Ben gets pulled into researching a Hollywood story that turns out to be very convoluted, but gives him the chance to face some of his own demons… or flee again.
Justice at Risk (Benjamin Justice #3) by John Morgan Wilson. Very good, but very dark, gay mystery in which Ben meets two very different but compelling men, gets some work putting together a documentary on risky sex, and is drawn into investigating yet another convoluted and dangerous situation. This was dark enough that I need to take a bit of a break from the series…
Every Minute (Max & Skyler #3) by Acer Adamson. ebook short. Very good short m/m romance that manages to cover both Max and Skyler meeting, plus meeting each other’s parents.
One Day at a Time by Dawn Douglas. ebook short. Very good short m/m romance about a DEA agent on assignment to a small town police force who decides to help a cop depressed about having had to kill a teen gang member.
Making Camp by Clare London. free ebook short. Cute short m/m romance about two guys who work together and are attracted to each other, but don’t do anything about it until the Country Mouse asks the City Mouse to go camping with him.
Healer (The Institute #1) by Cassandra Gold. ebook. reread. Very good m/m paranormal romance about a doctor who can heal people with his mind. Bad guys who want to capture him and use his power for their own ends are closing in on him when a purportedly good guy offers him a way out.
Touch (The Institute #2) by Cassandra Gold. ebook. Good paranormal m/m romance about a member of the Delphic Institute who gets captured by a rival organization. When escaping, he takes a hostage and everything starts to change.
Phoenix Rising by Theo Fenraven. ebook. arc. Good m/m paranormal romance about an NYC cop and his partner who are investigating a series of mysterious deaths. When the evidence leads them toward a charismatic singer, things start to get really weird…
Au Bon Pain by Lee Patton. ebook short. Poignant short story about a guy who has the chance to reconnect with his first love – the first love who dumped him and vanished.
The Good Life by Diana DeRicci. ebook. Cute m/m romance about a guy who suddenly finds himself a single parent with a baby daughter when he’d just planned to be the sperm donor. When his best friend offers them a place to live and help with the baby, things get a bit complicated. This had some very oddly phrased bits that seemed to need more editorial attention.
Roadside Assistance by Heidi Champa. ebook short. Pretty good short m/m romance about a week in the life of two friends who carpool together…
Laurel Heights by Lisa Worrall. ebook. Ok m/m romantic suspense two closeted cops who have to go undercover as a gay couple in a small, exclusive gay community in order catch a killer. The plot was implausible, the writing was over-the-top at times, and the epilogue changed it from neatly tied up into a cliffhanger.

“This is my new kitty bed, not a shopping bag! Silly Mom.” -Mayhem

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Congrats to Amanda, who won Cherrypicker (Blue Line Hockey #7) by Stephani Hecht!

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Reading Update
The Isle of… Where? by Sue Brown. ebook. Very good m/m romance about a technical writer from Michigan who’s on the Isle of Wight to scatter his best friend’s ashes, but he’s having a hard time doing so. A very sweet, cute, and somewhat overwhelming guy steps in to offer support… I was surprised at how much I liked this, and at how much it pulled me in.
One Small Thing by Piper Vaughn & MJ O’Shea. ebook. reread. Very good m/m romance about a guy, working as a bartender while he goes to cosmetology school to be a stylist, who finds out that his singular “girl-speriment” has left him a father. If only his shut-in writer neighbor would take care of his infant daughter while he’s at school, he just might make things work…
A Fresh Set of Eyes (David Lloyd Investigations #2) by Liz Strange. ebook. Very good m/m mystery in which David agrees to look into a case that’s been closed for a decade, as the evidence that sent three young men to jail for killing two boys was flimsy and circumstantial. In a shocking development, I figured out who the real killer was the first time said killer appeared in the story!
Good Company by JL Merrow. ebook short. Very good short m/m story about a young man hitchhiking to Glasgow who’s picked up by a guy driving a Mercedes. HFN.
Stronger Where It Counts by JL Merrow. ebook short. Very good short m/m story about an IT guy working in a small Southern town for a week who gets dragged to a (straight) strip joint by his clueless client. The evening doesn’t seem so bad after he sees the hunky (and vaguely familiar) bartender… This has an HFN ending – I’d actually like to read a followup story about these two!
Graceland by Ally Blue. ebook. Very good m/m romance about a nursing assistant and a slightly overweight Elvis impersonator who isn’t managing his diabetes very well. Definite bonus points for breaking out of the perfect white male mold of so many m/m romances – not only is the Elvis impersonator a bit overweight, he’s Cherokee and the nursing assistant is black.
Equilibrium (Superpowered Love #1) by Katey Hawthorne. ebook. Good paranormal m/m romance about two friends and roommates, one straight, who have some extraordinary abilities that they need to keep hidden from regular people… whoops.
Jealousy: A Love Story (Superpowered Love #1.1) by Katey Hawthorne. free ebook short. Good short paranormal m/m romance in which Sam gets jealous because another guy is blatantly pursuing the oblivious Hansen.
Best Gift Ever (Superpowered Love #1.2) by Katey Hawthorne. free ebook short. Good short paranormal m/m romance in which Sam and Hansen celebrate Christmas together while working through some rough spots in their relationship.
Riot Boy (Superpowered Love #2) by Katey Hawthorne. ebook. Ok paranormal m/m romance about a bookstore clerk who becomes fascinated by a mysterious and flighty punk rock bass player. This one just never really pulled me in.
Nobody’s Hero (Superpowered Love #3) by Katey Hawthorne. ebook. Good paranormal m/m romance about a charming salesman who’s very attracted to the quirky new computer programmer at work. He never expects to be at all tempted to share the secret of his extraordinary power…
At Least in the City, Someone Would Hear Me Scream: Misadventures in Search of the Simple Life by Wade Rouse. Wade and his boyfriend Gary bought a cabin in rural Michigan and left behind their lives in the city. This is a humorous look at their attempts to reconnect with nature, themselves, and each other. While I did enjoy this overall, I also found Wade to be pretty annoying at times.
Running Wild (Northern Shifters #4) by Joely Skye. ebook. Ok paranormal m/m romance about a college student who’s rescued from some bad guys by a strange black horse, then left at an old man’s farm, with his rescue seeming more like a dream… Besides a major plot hole (what, wolf shifters can’t read, only sniff?), this seemed to drag a bit.
Incongruent Angel (Liquid Sin #1) by Cherie Noel. ebook short. So-so short m/m romance about two members of a popular band who have a messed up personal history. A photo shoot and a car accident combine to bring things to critical mass.  This just felt like it was all over the place and then it ended abruptly.

*streeeeeeeeeeeeeeetch* -Mayhem

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Linkity: Now available in new bite-sized portions! (I have no idea what that means, either)

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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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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.

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

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Linkity languishes in the dark

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Congrats to bheds, who won Fire on the Mountain (The Mountains #1) (2nd ed) by PD Singer! Fire on the Mountain is being released by Dreamspinner Press today.

Congrats to Seanna Lea, who won Lucius’ Bite (Family of Misfits #1) by K-Lee Klein! Lucius’ Bite is being released by MLR Press today.

Congrats to Ria M, who won Saviours of Oestend (Oestend #2), by Marie Sexton! Saviours of Oestend will be released by Total-E-Bound on June 25.

Congrats to garnetyuna, who won Full Circle (Sanctuary #5) by RJ Scott! Full Circle will be released by Silver Publishing on June 23.

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Reading Update
Tatterdemalion (Foundations of Magic #1) by Anah Crow & Dianne Fox. ebook. Very good paranormal m/m romance about a young mage who’s been imprisoned and experimented on until he manages to break free, then is rescued by a man who isn’t exactly human… I wish there’d been a bit more backstory and am very glad that I have the sequel queued up to read.
Trammel (Foundations of Magic #2) by Anah Crow & Dianne Fox. ebook. Very good paranormal m/m romance in which Lindsay is given an emotionally damaged fire mage to train as all of Cyrus’ people focus on trying to keep a newly aware mage out of enemy hands. While this is definitely not a cliffhanger, there are still open storylines I’d like to see tied up. A third book, Ternion, is listed on Anah Crow’s website without details or dates.
Full Circle (Sanctuary #5) by RJ Scott. ebook. Very good m/m romantic suspense in which Manny finds himself attracted to the son of a murderer, but can’t let himself get distracted as the Bullen case hits critical.
Timeslip by Clare London. ebook short. Very good short timetravel m/m story about a guy whose hardass boss keeps appearing in his bedroom at night, then vanishing.
Townie & the Twink (Men of Holsum College #3) by Daisy Harris. ebook. Very good m/m romance about a college student who can tell that the cute townie from class is closeted, even from himself, although his blatant lusting after his lifelong best friend gives him away.
Jamie (Dominion #2.5) by Lissa Kasey. free ebook short. Good short paranormal m/m that just provides a slice of life from the perspective of Seiran’s older brother Jamie.
Conviction (Dominion #3) by Lissa Kasey. ebook. Good paranormal m/m romance about Seiran’s friend, water witch Kelly, and Seiran’s older brother, earth witch Jamie, who head to a northern Minnesota lodge with Seiran and Gabe for what turns out to be anything but a relaxing getaway. Unfortunately, I never really felt the supposed connection between Kelly and Jamie. 🙁 I’d like to point out that the cover is kind of funny, in that Minnesota lacks mountains – the highest point is 2301 feet/701m. 🙂

“Oh, is that a tasty spider I spy on the ceiling?! Hello, tasty spider!!” -Mayhem

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Congrats to Gigi, who won Worth the Wait by Lori Toland!

Congrats to SueM, who won Countdown to Daddies by K-Lee Klein! Countdown to Daddies is being released by MLR Press today.

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Reading Update
Blood Howl (Sanguis Noctis #1) by Robin Saxon & Alex Kidwell. ebook. reread. Very good paranormal m/m romance about a guy, formerly Special Forces, who now offers those skills for hire. When a job goes in an unexpected direction, he has no idea how much his world is about to change…
Blood in the Sand (Sanguis Noctis #2) by Robin Saxon & Alex Kidwell. ebook. Very good paranormal m/m romantic suspense in which Jed and Redford are hired by Jed’s friend David to travel with he and Victor to Cairo to rescue some people that David believes have been kidnapped by an old associate of his. More, please. 🙂
Pain (Darwin’s Theory #1) by Adrienne Wilder. ebook short. Very good short paranormal m/m romance about two college roommates, one serious and brilliant, the other smart but wild. They’ve been friends since they were 12, and in love with each other for almost that long, but Peter (serious and brilliant) wanted to wait to become lovers…
Secrets (Darwin’s Theory #2) by Adrienne Wilder. ebook short. Very good short paranormal m/m romance in which Peter reveals a shocking secret. (Hey, cut me a break – these are going to be almost impossible not to spoiler, even in a single sentence reviewette.)
Promises (Darwin’s Theory #3) by Adrienne Wilder. ebook short. Very good short paranormal m/m romance in which Peter is becoming dangerous to Darwin, but other dangers abound as well.
Lost (Darwin’s Theory #4) by Adrienne Wilder. ebook short. Very good short paranormal m/m romance in which Darwin hopes they’ll be safe in the Gray Zone…
Found (Darwin’s Theory #5) by Adrienne Wilder. ebook short. Very good short paranormal m/m romance that twists and turns and twists and turns and…
To Adam With Love (The Gray Zone #1) by Adrienne Wilder. ebook. Very good paranormal m/m romance about Adam, whose mother brings him to live in the Gray Zone when he’s just a boy, and Ean, who becomes his closest friend. As the story alternates between present, when they’re both adults, and past, eventually the two points converge. I got sniffly at the end!
Worth (The Gray Zone #2) by Adrienne Wilder. ebook. Very good paranormal m/m romance about a guy who puts himself between his stepfather and his younger brothers to keep them safe. Then he meets a Lesser-Bred and, for the first time, wants something for himself.
Pale as a Ghost (Duncan Andrews #1) by Stephen Osborne. ebook. Very good m/m paranormal romantic suspense about a private investigator who has a zombie dog and a jealous ghostly boyfriend to deal with as he works cases involving a possession and a supernatural serial killer.
Animal Instinct (Duncan Andrews #2) by Stephen Osborne. ebook. Very good m/m paranormal romantic suspense in which Duncan has to figure out who’s using the power from a dead wizard’s skull to control animals and kill people.
The Way Back by Carter Quinn. ebook. Very good m/m romance about a guy hung up on the one who dumped him and got married to a woman. Years later, he’s finally letting another guy in emotionally when guess who shows up, all repentant?
Carny’s Magic by KZ Snow. ebook. Good paranormal m/m romance about a young man who presents himself to Jackson Spey, wanting to be the wizard’s apprentice. And then he meets a gorgeous and mercurial guy living a few houses down and discovers just how messed up magic can be.
Chuffed (Finnshifters #1) by Tia Fielding. ebook. Good paranormal m/m romance about a half shifter who owns a farm in Finland that’s a sort of shifter refuge, sort of an oddly assorted family.
Loving Eden by Lee Brazil. ebook short. So so short m/m romance about a college student trying to discourage a younger guy’s attraction to him, then ending up involved with the guy’s dad instead. This had too much story crammed into too few words, making the story choppy and superficial and instalovey. You should probably read the blurb, since it contains Eden’s backstory, which isn’t in the book. And be warned that the epilogue basically sets up for another book and cuts off midscene.
Book Cover Lover by Eve Tesoro. ebook. Meh m/m romance about an editor of erotic romance attending his first conference when a gorgeous cover model catches his eye. The story was implausible and the writing poor; this was painful to read.

“Maybe you need to get out more, Mom, if you think this is photo-worthy…” -Mayhem