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Congrats to Jennifer, who won Packing Leather (Sun, Sea & Submission #1) by Kim Dare! (I never heard back from the original winner, so…)

Congrats to Maya, who won Ashton and Justice by Stephani Hecht! Ashton and Justice will be released by Amber Allure on August 7.

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Contests

• Book Lovers Inc is giving away a copy of Only Mine by Susan Mallery. Contest closes August 6.

• Desert Island Keepers is giving away an ebook copy of a book from the backlist of Sandy James. Comment by 7 pm PDT, August 6, for your chance to win.

• You can win PT Michelle’s Brightest Kind of Darkness at Desert Island Keepers. Contest runs through August 6.

• Tracy’s giving away an ebook copy of A Good Prospect (Going for the Gold #3) by Karen Mercury. Comment by 7 pm PDT, August 12, for your chance to win.

Bookity

• New releases and more: Rarely Dusty Books (August m/m romance releases), Elisa (LGBT), AAR (romance audiobooks), Book Lovers Inc (romance and more), and Literary Escapism (UF/PNR).

• A professor in Missouri got Kurt Vonnegut’s Slaughterhouse Five banned from the school curriculum in his town.

• How authors and authorial personas are blurring online.

• Kris shares some thoughts on the slippery slope of saying het women shouldn’t be writing m/m romance.

• How to skim text with decent comprehension.

• Bookshelf and bike rack…

• What do authors like to snack on? (via The Kitchn)

• The story of a pencil unhappy with its lot writing romantic fiction. (via Paperback Writer)

• Love a library with a sense of humor! (Thanks, Seanna!)

Ebookity

• Two major publishers have reported that ebook sales make up about 15% of their total sales.

• Some more thoughts on how “DRM only impedes the honest”.

• Self-publishing and invisibility.

• Lifehacker readers voted on their five favorite ebook readers.

• Humor about the demise of the physical bookstore.

Think, Do, Learn, Make

• Infographic of LGBT demographics in the US.

• Energy-saving myths.

• If your mom was stressed during pregnancy, you could experience “accelerated aging”…

• A discovery that could improve the lives of people living with chronic illness.

• It will be at least another year before any gluten-free labeling law goes into effect in the US.

• I would love it if our food labels looked like this!

• What does CNN think the world’s 50 most delicious foods are? (via The Kitchn)

• Was our moon formed when two moons smashed into each other?

Cookity

• S’Mores Pop Tart S’Mores…

• Bacon strip pancakes…

• Turn a loaf of bread into cinnamon roll pulls. (via The Kitchn)

• Ice cream sandwich recipes.

• Uses for lemons.

Drinkity

• Elderberry shrub.

• Clever way to chill beverages without diluting them as ice would.

Crafty

• A TARDIS that holds sewing supplies.

• If you’ve been lacking kraken craft inspiration…

• Steampunk softies.

• Knit a lacy swimsuit cover-up.

Cool

• Three LEGO minifigs are going to Jupiter.

• Doctor Who inspired crafts. (via The Mary Sue)

• Quilled Starry Night.

• Starry Night cake. (via The Mary Sue)

• Amazing storm photo.

• Tiny worlds in tiny bottles.

• Linkity from MrsPao.

• I want a treehouse office! (via Lifehacker)

• Cartoon character color wheel. (via The Mary Sue)

• Harry Potter characters done Disney style.

• Tiny steampunk minions.

Cool or Wha…?

• Dalek dress.

• TARDIS dresses.

• Death Star dress.

• Duct tape Princess Leia dress.

• Chainmail gear bag.

• Leopard print house.

• If you’ve ever wondered how Disney princesses or Abe Lincoln would look with tattoos…

• iPad stylus shaped like a match.

• You can buy cereal marshmallows in bulk…

• Stay cool with… frozen baby food?

Wha…?

• Urinal dress.

• Worst bedhead ever.

• Glow-in-the-dark jeans.

• Completely NSFW ladyparts bag.

• Castle made of human hair.

• Faucet iPad stand.

• Creepiest iPhone case ever.

• Taxidermy dioramas.

• Angry Birds bra.

• Beer ring.

• Digital dating emotional abuse simulator…

• Mayor drives tank over car parked in bike lane.

LOL

• The Justice League, with the boys sans pants… (via The Mary Sue)

• What meds should the Winnie-the-Pooh characters be taking? (via The Mary Sue)

• An amusing Ben & Jerry’s flavor that doesn’t exist. (via The Mary Sue)

• Spock is not impressed. (via Marsha)

• Are your bananas talking to you?

• How cats see things.

• Basement Cat’s film career starts slowly. (And beware!)

• Basement Cat helps around the farm…

• Order carefully if you suspect your waiter is Basement Cat…

• Basement Cat and fuzzy dice.

Teh Cute

• Kittens! Awwww! Baby penguins! Kitten! Cygnet! Kitten! Cheetah and cheetah tot! Kitten! Jaguars! Baby mouse! Baby penguin! Baby tiger! Owlet! White lion cub! Otter!

Reading Update
His Faithful Servant (Knight Errant #2) by KD Sarge. ebook. Excellent m/m scifi romance continuing the story of Taro and Rafe as they leave Taro’s sister’s ship in order to make their own way. While Knight Errant was told from Taro’s point-of-view, this one’s told from Rafe’s… and he’s not quite as focused as Taro. 🙂
Gathering Storm by Lyn Gala. ebook. Excellent kinky m/m romance about the submissive son of a wealthy man who’s been fascinated by one of his instructors since he was in military school several years before. But in his insecurity and neediness after not getting what he wants, he makes a very poor decision… that could cost him his life.
Swept Away by Sloan Parker. free ebook short. Excellent free short m/m romance about lawyer, part of a couple who’ve celebrated their anniversary the same way for 15 years, who’s dreading this year’s anniversary celebration.
Surrender by K. Piet. ebook short. Very good kinky m/m short about a Dom who finds himself very drawn to another Dom doing a public scene at a club party… and then finds his core assumptions about himself challenged. If you’ve ever been annoyed by a smug Dom story, you’ll appreciate this chance to see a smug Dom shaken to his core. 🙂
Blind Items by Kate McMurray. ebook. Very good m/m romance about a liberal gay journalist who finds himself attracted to and then involved with the deeply closeted son of an ultra-conservative, anti-gay Senator running for President. Since he’s not willing to go back into the closet and the Senator’s son is too terrified to come out… The only thing I didn’t like about this one was the somewhat abrupt ending, although I appreciated that there wasn’t an epilogue. Perhaps a sequel? 🙂
Wanting by Piper Vaughn. free ebook short. Very good free short m/m romance about college student Laurie who’s taken by surprise when his best friend’s younger (18-year old) brother informs him that he wants Laurie to take his virginity.
Hourglass by Jane Davitt. ebook. Very good m/m romance about a Hollywood producer whose 11-year old daughter falls in love with his tv series Hourglass, which only lasted two seasons, ten years ago. Under pressure, he agrees to make a follow-up movie, then has to get the estranged stars to agree to be in it… and hope that they’ll get over hating each other and recapture some of their previous chemistry.
Prise de Fer by AR Moler. ebook short. Very good short m/m paranormal romance about a chemistry professor who’s attracted to one of his former students, with no clue that the student is a werewolf. And there’s fencing in this story, which was a fun flashback.
Hanging Loose by Lou Harper. ebook. Good m/m romance about a straight guy from the Midwest who moves to LA after college to escape winter. When he ends up stranded overnight at Venice Beach, a friendly surfer gives him a place to sleep for the night and changes his life.
Appearing Knightly by JM Cartwright. free ebook short. Fun short free m/m story about Batman rescuing a naked guy and being strangely excited by him…
Packing Leather (Sun, Sea & Submission #1) by Kim Dare. ebook short. Good kinky short m/m romance about a guy who wins a weekend away at an exclusive resort and invites his office mate to join him.
Modeling Death (Hidden Magic #2) by Amber Kell. ebook. Good paranormal m/m romance about a centuries-old wizard who runs into a model at a club and realizes the model is his fated mate. Too bad someone’s out there, killing models…
Hitting It Big by Shawn Lane. ebook short. Good short m/m romance about Billy, whose brother drags him to a party celebrating his brother’s friend Mitch winning the lottery… Mitch, the guy to whom Billy lost his virginity to years ago in a one night stand. I had a couple of niggles about this one.
CatNap (Middlemarch Mates #8) by Shelley Munro. ebook. Good paranormal m/m romance about an amnesiac tiger shifter who’s rescued by two other tiger shifters (brother and sister) and becomes part of their family. But what if his bloody, fragmented dreams are actual memories?
Del Fantasma: Toasted Almond by Sharon Maria Bidwell. ebook short. Ok short paranormal m/m romance about a guy who always feels cold arriving at the bar Del Fantasma and running into a guy who suddenly makes him feel warm. I found the writing frustratingly dense.

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“Why do you say I have anime eyes, Mom? I have Mayhem eyes!!” -Mayhem