Today we are very happy and proud to welcome Miss Avril Ashton to our blog!

Avril stops by for an interview, share an excerpt of her new release and offers an Ecopy to one Lucky winner!!

Welcome to Love Bytes Avril 🙂

Title: (Watch Me) Body You

Author: Avril Ashton

Series: Book #2 in the Run This Town series

Book Length: 71,666

Publisher: Self

Pub Date: Nov 12, 2014

Blurb: Denial only lasts so long…eventually the heart wins out

What if loving him…

After recent events that had his life flashing before his eyes, Israel Storm is re-evaluating everything. His friends. His priorities. What’s not going to change is the deep connection he’s developed with Reggie Turner. They’re comfortable with each other, partners in crime with no qualms about sharing women. Whatever Is needs, Reggie is the one he calls. Their bond can survive anything. But maybe not the kiss Reggie plants on him out of nowhere.

Means losing him?

Despite what Is thinks, that kiss came from somewhere. An un-named current has been flowing between them for months. Reggie doesn’t bat for his own team, but the more time he spends with Is, seeing past the rough façade of the man leading The Rude Boys, the more Reggie loses sight of labels and where he fits. All he knows is there’s something there, something Is will never acknowledge. One kiss leads to a punch that lands Reggie in the ER, and sends Is digging through his darkest memories in search of himself.

Friendship is all that’s left if they bury the truth. If they ignore the pull that makes it impossible to do anything other than fight. But denials can be exhausting and hiding isn’t working, not when everyone can clearly see your heart’s desire. An enemy is out to make an example of Is and his weapon of choice will leave this Rude Boy bloodied…and bodied.

Welcome Avril , Thanks for answering these questions 🙂

Avril-Tell us what got you involved in mm books?

I read one. Can’t recall the title or the author, but it was enough to pique my interest and to make me want more. But even then I didn’t immediately think to write it. I had lots of het stories in my head, until those voices started getting lower while gay characters were yelling louder. In the end, I found myself coming up with male/male stories instead of m/f ones. I went with it.

Avril-You seem to have such complex characters, where do you come up with these guys?  Do the guys come to you fully intact or do you have to delve deeper into them?

The most interesting, moving, and relatable characters are the most complex. No one is truly one-dimensional and I wouldn’t want to write characters that were that way. They don’t come to me fully intact. They give me just what I need in the beginning to get their story started, and reveal themselves as I write.

You write such realistic, complex characters that your fans seem to love.  Are these the types of men that call to you?

I write what I love. I love men who are flawed, rough, who straddle the gray line between what’s right and what’s necessary. I like men who show how they feel. Who love ruthlessly. There are men who run the streets and do the things necessary to survive out there, but once they’re home, once they’re inside the safety of their loved one’s embrace, they’re completely different. Same coin, different side. I happen to know this first hand, so I write those men. Because many would prefer that we only see the harsh, abrasive side, and we judge them on that alone. I like giving my readers both sides, a full picture. The contrast, hard and soft. Killer and lover. Danger and safety. Nothing hidden, nothing wrapped up neatly in pretty ribbons. Even though I write fiction, there’s nothing about that life that’s false, except maybe that those men don’t feel as deeply as we do.

Give us the insight into what’s it’s like to have these characters in your head, screaming at you to have their stories written.

Well, it’s fun. I can tell you that. Never boring. It’s also hard, because it’s a whole bunch of them and I’ve learned that as soon as I get rid of one set of characters a brand new pair steps right on up and starts with the yelling. There’s never a time when I’m not thinking about them. Car rids with me are the worst. I’m silent, staring into space. Listening.

What is your writing process?  Do you just write what comes at you and then go back during edits or do you edit as you write?

Yeah, I write in the moment. I’m a pantser. Whatever happens as I’m typing is what happens. I never question it. After I’ve typed The End I’ll go back, and make it all fit and make sense. I start a book knowing a little something about what’s gonna happen in chapter one. Maybe chapter two. That’s about it. My writing is linear, meaning I write straight, from chapter one to the end. So every chapter informs the one that comes after.

Can you name some other M/M authors that are on your auto-buy list?

I used to have an auto-buy list, but my moods no longer allow it. So I’ll just say that I read whatever and whoever catches my fancy and works with my mood, whatever it happens to be, at any given moment.

How do you come up with your titles?

Oh, titles! Love them. That is not the part of the writing process to be lazy. Risks should be taken. Imagination should be shown. I like evocative, eye-catching titles that emotes something, be that sex, danger, love or sorrow. I listen to a lot of music so I might snatch bits and pieces, or I just allow my mind to do what it does best and come up with something random. It’s never failed me yet.

How can a random person who has no idea about your books contact you?

Facebook, Twitter, email. Goodreads, even. I mean I’m all over. And I answer all emails pretty quickly. My phone is glued to my hand. It’s a sickness, I know.

Avril, you are the Queen of tease….how do you give us such delicious teases while leaving the majority of the book a secret??

It’s a gift how you do that…. LOL I get excited about certain things I write and I have to share. It’s difficult, deciding what to share and what to hold back. It’s an instinctive thing, for me, I guess. I have a good idea as to what to put out there to keep you guys hooked and wanting more. It’s a talent *bows*

Avril-Tell us about the new series? Where did the inspiration come from?

I never set out to write a series. Never. It just so happens that some secondary characters bum-rush their way to the front of my consciousness and never leave until they get their chance to shine. I introduced Dima Zhirkov in a free read and while writing him I was like “well, we know your ass won’t be satisfied with being just a bit player.” So he got his book ( (Watch Me) Break You), but again certain characters showed up and refused to play their positions, the ones I’d decided for them. They had to get their own stories as well. I decided then that where my other popular series were about the good guys falling for the bad guys, this one would be straight thug-on-thug loving. No middle ground, no gray area, just bad men falling for other bad men while doing bad things. I titled it Run This Town because it’s going to be a running theme, our guys going to war for territories and other…stuff.

How many more books are you expecting in your new series?  Are there more interesting characters coming our way?

Five books are planned. No more. No less. I’d have to say that hell to the yeah, more interesting characters will be coming out of the wood work. It’s what happens when I start typing.

 

“I can’t give anything more.” Is’ expression changed, became more intent. More intense. “I have nothing else except fun with those women, Reg.”

Reggie didn’t say anything, he just waited. There was something deeper happening here and he had to wait it out in order to understand what Is was telling him.

“I am who I am,” Is said. “Nothing’s going to change it.”

Reggie’s chest squeezed. Why did it feel as if Is was talking directly to him there? Why did it feel so fucking wrong? He blinked rapidly. “I know,” he said in a hoarse whisper. “I know that.”

“I trust your opinion,” Is said. He stepped closer and touched Reggie’s nape, cupping him, hauling him closer.

Fuck. Reggie was hard in an instant, swallowing the groan threatening to fall from his throat. It wasn’t fair to want this, to have it, but to not quite have it. It wasn’t fair, but was he moving away from Is’ grasp? Was he shaking off his hold? He couldn’t. He needed it and he’d take this, if this was all he’d ever get.

“Is.” He managed to choke out the name. Dying. He was fucking dying and Is would see it.

“It’s good.” Is pressed their foreheads together, thumb absently stroking Reggie’s jaw just below his ear. “We’re good.”

But they weren’t because Reggie was about to jump out of his skin. Is’ breath touched his nose, warmed his lips and Reggie just stood there, unable to do much except soak it all up. He let Is touch him as they stood in the soft sand, water lapping at their ankles. Did Is know he was giving Reggie everything he wanted right then? He couldn’t possibly know how hard Reggie’s heart beat in his chest right then. He couldn’t possibly know Reggie was rock hard, his erection painful against the tenuous press of his zipper.

Maybe he knew. Maybe Is knew. Reggie couldn’t take the chance so he took what he was given like a good little soldier would, he took the scraps of emotion he caught every once in a while in Is’ eyes, he took the fleeting touches that weren’t quite fleeting and the promise of maybe, possibly, that came with each puff of breath Is expelled. He took it all and tried to tell himself it would be enough. It would be alright.

So what if it was a lie? Wouldn’t be the first one he told himself since he woke up to find himself fascinated with Is’ mouth.

REVIEW BY AMBER

One of my most favorite genre’s of m/m romance is GFY (Gay For You.) I have no idea why this appeals to me so much, but it does. And I’ve realized there isn’t another author that can write GFY better than Miss Ashton. I think it’s a hard concept to write and make believable but she does is superbly. You never question it with her books. It just always makes the most perfect sense.

In Watch Me (Body You) book #2 of the Run This Town series we pick up right where book #1 left off. Is, is hold up in Reggie’s cabin, in the middle of nowhere, emotionally and physically still healing from his confrontation with the Russians. Is comes off as a diehard heterosexual male. So, when he starts noticing things about Reggie that he would notice about the opposite sex he starts freaking himself out.

Reggie, too, has lived his life as a heterosexual male. Recently, however he has been battling some intense feelings for his best friend, Is. These feelings, combined with constantly watching Is whore himself out to anything with a pair of boobs is weighing heavily on Reggie. He is becoming resentful towards Is and angry. They argue, constantly, but during this you can see Is’s walls start to crack. The looks, the touches, the words make your heart race. They make you want it FOR Is and Reg. This is one of the things that this author masters so well, the tease. Throughout the book you get a little more, then a little more and it’s so beautifully frustrating, but you want it to go on and on.

When they do finally give in, they come together in an exquisitely violent and fulfilling way. God, it was so good watching them give in to each other. Nothing is halfway with these two. They go hard and they go all in.

Lots of other factors are going on while these two battle their feelings for each other. Is’s gang is still going hardcore; the Vega cartel is still a big issue, and Is has a rat in his close circle. We also meet Is’s mother who is very mentally disturbed, their relationship is heartbreaking and the events that unfold are devastating for Is but Reggie is never far from his side.

We are introduced to Quinn in this book and man; I want to read his story so bad. We also, get super Hot and super Sweet moments with X and Dima. Those were so much appreciated.

I am so excited to see where the rest of this series goes. These books are true gems to the m/m genre. I love them so much!!

RATING: 

 

Buy Links:

Amazon

Amazon.UK

All Romance

 

A West Indian transplant, Avril now lives in Stone Mountain, GA., with a tolerant spousal equivalent. Together they raise an eccentric daughter who loves reading and school (not so much school anymore she’s back to loving it). Avril’s earliest memories of reading revolve around discussing the plot points of Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys with an equally book-minded mother.

Always in love with the written word, Avril finally decided to do the writing in August of ’09 and never looked back. Spicy love scenes, delicious heroes, and wicked women burn up the pages of Avril’s stories, but there’ll always be a happy ending; Av remains a believer of love in all its forms.

Addicted to cake, the ID Channel and the UFC, Avril writes award-winning LGBT and Erotic Romance.

Visit: http://www.avrilashton.com

Friend Av on: http://facebook.com/writeravrilashton

http://www.twitter.com/#!/AvrilAsh

Ecopy  (Watch Me)  Body You

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