A warm welcome to author Rhys Ford , stopping by Love Bytes on her blog tour for newest release “Hanging the Stars”.
Rhys shares a piece of the new story and brought with her a fabulous giveaway!
Thank you for following the Hanging The Stars blog tour! I was very excited to return to Half Moon Bay and well, deliver West Harris his comeuppance. For this tour, I wanted to share a bit about the relationships the characters have with one another and just a bit of every day stuff as they prepare for their Christmas holiday.
As I am sure many of you are preparing for your holidays.
I’m going to keep this short and sweet because well… there’s a bit of story beneath this. But I do hope you stop by Half Moon Bay and catch up with West as a bit of his past returns in the form of Angel Daniels…the one man who broke his heart and took the pieces with him.
And be sure to enter this blog’s Hanging The Stars giveaway! The winner gets a $25 dollar gift certificate to the online vendor of their choice!
Half Moon Holiday 3 “Wait, let me get this straight,” Deacon growled at Lang while they picked through an ocean of boxed up ornaments. “Your brother the dick is suing Angel?”
“Don’t call West a dick. I just got Zig to stop saying it.” Lang rolled his eyes at Deacon’s huff of exasperation. “He’s not suing Angel, he’s trying to get Angel to sell him the bakery so he can develop the property around it. Not something I agree with.”
“You going to give West some shit about it? Because if you’re not…” The cutting look he got from Lang was worthy of West. “Look, I love you but your brother? He’s kind of an asshole.”
“West has… issues.” Lang sniffed.
“He’s an uptight prick who just happens to be hot because he’s got your face. That’s about the best thing going for him.” He teased a smile out of Lang with a slow, simmering kiss. “Okay, so maybe he’s a ruthless fuck but he’s your brother. I get it. But trying to drive Angel Daniels out? The guy’s working his ass off to make a living and West’s trying to bury him. Dick move, babe.”
“Less about West and more about what we want on the tree.” Lang held up a wooden thing painted in garish reds and greens. “What do you think about this?”
“I think it needs to be burned before it lurches upstairs and kills us all in our sleep?” Deacon offered. “What the hell is it? Please don’t tell me you made that in shop class or something and I’ve just insulted you.”
“Not mine. My mother. It’s supposed to be Father Christmas. I think.” He studied the cobbled together blocks, pulling at his lower lip. “Or maybe it was the other one. Crap. I don’t remember. God, I’m going to have to take a picture of it and ask her.”
“Do you really have to?” Deacon shifted on the couch, edging closer to his husband. “Do you want to?”
Taking Lang’s hand, he ran his thumb over the gold band, the twin to the one he wore on his own ring finger. It warmed under his touch, not like Lang’s family. They’d not spent a lot of time with the Harrises. Oddly enough, it was Lang’s cold-tempered twin brother who’d visited frequently, often ringing his brother up for a quick chat or sending along small presents for their family after a long business trip. For all the shit Deacon gave West, he knew he could count on Lang’s twin brother to be there if they needed him.
“Not really. I guess…I’m trying to shove a lot of Christmas into too small of a space? I don’t know if that makes sense, Deke,” Lang confessed. “I think I want to make everything perfect. Maybe too perfect? For Zig. For you. Maybe even for me.”
Deacon pulled Lang against him, looping his arm around his husband’s lithe body. Kissing the back of Lang’s head, he murmured, “Is this where I tell you how family and love is all we need for Christmas?”
“Yes, this is exactly where you say that,” Lang chuckled.
“Well, I can’t. Because Zig’s a kid and for her, Christmas is all about the shiny and she’s a bit of a hoarder.” Deacon joined Lang’s chuckle with one of his own. “Yeah, she needs us to love her and she knows she’s our kid but when it’s all said and done, it’s about toys, food and—”
“Books,” Lang finished. “All of the books.”
“Every book,” he agreed. “And honey, seriously, no matter what she’s given or not given, none of this shit—the tree, the food, the books, any of it—it really is about me, you and Zig. Now, let’s find the prettiest ornaments we can and get this damned thing decorated so we can go to bed.”
“Maybe not all the pretty ones.” Bending forward, Lang pulled the wooden monstrosity out of its spot in the box then smoothed the white cotton thatch sticking out of its chin. “Maybe a couple of the ugly ones too. Just because not everything that’s important is pretty but they are all beautiful.”
_____________
Hanging the Stars (Half Moon Bay #2) by Rhys Ford Angel Daniels grew up hard, one step ahead of the law and always looking over his shoulder. A grifter’s son, he’d learned every con and trick in the book but ached for a normal life. Once out on his own, Angel returns to Half Moon Bay where he once found…and then lost…love.
Now, Angel’s life is a frantic mess of schedules and chaos. Between running his bakery and raising his troubled eleven-year-old half-brother, Roman, Angel has a hectic but happy life. Then West Harris returns to Half Moon Bay and threatens to break Angel all over again by taking away the only home he and Rome ever had.
When they were young, Angel taught West how to love and laugh but when Angel moved on, West locked his heart up and threw away the key. Older and hardened, West returns to Half Moon and finds himself face-to-face with the man he’d lost. Now, West is torn between killing Angel or holding him tight.
But rekindling their passionate relationship is jeopardized as someone wants one or both of them dead, and as the terrifying danger mounts, neither man knows if the menace will bring them together or forever tear them apart.
Purchase Hanging the Stars (Half Moon Bay #2) at: Dreamspinner, Amazon, and ARe .
Hanging the Stars Blog Tour Stops
Nov 30: It’s About the Book
Dec 1: Boy Meets Boy
Dec 2: Love Bytes
Dec 3: Prism Book Alliance
Dec 4: Sinfully Gay Romance
Dec 5: The Novel Approach
Dec 7: Joyfully Jay
About Rhys Ford
Rhys Ford is an award-winning author with several long-running LGBT+ mystery, thriller, paranormal, and urban fantasy series and was a 2016 LAMBDA finalist with her novel, Murder and Mayhem. She is published by Dreamspinner Press and DSP Publications.
She’s also quite skeptical about bios without a dash of something personal and really, who doesn’t mention their cats, dog and cars in a bio? She shares the house with Yoshi, a grumpy tuxedo cat and Tam, a diabetic black pygmy panther, as well as a ginger cairn terrorist named Gus. Rhys is also enslaved to the upkeep a 1979 Pontiac Firebird and enjoys murdering make-believe people
Rhys’ Blog: www.rhysford.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/rhys.ford.author
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Rhys_Ford
Rhys Ford’s books can found at Dreamspinner Press, DSP Publications and all major online book stores.
Rhys graciously brought with her a $25 dollar Gc for one Lucky reader of this post!
Enter the Giveaway to have a chance to win 🙂
a Rafflecopter giveaway
(Entry closes Dec 11th )
I’m enjoying this blog tour immensely! Thank you for the lovely excerpt, Rhys – now you got me impatient to read the book. 🙂
Have a great weekend!
Such a lovely story already!
Such a great excerpt I’m looking forward to reading the book it sounds fab.
Book 1 was amazing and I cannot wait to read Hanging the Stars. SO excited. 😊
I preordered and now it’s only 3 more days~!
For a family that used to put up 7 trees each year, that has to be a RIDICULOUS amount of ornaments to go through. They should probably have started the day after Thanksgiving!
What a lovely piece of the story. Two lines jumped out at me.
This one made me lol: “I think it needs to be burned before it lurches upstairs and kills us all in our sleep?”
And this one because everyone needs to hear it: “Maybe a couple of the ugly ones too. Just because not everything that’s important is pretty but they are all beautiful.”
Thank you!
such true sentiments we should all remember. thanks 🙂
i’m loving this Christmas story! Can’t get enough!
Love that last line in the excerpt! Thank you so much for the excerpt and giveaway. I really want oto read this book.
Can’t wait for Book 2
awwwwww i love this excerpt!
I loved the first book in the series…. I’m really looking forward to reading West’s story!
Sounds great, thanks for the excerpt 🙂
Excellent post. I can not wait for the book to be released. 🙂
I seriously can’t wait to read Hanging the Stars. Thanks for the contest. 🙂
Oh, Rhys, what a wonderful snippet; happy birthday to me! Packing and getting ready to move house, but looking forward to reading Hanging the Stars. I need to reread book 1.
Loving these little Christmas snippets <3
I’m loving the construction of these Christmas snippets.
wonderful excerpt; thank you so much
I love opening up our ornament boxes and rediscovering our favorites.
After my parents died in 2014, I went out and bought an ornament for each of them. They are the first ones I put on the tree each year. Some ornaments are special.
I loved the first book and can’t wait to read this one. Thanks for the giveaway!
The more of these short pieces I read, the more impatient I get to read the book! Hurry up December 5th!
I love Lang and Deacon can’t wait for more.
I so can’t wait for this, but saving it for Christmas road trip. Will have to ignore all the reviews until then:)
Saving for road trip at Christmas, but I’m so ready! Love the peeks!
Loving the blog tour, can’t wait for Monday!
“Maybe a couple of the ugly ones too. Just because not everything that’s important is pretty but they are all beautiful.” – This was my favorite line in today’s snippet. Thanks for a lovely post.
Loving the blog tour. Can’t wait to read Hanging the Stars.
I’m really excited to re-visit Half Moon Bay!
Thank goodness it’s getting closer. I really like these blog tours with little snippets that all together end up telling a story. 😀
loved the excerpt
added these books to my wish list
I love this excerpts it’s like looking in the window to their lives. yes the characters always feel so real to me it’s like they could be my neighbors. Thank You Rhys
Every excerpt I read of the life Deacon and Lang have made together makes me glad I got the book (and audio). I am so looking forward to reading book 2 and litening to Greg Tremblay.
Love the Tour! Great story!
I love that last line
How true it is that when we fall in love, the in-laws–good, bad, and everything in between– come as part of the package. The ornament he insulted reminds me of something I made in wood class. It was pretty unrecognizable. 😀
Thank you for the excerpt. It sounds fantastic =)
Love these little vignettes! Thank you!
So funny. Ugly ornaments indeed. Looking forward to this one!
Definitely a book my sister would enjoy reading.
Thanks for another great excerpt!
God, I love this little family. Thanks Rhys!
Congrats on the book and the tour! This sounds like my kind of read! Thanks so much for sharing the excerpt and offering the Giveaway! Happy Holidays to you and your family!
Aww, true words at the end there!
Enjoying your short stories.
Not pretty but beautiful. That’s perfect!
I’m really enjoying these stories on the blog tour. Thanks, Rhys.
Thanks for this post 🙂
Not read this series yet but loved the excerpt so its been firmly added to my TBR
I love following along with this story!
Nothing better for Christmas than books. (Well, except for family, that is the best thing). I remember when the Christmas decorations my brother and I made in elementary school decorated the house and the tree, even into my college years. I admit to being a little glad they are no longer put out every year.
Thanks you for this post and congrats on the release 🙂
I am excited to get this book!
Another tempting snippet, thank you for the giveaway chance <3
Congratulations on the release! And thank you for the chance to win – which’d go straight to books. Lol. I can’t wait to read this – I’ve enjoyed absolutely everything else I’ve read! 😀
Loving the blog tour. I have to read all of these first.
I’m enjoying the snippets, thanks! 🙂
Congrats and thanks for the post. A good seasonal. And #2 sounds great to add to the series – I love some mystery mixed in with the gay romance.
Congrats on the relese of Hanging the Stars and thank you for the giveaway chance
Not sure how I missed this! Off to one-click! 🙂
Oh so true! What a lovely moment 🙂 Love these guys