Reviewed by Kat

 

TITLE: Summer Heat

AUTHOR: Jay Northcote

PUBLISHER: Jaybird Press (self published)

LENGTH: 47 000 words

RELEASE DATE: June 9, 2017

BLURB:

A summer fling is an ideal cure for a broken heart. But when it’s with your best friend, things get complicated.

When Adam is dumped by his boyfriend, a week away at a beach resort seems like a great opportunity to get over his ex. Sun, sea, and no-strings sex will be just the boost he needs to move on with his life.

Adam’s best friend, Finn, agrees to accompany him at short notice. Finn’s had a crush on Adam for years, but is determined to put his feelings aside and be the perfect wingman in Adam’s time of crisis.

A spontaneous threesome with another guy forces Adam and Finn to confront their attraction to each other. Having a holiday fling together wasn’t part of the plan, and as their trip heats up, they soon realise that one night of fun won’t be enough for either of them.

The passion might be scorching, but their hearts and friendship are on the line. If their romance is going to survive the flight home, they have to be honest about what they want. Read More

 

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Dim Sum Asylum by Rhys Ford

REVIEWED by Christie

 

TITLE: Dim Sum Asylum

AUTHOR: Rhys Ford

PUBLISHER: Dreamspinner Press

LENGTH: 240 Pages

RELEASE DATE: June 9, 2017

BLURB:

Welcome to Dim Sum Asylum: a San Francisco where it’s a ho-hum kind of case when a cop has to chase down an enchanted two-foot-tall shrine god statue with an impressive Fu Manchu mustache that’s running around Chinatown, trolling sex magic and chaos in its wake.

Senior Inspector Roku MacCormick of the Chinatown Arcane Crimes Division faces a pile of challenges far beyond his human-faerie heritage, snarling dragons guarding C-Town’s multiple gates, and exploding noodle factories. After a case goes sideways, Roku is saddled with Trent Leonard, a new partner he can’t trust, to add to the crime syndicate family he doesn’t want and a spell-casting serial killer he desperately needs to find.

While Roku would rather stay home with Bob the Cat and whiskey himself to sleep, he puts on his badge and gun every day, determined to serve and protect the city he loves. When Chinatown’s dark mystical underworld makes his life hell and the case turns deadly, Trent guards Roku’s back and, if Trent can be believed, his heart… even if from what Roku can see, Trent is as dangerous as the monsters and criminals they’re sworn to bring down….Read More »

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Kade and Cameron by A.D. Ellis

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The Monet Murders (The Art of Murder #2) by Josh Lanyon

Reviewed by Sarina

TITLE: The Monet Murders

SERIES: The Art of Murder #2

AUTHOR: Josh Lanyon

PUBLISHER: JustJoshin Publishing

LENGTH: 311 pages

RELEASE DATE: May 25, 2017

BLURB:

All those late night conversations when Sam had maybe a drink too many or Jason was half falling asleep. All those playful, provocative comments about what they’d do when they finally met up again.

Well, here they were.

The last thing Jason West, an ambitious young FBI Special Agent with the Art Crimes Team, wants–or needs–is his uncertain and unacknowledged romantic relationship with irascible legendary Behavioral Analysis Unit Chief Sam Kennedy.

And it’s starting to feel like Sam is not thrilled with the idea either.

But personal feelings must be put aside when Sam requests Jason’s help to catch a deranged killer targeting wealthy, upscale art collectors. A killer whose calling card is a series of grotesque paintings depicting the murders. Read More »

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Wolf of the Northern Star by SJ Himes

Reviewed by Caroline

TITLE: Wolf of the Northern Star

SERIES: The Wolfkin Saga Book 2

AUTHOR: SJ Himes

PUBLISHER: Self Published

LENGTH: 369 Pages

RELEASE DATE: June 15, 2017

BLURB:

Ghost, once known as the cub Luca, is finally home. Back among his kind and learning what it means to be both a man and a shaman, Ghost battles the expectations of his people, his family, and the pressures of a society that is both foreign and familiar. His power is greater than any seen before, dwarfing that of even the legendary Shaman Gray Shadow—and his union with Kane places him in the center of a controversy that rattles wolfkin society around the world.

Kane, greater alpha and Heir to Black Pine Clan, has finally defeated the traitor and murderer that destroyed the heart of Black Pine years before. Freed at last from guilt and pain, Kane has a new enemy to face: his own people. Placed on trial for violation of Law and blasphemy, Kane will have to fight to the death to preserve his bond with Ghost and keep his mate and people safe.

The soulbond between Ghost and Kane is forged by the creator and Goddess of the wolfkin. Usually, a sacred and treasured union that honors the pair and their clans, this soulbond is seen not as a gift, but a threat to eons of tradition and Clan Law.
The union of a Shaman and Alpha is anathema—but how to reconcile that belief when it is the wolfkin Goddess who forged it? Can Ghost and Kane save themselves, preserve their bond, and find a new future when the laws of the ancient past threaten to tear them apart? Read More »

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Their Life As They Live It by AM Arthur

Reviewed by Caroline

 

 

TITLE: Their Life As They Live It

SERIES: Perspectives Book 4

AUTHOR: AM Arthur

PUBLISHER: Briggs-King Books

LENGTH: 239 Pages

RELEASE DATE: May 8, 2017

BLURB:

“Happiness is not a goal…it is a by-product of a life well lived.”
–Eleanor Roosevelt

Bernard “Bear” Henson is a blessed man. He is happily married to the love of his life, he co-owns a successful business, and his grown son is desperately in love with a wonderful partner. But Bear knows all too well how precarious that happiness is, so he lives every day with love in his heart and gratitude for everything he has—especially his husband Richard Brightman. Richard has been HIV-positive for thirty years and every new day is a gift.

When Richard becomes unexpectedly ill and is rushed to the hospital, Bear braces for his beautifully constructed life to come crashing down. A hard-won life full of ups and downs, illnesses and setbacks, love and anger, and a lot of regret for how certain things went down. Certain things involving Bear’s alcoholic ex-wife Debbie and the start of Bear’s relationship with Richard. But the past can’t be changed, only remembered and studied.

As Richard fights for his life, Bear reflects on the last thirty years of their entwined lives. College days, his shotgun wedding to Debbie, his unexpected feelings for Richard, and the proudest moment of Bear’s life: the birth of his son Gabriel. Bear’s life with Richard is woven with love, heartache, regret, joy, and everything else in between. They’ve overcome every obstacle that’s come their way, and they’ll overcome this new illness, too. Period. Bear simply isn’t ready to live his life without Richard in it.

Note: This is the fourth book in my Perspectives series, and while it can be read as a standalone, readers will have a much richer concept of these characters if you’ve at least read book two, The World As He Sees It. Warnings for spousal abuse (not between the two heroes) and cheating….Read More »

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Spoils of War by Hannah Walker

Reviewed by Dan

 

TITLE: Spoils of War

AUTHOR: Hannah Walker

PUBLISHER: Self-Published

LENGTH: 254 Pages

RELEASE DATE: June 10, 2017

BLURB:

Jecks Cordant, High General of the Kabarian army was used to life being a certain way. Jecks knew things didn’t tend to change when you were at the top of your career. He was wrong. In one moment, because of one small letter, his entire world tilted. Everything was different.

Being forced into a marriage he didn’t want, with a prince he had nothing in common with, Jecks watched his life crumble around him. Yet, he could do nothing other than go along with the plans for the sake of peace and the thousands of lives at risk in both empires.

Calling on the support of his friends, he makes the journey to meet his fiancé. Along the way, he meets a man he never expected to find— one he could fall in love with. Battling the enemies intent on stopping the peace deal from going ahead, and his own heart, Jecks steels himself for what the future holds— a life of loneliness and regrets.

Forced to confront feelings he can’t afford to explore, and fighting to bring peace to both lands, Jecks will stand together with his men and fight for what is right, even if it’s sacrificing his own feelings. His duty to Kabaria is more important than the love of a man.

With enemies out to stop them, and danger meeting them around every corner, Jecks must learn to trust while ignoring the growing emotions he shouldn’t feel. With their goal in sight, Jecks knows he must honor the duty given him, but once he arrives at the castle, he finds his problems have only begun. Read More »

Draakenwood (Whyborne & Griffin #9) by Jordan L. Hawk

Reviewed by Sarina

 

TITLE: Draakenwood

SERIES: Whyborne & Griffin #9

AUTHOR: Jordan L. Hawk

PUBLISHER: Widdershins Press

LENGTH: 246 pages

RELEASE DATE: June 2, 2017

BLURB:

Someone is killing members of the old families…and the evidence points to Whyborne.

Widdershins has been unusually quiet for months. But now a mysterious creature from the Outside is on the loose, assassinating members of the town’s old families by draining their blood. Whyborne and Griffin set out to solve the mystery—but as the evidence piles up, the police begin to suspect Whyborne himself is the murderer.

Now Whyborne must both clear his name and stop the horrors the monster threatens to unleash. His only hope: an alliance with his old enemies the Endicotts.

Because something terrible lurks in the Draakenwood, and it will stop at nothing to seize control of the maelstrom itself.

Draakenwood is the ninth book in the Whyborne & Griffin series, where magic, mystery, and m/m romance collide with Victorian era America…Read More »

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Reviewed by Cinnamon

 

TITLE: P.S. I Spook You

AUTHOR: S.E. Harmon

PUBLISHER: Dreamspinner Press

LENGTH: 256 pages

RELEASE DATE:  June 12, 2017

BLURB:

SSA Rain Christiansen used to be the agency’s golden boy. It just takes one moment of weakness, one slight, tiny, itty-bitty paranormal sighting, and all of a sudden he’s the agency’s embarrassment. His boss gives him one last chance to redeem himself—go down to Brickell Bay, play nice with the local police, and leave the ghost sightings behind. Rain is determined to do exactly that, even if it kills him.

Cold-case detective Daniel McKenna’s latest investigation is going nowhere fast. Five years earlier, high school student Amy Greene went missing after leaving her part-time job and was never seen again. Daniel is glad to finally have the FBI help that his department requested, even if it does come in the form of his ex.

It doesn’t help that Rain is pretty sure he’s falling in love with Danny all over again—if he ever stopped. Add to that the frustration of seeing ghosts at every turn while he works a case that’s stalled in its tracks, and Rain is starting to wonder if second chances and happy endings are just for fairy tales. Read More

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