Reviewed by Becca

TITLE: King John

SERIES: The Lost and Founds #4

AUTHOR: Edmond Manning

PUBLISHER: Pickwick Ink Publishing

LENGTH: 270 pages

RELEASE DATE: September 10, 2015

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English attorney Alistair Robertson can’t quite believe an astonishing tale of kingship and transformation he hears at Burning Man, the annual counter-culture art festival in the Black Rock desert. Who are the Found Kings? Is “being kinged” as magical as it sounds?
Determined to find the mysterious garage mechanic named Vin who helps men “remember who they were always meant to be,” Alistair catches his quarry amid the extravagant sculptures, fire worshipers, mutant cars, and lavish costumes. After searching for three years, he’ll finally get to ask the question burning inside him: “Will you king me?”
Wandering together through the desert, Vin Vanbly and Alistair explore Burning Man’s gifting culture and exotic traditions, where they meet the best and worst of their fellow burners. Alistair’s overconfidence in Vin’s manipulative power collides with Vin’s obsessive need to save a sixteen-year-old runaway from a nightmarish fate, and the two men spiral into uncontrollable, explosive directions.
In this fourth adventure of The Lost and Founds, beneath the sweltering summer sun and the six billion midnight stars, one truth emerges, searing itself on their hearts: in the desert, everything burns.

Reviewed by Kat

TITLE: Rainbow Rodeo

AUTHOR: BA Tortuga

PUBLISHER: Dreamspinner Press

LENGTH: 220 pages

RELEASE DATE: August 7, 2018

BLURB:

As a teenager, Dalton Jakoby made Tank an offer-one Tank turned down gently. It was still embarrassing as hell, so when Tank returns to the Jakoby Rodeo Company after a big-time bull riding tour, Dalton decides polite but distant is the best course of action.
Tank is hurting from some tough injuries and ready for a lighter workload. He’s also ready to admit Dalton is an adult now, one he wants to get to know much better. While Dalton’s past makes him suspicious of Tank’s attention, he can’t stay standoffish for long… not with Tank.
The new romance burns hot, but problems inside and outside the arena threaten what Tank and Dalton might have together.

Reviewed by Becca

TITLE: Teaching Trust

SERIES: Forever in Middlebury #2

AUTHOR: Brittany Cournoyer

PUBLISHER: self-published

LENGTH: 225 pages

RELEASE DATE: May 8, 2018

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Sebastian ~
I screwed up and ruined a perfectly good relationship with my ex, Anthony. But my epic screw-up helped him find the happiness he deserved, and that left me truly alone. So my life became the gym I own, and doing the drive-of-shame home after my countless hook-ups. I cut out trying to have any type of relationship, because my heart just wasn’t in it. That is until Tyler walks into my gym, and I can’t get those sad, brown eyes out of my mind. Little do I know, the man who shot me down twice is going to become my best friend.
Tyler ~
Middlebury was supposed to be a fresh start for me. A place where I could begin a new life, a life away from… him. It was to be my breath of fresh air. But it’s hard to breathe when I’m constantly looking over my shoulder. When my personal trainer leaves town for family issues, Sebastian, the man who tried to buy me a drink twice, is the one I’m stuck with training me. Soon, he becomes a whole lot more, but as much as I want to, I’m scared to let my guard down… and let him in.
Sebastian and Tyler each have their own internal battles. But when an unlikely friendship forms out of one personal training session, it’s a different kind of battle they’re forced to face. Instead of hiding their own secrets and lies, they have to decide whether to trust each other and let their friendship blossom into something more. Can they learn to trust each other enough to stop fighting the attraction? Or will their own trust issues stand in the way?
Trigger Warning: While this book is intended for adults—with adult situations—one of the main character’s backstory includes an abusive relationship.

Reviewed by Taylin

TITLE: Shift’s End

SERIES: Smoke & Bullets #3

AUTHOR: A.R. Barley

PUBLISHER: Carina Press

LENGTH: 251 pages

RELEASE DATE: August 6, 2018

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With a couple failed marriages under his belt, Captain Jack Tracey knows how tough it is to balance a personal life with his job. But nothing in his long career has prepared him for the moment Diesel Evers walks into his firehouse. Sure, Jack’s contended with cocky young recruits before, but this seriously hot hotshot rookie is poised to crash and burn. With early retirement in sight, Jack can’t afford to get involved with a subordinate.

Having transferred to Jack’s house after a disastrous relationship, Diesel isn’t looking for another commitment. But that doesn’t mean he can’t have a little fun with his sexy silver fox of a new boss. Sometimes you have to bend the rules a bit…or shatter them completely.

With an unidentified saboteur endangering his squad, Jack doesn’t want to draw any more heat, but Diesel is too damn tempting to deny. Indulging their desires feels worth the risk—until trouble on the job lands Jack in the hospital, forcing them both to decide what’s worth fighting for.

Reviewed by Becca

TITLE: Blood Bathory: Be Not Proud

SERIES: Guardians of Gaia #3

AUTHOR: Ari McKay

PUBLISHER: self-published

RELEASE DATE: August 6, 2018

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Death, be not proud…
The conclusion of the war between Elizabeth Bathory and the Guardians of Gaia draws closer, but the theriomorphs and their allies are caught between vampires loyal to Elizabeth Bathory’s daughter, Anna, and humans controlled by Elizabeth and her sire, Thrace. With the forces of evil now pressing on them from two sides, the theriomorphs need help, and they need it fast!
And soonest our best men with thee do go…
It has been five hundred years since Antonio de Barajas, one of the oldest surviving theriomorphs, lost his mate at the hands of his worst enemy. But Gaia never revealed the whole truth about Raphael’s fate, and Antonio is shocked when Raphael arrives to train Evan St. John and Adam Carson as true Dark Guardians. Yet the man who returns after so long is not the same man Antonio once loved. The hard and lonely life as Gaia’s hunter has changed Raphael almost as much as his lost memories of Antonio and the love they once shared.
Thou art slave to fate, chance, kings, and desperate men…
Antonio must work with the stranger who wears his lover’s face, and while Raphael is welcomed by most of the team, one member sees his return as a threat to his own place in Antonio’s life. But Thrace has allied himself with terrorists who possess a weapon of mass destruction. Now the theriomorphs and Dark Guardians must work together in a race against time to discover Thrace’s plan. Even as Antonio and Raphael are irresistibly drawn to one another, Antonio risks losing far more than his heart this time. If he and his team fail in their mission, millions will die, for Thrace will stop at nothing to destroy Gaia once and for all.

Reviewed by Becca

TITLE: Truth & Betrayal

SERIES: book 1

AUTHOR: K.C. Wells

PUBLISHER: self-published

LENGTH: 408 pages

RELEASE DATE: August 3, 2018

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All the light went out of Jake’s life when his older brother Caleb died in a traffic accident. Getting through the aftermath was always going to be the hardest thing he’d ever done, but finding out that the tall stranger at the graveside was the one driving the car? At least Jake now has a target for all the rage inside him. Because the man responsible for stealing Caleb’s light from the world has no right to intrude on their grief.
Liam had known deep down that it was a mistake to go to Tennessee, but he’d hoped saying goodbye to Caleb would ease the pain inside him. The hostile reception from Caleb’s family and friends comes as no surprise, and Liam flees before things get ugly. They obviously know nothing of Caleb’s life in Atlanta, and maybe it’s better that way. Caleb’s secrets can die with him.
When Jake turns up at Caleb’s apartment to collect his brother’s possessions, what he discovers is the first shock in what is to be a series of revelations, turning Jake’s world upside down. New knowledge brings fresh pain and anguish.
Jake isn’t the only one who’s hurting…

Reviewed by PizzyGirl

TITLE: Smoke in the Mirror

SERIES: Road to Blissville #5

AUTHOR: Aimee Nicole Walker

PUBLISHER: Chasing Rainbows Press

LENGTH: 214 pages

RELEASE DATE:  July 12, 2018

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Memphis Sullivan thought he was coming to Blissville to help his cousin out, but instead, he gained three meddlesome females, a tribe, and a permanent home. More than a year later, he owns a popular comic book and vinyl record store and doesn’t think his life could get any better. That all changes when the star of his favorite television show and bad-boy fantasies rides into town and spices up his vanilla world.

Lyric Willows’ decision to visit an old friend in Blissville will change his life in ways he never dreamed possible. The paranormal investigator is immediately drawn to the mysterious disappearance of the town’s founder in 1850 and rumors that his former home is haunted. More alluring to Lyric than the history of Bliss House is the immediate connection he feels to the adorably geeky owner of Vinyl and Villains, who also happens to be his friend’s cousin.

Lyric becomes Memphis’s houseguest when he decides to stay in town to conduct a paranormal investigation. Tight spaces lead to sexy encounters, and before long, ghosts aren’t the only things that go bump in the night. The more they unravel about Anthony Bliss’s disappearance, the more tangled in one another they become. How is it possible for two virtual strangers to feel like they’ve known each other for their entire lives? Was their love written in the stars, or is it nothing more than an illusion?

Smoke in the Mirror is the fifth book in the Road to Blissville series. Each book can be read as a standalone book or part of the series. This book contains sexually explicit material and is intended for adults 18 and older.

Reviewed by Caroline

TITLE: Cash Plays

SERIES: Seven of Spades Book 3

AUTHOR: Cordelia Kingsbridge

PUBLISHER: Riptide Publishing

LENGTH: 339 Pages

RELEASE DATE: June 4^th, 2018

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The Seven of Spades is back with a vengeance—the vigilante serial killer has resumed their murderous crusade, eluding the police at every turn. But a bloodthirsty killer isn’t the only threat facing Sin City. A devious saboteur is wreaking havoc in Las Vegas’s criminal underworld, and the entire city seems to be barreling toward an all-out gang war.

As Detective Levi Abrams is pushed ever closer to his breaking point, his control over his dangerous rage slips further every day. His relationship with PI Dominic Russo should be a source of comfort, but Dominic is secretly locked in his own downward spiral, confronting a nightmare he can’t bear to reveal.

Las Vegas is floundering. Levi and Dominic’s bond is cracking along the seams. And the Seven of Spades is still playing to win. How many bad hands can Levi and Dominic survive before it’s game over?

Reviewed by Becca

TITLE: Cort – Unbreakable

SERIES: Man Up #4

AUTHOR: Felice Stevens

PUBLISHER: self-published

RELEASE DATE: August 8, 2018

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Cort
I spent years waiting for someone who never put me first.
He took my love, took me for granted.
Took my heart.
Now I’m on my own.
Living life my way.
The crowd only sees my smile.
Never my loneliness and pain.
I need someone to need me.
When I meet another lost soul my friends try to warn me.
He’s a liar.
A user.
Homeless.
Heartbroken.
He’s all that and more.
He’s everything I’ve ever wanted.
Harlan
I’m king of my world.
Untouchable.
Then it all comes crashing down.
My secrets are exposed.
I’m cut off from my family.
Unrecognizable from the man I used to be.
Barely surviving, living day-to-day and out of control.
Nothing to hold on to.
I let go and fall so far there’s no way up.
Until a cowboy reaches into my darkness and brings me back to the light.
With him I can breathe.
I can be who I am.
Who he needs.
He gives me hope
To find myself.
To find love.

Reviewed by Taylin

TITLE: Salt Magic, Skin Magic

AUTHOR: Lee Welch

PUBLISHER: Self Published

LENGTH: 217 pages

RELEASE DATE: August 9, 2018

BLURB:

Lord Thornby has been trapped on his father’s isolated Yorkshire estate for a year. There are no bars or chains; he simply can’t leave. His sanity is starting to fray.
When industrial magician John Blake arrives to investigate a case of witchcraft, he finds the peculiar, arrogant Thornby as alarming as he is attractive. John soon finds himself caught up in a dark fairytale, where all the rules of magic–and love–are changed.

To set Thornby free, both men must face life-changing truths–and John must accept that the brave, witty man who’s winning his heart may also be about to break it. Can they escape a web of magic that’s as perilous as love?

Reviewed by Tammy

TITLE: Don’t Let Go

AUTHOR: Andrew Grey

PUBLISHER: Dreamspinner Press

LENGTH: 200 pages

RELEASE DATE: August 8, 2018

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Avery Rivers is a country music sensation, selling records by the millions and playing to sold-out crowds. But behind that persona is Robert, a burned-out musician cracking under the pressure. He’s unable to write any new songs, and he wants out of the business—at least for a while. He changes his appearance and finds honest, hard work in Jackson, Wyoming. Maybe getting to be a regular guy for a while will get him past his block.

Hy Whitely was a championship bull rider until he watched his best friend thrown in the arena and decided the rodeo circuit was no longer the place for him. He wants to be plain old Zeke for a while, and when he returns to his family ranch, he bumps right into Robert—a one-night stand from his last rodeo appearance who is now working there as a ranch hand.

The heat between the men could sear the grass off the range, but each one is hiding a secret. Robert and Zeke, the men behind the public images, fall in love, but can they hold on when Avery and Hy are pulled back into the spotlight?

Reviewed by Becca

TITLE: Work Rules

SERIES: Breaking the Rules #2

AUTHOR: Jacki James

PUBLISHER: self-published

LENGTH: 237 pages

RELEASE DATE: June 15, 2018

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Nathan Davenport’s past has taught him an important lesson that lead to his main dating rule: never date anyone you work with. He hasn’t had any problems keeping that rule. He’s the kind of guy men just want to play with for a night, but no one wants to keep forever. At least no one ever has until Alex.
Alex Doyle knows one thing. Even though he’s never been in a relationship with a man before, he wants Nathan…and not just for a night. He thought getting Nathan to violate his rule about not dating co-workers would be his biggest problem. However, it’s actually the fact Nathan doesn’t believe he’s worthy of a forever-relationship that’s his greatest challenge. And Alex won’t settle for anything less than everything with Nathan.
Just as Nathan starts to think he might have finally found someone who wants him for more than sex, his past comes back to haunt him. Will they manage to find a way to make things work? Or will breaking his rules cost Nathan everything… again

Reviewed by Jess

TITLE: Into the Sunrise

AUTHOR: Becky Black

PUBLISHER: JMS Books

LENGTH: 121 pages

RELEASE DATE:  June 30, 2018

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On the day her son leaves home, Lorna Friern makes a long-planned escape from her loveless marriage. With one suitcase, her laptop, and a box full of books, she leaves L.A. to drive to a new life in a house she’s inherited in Long Island. On the same day, after Northern Californian wildfires burn down the motel where she lives and the bar where she works, Zoe Bradshaw decides to move on again. Her destination, Las Vegas. Maybe. Or home to her family. Maybe.

The two women meet on the road, and when Zoe’s old junker of a car finally gives up the ghost, she accepts the offer to travel with Lorna for a while. perhaps all the way to New York. Lorna wasn’t looking for romance so soon after leaving her marriage, but chance put Zoe in her way and Lorna doesn’t want to leave her behind. Sharing a car and motel room beds, the two women learn each other’s histories and secrets. Only at the end of the journey will they know if they’ve escaped the past to ride off together into the sunrise.

Reviewed by Kat

TITLE: Brave for You

SERIES: Oahu Lovers #1

AUTHOR: Crystal Lacy

PUBLISHER: Self Published

LENGTH: 306 pages

RELEASE DATE: July 27, 2018

BLURB:

Less than a year after moving to Hawaii, construction foreman Nate Ellison’s wife leaves him and their infant son for another man. Months into single-fatherhood, Nate meets Andrew “An” Hoang and is slowly drawn into An’s life. Through An’s friendship, he finds himself finally enjoying his new home in paradise.
An Hoang hasn’t had a real relationship in years. With his pediatrics practice and a niece to care for on his days off, he doesn’t have the headspace for more than a simple roll in the sack. But when he meets Nate—who just happens to be the gorgeous construction worker he encountered in the lobby of his apartment building—something about Nate makes it impossible for him not to care. When Nate needs An’s help with his son, An doesn’t refuse.
What happens when Nate’s past and An’s old-fashioned parents interfere just as the two men begin to fall for each other? Will they find the means to be brave and give their love a chance to flourish?
A sweet and steamy slow burn M/M romance set in Hawaii.
This story is a HEA story with NO cliffhangers. Subsequent books in the series will feature new main characters.

Reviewed by Jess

TITLE: The Left Hand of Calvus

AUTHOR: Ann Gallagher

PUBLISHER: Self-published

LENGTH: 213 pages

RELEASE DATE:  November 5, 2016

BLURB:

Former gladiator Saevius is certain Fortune’s smiling on him when a Pompeiian politician buys him to be his bodyguard. That is until his new master, Laurea Calvus, orders Saevius to discover the gladiator with whom his wife is having a sordid affair. In order to do that, Saevius must return to the arena, training alongside the very men on whom he’s spying. Worse, he’s now under the command of Drusus, a notoriously cruel—and yet strangely intriguing—lanista.

But Saevius’s ruse is the least of his worries. There’s more to the affair than a wife humiliating her prominent husband, and now Saevius is part of a dangerous game between dangerous men. He isn’t the only gladiator out to expose the Lady Verina’s transgressions, and her husband wants more than just the guilty man’s name.

When Saevius learns the truth about the affair, he’s left with no choice but to betray a master: one he’s come to fear, one he’s come to respect, and either of whom could have him killed without repercussion.

For the first time in his life, the most dangerous place for this gladiator isn’t the arena.