Reviewed by Donna

TITLE: Suspicion

SERIES: Diversion #7

AUTHOR: Eden Winters

PUBLISHER: Rocky Ridge Books

LENGTH: 281 Pages

RELEASE DATE: January 5, 2019

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Lucky “Simon Harrison” Lucklighter left behind his criminal past to become one of the best agents in the Southeastern Narcotics Bureau. He’s found a committed partner in fellow agent Bo Schollenberger and built a life.
Now, enemies within the SNB and a friend’s betrayal leave him nowhere to turn—not even to his mentor.
His boss’s life, the future of the SNB, and Lucky’s career depend on him. With the help of his lover, an old enemy turned ally, and a man Lucky thought he’d seen the last of, he must stand and fight for what he believes in.
Even if he has to step outside the law.

Reviewed by Becca

TITLE: Fusion

SERIES: North Star Trilogy #2

AUTHOR: Posy Roberts

PUBLISHER: Boho Press

LENGTH: 364 pages

RELEASE DATE: July 24, 2018

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A love story comes out of the shadows.
Everyone in Kevin’s life knows him as straight rather than bisexual. There was no need to come out until now, but loving Hugo is worth any prejudice he’ll encounter. Hugo does his best to be patient while Kevin navigates his way toward openness, but he refuses to be put back in a closet for long.
Kevin wants to tell his kids without screwing up their newfound stability, and he worries about telling his ex because Erin might use the truth against him to renegotiate custody. Kevin wants it all finalized, but time isn’t on his side.
When Erin gets grim news, it shakes everyone to the core and rips Kevin away from the life he planned with Hugo. The news brings Hugo’s past hurts bubbling to the surface. Yet when Erin turns to Hugo for support, their new connection shows him how essential he is to Kevin and his kids.
Despite the chaos, it’s clear Hugo is very much a part of this unconventional family.

Reviewed by Becca

TITLE: Oath of Valor

SERIES: Personal Protectors #3

AUTHOR: Brittany Cournoyer

PUBLISHER: self-published

LENGTH: 266 pages

RELEASE DATE: January 2, 2019

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If asked, Larry Armstrong would say that failure isn’t in his DNA, but you only have to look at his relationship with his son to know it’s a lie. Going undercover to catch the country’s worst criminals is far easier than fixing the mistakes he’s made with Brice. It didn’t help his situation any when he unknowingly sleeps with his son’s best friend.
If asked, Elliot Pritchard would say that he has a type, and its name is Trouble. From hookups gone wrong to being in the wrong place at the wrong time, Elliot can’t catch a break. After a brutal attack nearly kills him, he finds himself staying with the last person he ever expected to—Larry.
Complicated doesn’t begin to describe the situation the two men find themselves in, and things only get harder when Elliot witnesses a violent crime and needs Larry’s expertise to keep him alive. Tempers and tension build as Larry and Elliot try to ignore the chemistry burning between them, but they’d have a better chance of finding a snowball in hell. The two men realize they could have something special if not for two important things: Brice’s feelings and a madman with Elliot in his sights.

Oath of Valor is Book 3 of the Personal Protectors series. It is intended for a mature audience with adult situations and language.

Reviewed by Becca

TITLE: Phoenix – the Heartwoods

SERIES: He’s the One #3

AUTHOR: Marissa Holt

PUBLISHER: self-published

LENGTH: 260 pages

RELEASE DATE:  July 29, 2018

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Fate’s power can weld even the most reckless hearts together…
Phoenix Heartwood has built a wall around his heart his entire life, keeping love and any risk of associated pain outside the barrier.
When darkness settles over the town of Courtley in the form of a shady multi-millionaire named Zander who now controls a majority of properties including the Heartwood family home and business, Phoenix agrees to work for Zander as a means to protect his family and their interests.
A light soon brightens Phoenix’s life in the form of a beautiful guy named Gabriel, now residing at Zander’s estate…and who quickly begins chiseling away the wall surrounding Phoenix’s heart.
Uncontrollable desires and looming danger mix as Phoenix and Gabriel struggle to break from Zander’s grip, and Phoenix realizes there is one thing he may not be able to fight…his ultimate destiny with love.

Phoenix: The Heartwoods is a steamy Fated Lovers M/M Romance with a guaranteed HEA and is Book 3 of He’s The One Series. Can be read as a standalone. ***This book contains darker themes than the previous two in the series, including scenes of violence.***

Reviewed by Cindy

TITLE: The Spirit Key

SERIES: Lock and Key Book 1

AUTHOR: Parker Williams

PUBLISHER: Dreamspinner Press

LENGTH: 210 Pages

RELEASE DATE: January 15, 2019

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When he was eight years old, Scott Fogel died. Paramedics revived him, but he came back changed. Ghosts and spirits tormented Scott for over a decade until, thinking he was going mad, he did the only thing he could.

He ran—leaving behind his best friend, Tim Jennesee.

Scott’s had five normal, ghost-free years in Chicago, when the spirit of Tim’s mother comes to him and begs him to go home because Tim’s in trouble and needs him.

He isn’t prepared for what he finds when he goes home—a taller and sexier Tim, but a Tim who hasn’t forgiven Scott for abandoning him… a Tim whose body is no longer his own. The ghost of a serial murderer has attached itself to Tim, and it’s whispering dark and evil things. It wants Tim to kill, and it’s becoming harder for Tim to resist. To free the man who has always meant so much to him, Scott must unravel the mystery of the destiny he shares with Tim.

Reviewed by Becca

TITLE: Whiskey and Moonshine

SERIES: Dreamspun Desires #74

AUTHOR: Elizabeth Noble

PUBLISHER: Dreamspinner Press

LENGTH: 238 pages

RELEASE DATE: January 15, 2019

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Drunk on love.
Like a well-aged whiskey, master distiller and old-money entrepreneur Malone Kensington is elegant and refined. Unfortunately he’s also a perfectionist who is more dedicated to the success of his generations-old company than his own love life.
That company needs a public spokesman.
What Colton Hale lacks in sophistication, he more than makes up for with the charisma that’s allowed him to survive on the street from a young age and charm his way into the lucrative—if overwhelming—public position at the Kensington Distillery. When Mal takes Colt under his wing, hoping to polish off his rough edges, opposites attract and a passionate romance blossoms despite the differences in age and background. But can it survive a Kensington Board of Directors who believe Colt is nothing but a gold digger and a kidnapper determined to profit from the love of Mal’s life—dead or alive?

Reviewed by Roberta

TITLE: Rough Terrain

SERIES: Out of Uniform, Book 7

AUTHOR: Annabeth Albert

PUBLISHER: Carina Press

LENGTH: 384 pgs

RELEASE DATE: January 14, 2018

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The camping trip from hell may be the first stop on the road to happily-ever-after in Rough Terrain, the final book in Annabeth Albert’s critically acclaimed, fan-favorite Out of Uniform series.

Navy SEAL Renzo Bianchi has a soft spot for Canaan Finley, and not only because the man makes a mean smoothie. He’s the first guy to get Renzo’s motor revving in a long time. But when he agrees to Canaan’s insane charade—one all-access fake boyfriend, coming right up—he never expects more than a fling.

Creating a hot Italian SEAL boyfriend to save face seemed like a good idea…until his friends called Canaan’s bluff. Now he’s setting off into the woods with the very man who inspired his deception, and Canaan is not the outdoorsy type. The sparks are already flying when a flash flood separates them from their group, leaving Renzo and Canaan very much trapped…very much alone in the wilderness.

Working together to come up with a plan for survival is sexier than either of them expects. But back in the real world, being a couple is bringing its own set of hazards…

Guestreview by Cinnamonn

TITLE: One- On-One

SERIES: Cayuga Cougars #5

AUTHOR: V.L Locey

PUBLISHER: Self Published

LENGTH: 182 Pages

RELEASE DATE: January 14th 2019

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The past few years have been a bit chaotic for Cougars new associate coach, Lancaster Hart. After an amiable divorce he began living his life as the gay man he’d kept closeted for far too long. With the recent move to Cayuga, he’s away from his support system and properly made sweet tea. Despite a roster filled with new friends and associates, he’s spending his nights alone.

As his team gears up to make a run at the Calder Cup, Lancaster discovers that not everything in upstate New York is wine, woodlands, and chilly conservative ideals. At a summer music festival, he first lays eyes on Townsend Harris, folksy/blues singer by night and mayoral office assistant by day. Lancaster is enraptured with the man’s powerful sultry voice. Also, Town just might be the most beautiful man he has seen in all his forty-one years.

The two hit it off at an informal meet and greet after the show, where they spend the night talking and sipping wine. One evening of conversation and an incendiary goodbye kiss leads them into a scorching love affair that might be exactly what Lancaster has been searching for his whole life. Can his team pull off professionally what he’s hoping to do privately as well? Or will capturing their dream evade both the Cougars and Lancaster?

Reviewed by Jess

TITLE: Wilde Stories 2018: The Year’s Best Gay Speculative Fiction

SERIES: Wilde Stories annual series #11

AUTHOR: Richard Bowes, Matthew Bright, Martin Cahill, Christopher Caldwell, John Chu, Sean Eads, Greg Egan, Joseph Keckler, Rich Larson, Karin Lowachee, Adam McOmber, Sam J. Miller, A.C. Wise, Devon Wong, and Xen; Ed. by Steve Berman

PUBLISHER: Lethe Press

LENGTH: 300 pages

RELEASE DATE:  September 22, 2018

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The final volume in the series that offers readers the best gay-themed stories of the strange, uncanny, and fantastical is out! In these pages are work by such acclaimed spec fic authors as Richard Bowes, Sam J. Miller, Sean Eads, and John Chu. Turn a page and walk the halls of a library shelved with every book never completed by authors before they passed away, a fish grants a young man wishes without ever explaining their true cost, ghosts relive their erotic past, Captain Hook and the Greek god Pan finally meet, and even Oscar Wilde himself makes an appearance in this anthology by Lambda Literary Award-winning editor Steve Berman.

Reviewed by Becca

TITLE: Commanding Officer Thomas

AUTHOR: J.M. Snyder

PUBLISHER: JMS Books LLC

LENGTH: 1169kb

RELEASE DATE: March 21, 2018

BLURB:

Lieutenant Lee Mallory spends his time off duty playing video games. There isn’t much else to do while stationed on the USS Nova out in deep space.
Unfortunately, a run in with his commanding officer, Jonan Thomas, strips him — and everyone else onboard — of their gaming privileges.
Thomas has had it in for Lee from day one, when they got off on the wrong foot. Now, banned from using the game server in the rec room, Lee sneaks online in his quarters after hours, looking to play.
That’s where he meets a fellow gamer onboard who’s interested in a different kind of game. As much as Lee wants to hook up, though, he can’t afford to get into any more trouble.
Can Lee take command — in the game and in the bedroom — without further aggravating his CO?