Release Day Interview with Theo and Jamison,
the lead characters in Finding Giorgio,
Found At Last series book one, by Joe Cosentino, published by Dreamspinner Press
Theo and Jamison, congratulations on the release of your story, Finding Giorgio.
Theo: Thanks. Jamison and I would like to thank the academy—
Jamison: We’ll have to wait for the movie version for that, Theo.
Speaking of that, the novella is quite cinematic. Who do you see playing you in a film version?
Theo: Colton Haynes.
Jamison: Ezra Miller.
Theo: Come on movie producers, make Joe an offer!
Since the readers can’t see you both, tell them what you look like.
Jamison: Theo is twenty-five, tall, with sexy dark hair and eyes, and a hunky build.
Theo: I come from a long line of stocky and comical Greek people.
Jamison: Theo’s first name means godlike, and his last name, Stratis, means good soldier. He’s both those things in our story. Theo cares about others deeply, yearns for fairness and justice, and loves with all his heart.
And Jamison?
Theo: Jamison’s last name, Radames, means hero. It sure fits him. Coming from a Swedish and Egyptian heritage, Jamison is twenty-seven, tall, very muscular, with enticing crystal blue eyes, a smooth peaches and cream complexion, a strong nose, and thick jet-black hair. Jamison is kind, sincere, handsome, masculine, stalwart, loyal, smart, and successful. In reading the story, you completely understand why I fall in love with him.
Jamison: And why I fall in love with Theo.
How is your story in Finding Giorgio different from Joe Cosentino’s other MM romance novellas?
Jamison: Joe’s An Infatuation and A Shooting Star are loosely based on his high school and college years respectively. His Bobby and Paolo Holiday Stories chronicle distant cousins who meet in Capri, Italy, fall in love, marry, and adopt a son. And Joe’s Tales from Fairyland are comic gay takes on his favorite fairytales. Finding Giorgio is a story about lovers separated at eighteen years old with the hope of reuniting in their last years—at last.
And you both help them to do it.
Theo: Right. I meet Jamison and the two of us embark on an incredible journey.
And you also fall in love.
Jamison: Which is the best part of our adventure.
Theo: Totally.
Is it love at first sight?
Jamison: Not exactly. Theo and I get off to a rocky start, but eventually we find our way into each other’s hearts.
Joe has also written the highly successful Nicky and Noah mystery series, Jana Lane mystery series, and Cozzi Cove MM serial. Would you call Finding Giorgio a mystery, an MM romance, or an adventure?
Both: All of them.
Theo: And like all of Joe’s books, it’s also packed with humor and drama.
Jamison: Quite a bang for your buck in a novella.
Tell everyone the story of Finding Giorgio.
Theo: In Finding Giorgio, a young accountant, Theo Stratis, that’s me, having been unlucky in love, registers at my upstate New York LGBTQ Center to visit an elderly gay person. I’m matched with Nolan Downes who lives in a local nursing home. Upon my first visit, I’m instantly charmed by the eccentric ex-pharmacist and his wisecracking caretaker Tanisha. However, I’m shocked at Nolan’s request for me to find the love of Nolan’s youth: Giorgio Roberto. Upon questioning Nolan, I discover Giorgio’s parents had separated Nolan and Giorgio at eighteen after their romantic summer at a Poconos resort. Nolan had kept Giorgio’s picture and his love for Giorgio in his heart ever since. I’m also surprised to meet the gorgeous Jamison Radames, a medical director, who is visiting the same nursing home.
Jamison: That’s me. Theo and I embark on an exciting adventure to find Giorgio. Our search takes us to an old neighborhood, a veterans’ center, a homeless shelter, and all the way from New York to Boston. Along the way, Theo and I uncover a great deal about Giorgio and about ourselves.
Theo: By the end of the novella, two brothers are reunited, and two couples emerge in an emotional climax that will leave you overjoyed but also tear at your heartstrings.
Besides the current and past love stories, what else is special about this book?
Theo: Nolan and his caretaker Tanisha are quite funny.
Jamison: And the story’s locations are remarkable, including the Walkway Over the Hudson, upstate New York in fall with its stunning views of the rippling water, white church steeples, multicolored leaves, and sun-kissed mountains.
Theo: Not to mention the two leading men are well worth the read.
Jamison: Here. Here.
Who are the supporting characters in Finding Giorgio?
Theo: My Greek parents and sister.
Jamison: And my Egyptian/Swedish parents and sister and her family.
Theo: Also, there’s Giorgio’s Italian brother.
Jamison: Along with the various colorful characters Theo and I meet along the way as we search for Giorgio.
Theo: And we fall in love.
Who is your favorite character?
Theo: Nolan Downes. As an elderly man in failing health, he keeps his sense of humor, strength, and will. The ex-pharmacist grieves his long-deceased husband. At the same time, he yearns for the true love that was taken away from him. Nolan believes if he can reunite with Giorgio, his spirit will be made whole.
Jamison: I’ll pick Tanisha Washington, Nolan’s caregiver at the nursing home. Tanisha is outrageously funny and cantankerous with Nolan. However, she watches over him like a bodyguard. In a way, theirs is also a love story. One of unspoken adoration and unconditional devotion.
Which character is the sexiest?
Theo: Jamison.
Jamison: Theo.
Many of the characters in Finding Giorgio are of various ethnicities and sexual identities.
Theo: We live in a diverse world. Literature should reflect that. I also like that our story includes a few older characters, a rarity in MM literature.
How can readers get their hands on Finding Giorgio?
Jamison: The purchase links are below.
When can we expect the release of Finding Armando, Found At Last series book two?
Theo: Stay tuned! Jamison and I have a lot more to share!
Thank you, Theo and Jamison, for interviewing today.
Theo: Our pleasure. I hope everyone will read our story Finding Giorgio at last. I’m sure, like me, you’ll fall in love with Jamison.
Jamison: And, like me, you’ll fall in love with Theo.
Theo: And Nolan, Giorgio, and our amazing story.
Jamison: And we love to hear from readers. So contact us through Joe at: http://www.JoeCosentino.weebly.com.
Length: 119 pages
Language: English
Genre: MM, contemporary, romance, mystery, comedy
Cover Art: Paul Richmond
Release date: April 21, 2020
Blurb:
When young accountant Theo Stratis visits Nolan Downes, an elderly gay man in a local nursing home, he is surprised by Nolan’s request: find the lost love of his youth, Giorgio Roberto. Theo is also surprised to meet handsome and successful Jamison Radames, who is visiting the same nursing home. As Theo and Jamison embark on an investigative adventure to find Giorgio, they discover a great deal about themselves and each other. Solving the mystery of what happened to Giorgio might mean happily ever after for more than just Nolan.
Buy Links:
I slowly walked Nolan out of the room, down the hallway, and into the lounge with large windows overlooking the Mid-Hudson Bridge surrounded by the clear azure sky. After we were settled on a sofa next to a marble fireplace, he tented his fingers. “I want to tell you about a man I once loved.”
Assuming he had forgotten, I replied, “You told me about Frank.”
“Not that man.”
That caught my attention.
“His name was Giorgio Roberto.” Nolan’s face lit up. “I knew him when we were eighteen years old.”
“And you still remember him?”
“I remember everything about Giorgio.” He grinned like a schoolboy.
“How did you two meet?”
Nolan gazed straight ahead as if turning back the pages of time. “My father was a high school history teacher. My mother was a writer. Every summer we vacationed at a resort in the Pocono Mountains: my father, my mother, my sister, and me. We had a wonderful time back then—swimming in the lake, mountain climbing, playing volleyball and checkers, and eating the family-style meals in the dining room.” His eyes brightened and cheeks grew rosy.. “Every summer there was a dance contest. My sister and I won each year.” He winked at me. “I still have a few moves.” He extended his leg, then rested back, recovering on the sofa. “We didn’t have air-conditioning back then. So the summer of my eighteenth year, after Clancy and I took the silver cup, I headed out of the community room to the veranda while all the other boys inside asked my sister for a dance—except for one boy.”
“Giorgio?”
Nolan nodded. “I was standing outside, staring at the gray mountains and the inky lake. Then I saw him, bathed only in starlight as he sat on the balcony railing.”
“What did he look like?”
Nolan reached into his pocket and displayed an old black-and-white photograph of two attractive young men in bathing suits sitting on a large rock. Giorgio was average height. But that was the only average thing about him. He had wavy jet-black hair and a strong Roman nose. A white T-shirt barely contained his rippling muscles, and tight black jeans with a button-up fly housed his bulge. Black boots and a black leather jacket finished the look.
I pointed to the young man next to Giorgio in the photo. “You were quite the looker yourself, Nolan, with your handsome face and cut body.”
“I was what you now call a ginger.” He smiled. “And being with Giorgio made me feel so special. Giorgio gazed at me as if he could look straight into my heart. Though I had never seen him before, he seemed so… familiar, as if we had known each other in a parallel universe. I stared into his dark eyes, and for the first time in my life, I was safe. It was as if I had come home after a long, exhausting journey.” Nolan sat up straight with a grin on his face as if reliving it. “We stayed like that for some time, watching each other, smiling, but not saying a word. Finally, Giorgio said in a velvety voice, ‘Where’d you learn to dance like that?’ I tried to answer, but my voice broke like a choirboy’s. When I found my voice, I said, ‘My sister and I have been dancing together since we were little kids.’ Giorgio unleashed the most radiant smile I’d ever seen. ‘So, she’s your sister. That’s good,’ he said. ‘Why is that good?’ I asked. He came closer and I breathed in the scent of his mint gum. ‘That means she’s not your girlfriend,’ he said. ‘I don’t have a girlfriend,’ I replied. Then I breathed a sigh of relief when he said, ‘Looks like we have that in common.’ He asked me to dance with him, and I did. Giorgio and I stood out there for most of the night, talking about our families, friends, schools, vacations, hobbies, likes, dislikes, fears, and dreams.”
“Did you live far apart?”
Nolan shook his head. “My family was in Poughkeepsie and Giorgio’s in Hyde Park.” He recited as if it had all happened yesterday, “Giorgio’s father was a butcher. His mother a seamstress. He had two older brothers. They worked for his father. Though Giorgio had never been on a plane, he was fascinated with them, stopping dead in his tracks to watch every time one flew overhead. Giorgio told me he wanted to be a pilot. I told him I found that exciting. He replied, ‘I like that I excite you.’ When I told him I wanted to be a pharmacist, he asked me, ‘Does a pharmacist work on a farm?’” Nolan smiled nostalgically.
“Did you guys spend a lot of time together?”
He cooed. “Every waking minute of that summer. We played shuffleboard, ping pong, went fishing, and we enjoyed food marathons and walks through the woods. Our favorite activities were swimming and boating. When I saw Giorgio in his tight lemon swim trunks, I nearly fainted. He told me I looked ‘adorable’ in my navy trunks.”
Feeling like a gossip columnist, I asked, “Did anything romantic happen?”
“Not for most of the summer.” Nolan grinned. “But the last week we were there, Giorgio and I were in a sailboat far from the shore. It was a calm summer day, so the boat was barely moving. We were out on the lake for about an hour when he suddenly turned to me and said, ‘I want to see you after we leave here.’ I told him I wanted the same thing. Then to my surprise, he leaned in and kissed me, and I kissed him back. It was as if the lion’s gate had been opened. Once we started, we couldn’t stop. We held on to each other for dear life, hugging and kissing until our mouths ached. After tearing off our swimsuits, we made love, experimenting and learning as the sun’s golden rays surrounded our rocking boat. When we were through, I rested my head on his chest. As we kissed and held hands, we pledged our love to each other. When we got back to shore, we planned to meet the next morning after breakfast. Giorgio went to his family’s cabin as usual, and I did the same. That night, as every night, I hugged my pillow, pretending it was Giorgio, my first love.”
“What happened when you met at breakfast the next morning?”
“We didn’t.” Nolan’s eyes filled with moisture. “That night, our sailboat must have been closer to the shore than we had thought.”
“Somebody saw you?”
He nodded. “Giorgio’s father. He pounded on my family’s cabin door early the next morning, ranting and raving at my father that ‘my son can never see your son again.’ Back then, many Irish and Italian people feuded. Adding homosexuality to the mix, which was illegal and thought of as a mental illness, sent our two fathers over the edge.”
My heart broke for Nolan. “What did your dad do?”
A crease appeared on his forehead. “My father damned me to Hell and sent me away to a Catholic college, where I ironically had to dodge frisky priests.”
“And Giorgio?”
“On the day we left the resort, I saw him from inside our car.” A tear slid down his face. “He had a welt on his cheek and a blackened eye.”
“After that, didn’t you try to contact him?”
“I wrote to him every day from college. My letters were all returned to me unopened, I assumed by Giorgio’s father. After my first year at college, I came home for the summer. When I drove to Giorgio’s house, the woman who answered the door was Dutch. She had bought the house from a realtor, and she hadn’t heard of the Roberto family. When I went back to college for my second year, I met Frank. We kept our relationship a secret… at the college and to our families.”
“Your parents never knew about Frank?”
“They knew all right, but they called Frank my ‘roommate’ or ‘friend.’” He sighed. “My parents and I could have been such close friends; instead we were distant relations.”
“And you never saw Giorgio again?”
“Only in the midst of a crowd of people, each time realizing it was just my imagination.” He placed the picture back inside his pocket.
I heard a silky, masculine voice. “Nolan, they let you out of your room? Are the other residents safe?”
I glanced up at the most gorgeous man I had ever seen. He seemed about my age, tall with a peaches-and-cream complexion and jet-black hair. There was a quiet dignity about the man, whose periwinkle sweater and dark slacks housed his muscular physique.
At the sight of him, Nolan giggled merrily. “Darn, you found me! Next time I’ll try hiding under the sofa.”
“You’re so thin, you could fit.”
The two men shared a laugh.
Nolan noticed the confused look on my face. “Theo Stratis, this is Jamison Radames.”
I rose and extended a hand.
Joe Cosentino was voted Favorite LGBT Mystery, Humorous, and Contemporary Author of the Year by the readers of Divine Magazine for Drama Queen. He also wrote the other novels in the Nicky and Noah mystery series: Drama Muscle, Drama Cruise, Drama Luau, Drama Detective, Drama Fraternity, Drama Castle, Drama Dance, Drama Faerie, Drama Runway, Drama Christmas, Drama Faerie; the Dreamspinner Press novellas: In My Heart/An Infatuation & A Shooting Star, the Bobby and Paolo Holiday Stories: A Home for the Holidays/The Perfect Gift/The First Noel, The Naked Prince and Other Tales from Fairyland/Holiday Tales from Fairyland, Found At Last: Finding Giorgio/Finding Armando; the Cozzi Cove series (NineStar Press): Cozzi Cove: Bouncing Back, Cozzi Cove: Moving Forward, Cozzi Cove: Stepping Out, Cozzi Cove: New Beginnings, Cozzi Cove: Happy Endings; and the Jana Lane mysteries: Paper Doll, Porcelain Doll, Satin Doll, China Doll, Rag Doll (The Wild Rose Press). He has appeared in principal acting roles in film, television, and theatre, opposite stars such as Bruce Willis, Rosie O’Donnell, Nathan Lane, Holland Taylor, and Jason Robards. Joe is currently Chair of the Department/Professor at a college in upstate New York, and he is happily married. Joe was voted 2nd Place Favorite LGBT Author of the Year in Divine Magazine’s Readers’ Choice Awards, and his books have received numerous Favorite Book of the Month Awards and Rainbow Award Honorable Mentions.
Web site: http://www.JoeCosentino.weebly.com
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/JoeCosentinoauthor
Twitter: https://twitter.com/JoeCosen
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4071647.Joe_Cosentino
Amazon: Author.to/JoeCosentino
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When I was younger I had a crush on this boy. It was going on two years and I planned to confess near the end of the school year since we all were in the final grade of this school system and would all need to transfer out to continue our educations so if the confession went south I wouldn’t really have to face him afterwards. But a couple of week before I could, he confessed to my very good friend in front of the whole class. No one knew I had a crush on him so my friend and him actually became an item and dated. Needless to say I was crushed.