Reviewed by Becca

TITLE: Click

SERIES: White House Men #3

AUTHOR: Nora Phoenix

PUBLISHER: self-published

LENGTH: 327 pages

RELEASE DATE: January 20, 2021

BLURB:

He doesn’t just want the friendship or the benefits. He wants it all.

Rhett, the White House photographer, is tired of everyone treating him like he’s fragile. He wants a life of his own. Punch his V-card. A boyfriend.

Making new friends is a good first step, even if it’s with his boss, Calix, who’s fifteen years his senior. Calix is kind and protective, and he encourages Rhett to spread his wings.

When Rhett stumbles, Calix is there to catch him, and what started as friendship, grows into a mutually beneficial arrangement. Friends with benefits. Kind of.

But Calix still mourns his dead husband, so what happens when Rhett wants to extend their arrangement…indefinitely? He doesn’t just want the friendship or the benefits. He wants it all.

Meanwhile, the investigation continues, and the plot gets more and more complicated…and more dangerous. How far will the terrorists go to accomplish their goal?

Click is an MM romance with hurt/comfort, an age gap, a sweet virgin, and a friends with benefits arrangement. It’s the third book in the White House Men series, a romantic suspense series set in the White House, that needs to be read in order. Click ends with a happily ever after, but the suspense plot ends on a cliffhanger and will be continued in the rest of the series.

Reviewed by Becca

TITLE: Edging Closer

SERIES: Tales From the Edge #9

AUTHOR: L.M. Somerton

PUBLISHER: Pride Publishing

LENGTH: 183 pages

RELEASE DATE: January 19, 2021

BLURB:

Apparently, the path of true love meanders through a minefield.

After several years of adventures, submissive Olly Glenn and his Dom, Joe Dexter, are about to tie the knot. Needless to say, all does not run smoothly on the path to matrimony. Only Olly can turn a visit to a cupcake shop into a police incident.

While Joe and Olly’s friends join forces to make their wedding the most memorable ever, others are not so keen on them getting their happy ever after—or living to experience their honeymoon. So, when Joe walks into a carefully laid trap, it’s hard to see a way out.

Olly is determined that nobody, not even a sociopathic killer with connections to his past, will ruin the big day. He wants Joe standing next to him, in one piece, and he’ll risk anything to make sure that happens, even if they have to be handcuffed together. In fact, that idea has possibilities…

Reader advisory: This book contains scenes of violence, stalking, abduction, and attempted murder.

Reviewed by Sadonna

TITLE:  A Shot in Darkness

SERIES:  Vasquez Inc

AUTHOR:  Lou Sylvre

PUBLISHER:  Changeling Press

LENGTH:  193 pages

RELEASE DATE:  January 22, 2021

BLURB:

A Scotland honeymoon promises joy for a Dom and his sub, but a criminal’s revenge may prove deadly.

Sure the danger that dogged their steps in Los Angeles has finally passed, Brian and Jackie seal their hopes for a new beginning with a New Year’s Eve kiss. Though Brian’s trauma at the hands of criminals has left its mark, they do their best to leave troubles behind and enjoy a Scotland honeymoon. The ancient city of Glasgow offers nightlife, historic sites, long walks through snowfall, great Scotch Whiskey, a cozy fireside — and a blazing hot private encounter with a cool, cool ghost.

But every time somebody wins, someone else loses. When Brian helped State Department cop Jesse Douglas take down a crime ring, a rogue FBI agent lost everything. She blames Brian, and with the help of false identities and very good skills at disguise, tracking him and Jackie down in Scotland poses no problem. When a final encounter in the Highlands turns deadly, the key to keeping Brian alive lies in Jackie’s hands. With everything he loves at stake, can he call up love, courage and confidence in time to take that single, vital shot in darkness?

Reviewed by Sadonna

TITLE:  His Compass

SERIES:  His #2

AUTHOR:  Con Riley

PUBLISHER:  Self-published

LENGTH:  306 Pages

RELEASE DATE:  January 14, 2021

BLURB:  

Tom has one rule: don’t sleep with the crew. A second chance with a younger, gorgeous deckhand tempts him to break it.

After a busy season as a charter-hire skipper, Tom yearns for some downtime. His lonely heart also aches for adventure with someone special, but paying his bills has to come first. A surprise sailing contract and huge bonus offer his first glimpse of freedom for years. There’s only one catch: he must crew with Nick, a deckhand who jumped ship once already.

Nick’s as young and untested as the new yacht they’re contracted to sail, and he’s just as gorgeous. Forced to spend a month as Nick’s captain, Tom discovers depths he hadn’t noticed. He’s captivated, and happier sailing with Nick than he’s been in forever. However, their voyage is finite, and both men keep soul-deep secrets.

As the contract draws to an end, they must get honest about what’s in their hearts if they want to share a life at sea, and love, forever.

Featuring an age gap that’s only a number, forced proximity that makes hiding attraction impossible, and a yacht that’s nothing but trouble, His Compass is the second novel in the His Contemporary MM Romance series from Con Riley.

♥ This shared-world series starts with His Horizon, but each book follows a different couple, and can be enjoyed as a standalone novel complete with a fulfilling happily ever after. ♥

Reviewed by Becca

TITLE: Brought to Light

SERIES: Magic Emporium #2

AUTHOR: Eliot Grayson

PUBLISHER: Smoking Teacup Books

LENGTH: 4342 kb

RELEASE DATE: January 21, 2021

BLURB:

A hitman and a fae walk into a café…

Callum always gets the job done—whether he likes it or not—but this job isn’t like any other. The target’s too young, too pretty, and too appealing for comfort, and the clients are offering more threats than cash. And either the target poisoned his hot chocolate or he’s going crazy, because now magic stores and wizard-looking dudes are appearing out of nowhere. It’s really not Callum’s day.

Linden’s on the run, and the human realm’s a good place to hide from evil sorcerers who think Linden’s the answer to a prophecy. But his enemy has found a way to send a very human and very dangerous assassin after him—a man who could kill Linden with one hand. Linden should be terrified, but his knees go weak for all the wrong reasons.

When Linden’s family is taken hostage, spending the night with Callum ought to be the last thing on his mind, but Linden can’t resist the chance to fulfill his deepest fantasies before sacrificing his own life. Callum knows he should walk away—it’s not his fight. But the beautiful fae is under his skin and now protecting Linden and his family feels more important than his own survival. A human learning to feel. A fae learning to trust. Can two worlds merge into one true love?

Brought to Light is part of the Magic Emporium Series. Each book stands alone, but each one features an appearance by Marden’s Magic Emporium, a shop that can appear anywhere, but only once and only when someone’s in dire need. This book contains explicit scenes, a magic flashlight, a prophecy that doesn’t quite work out the way anyone expects, and a guaranteed HEA.

Reviewed by Sadonna

TITLE:  A Shot of Courage

SERIES:  Vasquez Inc. #6

AUTHOR:  Lou Sylvre

PUBLISHER: Changeling Press

LENGTH:  195 pages

RELEASE DATE:  July 30, 2020

BLURB:

~~Kink and wedding vows can’t stop danger, but love gives a Dom and his sub courage to fight.~~

After too much time apart from his lover and sub, Brian Harrison is thinking kink, a cowboy hat, and one more marriage proposal. When Jackie Vasquez finally says “yes” to a wedding, he also says, “why wait?” But their vows and the toasts to the happy couple have hardly faded when a phone call reminds them that trouble still awaits.

Despite his best intentions, Brian broke the law in his efforts to stop a powerful criminal from harming those he loves. He could go to prison, or he could risk his life going undercover to help bring one of Europe’s most nefarious citizens to justice. Friends and smart thinking can help him do the right thing. But only love can supply the courage he and Jackie need to prevail against schemes and guns and, if they’re lucky, stay alive to enjoy a honeymoon.

Reviewed by Valerie

TITLE:  The Bookseller’s Boyfriend

AUTHOR:  Heidi Cullinan

SERIES:  Copper Point: Main Street #1

PUBLISHER:  Dreamspinner Presds

LENGTH:  229 pages

RELEASE DATE:  January 19, 2021

BLURB:

Bookshop owner Jacob Moore can’t believe his longtime celebrity crush, author Rasul Youssef, is moving to Copper Point. For many, the chance to meet the playboy novelist would be a dream come true, but Jacob dreads it. You should never meet your heroes.

You definitely shouldn’t pretend to be their boyfriend.

Rasul came to this backwater town for an academic residency—a necessary evil, since he’s burned through his advance without finishing the book that goes with it. But he’s also getting distance from a toxic relationship. Quiet, reserved Jacob isn’t his type, but their charade gives Rasul a respite from the social media circus surrounding his breakup, and Jacob’s charming apartment proves the perfect setting to write.

Of course, prolonged exposure reveals that Jacob’s reserved exterior hides a thoughtful, intelligent man who sets Rasul’s imagination—and heart—alight.

Every day Rasul reveals himself to be more than Jacob ever dreamed he could. Jacob tries to be content with friendship and the professional overlap between author and bookseller, knowing a shooting star like Rasul could never make a home with Jacob in a small town like Copper Point.

Reviewed by Sadonna

TITLE:  They Met at the Library

SERIES:  Meet Cute Chronicles #1

AUTHOR:  Nell Iris

PUBLISHER:  JMS Books

LENGTH:  65 pages

RELEASE DATE:  January 16, 2021

BLURB:

Adrian, book-lover extraordinaire, adores his job at the small community library. He gets to share his passion with other people and help them with all book-related questions and issues. When a big, hulking man walks into the library, looking terrified, Adrian’s skills are tested in a completely different way.

Manne’s relationship with books is uneasy, to say the least. He’s dyslexic and events in his past have made him fearful of books and turned libraries into his worst nightmare. But when the quirky, bowtie-wearing librarian steps in to help, the experience turns positive.

Their banter is easy and their chemistry instant. But can an accidental meeting turn into something more? Can someone who has trouble reading ever fit into the life of a man whose passion is the written word?