Reviewed by Sadonna

TITLE:  The Promise

SERIES:  Single Dad Support Group

AUTHOR:  Piper Scott

NARRATOR:  Michael Ferraiuolo

PUBLISHER:  Self-published

LENGTH:  15 hours and 7 minutes

RELEASE DATE:  January 7. 2021

BLURB:

When an ex-boyfriend turns Jayne’s night out into a living hell, he has no choice but to make a deal with two hot, hunky, would-be bodyguards. The promise? If they can get him out unscathed, Jayne will do anything they want…

Sarcastic, snarky, and totally fabulous, when single dad and bioethicist Jayne is cornered by his abusive ex-boyfriend on a night out, he comes up with an escape plan on the fly – find the biggest, strongest, and thirstiest man in the club, and seduce him into giving Jayne safe passage home. Easy. Over the last few years, in a bid to mask the pain of loss, Jayne’s bedded more men who fit that description than he can count, and he knows he won’t have any trouble bagging one tonight.

Until one becomes two, and suddenly, nothing’s so certain anymore.

Reviewed by Sadonna

TITLE:  Evolved

AUTHOR:  N.R. Walker

NARRATOR:  Joel Leslie

PUBLISHER:  Tantor Audio

LENGTH:  8 hours and 17 minutes

RELEASE DATE:  September 4, 2018

BLURB:  

In 2068, androids are an integrated part of human life. Big Brother no longer just watches from the shadows. It’s in every household.

Lloyd Salter has OCD issues with noise and mess, and he’s uncomfortable with human interaction. When his ex claimed the only thing perfect enough to live up to his standards was an android, Lloyd dismissed it. But two years later, after much self-assessment, he thinks he may have been right.

SATinc is the largest manufacturer of androids in Australia, including the Fully Compatible Units known as an A-Class 10. Their latest design is the Synthetic Human Android UNit, otherwise known as SHAUN. Shaun is compatible to Lloyd’s every need; the perfect fit on an intellectual and physical basis.

But Lloyd soon realizes Shaun’s not like other A-Class androids. He learns. He adapts. Sure that SATinc is aware Shaun functions outside of his programmed parameters, Lloyd must find a way to keep Shaun safe. No one can know how special Shaun is. No one can know he’s evolved.

Contains mature themes.

Reviewed by Sadonna

TITLE:  Reunion

SERIES:  The Oleander Chronicle #1

AUTHOR:  Lynn Van Dorn

NARRATOR:  Michael Ferraiuolo

PUBLISHER:  self-published

LENGTH:  11 hours and 42 minutes

RELEASE DATE:  February 14, 2021

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A man betrayed

The day Brett Payne turned 18, he attended a party that left him disillusioned, his trust shattered, and feeling betrayed by Tony Russo, his first love.

Nearly 15 years later, Brett returns to his hometown of Oleander, Florida, to help his mother, who’s in the hospital. When chance brings Brett and Tony back together, it turns out that while sex isn’t off the table (or the floor, or the shower, or the countertops), Brett isn’t sure he can truly trust the man who broke his heart.

A man rejected

Fifteen years after he was abandoned by Brett, Tony’s dreams for the future were smashed, one by one, until he’s forced to return to Oleander. Barely scraping by as a handyman, he’s hired, reluctantly, by Brett to make improvements at his mother’s house. Being near his first love awakens old feelings that Tony thought were buried forever, and he is irresistibly drawn to the stranger the years have turned Brett into.

A second chance at love 

Together, Tony and Brett’s passion sets fire to both their lives and plans for the future. Past hurts are unburied, secrets are uncovered, and their lives will never be the same. For the first time in years, Tony feels he might have a future worth looking forward to, but only if Brett is willing to once again risk his heart.

Reunion is an extremely steamy stand-alone romance with HEA featuring two grown men who desperately need to find their way home, geographically misplaced waterfowl, and a town where just about anything might happen and often does.

Reviewed by Sadonna

TITLE:  The Venetian and the Rum Runner

AUTHOR:  L.A. Witt

NARRATOR:  Michael Ferraiuolo

PUBLISHER:  Self-published

LENGTH:  15 hours and 16 minutes

RELEASE DATE:  January 19, 2021

BLURB:  

New York City, 1924

Once their paths cross, their worlds will never be the same.

Danny Moore and his crew only meant to rob the hotel suites of rich guests. He wasn’t supposed to find himself in gangster Ricky il Sacchi’s room. And il Sacchi wasn’t supposed to wind up dead. Now, Danny has the attention of another notorious gangster.

Carmine Battaglia is intrigued by the Irish thieves who would have made off with a huge score if not for il Sacchi’s death. They’re cunning, careful, and exactly what he needs for his rum-running operation. But Danny’s already lost two brothers to the violence between New York’s Irish and Sicilian gangs, and he’s not about to sell his soul to Carmine.

With a gangster’s blood on his hands, Danny needs protection, whether he likes it or not. And that’s to say nothing of the generous pay, which promises to pull him and his crew – not to mention their families – out of destitution.

Working together brings Danny and Carmine to a détente and then to something so intense, neither can ignore it. Something nearly enough to make them both forget the brutal tensions between their countrymen.

But the death of Ricky il Sacchi hasn’t been forgotten. And someone is determined to make Danny bleed for it.

The Venetian and the Rum Runner is a 144,000-word gay historical romantic suspense novel set during Prohibition and the Roaring Twenties.

Content warning: graphic violence, PTSD.

Review by Sadonna

TITLE:  The Hitman’s Guide to Tying the Knot without Getting Shot

SERIES:  The Hitman’s Guide

AUTHOR:  Alice Winters

NARRATOR:  Michael Ferraiuolo

PUBLISHER:  Self-published

LENGTH:  9 hours and 37 minutes

RELEASE DATE:  January 29, 2021

BLURB:

Leland
Is a nice little wedding with Blow-up Randy and Jackson My Love too much to ask for? Clearly, because someone’s trying to kill one of us… again. Generally, this would be my thing and I would jump right in singing my murder song, but they want Jackson dead and I will do anything (and I mean anything) to keep him alive—including and not limited to: ten Dobermans, bulletproof glass, and dragging Cassel in with the promise of more Jerebear. These people have no idea what they’ve done targeting the man I love because I’m coming after them. But when it feels like everything might be lost, I start to understand that I have a family now who will stand by my side and do everything they can to make sure we end this on our terms.

Jackson
When someone attacks me, it’s clear they want something from me. The issue is that I have no idea who they are or what they’re after. And if I don’t figure it out soon, I’m afraid Leland is going to smother me with his overprotectiveness (or put me in a bubble at the top of a tower). The issue is that time is ticking and with the price tag on my head, there’s no telling who is coming for me or when. Together, Leland and I have to decipher who is telling the truth in this game of life or death because I have plans to marry the man of my dreams and no one is going to stop me—especially with Leland by my side.

This 100k word book contains humor, action, romance, bad behavior on a golf course, sort of abducting a child who lacks kung fu power, enough car chases and shooting to make even Leland happy, and spontaneous singing. 

Review by Sadonna

TITLE:  How to Lure a Hunter

SERIES:  VRC: Vampire Related Crimes #3

AUTHOR:  Alice Winters

NARRATOR:  Michael Ferraiuolo

PUBLISHER:  Self-published

LENGTH:  10 hours and 2 minutes

RELEASE DATE:  March 10, 2021

BLURB:

Alexei
When Marcus Church brings his brother Claude in to help solve an unusual murder, I’m positive he did it just to disrupt my monotonous life. None of my coworkers in the Vampire Related Crimes unit seem to understand that I want to keep a wall between me and everyone else – especially Claude, who does everything he can to break through it with an annoying smile. After more vampires begin to die, Claude pinpoints the actions of the killers to a group of vampire hunters, leaving us in a race to stop them. When I discover that I have a target on my back, I’m surprised that Claude insists on staying by my side, even when things go from bad to worse. I’m determined to keep him out – I’ve lost enough people in my life – but I can’t stop feeling something every time he breaks through.

Claude
When I reunited with my brother, I never imagined it’d throw me right into Alexei Karsynov’s path. He’s short-tempered, stubborn, and dangerously adorable whenever he smiles – he just doesn’t realize it yet. When Marcus asks me to help with a case, it gives me the excuse I need to get closer to Alexei, but what I discover threatens to change everything. Suddenly, I find myself wanting to do anything to protect Alexei and to see him smile, despite his efforts to keep his distance from others. I’m determined to show him that he can’t live in the past when his future is so much brighter.

How to Lure a Hunter is a 107k word book that contains: clothes so bright they could cause retina damage, a ridiculous amount of gifts showered on a reluctant recipient, a cranky Russian with a soft spot he tries to hide, a library full of books that need to be treated with the proper respect, some possibly unhealthy sibling teasing, and a sunshiny 300-year-old vampire with an unexpected protective streak.

Reviewed by Sadonna

TITLE:  The Answer

SERIES:  Single Dad Support Group #6

AUTHOR:  Piper Scott

NARRATOR:  Michael Ferraiuolo

PUBLISHER:  Self-published

LENGTH:  10 hours and 57 minutes

RELEASE DATE:  March  26. 2021

BLURB:

When does a single dad not have any kids? When he’s a single daddy.

What eternal bachelor and Wall Street mogul Damien wants more than anything is a boy of his own to cherish, but after years of heartbreak, he’s given up hope. No boy will ever love him as much as they love his wallet.

Which is true up until he meets his best friend’s son, Matthew – a timid single dad almost 20 years his junior who Damien knows right away that he can’t live without. No matter what it takes, Damien will love him, protect him, and spoil him. And one day, if he’s lucky, his sweet Matthew will want to call him Daddy.

The Answer is the 102,000-word conclusion to the Single Dad Support Group series. It features blazing-hot chemistry shared between a Daddy and his boy, obscene confetti, and a friendship seven years in the making that will forever withstand the test of time.

Reviewed by Larissa

TITLE:  Fools

SERIES:  Licking Thicket Book #3

AUTHOR:  Lucy Lennox and May Archer

NARRATOR:  Michael Dean

PUBLISHER:  Self

LENGTH:  8 hours and 17 minutes

RELEASE DATE:  February 28, 2021

BLURB:

Tucker Wright’s Clues for Life:

What’s a 4-letter word for an utterly oblivious, totally commitment-phobic, heartbreakingly gorgeous man with a pet pig named Bernadette?

That’d be D-U-N-N, as in Dunn Johnson, my very best pal and fishing buddy since I moved to Licking Thicket.

What’s a 6-letter word for a nerdy, crossword-loving town doctor who’s doomed to be hopelessly, thoroughly, irrevocably, in love with that straight best friend for the rest of his born days?

That’s T-U-C-K-E-R, as in me.

But when I agree to let Dunn be my 24/7 dating coach, and he decides to get our whole nosy town in on the act, there’s only one 5-letter word to describe the pair of us.

F-O-O-L-S.

Reviewed by Sadonna

TITLE:  Stud

SERIES:  Four Bears Construction #5

AUTHOR:  K.M. Neuhold

NARRATORS:   Tim Paige and Liam DiCosimo

PUBLISHER:  Self-published

LENGTH:  5 hours and 22 minutes

RELEASE DATE:  April 26, 2021

BLURB:

Stud: A boss, knob, or nail head…or, you know, the hot guy who’s way too young to keep asking me out with that adorably earnest smile…

It’s been three years since West walked into my bar and asked me out for the first time. I was relieved he stopped asking after the first few “no’s” and a way-too-good-to-be-real kiss. He’s 15 years younger than I am; it can only lead to trouble.

Of course, now he’s running through people off dating apps like it’s his job and wearing these lace panties that look really unfair on someone as furry and muscular as he is, and, um…what was I talking about?

I probably shouldn’t sabotage his dates, but I’m only human. I might not be ready to admit that I want him, but I’m definitely not ready to let anyone else have him either.

He’s too perfect, too hot, and I am in way too much trouble…

Note: Stud is a friends-to-lovers, construction-worker-in-panties, omg-so-much-swoon story that happens to be the fifth audiobook in the Four Bears Construction Series. Every audiobook in this series can be listened to as a stand-alone, but they’re a lot more fun together!

Reviewed by Larissa

TITLE:  Sweet as Honey

SERIES:  Aster Valley Book 2

AUTHOR:  Lucy Lennox

NARRATOR:  Michael Dean

PUBLISHER:  Self-published

LENGTH:  9 hours and 24 minutes

RELEASE DATE: April 6, 2021

BLURB:

When I rode my bike into Aster Valley, it was supposed to be temporary. A quick, relaxing visit with friends. No entanglements. Zero drama.

But then I saw the bumblebee being harassed on the side of the highway.

More specifically, I saw Truman Sweet, Aster Valley’s resident botanist, spice merchant, and bee-costume enthusiast, being harassed. And the second I got involved, all my plans for a quick departure scattered like pollen on the breeze.

It turns out that Truman—adorably shy, relentlessly sunshiny, hot as all heck, reluctantly-still-a-virgin Truman—has secrets. Secrets someone in this charming small town doesn’t want brought to light. Secrets that rouse every one of my protective instincts just as surely as his kisses rouse… other parts of me.

And before I know it, I’m thinking being entangled might not be so bad… if it’s Truman I’m tangled up with.

I’ll do whatever it takes to protect Truman from the dangers in his past, but after a lifetime of loneliness and disappointment, how can I possibly convince him to trust me with his future?

Reviewed by Sadonna

TITLE:  Peregrine

SERIES: Forbidden Desires Spinoff #4

AUTHORS: Piper Scott & Virginia Kelly

NARRATOR:  Michael Ferraiuolo

LENGTH: 9 hours and 13 minutes

RELEASE DATE: June 17, 2021

BLURB:

1508

Sebastian Drake, stoic protector of the Drake family, always gets what he wants – and there is nothing he wants more than the half-starved Pedigree omega named Peregrine he comes across on his travels. It doesn’t matter that Peregrine is a disgrace. Sebastian will do whatever it takes to keep him…and somehow, as impossible as it might be, find a way to be his mate.

Present Day

For hundreds of years, Peregrine has enjoyed life as Sebastian’s mate. Sure, as one of the only bonded omegas in recent history, he’s been kidnapped more times than he can count, but with Sebastian there to save him, it’s little more than an inconvenience. And attacks from hostile clans? That’s just a typical Tuesday.

But there is one thing Peregrine fears yet desperately wants.

One thing that has hurt him time and time again.

One thing Sebastian can’t save him from.

And now it’s happening again.

He’s pregnant.

Peregrine is an 85,000 word omegaverse mpreg romance set prior to as well as following the events of the Forbidden Desires series. It has answers to questions you’ve been dying to know, and contains heartache, laughter, origin stories, meddling reptilian families with huge hearts, exotic locales, a dash of danger, and a love story 500 years in the making. For maximum enjoyment, Peregrine is best enjoyed following the events of Clutch, Bond, Mate, Swallow, Magpie, and Finch.

For this audiobook, please use the Look Inside or Download Free Sample feature on Peregrine’s ebook listing to read the content warning for possible triggers.

Review by Sadonna

TITLE:  How to Save a Human

SERIES:  Vampire Related Crimes #4

AUTHOR:  Alice Winters

NARRATOR:  Michael Ferraiuolo

PUBLISHER:  Self-published

LENGTH:  9 hours and 17 minutes

RELEASE DATE:  June 3, 2021

BLURB:

River
When I meet Bentley DeGray, I’m at the lowest point in my life because no matter how much I fight, my past won’t let me escape. Bentley makes me laugh and care and love, but what does any of that mean when I’m living a lie?

Things get complicated when I find out he’s with the Vampire Related Crimes Unit, the organization looking for answers about the abductions of prominent vampires.

The same organization that stands in my way.

My time is ticking down while I’m wound up in this role I’ve been forced to play, but I know that I would be drowning without Bentley by my side.

Bentley
We’re facing something that runs so deep that we don’t know who we can trust besides each other, even within the VRC. River makes me feel like every day is worth living and enjoying – like I’m not so alone. I can’t imagine life without him. But I know that if I want to keep him by my side, I will need to do everything I can to help him so our love doesn’t get cut short before it can truly grow.

How to Save a Human contains a cat who shows her affection by not drawing (much) blood, art projects that are a little…sketchy, the most underwhelming “bull” ride ever, and vampires that may or may not be in the mob.

Reviewed by Sadonna

TITLE:  If Only for Today

SERIES:  Deerbourne Inn #25

AUTHOR:  Gabbi Grey

NARRATOR:  Michael Ferraiuolo

PUBLISHER:  self-published

LENGTH:  4 hours and 39 minutes

RELEASE DATE:  June 18, 2021

BLURB:

Jared Langford is a happy man. The desk clerk at the Deerbourne Inn knows everyone in his cozy town in Vermont. He is accepted and loved by the community, but he’s missing someone special in his life.

Devastating news has brought journalist Xander Fortier to Willow Springs for some much-needed rest. He’s photographed every major conflict in the world for the last 10 years, but being stateside has forced him to reassess the solitary life he’s been living.

Something in Xander’s gruff demeanor calls to Jared’s caring nature. Soon the men are spending time together, but Jared’s kisses might not be enough to keep Xander from leaving. Can the men find a happily ever after if they only have today?

Reviewed by Sadonna

TITLE:  Luca

SERIES:  Gentlemen of Emerald City #1

AUTHOR:  L.A. Witt

NARRATOR:  Michael Ferraiuolo

LENGTH:  8 hours and 14 minutes

RELEASE DATE:  June 21, 2021

BLURB:  

Ethan

Hockey season is over, and that means one thing – returning home to my empty condo. With nothing to distract me from this loneliness, it’s going to be a miserable summer.

Then I hire Luca for one night.

At least, it was supposed to be one night.

Luca

Ethan isn’t like my other clients (not that I have many these days). He’s nice. He’s genuine. He doesn’t treat me like I’m here to earn my pay.

When he asks me to make this a regular thing for the summer, my wallet doesn’t leave me much choice.

But I’m pretty sure my heart isn’t supposed to get involved.

Gentlemen of the Emerald City

Luca is book one of Gentlemen of the Emerald City, a sexy series centered around the high-class, high-dollar gentlemen of Seattle’s most exclusive escort service. Each book is full of snark, sass, and sweetness, and like any Emerald City client, you’re guaranteed a happy ending.

Reviewed by Valerie

TITLE:  The Quiet House

SERIES:  Black and Blue #2

AUTHOR:  Lily Morton

NARRATOR:  Joel Leslie

PUBLISHER:  Self Published

LENGTH:  8 hours and 8 minutes

RELEASE DATE:  July 23, 2021

BLURB:

Levi Black has mostly recovered from the events of a year ago. The only lingering effects are that he’s much more well-known in York than he’d like to be, and he’s a lot more cautious about walking around his house naked.

However, those events brought him the capricious and fascinating Blue, so he’s not complaining. On the contrary, he’s happy, in love, and looking forward to Blue finally moving in with him. And if sometimes he wonders what Blue sees in a boring cartoonist, he keeps that to himself.

Blue Billings is finally ready to throw off the memories of his past and move in with the person who means the most in the world to him. His psychic abilities have grown in the last year to his mentor Tom’s consternation, but Blue is determined to look on the bright side. He’s also focused on ignoring all the warning signs that he’s received lately.

However, even deeply buried secrets have a way of rising to the surface. And when a surprise from Blue’s past turns up and draws them away to a lonely house on the Yorkshire moors, Levi and Blue must fight for their survival once again.

Reviewed by Sadonna

TITLE:  Stripped

SERIES:  Four Bears Construction #6

AUTHOR:  K.M. Neuhold

NARRATORS:   Tim Paige and Liam DiCosimo

PUBLISHER:  Self-published

LENGTH:  5 hours and 40 minutes

RELEASE DATE:  July 19, 2021

BLURB:

A ripped, transgender construction worker and a tweed-wearing, tortoise-shell-cozy-knitting bear of a professor… Somebody’s getting stripped.

The last place I expected to run into my childhood camp crush was at the local university, looking all kinds of cute in a tweed jacket with a nervous blush. I’ve always had a bit of a thing for the nerdy professor type.

Demetri says he doesn’t date. I want to believe that it’s true and not that he’s not interested in a transgender man like me. If all he can offer me is friendship, I’m more than happy to take it.

Coy looks during sweaty workouts, rainy nights on his couch watching him knit shell cozies for his pet tortoise… I’m falling for him, whether I want to or not.

Can I break down his walls and prove to him that he can trust me with his heart? And can I trust him with mine?

Stripped is a swoony, steamy MM romance that is the sixth book in the Four Bears Construction Series. It can be listened to as a stand-alone, but you won’t want to miss these bear’s antics. This series does not contain any shifters, only the other kind of bears.

Reviewed by Cheryl K

TITLE:  Whisper

AUTHOR:  Tal Bauer

NARRATOR:  John Solo

PUBLISHER:  Tantor

LENGTH:  25 hrs and  55 mins

RELEASE DATE: July 27, 2021

BLURB:

On September 11th, 2001, Kris Caldera was a junior member of the CIA’s Alec Station, the unit dedicated to finding and stopping Osama Bin Laden. They failed.

Ten days later, he was on the ground in Afghanistan with a Special Forces team. On the battlefield, he meets Special Forces Sergeant David Haddad. David – Arab American, Muslim, and gay – becomes the man Kris loves, the man he lives for, and the man he kills for, through the long years of the raging wars.

When a botched mission rips David from Kris’ life, Kris’ world falls into ruin and ash.

After being captured, tortured to the edge of his life, and left for dead by his comrades, David doesn’t know how much of himself is left. He vanished in the tribal belt of Pakistan, and the man who walks out almost a decade later is someone new: Al Dakhil Al-Khorasani.

Intelligence from multiple sources overseas points to something new. Something deadly and moving to strike the United States. Intercepts say an army from Khorasan, the land of the dead where the Apocalypse of Islam will rise, is coming. And, at the head of this army, a shadowy figure the US hasn’t seen before: Al Dakhil Al-Khorasani.

David is coming home.

Contains mature themes.

Reviewed by Stephen K.

TITLE: Brothersong

SERIES: (Green Creek #4)

AUTHOR: T.J. Klune

NARRATOR: Kirt Graves

PUBLISHER: Tantor Audio

LENGTH: 19 hours and 33 minutes

RELEASE DATE: October 27^th ,2020

BLURB:

In the ruins of Caswell, Maine, Carter Bennett learned the truth of what had been right in front of him the entire time. And then it—he—was gone.

Desperate for answers, Carter takes to the road, leaving family and the safety of his pack behind, all in the name of a man he only knows as a feral wolf. But therein lies the danger: wolves are pack animals, and the longer Carter is on his own, the more his mind slips toward the endless void of Omega insanity.

But he pushes on, following the trail left by Gavin.

Gavin, the son of Robert Livingstone. The half-brother of Gordo Livingstone.

What Carter finds will change the course of the wolves forever. Because Gavin’s history with the Bennett pack goes back further than anyone knows, a secret kept hidden by Carter’s father, Thomas Bennett.

And with this knowledge comes a price: the sins of the fathers now rest upon the shoulders of their sons.

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Reviewed by Stephen K.

TITLE: Boyfriend Material

SERIES: (Boyfriend Material #1)

AUTHOR: Alexis Hall

NARRATOR: Joe Jameson

PUBLISHER: Dreamscape Media LLC

LENGTH: 13 hours and 11 minutes

RELEASE DATE: July 7^th ,2020

BLURB:

Luc O’Donnell is tangentially – and reluctantly – famous. His rock-star parents split when he was young, and the father he’s never met spent the next 20 years cruising in and out of rehab. Now that his dad’s making a comeback, Luc’s back in the public eye, and one compromising photo is enough to ruin everything.

To clean up his image, Luc has to find a nice normal relationship…and Oliver Blackwood is as nice and normal as they come. He’s a barrister, an ethical vegetarian, and someone who has never inspired a moment of scandal in his life. In other words, he’s perfect boyfriend material. Unfortunately, apart from being gay, single, and really really in need of a date for a big event, Luc and Oliver have nothing in common. So they strike a deal to be publicity-friendly (fake) boyfriends until the dust settles. Then they can go their separate ways and pretend it never happened.

But the thing about fake-dating is that it can feel a lot like real-dating. And that’s when you get used to someone…start falling for them…don’t ever want to let them go.

Reviewed by Sadonna

TITLE:  Merry Measure

AUTHOR:  Lily Morton

NARRATOR:  Joel Leslie

PUBLISHER:  Self-published

LENGTH:  5 hours and 25 minutes

RELEASE DATE:  October 8, 2021

BLURB:

Arlo Wright’s introduction to his sexuality came when he saw his older brother’s best friend, Jack Cooper, in his sweaty football kit. Unfortunately, he didn’t have long to enjoy the revelation because he promptly knocked himself out on a table.

Relations between them have never really moved on from that auspicious beginning. Arlo is still clumsy, and Jack is still as handsome and unobtainable as ever. However, things look like they’re starting to change when Arlo finds himself sharing a room with Jack while on holiday in Amsterdam at Christmas.

Will the festive spirit finally move them towards each other, or is Arlo just banging his head against a wall this time?

From best-selling author Lily Morton comes a warm romantic comedy set in chilly Amsterdam.

Reviewed by Larissa

TITLE: Best Man

SERIES: Close Proximity Book 1

AUTHOR: Lily Morton

NARRATOR:  Joel Leslie

PUBLISHER: Self published

LENGTH: 6 hours and 36 minutes

RELEASE DATE: September 29, 2021

BLURB: 

Zeb Evans doesn’t do messy.  

The product of a disorganized and chaotic childhood, Zeb likes order and control, and as the boss of his own employment agency he can give that to himself. Life runs along strict lines and he never mixes business with pleasure. Everything in his life lives in neat, alphabetized boxes. Until Jesse. 

Jesse Reed is Zeb’s complete opposite. He’s chaos personified. A whirling cyclone of disorder. He’s also charming and funny and a very unwanted distraction. Which is why it comes as a complete surprise to Zeb to find himself asking Jesse to pose as his boyfriend for a few days in the country at a wedding.  

Zeb doesn’t do impulsive, but as the time away progresses, he finds himself increasingly drawn to the merry and irreverent Jesse. But can he bring himself to break the hard-won lessons he’s learnt in life? And even if he can, how could Jesse be attracted to him anyway? He’s so much older than Jesse, not to mention being his boss. 

From the best-selling author of the Mixed Messages and Finding Home series comes a warm and funny romance about one man’s fight for control and another man’s determination to circumvent it.

This is the first book in the Close Proximity series, but it can be listened to as a standalone.

Reviewed by Larissa

TITLE:  Ginger Snapping All the Way

AUTHOR:  Gabbi Grey

NARRATOR:  Michael Dean

PUBLISHER:  Self-published

LENGTH: 8 hours and 2 minutes

RELEASE DATE:  November 15, 2021

BLURB:

Maddox

I’m not a fan of Christmas. I’m happy to stay up in my mountain cabin and let the silly season pass me by. But when a friend asks for a favor, I can’t say no. Now I’m stuck in my cabin during a snowstorm, trapped with the most beautiful man I’ve ever met – who can’t wait to get away. He just might break my heart when he goes.

Ravi

I’m racing to get home for the birth of my goddaughter when mechanical troubles force my plane’s emergency landing. There are no beds at the inn due to a horrendous storm, but a friend says she knows a guy who won’t mind putting me up until the bad weather passes. Now I’m trapped with that man, and I must decide if I stay, hiding from the rest of the world, or go and face my past to earn a shot at my happily ever after.

This is a 72,000-word, hurt/comfort, lumberjack/nurse, grumpy/sunshine, forced-proximity MM romance novel with a moderate amount of angst.

Reviewed by Sadonna

TITLE:  The Geek who Saved Christmas

AUTHOR:  Annabeth Albert

NARRATOR:  Tim Paige

PUBLISHER:  Tantor Audio

LENGTH:  7 hours and 1 minute

RELEASE DATE:  December 14, 2021

BLURB:

His grumpy neighbor needs some holiday sunshine….

Gideon Holiday is the perfect neighbor. Need a cup of sugar? Spare folding chair? Extra batteries? He’s always ready to help. And he’s waited years for his hot, grumpy, silver-fox neighbor, Paul, to need him. For anything. But right now, Gideon would be happy if he could just get the Scrooge-like Paul on board with the neighborhood holiday lights fundraiser.

Paul Frost has no intention of decking his halls or blazing any Yule logs. Even if his spunky bowtie-clad neighbor does look perfect for unwrapping, Paul would prefer to hide away until December is done. But when his beloved younger brother announces an unexpected visit, Paul needs all the trimmings for a festive homecoming – and fast.

Luckily, Gideon is there with a color-coded plan to save Christmas. Soon Paul’s hanging lights, trimming trees, and rolling out cookies. And steaming up his new flannel sheets with Gideon. How did that happen?

It’ll take some winter magic to preserve their happiness and keep these rival neighbors together longer than one holiday season.

Contains mature themes.