Two Tribes Series by Kristian Parker
The mean streets of Manchester are the scene for a blood thirsty gang war. But with battle lines drawn, three heroes find themselves falling in love at the worst possible time.
The war for supremacy has begun.
Hi, my name is Kristian Parker and I’m a writer of M/M romance. I don’t have a specific genre as such. My two current series are Queens Crescent, set in billionaire’s row in London, and Two Tribes, a very different story of gangland Manchester.
How long have you been an author?
I have been a published writer for two years. I have been writing my whole life though.
About ten years ago, I got my Masters in TV and Radio Scriptwriting (cough – distinction – cough). I started writing scripts then soon realised what a closed shop it is. You can have all the talent in the world but luck plays such a huge part. For a few years, I did freelance journalism which was fun but unpaid for the most part.
The pandemic put paid to that, and I was looking for a new creative outlet. That’s when M/M romance came along.
Tell us about your new release. What inspired you to write it?
Two Tribes is a gangster story. The first book, Fool’s Gold, sees Liam Moseley stuck in a rut. He has been a member of Jonny Wellingham’s gang for ten years, yet no one respects him. Then Marco Ponti struts into his life and things will never be the same again.
Book two is Everything Changes. A turf war is raging. Shaun Moseley, Liam’s brother, has been dragged into it. He hates gang life and is furious to find himself in this position. Enzo is assigned bodyguard duties for Shaun. Yet as they grow closer, things take a very different path.
The finale, Don’t Look Back In Anger, sees mob boss, Lorenzo, come back from the dead. His sole aim is revenge. Then his own past comes to haunt him making everything look different. Yet this turf war needs to end before everyone loses, Lorenzo brings it to an exhilarating conclusion.
My day job is in Manchester, and I lived there for nearly twenty years so it has a very special place in my heart. I was very keen to write something set in the city.
A few years ago, I wrote a novel about a gay gangster in Manchester. It never did any good but the idea was lodged. Two Tribes is nothing like that novel, but I am still very proud that it’s finally coming to light.
What are you working on at present? Would you like to share a snippet?
I am currently writing the fourth book in my Queens Crescent series called Public Affair. Nihal Varma is a billionaire owner of one of the biggest PR firms in London. It has been a while since he was on the front line though. When handsome M.P. Carl Carrington comes into his world asking for his personal attention, who is he to refuse?
There is a leadership election in Carl’s party, and he is one of the favourites. Although his nemesis, the vile Randolph Buckingham is also very popular. Add to the mix that Buckingham has hired Nihal’s archenemy, Hilary Milligan and you have a recipe for a story.
Nihal is emotionally damaged from a previous relationship and has sworn off love forever. Yet, spending time with the decent Carl makes Nihal re-evaluate everything.
Here’s a snippet. Bear in mind this is only first draft so it may well change or disappear between now and it landing.
The meeting room was getting stuffy. Nihal loosened his top button. Something about this guy unsettled him. He wasn’t sure if he liked that or not. It had been a long time.
“I want to focus on the issues that matter,” Carl said. “I know you usually deal with kiss and tells or alcoholic lollies. I need to know that you can handle this.”
Carl may be attractive, but Nihal would not have his company’s ability called into question. “The PM had me look over most of his speeches when he was running in the last election.”
Carl sniggered. “That isn’t an endorsement. I’m a member of the opposition remember.”
“True. I’m not used to runners up, but I’m sure I can pivot.”
“Touché”
“Now I should really call Jacob in. You may as well meet him while you’re here.”
Nihal started to get up.
“Who is Jacob?” Carl asked, frowning.
“I took the liberty of assigning him to this contract. Just in case you were interested. We haven’t got a moment to lose after all.”
Carl rested his hands on the table. He had big worker’s hands that Nihal could just imagine running over every part of his body. God, he would have to snap out of this ridiculous crush.
“I am interested, Mr Varma but this is important. Whoever wins this election could be Prime Minister next year. I expected you to be dealing with this personally.”
Nihal was taken aback. He hadn’t got his fingers dirty at that level for many years. Of course, he dabbled in things to keep his hand in. The idea of running something this big gave him a jolt of nerves. Then, was he really going to pass up working closely with the handsome Mr Carrington?
What is the hardest part of writing any book?
The ending or the blurb in equal measure. I have been lucky enough to work with my editor, Rebecca Fairfax, on all of my stories. There hasn’t been one where she hasn’t returned a note saying to big up the ending more.
As for blurb. I’m sure it takes me longer than writing the actual book. I am getting slightly better but my goodness it’s a slow journey. Once again, my editor swoops in to the rescue as she is great at blurbs. I’m very lucky.
Do you have any advice for other writers?
Be prepared to work hard. If you are serious about it, there are so many things to tackle that you might not expect. Social media takes up a huge amount of time even though it’s fun for the most part.
My only other advice is try not to take criticism too personally. There is always something in there that you can use to improve.
Do you write any other genres?
I am taking some time off from M/M romance this year to write a story under another penname. It will be a family saga full of revenge. I love writing M/M romance, but I found I was missing exploring strong female characters. My new project has four very different yet powerful sisters in it.
What book/s are you reading at the moment?
I always have lots of books on the go. In M/M, I’m reading Unwrapping His Heart by the wonderful, Vin George, Twelve Letters by Ellie Thomas, Fatal Shadows by Josh Lanyon and I’m also reading Spare by Prince Harry. All very different books haha.
Which other writers do you follow?
The best thing about joining the M/M world is finding so many talented people. I have lots of favourites so I’m just going to name a few who I really love. That would be Vin George, Thom Collins, Peter Fenton, Lily Morton, Con Riley, Fearne Hill, RJ Scott, Charlie Novak and SJ Coles.
How often do you write? Do you have a schedule?
I have to do first drafts in the morning. Once I’ve had my lunch, my brain flatly refuses. Unfortunately, I have a day job, so my alarm goes off at 5 every morning to give me a couple of hours writing time.
In the evenings I’ll do things like editing, social media or reading. I sound way more organised than I really am!
If you had access to a time machine just once, is there anything you’d go back and change? Either on a personal level or an historical event?
Wow, that’s a difficult one. Historical event would have to be stopping Hitler’s parents meeting, wouldn’t it? On a personal level, I suppose I could warn myself off having a date with my ex, but then the character of Francois in Triple Intent would never have materialised haha.
If you were stranded on a desert island, what three things (or people) would you want there with you?
Obviously, a full Kindle with solar charging facilities or I’m not going. I guess something practical like a tent would be useful. Then Tom Hardy because I can’t read all the time!
THANK YOU
BOOK 2 – NEW RELEASE
Book Title: Everything Changes
Author: Kristian Parker
Release Date: April 11, 2023
Genre: Contemporary M/M Romance
Trope: Close proximity
Themes: Gangster, action
Heat Rating: 4 flames
Length: 50 578 words
It is not a standalone book, but does not end on a cliffhanger
Buy Links – Available in Kindle Unlimited
First for Romance | Amazon US | Amazon UK
Blurb
Fear can open doors we never dreamt possible.
Shaun Moseley is in a trap and it’s all his brother, Liam’ s fault.
Living a normal life running a B&B in Blackpool, he finds himself right in the middle of a gang turf war in Manchester. Shaun is an alien in this horrifying new world of drugs, guns and violence.
Shaun rebels against everyone, isolating himself in the process. But a terrifying experience opens his eyes to gang member Enzo Ponti. Shaun may be trapped for the time being, but that doesn’t mean he can’t have a little fun along the way, right?
He dismissed Enzo as just another hired killer but when he scratches the surface, he finds much more there.
But evil gangster, Jonny Wellingham, wants revenge on the gang and has set his sights on Shaun. Can he live long enough to find just how deep Enzo’ s waters are?
Excerpt from Everything Changes
They stood side by side, watching some birds flocking over the reservoir.
“When I was in a yoga retreat in Kathmandu, they had all sorts of gay-coloured birds,” Shaun said. “All we have are shitty brown things.”
He kicked a stone.
“I’ve seen you doing your yoga,” Enzo said. “Did you learn it on your travels? You should come and do some weights with me and Giovanni. It would be far more beneficial than getting yourself into silly poses.”
“Have you been perving over me then?”
Enzo reddened. “It’s not a big house. You can’t help it.”
Shaun regretted his big mouth. Enzo had done something kind for him and he should make an effort not to shoot him down every time he tried to speak. They wandered a little farther down the path.
“It’s weird to think that my whole childhood was spent in that place,” Shaun said, nodding to Manchester in the distance. “Where did you grow up?”
“I grew up in Rome. Well, a little village about an hour out of the city. I was very lucky in a lot of ways, but…”
Shaun glanced at him. He found him difficult to read, but there was definite pain there.
“But what?”
“Being attracted to men was not part of that world. Not until Uncle Z came. He changed everyone’s view.”
Shaun whirled around. “You’re gay?” he asked in astonishment.
Enzo raised an eyebrow. “Is it so surprising? Marco. Uncle Z.”
“Bloody hell,” Shaun said. “My gaydar is way out of sync.”
“Perhaps if you’d spoken to me once in a while, you’d have had a better chance of figuring me out,” Enzo said.
His words weren’t spiteful but simply stating a fact. A fact Shaun couldn’t even begin to deny. Embarrassment burnt over his skin. He had been behaving obstructively since coming to the farm. Now he could see himself through Enzo’s eyes and he didn’t like it. “Have I been such a bitch?” he ventured.
Enzo glanced over at him and winked. Shaun had noticed that Enzo was handsome—it was impossible not to. But he hadn’t taken the time to see his dark brown eyes or the way they crinkled at the sides when he smiled. Whether it was the fact he’d just saved his life or something deeper, Shaun imagined staring into those eyes and losing himself.
“We should get back,” he said. “I need to finish tonight’s dinner. I know my place and I don’t fancy being shouted at by Marco for not doing it.”
“And there he goes,” Enzo muttered. “Back into his shell. You would find this whole experience a damned sight easier if you were a little nicer to those around you. We are not all villains, you know.”
Once again, a flash of rage blew through Shaun’s system. He didn’t want to be schooled in how to be a gangster. Not by anyone, no matter how deep their eyes were.
“Thank you for the advice on how to survive a fucking gang war that I want nothing to do with,” he snapped. “I was terrified today, Enzo. Do you understand what that means? I can’t just toe the line and chuckle while my brother or any of you go out there time and again. If I get to know you, like you, it just adds to my fears. I can’t do it. I won’t.”
He was babbling now, but his mouth couldn’t seem to stop. To his amazement, Enzo came over and wrapped his arms around him. Shaun fitted perfectly, his head nestling in the crook of Enzo’s neck.
Enzo’s strong arms instantly calmed him and the shivers he had been battling since he got in the car simply disappeared.
“I get terrified too,” Enzo said softly.
“How do you stand it?”
“I have no idea. You’re not the only one in the whirlpool, I suppose.”
Shaun looked up just as Enzo stared down at him. Their lips were almost touching, but then reality hit Shaun like a sledgehammer. Having an affair with a gangster had put his brother in the hospital. He had no intention of spinning that particular bottle.
He broke away, trying to ignore the hurt on Enzo’s face. “They’ll be missing us now,” he said, smoothing down his jacket.
START THE SERIES WITH BOOK 1
Book Title: Fool’s Gold
Author: Kristian Parker
Publisher: Pride Publishing
Cover Artist: Erin Dameron-Hill
Release Date: March 14, 2023
Genre Contemporary M/M Romance
Tropes: Forbidden love, opposites attract
Themes: Gangster, action
Heat Rating: 4 flames
Length: 52 069 words/233 pages
It is not a standalone book, but does not end on a cliffhanger
Buy Links – Available in Kindle Unlimited
First for Romance | Amazon US | Amazon UK
Falling in love can be a deadly business.
Blurb
Liam Moseley has been living a lie ever since he joined Manchester’s notorious crime boss Jonny Wellingham ten years ago. Liam is gay, and that could get him killed in the deadly world he has fallen into.
When he meets handsome Italian Marco Ponti, Liam’s whole world is turned on its head. Marco is in town looking for business opportunities for his uncle in Rome, and makes Liam see his life in a brand-new light.
But all is not as it seems, especially when Marco shows Liam the past isn’t always as it appears and the future can change in the blink of an eye. In a dangerous world where each job could be Liam’s last, he finds himself fighting for love as well as survival.
Liam will have to put everything he holds dear on the line to make his dreams come true.
Excerpt from Fool’s Gold
“So you’re Manchester born and bred?” Marco asked.
“Can’t you tell by the accent?” Liam replied.
Marco beamed. “I love the Manc accent. It’s so…expressive.”
“That’s the first time I’ve heard it called that before,” Liam said. “I’d rather have an Italian one.”
“You find it sexy?”
Marco’s eyes dared him to answer honestly. Something about this guy gave Liam confidence. No man had ever had this effect on him. “Yeah, I do,” he replied before glancing down.
“Why do you do that?” Marco asked, leaning forward, his elbows on the table.
“Do what?” he asked.
“Break eye contact every time you say something. Are you ashamed?”
Liam shifted uncomfortably. “No, it’s not that.”
“Tell me what it is, then?” Marco asked, his voice soothing and sincere.
“I guess I don’t think I have anything to say worth listening to,” he replied, eventually.
To his astonishment, Marco’s foot connected with his leg. The pressure told him it was absolutely on purpose.
“I respectfully disagree, Liam. I think I’d listen to you. Whatever you had to say.”
He had that burning sensation on his neck again. It had made him so paranoid at school.
“Sorry, I have made you blush,” Marco continued.
“Don’t worry about it. I always bloody blush. They called me Po at school because of it.”
Marco frowned. “What?”
“The red Teletubby?” Liam expected him to burst into that laughter again. Most people did when he confided this, but instead, Marco just shook his head.
“Kids can be so cruel. But who cares? They are in your past.”
“Yeah, they’re probably sweeping up shit in the hospital now. Serves them right.”
This time Marco did seem amused. “Said with true passion. I like it. So, what do you do, Liam?”
Here it came. The inevitable question. He could hardly say he was a lackey for one of the biggest gangsters in the northwest of England, so he reverted to his stock answer. “Oh, you know, bit of this, bit of that. How about you?”
“As I said, my uncle works in shipping. I’m over here seeing if there is any potential to expand to Manchester.”
Liam nodded. “The city is booming. You could do a lot worse.”
“That’s what I thought. I like what I see more and more.”
The look which followed that statement practically oozed with intent. This time, Liam forced himself to meet Marco’s gaze. “I’ve never been to Italy, but maybe I should,” he replied. “Rome seems pretty good from where I’m sitting.”
“Ah, you definitely should,” Marco said, leaning back. “It is beautiful. I’ve been the length and breadth of it with my job. I worked in Venice recently. Bellissima.”
Liam had seen pictures of the water world on television. “Better than the canals in Manchester. They’re just full of shopping trolleys and used condoms.”
Marco laughed again. It was so loud and carefree that Liam had to stop himself from looking around to see if anyone noticed. But he forced himself to relax and ended up giggling along with him. It had been so long since he’d done something like this.
“This is better,” Marco said.
“What is?”
“You are relaxing. You seemed very tense earlier,” Marco said. “I thought perhaps you’d changed your mind about me.”
“Oh, nothing like that,” Liam said hurriedly. “It’s just that I’m not out, you see. I don’t normally do this.”
Marco’s stunning eyes widened. “Who isn’t out these days?”
Shaking his head, Liam took a swig of his drink. “Me,” he said, placing the drink down. “In my line of work, it isn’t the done thing.”
A group of lads banged through the door. Liam frantically scanned each face but didn’t recognise any of them.
“Wow. I can’t imagine being in the closet. At my eighteenth birthday party, I came out. I figured if I had to enter adulthood, people should know what they were dealing with. Although I like to make a statement now and then. It keeps them on their toes.”
The lads were being quite rowdy. Even the barman appeared nervous.
“You’re very brave,” Liam said.
“Not really. My uncle is gay too, so it was a well-beaten path. No one in our family cares as long as you’re healthy and happy.”
“Sounds perfect.”
Marco chuckled, but Liam couldn’t relax. He watched the group of lads out of the corner of his eye. He could spot trouble a mile off, and these lads were desperate for it.
“We’re a long way from perfect, believe me,” Marco said. “But we get by.”
Liam drained his glass. “You want another?”
Marco shook his head. “There are a lot of things I’d like from you, Liam…but another drink is not one of them.”
The change in tempo took Liam by surprise. Heat crept over his face and he didn’t know what to say in return. He had never been any good at the whole game-playing thing. “Just nipping to the loo,” he managed before bolting for the door.
BOOK 3 – COMING SOON – AVAILABLE FOR PRE-ORDER
Book Title: Don’t Look Back In Anger
Author: Kristian Parker
Release Date: May 30, 2023
Genre: Contemporary M/M Romance
Trope: Second chance love
Themes: Gangster, action
Length: 50 123 words
Heat Rating: 4 flames
It is not a standalone book, but does not end on a cliffhanger.
Available for Pre-Order
Blurb
Revenge is best served cold, yet old embers can burn hot.
Lorenzo de Luca has come back to Manchester with revenge on his mind.
Supposedly killed by evil gangster Jonny Wellingham’s hitmen fifteen years ago, Lorenzo has waited a long time for this. He has to stay focused. And he does…until a past lover comes back into his life.
But old embers can spark a flame and the couple pick up where they left off—but the war has only just begun, and everyone is fair game…and Lorenzo’s distraction gives Jonny the opportunity he needs to strike a deadly blow.
Torn between his burning need for vengeance and the scorching heat of love, which will Lorenzo sacrifice?
Reader advisory: This book contains scenes of violence, murder, organised crime, sex work, and drugs trafficking. There are also instances of homophobia.
I have written for as long as I could write. In fact, before, when I would dictate to my auntie. I love to read, and I love to create worlds and characters.
I live in the English countryside. When I’m not writing, I like to get out there and think through the next scenario I’m going to throw my characters into.
Inspiration can be found anywhere, on a train, in a restaurant or in an office. I am always in search of the next character to find love in one of my stories. In a world of apps and online dating, it is important to remember love can be found when you least expect it.
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signed paperbacks of each book in the series.
