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Blog Tour + Giveaway: A Fine Mess (Brimstone #7) by Angel Martinez


Author Angel Martinez and Other Worlds Ink visit today! Check out today's blog tour stop for space opera comedy, A Fine Mess (Brimstone #7)! Plus, also win a $25 Mischief Corner Books Gift Card in the giveaway attached! Check it out!



A Fine Mess - Angel Martinez - Brimstone


Angel Martinez has a new queer space opera comedy out, book seven in her Brimstone series: "A Fine Mess." And there's a giveaway!

Beware the demon prince who's sick and tired of running.

Federico Duomo is dead, to begin with. But this is only the first bit of Shax's problems resolved. Powerful crime lords and an obscenely wealthy oligarch are still determined to destroy him and his crew, and Fluffy's original owner may be coming after the Brimstone now, too. It would be splendid to be able to take on one thing at a time.

Adding to the external conflicts, life on board the Brimstone has only grown increasingly stranger. Shax has no idea what to do with the seven partly human children that Heckle rescued from slavers. Heckle himself has grown short-tempered, even with Mac. Someone from Julian's past catches up to them on Barbary. It's enough to put a demon off his cinnamon buns.

Shax isn't panicking, though. In fact he's had it up to his handsome royal nose with the people he loves having to live in constant fear. The fox has turned at bay and the Brimstone's enemies are in for a shock. The demon prince of thieves is coming for them.

About the Series:

Due to circumstances completely within his control, Shax, the Demon Prince of Thieves, has fled, er, emigrated from Earth to seek his fortunes out in the galaxy. Who said Science Fiction always has to be serious?


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Giveaway

Angel is giving away a $25 Mischief Corner Books Gift Card with this tour. Enter via Rafflecopter:

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Excerpt


A Fine Mess

"Captain Cream Puff, Glkix is on the line for you." Ms. Ivana kept her voice to a throaty purr, probably in deference to the early hour.

While Shax had been expecting the call, he would've preferred at least one more cup of coffee beforehand. "Thank you, my dear. Put her through to my comm, please."

He arranged himself in his desk chair to appear calm and unaffected, coffee mug in one hand for any necessary sardonic or thoughtful sipping. A brief flicker through the relays, and Glkix's image hovered above the holo plate on his desk. Her blue-black hair swept up and pinned with obsidian, her gray-green face smooth and serene, his mother's personal assistant was as elegant as ever. Few people would have picked up the tightness around her eyes, and only if they'd known her as long as Shax had. Not good news, then.

"Good morning, highness. Your royal mother sends greetings."

"Thank you, Glkix. Please convey my filial greetings in return." Shax's nerves got the better of him. He sipped. "You have something for me?"

Incomprehensible data flowed across the screen as Glkix typed. "We were able to track her genetic material through registered bloodlines and make discreet inquiries regarding missing stock. Her lineage is well-documented and highly prized among certain demon lords, highness."

Is this flattery or an explanation of methodology? Sometimes it's so hard to tell. "Yes? Do you have an answer, or is this just an update on progress?"

Glkix cleared her throat, eyes glued to the data stream. "An answer, highness. Your hellcat belongs to Baphomet, Lord of Beasts."

Hell's shiny, pointy gates. Inside, Shax ran in little circles screaming. Outwardly, he sipped. "I see. Does he know I have her?"

"Abject apologies, highness. I've little data on that." Glkix ducked in a strange sort of seated bow. "We know that Lord Baphomet was visiting a forested moon near Opal when the hellcat in question—"

"Fluffy."

"Pardon, highness?"

Though he knew she'd never approved of his names for his pets, he persisted. "My hellcat's name is Fluffy."

Glkix cringed. "Er. Yes. When Fluffy was stolen from her pride."

"Do we know by whom?"

"No, highness. Not yet."

Shax drummed his fingers on his mug and forced himself not to sip. Control. Control. "And m'lord of beasts? Where is he now?"

"Hunting, highness. In his ship, Cornuta." Glkix shook her head. "We are trying to redirect wherever possible, Prince Shax."

"Understood." All too well. "Thank you for the information. Mother can't possibly be paying you enough."

"I live to serve, highness." She executed her seated bow again, and Shax cut the connection.

Carefully, he placed his mug on the desk. Pushed back his chair. Bent over his knees and screamed into his hands for a solid forty-five seconds.

Of course, he should have known better. Boots pounded down the corridor almost before he'd stopped, and his door whooshed open. Through his fingers, he spotted Ness in the doorway with his wings mantled in a fierce defensive position and his plasma pistol drawn. Julian, knives out, slid in under Ness's wing and dove behind the trunk Shax had pulled from the closet earlier.

"Shax? Everything all right?" Ness ventured after a stunned and puzzled silence.

Julian vaulted the trunk to sit on its lid. "We thought something was murdering you."

"No murders." Shax sat up and forced himself to draw in a slow breath. "Not yet, at any rate."

Instead of acknowledging him, Ness turned to Julian. "I don't think it was an angry scream."

"Right." Julian nodded. "No prince-in-a-snit smoke. I'd say frustration, except there was definitely a squeaky note to it."

"You're both vastly entertaining and should consider taking this on the road." Shax scowled at each in turn. "But this is serious."

Ness flipped and reflipped his wings as he folded them before sitting on the bunk. "Perhaps you could enlighten us, love."

"Fluffy…" Shax paused as the hellcat in question trotted through the open door to butt her head against him almost hard enough to knock him from his chair. "Yes, you’re a good girl. Who's the best Fluffums? Ahem. Fluffy was stolen from Baphomet."

"I'm gathering that's not good." Ness let her waving tail run through his hand, careful of the sickle blade on the end, his expression unreadable.

"ISE lists Lord Baphomet as a class IV demon lord. Not of the highest rank, so he's able to leave Sol system," Julian offered softly. "Unpredictable, motivations unclear; do not, under any circumstances, engage."

"While Enforcement and I disagree on many things, that's a frighteningly apt assessment." Mug back in hand, Shax took a fortifying sip. "He may be hunting us and, I'll be honest, this is definitely cause for alarm. Mum and Glkix have apparently been sending him off in various directions, but he will find us at some point."

The crinkle in Ness's forehead showed the first sign of real concern. "Is he family? Do you know him well?"

Shax waved a hand at the universe. "All demon lords are family in a sense. I don't believe we're directly related, mind you. And Mum would never allow association with the more, ah, nature-oriented demons. Mud and dust and sticks in your hair…"

"That's a no, then," Julian drawled. "This may sound absurd to you, our lovely prince, but could you contact him? Let him know what happened?"

A cold iron weight lodged in Shax's stomach and the backs of his eyes burned as he choked out, "But he'll want Fluffy back."

Everyone lunged toward him with huffs and other distressed sounds, and he found himself surrounded by arms and wings, with a huge hellcat head in his lap.

"Shax. I'm so sorry," Julian whispered. "Please don't cry."

"I most certainly am not." Of course, a hot teardrop chose that moment to splash onto Julian's hand.

Ness stroked his hair. "We know you love her. But she had a pride once, didn't she? Maybe a family?"

"Of course." Shax shook himself and swiped at his eyes. Part of him wanted to collapse against them and howl like a six-year-old demon, but he was the captain, and there was such a thing as dignity. "Of course. And better to inform him than to have him come after us in a rage. I'll… send the message."




Author Bio


Angel Martinez

Angel Martinez is the pen name of a writer of several genres who writes both kinds of queer fiction – Science Fiction and Fantasy. (What? There are others?) Currently living part time in the hectic sprawl of northern Delaware, (and full time inside the author's head) Angel has one husband, one son, at least one cat at any given time, a changing variety of other furred and scaled companions, a love of all things beautiful and a terrible addiction to the consumption of both knowledge and chocolate.

Author Website: https://angelmartinezauthor.weebly.com/

Author Facebook (Personal): https://www.facebook.com/amartinez2

Author Facebook (Author Page): https://www.facebook.com/Angel.Martinez.author/

Author Twitter: https://twitter.com/AngelMartinezrr

Author Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/1010469.Angel_Martinez

Author QueeRomance Ink: https://www.queeromanceink.com/mbm-book-author/angel-martinez/

Author Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Angel-Martinez/e/B001KHMFTG


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Book Blast + Giveaway: Two Princes (When We Were Young #2) by Maggie Blackbird


Join author Maggie Blackbird and Gay Book Promotions as they promote today's book blast for Two Princes (When We Were Young #2)! Learn more about the second in the YA series and enter in the giveaway for a chance to win a $15.00 eXtasy Books Gift Certificate! Good Luck!

BOOK BLAST
Book Title: Two Princes
Author: Maggie Blackbird
Publisher: Devine Destinies
Cover Artist: Martine Jardin
Release Date: June 12, 2020
Genre/s: Young Adult, multicultural, contemporary, LGBT romance
Trope/s: Friends to lovers
Themes: Coming of age
Heat Rating: No sexual content - only kissing
Length: 67 345 words/ 235 pages
It is the second book in the When We Were Young series.

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To win over the chief’s haughty son, a drug-dealing punk from a dysfunctional family must risk the only two things he has: his reputation and freedom.
Blurb

Billy Redsky, a rebellious punk who loves art and nature, is saddled with a welfare-leeching, alcoholic mother and criminal older brother who are the joke of their Ojibway community. Sick and tired of being perceived as a loser, Billy deals drugs for his older brother to earn quick money. He hopes if he buys a dirt bike, he’ll finally impress the chief’s popular and aloof son, René Oshawee.

When the two are forced to serve detention together, a friendship blooms, but much to Billy’s frustration, René keeps putting him on ice. To make his biggest dream come true if he finally wants to call René his own, Billy must make a huge decision that could cost him everything.



Excerpt

TWO PRINCES

At the same time, they entered the office doorway. Billy’s side received a sharp elbow jab, and his lungs almost hurled from his throat. Pain. Major pain.

René pointed at the chair. “Sit. I’m going first. Unlike you, I don’t got all day to be playing around.” He strode to the counter. “Is Mr. Carlson in? Mrs. Lamb sent me.” The attitude in his voice melted into an ass-kissing, respectful tone.

“What for?” The secretary, with a big beehive straight out of the sixties, stood.

René pointed his thumb over his shoulder. “Redsky got into my little cousin’s face. I have to talk to Mr. Carlson about it.”

“Okay. Let me buzz you in.” The swinging-sixties secretary reached for the phone.

Never mind his aching side. Billy scrambled from the chair. “I ain’t taking the rap for this. You started it, loser.”

René whipped around. “What’d you call me?”

“I called you a loser.” Billy fisted his hands.

“You worthless punk.” René held up his finger in a lecturing gesture just as the teachers did. “Wanna talk about losers? Your mom and brother are total alkies and welfare leeches. It’s people like your family who give reds a bad name. That’s why everyone hates on us and says we’re a bunch of drunks sucking the taxpayers dry.”

“Is that what Chief Oshawee says when you’re having your fancy steak supper? Or maybe your mom says it ‘cause she’s some bigshot accountant?” The jeer flew from Billy’s mouth.

“Give it a rest, boys.” Mr. Carlson’s thick voice whirled into their argument. “My secretary told me you both were sent here. René,” he pointed at the door, “into my office. And, Billy, sit down. We’ll talk once I hear René’s version.”

It figured Prince Oshawee would get to go first. At least Billy had been smart enough to pass off his stash to Lonn before being sent to the vice principal’s office.

For ten minutes, Billy waited, and waited, and waited, the second bell having already rung. René was probably painting a sham picture of Billy shoving dope down Stuart’s throat.

The door to the vice principal’s office opened. René huffed out. He shook back his shoulder-length, thick, almost-black hair and trounced from the reception area into the main hall.

Instead of raw fury searing Billy, being ignored by the royal spare was sharp teeth sinking into his skin. Big deal. He didn’t give a shit about anyone or their opinion. Especially an Oshawee.

“Billy...” Mr. Carlson and his big gut filled the doorway. “In here. Now.”

Billy slunk into the office and flopped in the usual stiffer-than-a-board chair opposite the massive oak desk. He dropped his backpack and his frustration onto the floor. There was no point in arguing. Chrome Dome would believe an Oshawee over a Redsky.

Mr. Carlson sat on his king-style throne. “Fighting again?”

What could Billy say? Nothing.

“I didn’t think so.” Mr. Carlson picked up the phone and flipped through his Rolodex. “I have business to attend to. You’ll report to room two-o-two after school. We have a new strategy when it comes to physical disputes. You’ll find out then when you get there. Dismissed.”


About the Author
An Ojibway from Northwestern Ontario, Maggie resides in the country with her husband and their fur babies, two beautiful Alaskan Malamutes. When she’s not writing, she can be found pulling weeds in the flower beds, mowing the huge lawn, walking the Mals deep in the bush, teeing up a ball at the golf course, fishing in the boat for walleye, or sitting on the deck at her sister’s house, making more wonderful memories with the people she loves most.

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Giveaway
Enter the Rafflecopter Giveaway for a chance to win
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Author Spotlight Tour + Giveaway: Amanda Meuwissen Backlist


Don't miss today's author spotlight from Gay Book Promotions for author Amanda Meuwissen! Learn more about the author's back list! Enter in the giveaway to win your choice of 3 eBooks from the back list!

AUTHOR SPOTLIGHT - AMANDA MEUWISSEN

Amanda Meuwissen is a bisexual and happily married 35-year-old geek. Primarily an M/M romance author with a focus on urban fantasy, she has a Bachelor of Arts in a personally designed Creative Writing major from St. Olaf College and is an avid consumer of fiction through film, prose, and video games. Amanda lives in Minneapolis, MN, with her husband, John, and their cat, Helga.

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BACKLIST TOUR
BOOK 1
It’s not easy being someone’s fairy tale.
Book Title: Coming Up for Air
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Cover Artist: Tiferet Design
Length: 66736 words / 191 pages
Release Date: April 30, 2019
Genre/s: Romance / Gay / Paranormal / Urban Fantasy / Merman / Shifter / Crime / Mystery
Trope/s: not what he seems, thief with a heart of gold, friends to lovers, fated love
It is a standalone story.
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Blurb

Leigh Hurley is making a name for himself among thieves and criminals, even if it isn’t the life he would’ve chosen. He shouldn’t have screwed over the Moretti brothers, though. It landed him in the river with weights on his feet. But somehow he’s escaped certain death. The last thing he remembers before waking on the riverbank is a beautiful face and a soft kiss.

Then, Tolomeo turns up naked at Leigh’s apartment.

Tolly comes from a race of killers—merfolk who drown humans for fun. But Tolly is different, and when he sees a human in trouble, he offers a kiss, granting the man the ability to breathe underwater… and himself the ability to walk on land, at least until the next full moon. The ancient laws state that if he is given a vow of love by the one he kissed, he will be able to keep his legs. If not, he will be put to death when he returns to the water.

But love is not something Leigh offers easily… and Tolly has a secret of his own.


BOOK 2
What’s the value of love?
Book Title: A Model Escort
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Cover Artist: Bree Archer; Design by Paul Richmond
Length: 60686 words / 225 pages
Release Date: March 5, 2019
Genre/s: Contemporary Romance / Gay
Trope/s: shy protagonist, pretty woman, friends to lovers, abusive ex,
male escort, May-December Romance
It is a standalone story.
Buy Links
Blurb
Shy data scientist Owen Quinn is brilliant at predictive models but clueless at romance. Fortunately, a new career allows him to start over hundreds of miles from the ex he would rather forget. But the opportunity might go to waste since this isn’t the kind of problem he knows how to solve. The truth is, he’s terrible at making the first move and wishes a connection didn’t have to revolve around sex.

Cal Mercer works for the Nick of Time Escort Service. He’s picky about his clients and has never accepted a regular who is looking for companionship over sex—but can the right client change his mind? And can real feelings develop while money is changing hands? Owen and Cal might get to the root of their true feelings... if their pasts don’t interfere.


BOOK 3
Love is easy once you learn the steps.
Book Title: Interpretive Hearts
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Cover Artist: Alexandria Corza
Length: 50692 words / 197 pages
Release Date: November 19, 2019
Genre/s: Contemporary Romance / Gay
Trope/s: friends to lovers, May-December Romance, living with disability, neighbors
It is a standalone story.
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Blurb
In the competitive world of dance, Teddy was a flawless performer and hardass choreographer who students feared and admired in equal measure. But hip surgery ended the glamour and drama, and now Teddy is recovering at his beach house, lost and listless.

Until he meets Finn, his neighbor, who is too perfect, gorgeous, and kind to exist—but very ill timed. In a seaside town as small as theirs, they can’t avoid each other, especially since Finn is also Teddy’s new physical therapist. But Teddy isn’t the man he used to be, and though Finn flirts shamelessly with him, Teddy can’t believe a has-been dancer is worthy of someone so young and full of life.

Finn’s sunny smile is also hiding heartache. Pursuing Teddy challenges both his professionalism and his self-preservation, but if he can convince Teddy to trust him, maybe they both can heal.


BOOK 4
Heroes aren’t born, they’re made – sometimes reluctantly.
Book Title: After Vertigo
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Cover Artist: Tiferet Design
Length: 66422 words / 194 pages
Release Date: December 10, 2019
Genre/s: Gay / Paranormal Romance / Science Fiction / Urban Fantasy / Superheroes
Trope/s: frenemies to lovers, social awkward protagonist, 40-year-old virgin,
antihero, save the world, thief with a heart of gold
It is a standalone story.
Buy Links
Blurb

In a flash, the world changed. A solar flare—later dubbed Vertigo—activated the DNA of more than half the world’s people, granting them special abilities. Brilliant scientist Benjamin Krane might be Powerless, but his inventions are the only thing giving the police a fighting chance against super-powered evil. Ben doesn’t have much of a life beyond work, and when he gets wind of a robbery one evening, he decides to test his newest invention personally….

A thief, rogue, and shameless flirt, Grey Miller—aka the Streak—likes shiny things, but he doesn’t hurt people. When Ben catches him—and proposes they team up against the real bad guys—Grey doesn’t know whether it’s the offer or the man he can’t resist. But one thing’s for sure—they’re an ideal match in more ways than one.

With a psychotic supervillain’s catastrophic plan moving forward and everyone he cares about in danger, now might not be the best time for Ben to give in to Grey’s seduction, no matter how tempting. Grey is a man of secrets, and if Ben wants a future with him, he’ll have to learn to trust Grey—and himself.


BOOK 5
Heroes aren’t meant to act like their villains—or fall in love with them.
Book Title: Lovesick Gods
Publisher: Self
Cover Artist: Mario Hernandez, Design by Veronika Dolnikova
Length: 106609 words / 313 pages
Release Date: October 1, 2017
Genre/s: Bisexual / Urban Fantasy / Dark Romance / Superheroes
Trope/s: enemies to lovers, corrupted hero, redeemable villain, living with bipolar disorder, thief with a heart of gold
This is part 1 of a 2-part series.
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Blurb

The elements touch everyone on Earth—Fire, Water, even Light—but every so often someone becomes more attuned to their elemental leaning and develops true power. When an evil Elemental known as Thanatos arrived in Olympus City, it saw the rise of its first hero—Zeus. But the death toll caused by defeating Thanatos changed Zeus, who by day is young detective Danny Grant.

It’s been six months since Thanatos terrorized the city at the start of Lovesick Gods. Danny should be used to his duty behind the mask, but the recent past haunts him. His girlfriend left him, he snaps at the barest provocation, his life feels empty—he needs an outlet, any outlet to pull him out of his depression.

Enter notorious thief Malcolm Cho, the Ice Elemental Prometheus. There was a time when Danny welcomed a fight with Cho, filled with colorful banter and casual flirtations that were a relief compared to Thanatos. Even as a criminal, Cho had recognized the threat Thanatos posed and promised to help Danny stop him, but the day Danny needed Cho, he never showed. Cho was the reason so many people died that day—including Danny’s mother.

Danny decides to teach the man a lesson and fan the fire of their attraction into something more. At worst, he’ll get some no-strings-attached sex out of the deal and finally blow off steam; at best, he’ll get Cho to fall in love with him and then break his heart to spite him.

Danny doesn’t expect to fall for Cho in the process, and he certainly can’t predict the much darker threat on the horizon.




Giveaway
Enter the Rafflecopter Giveaway to win
one of three ebooks from the author's backlist.


Review: Trade Deadline (Hat Trick #3) by Avon Gale & Piper Vaughn

Daniel “Bellzie” Bellamy should be on top of the world—a Stanley Cup is the perfect topper to his fourteen-year NHL career. But despite the post-win high, something’s missing. When the chance to play for his hometown team, the Miami Thunder, comes along, he’s open to it. And when he runs into an old friend from his past soon after he makes the move, he wonders if it might be kismet.

Micah Kelly never thought he’d see his childhood crush—and first kiss—again. Danny Bellamy moved on to bigger and better things when they were teenagers, and the idea that Micah’s relationship with the professional hockey player could be anything more than one-sided Instagram thirst seems too good to be true.

Maybe too good to be true is the new reality, though. As the season goes on, Micah teaches Daniel to surf, and Daniel introduces Micah to his lovable pack of rescue dogs and the world of being a hockey boyfriend. Life is good. But when things on the ice don’t go as planned, they’ll have to decide if their rediscovered romance is built to last.


Daniel Bellamy and Micah Kelly were inseparable as kids. They were even each other’s first kiss. And while time and different paths in life resulted in them losing touch, neither quite forgot about the other.

Reunited twenty years later, the friendship rekindles instantly. And not long after, that friendship begins to build into something more.

I liked how easy things were between Micah and Daniel from the get-go. They re-connect almost seamlessly, with the years apart not really changing how they interacted.

The two men just clicked. It wasn’t hard at all to see how that immediate connection could easily go from friendship to romance.

description

Their hangouts and dates were very cute! It was also refreshing that Daniel’s bisexuality was never an issue, seeing as sexual attraction is so often a conflict point in MM hockey romances.

I also really liked how Daniel and Micah put in the work to become a part of each other’s lives. Though they’re two very different men, they learn about each other’s interests and make an effort to understand each other’s social circles.

And kudos to Daniel’s great family for welcoming Micah with open arms, especially the kids!

This is a fairly low-conflict romance. The major stumbling block is Micah’s need for stability, and the inherent instability of Daniel’s professional athlete career.

But it never becomes a huge issue. Though I generally prefer a fair bit of tension and angst, it was easy to just enjoy the simpler pace.

And even better, Daniel and Micah actually talk through all of their feelings and concerns. Major bonus points for open communication!

The only slight annoyance - Daniel often seemed to make a big deal about his age. Mid-thirties is pretty young!

Overall, I enjoyed Daniel and Micah’s friends-to-lovers romance, and the epilogue was a perfect HEA. If you’re looking for an easy family-centered MM romance, give ‘Trade Deadline’ a try.


A copy was provided in exchange for an honest review.


Series Tour: The Asylum Fight Club by Tibby Armstrong and Bianca Sommerland


Don't miss today's blog stop for series, The Asylum Fight Club from authors Tibby Armstrong, Bianca Sommerland and Gay Book Promotions! Learn more and enter in the giveaway to win a Kindle Fire loaded with backlist eBooks from both authors!

SERIES REVIEW TOUR
The Asylum Fight Club by Tibby Armstrong and Bianca Sommerland
Fated. Forged. Forever.
A place where men live and love by their fists—and ropes are for more than just the ring—The Asylum Fight Club isn’t the easiest place to live or work, but it’s a haven and a home for three men who’ve put their livelihoods—and lives—on the line to build a members-only gay sanctuary.
At the heart of The Asylum, Lawson Gaumond, Noah Leonov, and Curtis Smith, are three ex-lovers with one mission: to protect those they care for at all costs in an often unforgiving world of violence and vice.
They are three men, with one vision. Their bonds forged in blood. Fated to be together. Forever.
Genre/s: Contemporary M/M Romance
Overall Heat Rating for the series: 4 - 5 flames
Note: Depending on the book it could be either 4 or 5 but they aren’t erotica, so the sex is detailed, but part of the story, rather than the focus of the story.
It’s best to read the stories in order.
Publisher: Self-Published
Cover Artist: I’m No Angel Designs

BOOK 1
He’ll either take down ‘The Law’. Or fall for him.
Book Title: Flawed Justice (The Asylum Fight Club Book 1)
Length: 370 pages
Release Date: October 24, 2019
Trope/s: Enemies to lovers
Themes: Found Family
It can be read as a standalone
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Blurb
If there were an emergency number for adulthood, Matt Kincaid would have dialed it months ago. Raising his kid brother alone is already an uphill battle, nevermind when an ugly gang initiation lands the teen in lockup. Again. Only, this time for a hate crime against a local fight club, where settling debts isn’t taken lightly. When the club offers to let Matt risk everything in a long-shot match with a man who’s as brutally handsome as he is tough, he jumps at the chance.
If Matt wins, all will be forgiven. If not? Well, he might as well move in, because ‘The Law’ will own his ass...for a very long time.
There are no limits to what Lawson ‘The Law’ Gaumond will do to protect the club he and his former lovers built. An inner-city sanctuary where Anniston Falls’ gay leather culture thrives, The Asylum Fight Club isn’t an easy place, but it’s home. Taking on a local hothead whose younger brother vandalized the space isn’t high on his priority list, but there’s something about Matt that cries out for a firm hand.
Lawson’s never backed down from a fight, and he’s not about to start when there’s no way he can lose.

When renewed gang violence erupts, spilling blood over The Asylum, Lawson and Matt must confront their pasts to find a way forward. Gunshots and knives should be harder to survive than this rough love, but coming to the ring armed with nothing but the truth is their greatest challenge of all.
BOOK 2
The most important fight is for the truth.
Book Title: Beyond Justice (The Asylum Fight Club Book 2)
Length: 394 pages
Release Date: December 24, 2019
Trope/s: Friends to lovers
Themes: Found Family
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Blurb
Raised and trained by The Asylum Fight Club’s most infamous owner, Reed Dane is almost untouchable. Might sound dope, but there are disadvantages to his ‘privileged’ status. His guardian’s reputation makes a serious relationship impossible—turns out the club’s members are addicted to breathing—and the one man Reed truly wants sees him only as a stray his former lover brought home.
An endless string of one-night stands lacks the intimacy Reed craves, but at least edgy post-fight hookups distract him from what he’ll never have. Until he takes a wrecking ball to the walls that set him apart.
Curtis Smith is a lot of things—MMA fighter, club owner...son of a drug lord—but one thing he’s not is prepared to face temptation exploding past his carefully built boundaries. Reed is forbidden, to him most of all, but resisting what they both want becomes impossible with the sub challenging him at every turn. And with his past threatening everything The Asylum has been built to protect, Curtis can’t afford to be addicted to Reed’s brand of candy coated sin.
He can’t deny himself one taste before his stolen time runs out. Because when it does, all that will be left behind for Reed is a memory…
And his heart.
BOOK 3
He thought he’d had it rough, but he has a lot to learn.
Book Title: Hard Justice (The Asylum Fight Club Book 3)
Length: 570 pages
Release Date: February 24, 2020
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Blurb
Scandalous headlines threaten to turn Jamie Kent from a pop star to a pariah on the regular, but this latest one is a little too close for comfort. The Asylum Fight Club seems like a good place to hide out...until he has to prove he belongs—deep in a lifestyle with a contract and rules he breaks within the first five minutes. Staying means complete surrender, but a lifetime scripting love songs didn’t prepare him to give his heart to the one man who claims everything he has to offer.
The day he returns from prison.
Reputation has its own kind of power in a place where pain and pleasure depend on who’s in control. Entangled in the lives of those he’d give anything to protect, Noah Leonov rarely takes chances, but the hardened fighter refuses to abandon the vulnerable new sub to vultures who could tear his life apart with a camera flash. With the cage where he spent two years fresh in his mind, Noah won’t trap the man he loves in his brutal world. Jamie deserves the glamour and fame, where he can have more than a broken man can provide.
He belongs in the spotlight.
Neither man ever had the choice to decide their own destiny. Imprisoned by the roles they’re forced to play, their key to freedom might be to do the unexpected.
Refuse to let go.
BOOK 4
One game cost him his freedom, now all he has to lose is his heart.
Book Title: Cold Justice (The Asylum Fight Club Book 4)
Length: 510 pages
Release Date: March 24, 2020
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Blurb
Breaking a few rules didn’t seem like a huge deal.
With his name on several government assasination lists, Wren Gibson’s prison sentence might’ve been the shortest in hacker history, until an unlikely rescue lands him behind the sturdy brick walls of The Asylum Fight Club. Where everyone can game the rules, yet he’s forbidden from even placing his piece on the board.
But one Dom tempts him to gamble everything.
The Asylum’s resident, on-call medic, Jared “Doc” McCleod is familiar with the histories of every man who crosses the club’s threshold. Their pain, their fear… Of them all, only Wren has held on to his secrets, a fascinating contrast with how completely he gives up control. As the general on the front lines of The Asylum’s internal and external battles, it’s Jared’s duty to make certain the quiet sub with soulful brown eyes doesn’t fly under his radar for long.
Showing his hand could cost them both.
When Jared takes on the task of helping Wren recover from an unexpected injury, Wren begins to wonder. While the Dom is tending to everyone else, who is there for him? To show Jared he can be the sub he needs, he would willingly light himself on fire. For an ex-con with a target on his back, risking that kind of notice is a dangerous strategy, but...
Sometimes, getting what you want requires going all in.
BOOK 5
He never thought he could be more exposed.
Book Title: Raw Justice (The Asylum Fight Club Book 5)
Length: 525 pages
Release Date: May 21, 2020
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Blurb
Ambition can be deadly.
The right kind of exposure is all porn star Keiran Stone needs to reach his ultimate goal of opening his own restaurant, until an ill-fated audition ends with a near-deadly confrontation on the doorstep of Anniston Falls, New York’s infamous gay fight club. Rescued by one of the club’s members, Kerian is offered a job as The Asylum’s chef, and taken under the club’s protection.
He finds more than a recipe for success.
Top-tier fighter, Dallas Stephens, enjoys a variety when it comes to play outside the ring. As a switch, he finds satisfaction at both ends of the whip. Commitment never appealed to him with relationships or careers, but Keiran’s sweet temptations whet Dallas’s appetite for more than a one-night-stand. Inside and outside of the sub’s kitchen.
Ordering off the menu can be dangerous.
As Keiran fights to establish his own place within The Asylum, threats to the club’s foundation leave both men caught in the crossfire. Love and loyalty show them they’re exactly where they belong, in the most important battle either will ever face.
​Surviving it is another story.
BOOK 6
Temptation can be deadly.
Book Title: Dark Justice (The Asylum Fight Club Book 6)
Length: 514 pages
Release Date: June 25, 2020
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Blurb
Gravity is just another force to overcome.
Renowned aerial artist Avery Dylan has a secret. He’s not who he seems to be. A mercenary by trade, he’s been activated by his handlers in a desperate move to bring down an impossible-to-reach target inside the infamous Asylum Fight Club.
When his high wire act proves easier to execute than one elusive submissive, Avery must resort to more than slithering silks and suggestive moves to breach the club’s defenses. Infiltrating its security requires sneaking past its most carefully guarded boundary—Rhodey Leonov’s heart.
But this is one drop that could kill.
When emotions distract from a mission, it never ends well. For the other guy. There are more headstones in Rhodey Leonov’s past than notches on his belt, which is a track record he lives with. Literally. Being unstoppable keeps his family safe. They may hate his methods, but so long as they’re in one piece, he can live with that.
Until an attack on The Asylum’s newest member reveals a weakness Rhodey can’t let stand. Having Avery recover in his bed for a few days could be a lethal mistake, though Rhodey’s not quite ready to reach for the shovel… Unless it’s to dig himself into the dark pit he’s escaped for so long. With a sub whose sweetness might be nothing but venom.
For both men, love isn’t an option, because falling only leads to one place…
A shallow grave.
NEW RELEASE - BOOK 7
The show must go on.
Book Title: Uneven Justice (The Asylum Fight Club Book 7)
Author: Tibby Armstrong and Bianca Sommerland
Length: Approx 500 pages
Release Date: July 25, 2020
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Blurb
Life in the wings has its disadvantages...
One-time third-wheel in the boy-band Glam Grenade, Danny DiMarco’s existed just shy of center stage for as long as he can remember—a supporting player to two best friends who depended on him to pull their weight. While they made bank, he’s left reeling when his father’s death tangles his future in the red tape of empty contracts and drained accounts.
But the show must go on.
Jackson ‘Jacks’ Turner wears many hats, most of them gathering dust. An ex-model and an in-denial fashion designer, what he doesn’t plan to accessorize with is a newbie sub who shows up on his front doorstep looking for an introduction to the world of D/s inside Anniston Falls’ exclusive gay, members-only club.
Shea Warren is no stranger to covert ops. A Navy SEAL, he knows the ins and outs of hiding in plain sight. When Danny runs afoul of the club’s most powerful cliques on his first...and second...night as his roommate’s guest, the mission becomes clear. Protect the sweet, unassuming sub before he becomes a casualty of Jacks’ wear-em-once style.
There’s no rehearsal for this next set.
The Asylum might be more accepting of sequins and spandex than most, but Danny’s not coming to come out. In fact, with sponsors whose conservative ties pay his bills, it’s more than undesirable. It’s impossible. Except, sometimes Cupid has other plans.
Just when Danny needs to hide most, he’s headed for the last place he ever wanted to be...
In the spotlight.


About the Authors
Tibby Armstrong is a Contemporary, Paranormal, and LGBTQ Romance author who also writes Urban Fantasy.
​When she's not busy avoiding the gym, Tibby can be found munching on chocolate, sipping coffee, and scouring local bookstores for her next binge read.
Author Links
Bianca Sommerland, author of the award winning Dartmouth Cobras series, was born and raised in Montreal, Quebec. After hitting the USA TODAY Bestsellers list, and being invited to teach several classes on writing in the sports and BDSM genre, she retreated to her writing cave and can still be found there, doing what she’s always done. Which is writing whatever the characters tell her to.
When not reading neurotically or writing as though the fate of the world rests on her keyboard, she is either watching hockey or teaching her daughters the beauty of a classic, steel pony while reminiscing about her days in Auto Body Mechanics. Her dream is to one day own enough land to park a few junkers on so she can work on restorations in her spare time. She also wants a pony. And while we’re sharing her wishlist, owning a tank is somewhere around number 5. Not that she would use it unless there’s a zombie apocalypse, but she does like to be prepared.
Her time is balanced with utmost care between ‘normal’ family life, and being lured into the fictional realm where her characters reside. For the most part, she succeeds.
Author Links


Author Interview

Congratulations on your new release. Please tell us a little bit about it. What’s your favorite aspect or part of the story? Do you have a favorite character? Who/Why?

Bianca: Thank you so much! Uneven Justice (The Asylum Fight Club Book 7) explores the relationship between the members of Glam Grenade, as Danny DiMarco, the ex-bandmate of our hero from Hard Justice (The Asylum Fight Club Book 3) Jamie Kent. There were so many things left unresolved, and much chaos to be had in making them all face the past.

And in The Asylum, chaos could mean something both good and bad and everything in between. There’s definitely some sexy fun and a whole lot of trouble.

Are you a planner or a pantser? How much do you know about your story before you start writing? How often does your plan change? Why does this work best for you?

Bianca: With The Asylum, I know we’ve both adjusted to being a bit of both. Sometimes you just see where the story goes. Sometimes you get organized about putting your characters through the ringer.
It’s all about balance. ;)

Do you schedule a certain amount of time for writing each day/week, or do you just work it in when you can? Would you like to change this, or does your current method work well for you?

Tibby: We're awake. We're writing. Don't most people inhale and exhale words? Seriously though, I think what doesn’t work so well are the sleep and food parts. I’d probably have just fallen over at some point never to be heard from again if it weren’t for frozen meals.

What was the most difficult part of writing this book? Why?

Tibby: Bringing three relatively new main characters onto the page and writing a menage relationship, while also building off of a pre-existing plot thread with the established characters, was incredibly complex but so rewarding! 

Does writing energize or exhaust you?

Bianca: A little of both. Getting the escape into the world we’ve created is a huge boost, but there are times putting characters through hell leaves you feeling just as beaten up as they are! lol

If you could tell your younger writing self anything, what would it be?

Tibby: Start younger, read more, keep your butt in the chair, and never ever ever quit!

What do you find to be the most difficult thing about writing characters from the opposite sex?

Tibby: I find writing characters of my own gender more difficult than writing the opposite sex. When I write about men, I don’t have to bring my own hangups to the page. Also, I’m very conscious of the ways I’ve been constricted in my life as a woman, and I enjoy being able to shrug off that yoke on the page. For me, it’s an escape from my own worries and cares.

How do you select the names of your characters?

Bianca: Sometimes the name comes with the character, right when they introduce themselves. Other time you get a glimpse of who they are and go on the hunt, looking for the right name for this person you’re getting to know. I’ve done baby name searches and shuffled hockey cards to find names. Once you have it, the character becomes more real and you know exactly who they are.

What was your favorite toy growing up?

Bianca: Anything I could cuddle with, but I also loved my action figures. Me and my brother would have them going on all kinds of missions to save the day. Which...I’m sure is a total shocker. ;)

What is your favorite ice cream flavor?

Bianca: Dark cherry is one I absolutely love, but I’m a fan of ice cream in general. Maple Walnut, caramel swirl, vanilla with strawberry sauce and fruit. Now, excuse me, I need to get me some! lol

Who would play you in a movie about your life?

Tibby: Can I please please please have Ellen Page? All the Ellen Page. This would make me happy. Plus, a movie about my life? That would mean I’d done some pretty interesting stuff! I want to do that stuff!

Grab Flawed Justice (The Asylum Fight Club Book 1) FREE: https://books2read.com/u/4j1YK5
For more about The Asylum Fight Club, visit the website: http://www.asylumfightclub.com/
You can also join the Facebook Group here: https://www.facebook.com/groups/918703851879037/


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Release Blitz + Giveaway: The Harp and the Sea by Lou Sylvre and Anne Barwell


Celebrate the release of historical fantasy, The Harp and the Sea, with authors Lou Sylvre and Anne Barwell, along with IndiGo Marketing! Learn more and enter in the $10 NineStar Press credit giveaway!


Title: The Harp and the Sea
Author: Lou Sylvre and Anne Barwell
Publisher: NineStar Press
Release Date: July 27, 2020
Heat Level: 3 - Some Sex
Pairing: Male/Male
Length: 84200
Genre: Historical Fantasy, LGBTQIA+, historical fiction, fantasy, fated love, Scottish Isles, Jacobite revolt, Highlanders, action-adventure, magic, magical items, witch, curse, music, war/battles

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Synopsis


In 1605, Robbie Elliot—a Reiver and musician from the Scottish borders—nearly went to the gallows. The Witch of the Hermitage saved him with a ruse, but weeks later, she cursed him to an ethereal existence in the sea. He has seven chances to come alive, come ashore, and find true love. For over a century, Robbie’s been lost to that magic; six times love has failed. When he washes ashore on the Isle of Skye in 1745, he’s arrived at his last chance at love, his last chance at life.

Highland warrior Ian MacDonald came to Skye for loyalty and rebellion. He’s lost once at love, and stands as an outsider in his own clan. When Ian’s uncle and laird sends him to lonely Skye to hide and protect treasure meant for Bonnie Prince Charlie’s coffers, he resigns himself to a solitary life—his only companion the eternal sea. Lonely doldrums transform into romance and mystery when the tide brings beautiful Robbie Elliot and his broken harp ashore.

A curse dogs them, enemies hunt them, and war looms over their lives. Robbie and Ian will fight with love, will, and the sword. But without the help of magic and ancient gods, will it be enough to win them a future together?

Excerpt


The Harp and the Sea
Lou Sylvre and Anne Barwell © 2020
All Rights Reserved

1605 the Scottish Border Marches

Robert Ker of Cessford, Lord Roxburgh wielded nearly autonomous power at the turn of the 17th century as Warden of the Scottish Middle March. Often called the Debatable Lands, the Border Marches had rough and fluid application of law. A violent nature and loyalty to kin and ally were all the tools Cessford needed to enforce his judgements. His position made him a powerful man, and though he owed allegiance to Scott of Buccleuch, he marched mostly to his own drummer.

But in the year of Our Lord 1603, King James VI of Scotland became also James I of England, and set about unifying the two countries into Great Britain. His “pacification” of the Border Marches in truth meant abolishing the office of Warden, renaming all the Marches the Middle Shires, and killing enough Borderers to make the rest bend the knee. Having lost autonomy, Ker wormed and weaselled his way into the king’s courts at Whitehall and Edinburgh and commenced warring on the people of the March without mercy as a way to impress the monarch.

*

On a rain-soaked day in autumn, 1605, the rough men who served Ker of Cessford and King James Stuart shoved Robbie Elliot into a damp prison cell beneath Hermitage—a stark and haunted castle located almost dead centre in the Middle March, a place Robbie had once called home. When he heard the heavy oaken door thunk shut behind him, rattling the rusty iron chains and window bars, he fell to his knees in the filthy straw that lay scattered over the stone floor. He and a half-dozen others had been force-marched sixteen miles from Hawick, bound, handled rough, and prodded with sticks. Now Robbie tried in vain to find a few square inches of his body that didn’t cry out in pain.

“There’s water, Robbie.” The weak, high-pitched male voice came from the darkest corner of the cell, and it gave Robbie a start for he’d thought himself alone. “In the barrel there,” the man continued. “It’s clean enough.”

Robbie’s legs obeyed him after only a brief argument, and he stood and walked to the barrel. Dust and chaff floated on the top, but when he dipped the single iron ladle and brought the water to his lips, it had no foul smell. “I’ve had far worse,” Robbie said, and then drank.

When he’d slaked his thirst enough, he turned to his cellmate, who’d stepped out of the shadows. “How’d you come to be here, Keithen?”

“Same as you, I’d wager. I’d heard the warden’s men were on the march, and I meant to hide at my old da’s holding, east of Kelso. But I was caught no more than ten miles from Hermitage castle and strung along with five others—including your stepbrother Jem. We’d thought we’d go no further than the gallows on the hill, but they brought us here.”

“Jem? He’s here?”

“Alas, Robbie, he was a lucky one, for he’ll never see these cells. He fell on the trail, and the warden’s man kicked his head a mite hard. Snapped his neck.”

Robbie piled up some straw and sat, slumping back against the wall, his own head pounding as if he’d been the one kicked. Keithen, who tended to prattle on most of the time, stayed blessedly silent until Robbie spoke up a few minutes later. “Yes, probably lucky to die then, quick like that. Do you ken why they brought us here? What they’re planning for us?”

A sudden rattle of heavy keys beyond the door interrupted the prisoners’ conversation, and a single, crusted pot was pushed inside, its contents warm enough to steam in the perpetual cold of the below-ground keep.

Keithen said, “Porridge, or what passes for it,” and then got up and lumbered stiffly to fetch the pot.

Robbie realised all at once that his insides had gone so hollow he’d be happy to fill them with a brick if it was all he had, and he wasted no time. Given no utensils, the two men scooped the thick, sticky oatmeal with their hands, minding neither the slight burn nor extra flavour of the dirt and blood on their own skin. By the time they finished, Robbie had forgotten his last question entirely until Keithen answered it.

“I heard a couple English talking yesterday—their voices come down clearly through the shaft, just there.” He pointed at a corner of the ceiling, a black, empty rectangle amid the grey stone. “They said we’ll be marched to Carlisle, and wicked James himself, the king, travels there too. They’ll hang us all at once—for his entertainment.”

Robbie said nothing for a long while, his mind focused instead on whether he could find a way to die sooner rather than give the king his satisfaction. He could think of nothing short of refusing water or smashing his head against the stones, and he knew he wouldn’t do either. Although small in stature, he’d proven himself brave in battle when he was no more than fourteen, and he’d borne his wounds as well as any man. But courage has its limits, he thought, and the pain of drying to dust from the inside out or smashing my own skull is beyond mine.

At last he said, “Well, Keithen, some comfort. At least we’ll die among our own, and not alone.”

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Meet the Author


Anne Barwell lives in Wellington, New Zealand. She shares her home with a cat with “tortitude” who is convinced that the house is run to suit her; this is an ongoing “discussion,” and to date, it appears as though Kaylee may be winning.

In 2008, Anne completed her conjoint BA in English Literature and Music/Bachelor of Teaching. She has worked as a music teacher, a primary school teacher, and now works in a library. She is a member of the Upper Hutt Science Fiction Club and plays violin for Hutt Valley Orchestra.

She is an avid reader across a wide range of genres and a watcher of far too many TV series and movies, although it can be argued that there is no such thing as “too many.” These, of course, are best enjoyed with a decent cup of tea and further the continuing argument that the concept of “spare time” is really just a myth. She also hosts and reviews for other authors, and writes monthly blog posts for Love Bytes. She is the co-founder of the New Zealand Rainbow Romance writers, and a member of RWNZ.

Anne’s books have received honorable mentions five times, reached the finals four times—one of which was for best gay book—and been a runner up in the Rainbow Awards. She has also been nominated twice in the Goodreads M/M Romance Reader’s Choice Awards—once for Best Fantasy and once for Best Historical.

~

Lou Sylvre loves romance with all its ups and downs, and likes to conjure it into books. The sweethearts on her pages are men who end up loving each other—and usually saving each other from unspeakable danger. It’s all pretty crazy and very, very sexy. As if you’d want to know more, she’ll happily tell you that she is a proudly bisexual woman—a mother, grandmother, lover of languages, and cat-herder—of mixed cultural heritage. She works closely with lead cat and writing assistant, the (male) Queen of Budapest, Boudreau St. Clair. She lives in the rainy part of the Pacific Northwest, and hearing from a reader unfailingly brightens the dreary weather. Find her through her links listed here, or drop her a line at lou.sylvre@gmail.com.

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