Release Blitz + Giveaway: And God Laughed (Terry Luvello #1) by Joe Rielinger

 

Title:  And God Laughed

Series: Terry Luvello, Book One

Author: Joe Rielinger

Publisher:  NineStar Press

Release Date: 09/06/2022

Heat Level: 2 - Fade to Black Sex

Pairing: Male/Female

Length: 75100

Genre: Contemporary, LGBTQIA+, contemporary, trans, private detective, crime, murder mystery, suspense, family drama, priests, law enforcement, serial killer, religion, revenge

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Description

Private detective Terry Luvello has just been handed the biggest case of his career. During confession, a man has twice declared his intent to commit murder. In both cases, the murders later occurred in exactly the way the unknown man had described.

Hoping to keep the church connection out of the newspapers, the parish pastor asks Terry to find the killer and act as his liaison with the Cleveland Police and Detective Hannah Page. While dealing with their own growing attraction, Terry and Hannah race from Cleveland to New Orleans to catch a brilliant and ruthless killer acting on his own twisted compulsion.

Those who know Terry describe him as intelligent, obsessive, and annoying, often all at once. To solve this case, Terry must also put his uniquely wry sense of humor into play, coming to terms with a longstanding grudge against the Catholic Church and his identity as a transgender male.

Excerpt

And God Laughed
Joe Rielinger © 2022
All Rights Reserved

Amos Johnson was an enforcer. A triggerman for the Cleveland mob, Amos stood six-foot-four with the physique and ornery nature of a habitual steroid user. His body was his business, and Amos took his business seriously.

Amos also loved tattoos. Known as “Tatts” to his friends, Amos proudly claimed to have visited every tattoo parlor in the city of Cleveland. Fully covered from head to toe, the design on his left forearm was a tribute to his mother.

Amos’s other tattoos, not nearly as sentimental, would get him thrown out of any polite gathering in the city. That assumed, of course, someone would be foolhardy enough to try.

Not being part of polite society myself, Amos and his tattoos didn’t bother me at all. We shared the same opinion about the Browns, blues music, and the current state of the movie industry. With the people I met in my business, that was pretty much the best you could hope for. Amos might not have understood me, but he was at least willing to make the effort.

I met Amos almost a year ago during a custody dispute with his ex-wife. His ex, a heroin addict, had run off with Amos’s two-year-old daughter, Leann. It wasn’t that Amos thought he should take care of his daughter—he knew he wasn’t cut out for parenthood any more than his ex-wife. Amos’s goal instead was to return Leann to the person who really did have custody, his beloved mother, Amelia. He hired me, a licensed private investigator, to make that reunion happen.

After a lucky break, I was able to return Leann to her grandmother within two days of her abduction. Amos was grateful, but he couldn’t pay me much. That was pretty much an occupational hazard, though Amos promised he would be forever in my debt. One year later, that was a marker I needed to call.

My old-school mother would call Amos a thug. I didn’t care if Amos was a thug because tonight, he was my thug. Bored and uncomfortable, Amos and I were crouched behind a car on the fifth floor of the main student parking garage at Creesmont College, a small liberal arts school about twenty miles outside of Greater Cleveland.

As colleges go, Creesmont wasn’t much. Its history department was rated as one of the top thirty programs for schools of its size, and that was about it for high-level academics at the college. In a move born of desperation, Creesmont administration decided to take advantage of the school’s low academic reputation by investing more in athletics. That bet had paid off, and the school’s football team currently ranked in the top five of Division Three schools across the country.

Amos and I were waiting to meet James O’Keefe. Considered a potential low-round pick in the next NFL draft, O’Keefe was the senior quarterback of this year’s Creesmont football team. Six-foot-three, movie-star handsome and outwardly friendly, he was every girl’s dream date. Unfortunately for those girls, James preferred rape to relationships.

My client, Jenna Adamcheck, was a third-year English major at Creesmont. To earn extra money, Jenna had signed up as a tutor for the Creesmont Athletic Program, and her first client was James O’Keefe.

With a long-term boyfriend at another school, Jenna had little interest in James’s early attempts at seduction. Her indifference only piqued James’s interest, and Jenna was surprised two weeks into their arrangement when James showed up at her dorm room requesting an unscheduled tutoring session. Jenna reluctantly allowed James into her room, where he then continued his courtship by pushing Jenna onto her bed and ripping off her sweater top.

Jenna was no shrinking violet. Taught by her father to always fight back, she aimed a well-placed knee at James’s crotch. The knee connected, and James, now in considerable pain, fought to regain the upper hand.

Jenna, however, was not through. Furious, she grabbed the fork she was using for dinner and aimed it at James’s left eye. While she missed, the fork drew blood as it gashed her assailant’s left cheek. Unsure how to deal with a woman who hit back, James ran from Jenna’s room. Cursing and in pain, he plotted his revenge.

Thinking she had resolved the incident, Jenna didn’t report James to Creesmont administration. That was a mistake; although, it did initially appear James had backed off.

Three days later, Jenna found the windshield of her 2018 Kia Forte smashed and a typewritten note placed on the driver’s seat. The message read, “Sluts always pay in the end.” Alarmed, Jenna reported the incident to campus police along with her suspicions as to the culprit. Without evidence, those suspicions were promptly ignored.

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NineStar Press | Books2Read

Meet the Author

Joe Rielinger lives in Cleveland, Ohio, with his wife, Lisa, and their two fun-loving, though often borderline crazy golden retrievers. With a lifetime love of mystery, crime, and detective novels, Joe is currently working on a sequel to his first book, And God Laughed. When he isn’t writing, Joe likes to cook, read, and pretend he might someday learn something about training his two dogs.

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Release Blitz + Giveaway: Famine (The Four Horsemen Book #3) by Sienna Moreau

 

RELEASE BLITZ

Book Title: Famine (The Four Horsemen Book #3) 

Author and Publisher: Sienna Moreau

Cover Artist: Reese Dante

Release Date: August 25, 2022

Genre: Dark M/M Paranormal Romance

Tropes: Second chance, forbidden love, lovers to enemies to lovers, hurt/comfort

Length:  80,000 – 90,000 words 

Heat Rating: 3 - 4 flames  

It is not a standalone story. It is the third book in the series and must be read in order. 

This book does not end on a cliffhanger. It is a HFN as there is an overarching plotline that will conclude in book 4. 

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Buy Links - Available in Kindle Unlimited

Universal Link  |  Amazon US  |  Amazon UK

A fallen angel with a broken heart. The third horseman who rejected him. A love that can destroy them both.

Blurb

Punished for choosing love over faith, the Archangel of Kindness emerged from a century of confinement enshrined in darkness, a shell of his former self. Rejected by the very Being for whom he sold his soul, the last threads of his sanity were stripped away. He is now Lucifer, the King of Hell.

Famine’s choices have only ever caused suffering for those he loves. He struggles with guilt, blaming himself for what Lucifer has become. He’s certain keeping his distance is the only way he can ensure Lucifer falls no further.

But together or apart, on the same side or not, it doesn’t matter. They are forever bound, forced to endure a never-ending loop of anguish. Betrayed and surrounded by new threats, they find themselves relying on each other while battling their own demons. But soon a choice must be made: allow their love to destroy them both or embrace it before the world ends.

Famine is the third book in the Four Horsemen series. This book is not a standalone and must be read in order.

Content Warnings: Religious themes, extreme violence, gore, and others.

Arachnophobia warning: There is also a dog-sized pet spider named Paul who just wants to be loved.

This is a paranormal, second chance, lovers-to-enemies-to-lovers, MM romance filled with snark and morally questionable characters. It ends with a HFN and a mild plot cliffhanger.

Excerpt

Famine moved closer to Lucifer as though being drawn into his orbit. Lucifer wondered if it was a conscious movement or if it was instinct. It was instinct for him. Every fiber of him always wanted to be closer to Famine. He hoped—even knowing how moronic it was to hope after every hand he’d been dealt—that Famine felt the same. Lucifer needed him to. Needed him to want Lucifer with the same raw need that Lucifer wanted him. It had to be mutual. This much longing and anguish and palpable loss was too much for him to shoulder alone.

He savored any chance just to be in Famine’s presence—had summoned the Horsemen for no other purpose than just to see him again. The carnage of it was delectable, of course, but it was a pleasant bonus, not the aim. The mere minutes Lucifer spent with Famine between years apart was agony, but every waking moment was spent only in anticipation of them. Being this close to Famine and not touching was the worst torture he had ever endured.

He couldn’t be alone in this. He couldn’t. 

“These are only the start of the creatures that God has under his command,” Famine continued. “If he’s choosing to let these loose, there’s no telling what’s next.”

“No,” Lucifer said. They all turned to look at him, and he gave them a secretive closed-mouth smile. He did enjoy being the center of attention. And making them wait.

He closed the remaining distance between himself and Famine, pressing the tips of his fingers against Famine’s cheek. Famine’s light-blue eyes darkened, and the sight of them heated Lucifer’s blood and made lust curl in the depths of his stomach. He had never touched another after Famine, even after all this time. And he was starved for the kind of touch that only Famine could gift him. That Famine had been keeping from him.

“Sometimes,” he murmured, for Famine’s ears only, “I want to peel the skin from your bones, make you hurt and bleed the way you make me.”

The heat in Famine’s eyes didn’t diminish from the words. If anything, they darkened further, the pulse in his throat visible and tempting Lucifer to bite down, to taste. 

“It is never my intention to make you hurt.”

“You think intent matters?” Lucifer gripped Famine’s upper arm and tugged him closer until their breath mingled. “When I lie broken and bruised and aching for you, do you think I care about intent?” They would continue to hurt each other for eternity regardless of intent.

“Get your fucking hands off him,” War snarled.

Lucifer didn’t move, his eyes flicking to where War was pointing his sword at them. As though Lucifer was afraid of him. Lucifer feared no one. No one but Famine, who had the power to destroy him. Who already had, too many times to count.

Famine lifted a hand to placate his brother. “It’s fine.”

Uriel rolled his eyes and turned from them, surveying the area. “Tell us what you meant, Lucifer, or be on your way to do whatever it is you do when you have no purpose.”

Lucifer stroked Famine’s cheek and then moved up to lightly grasp the curls of his brown hair. He urged Famine forward and Famine followed, bending to him and resting his forehead on Lucifer’s shoulder. Lucifer’s insides wobbled, pleasure and joy singing in his veins at the instant, easy acceptance of his touch.

Lucifer breathed in deeply, his nose pressed against Famine’s hair. It smelled like blueberries, freshly mowed grass, and a hint of lemon.

About the Author

Sienna Moreau is a dark MM romance author who likes to let the darker side of life come out to play. If you’re looking for morally grey characters, snark, mayhem and steamy situations then you’re in the right place.

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Release Blitz: Beautiful People Will Ruin Your Life (Changing Majors #3) by Clancy Nacht & Thursday Euclid

 

RELEASE BLITZ

Book Title: Beautiful People Will Ruin Your Life (Changing Majors Book 3)

Author: Clancy Nacht & Thursday Euclid

Publisher: Eine Kleine Press

Cover Artist: Clancy Nacht

Release Date: August 16, 2022

Genre: Contemporary M/M Romance, new adult, Christian

Tropes: Nerd & jock, opposites attract, demisexual

Themes: Found family, reclaiming Christianity

Heat Rating: 3 flames

Length: 70 000 words/236 pages

It is a standalone story in a series. It does not end on a cliffhanger.

The other stories are not needed for this one. Each story stands alone, tied together with being part of a college series in which characters change their majors.

Buy Links - Available in Kindle Unlimited

Amazon US  |  Amazon UK

Spicy gay romance that reclaims Christianity

Blurb

Tutoring the athletic, indifferent son of the local megachurch's influential pastor promises to be a tough job for turbo-nerd Thomas Knott, but when he meets handsome, aloof Colton Frost, nothing is as it seems.

Colton's hiding a huge secret...one he can't quite hide from the perceptive and amiable Thomas.

After graduating from a gay conversion camp, Colton Frost isn't sure who he is anymore. How does he reconcile his faith with everything he feels inside? Dormmate (and long-time crush) Noah watches his every move for Colton's famous father, reporting if he steps out of line. There's no room to grow or find himself...until he meets chubby, awkward, inexplicably confident demisexual Thomas Knott.

Can bold, brainy, secular Thomas help struggling believer Colton discover his lost identity? And just as importantly to Colton, can Thomas help him heal his relationships with his parents--and with Jesus?

70k words of nerd & jock, opposites attract, demisexual, Christian romance, new adult

Content Warning: complex moral and religious situations, suicidal ideation, internalized homophobia, conversion therapy references, Christianity, mentions of underage drinking, marijuana use, references to CSA, exhibitionism

Excerpt

Thomas’s dark stare bored into Colton, as if he could see right through him. “I need your … cooperation with something, and in return, I can make sure you pass your classes.”

There was some irony that Colton was skipping class to try to put off his potential tutor who wanted to negotiate him passing the classes he skipped. “What, like take my tests for me?”

Thomas snorted delicately and raised a pointy brow with the air of a Victorian nobleman. “No, Colton, but I don’t have much of a social life. I can devote enormous resources to teaching you the material. Are you an auditory learner? Visual? Kinesthetic? I can help you break down your learning style and tailor study strategies for your needs. It’ll be the easiest learning you’ve done. I’m a boss. But I need your help too.”

How did he manage to sound so confident when he was basically confessing to being a loser? It was as if he’d embraced his own geekery and weaponized it for use against his betters.

“If I wanted to learn the material, I would.” Colton shrugged as he adjusted his backpack. “And I’d learn it faster without having to block you out.”

Everyone could use Colton’s help in one way or another. Were he the sort to lend a hand, he’d probably get nothing else done. At the very least, he had to know what it was Thomas wanted so he could tell him no and then maybe they’d be done with this. “You’re beyond help, but what do you think I could possibly do for you?”

“You gave Rose Ryan my phone number.” The way Thomas said her name, he might as well have been saying Aphrodite or Venus. “We’ve been texting. Things are… developing. But she thinks I’m you, and if I tell her who I am, she’s going to bail on me. I need this, Colton. It’s your doing anyway. Take responsibility.”

“How would I know your phone—” As the memory returned of the random girl that very irritating morning returned to him, so did the phone number.  There it went again, rattling around in his brain. A little faded, maybe. He was less certain of the numbers now than he had been, but there it was.

Colton chuckled and shook his head. Even if he tried to lie, by now his cheeks were so hot it was probably obvious that he remembered doing it. “What do you mean things are developing? You’re not being weird and telling her it’s me, are you?”

“I didn’t tell her that. You told her that. You gave her your number, but it was mine. You lied to her, and now I’m making you look good by being a decent human being to her. I mean, aside from the nudes…” Thomas smirked and gave Colton the kind of look that suggested he’d made an enormous mistake.

Colton gasped and stared at Thomas in horror. “You sent her nudes?”

He eyed Thomas up and down then shook his head. “No way she’d believe your nudes were me. No way she’d keep talking to you if she saw,” Colton gestured at Thomas. “Unless she’s an idiot.”

But God, what if the rumor got out that there were nudes of him? Even if they were obviously not him, his dad would probably hear about it.

“Who said I sent the nudes? Although, not that it’s your business, my business is very respectable. With some creative cropping, she’d be very impressed with ‘you’.” Thomas laughed from his belly, eyes crinkling at the corners. He looked like an evil cherub. Like a cherub just hellbent on fucking Colton’s life right up.

“Oh God, I don’t need to know that.” Colton held his hands up in defense as the images popped into his head. “You can’t accept nudes from her as me. I would never take advantage like that. I …”

For once, Colton was utterly speechless as he stared at Thomas in horror.

Thomas laughed again, throaty and delighted, and shook his head. “Oh man, I really got you going. I didn’t accept nudes! As if Rose Ryan would send anyone nudes. She’s the definition of perfection. She’s not going to put something like that into the world and risk her reputation. Do you know how shitty people are to women of color who express their sexuality? To any women? You probably didn’t ace Gender Studies, but you can trust me on that.”

Then Thomas sobered and narrowed his gaze on Colton appraisingly. “Look, man, you put yourself in this situation. The only way out is through. I want you to go to her volleyball game on Friday with me. Introduce me and then, I don’t know. I just…”

Suddenly Thomas’s cherubic face turned haunted, lips turning down at the corners and making his dimples stand out in dismay. “Listen, Colton, I know it doesn’t mean anything to you, but it would mean a lot to me. I just want to get my foot in the door. I need her to just look at me for once instead of right through me. I’m not who people assume I am. I’m…” Thomas sighed and his tongue flashed over his lips. “There’s more to me. I feel like Rose could see it, if I could just get an in.”

Colton realized he had clutched his chest, much like his mom did when she was hearing news that shocked her. He was flooded with relief that there were no nudes. He definitely didn’t want to be in the middle of some incel revenge porn scandal. He didn’t know that it was worse or better for women of color, but he did know how a lot of men regarded women who sent nudes.

He hadn’t thought any of it through when he gave Rose Thomas’s number. He’d just thought Thomas would correct her and everyone would go on with their lives.

This had gotten complicated.

He didn’t know Rose, but he had kind of put her in this situation. Maybe there weren’t nudes yet, but if Colton walked away from this situation and allowed it to continue, who knew what would happen?

Plus, Thomas looked so darn pathetic. There was probably no chance that one introduction was going to set them up and fix everything, but that wasn’t his problem.

Colton needed to find a way to extricate himself from this situation without finding himself in the middle of some nerd-on-nerd violence. He exhaled. “All right. Friday night I go to her game and we pretend to be… friends? I just decided I enjoy my tutor so much that I’m dragging him along to sporting events?”

“Well, yeah. She can assume I’m your wingman. You have to admit, standing next to me, you look extra good.” Thomas’s self-deprecating little smile didn’t do much to erase his pitifulness. “Just make it plain I’m a cool guy, and I’ll take it from there. You’re not interested, or you wouldn’t have given her my number, so just let her know you’re only interested in friendship, and I’ll fend for myself.”

“My wingman. I don’t need a wingman.” Colton rolled his eyes but accepted the premise. “All right, fine. For one night only, I need a wingman to get a girl who approached me.”

It didn’t matter. He just needed to wash his hands of this situation. “Just, try not to be weird, okay? I’ll let her down easy after the game and you can just … whatever.”

About the Authors 

Together, Texans and platonic life partners Thursday Euclid and Clancy Nacht write queer novels that span genres, with intense romances and a seamless shared narrative voice.

They published their first co-written novel, the m/m rock star romance Black Gold, in 2010, and now have over a decade of award-winning collaborations under their exquisite belts. Recent titles include the twisted romance His Fake Prison Daddy and the Phisher King series, in which an uptight federal agent and a bratty hacker go from enemies to lovers while solving a hate crime.

Though Elder Millennial trans man Thursday and Gen X gender outlaw Clancy live three hours apart, they are inseparable. Their friendship is a perfect example of the Grumpy/Sunshine trope, which makes Thursday very happy. Clancy thinks it’s all right.

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Book Blast + Giveaway: A Particular Friendship by Paul Van der Spiegel

 

Welcome author Paul Van der Spiegel and Gay Book Promotions as they share a book blast for contemporary romance, A Particular Friendship! Read more today and enter in the giveaway to win an eBook copy!

BOOK BLAST

Book Title: A Particular Friendship

Author: Paul Van der Spiegel

Publisher: Perceptions Press

Cover Artist: Paul Van der Speigel

Release Date: November 28, 2021

Genre: Contemporary M/M Romance

Tropes: Boy meets boy, loses boy, gets boy back again

Themes: Religion and being gay, coming out as an older man

Heat Rating: 3 flames

Length:  62 000 words/ 225 pages

It is a standalone book and does not end on a cliffhanger.

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Buy Links

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Tom Morton is a gay Catholic priest whose lover comes back into his life leading to a confrontation with a powerful bishop.

Blurb 

The story has two timelines. In the odd-numbered chapters we meet Tom, an isolated fifty-year old parish priest of St. James’ Church, a Jesuit-built church in a northern English town. Tom is an in-the-closet gay man in an increasingly intolerant Catholic Church, an organisation that defines homosexuality as inherently disordered with traditionalist elements blaming incidents of child sex abuse on an underground ‘pink mafia’. Antony, the only man Tom has ever fallen in love with, the man he abandoned thirty-years earlier, arrives in church to ask Tom to provide the Sacrament of the Sick to his dying mother. 

In the second timeline, the even numbered chapters, we see Tom from childhood through to his ordination as a priest. As Tom grows into adolescence the confusion begins: he has experiences with girls, as well as burgeoning romantic and sexual feelings for his friend, Antony. After they sleep together for the first time, as the pressure to conform to a heterosexual society reaches fever-pitch, Tom abandons his lover and flees to the Church. At Ash Burrow seminary, Tom finds acceptance, a masculine culture, and other gay men like himself.

The novel has three sections. The first section describes Tom meeting Antony again after decades apart, the rekindling of their relationship, and how history repeats itself with Tom siding with the Church against his love. In the second timeline, we see Tom’s childhood, and the repercussions of the tragic car accident that kills his father and brother.

The second section describes Toms emotional collapse and the deterioration of his mental health until he reaches the point where he is actively suicidal. In contrast, we see Tom’s teenage-self approaching life with a sense of potential. The section ends with Tom coming out to his congregation and informing them that he is HIV positive and has been for twenty years.

In the third section, Tom is sacked, and St. James church is closed and put up for sale. Tom is also dealing with the scars of a violent sexual assault suffered whilst he was a seminarian at Ash Burrow – the perpetrator, Derek Worrell, is now the Bishop of Preston. In the second timeline, we see Tom’s life at the seminary, his romances, his appreciation of the structure of the Church, and the horrific incident that changes his life forever.      

The story reaches its close with a group of gay Catholic priests standing with Tom against the bishop and the diocese. Antony proposes to Tom in a crowded railway station, and they prepare to begin their lives together.  

Excerpt

Excerpt from ‘A Particular Friendship’

Tom read the gospel according to John. 

‘When it was almost time for the Jewish Passover, Jesus went up to Jerusalem. In the temple courts, he found people selling cattle, sheep, and doves, and others sitting at tables exchanging money. So, he made a whip out of cords and drove all from the temple courts, both sheep and cattle; he scattered the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables. To those who sold doves he said, “Get these out of here! Stop turning my Father’s house into a market!”’

‘Jesus was a man of action,’ Tom told his congregation, ‘a person who would take risks. Jesus did not stop to do a risk assessment, fill the forms in, or consult a firm of speciality solicitors. Instead, he acted out of a deep conviction, the conviction that love is God, that love is central to our lives, that crowding our lives with the busyness of business leaves no room for goodness. Jesus felt fear, just like us, but he did what he knew God wanted him to do.’ 

After the blessing and dismissal, the Arundel children, Sophie and Danny, led the way from the altar to the church entrance, brother and sister dressed in matching black cassocks and white surplices. Standing on the tiled steps, Tom shook the hands of his parishioners, blessed proffered rosaries and crucifixes on chains, waved goodbye to the choir, thanked visitors for coming. 

On his way back to the sacristy, Tom found Mike Arundel waiting by the Lady Altar as his children snuffed out the candles and tidied up.

‘Hello, Mike,’ Tom said, as he strode past.

‘Father Morton,’ Mike Arundel replied. 

‘See you, Father Thomas,’ Sophie said, as she hung her cassock on a hanger in the wall cupboard and disappeared into the church.

‘How are you finding things at St. Pat’s, Danny?’ Tom asked. ‘I went there myself, a long time ago.’

‘Everyone seems really nice. Mister Cooper is strict though.’

‘I went to school with your headmaster. He was in the year above me.’

‘Yeah.’

‘It’s a big change, going to high school.’

‘Yeah,’

‘Do you see your sister around school much?’

‘Not much.’

‘What subjects do you like best?’

‘I like music and drama.’

‘What about sports, football and rugby?’

‘I don’t like football.’

‘I didn’t like it either at school. I was useless. I like watching it now though.’

‘My dad takes me to watch Bussell Athletic.’

‘That sounds fun.’

‘I’ve got to go… my dad will be waiting.’

‘Hi five, Danny.’

The boy slapped the priest’s hand and then he was gone.

‘Go and sit with your sister in the car,’ Tom heard Mike Arundel tell his son.

‘Father Morton,’ Mike Arundel said, as he stepped into the sacristy, ‘keep your hands off my boy.’

‘I beg your pardon?’ Tom said.

‘You heard me.’

There was a loud knock at the front door of the rectory and Tom, still stunned, walked from the sacristy into his home. Opening the door, he found a dishevelled woman with a supermarket carrier bag in her hands. 

‘Hello, Father Morton. I’m sorry to trouble you. I’ve had nothing to eat for two days. Can I come in?’

Tom fought the compulsion to tell the stranger to piss off, to tell her that now was not a good time. In fact, it was an incredibly bad time. He bit back his anger. Then, he did what he was supposed to do and invited the woman in.

‘Come in, please. Would you like some food?’

‘Thank you, Father. I thought you were going to tell me to fuck off there, for a minute.’

‘No, not at all. Sorry, I was having a senior moment. The kitchen is this way. Please follow me.’

As his guest took her seat at the table, Tom brought out a slice of Joan Bird’s ‘Friday fish-day’ pie from the fridge. 

‘I’ll warm this up for you. Would you like a tea or a coffee with that? Let me plug that phone in for you.’

‘Can I use your bathroom, please? I promise I won’t rob nothing.’

‘There isn’t anything worth stealing, I’m afraid, not unless you like religious books. The bathroom is upstairs, first door on the left.’

Tom warmed the pie in the microwave and put some frozen green beans into boiling water on the stove. 

‘You’re welcome to have a shower whilst you’re here, if you like. There is a lock on the door so needn’t worry about your privacy,’ he said, as his visitor returned.

‘Are you saying I smell?’

‘Gosh no. I would never say that. I was just…’

‘I’m messing with you. I’m Rosie.’

‘Hi, Rosie,’ Tom said, extending his hand, ‘I’m Tom.’

‘You’re a good priest, Father Morton. I can tell. Not like some of the others.’

‘That’s kind of you. Funnily enough, I’ve just had a rather unpleasant conversation with a parent who told me in no uncertain terms that I am not allowed to clap hands with his son.’

‘The bad apples spoil it…’ Rosie said, dissolving into a coughing fit, holding her sleeve to her mouth.

‘Are you okay?’ Tom said, concerned. ‘Can I get you anything?’

‘No, I’m fine,’ Rosie said, fishing a fistful of paper napkins from her pocket and wiping her mouth. 

‘I think your food is ready.’

Tom watched as Rosie devoured the food, finishing her plate in a matter of minutes. 

About the Author 

I am the author of the Queer Testament series (Trans Deus - about a trans woman Christ, 7 Minutes - about coming out at the point of death, Parably Not - an illuminated book in the tradition of William Blake, and A Particular Friendship- a story about a gay Catholic priest who finds himself in conflict with his sexuality and his Church). My stories are about the intersection of faith and sexuality. I am a Will Blake obsessive and I’m working on new material based on his themes of sex and gender fluidity, revelation and rebellion. I love reading (Alan Garner, Alan Moore, Susan Cooper, Ballard, and PK Dick especially). I live in Manchester, England. 

Author Links

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Review: Predestination Unknown by Tanya Chris

Luther is almost enjoying a rainy day in Salem, Massachusetts on All Hallow’s Eve when his pursuit of a light-haired, light-skinned guy in a Pilgrim costume sends him crashing back in time to Salem 1692 and the start of the Salem witchcraft trials.

Ezekiel was only going about his chores when a gay, bi-racial man from the future dropped into his life. He doesn’t know Luther is from 2017, not from Boston. He doesn’t know that it’s OK to feel about a man the way he’s coming to feel about Luther. And he has no idea that the wealthy, white men running Salem are about to hang twenty people for the trumped-up crime of witchcraft.

Ezekiel has a lot to learn, both in bed and out, and he’s going to have to get up to speed fast if he and Luther are going to prevent a Colonial American tragedy, one that has already kind of happened. Is our future predestined? Or can Luther and Ezekiel change the course of their country for the better?

Predestination Unknown is a full-length M/M time travel romance featuring a bi-racial man from 2017 who travels back in time to the Salem witchcraft trials.

Content warning: Some unsympathetic secondary characters hold and express racist views. Most of these are immediately refuted by other characters, but a few comments go uncorrected."

The premise of this story is clever-man goes back in time to an awful event in American history and convinces some myopic people to use their collective heads for more than just hat placement and averts a tragedy. The old adage don't believe everything you hear/read/see strikes again. Predestination Unknown is not your average time travel romance. Count on some cultural and potentially triggery issues including racism, bigotry, sexism, and religious extremism.

Luther is in a mirror maze with some friends on Halloween in Salem and keeps spotting a cute blonde but is bedeviled by all the mirrors until finally he happens upon a portal that lands him in 1692 just prior to the Salem witch trials. An enlightened Black man in the 17th century? Expect some off-putting terminology. Upside is the blonde is there and likes what he sees in Luther so... glass half full?

Luther tells the entire story and parts of it do require some suspension of disbelief including his finding himself in a Puritanical and culturally repressed society without indoor plumbing or electricity 325 years prior to his in stride then not turning over every conceivable pebble to find the portal again. Predestination Unknown addresses many relevant topics to varying degrees and Chris doubled down on the subtext that mirrors the current sociopolitical climate, complete with a Trump clone in Corwin who is a bigot that taps into base fears and is a polarizing voice.

Corwin uses his considerable influence to root out "evil" in Salem, through whatever means necessary, usually by invoking the "will of God" and engendering fear. There were times when the narrative was overtaken by the historical aspects and the subtext got a little heavy handed making it dry at times. On the other hand, I enjoy and believe in the concept that one person can spur change and Luther is nothing if not a change agent.

The romance between he and Ezekiel is chaste through much of the story due in large part to Ezekiel's lack of experience in all things romance/sex related, but also, his faith which has ingrained in him the notion that homosexuality is a sin that automatically precludes him from being "chosen" to enter heaven. His Puritanical ideology being paired with Luther's enlightened 21st century one made this subject matter palatable for me, particularly with regard to Christianity and homosexuality not being mutually exclusive. Luther is tenacious and logical and logic is hard to argue against when presented with confidence. Armed with his newfound knowledge Ezekiel embraces the true meaning of Christianity and he breaks the shackles of predestination that have been so oppressive. Along with Ezekiel's progressive enlightenment their romance gains traction as the story evolves with more heat and an undeniable chemistry, but this story is not especially sexy.

The epilogue is very sweet and overall that is how I would categorize their relationship. I didn't enjoy this as much as I enjoyed Aftercare but Chris brings a certain authenticity to her characters that I appreciate. I especially liked Abigail and the precocious Tom who probably turns out to be the first polyamourous Puritan or maybe libertine is a more apropos descriptor.

Obviously, this will only appeal to some, but I don't regret having read it and would recommend it to those who enjoy a romance read that's outside the lines, so to speak.

A review copy was provided.

Guest Review: Circle of Darkness (Genesis Circle #1) by Aimee Nicole Walker & Nicholas Bella

There isn’t a monster D’Angelo Kumar can’t destroy or a crisis he can’t manage until he meets Angel Bai. The insane attraction he feels toward the sexy waiter is unwelcome because D’Angelo doesn’t have room in his life for relationships. A solitary path is the only option for a man like him, but fighting his growing feelings for Angel may be the first battle he can’t win.

Angel’s abilities extend beyond memorizing the menu at D’Angelo’s favorite Italian restaurant, but he knows better than to trust anyone with his secret. When a vision reveals that D’Angelo’s life is in danger, he will risk everything to save him. The only thing scarier than monsters and demons to Angel is never knowing D’Angelo’s touch.

To say the demon hunter is reluctant to form a partnership with the psychic is putting it mildly, but D’Angelo needs every advantage he can get when the world’s very existence is threatened. As darkness looms nearer, D’Angelo and Angel’s unexplainable connection grows stronger. For a chance at happiness, the two men will need to call upon unlikely allies for an epic showdown between good and evil.

Sexy, witty, and action-packed, Circle of Darkness is the first book in the Genesis Circle paranormal romance series by Nicholas Bella and Aimee Nicole Walker. This book contains sexually explicit material and is intended for adults 18 and older.

Reviewer: NeRdyWYRM

Mixed Bag

I'm not sure where to really start here. Many of you might know that I really like new twists on religious angles and mythology. I love a little of that in my paranormals. I enjoy the imagination and creativity that can shine through when an author manages to come up with a unique spin on that kind of thing. This book has that in spades.

Is it believable? ... meh. Sort of. Is it fun and interesting? Yes. Was it unique enough to probably have me rating this book higher than the masses would? Yep. Why do I say that? Well, because there were definitely things about it that I didn't like and I can't help but think those things probably should have weighed more in the balance of things, but ... I'm a sucker—A SUCKER—for fun twists on religious themes. Don't stone me.

So what didn't I like? D'Angelo was an absolute ass, and while it did get noticeably better, as in, he wasn't actively being an ass after a while, I don't think I saw a personality transplant mentioned in there anywhere. And that's what it would have taken to fix that guy. I mean seriously, he treated his soulmate like "the little woman" for Christ's sake. Yeah, I blasphemed. And?

Cast out warriors, tattooed with Jesus' blood, still fighting the good fight. All that I can get behind except for the apparent power differential. Fighting the everyday baddies was fine. They were good with that, powerful enough for that, but throw a demon in the picture and it was like swatting flies. You'd think that would be the one subsection of badness they'd have cornered the market on, what with the content of the tattoos and all.

Also, I had some unanswered questions about what it meant for the 'mate' in the equation. Things were hinted at but not clarified. Are these guys longer-lived? Do they have regular human lifespans? Do the 'mates' take on some of their partners powers? Since they're not in the loop with the illustrious school that cornered the market on the Jesus mojo, does that mean that D'Angelo and Christian's mates—who don't exist according to the Institutes doctrines and yet of course they do—are unprotected from the evils they're now exposed to through their warrior mates?

Too many questions to make it more than a 3.5 heart (3 GR stars) read. It was entertaining. I liked the 'treasure hunting', the occultism, the religious twists, the MCs were [mostly] okay, I believed the romance for the most part, I liked the secondary characters—I want more of the demon knight—and it left me intrigued enough to read the next ones. I guess that's almost a glowing recommendation as long as you keep the niggles in mind.

There could have been a little more balance in the character- and relationship development and the dialogues were sometimes a little frenetic, sometimes a little immature, but I think it fit the character(s) where they were in life at the time. I dunno [shrugs]. It's worth reading and I liked it overall, but don't be surprised if there are things that take it down a notch or two as you're reading.

I am looking forward to more, so that says something. Maybe that I'm a big, gullible, sucker ... maybe that there's something substantially worth it prowling in the wings waiting for its moment in the series. Maybe you should see for yourself.


More reviews by NeRdyWYRM can be found on Goodreads here.
Images (when present) may be subject to copyright.
An ARC copy of this title was provided for an honest review.

Cover Reveal + Giveaway: The Preacher's Son by Lisa Henry & J.A. Rock

The girls are baaaaaaack! And they brought another cover reveal for a new novel! Don't miss your chance to win a copy by leaving a comment!

Take it away, ladies!


Hello all! We’re Lisa Henry and J.A. Rock, and it seems like only yesterday we were here to tell you about the re-release of Fall on Your Knees, our kinky Christmas novella. But now we’re back with some more news: we have a NEW novel coming out January 16th! It’s called The Preacher’s Son, and it is angsty AF, surprisingly vanilla, and is sort of a bittersweet small-town romance about making things right when you’ve completely fucked them up.

And we are ready to reveal the cover, beautifully done by Ana J. Phoenix.

Drumroll please.

Ta-da!

The Preacher’s Son will be available at all vendors on January 16th. Here’s a little more about it:


Jason Bannon is a wreck. His leg’s been blown to hell in Afghanistan, his boyfriend just left him and took the dog, and now he’s back in his hometown of Pinehurst, Washington, a place that holds nothing but wretched memories…and Nathan Tull. Nathan Tull, whose life Jason ruined. Nathan Tull, who will never believe Jason did what he did for a greater good. Nathan Tull, whose reverend father runs the gay conversion therapy camp that Jason once sought to bring down—at any cost.


Nathan Tull is trying to live a quiet life. Four years ago, when Nate was a prospective student visiting Whitworth, his world collapsed when senior Jason Bannon slept with him, filmed it, and put the footage online. A painful public outing and a crisis of faith later, Nate has finally begun to heal. Cured of the “phantoms” that plagued him for years, he now has a girlfriend, a counselor job at his dad’s camp, and the constant, loving support of his father.


But when he learns Jason is back in town, his carefully constructed identity begins to crumble. As desperate to reconcile his love for God with his attraction to men as Jason is to make sense of the damage he’s done, Nate finds himself walking a dangerous line. On one side lies the righteous life he committed himself to in the wake of his public humiliation. On the other is the sin he committed with Jason Bannon, and the phantoms that won’t let him be. But is there a path that can bridge those two worlds—where his faith and his identity as a gay man aren’t mutually exclusive?


And can he walk that path with the man who betrayed him?

Leave your name and contact (e.g. email, Twitter handle, Goodreads profile, etc.) info for a chance to win a signed paperback of The Preacher’s Son when it releases next month! Giveaway is open internationally and ends at 11:59 PM EST December 15th. Good luck!

Bios:

About Lisa Henry

Lisa Henry likes to tell stories, mostly with hot guys and happily ever afters.

Lisa lives in tropical North Queensland, Australia. She doesn’t know why, because she hates the heat, but she suspects she’s too lazy to move. She spends half her time slaving away as a government minion, and the other half plotting her escape.

She attended university at sixteen, not because she was a child prodigy or anything, but because of a mix-up between international school systems early in life. She studied history and English, neither of them very thoroughly.

She shares her house with too many cats, a dog, a green tree frog that swims in the toilet, and as many possums as can break in every night. This is not how she imagined life as a grown-up.

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About J.A. Rock

J.A. Rock is the author of over twenty LGBTQ romance and suspense novels, as well as an occasional contributor to HuffPo Queer Voices. J.A.’s books have received Lambda Literary, INDIE, and EPIC Award nominations, and 24/7 was named one of the best books of 2016 by Kirkus Reviews. J.A. lives in Chicago with an extremely judgmental dog, Professor Anne Studebaker.

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Review: When Heaven Strikes by F.E. Feeley Jr.

Can love survive heaven’s wrath?

Artist Ted Armstrong lives a solitary and eccentric life. The survivor of child abuse disguised as religion, Ted has cut himself off from the world.

Then Ted meets Anderson Taylor, and it’s like being struck by lightning.

Anderson is a cardiac surgeon whose passion for his work has consumed him. He fears he’ll never find a partner—until he sets eyes on Ted. It’s happening fast, but both men know what they feel is right.

Confronted with an angry preacher, a scandal, and an act of God that threatens to destroy everything, their relationship will face its first true test.

This story is told in two parts. Part 1 is a dual POV between Anderson and Ted. Ted is an artist who is still healing the damage done to him by his fundamentalist Christian family. He is reclusive, and doesn’t want to put himself out there to be hurt by anyone. The most social he gets is when he does gallery showings to sell his art.

Anderson is a surgeon, and the story starts off with him as a child during a beach trip and his family’s reaction to him, while a storm blows through. It sets the tone of something dark and broody, and I was expecting something much more angsty than it actually was, based on that prologue.

Part 1 is the set up of Ted and Anderson’s meeting, and subsequent relationship. I enjoyed reading about how they met, and getting to know them. There is just enough collective backstory to understand why they are the way they are, and their reservations about connecting on an intimate level.

Part 2 introduces a fundamentalist preacher and his family. They appear briefly in the first part as door knockers, and this is about how their lives intertwine with Ted and Anderson at a later date.

This flip to entirely new character POV was somewhat confusing, but I wouldn’t call it bad. It set up the rest of the plot, and the overall message and resolution.

There were some things I found over the top. There is violence in this story, so reader beware. There is also a lot of homophobia from secondary characters. There is a tangled web to unravel and some mental illness thrown in for extra points. I’d say that the angst level turned up to the nth degree with a storm blowing in that mirrors the emotional storm that is plaguing the preacher and his wife and the lies they have lived with for most of their married life.

Being Atheist makes me view these types of stories a little differently than I imagine a Christian reader would see things. I appreciate faith based stories intellectually, but I don’t understand them the way I think I am meant to. I did enjoy the way this separated the fundamentalists from other Christian denominations, and that this was not a rejection of Christianity overall. God is very much present in this story, and it created an intellectual debate within my mind about what happens to create strictly fundamental cult like groups and how it is justified when hatred seems to be the driving force that fuels it. I thought that message came across strongly in this story.

Some minor editing errors that I was unable to overlook, but otherwise the writing was strong. This wasn’t hard to read, and only a small part dragged for me toward the end of the story.

I am certainly interested in this author’s other work and will be looking out for anything in the future.

Recommended for readers who enjoy religion in their stories, and those who are looking for something different in their MM romance.

I received a review copy from the author for an honest opinion