Release Blitz + Giveaway: Seaspray by Rick R. Reed

 

Title: Seaspray

Author: Rick R. Reed

Publisher: NineStar Press

Release Date: 07/12/2022

Heat Level: 2 - Fade to Black Sex

Pairing: Male/Male

Length: 52200

Genre: Paranormal, LGBTQIA+, amnesia, coming of age, virgins, magical realism, second chances, family drama

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Description

Winslow Birkel is a sweet young man in his first relationship. But his boyfriend, the charming and fiery Chad Loveless, has become increasingly abusive to the point where Winslow fears for his life.

Everything changes in a single night when Winslow, fleeing yet another epic fight, goes out to a local bar and finds a sympathetic ear in a new friend, Darryn Maxwell. But when he comes home, Chad’s waiting. He’s got it in for Winslow, whom he wrongly accuses of being unfaithful.

The stormy night sends Winslow off on a journey to escape. The last thing he recalls is skidding off the road and into the river. When he awakens, he’s mysteriously in the charming seaside town of Seaspray, where people are warm and welcoming, yet their appearances and disappearances are all too inexplicable.

Back home, Darryn wonders what’s happened to the new guy he met during his first outing to the local gay bar, the Q. Darryn knows Winslow’s been abused, but he also feels he’s quickly fallen in love with Winslow.

Can Winslow and Darryn decipher their respective mysteries? Is it possible for them to reunite? Is Chad still lurking and plotting to make sure Winslow never loves anyone else? The answers to these questions await you in Seaspray, where you may, or may not, ever leave.

Excerpt

Seaspray
Rick R. Reed © 2022
All Rights Reserved

Winslow

I opened my eyes to a world of blue and green. An eel, long with zebra stripes, swam by, undulating. A school of goldfish with Margaret Keane eyes and puckered lips circled, putting me in the eye of a surreal hurricane. A flick of their tails and they swam off as one.

The bubbles floated up, pouring from my mouth and nostrils.

My lungs weren’t tight. There was no desperate need to breathe, no panic. Mentally, I went back and forth—remain underwater, watching the play of light and shadow and the undulating flora in its rainbow of neon colors, or kick and rise to the surface.

But what was above, beyond the water, was a mystery.

The threat of certain death caused me to ascend toward the light shimmering on the water’s surface.

I broke through, sucking sweet, cold air into my lungs. I smiled, treading water.

I was not afraid.

For the first time in so long—I. Was. Not. Afraid.

I swirled in the gentle waves, which were as warm as a comforting bath, despite the chill in the air. White birds, gulls perhaps, pinwheeled above me in a leaden sky, the color of pewter. All across the water’s surface, strands of mist lay. The mist extended toward a rocky shoreline, dotted here and there with driftwood.

Cliffs rose up, chalky white at the edge of the beach. At the top, stands of pine towered over the sea, sentinels. Tree-covered hills, in shades of deep emerald, reached to touch the leaden sky. The top ones were shrouded in mist.

Where was I?

I stretched out in the water, part of me unwilling to leave, but following an instinct for self-preservation, I swam slowly to the shore. It felt like I was far from it, maybe even by as much as a mile, yet I covered the distance in mere minutes.

I pulled myself onto the beach, breathing harder but not gasping, and lay among the pebbles. Oddly, it was as comfortable as my grandma’s feather bed once was.

I remained there for a while, staring up at the sky, where the charcoal clouds were beginning to be burned away by the sun. As the gray vanished, it was replaced with patches of blue.

I could lie here all day, resting.

And then I tensed. A memory floated into consciousness, making me recall a horrible night. When was it? Paradoxically, the memory could have been years or only minutes ago.

My name is Winslow Birkel, and this is one of the things memory is forcing me to confront:

»

I sank into the driver’s seat of my beat-up Nissan Versa. At the little riverfront park, I marked the slow progress of a river barge cutting through the dark water. Its lights, reflected on the water’s shifting black surface, were the picture of loneliness.

I could identify with loneliness. Separation. Isolation. These days, they were my only companions.

I also could identify with fanciful notions and, in my mind’s eye, realized how the reflections of the barge’s lights on the dark water, golden, appeared to be traveling upward. If I looked at them just the right way, I could visualize them as shimmering fountains contrasted against a black background. How I longed to enter a world of golden fountains casting off the darkness.

Even though now, on this beach, I felt totally free of pain as though someone had dosed me with morphine, the memory of pain in my ribs was there. I imagined the intensity of the hurt when I dared to draw in a deep breath.

Like a doctor in a film, I visualized the bruise on my lower back above where my kidneys were. I could still feel the dull, unrelenting throb. The red marks in the shape of fists darkened to purple, a malevolent blooming.

Yet even with the bursts of nauseating pain, what hurt the most wasn’t physical.

I knew I’d fled the house I’d once occupied—I’d never call it a home because home meant warmth, security, stability, and most of all, safety.

I’d dashed out, looking over my shoulder at a menacing figure standing in the open front doorway of our house, fists clenched. Chad Loveless, my partner—I’d never call him my beloved, or lover, or even friend, not ever again—glared.

What had it been this time? Oh yeah, I’d broken his favorite coffee mug, the one with a German shepherd cartoon figure on a black background, as I was washing dishes. The mug had been slippery in my sudsy hands, and it had dropped. I’d gasped as it shattered on the linoleum kitchen floor, the dread and terror way out of proportion, rising immediately.

And so did Chad. He hurried into the kitchen from his recliner in the front room and forced me to the floor by the back of my neck.

The most menacing thing about this man I’d thrown my lot in with (love no longer entered the equation) was—and this would be surprising to an outsider—his smile. The smile never wavered, not when Chad was berating me for some real or imagined fault, nor when a fist connected with a soft spot on my body—rarely my face—it was our little secret, hidden by the baggy jeans and sweatshirts I favored.

He’d smile and smile and smile, as though what he was delivering was not pain and casual cruelty, but joy.

Joy had not had a place in our house for such a long time. Back then I didn’t think I’d know if I’d recognize the emotion if it turned up at the front door wearing a ribbon.

Purchase

NineStar Press | Books2Read

Meet the Author

Rick R. Reed is an award-winning and bestselling author of more than fifty works of published fiction. He is a Lambda Literary Award finalist. Entertainment Weekly has described his work as “heartrending and sensitive.” Lambda Literary has called him: “A writer that doesn’t disappoint…” Find him at www.rickrreedreality.blogspot.com. Rick lives in Palm Springs, CA, with his husband, Bruce, and their fierce Chihuahua/Shiba Inu mix, Kodi.

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Review: Innocence & Carnality by J. Alan Veerkamp

Innocence is his only currency.

The gilded cage of propriety where Nathan grew up as a member of the Deilian aristocracy became a true prison when, at fifteen, his homosexuality came to light and created a terrible scandal. His parents see only one way to preserve their reputation amongst the other noble families: fit Nathan with a chastity belt to increase his value to a potential partner and marry him off as soon as possible.

The recipient of that prize is Lord Rother Marsh Delaga III. After a hasty wedding, Rother whisks Nathan away to the strange and seductive land of Marisol, where Nathan will begin a new life, free to explore the pleasures of the marriage bed, though his life is still not his own.

But Rother’s Delaga House is a place of secrets, dangers, and depravity Nathan can scarcely comprehend. Where friends are few and peril waits around every corner, Nathan must employ all the manipulation he learned from high society, along with his talent for clockwork. Most of all, Nathan must adapt, compromise to survive, and cast off the preconceptions of his homeland.

Because only he can orchestrate his freedom, and it’ll come at a cost.

What. A. Delight!

I read the blurb so long ago that I forgot the blurb and that actually turned out to be a great thing. Going in blind and letting Veerkamp take you on the journey of Nathan from innocent ingenue to fierce force to be reckoned with is the way to go, thus I'm going to keep this SUPER short.

The entire story is told from Nathan's perspective and I have to be honest, initially I underestimated him. I thought he was vapid milquetoast. I've never been more thrilled to be wrong. He may have been married off as a 'trophy wife' but he is a quick study and all that time spent watching his trophy wife of a mother equipped him with a few tricks up his sleeve.

Innocence & Carnality is story driven with several turns in the narrative that surprised me and the way the narrative came together at the end was nothing short of inspired. (Trigger warning for abuse & violence.) However, several of the characters popped off the page as well. Strong female characters are always a win with me and Veerkamp delivered more than one all set in a historical steampunkish AU setting. If you're averse to steampunk, it's not overly steampunky.

I don't want to give away the romance but it was divine. I had to wait for it to come together but it was worth the wait. Soooooo worth it. Directly into my wheelhouse, it went.

As a shameless plea to the author,  I would be overjoyed were there to be another book in this universe.

Highly recommended!

A copy was provided in exchange for an honest review.

Review: Better Place (Rainbow Place #3) by Jay Northcote

Joe deserves better. Meeting Dylan helps him see that.

After a recent redundancy, Joe takes a few months off to try and make it as a writer. His partner, Harry, is less than supportive but Joe is used to that after ten years together, just like he’s used to Harry’s controlling nature and his drinking habit.

Dylan, a server at Rainbow Place, is fascinated by Joe as he sits in the café and works on his laptop. His attempts to flirt are met with awkwardness at first, but gradually Joe opens up. Dylan is disappointed when he learns Joe isn’t single. As their friendship develops he begins to worry about the nature of Joe’s relationship, especially when he witnesses Harry’s behaviour in person. Abuse isn’t always physical, and Dylan knows that from experience. His concern helps Joe see his relationship for what it is, and gives him the courage to end things with Harry.

Free to act on their mutual attraction, Joe and Dylan dive headlong into something that becomes serious fast. Joe revels in the passion and intimacy he’s been missing out on for so long, but Dylan is worried that Joe is on the rebound. He puts on the brakes, knowing that they need to slow down to make this last. For this new relationship to work, Joe needs to show Dylan that he’s ready to move on from the past.

Although this book is part of a series, it can be read as a standalone and has a satisfying happy ending.

I had to think about my rating for ‘Better Place’ for a bit. Some parts I liked, but ultimately I didn’t really connect to this book at all.

Dylan’s job at the Rainbow Place café is made even better by the quiet writer who becomes a regular. The server never misses an opportunity to awkwardly flirt with his favourite customer.

The customer in question, Joe, thinks Dylan’s sweet. But he’s focused on his writing. And, more importantly, Joe’s already taken.

From the beginning of the book, readers know what the score is: Joe’s partner Harry dictates Joe’s life. What Joe does, where Joe goes, how long Joe spends out of the house.

Everything revolves around douchebag Harry.

It may not be physical violence, but it’s an abusive toxic relationship just the same.

But pretty soon, the only thing Joe looks forward to are his short forays to Rainbow Place - where Dylan is.

Because while Joe’s clear to Dylan that nothing can happen between them, that doesn’t mean he doesn’t appreciate the friendship.

The two men find it easy to connect. Both have their demons, but with each other it’s only smiles and sweet moments.

And underneath it all, there’s a longing for something more.

This is where things didn’t really pan out for me - the “something more.” Because while we’re told that Joe and Dylan are falling madly for each other, the romance was so muted that I never really got a feel for it.

And another big issue was that there’s an ever-present third party - Harry. Though Joe breaks up with Harry about halfway through, Harry’s in the picture right until the end.

Harry’s constant presence in the story was distracting and depressing.The book was not so much about Joe and Dylan’s relationship, as it was about Joe escaping Harry.

By the end, I was pretty ambivalent. I was glad to see Dylan and Joe get their happy ending, but I’d already tuned out well before it.

Though book #3 wasn’t my favourite, I’d still recommend this series if you’re looking for romances that overcome the odds!

A copy was provided in exchange for an honest review.

Review: Too Close by R. Phoenix

Skylar Orion's life has been complicated ever since his mother abandoned him and his sister Evie. Making ends meet seemed impossible until Tate Chandler took them in -- his knight in shining armor who promised to make life about more than just surviving. But Tate is not the man he seemed to be, and even his whispered I love yous and generous gifts do little to soothe the pain he causes. Knowing he can't give his sister all that she deserves without Tate, Skylar stays with him, relying on bad puns and a worse sense of humor to keep up the charade.

For his sister he will do anything, even if that means acting the responsible adult and going back to his old high school to meet Dexter Weston, the hot math teacher who can make even algebra interesting. Sparks fly between the two of them, but with his dependence on Tate, Skylar isn't free to follow his heart. He wants what is best for Evie, but can he pass up the chance to find love that heals instead of harms?

Warning: Graphic Domestic Abuse and Violence.

This shouldn’t have been a book I could read until the end. It made me raw and was a bit too real for me and yet, I made it.

I’ll start off with letting you know, this book has abuse in it, both mental and on page physical abuse so if that could be a trigger for you, tread with caution.

This was such an emotional read and yet through all the angst, there was the underlined hope that kept me going.

Skylar Orion is doing what he has to do so that he can survive and take care of his younger sister Evie. At the young age of 18, Tate has gone through the death of one parent and the abandonment of another all while trying to make sure he and his sister aren’t separated. When he gets desperate, he decides to sell himself to make ends meet and falls into the arms and under the control of Tate Chandler. Tate is Skylar’s first and only customer as a prostitute and when Skylar gets robbed for having enough to live on, Tate offers Skylar to move in with him and Skylar counter offers with “not without my sister.” This leads us to the present day, of Skylar and Evie living with Tate and Tate controlling everything they do and taking anything and everything out on Skylar with the visible marks of his handy work on Skylar’s body as proof.

When Skylar receives a notice to meet with Evie’s math teacher to discuss her failing grade, he has an awkward yet adorable meet cute with Dexter Weston. Goodness. From the first meeting of these men you feel the chemistry and really want the bad math puns to continue so they can just flirt for hours. But when Skylar gets home and we officially meet Tate, you feel the anxiety, the stress and the fear that Skylar lives with on a daily basis. Through his POV we know that everything he does is for Evie; putting up with the abuse from Tate so that they have a place to live and food to eat until she graduates high school and we also know that it’s destroying Skylar.

I am so thankful that we get the POV of Dexter as well because I wanted to know how he would react to the situation. How he would find out or figure out what was happening at home with Skylar and Evie and how he would handle the attraction to a much younger man. And you know what? Dexter is a damn saint who adores ducks, quails and rabbits. He is amazing and there was never a time where his feelings felt inappropriate or pervy, they were just honest and amazing.

This book, I read it so damn fast because I was on edge with the whole situation. Tate is so controlling and manipulative and yet I am glad the author took care and respect to lay out the reasons and emotions of why Skylar was staying. Looking at abuse from the outside seems so simple and people are quick to judge when the abused doesn’t leave the abuser but love isn’t simple. It’s not an excuse but people stay for love, they endure because of love and sometimes, they love themselves enough to actually leave the one that hurts them.

With Skylar, he knows the situation is bad and he knows that what Tate does is wrong yet the moments of peace, when Skylar is “being good” and not being abused, he cherishes them and holds on for dear life. If he can forget that Tate hits, hates and belittles the holy hell out of Skylar and just remember the times Tate has bought Skylar‘s affection and not just his body, he can make it until Evie graduates. But the level of abuse worsens and when Skylar starts to see what a good man does and can do with the time spent with Dexter at Evie’s tutoring sessions, he begins to wonder how much more he can stand before it’s too late.

Wow. This book was intense. There were actual moments where I gasped and was so damn afraid of what would happen next. I felt the fear every time Skylar did and I felt his confusion, his uncertainty of a possible future away from Tate.

I truly adored Dexter. He was so patient and twisted with his feelings for Skylar. He was amazing every time they were together and his reaching out to Skylar and Evie with an offer of help. It broke my heart to see him so helpless when it came to Skylar and how much he wanted him to know he deserved better and not just in love but in life.

Wow.

I won’t go into much more but though this was heavy and intense, I did really like it and loved the romance. It’s hard with books that deal with real life issues such as abuse to be understanding with the person who doesn’t leave the abuser; they are judged and condemned them for being weak or even stupid to stay. I will say it again, the author does a respectful job of portraying Skylar as yes a victim, but also as someone who has the power to control his own future if he reaches out for support. They say staying is the easy part and leaving is hard but actually, they both are a terrifying struggle of human perseverance.

Too Close was a gripping and emotional tale of doing what one needs to for survival to find out, surviving doesn’t have to mean carrying the burden alone. It included a sweet romance between two men who truly fit into one another’s life and find the new beginnings can bloom when least expected.

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Review: For Never and Always by Ana J. Phoenix

Seth finds himself alone at an abandoned train station, with no idea what happened, or how he got there. He boards a train, only to discover it’s a special express transporting the recently deceased to their final destination. The conductor tells him he’s having a near-death experience. Seth wonders if it has something to do with his violent boyfriend, but that doesn't matter. All that matters is getting the hell off the train before he actually dies. But when he spots his best friend and secret crush among the traveling dead, the urge to leave fades...

This story broke me and put me back together in the best of ways, it’s the definition of bittersweet and no HEA has ever been more H in the EA. I’m not much of a crier with books and movies. I generally will only get blubbery with animal stories and ridiculous random shit in a Hallmark commercial. When I do though, I start and have trouble stopping and it’s u-g-l-y. That’s probably why I lock down my cold black heart, no one needs to see the aftermath of my ugly crys. My last couple of crying books, The Art of Racing in the Rain and The Story of Edgar Sawtelle, were both dog books, they still hurt my heart and I’m still mad at the authors for making me ugly cry. This book was different though, I blubbered, but it wasn’t nearly as vile as my past experiences have been. Even though the book had a foreboding and moody feel throughout, it never felt hopeless. And isn’t hope everything?

Seth and Carter were best friends since childhood but grew apart as they grew older. Carter identified as hetero, had a girlfriend that he loved and a big secret that he kept from Seth. Seth moved in with a boyfriend who controlled him, abused him and cut him off from everyone he loved. Needless to say, there were unresolved feelings all around and if it weren’t for fate, kismet, the stars aligning, the flow of heavenly love or pure coincidence, the two end up on a train headed for their ultimate destinies. This. Was. Awesome. The author did an amazing job of building the story around the journey on the train and all the meaning of the train cars and stops was brilliant. She tied the evolution of their memories to everything around the train seamlessly, I loved it.

Both Seth and Carter were such amazing characters. They were flawed and honest and this story needed that because anything else wouldn’t have felt like a fit to the story and would have cheapened the setting and the aura the author created. There had to be a bit of pain with all the realizations these two were going through. They weren’t just confessing to one another the bits of their lives the other had missed, but they were also figuring out their own eternities and how to resolve and accept them. It sounds really heavy and it was. But, it didn’t read overwhelmingly depressing and it really could have without all the aspects the author included. The author balanced the realizations with the reconnection of Seth and Carter perfectly so while they were owning some tough truths, they also had the appreciation of each other again. And that’s where the hope was present throughout.

The ending was wonderful and awful and perfect and hurt all at the same time. It had to end the way it did and good on the author for not caving and make it too easy or too perfect. It followed the logic of the world the author built, respecting the rules that had to be followed. The ending also allowed the characters’ to own their inner strength along with all the regrets and confusion they had when they boarded the train. It was a cleansing journey, which yeah, I know sounds corny, but it really was.
The secondary characters added a lot to the story as well and reading about Seth and Carter helping them also gave them perspective on themselves.

This really unique and bittersweet read hit me hard in the feels and I can’t recommend it enough. It was refreshing to read something out of the ordinary that still gave me all the warm fuzzies that I love from this genre. Seth and Carter are going to be with me forever and always and I know I’ll be comfort reading this story again.

For more information on Never and Always, head over to Goodreads.

**a copy of this story was provided for an honest review**

Review: The Grand Ballast by J.A. Rock

In a future where live sex shows abound to keep a jaded population entertained, dancer Bode Martin falls for the brilliant and unstable Kilroy Ballast, who molds Bode into the star attraction of his erotic circus, the Grand Ballast. Drugged beyond any real feeling, Bode trades freedom and his once considerable pride for an illusion of tenderness—until he inadvertently rescues a young man from a rival show, and together they flee to an eccentric town in the west where love still means something.

Valen’s not an easy man to know, and Bode shed his romantic notions under Kilroy’s brutal employ. Yet their growing bond becomes a strange and dangerous salvation as they attempt to overthrow the shadows of their pasts and wade together through a world of regret, uncertainty, beauty, and terror.

But Kilroy won't let Bode go so easily. Long ago, Bode was responsible for the loss of something Kilroy held dear, and he still owes Kilroy a debt. As the three men battle toward a tangled destiny, Bode must decide if his love for Valen is worth fighting for—or if he was and always will be a pawn in the story Kilroy Ballast will never stop telling.


WARNING: Contains violence and noncon. Not a genre romance. 

Let me just expound on that last line of the description. No, it's not a "romance" but it is about love and all its permutations. What does it look like? Feel like? Do we know it when we have it? What do we do with it? Where does it go when it's gone? 

No, it's not a romance but it is brutally romantic in its honesty about the nebulousness of love and Bode's ironic journey to discover what it means to him.

The non-con and violence warnings... I really want to say just disregard them because life can be a fucked up mess and we live through those atrocities daily. If we can live through a man being burned alive for some misbegotten religious fervency then this book is a walk in the park, comparatively speaking. Yes, those elements are present, but most are not explicit or drawn out.

But, I will caution those prone to depression and/or suicide please exercise caution. This book is very gritty and emotional while being both weighty and transcendent.

It made me ugly cry. If you know me, you know how significant that statement is. I would encourage all those considering this to know your limitations and read other reviews.

People had grown bored with everything but violence and sex.

If I had to choose one word to describe my reading experience it would be discomfiting. 

I was intensely, severely discomfited virtually from word one. It wasn't the events themselves per se that made me so uneasy, but the social commentary and the possibility that this future world J.A. has envisioned could actually come to be. I hope I'm long, long gone if it ever does, but if not, then please PLEASE let me be part of Harkville. Because crossdressing.

The Grand Ballast is a stirring and sometimes surreal fun-house that left me wrung out emotionally and raw. The Grand Ballast is a traveling X-show in a futuristic vision of America set in the "Age of Ennui" after we've lost all interest in social media and visionary ideas. We've become indifferent toward... everything. Brains reduced to only the Id component of the psyche. People are only interested in being shocked by debasing and/or acrobatic sex between any number of people all while they eat their hot dogs and popcorn. If one of those stars is beaten during the show with "the ring stick" for resisting or lacking enthusiasm, so much the better.

The dichotomy of it all was what I found most disturbing . The image of innumerable bored drones sitting in a big top tent eating cotton candy while Bode is gang banged with two or more cocks stuffed into his orifices and cheering only when something is outrageous enough to garner their interest is beyond absurd. When he doesn't "perform" they've no qualms about throwing their carnival food at him while he's cuffed and helpless on a cross, but they get upset when Kilroy backhands him after he saves Valen? Completely nonsensical.

That people could become so devoid of humanity, so disinterested in life, that the concept of compassion could become so warped sickened me. The prose that was used to illustrate this indifference is in equal measures amazing and horrifying with Bode being the shining star even at the darkest times. He somehow manages to retain a purity, an innocence that resonated with me. As much as he believes himself to be broken and tainted he really is guileless.

Bode is a complex character. I'm not sure I've ever read one more complex than him. In the simplest terms, he is a dancer who wants to change the world. He wants to be seen, really seen. He wants to distance himself from his parents and their dull monotony. His dreams are bigger, greater. He is special and he's going to break the mold. But what he wants most of all is someone to love him, and for that person to encompass all of his deepest desires. 

It can't be love
For there is no true love
You said the union forever
You said the union forever
You cried the union forever
But that was untrue
Cause it can't be love
For there is no true love

~The White Stripes

He wants it so badly he creates it with smoke and mirrors and clings to it even though it's a mirage. Kilroy Ballast is that mirage and someone I'd dearly love to case study. He's another complex character. He's the manipulative, calculating, brilliant sociopathic ring leader of The Grand Ballast and Bode's lover. Their relationship is abusive and obsessive and told through Bode's flashbacks. It was easily the most difficult aspect of this book for me personally.

I found myself pleading with Bode not to go back to him, to get as far away from him as possible. Just run and don't look back! The notion that Bode is subjected to all this pain and torment because he made one mistake, the mistake of loving a monster who simply isn't capable of fulfilling his needs? Bode who initially couldn't even bring himself to curse? Bode who is a dreamer? Bode who personifies innocence? Bode who subjects himself to the whims of a madman in some misguided attempt at restitution for a crime he didn't commit? 

The injustice of it gutted me. 

And yet, oddly, I felt sorry for Kilroy more than anything else. He completely deserves what he ultimately gets. He had the devotion, loyalty and love of someone so pure and couldn't recognize it for the gift it was and didn't know what to do with it. So he tried to crush it instead and that made me pity him. But out of those ashes Bode rose to try again with Valen.

Valen, The Boy of the Water, who's no boy at all but a man who's so confused, brainwashed, tired and disillusioned with life that he's volunteered to be the star of a snuff act in another X-show when he and Bode first meet. Their relationship is laborious which is what ultimately makes it so sturdy. They do not pull punches with one another. They've both lost something of themselves, both struggle with PTSD, but neither have completely lost hope. They enrich one another. They compromise. They have an "ordinary magic" that brought me to ugly tears.

Maybe we are all here for the simplest reasons.

The irony of Bode's journey given its origins was unquestionably my favorite part and exquisitely executed by J.A.. The world building is a true melting pot that is rich and vibrant. The secondary characters are distinctive, bizarre and compelling. The Grand Ballast is an artistic achievement that supersedes its genre. If I could give this all the stars and hearts and flowers, I would. Because it was that good. I was impressed by Take the Long Way Home, but The Grand Ballast exceeded my expectations in every way. Hopefully, she'll be recognized for this achievement in a more tangible way than my gushing, but I do want to thank you, J.A., for writing this.

A review copy was provided by the author in exchange for an honest review.

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