Tag Team Review: Boy Shattered by Eli Easton

Brian
You’ll make it out of here, Brian. I swear.
I had everything—school quarterback, popular with girls, and my dad was proud of me. I told myself it didn’t matter no one knew the real me. And then I nearly died. Landon saved my life. He’s the bravest guy I know. He came out a few years ago, proud and fierce, and he ran into gunfire to help others. Me, I’m a mess. Can’t even stand to be in a room with the curtains open. But here’s the thing about losing it all: You get a chance to start over and be someone new. Only how can I move on when the two shooters who attacked our school were never caught? And why do I feel like I’m still in the crosshairs?

Landon
Will you kiss me?
When I came across Brian Marshall,the hottest guy in school, dying on the cafeteria floor, I did what anyone would do. I tried to save him. His request surprised me, but I figured he needed comfort, so I kissed him on the forehead. When he survived and came back to school, he was broken in body and mind. He still needed me, and soon we were unlikely besties. But what I saw at school that day woke me up. I want to demand action on gun control, lead protests, raise my fist. I’ll tear the world down if I have to. And if I can get the man of my dreams and save the world at the same time? I’ll take it. Only I didn’t understand that the horror at Jefferson Waller High wasn’t over.

4.125 average

Chelsea - 5 Hearts

Wow... This book left a mark! I couldn't stop thinking about it for days afterwards, the complete immersion into this horrific event and Brian's emotions, both grieving and healing was...for me…. Intense. Obviously if you have an experience with school shootings proceed with so much caution. The fear in those moments pour of the page. But before you give up on this book as being to heavy, it's predominantly about healing, learning to live life to its fullest and falling in love.

I am lucky enough to live in Australia where I've always known gun control and we have zero school shootings. So reading this was so foreign yet so incredibly real, as I know how often this occurs in other countries.

This story starts like that happy scene before a horror movie where you know this happy go lucky family is about to get it, the tragedy is just looming around the corner.

I remember the last normal day of school so perfectly. It’s like it happened yesterday. Like it’s still happening somewhere, in another place where we were all innocent forever. Before the blood. Before I became afraid to open my own damn curtains.

The actual shooting was described in so much more detail than I was expecting, which I really appreciated as we could go on Brian and Landon's healing journeys together.

My gaze skimmed over kids huddling behind tables.

It was like watching a car wreck in slow-mo. A breath later the tat-tat-tat-tat-tat was there, loud and horrible. I couldn’t see the hallway or the shooter. I didn’t want to look, only pressed myself back against the wall as hard as I could. But I saw what the guns did.

Ok let's move on past the horror to the healing which is about 70% of this book. Brian was severely injured and while not life debilitating it was most definitely life threatening. He struggled a lot with ongoing fear of public places, survivor's guilt, paranoia that the shooters were coming for him and his physical wounds but Landon was there, a surprising and much needed rock for him.

These two formed a connection due to the extreme circumstances (but had 'noticed’ each other before), their friendship grew and everything turned into something that felt more necessary and stronger than love.

Sometimes, lying in bed with him in the afternoons, looking into each other’s eyes, it felt like we were two people alone on a life raft in the middle of the ocean. Only our ocean was grief— grief and pain and anger and hopelessness. A damn turbulent sea. And maybe that’s why we clung so hard.

I loved it!!! There's a lot more to this book including coming out, family issues and the mystery behind the shooter. It's pretty well jammed packed but Landon and Brian together made everything easier to read!

All the desperate need I had for him to be okay, the pleasure and love I wished for him then and still. It was all right there waiting for me, waiting for him. 

For Brian Marshall. 

I gave him everything I had inside me to give....

Everyone should read this book!!!!


Lost in a Book - 3.25 Hearts

Wow.

I think I need a minute month to process. I tip toed into this book. The subject matter is hard and hits pretty close to home. So yeah, hesitant AF is an understatement.

Before I start discussing the book, I want to provide insight on the rating. My rating has nothing to do with the quality of the writing. It has a lot to do with personal preferences and an immense dislike for politics. If I had access to the foreword prior to requesting the ARC I would have known that politics play a huge role in not only the main crisis, but also in the lives of one of the MCs. Politics make me ragey and I get enough of it in RL that I can't fully enjoy my escape with books when it's there too. Politics definitely have a place in this book and I knew going in that there would be some politics around gun control but this went beyond that and anything MAGA makes me want to poke my eyes out. It’s more of a personal preference and not a knock on the content.

My first reaction when I saw that Eli went there...

You know… the place that has so much sadness, anger, hopelessness, and bloodshed. These tragedies have brilliant students rising to fight for their lives when their fallen classmates can’t. The shooting in the story happens within the first few chapters with the POVs switching between Brian and Landon. We get a window into the soul crushing panic each boy feels as they try to make a decision on which hiding place will hopefully keep them alive and then the direct aftermath when they realize what monsters are capable of.

Landon (out and proud senior) closely resembles the brave students we see on the news fighting for gun control. Brian (closeted junior and quarterback) has many hurdles beyond the shooting that make day to day life a struggle, especially his asshole dad. However, he becomes obsessed with finding out who was responsible for the shooting. Both boys find comfort in each other while the storm rages around them. The relationship isn’t the main focus, has low heat/off page interactions, and thankfully included very minor angst on their way to a HEA. The story dynamic worked with the tragedy taking center stage.

This is a very angsty read. When the administrator came over the speaker to announce an active shooter, it took me back to my days in the classroom when we had non-drill “code reds.” I felt like I was right back in my classroom trying to find places for my students to hide. I like angsty stories but I don’t think this is a book written for enjoyment?.?. IMO it’s more of a thought provoking experience on a topic that has been hitting the nightly news on the regular. It’s hard to digest at some points but Easton does a commendable job touching on this topic. Boy Shattered really drives home that the tragedy isn’t over when the students are buried and the school reopens.

Besides the politics not working for me, the wrap up of all the storylines is a little too pretty. There was so much build up and then it’s all solved quickly with the nitty gritty details happening off page. Trigger Warnings: School shooting, death, PTSD, and homophobia If you like angst and politics don’t send you running for the hills, this may be your cuppa. Recommended.

Review copies were provided in exchange for honest reviews.

Blog Tour: In the Desert by Elliot Joyce

Welcome Elliot Joyce! He's making his clubhouse debut in support of his new novella "In the Desert". Find out more about this romance that's part of the States of Love house line at Dreamspinner Press!

Hello, I’m Elliot Joyce and I’m the author of In The Desert, a novella about two young men who find themselves struggling with all the hard parts of life: who are they? Where do they fit into the world? And what’s in their future? And is their crush mutual or are they just fooling themselves? (Spoiler: The crush is most definitely mutual.)

But I could tell you about how Wren is worried that Felipe won’t like him back because Felipe is, as far as anyone knows, a good straight Catholic boy. Or I could tell you about how Felipe is pretty sure he’s as straight as an arrow. I could tell you about how their friends think these two need to get their heads checked, or how arrows actually bend when you fire them from a bow.

Except it’s far more fun to show you a little bit of what’s going on. Enjoy this excerpt from In The Desert and be sure to check it out.

Excerpt

“Are you two a thing?” Travis asked, gesturing to where Felipe was gathering marshmallows.

If Wren had been drinking water, he would have done a spit take. “God, no. Do you—he’s straight! And he’s Catholic! And I’m very much not interested in him,” Wren lied. Well, the last part was a lie. He knew the other parts were true, unfortunately.

“Right.” Travis glanced over to where Felipe was putting the marshmallows on wooden skewers. He put two on each before going to grab the chocolate and the graham crackers. They still had a few minutes before he’d be coming back. “You know, none of us would care if you were.”

“I know, but we aren’t,” Wren insisted, hoping he wasn’t blushing as much as he felt like he was. Thank God for brown skin. “We’re friends. Just because we don’t call each other dicks every five seconds or try to throw each other out of trees doesn’t mean we aren’t just two dudes who like each other. As friends. That’s it.” Wren didn’t know who he was fooling, but it definitely wasn’t Travis, if the look he was giving had anything to say about it.

Travis shrugged, shoving the rest of his granola bar into his mouth. He looked like he wanted to say more, but then Felipe was back, handing Wren a skewer with two marshmallows and holding a small stack of chocolate and graham crackers in his other hand.

“Hey, are you gonna get one?” Felipe asked Travis, who shook his head. “Oh, right, football season. Well, I guess Kyle ate your share anyway.”

“Oh, fuck off,” Travis said. “Everyone knows to pack an extra bag just for him.”

“Eh, well, at least I don’t have to sleep by him,” Felipe mused.

Wren groaned. They had decided he would be between Kyle and Felipe in the hope that the two of them were relatively heavy sleepers and, worst case scenario, weren’t afraid to kick Wren out if they absolutely couldn’t sleep. Wren and Chris could always share a tent, but they had to live with each other already, and actually spending time together outside of car drives to and from school was pushing it.

Felipe glanced down at Wren and then at Travis. Between the two of them, there wasn’t really space for Felipe to sit. “Let’s move closer to the fire,” Felipe suggested. “There’s more space, and it’s not like we can make s’mores from here.”

“I’ll stay back and watch you all catch shit on fire,” Travis said. “If Kyle slinks out of our goddamn tent, I’ll keep him distracted.”

“Your sacrifice is noted,” Wren replied. “We will toast in your honor.”

“Yeah, yeah, go get a spot before all the good ones are taken. And you can thank me by taking a fucking shower before we go to sleep,” Travis grumbled, a teasing glint in his eyes.

Wren flipped him off even as he stood.

Felipe grabbed ahold of his arm and pulled him closer to the fire. There were others there, of course, and besides the good-natured verbal and physical jabs, there wasn’t really conversation. Everyone was too intent on getting their marshmallow to cook… or burn into a crisp, if you were Chris.

Wren rolled his eyes as he carefully turned his skewer, trying to keep his marshmallows from burning, instead wanting a nice, even brown all the way around. He didn’t really blame the others for not being patient enough to wait, but in his experience, it was worth the extra time to sit there and get it done properly. It was a bit ironic, of course, because generally Wren hated waiting and wanted things done as quickly as possible.

But cooking marshmallows specifically was an art form that Wren was determined not to mess up.

“Oh shit,” Felipe swore as his skewer caught fire. Wren laughed as Felipe waved it around, trying to put it out, only to end with the marshmallows falling off and leaving him with a shorter skewer and no sugary treats. “Fucking hell.” He threw his skewer in the fire and locked eyes with Wren. The blue reflected the flames and burned into Wren, who felt like the air had just been punched out of him.

A moment passed.

“I’m, uh, gonna go grab another.” Felipe stumbled away, his ears red. Wren shook his head and pulled his marshmallows out of the fire. They were still not brown enough, so he pushed them back in, scowling.

Stupid, stupid. He probably knows you like him. He thought back to the look on Travis’s face, the way he had reassured Wren that it would be fine with the troop. As if that was all Wren was worried about. Fuck, what if the whole troop knows? Wren hurriedly thought back to how the rest of the Boy Scouts interacted with him, but he couldn’t think of anything that would tell him.

Okay, calm down. It was just a moment. Nobody said anything, so they probably didn’t see it. You’re fine. Nobody knows. Except maybe Felipe. Who’s straight. And Catholic. And, like, your only new friend.

Wren wondered if it would be too long of a walk to go to the lake and drown himself before he died of embarrassment.

“Hey, Wren, your marshmallows are on fire,” someone called out.

“Fuck!”

About In The Desert

Can a Navajo trans teen and a nerdy Catholic find the place they belong... and maybe themselves? In the desert, anything is possible….

When Wren came out as transgender before his senior year, it cost him most of his friends. His father hopes joining a Boy Scout troop might help Wren meet other young men his age and be accepted for who he is.

Felipe Nieves wants the new guy in the troop to feel comfortable, and he reaches out to Wren. They become fast friends… with something more beneath the surface. Those feelings confuse Felipe, since his religion considers this a sin—and he’s always assumed he was straight—but he can’t help pining for Wren. Asking him out will take courage, and getting together won’t be easy… but through their friendship, both young men might find their identities… and learn to embrace them in a unique coming-of-age story set against the beauty of the American Southwest.  

Buy: https://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/books/in-the-desert-by-elliot-joyce-9571-b

About the Author

Elliot Joyce is a social-media obsessed, selfie-taking millennial and he’s proud of it. He can usually be found in his room playing D&D or in a theater lurking on the catwalks. Sometimes he even writes.

Other notable facts include the fact that he’s bisexual, he cannot juggle, and he regularly trips over thin air. Catch him on tumblr or really any social media, he spends enough time on it.

Twitter: https://twitter.com/eleldelmots

Tumblr: http://theonewiththewords.tumblr.com

Review: Train to Somewhere (Before... and After #3) by Susan Laine

It was only a game. Wasn’t it?

At a party one night, Charlie Dean’s childhood friend Will Tucker accepts a dare and dresses up as a girl: clothes, hair, makeup. Seeing Will that way incites a riot of confused emotions in Charlie—and he responds by lashing out. He never meant to hurt Will, and now he must do some serious damage control.

During a school trip by train, Charlie and Will share a sleeper cabin. Charlie intends to mend fences, while Will figures it’s as good a time as any to broach the subjects of attraction and sexuality. They want to get their relationship back on track. But after the secrets they both reveal, their friendship can never be the same.

Oh boy.

First let me say I really adored the first two books in the Before and After series. They were super sweet watching two best friends turn into lovers so I had high hopes going into this one.

But this was one hell of a jumbled mess with a lot of things gone wrong.

Unable to accept it, he’d freaked out and acted like a madman.

First, there should be a trigger warning on this book for abuse. What Charlie does to Will, his best friend, in the first chapter is abuse. Getting turned on by seeing your best friend dressed as a woman is not an excuse for the abuse Charlie dished out to Will. The author tells us from Charlie’s POV how Will is crying and begging Charlie to stop as Charlie decides he needs to destroy what Will has become to make himself feel better. Sure, Charlie feels bad for doing it while doing it but he doesn’t stop. He has flown into a blind and violent rage of emotion and took it out physically on his best friend.

Stomping into the connecting bathroom, Charlie slammed the door shut and locked it. Then he started to yank off Will’s dress. But it was tight and wouldn’t come off, certainly not with Will finally protesting and trying to pull back from the onslaught.

Charlie didn’t relent, though, and he tore at the dress. The sound of ripping fabric was stark in the confined space, echoing from the tiled walls.

“Charlie, please stop,” Will pleaded, fighting to shove Charlie away.

But driven by adrenaline born of rage, Charlie shredded Will’s dress till it lay in tatters on the floor, a scant few pieces still clinging to Will’s body. Then Charlie attacked the silk stockings, which came off without a hitch in thin strips, this time almost soundlessly.

“Ch-Charlie… stop…,” Will begged, tears in his eyes.

[…]

Will sat huddled in the bathtub in his wet underwear, hugging his knees. Black smears of makeup ran down his cheeks, and red smudges of lipstick still covered the sides of his mouth. He looked like a soaked puppy, miserable and confused. Charlie had never seen his best friend so despondent.

He looked… abused.

I think what may be worse is the way Will reacts to it after it’s over. He just needs to find Charlie, ask why and then forgives him? WTAF? I don’t care how long you are friends for, I would not want to see the dude who just abused me, HURT me so that I could find him, make sure HE is okay and then forgive him? Nope. That would never happen.

I was shocked by this event happening within the first pages and then the story just rapidly moves on to the friends now being okay because Charlie admitted he liked the way Will looked all femmed up. What’s super weird is this all happens in Will’s POV where he firmly states, “Neither of them was gay, bisexual, bicurious, or sexually fluid.” Now, I am not saying that people can’t go into a self-discovery mode and explore things they never thought were part of their sexuality but both Charlie was dating a woman at the time and Will had dated women before. Why do I mention this? Because after all is forgiven, we turn the page and the boys are now boarding a train for a school trip where Charlie has upgraded their tiny sleeping car to a suite so they can figure things out.

It was a bit of a whiplash experience being in this book. Everything happens fast and all of the sudden Will goes from being the abused boy to basically a teenage psychologist on LGBTQ labels with his degree awarded by Dr. Google. Again. WTAF?

“Charlie? You need to resolve this or you’re gonna end up in real trouble. Not just friend stuff but, like, mental issues.”

This book was a hot mess and not in a good way. It was way too short to tackle a subject matter like this. Charlie flew into a rage and hurt his best friend and Charlie did his because of his sexual reaction to a boy. There should have been some sort of counseling involved to deal with his rage reaction but no one tells anyone what happened up there, it’s kept a secret and the boys just go along being friends. That scene… it was sickening and reminded me of a brutal rape scene. I almost stopped reading right there but I wanted to see how or if anything would be resolved.

While on the train, Will decides with his new degree to try an experiment out on Charlie who has already hurt him once and who he is LOCKED in a train car with. This experiment? Will wants to see how Charlie reacts to him in heels and makeup, you know, to see if he goes any further with the abuse than he did the first time? Again. WTAF? I know they are all “I am sorry, I will never hurt you again” and “I trust you not to hurt me again” but really? How is this experiment anything that should have taken place? It was risky and it wasn’t smart at all.

A pain he couldn’t explain or account for wrenched Charlie’s heart and twisted his face. “Is… is this what you want to be now? Is this… who you are after all?” His voice cracked, and he had to look away or throw up. And he hated himself for feeling this way.

Especially when his dick stiffened, ferocious as a dog salivating after a bone.

“No,” Will replied.

Charlie’s head whipped up. He saw Will shaking his head and felt a profound confusion.

“Then… why?”

Will locked gazes with him, his eyes mesmerizing and steadfast. “To see your reaction.”

Charlie barked out a vicious laugh. “What, you testing me or something?”

“Verifying a hypothesis, I suppose.”

With all of this going on it’s not a surprise that there was never a connection for me with Charlie and Will as a couple. I barely wanted them to be friends after Charlie attacked Will. I read through the book with a feeling of unease and an upset stomach. I don’t think being confined to a small space with someone who hurt you less than a week ago was the next step this story should have taken. I definitely don’t think you decide you are what your friend needs to figure out their new sexuality. It was frustrating and frankly disgusting to have these two go down the path of a physical relationship in any matter so quickly.

On top of all I’ve already talked about, we turn the page and jump 10 years into the future?! Yeah, so after all Dr. Will and his Google degree have diagnosed Charlie as Demi/BiSexual and Will as Fluid with his sexuality, they decide they aren’t going to be boyfriends BUT if they are both single in 10 years, they will take on a relationship. So Charlie has been in love with Will for the last ten years that he’s been dating men and women and Will was in a relationship with a trans girl since about right after the train trip. But of course they are both now single and Charlie has booked the same room on the same train… a train to somewhere. *facepalm*

I wanted to fall in love with this book as I did with the first two but this tried to tackle some heavy issues and have it wrapped up in less than 100 pages. There is no way that could have been accomplished. There honestly was not one single thing about this book that I liked and it’s not one that I would recommend at all.

A copy provided for an honest review.

Review: House of Cards (Porthkennack #4) by Garrett Leigh

Calum Hardy’s life has unravelled. Reeling from the betrayal of a man he once loved, he boards a train heading south, with no real idea where he’s going except a world away from London.

Brix Lusmoore can hardly believe his eyes when he spots one of his oldest friends outside Truro station. He hasn’t seen Calum since he fled the capital himself four years ago, harbouring a life-changing secret. But despite the years of silence, their old bond remains, warm and true—and layered with simmering heat they’ve never forgotten.

Calum takes refuge with Brix and a job at his Porthkennack tattoo shop. Bit by bit, he rebuilds his life, but both men carry the ghosts of the past, and it will take more than a rekindled friendship and the magic of the Cornish coast to chase them away.

Garrett Leigh doesn’t do light and easy. Her romances are gritty, which is often a more realistic look at life and love. That’s definitely the case in ‘House of Cards.’

The setting of the Cornish coast added depth and meshed well with the story - tough, stormy, and dark.

For a large chunk of the book, Calum is hardly holding on. His ex did a number on him, and his confidence is completely shot.

It would be hard not to fall for Calum. All he wanted was a home and someone to call his own.

Brix is a paragon of virtue. He loves his friends and family deeply, and spends his time off rescuing chickens. But Brix also has personal demons that keep him from finding his happily ever after.

When Brix and Calum are reunited, it’s under less-than-perfect circumstances. But if doesn’t take long for the two to fall back into the easy friendship that they once shared.

I think what I liked most about the book was how easily the two just clicked, despite the years and the circumstances.

Brix slowly coaxes Calum back to his former happy self. It takes a long time, but bit by bit Calum re-builds himself. Living with Calum also makes Brix question his life of solitude.

I’d say for the majority of the book, the focus is on Calum’s healing, rather than the romance. It dragged at points, but that healing was necessary for Calum and Brix to come together as whole and happy equals.

Once the two start moving beyond friendship, it’s a slow process. Though Brix and Calum were clearly made for each other, they don’t make falling in love easy.

Both have to let go of misgivings and past hurts. The happy ever after is hard-won, but perfect!

If you’re looking for a slow-burn MM romance with lots of emphasis on healing, give ‘House of Cards’ a try!

Review: Eric Arvin's Greatest Hits by Eric Arvin

From Urban Fantasy to Contemporary, enjoy these four romances from Eric Arvin in this exclusive bundle. In Simple Men, Chip is a football coach at a small college, but his personal life is in a bit of a rut. Then he meets the new school chaplain, Foster. Chip decides to go for it, but love is never simple, and sometimes it's a downright mess! In Another Enchanted April, three men stay at a bed-and-breakfast with a breathtakingly beautiful garden that has an air of the supernatural. Jerry's there for love, Doug's there for sex, and Tony is practically dragged along. Three men clinging stubbornly to their self-destructive ways... can the magic of the garden prevent love's labors from being lost? In Woke Up in a Strange Place, Joe wakes up in a barley field with no clothes, no memories, and no idea how he got there. He sets off through a fantastical changing landscape to confront his past. If he wants to find peace—and reunite with the Stranger he is so strongly drawn to—he must continue on until the end. In Galley Proof, fiction writer Logan is perfectly happy—until he meets the editor of his next book, Brock. Soon his life and his new manuscript are in a shambles. To take his mind off the mess, Logan goes on a trip, but he might have to admit there are some things you can’t run from.

Average!

Simple Man

2.5 Hearts

“It’s not you it’s me”

This story follows two separate couples. A Chaplain, Foster, and a Football Coach, Chip. Chip is a stereotypical hetero jock until he meets the new Chaplain of Verona College. He quickly discovers his thoughts about the chaplain are not very straight at all.

Brad and Jason have been friends and roommates since they started at Verona College, and their bromance is starting to feel like a little more than platonic intimacy.

I think some people would favour this type of writing style. It is flowery and light. Lots of descriptive text and traditional prose. Unfortunately for this story, I prefer a more contemporary style of writing, so I didn’t quite get into it the way I had hoped I would.

There is a lot of tongue in cheek wit that got a giggle out of me, and I enjoyed the side characters and the interactions (except fo Lynn, I didn’t like Lynn all that much) and the relationship development was decent.

This story is fluffy and lighthearted in a lot of ways. There wasn’t a great deal of depth of character which is my preference, but the romance was nice.

I enjoyed that it followed two couples of differing ages through their discovery of their sexuality. It gave a good contrast between two generations. Jason and Brad are the school pranksters and I enjoyed their antics. It boarded erotic with their interactions and continued to simmer for much of the story.

Foster and Chip were more overt in their relationship development. More set up, and getting to know them. A lot more background of prior relationships, and time spent developing their characters.

I’d recommend this as a light read. This is romance, so you’re not going to get anything more than a take of an erotic wrestling match, and a lot of hard-on references, but for this style of writing it fit well.

Another Enchanted April

3.5 Hearts

Three friends, Tony, Douglas and Jerry are off for a holiday at a seaside resort. Tony is reluctantly pressured into going so he could be a supportive friend for Jerry, who has been mooning after Douglas for a long time.

All Verona College graduates they have stayed friends, even though Tony is a grump, due in part to a football injury that never healed properly.

This story is about new connections and reconnections. I really enjoyed the setting, and the relationship building. There was a lot of good dialogue and teasing out of personalities that helped this story stay strong.

Tony feels old and washed up (he’s not) and spends most of the vacation in the gardens, trying to ignore the flirting of the grounds keeper, Sal. Sal is not put off by the gruffness that is Tony, and continues to flirt and pursue throughout the story.

Told predominantly through Tony’s and Jerry’s point of view, the gardens and the Manor House is the primary setting. There is a lot of beautiful descriptives of the surroundings which really drew me in.

Doug is the playboy of the three, and there are some fun scenes with Doug planning all manner of erotic fun for them to enjoy. I felt pretty bad for Jerry, because all he wanted to do was spend time with Doug, no matter what they were doing.

Relationship development was strong in this story, and I really enjoyed getting to know everyone. There was a lot of lighthearted banter, but also a serious tone when necessary, and the three characters were endearing.

Recommended for those who enjoy light romance with some light erotic content in a holiday setting. Don’t expect a threesome between these three though. Tony is way too much of an outlier to participate in that type of debauchery.

Woke Up in a Strange Place

4 Hearts

Revered by many a reader on Goodreads, I had pretty high expectations for this story, and I can say that it absolutely delivered.

The thing that stands out most for this story was Eric’s use of descriptives to build an entirely tactile world inside my head. It was beautifully balanced with richness that allowed my imagination to take hold and steer me through the winding dimension of this afterlife.

The premise of the story was enchanting, as were the characters and the overall plot. This is a beautiful journey for Joe, with some fascinating concepts of life after death, coupled with some well placed humour to cut through the morbid subject matter.

There was enough depth to ensure the subject was not glossed over. There are some things that may be distressing for some readers, but I honestly think this is an experience in reading that even the lovers of fluff will find enjoyable.

Experiencing Joe’s memories one at a time, on his journey from childhood to his one true love was precious and beautiful. Even through the hard times, I saw the connections he made, and the love he had for life and his friends.

This is a highlight of this anthology, and I am richer for this journey. I would recommend this for all readers.

Gally Proof

4 Hearts

This is the story of writer Logan Brandish and his new editor Brock Kimble. Written in first person from Logan’s point of view, this story was beautifully witty and well written.

Logan is being challenged in his writing by his newly assigned editor Brock, but he is having trouble concentrating on writing due to a combination of writer’s block, and swooning over Brock. It seems that Brock hates everything Logan writes, and he is challenged to re-write his manuscript over and over, while fighting said writer’s block, and pining for Brock to notice him in a completely unprofessional way.

This was a lot of fun, and I really enjoyed both Logan and Brock. I found the banter entertaining and smile inducing. The writing style in this particular story was enjoyable, and suited, even though it is not my favourite style to read.

The focus on Logan and his unrequited infatuation was strongly expressed during the story, and a mixture of traditional writing style, and some well placed contemporary language made the punch lines stand out stronger.

This is a story that I would enjoy re-reading, as something comforting and entertaining both.

Logan’s roommate Janey and her mission to get the Mormons was a quirky and fun addition to the plot line. I loved her antics and was cheering for her the whole time.

Logan is dating Curtis, and it was easy to see how that was going to turn out. I promise there is no cheating, and everything turns out well in the end, but from Curtis’ first introduction, you can tell that the relationship is pretty stale, and it’s a matter of time before something needs to change.

As part of this collection, this story was one of my favourites, and I would recommend this for those who want a story that has more depth than the first two. It has a lot of wit and charm, and kept me reading from the start to finish with no lapses in concentration.

A review copy was provided for an honest opinion.

Review: Hearts in Ireland (World of Love) by J.C. Long

When the future is shrouded and it’s hard to find direction, maybe it’s time to let the heart lead the way….

Ronan Walker stands at a crossroads, unsure how to pursue his education… unsure if he even wants to. Now that his mother is gone, all he has left are the wonderful stories of her youth in Ireland, and he’s drawn to the land of his ancestors. There, he seeks out his mother’s family and meets Fergal Walsh, who works at Ronan’s aunt’s bookstore. A love of literature facilitates a fast friendship between the two men, and even though Ronan cannot deny the potential—and his desire—for more, he cannot see a future for the two of them when he leaves Ireland. Fergal must persuade Ronan to give school in Dublin a chance—and convince Ronan that his heart has already found its home.


World of Love: Stories of romance that span every corner of the globe.

I was curious about this book having read the author's highly erotic short stories and wondering how his take on this particular line would transfer. The writing is easy to read and engage in, as usual, but the heat level is not in the same land at all. That isn’t a bad thing, it’s just very different from what I have read before but I truly enjoyed the romance of Ronan and Fergal and wouldn’t change a thing.

Home isn’t always where you started—sometimes it’s where you end up.

This book starts off with an extremely emotional scene as we meet Ronan Walker as he is with his mother as she passes away. Ronan’s mother, Allanah, was everything to him and the stories she would tell him of her homeland back in Ireland was a bond they shared. Knowing how much his mother loved where she was from and how much she wanted to go back, she made Ronan promise he would visit and of course he does.

The promise made was bittersweet for me as traveling to Scotland after my father passed was something I had planned to do. He and I always talked about visiting where his family was from and his passing only made my want stronger but life for me had other plans. It’s still on my list though… one day I’ll get there.

This story makes so much sense if you really take in how much Ronan’s mother meant him. Going to Ireland to really take the time he needs to deal with his grief of losing his mother in the place that meant the most to her, it’s only fitting he would find himself.

So, Ronan travels to Ireland to stay with his mother’s family; his Aunt Gwendolyn and his cousin Hannah in the small town of Abhainn Dún, where they run a bookstore. Once Ronan gets settled and takes in all that Ireland offers on his first day, he goes to the family bookstore and meets Fergal, the handsome boy with the thick Irish brogue, dark red hair and light green eyes. Okay, we can pause here to tell you how much I adored Fergal and not just because of his accent though the way his dialect was written I smiled because I could hear that “Oi” for “I” and just melted. Fergal is such a sweet character who has so much in common with Ronan and his fancy for the American makes him so freaking adorable! Sigh.

Ronan and Fergal have a slow burn to their relationship and really begin it all with being friends. They have a shared love for reading and James Joyce being a favorite and they have plans to see the sights as well as going to Dublin’s Parade together. When Fergal offers to take Ronan camping, a rain storm heats things up between them and Ronan is faced with decisions he wasn’t prepared to make.

Ronan learns so much about his mother from her family, including the fact that she was literally born in a barn, but the most important things Ronan learns is where his heart truly lies. This whole trip for Ronan was him running away from the depression losing his mother brought on. He has always talked about going back to school to get his Masters so he can teach, but put it off repeatedly but once he voices the intent in Ireland, Fergal and Ronan’s family offer the information about Trinity College and their program. It’s a subtle hint for him to stay but Ronan doesn’t know yet if he is coming or going and the feelings he’s having for Fergal muddle his thoughts and confuse the hell out of him.

You see, Allanah met his father when Richard, was stationed in Ireland with the US Air Force. They met, fell in love and when his father proposed, his mother immediately accepted and love took her to a new country to start a new life. Though she never once regretted following Richard, she longed to return to Ireland. So, if Allanah followed Richard to the US for love, you have to wonder if the same thing would happen to Ronan and if so, would his love follow him or would he stay for his love?

Hearts in Ireland was a lovely and sweet story about finding yourself and finding your heart. I loved how Ireland itself becomes part of the romance. The setting is strong and had Ireland not been such a strong tie to Ronan’s mother, this would have just been a boy goes in vacation meets another boy and they have and HEA. But Ireland IS Ronan’s mother to him. It’s who she was deep in her heart and souls and it makes sense Ronan would find himself on the emerald isle and also find someone to give his heart to.

Audiobook Review: Catch and Release (The Release #3) by BA Tortuga

Dakota Landry just got out of prison after twelve years. If anyone can understand how that feels, it’s his new friend, Sage, who is determined to help him get used to life on the outside—and believes Dakota didn’t commit the crime he was in for.

Jayden Wilson is a former prosecutor who agrees to look into the case at the request of Sage’s lover, Adam. He sets out to prove Dakota is just another “innocent” ex-con, but once they meet, Jayden is more and more convinced Dakota just didn’t do what everyone thinks he did.

Trouble follows Dakota, and nothing is easy as he struggles to figure out how to live, now that he has choices. And Jayden isn’t sure how Dakota, or any lover for that matter, fits into his life. Their path from friendship to romance is a slow one, but Dakota begins to believe he deserves a chance at life, and Jayden falls a little more for Dakota every day. Now they just need to tell each other how they feel.

Listening Length: 7 hrs 16 min
Narrator: Lou Lambert

Reviewer: R *A Reader Obsessed*


It seems I have a soft spot in my heart for this series that I can’t explain at all. It must stem from the fact that Terms of Release (go Sage and Adam!) was one of the first few M/M’s I’d read, and thus I have a certain attachment to the original characters.

Dakota, wrongly imprisoned, is finally released after 12 years of complete hell. Though he’s paid his time for a crime he didn’t commit, he just wants to live his life without drawing any attention to himself. That gets harder to do as fellow ex-con, Sage, won’t take no for an answer and slowly helps Dakota acclimate.

As a friend of Adam’s, Jayden’s innate curiosity as a past prosecutor, has him investigating Dakota's piss poor defense. When he sees some gaps, he makes it his mission to prove Dakota’s innocence. It doesn’t hurt that Dakota is attractive and wholly charming in his own quiet way. All Jayden wants to do is keep him safe and to make up for some of all that’s been taken from him.

Can these two overcome the obvious tough obstacles, and what if Jayden can’t exonerate Dakota? What then?

For me, Tortuga has never been the smoothest of writers, and to be honest, though this was better in editing than the first 2 books, there was still quite a bit of quick POV changes that were made even more mind boggling with the narration. Perhaps Lou Lambert couldn’t discern who was speaking either when reading this, but to say the least, he seemed like he was on an extra fast speed with very little variation between characters and exposition, making it all the more difficult to know what was going on and who was saying what.

However… this still had charm.

This had a good slow burn, as friendship turns into something more, and hurt comfort abounds. As a heads up though, this very disappointingly and surprisingly, had absolutely no smex - just kissing - and I do feel that the author neglected a very prime opportunity to capitalize on the potential intimacy and healing Dakota rightly deserved. Having said that though, we of course get our happy ending. I just unfortunately wanted a whole helluva lot more.

Review: Kissing Lessons (Before... and After #2) by Susan Laine

A kiss is just a kiss. It doesn’t have to mean anything. Does it?

At seventeen, Merry’s never been kissed. Since he doesn’t want to disappoint his prom date, he asks his more experienced best friend, Boone, for some pointers. Surprisingly, Boone agrees to give him a hands-on lesson.

But they have no idea what they’re getting into.

They explore hundreds of ways to make out, but somehow it isn’t enough. A week later, they’re back together for another session. This time things go further than either of them planned, and their relationship becomes awkward and uncomfortable.

Have they learned enough to salvage their friendship and help it evolve? Their lessons have come to an end. They can either part ways forever… or share a true love’s kiss.

This story goes to show you don’t need full on penetrative sex to make a story romantic nor sexy. This was so ridiculously sexy and it was just kissing… everywhere.

Good lord. I have to say that the blurb made me want this because I am a huge sucker for friends to lover’s stories and asking your BFF to teach you how to kiss and then both of you absolutely getting into it? Sign me up. You see, one of my favorite friends to lovers’ stories comes from the God of Teen Angst Drama, John Hughes and his film, Some Kind of Wonderful.  Watts and Keith are best friends and Watts has had an unrequited crush on Keith for like FOREVER. When Keith finally gets a date with his dream girl Amanda Jones, Watts tells him she’ll let him practice on her so he can deliver a kiss that kills and that first kiss, how they start of tentative and then that grip of Keith’s on Watt’s hip… so freaking sexy. So yeah, this story was right up my lane of favorites and it did not disappoint.

One might think at the beginning of the story it’s odd to have Merry ask Boone to show him how to kiss and that Boone agrees without much hesitation. But, I will let you in a little secret so that you don’t think it’s so way out of left field...Boone has done this before. I’ll leave it at that and not go into more of a spoiler but this isn’t so “OMG! Why would two straight boys do this?” whereas it’s more of two friends feeling safe and secure enough to trust the other with something so vulnerable and intimate.

After saying all that I am going to say this is one hell of a hot story and yeah, I will stand by that even knowing Boone and Merry are only 17. Research will get you everywhere and it’s clear that Boone has researched all there is about kissing and the numerous ways to kiss. Most of the kisses I knew by name and most were adorable to start off with because how cute was the Eskimo and Butterfly kiss? I am one who liked Boone detailed instructions and naming of each kiss, it gave the reader and the boys a second to pause for station identification and move on to the next breathless lesson.

Getting both boys POV’s was so nice as with stories like this, it’s beneficial for me to know everyone's headspace. I loved being in both Boone and Merry’s head while they kissed and while they questioned this new attraction and love for their best friend.

This was deliciously sweet and sexy. I probably shouldn’t have read it at my desk as my blush is obvious on my fair skin but I couldn’t have stopped reading if I tried and I didn't try.  Boone and Merry have had their whole lives as best friends and now a simple question has led them down to road to more and I really hope they plant roots in a town called forever because yeah, they are that sticky sweet together.

Laine’s Before and After series is becoming one that I am looking forward to and can’t wait to see if the author offers up more stories and where she takes the next hopefully pair of best friends to lovers.

Review: A Boy Worth Knowing by Jennifer Cosgrove

Ghosts can’t seem to keep their opinions to themselves.

Seventeen-year-old Nate Shaw should know; he’s been talking to them since he was twelve. But they aren’t the only ones making his high school years a living hell. All Nate wants is to keep his secret and keep his head down until he can graduate. That is, until the new boy, James Powell, takes a seat next to him in homeroom. James not only notices him, he manages to work his way into Nate’s life. But James has issues of his own.

Between dead grandmothers and living aunts, Nate has to navigate the fact that he’s falling in love with his only friend, all while getting advice from the most unusual places.

Ghosts, bullies, first love: it’s a lot to deal with when you’re just trying to survive senior year.

Sold, sold, sold by that GORGEOUS cover and the fact that I like me some ghosties in my reading!

My rating for this was hovering between the 3.75 and 4 heart mark, I decided to round it up though because I did enjoy the story. It was a cute YA with a bit of a twist and I think the premise could have  made it a 5 heart read for me, but I felt the narrative needed a little tightening up.

What I liked was the relationship between Nate and James. I love friendships that develop into something more. I love reading about characters who are perhaps a bit different, I like finding out why they don't quite fit into the society created for them by the author. Getting to know characters like these and seeing more of them than their book peers can makes for a great story as far as I'm concerned. Once I'm relating to the character I'm on their side and wanting them to win through. Nate and James both had me rooting for them.

In some ways though, this story felt a bit 'bitty'. There were parts of the plot that needed editing through. One of my notes says why so many movies? Because this duo seemed to watch a lot of films - but they didn't add to or tie into the plot in any way. I have to admit watching a good night of telly is my idea of fun in my old age, but it seems like this young couple of friends can't find anything else to do. It didn't feel ironic or meant though, just a bit unimaginative and lazy on the part of the author. There felt no reason to it other than the MC's had to be doing something...

The other point that felt irrelevant to the story was the whole Nate not living with his mum thing. There seemed no point to it, it added nothing to the story other than a few extra words. I'm going to misquote something I read years ago, I believe it was by Alfred Hitchcock but I could (and am highly likely to) be completely wrong about that. It went something along the lines of, if there is an umbrella in scene 1, it had better have rained by scene 3. Basically, everything added needs to have  a definite reason for being there and I couldn't see the reason for Nate having to live with his aunt.

That said, as I started with, this was an enjoyable read, I just wish it had had one more story edit by the author to tighten it all up a bit. 

A copy of this book was given in exchange for an honest review.
For more information see Goodreads.