Feeds:
Posts
Comments

Archive for the ‘Authors: J-L’ Category

Male Seeking Male by Kathleen Lee

Posted in Authors: J-L, B-, Contemporary, Romance, tagged , on June 14, 2013 | 2 Comments »

MaleSeekingMale CoverTitle: Male Seeking Male
Author: Kathleen Lee
Length: 13,000 words
Publisher: Self Published
Genre: m/m contemporary
Rating: B-

Blurb:
He was just looking for experience. What he got was an unexpected romance.

When Greg’s best friend places a personal ad on his behalf, he doesn’t know whether to be angry or grateful. Though bisexual, he’d only ever been with a woman. But when his sexy neighbor across the hall answers his ad claiming to offer the experience Greg seeks, Greg jumps at the chance. Jack’s first sexual experience was a painful one, and he vowed to never hurt anyone the way he’d been hurt. So when Jack sees Greg’s ad, he knows he can give the man he’s secretly lusted after what he wants and leave him with fond memories. But as things heat up in the bedroom, a trust builds in their hearts. Now they must see past their differences and future plans or lose a once in a lifetime love.

Review:
This short from a new-to-me author had it’s good and points but overall the good outweighed the bad. It tells of Greg who, despite knowing he’s bisexual, has never been with a man, mainly because he hasn’t met anyone who took his fancy and also feels too old to start trawling the clubs. He’s also nervous about sex with a man and ideally wants someone who can be sensitive and gentle for his first time. When his best fried puts an ad in a local paper, Greg is inundated with unsuitable replies until he gets a reply from Jack who lives across the hall.

I liked the initial idea for the story and thought the author had done a good job in treading a fine line with Rachel. She could have come across as pushy and overbearing, and indeed by putting the ad in the paper she was interfering in Greg’s life. However, Greg’s reaction to the ad and to Rachel’s part in it meant that he was no pushover and also allowed us to see something deeper about their friendship, so I forgave that aspect. The set up was perhaps a little contrived and unrealistic, but I went with it and enjoyed the next part of the story a great deal.

The part where the story really took off was once Jack and Greg meet. There was a delicious awkwardness to their initial encounter. Greg was unsure of how to ask for what he wanted and Jack has past issues that made him cautious too. The first couple of encounters were steamy hot, full of sexual tension as the pair take things easy at first. I liked that there was also minor misunderstandings between them, but that they were both open to talking about those problems and moving forward. It really did feel like two men feeling their way into a relationship, starting to gain feelings for each other and recognising the obstacles to overcome.

It was a shame then that there had to be a scene where one character leaps to a incorrect conclusion and forces a separation. I was really disappointed that the story had taken this route as it was very out of character for that person and served nothing except to cause unnecessary friction. Even after the men were reconciled it still left a bad taste in my mouth, especially as the ending felt a little too suddenly concluded.

However, the middle section, and the development in the relationship between Jack and Greg went a long way in making this a story I may well read again, hence the reason why it’s snuck into a B grade rather than a C. It’s obvious that this author writes well and I shall look forward to further stories from her.

Read Full Post »

Shannon’s Solace by Westbrooke Jameson

Posted in Authors: J-L, B, Romance, Science Fiction, Series, tagged , on May 29, 2013 | 2 Comments »

shannonTitle: Shannon’s Solace (The Unwanted, Book 1)
Author: Westbrooke Jameson
Length: 18,563 words (50 pdf pages)
Publisher: Self-published
Genre: m/m science fiction
Rating: B

Blurb:

Three years ago, a race of aliens called Narsoreal made contact and gained asylum on Earth. In exchange for technology and medical advancements, the United States government allows the Narsoreal to collect and bond with the country’s “unwanted” citizens. In one city, a Narsoreal bond-matcher has set his sights on a small band of male and female prostitutes in desperate need of salvation. Each of the five has unique needs, but it just might be that there is a Narsoreal ready and willing to meet every one of them.

Every day is a struggle for survival, and Shannon often feels like everything is out of his control. He longs for someone to come into his life and offer him some peace, be the one he can lean on, and maybe someday forgive him his past and love him anyway.

AUTHOR’S NOTE: This is the first story in a 5-part series available individually and as a whole sold under the title “The Unwanted” which will be available by the end of 2013. Reading each story in order is recommended.

Review:

I wasn’t sure what to expect with this story, not having read anything by the author before, but it hit a few of my like buttons. It’s got aliens, rent boys and fruit flavoured spunk. :-) As this is the first book in the series, it spends a bit of time setting up the rest of the series, including introducing you to the cast of characters including Shannon, aka Shots, Derek, the head of their little family unit who is now suffering from something called VIS, one of the few diseases the arriving aliens were unable to find a cure for, Joel, a young man discarded by his family they are determined to keep innocent, and Ambrosia, either a cross-dresser/drag or a trans* character, it’s not clear yet, and Sara, a sweet but not too bright lesbian. There are other people who live with them and either work the streets or steal to keep them all going.

One night on the street, a client approaches and despite his better instincts, Shots is giving a blow job on the sidewalk and forgoing a condom. He gets sort of drugged and wakes up in the guys bed. After a bad experience with that happening before, he freaks out and runs. Later after doing some research, he finds out that now he’s bonded with the alien, the alien with die if he doesn’t complete the bond. Despite being kind of freaked out, Shots isn’t a bad guy, and maybe, just maybe he could find love, so he goes back, saving Alimund and finding out more about him and that maybe there are similar partners for his friends on the street.

There’s not a lot of conflict. Shannon takes to the idea of having someone love him pretty quickly, but then not having to work the streets is not a bad thing.  Sometimes I’m not looking for tons of angst or conflict. The premise is that Alimund can tell by looking at someone if they will be mated with any of his kind, a matchmaker, so I’m sure he’ll be finding matches for some of the other characters. But it was definitely a feel good story and one where you want to see the street people get to find love. The back-story of the aliens and characters was added in without feeling info-dumpy, so I’m looking forward to seeing the others find their HEA, especially Derek. I’m not sure if there will be f/f or not in the series, but I guess we’ll see who the characters are who feature in future editions.

If you too like aliens and rent boys, I think it’s very much worth picking up, although some people may prefer to wait until all the episodes are out and read it at once. I don’t mind doing it this way as it’s not a cliff-hanger.

Read Full Post »

Blue Hair and 7 PAs by Kallysten

Posted in Authors: J-L, B, Contemporary, Romance, tagged , on May 10, 2013 | 2 Comments »

blueTitle: Blue Hair and the 7 PAs
Author: Kallysten
Length: 8,000 words (28 pdf pages)
Publisher: Torquere Press
Genre: m/m contemporary
Rating: B

Blurb:

When Vinnie came to LA, he was following his dream of becoming a movie star. After a few months, however, he finds himself in the employ of one — as personal assistant to James Spencer. The job is an odd one, a mix of nanny, minder, and best friend. The oddest part yet might hide behind the closed door James forbade Vinnie to open at the very moment he handed him the key.

As James’ and Vinnie’s friendship grows, so does Vinnie’s curiosity, and right when everything finally starts coming together he succumbs, opening the door at the risk of losing it all.

Review:

I’m glad the author explained on the GR page which fairy tale this is from because I had no clue. That’s not a bad thing, but Blue Beard’s 7 Wives is not a story with which I am familiar. In this case, Blue Beard is famous actor James, who has died his hair turquoise for a film and Vinnie is his potential 7th “bride”, although in this case, his Personal Assistant (PA).

Vinnie is a wannabe actor who’s not having much luck and agrees to take on the job as PA to celebrity hottie James, although when James explains that part of Vinnie’s job is that of nanny, making sure James gets out of bed and to appointments when he’s in a funk/depression and making sure the man takes his meds, Vinnie is unsure he’s up for it, but the money is great and guy seems decent. There is one rule, Vinnie is not allowed to go into one particular bedroom.

However, the job is harder than Vinnie imagines, being yelled at when James is down, or having to treat him like a recalcitrant toddler isn’t all fun and games, but when things are good they are good. He makes it longer than any PA and feels he’s truly a friend to James, which seems like what he needs. Then he breaks the rule and enters the room, finding it to be a long closed up bedroom. Despite receiving a kiss, which leads him to believe there might be more, he has to tell James the truth, even if it means losing his job.

There is a sense of James being a bit lost. He’s quite aware of his fame and what that means to his life. When Vinnie asks what his job exactly is, James’ response of,

“It’s a nanny job,” he couldn’t help but blurt out. “You don’t need a PA, you need a nanny to keep you in line.”

James’ smile thinned down to almost nothing. “No,” he said quietly. “I need a best friend. Someone who’s not afraid to kick my ass just because I’ve got shelves full of awards or because my name’s on their paycheck.”

rather says it all.

I really enjoyed the story. It’s I suppose what you would call a gentle romance. No more than a kiss is shared on-page, but I liked how Vinnie because James’ anchor without it falling into the total care-taker role. Sometimes Vinnie was that, but mostly he was a friend, James knew that. There was no magical healing love though. James had issues and always would, but Vinnie was a stabilizing force.

I also liked Vinnie. He’s realistic, he still has dreams of being an actor, but he’s got a touch of a sense of humour which kept the story from being too maudlin. His explanation of how he found out about the job I found amusing:

It was one of his exes who told him about the job.

“Why don’t you apply yourself?” Vinnie had asked, wary despite his immediate interest. That particular fling had not ended entirely well, although they’d started being civil again toward each other when they crossed paths in audition rooms.

“I’ve got a big break coming. No time for games like that. So I thought of you. After all, you’ve got plenty of time.”

Civility, of course, was relative. Unless it counted as being civil that Vinnie didn’t knee the bastard in the balls. Again.

So I quite enjoyed this story, despite knowing nothing of the fairy tale on which it was based. :-) I found it poignant, but hopeful and sweet that the two men were friends. There was also none of the angst of James’ sexuality and what it would mean to his career, it was very much focused on the relationship between the two men. I wouldn’t have minded seeing more of it and being shown the battles with James, more than just told about them, but despite that, I found it an enjoyable read and enjoyed the authors voice and will look out for more of her work.

Read Full Post »

Help Wanted by Parker James

Posted in Authors: J-L, C+, Contemporary, tagged , on May 9, 2013 | Leave a Comment »

helpTitle: Help Wanted
Author: Parker James
Length: 7,887 words (43 pdf pages)
Publisher: Silver Publishing
Genre: m/m contemporary
Rating: C+

Blurb:

During his downtime managing a travel agency, Cheyenne substitutes fantasy for reality. Adventurous encounters in exotic locales keep him occupied while he waits for a customer, or better yet, an applicant for the ‘Agent Wanted’ position he has available.

Rand wants a fresh start. His reunion with a childhood friend provides the reason his previous relationships never satisfied him. A new job and a new town will give him fresh perspective on his newly focused life–and lifestyle.

An ‘Agent Wanted’ sign sparks Rand’s interest and his prospective employer whets his appetite. His interview leads to some on the job training and a wild adventure where passports aren’t required.

CONTENT ADVISORY: This title has a HFN ending.

Review:

This is a short little slice that notes a HFN ending, although it’s more than erotica, so there is hope the two men would start a relationship. Cheyenne is bored at the office, the travel industry having its ups and downs and spends some time day-dreaming about the trip he would take, even though working in the travel industry he doesn’t get to travel as much as he’d hoped. Meanwhile, Rand, is looking to start his life over, having come to the realization that he’s gay. When he sees the help wanted sign in the travel agency window, he stops in to plead his case.

This is one of those fantasy contemporaries, where this kind of thing probably wouldn’t happen in real life, but it’s kind of fun concept to imagine. Both men are immediately attracted to each other and dance around each other trying to determine if the other is gay, and once that becomes clear, the innuendo starts, leading to an “interview” in the back room.

If you are able to look beyond the “that would never happen” aspect of the story, and are in the mood for a quick read, it’s enjoyable. You do get to know a bit about each man and how they got to be where they are in life, but it only takes place in a less than 2 hour (perhaps one hour) period, so there isn’t much room for character development, but they are likable characters.

The hint is that they will continue a relationship or at least dating after the story ends, so while it’s a HFN, to me its leaning to the romance side and most people who like a HEA ending will find it satisfying enough to enjoy.

 

Read Full Post »

Miami Moon: Vampire’s Lair Book 1 by Geoffrey Knight

Posted in Authors: J-L, B, Erotica, Horror, Paranormal, Series, tagged , on May 8, 2013 | 3 Comments »

Miami Moon (1)Title: Miami Moon: Vampire’s Lair Book 1
Author: Geoffrey Knight
Length: 13,000 words (60 pdf pages)
Publisher: Wilde City Press
Genre: m/m erotica paranormal horror
Rating: B

Blurb:

Some of us are gatherers. Some are hunters. Some are healers.

Jason Cain ran away to Miami not only to escape his past, but to escape his future as well. He left behind a pretty girlfriend, a college education, and a promising career in the shadow of his father, a prominent Chicago surgeon. He also left behind a haunting tragedy, something that stopped him from becoming the man he was destined to be. But all that is about to change.

Under the Miami moon, Jason Cain is about to be chosen to fulfill his destiny—to become a healer.

Drawn into a forbidden world, plucked from the streets of Miami and taken to a mansion filled with danger and debauchery in the middle of a Florida bayou, Jason is about to experience male love, lust and longing like he has never known before. Here, the Vampire Xavier—the muscular, dominant master of his own lair—will give Jason the redemption and healing that he so desperately craves. The price—his mortality.

Review:

This book is the first in a series, and is part of a special line at Wilde City which given it’s endorsed by a popular adult entertainer, I’m presuming will be smuttier and less “romantic” than some stories out there. It definitely fits the bill, as this first book, a set-up for Jason’s story falls into the erotica/horror side of the genre.

As noted, this is the set-up, with Jason seeming to have “run away” from home, from a domineering father who had set Jason’s path in life, a girl friend who seems more impressed in being with a future doctor, and some kind of traumatic event that happened in an alley, which seemed to trigger his flight. While searching for a job, he’s sent to a mysterious door, and is tempted inside by a man who seems to know about his past. The next thing he knows, he is drugged and taken to a mansion where a variety of men are engaged in random sex acts, and he’s about to meet Xavier, the naked owner who has a pet alligator. (It was a nice touch.)

It seems that Jason never really considered himself gay, given the girlfriend and all, but before long he’s naked and Xavier is telling him he’s a vampire. Right. Jason doesn’t believe that until Xavier reveals himself and sends Jason running into the swamp, where he is promptly attacked by gators (silly northern boys who forget about such things). He rescued by Xavier who heals him and he accepts becoming a vampire, and hot dungeon public sex occurs on an alter.

This sets up for Jason to be a type of vigilante, as he gets revenge for what happened to himself in the alley, and then reveals that he also has healing power like Xavier did. I’m assuming there will be a series of adventures with Jason having hot smutty sex, and saving random people while taking revenge on evil-doers. It’s gritty and dark with some blood and gore, and Xavier’s got more of the horror edge to him than the typical romantic vampire hero. So if that’s what you are looking for, it certainly fits the bill and I’ll be curious to see how Jason does as he gets his life (or non-life) together following his conversion.

Read Full Post »

Theron’s Boys by Kiernan Kelly

Posted in Authors: J-L, B-, Menage, Paranormal, Romance, tagged , on April 18, 2013 | Leave a Comment »

Therons_BoysTitle: Theron’s Boys
Author: Kiernan Kelly
Length: 14,000 words
Publisher: MLR Press
Genre: m/m/m, m/m paranormal romance
Grade: B-

Blurb:
When an irresistable man offers Christian a job that sounds too good to be true, he finds out the proposal comes with sharp teeth and the loss of his immortal soul.

Christian thought he had a handle on life. He wasn’t rich, but he had a decent job bartending at a local gay bar. That is until one night when Theron walked into the bar and turned his world upside down. Theron, a mesmerizing stranger with the ability to turn Christian on with a single look, makes Christian an offer he can’t refuse, but in hindsight, probably should have – a job at Theron’s ultra trendy club. The problem? The position is for life, and in the underworld of vampire sex slaves, that can be a very, very long time, indeed.

Review:
I often like this author’s short stories and this one had an interesting take on life as a vampire. Christian was lured into being a vamp by sexy and domineering vampire Theron. Horny and intrigued, Christian agrees to be turned, but doesn’t realise he’s handing himself over as an eternal go-go dancer and prostitute in Theron’s club. Given barely enough money to live on, and barely enough free time, the other vamps in the club are pissed off but frightened of Theron and his goons, until Theron ups the stakes and Christian knows he has to do something, or die trying.

Like many of this author’s stories this had a lightness of touch to the narrative. I liked Christian, but it’s obvious that he’s rather led my his dick and that landed him into trouble. With hindsight, he’s very aware of what an idiot he’s been and I couldn’t help but warm to him. His slightly sarcastic turn of phrase means that instead of coming across as whining, his reflections on the mess he’s got himself into are wry, another reason to like him.

Christian is the narrator and as a result the other vampires, including the love interest, are barely there. This meant that the romance didn’t work quite so well, especially as the on page sex takes place between Christian and other vampires, not the love interest, and although that menage sex scene was hot, it was a little lacking in emotion other than lust. We don’t get many scenes with the two main characters together so that aspect was a little forced at the end. However, since the main plot is centred around the plan to get away from the clutches of Theron, I didn’t mind that so much.

The sending was rather satisfying and overall I found this to be an enjoyable, quirky story with an amusing narrator. If you like vamp stories then this one may appeal.

Read Full Post »

Claimed by Jambrea Jo Jones

Posted in Authors: J-L, D-, Paranormal, tagged , on April 12, 2013 | Leave a Comment »

J3_ClaimedTitle: Claimed
Author: Jambrea Jo Jones
Length: 49 pdf pages, 12,000 words.
Publisher: MLR Press
Genre: m/m paranormal
Rating: D-

Blurb:

One taste isn’t enough…

Luke Shelton was down on his luck. He’d gambled away the family money and he needed to get it back–fast. Being a vampire meal couldn’t be all that bad.

Bussoe needed something to keep him tied to the world or he was going to walk into his final death. Something about Luke sparked his interest. Will the two be able to come to terms or will one of them die before the night is over?

Review:

A potentially interesting idea that suffered from poor editing, typos and utterly wooden characterisation.

I thought I would be safe with this unfamiliar author as I’ve come to rely on MLR authors telling good stories (even if their publisher can’t be bothered to hire decent  proofreaders). However, either this is an anomaly rushed through to fill a gap in the schedule, or I just haven’t been reading widely enough to realise that not all authors in the MLR stable are up to the same standard.

The premise of the story is interesting enough. Luke has signed a contract without reading it, promising himself to a vampire. He’s not just a bumbling moron, though—he’s done it to cover a debt incurred trying to raise money for a lifesaving operation for his mother. Now Luke is being paraded in front of the vampire in a darkened club, naked apart from fishnets, heels, and leash around his neck.

The rather sexy set-up made me hope for a steamy read. There is sex later, but first we have to get through the meat of the plot. Again, the ideas here were interesting and there’s some nice double-crossing and twists, but the characters were so wooden and the writing so pedestrian I found it hard to care.

Luke is a real problem. We’re meant to believe he’s a mall cop, but he shows absolutely no sense of how to handle himself in a dangerous situation. He’s vain, stupid and naive, and has managed to get himself into a dangerous predicament by gambling away his family’s money. We’re meant to forgive his stupidity, though, because he’s done it for the right reasons. For me, though, he never managed to raise himself above vapid, “too stupid to live” status.

Bussoe could have been an interesting character what with the hints we’re given of his back story, but it just doesn’t come together. He acts like a vampire cliché, and then there’s the whole “fated mates” trope which I hate with a passion. Here it seems to be being used as a shortcut so the author doesn’t need to show us any real chemistry between the characters. We just have to accept that they’re meant to be together so the plot can move on. Not good enough.

Now, can we have a word about typos? This book probably doesn’t have more than your average MLR offering, but they annoyed me far more because I wasn’t carried away by the story. How can a professional publisher let so many through? Do they pay their proofreaders with nothing more than a copy of the book they’re meant to be checking? I’ve heard this is the standard practice with certain epublishers. That’s not payment. That’s merely giving them the materials they need to work.

Not only were there grammatical issues (for example, a misuse of the word “whom”), but the punctuation left a lot to be desired: missing apostrophes, and persistent misuse of the m-dash. When using pairs of m-dashes to section off part of a sentence—like this, for example—they are being used as a substitute for parentheses and the sentence should still make sense if that section is removed. In this book that was never the case. The author uses them when commas or ellipses are called for, resulting in sentences that had me scrambling to try to make sense of what was being said.

I expect there are readers out there who aren’t as fussy as I am and who will enjoy this story for what it is. I think you’d have to be a real fan of the fated mates trope to do so, though. For me, it felt like an interesting idea that had been rushed, with not enough care and attention spared to the prose and characterisation, let alone the basics of sentence construction.

Read Full Post »

Older Posts »

Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox.

Join 365 other followers