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Archive for the ‘C’ Category

Fate Drops In by K.C. Grim

Posted in Authors: G-I, C, Paranormal, Romance, tagged , on May 31, 2013 | Leave a Comment »

fatedropsinTitle: Fate Drops In
Author: K.C. Grim
Length: 7,063 words
Publisher: JMS Books
Genre: m/m contemporary
Rating: C

Blurb:
Werewolves and vampires have always been sworn enemies. They have fought battles and raged wars to keep their kinds apart for centuries, but that all changes one night when a young wolf named Connor accidently drops into a room full of unexpected vampires.

A young wolf living on his own in the city would be easy prey for a group of angry vampires. They are older and stronger than the werewolf, but Connor isn’t ready to give up without a fight. Can he face them alone, or will he find an ally in the most unusual place?

Davis has lived hundreds of years in the shadow of darkness, but what good is eternity if you spend it alone? With nothing left to live for, the older vampire is losing his desire for life when Connor comes crashing into his world. Is the handsome, scrappy werewolf worth saving if it costs Davis his immortal soul? Or will saving this young wolf end up saving them both?

Review:
I’m always keen to read a story with vampires and this one begins well. Connor is a werewolf who left his pack when they were going to arrange a mate for him. He’s travelling alone through deserted streets after spending the evening at a bar when he accidentally falls through a door into the cellar filled with vampires. He’s rescued by Davis and the pair have an immediate attraction, but it isn’t easy for a werewolf and vamp to be together.

I liked the first part of this story. It was atmospheric with a good amount of foreshadowed creepiness in Connor’s trip through the city, followed by a very tense moment between Connor and the vampires. I also liked the way that Connor and Davis get together in a very frenetic and exciting sex scene, full of forbidden desires as both know that they should be enemies, not lovers.

After that point things stopped working so well. The plot changed as Davis pushes for Connor to be reconciled with his pack and then Connor returns home to face his past. This wasn’t a bad change in pace, but it did cram in an awful lot of things into a short page space. We are hurriedly introduced to a large number of characters as well as Connor’s parents and the ending seems too easily done after the build up. I felt a little bamboozled by all these new characters and the word length meant that they were all mere snapshots, rather than fleshed out, even Connor’s parents.

So in the end, whilst I enjoyed the meeting of the characters and the start of their relationship, the rest of the story felt rushed and a little flat. This was the first story I’ve read by this author and I wouldn’t mind reading another one.

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Revving it Up by Sean Michael

Posted in Authors: M-O, C, Contemporary, Romance, tagged , on May 7, 2013 | Leave a Comment »

RevvingItUpTitle: Revving it Up
Author: Sean Michael
Length: 5,000 words
Publisher: Amber Allure
Genre: m/m contemporary romance
Grade: C

Blurb:
Jon and Bryan have been dating for about six months. While things were hot and heavy in the beginning, they’ve since cooled down to a low simmer. Still, Bryan’s looking forward to seeing Jon again tonight after his shift at the bar. But a game of Truth Or Dare has left him wearing a plug and it’s making him aware of every single step he’s taking.

Will Bryan be able to make it through his date with Jon without going crazy? Or will Jon find out why he’s got that extra wiggle in his walk tonight and do something about it?

Review:
Bryan and Jon have been seeing each other on and off for a few months but things seem to have fizzled out recently. Bryan meets up with Jon at a coffee shop but this time Bryan has been playing truth or dare with his friends and is wearing a plug.

This was a quick and steamy read in Sean Michael’s usual style. I liked the initial premise that these two guys like each other but that Jon feels that the sex between them was a bit too vanilla and as a result they are drifting apart. The arrival of Bryan wearing a plug rekindles Jon’s interest. He’s pleased to find that Bryan is up for a bit of kinkiness and the rest of the story involves a hurried exit from the coffee shop and an extended bout of sex.

Whilst we never find out much about these characters, the interaction between them was fun. The first part is hot and heavy with sexual tension and quickly caught my interest. There’s a lot of laughter and shared enjoyment of the sex, plus an underlying relief that they’ve found something to liven things up. There’s a strong impression that the guys care for each other and I liked how romantic that made the story.

Ultimately though, this is just a quick snack of a story. The characters aren’t that fleshed out and the focus is mainly on the sex, so whilst this was a well written short, there’s nothing much to make it stand out from the crowd. If, like me, you are occasionally in the mood for some of Sean Michael’s erotic romance then I would recommend this story but at $3.00 this is an expensive story for the word count.

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The Favor, a Hammer Club Story by Sean Michael

Posted in Authors: M-O, C, Contemporary, Romance, tagged , on May 3, 2013 | Leave a Comment »

Tales of Leather CoverTitle: The Favor, a Hammer Club Story
Author: Sean Michael
Length: 6,700 words
Publisher: Torquere Press
Genre: m/m contemporary romance
Grade: C

Blurb:
Erik wants to know what his subs feel, so he’s planning on losing his virginity. To that end, he enlists the help of his best friend and mentor, Lion. Things get intense when Lion insists the only man he trusts for the job is himself. How will this affect their friendship?

Review:
I was in the mood for a Sean Michael story. I’ve dipped in and out of stories from the Hammer series and the blurb caught my eye so I gave it a go.

Erik and Lion have been friends for years. Lion mentored Erik when he first became a Dom and now Erik turns to Lion for help. He wants to bottom for someone to try it out and asks Lion if he knows anyone who would do that for him. Lion tells Erik he will do it.

This is only a very short story but I was surprised by how little of it involved the sex scene. I was expecting the usual wall to wall sex-fest that often happens with a SM book but instead the majority of the story is in the lead up as the two guys get together to watch a game, laugh and joke and just hang out being buddies. It was a good way to show the depth of friendship between them and I enjoyed this part, as well as the undercurrent of slightly awkward sexual tension, especially from Erik as he thinks about why he was spending time with Lion.

The sex scene itself was also done well, tipping the line from friendship into something a big deeper and romantic and I may have given this a higher grade than I did were it not for the sudden ending. The story just stops with nothing really resolved between them and we never know whether the men will continue to be just friends or whether they will act upon the strange tenderness which formed during the sex scene. It left me feeling rather disgruntled.

So whilst this story had a good start and I liked both characters, the ending was a disappointment. If you are a compulsive reader of the Hammer series then you may still want to give this one a go, although there is no BDSM elements to the story other than a passing reference to some ‘scenes’ taking place as the men talk in the club.

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Glacialis by Pelaam

Posted in Authors: P-R, C, Futuristic, Science Fiction, Steampunk, YA, tagged , on May 1, 2013 | Leave a Comment »

a168b96162c7c8ef04f11a4fa0b5747c.image.200x300Title: Glacialis
Author: Pelaam
Length: 81 pdf pages, 16,524 words.
Publisher: Silver Stream Press
Genre: m/m YA science fiction/steampunk
Rating: C

Blurb:

Accepting their company’s assignment as medic and nurse on Glacialis, Shae and Bless find their welcome as frigid as the planet itself. Neither Adair, the mine’s foreman nor Merag, his head of security make the men feel welcome or wanted.

When one of the miners seeks medical attention for an injury he doesn’t want Adair to know about, Shae and Bless quickly find themselves investigating illegal activity at the mine, and embroiled in danger.

Shae finds himself falling in love with an undercover Ranger sent to investigate the mine, and he and Bless choose to help him.

Peril takes three forms, each different, but as deadly as the other.

Review:

I was intrigued by the combination of a science fiction blurb and steampunk cover, so I picked up this novelette by a new-to-me author. There’s an interesting premise to this story, but ultimately the writing wasn’t strong enough to carry it off.

Glacialis is told entirely from doctor Shae’s point of view, and it opens with him and his good friend Bless heading down to a frozen planet for a month-long assignment. Both men are reluctant to spend that long in an isolated mine on a planet uninhabited by sentient beings, but with the help of Bless’s holo goggles and the promise of a holiday somewhere pleasant afterwards, they’ll get through it.

Although they’d been expecting hostility from the miners, they weren’t expecting it from management too. But not everyone is as surly as they seem, and when Shae tends to a handsome wounded miner—the undercover Ranger mentioned in the blurb—he finds himself dragged into helping him investigate a conspiracy.

The plot of this story is fast-moving and well thought-out, and I loved the steampunk details to the character’s clothing and the decor of their spaceship. I also enjoyed the fact it was written in British English, with fitting little details like bowler hats and the company being called Britannia. Shae and Bless are appealing characters and there’s a nice friendship between them that I wanted to see develop into something more.

I suspect this last desire of mine might be partly behind why I wasn’t convinced by the introduction of love interest, Tuor, but the main reason for me not finding the romance side of this story a success was the dreaded insta-love. They’ve only met a couple of times when Shae first thinks he’s in love, after a two paragraph telling of how they sit down and discover they have lots in common. We don’t even get the benefit of seeing some of the dialogue, and simply have to take Shae’s word for it about them having great chemistry. However, this is nothing compared to the unexpected introduction of a love interest for Bless too, who seemed nothing more than a convenient character invented to get the heroes out of a tight spot.

The other main aspect of the story that wasn’t successful for me was the worldbuilding. While I enjoyed the steampunk elements, I didn’t get much of a visual sense of the mine or the world they were on. The letalis, who play a big part in events, aren’t even described so I had no idea what they looked like other than them having long claws. One of the reasons I read science fiction is because I like being immersed in another world which is described vividly. I didn’t get that sense here, and there were some strange elements that didn’t seem well thought out, like there being smog on a planet with no towns or cities.

In the end, I found myself skimming the action looking for more description and meaningful character interaction, but there was very little. If you enjoy science fiction more for the adventure part of the plot then you may well have a more positive experience of Glacialis than I did. However, I don’t think it particularly satisfies as a romance, or on the worldbuilding side of the equation.

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Crowns and Criminals by Kayla Bain-Vrba

Posted in Authors: V-Z, C, Fantasy, Romance, tagged , on April 25, 2013 | Leave a Comment »

wereTitle: Crowns and Criminals
Author: Kayla Bain-Vrba
Length: 8,000 words
Publisher: Torquere Press
Genre: m/m fantasy romance
Grade: C

Blurb:
When Noble, a common thief, rescues a cursed prince to clear his own name, the last thing on his mind is falling in love. True love, however, is at the top of Prince Danson’s to-do list; hence why he had himself cursed and locked away in a tower in the first place. The trying journey home brings them closer together, but are the secrets from their past powerful enough to rip them apart forever?

Review:
I usually like fairy tale type stories and this one had a lot going for it with Noble as the thief and underdog rescuing the vain handsome prince, trapped in a tower of his own making. The story began well with the amusing twist at the start being that Danson placed himself in the tower for foolish romantic notions. This played well with the convention of being rescued from some horrid evil as seen in tales such as Sleeping Beauty and I enjoyed the initial encounter between a somewhat petulant Danson who is robbed of his prince charming by the sensible and practical approach from Noble. I also liked the way that Danson gradually began to see the value in Noble and how that developed into respect and admiration.

My main criticism of the story is that it was too busy for the word length. The reader gets a lot of information thrown at them about Danson and Noble, plus we have a token bad guy and yet there’s not enough space to explore any of the more interesting aspects of the story, such as Noble’s past. Instead information is told to us and we pass on to the next thing. In some ways this fit the theme of a fairy story but as a romance reader it was a little frustrating.  The scene leading to the forced separation was a little overdone and Danson’s actions during that time were baffling, given what we find out about him earlier in the story.

Having said that, this wasn’t a bad story. The dynamic between the couple is done well and the action scenes were tense. If you like fairy stories then you may enjoy this one which had a light and breezy tone, even if the characterisation was a little thin.

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Masks Off Too: Scented by Sam Schooler

Posted in Authors: S-U, C, Paranormal, Romance, tagged , on April 23, 2013 | Leave a Comment »

masksofftoo-scented185Title: Masks Off Too: Scented
Author: Sam Schooler
Length: 5,300 words
Publisher: Torquere Press
Genre: m/m paranormal romance
Grade: C

Blurb:
Ben Halloway: human, detective, so done with this serial killer vampire shit. Felix Whit: vampire, criminal psychologist, way too attractive. Ben’s life is just fantastic.

This story is also available in the Masks Off Too! anthology.

Review:
This short paranormal romance which mixes vampires and a masked ball began well with a tightly written dramatic scene. Ben is a police officer who is investigating a series of brutal murders. He’s checking out a clue when he’s viciously attacked at the start of the story. Ben is bleeding out and in danger of dying but is rescued by a former lover and vampire, Felix. The opening is visceral and tense as we are plunged straight into the drama. This scene grabbed my attention straight away and I read on quickly, wanting to find out more about Ben and Felix.

It was unfortunate then that after that point my interest in the story began to wane. Ben and Felix are paired up in the murder investigation and there’s a decent sexual tension between them. There’s a scene where Felix ‘marks’ Ben as his own as a way to protect him which could have been sensual but I was just a bit confused as to what was happening. The story was too short to cover such a complex thing as a murder investigation, so the end seemed a little too sudden and convenient. I finished the story thinking ‘oh, was that it?’ and rather disappointed that the promising opening didn’t follow through.

So, overall this had a great opening but tailed off at the end. This may not be the best story I’ve ever read, but that opening showed an author with a lot of promise and I will certainly read more of her stories in future.

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Blood Bonds by Kayla Bain-Vrba

Posted in Authors: A-C, C, Futuristic, Horror, Romance, tagged , on April 22, 2013 | Leave a Comment »

choclTitle: Blood Bonds
Author: Kayla Bain-Vrba
Length: 8,200 words (33 pdf pages)
Publisher: Torquere Press
Genre: m/m futuristic horror
Rating: C

Blurb:

Two years after a virus began turning the population into zombies, the survivors are hearing rumors of a safe city — Sean Doberman and his newly reunited lover, Aaron Cambelle, among them. However, their years apart have changed them. Is the bond between them strong enough to overcome any obstacle — including blood?

Review:

This was an interesting concept that I felt kind of got muddled at the end and a bit lost. As the blurb notes, after a virus starts destroying civilization, people are wandering trying to find a mythical city of safety. Sean is a loner surviving by killing zombies when he’s assisted in a group attack by another man. He’s stunned and thrilled to find it is his lover whom he was sure died sometime in the last two years like most people. However Aaron has formed a small band of others like him and they are moving northward and Sean joins them. The others are a bit sceptical at first and Sean tries to figure out who Aaron is now.

It seems they were “normal” college kids preparing to marry when the virus hit. But now Aaron appears to be a player and a con-man, willing to do anything to anyone to gain an advantage. Sean isn’t sure he likes this new version of Aaron and it doesn’t help that Aaron’s comrades keep feeding him information which makes him doubt their reunion.

I liked the set-up of the new civilization (or sorts). The reunion between the two men was smoking hot and I wasn’t sure which way it was going to go when Sean was starting to get to know Aaron again. There was a lot of tension between what he remembered and who the man was now. But it seems as the story drew to a close, there was a bit of a rush and I felt it was muddled as to why some things happened.

I also wasn’t sure if this was set in a futuristic earth as we know it, or something a bit alternate universe. The two men had been about to marry, but then they make a blood bond under a full moon which is stronger than even a marriage. I don’t know very many people who would even think of such a thing today, and this all happened only two years after the virus hit, so I was just a bit confused as to where that came from.

Still, if you like zombie stories, it’s an interesting take on the theme and as I said, the sex between the two men was pretty steamy. I just think it either needed a little more time to flesh out, as it’s left kind of hanging as to what happens next.

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Super Juicy by Julia Talbot & BA Tortuga

Posted in Authors: S-U, C, Erotica, Paranormal, Romance, tagged , , on April 19, 2013 | Leave a Comment »

masksofftoo-superjuicy185Title: Super Juicy
Author: Julia Talbot & BA Tortuga
Length: 7,800 words
Publisher: Torquere
Genre: m/m Paranormal Erotica/Romance
Rating: C

Blurb: It’s Halloween and vampire Stryker is on the prowl for a good, fun meal when he meets Buck, a waiter with a t-shirt that reads “Super Juicy”. Stry can’t wait to find out if there’s truth in advertising, but will the vibrant stud turn out to be too much for Stry to handle?

Review: I generally know what I’m getting into when I read a story by one or both of these authors and this fell in line with that. It’s heavy on sex with a paranormal twist and a happy, wrapped up ending.

Stryker is a vampire and he’s on the hunt in Vegas. It’s Halloween and he’s looking for a trick and a treat (har har) among the sexy boys out partying. When he stops at a burger joint and bar for a drink, he finds the yummiest man he’s ever seen waiting tables. And across the back of his shirt is written, “Super Juicy”. Of course, Stry wants to find out just how juicy that man is and finds it easy to charm him as he sits in the man’s section. After convincing “Juicy” (named Buck) to come out with him after his shift ends, the pair sizzle up the dance floor at a club on the strip until their unbearable chemistry is too much to show in public. But Stry isn’t the one in for a surprise when they get home and he goes to drink Buck’s blood.

I specifically listed this as Erotica/Romance, because in my opinion, a tacked on romantic ending doesn’t really make the rest of the story a romance. This is mostly erotica (and there’s nothing wrong with that). The bulk of the story takes place as the two meet and later go back to Stry’s hotel room. It’s definitely sexy. I figured that the story would be sex heavy and I was right, but I also feared that the sex would be ho-hum and the typical scene without much to interest me. I was a bit surprised to find that though the plot didn’t stray too far from the usual scenarios I did really feel the connection between the two, which made the sex enjoyable to read.

So, while this story wasn’t spectacular, it was still a pretty good read. And if you’re in the mood for some paranormal lovin’, then by all means, go ahead and read this story.

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Through the Door by Ana Reese

Posted in Authors: P-R, C, Fantasy, Romance, tagged , on April 19, 2013 | Leave a Comment »

PrintTitle: Through the Door
Author: Ana Reese
Length: 19,000 words
Publisher: Less Than Three Press
Genre: m/m fantasy romance
Grade: C

Blurb:
When his family suddenly finds themselves in debt, Jonas is forced by his mother to take up work in the royal palace, despite the fact he could be arrested if caught. Worse, Jonas is hired to be a palace whore. Terrified, but desperate, Jonas determines to make the best of the situation until his family’s problems are resolved. But he never expected to catch the eye of the crown prince, or the hostile and conniving minstrel perpetually at the prince’s side.

Review:
Jonas is sent away from home by his aristocratic mother to find work in the city after the family falls into desperate straits. He knows that the best work is to be found at the palace and soon finds himself employed as what he thinks is a servant. Unfortunately he’s been tricked and his role is that of a prostitute. Jonas’ good looks catch the eye of the prince’s friend who snaps him up for the prince.

The premise to this story was slightly contrived, in that there didn’t seem to be a wholly realistic reason for Jonas in particular to be sent out to work, nor is this properly explained. It felt to me like a forced set-up to get Jonas where he needed to be – as a whore in the palace – and so in the end I just went with it.

Once Jonas gets to the palace, the story picks up and I liked the way that the author had incorporated the historical fantasy setting, with some nice touches to the world building which built up a slightly sinister atmosphere within the castle. I liked the cautious friendship Jonas builds with another of the castle prostitutes who acts as a mentor and adviser. The scenes with Jonas and the prince were done well too and I was really starting to enjoy myself with the story. However, it was getting close to the end of the book and I wasn’t sure how the author would wrap up the story in such a short time. The answer was she didn’t, as the story just stops and we get a ‘to be continued’. This was very annoying because the book is described as ‘book 1 of Serving Royalty‘ by the publisher. In fact it’s not a whole book but half a book and this was intensely frustrating.

Overall, the sudden end spoiled my enjoyment of the book, despite some good characterisation in Jonas and a story which was building nicely. My advice would be to wait until the rest of the book is published and buy together if you want to avoid an annoying ending.

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Busted by Chuck Willman

Posted in Authors: V-Z, C, Contemporary, Erotica, tagged , on April 14, 2013 | Leave a Comment »

bustedTitle: Busted
Author: Chuck Willman
Length: 10 pdf pages, 2634 words.
Publisher: JMS Books
Genre: m/m contemporary erotica
Rating: C

Blurb:

A hot, young party boy is speeding home after a birthday party, taking a usually quiet back desert road. But on this particular night, a hunky motorcycle cop is waiting in the shadows, ready to catch his prey in a speed trap.

The motorist gets caught, and the cop has a few of his own methods of “punishing” hot-shot drivers. The desert night leads to some scorching action the young driver won’t soon forget.

Review:

This is a freebie, and as such it represents excellent value for money! If there had been a charge, though, I would have felt ripped off at this length, as there isn’t time for anything more than a down and dirty sex scene, with little characterisation to speak of.

The nameless narrator is young and irresponsible, speeding in his brand new car along a desert road at night, while wearing very skimpy clothing and probably over the limit with alcohol. It’s hard to feel much sympathy for him when he’s caught in the speed trap, but I don’t think that’s the idea of this story, somehow. I got the feeling we’re meant to think he gets what he deserves.

The cop remains nameless too, and is a little more than a menacing lump of man muscle with rather unorthodox methods of warning speeding drivers. He orders the narrator out of the car, but rather than making him walk in a straight line, something decidedly un-straight happens. He tells the narrator to bend over the hood of his car, first for a rather intimate frisking with his nightstick, and then a thorough seeing-to.

The following excerpt gives you a good taster of the fun and earthy style of the story.

He kept moving the stick up inside my leg, forcing my thighs to spread. Finally, he began stroking one of my fuzzy testicles that had plopped out of the denim. Then I knew I was in trouble. That nightstick felt amazing against my nut, and I had no idea how to hide that fact!

I know some of the readers of this review site will find the story too crude to enjoy. This is gay erotica aimed at the male reader, and the language is typical of such. There is also unprotected sex, finished off with an activity some will find revolting. It’s also fair to say that some readers might call rape when the sex happens without any verbal consent, and within a power dynamic this pronounced. However, I think the narrator makes it clear that he’s up for what happens, and beyond a complaint about the lack of lube, he seems to enjoy himself.

Since I like gay erotica, these aspects didn’t bother me. The story has a welcome smattering of humour, is narrated with energy, and it certainly doesn’t outstay its welcome. It’s too slight to give it a higher rating, but for a freebie you can’t really go wrong. Unless you’re not a fan of more hardcore gay erotica, in which case I’d advise you to steer clear!

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