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Posts Tagged ‘Torquere Press’

The Gaucho Code by Julia Talbot

Posted in Authors: S-U, B+, Historical, Romance, tagged , on March 6, 2013 | Leave a Comment »

SipTitle: The Gaucho Code
Author: Julia Talbot
Length: 8,400 words (32 pdf pages)
Publisher: Torquere Press
Genre: m/m historical
Rating: B+

Blurb:

Pete is running from the law, all the way from Texas to Argentina, where the local cowboys are a sight different than the horse thieves Pete knew back home. When he meets Jorge, he’s on his very last leg, and he needs a friend. Jorge would love to be more, but he tries to be content with helping Pete out of the gutter. Can Jorge convince Pete that the gaucho code is worth living?

Previously published in Cowboy Up!

Review:

I found this in my e-mail from waaaay back and am glad that I decided to open it up. It starts with Pete, nearly dead of thirst and even his horse dying on him, when he staggers into a small town in Argentina. He is taken in my Jorge’s mother whom he happens to be visiting. Jorge is a gaucho, who travels around finding lost cows which he returns to their ranches for a finder’s fee. He could have a permanent position, but in part due to his preference for me, he prefers the life of solitude.

However he offers Pete the chance to work with him, and they get a chance to know each other on the way to Jorge’s next stop. He’s pretty upfront about being gay, and even Pete’s not against the idea, but until they reach the ranch owned by Jorge’s old war buddy who is sympathetic to his plight as a lonely gay man. The two finally get together before they depart, but Pete’s past is about to catch up with him.

It seems Pete and his brother were not such good boys and robbed a few banks. As well, his brother killed a man in jealousy and before he died in Mexico, he told everyone that Pete had killed the man. Now the man’s father is after Pete and determined to take is revenge, but Jorge believes that Pete is a good person and believes him when he says he didn’t kill the man.

I’m not sure what it means, but I found myself reading this story with a Spanish accent in my head. LOL It was kind of soft and gentle, the two men getting to know each other, dancing around each other and eventually coming together. Jorge did change Pete’s life for the better, only he didn’t realize it until it was almost too late and the noose was around his neck, yet again.

I found it interesting that the men would chase Pete all the way to Argentina. That is FAR to say the least, but I think I’ve heard of such things, so not completely unrealistic. There was a bit of information about the gauchos and how many of them were less than honourable men, having common law wives they got pregnant and came home when they needed somewhere to crash. Jorge’s Italian/British mother was a sensible woman of the times, and I liked Jorge’s ranch owning friend a great deal who just wanted his friend to be happy.

So if you’re looking for a different time and place historical I think this might fit the bill. I am not much of a historical reader, but I really enjoy those that go out of the normal time periods and locations for a more unique setting.

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ZA: Run & Gun by I.D. Locke

Posted in Authors: J-L, B-, Horror, Romance, Science Fiction, tagged , on March 5, 2013 | Leave a Comment »

zarunandgun185Title: ZA: Run and Gun
Author: I.D. Locke
Length: 12,600 words
Publisher: Torquere Press
Genre: m/m science fiction horror romance
Rating: B-

Blurb:
The world has gone to hell in a hand basket with the dead shambling in the streets and attacking the living. Konrad and Jase have a Plan for the ZA, because, who doesn’t? Something that was just for fun is frighteningly real now. The married couple is separated by a hundred kilometers of zombie infested roadway. Konrad is at their condo and Jase is at the military base he’s assigned to. Neither one is going to let that stop them from reuniting with each other.

What follows is running and gunning that surpasses anything available in video games.

Review:
It’s the Zombie Apocalypse and Konrad is stuck in his apartment. Fortunately, he and his husband, Jase, have been planning for years for this eventuality and have a watertight plan ready-made for survival. Unfortunately the ZA hit when they were apart. Jase is on the military base 90 minute’s drive away and Konrad has no way of knowing whether he is safe.

This action packed story hit the ground running and didn’t stop the whole time. The first part follows Konrad as he sits in his apartment, looking out at the zombies and picking off those he can get a clear shot at. He’s got a plan and he’s sticking with it. Meanwhile, he’s missing his husband and hoping Jase is OK. It was a nice mix of romance/pathos, tense claustrophic scenes and thrills as we see the difficulties Konrad has in surviving when stepping out of his door would be almost certain death.

There’s an almost cinematic feel to the section from Jase’s point of view. It’s a trifle overblown as we see Jase attempt to get to his helicopter so he can fly back to Konrad. You may even say that it was tongue in cheek. However, it was also tightly written and included some nice detail about the military base and the helicopter so I could forgive the rest.

This wasn’t a perfect story, for example, there was a huge blank on how the ZA started and Konrad been left with permanent damage after suffering a type of stroke which is supposed to only have symptoms for about 24 hours which seemed odd, but it was still very entertaining nonetheless. The romance is a nice touch of sweetness amongst the gore and I liked that both men are loving and committed to each other.

If you like apocalyptic stories and want something fairly lighthearted but in keeping with the horror genre, then this could be the story for you.

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Coming Home by Missouri Dalton

Posted in Authors: D-F, B, Historical, tagged , on March 4, 2013 | Leave a Comment »

choclTitle: Coming Home
Author: Missouri Dalton
Length: 4,300 words (19 pdf pages)
Publisher: Torquere Press
Genre: m/m historical
Rating: B

Blurb:

He might be Alan Trent, but the sole survivor of the crashed RAF bomber isn’t sure. He can’t remember his name just the horror of the crash and flashes of the War. Whoever he is, he knows there’s someone waiting for him and that for some reason, he’s reminded every time he takes a sip of cocoa.

Review:

This is less a romance, than a story of a man’s rediscovery of who he is. Our main character wakes up in hospital following an RAF plane crash. He’s been badly injured, especially his face, and they don’t know who he is. His memory is also gone. Through a narrowing down of who was on the plane, and what they looked like, they determine he is Alan Trent. However when his wife comes to collect him, he just feels something is wrong. He hates living in the city, he can’t remember her at all, he just remembers that for some reason cocoa is soothing to him.

He’s struggling to accept his life as Alan Trent, when a friend flags him down at a veteran’s event, and tells him his real name. His wife doesn’t want to believe it, but he starts to have memories, and goes to the country village where his parents await. On the way, his friend explains that he lost him to another man, Callum. James now remembers having an argument with Callum about enlisting, but he can’t remember more, until several months later, Callum returns from his own tour abroad.

I really enjoyed reading of James’ struggles to remember his life, and also to deal with what we would now consider PTSD. He can sense there is something there at the edge of his memory, but he just can’t make it come clear. He tries his best to be who he’s told he is, but it’s just not working. I also thought the author did a good job of having the memories come back in bits and bites, and the descriptions used were very evocative of having things fit back together in your mind.

As I said, it’s not really a romance. He does reunite with Callum at the end, but the story his him getting his life back. Now it seems that he and Callum were living opening together in their village and his parents didn’t appear to have an issue with it, so I’m not sure how realistic that was, but I’m sure it happened and people just chose to believe they were “good friends”. I think this is definitely worth a read when you want something different from the usual romance. It is romantic, but much more of a character study of James than the couple in question. I do like stories by this author as they always seem to be just a little bit out of the norm, a refreshing taste once in a while.

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Truffles and Leather by Winnie Jerome

Posted in Authors: J-L, B-, BDSM, Contemporary, Romance, Sequel, tagged , on March 4, 2013 | Leave a Comment »

choclTitle: Truffles and Leather
Author: Winnie Jerome
Length: 7,400 words (27 pdf pages)
Publisher: Torquere Press
Genre: m/m BDSM contemporary
Rating: B

Blurb:

Cody and Jaime from “Pop, Pop, Snap!” are back in this sweet sequel. There isn’t a Guinness World Record for Worst Valentine’s Day, but Cody’s sure that last year, he and his then-boyfriend Keith would have made it in spades.

He’s determined to make this year’s celebration perfect by surprising Jaime with the best homemade truffles ever. It’s a simple plan, but Murphy’s Law seems to have its own ideas…

Review:

I reviewed Pop, Pop, Snap back in Aug. 2011 (wow, so long ago). I enjoyed the relationship between the two main characters, especially with Jaime being the dominant partner, but not really looking the role. This little addition doesn’t add significantly to their story, but it was a nice spicy interlude.

Valentine’s is coming, and Cody is still feeling guilty about choosing the wrong guy, even though he’s corrected that and wants to do something nice for Jaime for Valentine’s. He convinces his friend who is a chef to teach him how to make truffles. It goes pretty well, however he’s running a bit late getting home and then gets distracted by the internet and burns the chocolate. He runs out again to buy more but he can’t find the right type and buys something he hopes will work. Not so much.

When Jaime gets home, he doesn’t appreciates the thought and they use the remaining chocolate which was for dipping them for a little body painting fun, followed by some BDSM Valentine’s sex. The chemistry between the two is off the charts and they have as wide assortment of toys and leather that they use, in this case a Pyrex dildo, blindfold and cuffs. The story is told from Cody’s POV so you don’t get into Jaime’s head much, but you know he loves Cody and they are highly compatible.

If you enjoyed the first book, I think you’ll enjoy this one as well. You certainly don’t have to have read the first story. Enough background is tossed out here to make their history clear, so don’t let that stop you if the subject matter appeals.

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Oliver’s Leather Adventure by Serena Yates

Posted in Authors: V-Z, B-, Contemporary, Romance, tagged , , on February 21, 2013 | Leave a Comment »

leatherbound3nbgsmallTitle: Oliver’s Leather Adventure
Author: Serena Yates
Length: 4,100 words
Publisher: Torquere Press
Genre: m/m contemporary romance
Rating: B-

Blurb:
Blake owns a leather shop, and supplies his best friend’s club Whip with anything its members need for their play. He isn’t into the leather scene himself, though. One day a clearly intimidated young man walks in under the ‘supervision’ of a physically stronger muscleman. Oliver, an extremely cute hottie, is looking for tight leather pants, but without conviction. When the muscleman turns abusive, Blake becomes suspicious. And develops a plan to rescue Oliver…

Review:
This was only a quick read but it had some sweet touches to it. Blake is concerned when a young man is brought into his leather shop by a large man who is obviously into the leather scene. The young guy, Oliver, is there as a result of a bet which means that Michael gets to take him out for the evening but doesn’t seem happy at having to wear tight leather trousers. Blake does some fishing and finds out where Michael is taking Oliver and decides to go along to keep an eye on the young man.

There wasn’t much to the story but we get a good feel for Blake. Oliver’s uncertainty brings out a protective instinct but not that of a Dom because he’s not personally into the leather scene. This was rather refreshing and Blake come across as a sensible guy as he tries to find out the situation between Michael and Oliver whilst still sticking with his salesman role.

When the story moves into the club, we switch points of view to Oliver. This allows us some background to the story but still left me with some questions as to why it was so important to be part of the group of friends connected to his brother and why he didn’t have his own friendship group. However, I liked that Oliver was string enough to stand up for himself and knew when to draw the line.

The story ends on a tentative beginning which fit exactly with the length and themes of the story and I wished the couple well as they set off on their journey together. The leather theme is stronger in this story than others in this series and I liked that we find out how Blake gets into the leather industry, as well as having two characters who aren’t remotely interested in the bondage side of things.

Overall, this is a nicely written short with a pair of likable leads and I would recommend it if you have a spare 15 minutes or so.

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Dapper Gentlemen by J. Rocci

Posted in Authors: P-R, C+, Contemporary, Romance, tagged , , on February 19, 2013 | Leave a Comment »

leatherbound3nbgsmallTitle: Dapper Gentlemen
Author: J. Rocci
Length: 3,100 words (13 pdf pages)
Publisher: Torquere Press
Genre: m/m contemporary
Rating: C+

Blurb:

Delaney Bixby owns and runs his own barber shop, The Dapper Gentleman, which prides itself on offering an upscale grooming experience to a very select clientele in New York City. When Delaney is closing up shop one night, a special customer drops in for an after-hours shave that leads to slow dancing and professions of love.

Review:

This is a little slice of life of an established couple. Delaney loves his barber shop. He caters to a very elite clientele and ensures that it has an authentic old world feel. Shaves with straight razors, special attention and pampering, old-style music on a phonograph, and even Delaney dresses the part in a pin-striped suit. He’s in a particularly good mood and has sent his staff home, knowing he’s got a special client coming.

The client comes in very stressed and Delaney makes it his job to get the man to relax. You soon realize that Delaney and the client are very much together. Both receiving special leather gifts on their anniversary that day. Delaney doesn’t get his type A driven financier man, but he takes great pride in being able to get the man to relax and rid himself of the stress.

This has a very playful and romantic tone. Even after all the years together they are still in love and Delaney wants to take care of his man. They pretend a bit while it’s happening that they are merely barber and client, but you can sense the whole time they are smiling and just having fun with it. I did learn a great deal about the process of a traditional shave though, it actually sounded quite decadent and certainly in the style of male pampering.

The leather is not a main feature, just a briefcase for Richard and a new strop for his straight razor for Delaney, but it was a fun romantic piece that is short enough to just take a few moments to be left with a nice feeling at the end. However don’t expect great insight into their relationship, how they got together or any other details, simply an hour or so in their life.

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Home Fires by BA Tortuga

Posted in Authors: S-U, C, Paranormal, Romance, tagged , on February 18, 2013 | Leave a Comment »

homefires185Title: Home Fires
Author: BA Tortuga
Length: 18,100 words (70 pdf pages)
Publisher: Torquere Press
Genre: m/m paranormal (shifters)
Rating: C

Blurb:

Escaping torturous captivity, Houston returns to his mate, Jackson. Jackson welcomes Houston back to their remote New Mexico home, and sets about healing Houston, body and soul. Can they remove the scars that Houston can’t hide? And can the two wolves escape the ghosts of the past when they come looking?

Review:

This story left me feeling that the ending was missing, or perhaps it’s meant to be the first in a series. Houston manages to find his mate and he’s in rough shape. While Jackson had always thought he’d be angry with his mate who ran off to the city, when he sees how bad Houston is, he does his best to nurse him back to health physically and also emotionally. There are nightmares and physical repercussions. When Houston tells him that he was captured by the government and experimented on, at first Jackson doesn’t believe him because humans don’t know about shifters. However he soon realizes it was true and swears that he won’t let them get Houston again or take Jackson either. When the family of some of the wolves he was captured with show up, it undoes some of Houston’s peace. They want to know why he left some behind and they want to go back and find them, but Houston can’t deal with that.

That’s when it just kind of ended for me. Jackson promised the family that he would call them with more information, because I couldn’t imagine them just going away and not getting answers, yet he just kind of promised Houston he wouldn’t have to go back and that was the end. This author does write shifters which are much closer to their animal side. There is growling and more instinctual responses than the usual fully-human type. I thought Jackson’s pain at seeing his mate so abused and damaged in all ways was well done, as was Houston’s fear and confusion after more than a year in captivity.

You are sort of dropped into the story in the middle. You don’t get the story of Houston going on his way and then being captured, nor do you get the end of the fates of the remaining wolves and if the soldiers are still looking for Houston, and what will happen if they show up. That fact left me feeling a bit as if I only got part of the story, but if you like the author’s shifters,  you’ll enjoy this story.

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The Family You Choose by Ellen Bishop

Posted in Authors: A-C, C+, Contemporary, Romance, tagged , on February 18, 2013 | 2 Comments »

thefamilyyouchoose185Title: The Family You Choose
Author: Ellen Bishop
Length: 10,000 words
Publisher: Torquere Press
Genre: m/m contemporary romance
Rating: C+

Blurb:
It’s been nearly a year since Henry Graham’s brother and wife passed away and he took custody of their daughter, Brenna. He never thought he’d be a parent, much less to a grieving eight year-old girl, and Brenna proves to be almost more than he can handle. Her willful personality and stubborn temper drive away nannies almost faster than he can hire them, and Henry’s nearly at his wit’s end. When the most recent nanny shows up for the job, Henry is as equally appalled by the fact that it’s a man as he is by the tattoos up and down his arms. Before either of them know it, Michael Anders is filling gaps in their lives that they didn’t know they had, and no matter how unprofessional it is, he can’t deny the attraction he feels for his nanny.

Review:
Henry’s at his wit’s end. The death of his brother and sister-in-law left him grieving but also responsible for his neice, Brenna. Henry has never wanted children and finds it difficult to know how to act around Brenna, especially when she drives all the nannies away. When a male nanny turns up at the door, Henry is unsure whether it’s the right choice, but Michael soon wins round Brenna and Henry with his laid back personality.

Whilst this was an enjoyable and well written story about recovering from grief, there wasn’t anything particularly original about it. I’ve read lots of stories about surprise male nannies and their excellent empathetic skills and, whilst this story didn’t disappoint, there wasn’t much to set it apart from other stories of its ilk. Henry is nicely done as a man who’s had his life turned upside down and who now finds it difficult to cope with the arrival of Brenna. However, apart from knowing that he’s ambitious and likes his job, we find out very little else about him. He lives in a ‘family estate’ which suggests that he is wealthy but we are not told where this wealth came from or how he comes to be alone with Brenna – where are the grandparents or family of Henry’s sister-in-law? The same is true for Michael. He’s a nice enough character, perhaps a little bland, but aside from knowing that he is a College student we know little else – his long term aspirations, or who his friends are, for example. This meant the two characters appear to be in a bubble with all their thoughts revolved around Brenna, and much of the ‘getting to know you’ part happening off page.

The romance had a nice, slow build up but was also predictable and I finished the story feeling like I’d had a fairly pleasant 20 minutes or so, but that there was nothing exciting or inventive about the story. If you’re the sort of reader who likes male nanny stories then this will be just your thing.

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Sharing Tomorrow by Michael Barnette

Posted in Authors: A-C, C+, Paranormal, Romance, tagged , on February 17, 2013 | Leave a Comment »

newyear185Title: Sharing Tomorrow
Author: Michael Barnette
Length: 4,400 words (17 pdf pages)
Publisher: Torquere Press
Genre: m/m paranormal
Rating: C+

Blurb:

Fae-born Kyle has been alone for decades; everyone he once knew is gone. The need to be around others, even humans, has grown so great he can no longer remain alone. Then he enters a bar and he someone who seems to know what he is, a man named Anluan.

But Anluan is more than a man and on the cusp of New Year’s they discover they don’t have to be alone anymore as the magic of faerie weaves a spell around them to bring them a very Happy New Year indeed.

Review:

This was a sweet gentle story, but I’m afraid I got a bit lost in the mythology. It starts with Kyle standing on the shore as a big storm is approaching, depressed at the thought that he truly is the last of his kind. He’s been searching for decades. He is mystified by many of the modern things around him, but goes to a local bar, where bartender Anluan immediately recognizes him as fae and says as much. Once the bar closes, they tell each other more about themselves, and then head back to Anluan’s apartment.

I’m not much of an aficionado of the fae mythology. I understood vaguely what Kyle was, I do know some of the basic creatures of the mythology, merpeople, selkies, etc. but I tend to get lost in the Unseelie, Seelie, etc. politics/mythology. So when the two men were explaining their complicated heritage (neither being purebred and thus stuck in the human realm), I wasn’t quite sure of the significance of it all. However those who adore that mythology will probably find it perfectly clear and make total sense. Perhaps an area upon which I need to educate myself.

Once back at the apartment, they realize they are mates and proceed to have sex, which made me snicker a bit. It was, I think, a rather typical gay relationship problem perhaps, two strangers meet, one says he wants to top, the other says I thought I’d top, but I’ve never, neither have I. Ooops. Compromise time. :-) But they worked it out of course, it’s a romance.

While this is a New Year’s story and takes place New Year’s Eve, that really doesn’t play into the plot so you could read it anytime and not feel it’s out of time. I liked both characters and I thought Kyle and his feelings of being all alone in the world and the last of his kind were well-drawn. You wanted to give him a hug. I would have loved to see him exploring the new world more. His first interactions with a flush toilet or a TV or microwave would have been fun. That tends to be one of my things, I love the details of a character out of their time, but it is a short and ends on a suitable romantic HEA, of two lonely men who found each other.

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Taking a Chance by A. Catherine Noon & Rachel Wilder

Posted in Authors: M-O, Authors: V-Z, B-, Contemporary, Romance, tagged , , , on February 16, 2013 | Leave a Comment »

leatherbound3nbgsmallTitle: Taking a Chance
Authors: A. Catherine Noon and Rachel Wilder
Length: 28 pdf pages
Publisher: Torquere Press
Genre: m/m contemporary
Rating: B-

Blurb:

Doctor Jacob Davison has outgrown the hookups of his younger days and wants to settle down. When he’s abandoned by the side of the road, a leather-clad stranger stops and offers him a ride. Chance Renton is different from anyone Jay’s ever met. He’s caring and helpful, yet cynical and world-weary.

From the first moment of their shared motorcycle ride, an attraction begins to simmer between them. Between Jay’s ex-boyfriend showing up and the misconceptions they have about each other, does this relationship have a chance?

Review:

Jay has had a long day volunteering at a local NOH8 photo shoot and now has a pissy boyfriend. As they drive and the boyfriend bitches, Jay realizes that the guy is in the closet, especially at work, and pretends to be straight. When he feels ill, he asks the boyfriend to pull over, and when he gets out to throw up, the boyfriend takes off and leaves him there. Jay is rescued by a hot guy on a motorcycle who saw Jay leaving the photo shoot, and knows he’s been abandoned, so he takes him home. Jay decides to take a chance and invites the man, Chance, in for dinner.

It doesn’t take long until they are getting down to it, although not until Jay phones his ex and leaves the “we’re over” message on his phone. Guess who shows up drunk the next morning? This is just a cute story about two guys meeting. I liked that while Jay looks very young (he’s 32 and a doctor), he didn’t need big tough guy Chance to help him deal with the belligerent ex. He’s no damsel in distress who needs rescuing, which Chance appreciated as well. It’s really just the start of the relationship, the story taking place over about 12 hours or so, but I liked Jay a great deal. He’s rather practical and a good guy and it seems Chance is as well.

It’s difficult to write a long review for a story like this. You don’t find out much about Chance at all, or Jay for that matter, but it’s such a short period of time. You get the impression though that their life goes on quite happily and uneventfully afterward. Not a bad things sometimes. It’s a cute story to pass a few minutes on a break or between longer books.

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