Rick R. Reed's Blog, page 62

What Love Is....

"Love is a temporary madness, it erupts like volcanoes and then subsides. And when it subsides, you have to make a decision. You have to work out whether your roots have so entwined together that it is inconceivable that you should ever part. Because this is what love is. Love is not breathlessness, it is not excitement, it is not the promulgation of promises of eternal passion, it is not the desire to mate every second minute of the day, it is not lying awake at night imagining that he is kissing every cranny of your body. No, don’t blush, I am telling you some truths. That is just being “in love”, which any fool can do. Love itself is what is left over when being in love has burned away, and this is both an art and a fortunate accident." 

(Louis de Bernières in Corelli’s Mandolin)

Good Karma, Good Books: Tied Together by Z Allora

Every Wednesday, I put on my pimp clothes (I favor feathered hats and zebra printswith a little crushed velvet) and help promote the new or old work of some of my favorite fellow authors. Be sure to stop by every week and see what’s new. 

This week, I’m all about TIED TOGETHER by Z Allora.

Here’s what Z has to say about TIED TOGETHER:


Tied Together is the second book in The Dark Angels series. This hot rocker series was inspired by Adam Lambert and Tommy Ratliff 2009 American Music Awards kiss. I was living in China at the time the scandal happened. I was distressed to find out some of the sponsors dropped him and scheduled TV appearances were cancelled. The reaction was quite sexist since six years earlier Brittany and Madonna kissed and no one seemed to bat an eyelash. 
I enjoyed his music so I watched the Glam Nation tour as it crossed American via YouKu (China’s censored version of YouTube). I realized you could determine the level of homophobia in the state they performed in by watching the song Fever. In non-homophobic states Mr. Lambert lip locked Mr. Ratliff during the opening notes of this song and in more homophobic states no kiss. The same pattern was true as the tour came through Europe. The more open the country the wilder the kiss.
When the Glambert crew arrived in Asia I was distressed by the reception. Singapore seemed to play games with Mr. Ratliff’s passport (it’s illegal for two men to even kiss in the country). When they arrived in Malaysia (where sodomy can be punished by lashes and imprisonment) people actually protested the concert because they believed Adam Lambert would turn their kids gay. I was shocked at the level of ignorance. 
I wanted to lend my voice to promote love is love and gender has nothing to do with it. So I set out to publish my words hoping to change just one person’s mind.
Since I was already living in Asia I decided to write The Dark Angels series in a yaoi-style, which is meant to be fluffy, over the top and sexy. Though in each book I explore the variations within the spectrum of the rainbow. I have some free reads on my blog: http://zallora.blogspot.com
I’d to hear from you! You can find me on Facebook Z Allora Allora or e-mail me at Z.AlloraHappyEndings@gmail.com
Hugs, Z.

BLURB

Josh has loved Robin since the day they met, although he never dared to follow his heart. After the two are kicked out of their house, a night of despair turns into a night of discovery, forever changing them both. One taste of his dream leaves Josh hungry for more, but Robin’s fear of abandonment forces him to pull back, denying them both.

Their fortunes changed. Josh and Robin are now in the limelight with legendary megaband The Dark Angels, but Robin is still the scared little boy inside the rock star who isn't convinced he won't be left behind. He clings tightly to the word "brother" because stepbrothers can't leave, right?

There's only one way for Josh to prove to Robin, now and forever, that the love tying them together can never be broken.
BUY
Amazon
Barnes and Noble
Kobo

Good Karma, Good Books: CHAOS STATION by Jenn Burke & Kelly Jensen

Every Wednesday, I put on my pimp clothes (I favor feathered hats and zebra prints
with a little crushed velvet) and help promote the new or old work of some of my favorite fellow authors. Be sure to stop by every week and see what’s new. 

This week, I’m all about CHAOS STATION by Jenn Burke &
Kelly Jensen

Here’s what the authors have to say about CHAOS STATION:
Like most books, Chaos Station came about when my friend Jenn and I asked “what if”. We’d been role-playing a couple of characters together, two guys, lifelong friends, who’d been separated by war. Each thought the other dead. When they were reunited, they discovered their friendship ran deeper and promptly fell in love. Their new relationship was complicated by more than the mental and physical scars left over by the war, however. Their big “what if” was their existing friendship. What would happen if the ‘love’ thing didn’t work out?

When we decided to share their story, we built them a world and started the first book at the point of reunion. We changed the backstory a little, and the guys were naturally different. You can never write the same character or story twice, I’ve discovered. But what we ended up with was so much more. As we explored the war that had separated the two, and the effects it had on them, we found a plot that resonated in so many ways: the effects of war and the fate of returned soldiers. The peaks and pitfalls of experimental technology. The attitudes of a future society toward the role of the individual.

And, most importantly, whether simple things like friendship, and complicated things like love, could survive all of the above. 

BLURB“You’re not real. Felix Ingesson is dead.”


The war with the alien stin is over, but Felix Ingesson has given up on seeing his lover, Zander Anatolius, ever again. Zander’s military file is sealed tighter than an airlock. A former prisoner of war, Felix is attempting a much quieter life keeping his ship, the Chaos, aloft. He almost succeeds, until Zander walks on board and insists that Felix isn’t real.


A retired, broken super soldier, Zander is reeling from the aftereffects of his experimental training and wants nothing more than to disappear and wait for insanity to claim him. Then he sees footage of a friend and ally—a super soldier like him—murdering an entire security squad with her bare hands and a cold, dead look in her eyes. He never expected to find Felix, the man he’d thought dead for years, on the ship he hired to track her down.


Working with Felix to rescue his teammate is a dream come true…and a nightmare. Zander has no exit strategy that will leave Felix unscathed—or his own heart unbroken.

BUY
Amazon | Amazon UK | B&N |
Kobo | iBooks |

RELEASE DAY! TRICKS IS OUT!

Today's the day! My opposites-attract love story about a nice but nerdy hunk and the stripper he falls for set in Chicago's Boystown, TRICKS , is now officially available from Dreamspinner Press. 

BUY
Paperback: http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=6949 
ebook: http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=6948 
Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Tricks-Rick-R-Reed-ebook/dp/B015WVZDNU/ 

BLURB
Tricks can mean many things: sex partners, deceptions, even magic—or maybe all three. 



Arliss is a gorgeous young dancer at Tricks, the hottest club in Chicago's Boystown. Sean is the classic nerd, out of place in Tricks, but nursing his wounds from a recent breakup. When the two spy each other, magic blooms.

But this opposites-attract tale does not run smooth. What happens when Arliss is approached by one of the biggest porn producers in the business? Can he make his dreams of stardom come true without throwing away the only real love he’s ever known? This question might not even matter if the mysterious producers realize their dark intentions.

1st Edition published by MLR Press, 2010.

BUY
Paperback: http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=6949 
ebook: http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=6948 
Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Tricks-Rick-R-Reed-ebook/dp/B015WVZDNU/ 
PLEASE FEEL FREE TO REPOST THIS BLOG! 

Good Karma, Good Books: Ransom (Book 1 of the Royal Navy series) by Lee Rowan

  Good Karma, Good Books: Ransom (Book 1 of the Royal Navy series) by Lee RowanEvery Wednesday, I put on my pimp clothes (I favor feathered hats and zebra prints
with a little crushed velvet) and help promote the new or old work of some of my favorite fellow authors. Be sure to stop by every week and see what’s new. 

This week, I’m all about RANSOM by Lee Rowan.

Here’s what Lee has to say about " Ransom :" Ransom was my first published work, and will always be special to me--partly because it was nominated, and then won, the first-ever LGBT Eppie award in 2007.  It's also still the most complicated story I've written, because there are three sets of characters all moving toward the same point in time, and they had to get there all together.  I had huge handwritten timelines posted all over my writing area.  (I also had my first editor -- now my wife -- giving me her left-brained input:  "You have to change the time for this scene, a full moon would rise a lot earlier..."

I've also got a couple of close friends who were sexually abused in their youth, and I wanted a story that had a hero who had to deal with that and triumph over it. David Archer kind of surprised me, both in Ransom and in the sequels - a real case of discovering who the characters really were.  I had planned a series of adventures on the ocean waves -  a sort of romanticized Master and Commander, even though I knew that level of period style was beyond me. 

What I got was something different.  Will Marshall's sexual innocence was kind of endearing, but it created problems because he was not only growing up very fast, he was much more intense than I'd realized he would be -- and found his ambitions affected and altered by his love for Davy.  By the end of the second book, I realized that the universe was going to be more complicated than I'd ever imagined.

This was also my first attempt at writing sex... probably the most difficult part, so I stuck to the emotions and basic physical feelings -- I know brains are wired differently but not all that differently.  A gay friend paid me a huge compliment when I asked him to beta-read for any physical impossibilities.  He read the story and wrote back, "Are you sure you're a woman?"

Well, yes, I am.  But I grew up on adventure stories and there was nobody like Xena when I was a kid.  Like women who ran away to sea in that era - and there were some - it wasn't a matter of what's in your pants, but can you do the job? 

I never got to climb in the rigging as a child, but I spent a lot of time up in oak trees, and down at the lake.  And I dreamed of white sails....

SPECIAL NOTE
La Rançon, the French edition of Ransom will be October 27!

BLURB
An officer, a gentleman... and a sodomite. The first two earn him honor and respect, the third may cost him his life. David Archer realizes how hopeless his attraction to his fellow midshipman is from the moment a newly-arrived William Marshall challenges a sexually abusive shipmate to a duel – and shoots him dead.

To Marshall, the Navy is his one chance to move beyond his humble beginnings. While others spend shore leave carousing, he curls up with a navigation text. When they and their captain are abducted, Archer and Marshall become pawns in a renegade’s sadistic game. To protect the man he loves, David Archer chooses to face his own demons of past abuse returned in a different form. When Marshall learns of Archer’s sacrifice, he discovers what he feels for Davy runs stronger and deeper than friendship. He's in love, for the first time in his life, and he wants to know all about this new emotion.

But first they must escape. Only then will they find out if they can preserve their love without losing their lives.EXCERPT“Davy,” Marshall whispered. “Davy!” He caught his friend by the shoulders. “Wake up!” But Archer, trapped in his nightmare, only fought harder. Worse, he started shouting. Marshall had to clap a hand over his mouth and roll on top of him to stop his thrashing. Damn these nightmares! He didn’t want Archer whipped for creating a disturbance, and his own back would not welcome another beating. “Davy!” he hissed.

The struggling body stilled under his hand. “Wha—Will?”

“Yes. Davy, please, you must be quiet—”

His words were cut off as David’s arms snaked round his bare shoulders, pulling him down. Not an embrace; it was like a drowning man clutching at a straw. Marshall turned his face to get Archer’s hair out of his mouth, and his lips brushed against David’s. They parted, and he was lost. A surge of wild pleasure engulfed him; he found himself holding Davy just as tightly, just as close. It wasn’t exactly passion—more some strange mix of protectiveness and a need he’d never realized, a craving for something tangible in this fearful dark place where all the rules that shaped their world were suspended. For an instant he teetered between sensation and control, then the riptide of feeling yanked him under.

Some small part of his mind worried over the problem while his body hurled itself eagerly into the maelstrom. Wildfire blazed from his mouth all the way to his toes, kindling a flame in his groin as he felt himself harden. His lips tingled, the sweet hot touch of Davy’s mouth drawing his tongue deep inside—like kissing a girl but nothing like it, no courtesy, no caution, just a blinding urgency, almost the bloodlust of battle.

But he didn’t want to kill Davy or hurt him—God, no, he just wanted to get closer, somehow. He could feel his own blood racing, could sense another pulse through the thin barrier of cloth between them. He had never in his whole lonely life felt so close to another human being, but there was a familiarity about this, as though he knew exactly what to do. It was incredible, glorious, and hovering just out of reach was the tantalizing promise of one tiny bit more, and he wanted it desperately.

Archer was writhing against him now, one hand tangled in his hair, the other arm locked around his waist. He abandoned himself to the rhythm, hands sliding down with a will of their own to catch Archer's hips. Davy whimpered, and suddenly they were fumbling with fly buttons—their own, each other's, it hardly mattered. Trousers slid away and they were twined together in the straw, rolling around like a couple of young animals, slippery with the sweat of their furious struggle, frantic but silent.

It was like being on deck in a hurricane: no control, no chance of mastery, just holding on for dear life and hoping to survive the cataclysm. Davy's shirt was an obstacle, bunching up between them, and they wrestled that off, lips separating only long enough to get the thing over his head and out of their way.

The wave broke almost immediately as their naked bodies touched full length, small cries drowning in each others' throats. The tidal surge seemed to go on forever, then slowly ebbed until they were two separate beings again, two gasping, spent bodies, two very shocked and bewildered young men. But Davy held his face for a moment longer, time enough for a gentle, piercingly tender kiss. "Thank you," he breathed.

Released, Marshall rolled away, dazed, his body still humming like rigging in a gale. As the feelings calmed and his brain cleared, he realized that what had felt like an age could have lasted barely a minute or two. Had they been overheard? The only sounds he could detect were Archer's ragged breathing, the rustle of the straw, the creaking of the ship.

No alarm outside.

Hardly necessary. Alarm was shrieking within him, and he tried to still it with mundanity. "We—we had better wash up." He groped for the water bucket, shivering as the cold wetness splashed against his belly, rinsing himself, passing the refilled cup to Archer.

His breeches had wrapped themselves around one ankle, and the small problem of untangling them and pulling them back on gave him a moment to try to think. It was like swimming in glue. The enormity of what he had just done nearly paralyzed him. What in the world had possessed him? And Davy had thanked him. For stopping, of course. If he could voluntarily drop dead, this very moment, he would. But of course it couldn't be that easy.

He couldn't see David in the darkness, didn't have to look him in the face; that was a small comfort, since it meant Davy couldn't see him, either.  He couldn't hear Davy's breathing anymore, but sensed that he was waiting.  Speechless with fury, most likely. 

Oh, God, now what?  He sagged against the bulkhead, face in his hands, and struggled for words.  Finally, he took refuge in formality, pushing the phrases out through a throat almost too tight to breathe.  "Mr Archer, I--I most humbly beg your pardon. That was inexcusable, I don't know what came over me-"

Archer had curled into a tight ball, choking on pain, cursing his own stupidity.  He could have just released William, apologized, pretended to be asleep, something.  If only he hadn't said anything!  Well, he wouldn't have to worry anymore about being a pawn in the hostage game; now Will could simply find the Captain and leave.  Or I can just attack Adrian, if I can't kill him I'll just go on fighting until he has to kill me.  He heard Will say something about washing, took the cup that was thrust into his hand, used it to rinse away the stickiness on his belly.   For all the good it would do.  This won't wash off.

Then he heard Will's voice, and his mind finally made sense of the words.  Except that the words didn't make sense.  Why in God's name should William be apologizing to him?  But he sounded terribly upset, as why shouldn't he, and he seemed to be standing there waiting for an answer.  What came over him?  That was too absurd.  Archer swallowed.  "I seem to recall having something to do with it."  His voice sounded almost calm, strange in his own ears.   Well, he had just destroyed the last bit of anything that made his life worth living.   What was there left to fear?   Poor Will was breathing heavily, as though he’d run a mile.   "Will, for God's sake, please sit down before you fall over."

Marshall slid to the deck with a thud, knotting his hands together to keep them from shaking.  "If you wish," he said woodenly, "When we return to Calypso  I shall place myself under arrest for--for indecently assaulting an officer under my command, I shall resign my commission--"

"Are you mad?"  Panic flooded out any other feeling, though Archer had just enough control to keep his voice low.  "Will, that's a hanging offense.  Have you ever seen a hanging?  I have."  Terror made him babble.  "I was eight.  My father thought it would be an eye-opening experience.  He was right.  I didn't sleep for three days."  He took a deep breath and continued, trying to sound more reasonable.  "Even if you had... done anything to harm me, do you think I would say one word to send you to the gallows?" BUY
Dreamspinner Press ebookDreamspinner Press paperback

THROWBACK THURSDAY: Raining Men & Johnny Wadd

No, it's not what you think....

Sometimes a reader really touches your heart. That was the case when one sent me a sketch he had done inspired by the feisty little chihuahua in my book RAINING MEN , inappropriately named Johnny Wadd. The little dog plays a major role in helping my main character, Bobby, find his own heart and humanity. Anyway, I wanted to share the sketch with you.

BLURB
Sequel to Chaser

The character you loved to hate in Chaser becomes the character you will simply love in Raining Men . It’s been raining men for most of Bobby Nelson’s adult life. Normally, he wouldn’t have it any other way, but lately something’s missing. Now, he wants the deluge to slow to a single special drop. But is it even possible for Bobby to find “the one” after endless years of hooking up?

 When Bobby’s father passes away, Bobby finally examines his rocky relationship with the man and how it might have contributed to his inability to find the love he yearns for. Guided by a sexy therapist, a Sex Addicts Anonymous group, a well-endowed Chihuahua named Johnny Wadd, and Bobby’s own cache of memories, Bobby takes a spiritual, sexual, and emotional journey to discover that life’s most satisfactory love connections lie in quality, not quantity. And when he’s ready to love not only himself but someone else, sex and love fit, at last, into one perfect package.

BUY
Amazon
Dreamspinner Press


EXCERPT
Bobby paused, listening, trying to hear beneath the din of traffic and the calls of street vendors selling Mexican treats.

There. It’s almost like crying.

He turned and looked around him, but other than discarded cans, papers, weeds, and endless concrete, he saw nothing that could be making the noise, which had, anyway, stopped.

The crying began again simultaneously with Bobby thinking his imagination was playing tricks on him and starting the move forward once more.

He really listened this time and was able to discern the direction from which the sound issued. Just before him was a little side alley, a passage for deliveries for the bar/restaurant next to it. He peered into the gloom of the sun-starved, brick-paved alley and saw only a lone Dumpster, its bright blue paint pocked with rust.

He stepped into the alley, and the crying grew louder.

At the back of the Dumpster, hidden from the street, he saw the source of the sound: a shivering (in spite of the warmth of the day) little brown Chihuahua, its ribs showing and the remains of fast-food wrappers before it.

Huge brown eyes, looking even huger, Bobby thought, on account of the dog’s emaciated condition, stared up at him. The dog went quiet, yawned, and rapidly licked its lips a couple of times. It gazed up at Bobby almost defiantly, in spite of the poor shape the animal appeared to be in.

Bobby was transfixed, and their eyes meeting seemed to erase the sounds of the day around them, isolating the pair, one two-legged, one four.

Bobby stood a couple of feet away from the dog and didn’t want to spook it. He squatted down on his haunches, murmuring softly, “It’s okay. What happened to you, little fella? Or are you a little girl?” It was hard to tell, with the way the dog sat. “Did someone leave you back here? Are you some street-smart survivor?”

Bobby slowly reached out, just letting his hand float, steadily, in the space between them. The dog eyed the hand with what Bobby thought were alternating shades of suspicion and hunger. He wondered if other hands had ever held out a treat to the little dog, or if perhaps human hands appeared to it as weapons, as something that would strike its tiny and terrified body.

Bobby dropped his hand. “I won’t hurt you. I promise. You and me, we’re both alone today.” Bobby inched a little closer, and the dog yapped at him in warning. He moved a couple more inches, and the dog bared its teeth, a low growl issuing from deep in its belly.

“I would never hurt you. But I’ll let you come to me.” And even though it would ruin his expensive shorts and leave him smelling like the Dumpster, Bobby sat down on the bricks of the alley and leaned back against the Dumpster, legs splayed out before him.

“I have all the time in the world.”

But all the time in the world is not what it took for the dog to begin a slow, cautious, one-step-forward-two-back progression toward him. Bobby didn’t make eye contact, simply stared ahead, wondering what the hell he was doing. You really should just get up and go. This little critter is not your problem. What’s the game plan here, anyway? In spite of the thoughts ricocheting through his brain, Bobby didn’t move, casting a glance every so often out of the corner of his eye to see that the dog had drawn a little closer, a little closer.

Finally, the little creature was at his hip, sniffing. Bobby did nothing but stare straight ahead.

Finally, Bobby dared to move to put a gentle hand on its tiny head. The dog darted back, yelping as if Bobby had struck it.

They regarded one another. “We’re never going to get anywhere without trust,” Bobby said softly. He thought he saw a glimmer of that emotion in the dog’s eyes. Or maybe he saw what he wanted to see. Regardless, the dog moved forward once more and allowed Bobby to hold his hand out close enough for it to sniff.

He petted him. In their little dance, the dog revealed to Bobby that he was, indeed, a male. And, for a Chihuahua, quite a well-endowed one. “You little stud,” Bobby whispered, laughing.

The dog settled under Bobby’s sure strokes, moving closer until he had placed one paw on Bobby’s thigh, as though he wanted Bobby to lean in so he could tell him a secret. When Bobby stopped petting him to look down and regard him, the dog nudged Bobby’s hand with his head, as if to say, “More. More.”

“Can’t get enough, huh?” Bobby asked, resuming the petting and scratching behind the ears. He chuckled. “You and I have that in common.”

At last, the dog crawled onto his lap and curled up in the warmth of his crotch. He fell asleep. “Well, would you look at that,” Bobby wondered. Bobby stared down at the dog, not sure what to do next. “You’re gonna give me fleas—to add to the crabs I probably just got up yonder.” Bobby’s laughter, bordering on tears, startled the dog awake, and he stared up at Bobby, head cocked.

“What am I gonna do with you?” Bobby whispered. He wished there was a collar with a tag on the dog. That way, he could at least do the logical thing and try to find his owner.

He couldn’t just leave him here. Not now. They had forged some sort of bond in a few quick minutes. Bobby sighed. “That’s the way it goes with me and well-endowed males. Can’t help it.” He laughed, and again, the dog met his eyes, as if he too wanted in on the joke.

Bobby thought he could take him to the pound. He looked down at the poor little creature—his bordering-on-starvation body, the slight underbite that made his lower teeth stick out. This was not a pretty boy.

“You’re just a streetwise thug, aren’t you?” Bobby scratched the dog behind the ears. “Rough trade.”

Bobby wondered what would happen if he took him to the pound. No, he didn’t really wonder. Who would want this little guy? Especially if there were puppies to compete with, as he was sure there would be, or if there were purebreds and cuter dogs, as Bobby knew there would be.

The most likely scenario, Bobby knew, was that the dog would be gassed after its however-many-days were up.

And already, as he looked down at the brown-eyed face, so ugly it was cute, he knew he could never sentence this animal to a certain death.

“You son of a bitch,” Bobby said to the dog, noticing how he wagged his tail at the epithet, which made Bobby chuckle. “I guess that would be true of any male dog, wouldn’t it? But seriously, what am I gonna do with you?”

Bobby sighed; he already knew the answer. To leave the dog sitting there would break his heart, especially if he, as he did in Bobby’s imagination, followed him.

So he stood up, wiping the back of his shorts with his hands, feeling both grit and grease in a single swipe. The dog stared up at him, tail wagging, as if it knew not what was in Bobby’s mind, but his heart.

Part of him—the part that worked downtown, the part that ogled the Barney’s and Room and Board catalogs, the part that wondered how soon he could trade in his BMW for the latest model, the part that guzzled designer cocktails, the part that worked them off at a chic gym—did tell him he should just walk away. After all, the dog could belong to someone, a child, maybe, and he had just darted out of an open door. Distraught owners were combing the north side for him right now.

Right. A dog in this neglected condition most likely belongs to no one, and, if he does, that owner doesn’t deserve him.

So he squatted down next to the brown dog, holding out his hands in a little cradle. The dog hopped right into them. “Oh, so you’re easy. You and me, we’re two of a kind. You’ve probably waited your whole life behind that Dumpster, anticipating the moment I would walk by and hear your pitiful cries. Don’t worry. I know all the tricks to snare a man. You don’t fool me. The real trick is keeping one.”

Bobby stood, cradling the dog close to his chest. He looked out at life pulsing by on the street beyond the alley’s mouth and wondered how he had gotten here. The sun, he could tell from the quality of light, was beginning to set—the shadows were long and the air was cooler.

Bobby held the dog, and the pair of them emerged from the alley as if they had been made for each other, both clinging to the other for dear life. Never had the cliché, Bobby thought, been more apropos.

Just before Bobby turned the corner to begin the long trek south again, he asked the dog, “Now, what are we gonna call you?”

Bobby paused, thinking, and the name came to him all at once, brought on, not surprisingly, by the Chihuahua’s surprisingly large member. “Let’s call you Johnny, Johnny Wadd,” he said, christening the pooch after porndom’s biggest, literally, star, John Holmes.

As Bobby headed south on Clark, holding onto Johnny, who really weighed so little he barely registered, Bobby had a bracing thought.

He’d felt more connection, more joy, more happiness from the few moments with this dog than in all the eleven times he had been fucked earlier in the day.

“What does that say about me?” he wondered to Johnny.

And Johnny’s large brown eyes regarded him, but he kept his own counsel.


BUY
Amazon
Dreamspinner Press

Good Karma, Good Books: Starling By Racheline Maltese & Erin McRae

 Good Karma, Good Books: Starling by Racheline Maltese & Erin McRaeEvery Wednesday, I put on my pimp clothes (I favor feathered hats and zebra prints
with a little crushed velvet) and help promote the new or old work of some of my favorite fellow authors. Be sure to stop by every week and see what’s new. 

This week, I’m all about Starling by Racheline Maltese & Erin McRae.

Here’s what the authors say about " Starling :"

Starling was inspired by a question, and then by our own fascination with the unglamourous parts of fairy tale of fame.

Racheline and I started writing together more or less by accident. We met through mutual friends and share loves of television, backstage stories, and romances that are a little dark and a little messy.

But loving backstage stories when one of you is a SAG-AFTRA actor and the other has a long history of working crew in school shows can be hard.  There’s so much to fantasize about, people don’t always get the reality right.

But what if? We asked each other. What if a guy who never wanted to be famous, became famous? And then, email by email, we started telling each other a story. And once we started, we didn’t stop.  A year later, we’ve sold two novels -- including Starling -- a short story, and a novellete, have a half-dozen projects currently in progress, and several currently out with publishers for submission.

For Starling and its sequels - Doves, Book 2, and Phoenix, Book 3, are now also available from Torquere Press -- we wanted to tell a story about the wonder and the terror that is fame. Starling may be a fairy tale -- that discovered in a diner narrative always is. But it’s not a the Disney fairy tale. Rather, it’s much more Hans Christian Andersen or Brothers Grimm.

Since Starling is a contemporary romance, it’s not that there are monsters lurking under the bed, but we are huge fans of magical realism and wanted to see how we could bring those ideas to a story, both magic and real, set in Hollywood.

As Alex, our guy who becomes famous, and Paul, the guy he falls for, navigate their way to their happy ending, things are hard and occasionally dark. Because life, after all, isn’t easy, and fame and success don’t make figuring out how to get, and keep, what -- and who -- you want any easier.
BLURB
Be careful what you wish for...

When J. Alex Cook, a production assistant on The Fourth Estate (one of network TV’s hottest shows), is accidentally catapulted to stardom, he finds himself struggling to navigate both fame and a relationship with Paul, one of Fourth’s key writers. Despite their incendiary chemistry, Alex’s inexperience and the baggage they’re both carrying quickly lead to an ugly break-up.

...Because the stars aren’t benign.

Reeling from their broken hearts, Alex has an affair with a polyamorous co-star and Paul has an ill-advised reunion with an old flame. Meanwhile, the meddling of their colleagues, friends -- and even the paparazzi! -- quickly make Alex and Paul’s real life romance troubles the soap opera of the television season.

But while the entertainment value may be high, no one knows better than Alex and Paul that there are no guarantees when it comes to love in Los Angeles.
BUY
Amazon
All Romance
Barnes & Noble
iTunes
Kobo
Publisher 

AUTHOR BIOS
Erin McRae is a queer writer and blogger based in Washington, D.C. She has a master’s degree in International Affairs from American University, and delights in applying her knowledge of international relations theory to her fiction and screen-based projects, because conflict drives narrative.

Racheline Maltese lives a big life from a small space. She flies planes, sails boats, and rides horses, but as a native New Yorker, has no idea how to drive a car. A long-time entertainment and media industry professional, she lives in Brooklyn with her partner and their two cats.

Together, they are co-authors of the gay romance series Love in Los Angeles, set in the film and television industry -- Starling (September 10, 2014), Doves (January 21, 2015), and Phoenix (June 10, 2015) -- from Torquere Press. Their gay romance novella series Love’s Labours, set in the theater world -- Midsummer (May 2015), and Twelfth Night (Fall 2015), is from Dreamspinner Press. They also have a story in Best Gay Romance 2015 from Cleis Press and edited by Felice Picano. You can find them on the web at http://www.Avian30.com.

 

DREAMBOAT A Fevered Erotic Dream

Sexy. Surreal. Short.

BLURB
Do you ever wonder where the dream people come from? Those people who appear in our dreams yet we’ve never seen elsewhere? So begins the story of a young man visited in recurring dreams by his personal vision of a dreamboat. His exotic, Latin ideal man is swarthy, sexy, and ripped and knows exactly the right ways to please our hero. The dreams are surreal and sexy...but what happens when our hero encounters his dream man in real life? A short story by Rick R. Reed, a writer praised by the Lambda Literary Review as a "writer who doesn't disappoint."

EXCERPT
I turned and looked toward the mattress on the hardwood floor. A man lay amid the cream-colored sheets, his dark skin a contrast to the color and texture of the linens. His eyelids were at half-mast, looking both sleepy and lustful at the same time. The lids shadowed the palest green eyes I had ever seen, all the more brilliant in contrast to his dark (Latin?) skin. He smiled and his perfect white teeth and full lips lit up his stubbled face.

He patted the bed, inviting me to join him. I hesitated, the window at my back, feeling a strange sense of foreboding. He certainly looked inviting: his hard, muscular body sculpted from tawny granite and dusted with coarse, curly black hair. He cocked his head. “Come on, sweetheart.” His voice was deep as he sang a lyric from an old reggae song, “The bed’s too big without you.” He reached beneath the sheets and that’s when I froze.

ONTOPDOWNUNDER REVIEWS
Go in expecting the unexpected and I have no doubt you'll enjoy it as much as I did. Highly recommended.

BUY
Amazon Kindle

New & Notable: Audiobook of CASA RODRIGO by Johnny Miles

The thrilling and breathtaking audiobook of CASA RODRIGO (by my pal Johnny Miles) is now available and I want to share it with you.

BLURB
On a lush, tropical island inhabited by rogues, thieves and villains, where men take the law into their own hands, a father and son are thrust into tumultuous events that will change their lives forever.

Bernardo de Rodrigo is proud of his son. Alonso is handsome and winning, and everyone he meets is instantly drawn to the tall, warm Spaniard. But how could either of them have known that a forbidden love is about to claim Alonso's heart?

Arbol, the charismatic male slave who was saved from the clutches of Raul Ignacio Martín, feels an instant connection with Alonso, the moment he looks into Arbol's eyes, the moment they touch.

Bernardo has other things to worry about, however. He's trying to exorcise himself of an intensely gratifying yet shame-filled sexual affair with Raul, who secretly adores Bernardo but doesn't know how to show it.

When Raul blackmails Bernardo, their dark and sordid relationship not only threatens the bond between father and son, it places Arbol's life in danger. Now Bernardo must make a difficult choice that could further alienate his son while Alonso must find a way to keep the man he loves.

LISTEN TO THE FIRST THREE CHAPTERS
Get a taste of this thrilling adventure here.

BUY
Audible 
Amazon 

iTunes 

MORE ABOUT AUTHOR JOHNNY MILESJohnny Miles began his writing career in 1985, when his first erotic short story was published by Numbers magazine. His work has since then appeared in various adult magazines, including Blueboy, First Hand, andHoncho.
After working in varied careers - from typesetting and graphic design to massage therapy, from customer service to copywriting - Johnny re-entered the world of erotica in 2008 with the release of his first full-length novel,Casa Rodrigo. The controversial story was followed by Lauderdale Hearts,Learning To Samba, The Rosas of Spanish Harlem, Yuletide Knights andYuletide Knights 2: A Spring Frost, all available from Loose Id, as well as The Last Stop: USA, released by MLR Press. Non-erotic titles include Christmas Baby and My ABCs. 
In 2015, Casa Rodrigo With four and a half hours of pure aural entertainment and 12 outstanding actors, the story is richly layered and textured with sounds effects that will stimulate your senses. It's an immersive experience not to be missed!
Johnny is currently at work on Book Three of the Yuletide Knights series. He lives in Fort Lauderdale with his husband of 19 years and a grumble of pugs.

Good Karma, Good Books: In from the Cold by Carolina Valdez

Good Karma, Good Books: In from the Cold by Carolina ValdezEvery Wednesday, I put on my pimp clothes (I favor feathered hats and zebra prints
with a little crushed velvet) and help promote the new or old work of some of my favorite fellow authors. Be sure to stop by every week and see what’s new. 

This week, I’m all about "In From the Cold" by Carolina Valdez.

Here’s what Carolina says about " In From the Cold :"

I selected this title because when young love fades and is reignited later in life to become something real, to me that is like coming in from the cold to warmth and acceptance.

BLURB
East is East and West is West and never the twain shall meet…
Jon and Wendell were fourteen when they first experimented on each other and discovered they were gay. Lovers and in love, they drifted apart after graduation when Jon left to follow his dream to rock ʼn roll stardom. A heartbroken Wendell recovered by earning an animal husbandry degree at a California university. He returned to the small Oregon town where they’d grown up to raise sheep with his father.
Ten years later, Wendell’s contentment is shattered when Jon and his band arrive to play for their high school reunion. Love surprises them by flaring immediately into liquid heat. Jon asks Wendell to give up his life in Oregon and live with him in New York City. Wendell refuses, however, asking Jon to move in with him instead. But Jon refuses to give up his career and returns to Manhattan.
Will Wendell and Jon remain star-crossed lovers, or will they discover a way to bridge the distance and discover the true meaning of home?         .
BUY
Amazon