Elisa Rolle's Blog, page 393

Statistics: March 2015

Here are the 3 months statistics for the visits on my website and 2 journals:

Site January 2015 February 2015* March 2015   elisarolle.com 700.967 716.241 730.077 1,9% reviews-and-ramblings.dreamwidth.org 24.568 21.218 24.122   elisa-rolle.livejournal.com 44.854 45.908 47.159   Total 770.389 783.367 801.358 2,3% *on a 31 days basis        
there was an increase of the 1,9% on the visits on the website, and of 2,3% on the total number of visits for all three locations.



I decided to remove the ad banners from the website, thank you so much to all publishers who contributed the past year.

comments

2015 Rainbow Awards Submission: Spidermilk by Konrad Hartmann

Spidermilk by Konrad Hartmann
Bisexual Sci-Fi / Futuristic
Paperback: 244 pages
Publisher: Fantastic Fiction Publishing (September 23, 2014)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1622341864
ISBN-13: 978-1622341863
Amazon: Spidermilk
Amazon Kindle: Spidermilk

Eddie Stover, private eye, lives in a future where artificial humans called LifeMates serve consumers as a purchasable commodity. When Stover takes a wandering daughter case, the search for the missing woman plunges him into a world of hijacked LifeMates, psychadellic milk, and a bizarre spider-worshiping cult. As the thrall of his old addictions and the enticements of the woman he promised to protect threaten to consume him, Stover is faced with the realization that he cannot escape the choice love forces him to make.

2015 Rainbow Awards Guidelines: http://www.elisarolle.com/rainbowawards/rainbow_awards_2015.html

comments

2015 Rainbow Awards Submission: Song of the Lonesome Cowboy by Lynn Kelling

Song of the Lonesome Cowboy by Lynn Kelling
Gay Contemporary Romance
Paperback: 282 pages
Publisher: Fantastic Fiction Publishing (January 17, 2015)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1622342143
ISBN-13: 978-1622342143
Amazon: Song of the Lonesome Cowboy
Amazon Kindle: Song of the Lonesome Cowboy

Tucker Reynolds is a rising star in country music. The people from his record label tell him he's destined to be one of the greats—but only if he fits the "good ol' boy" image country fans expect from him. The trouble is, that's not the kind of man's man Tucker really wants to be. Forced into an unsavory relationship with a record executive and frustrated by his regrettably platonic relationship with his best friend and guitarist, Mags Palmer, Tucker turns to kinky sex with male prostitutes for release. Things hit Tucker's limit when one of Tucker's bandmates, Jess Grayville, begins to suspect what's going on, and puts himself in danger to protect Tucker. Desperate for a way out of his troubles, Tucker realizes only honesty, love, and a true song can save himself and the man who stands by him.

2015 Rainbow Awards Guidelines: http://www.elisarolle.com/rainbowawards/rainbow_awards_2015.html

comments

Blog Tour: Un-Expected by Lisa Worrall

Un-Expected (Left at the Crossroads #1) by Lisa Worrall
Series: Left at the Crossroads
Paperback: 180 pages
Publisher: White Stiletto Press (February 24, 2014)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1500137952
ISBN-13: 978-1500137953
Amazon: Un-Expected (Left at the Crossroads #1)
Amazon Kindle: Un-Expected (Left at the Crossroads #1)

Little Mowbury is a sleepy English village deep in the Cotswolds. The kind of village where you’re only a local if your lineage can be traced back to the dinosaurs. Where you can find everything in the single shop from morning newspapers to dry-cleaning, and getting your shoes mended. And, of course, where everybody knows everybody else’s business. It’s easy to find… you can’t miss it… just ask anyone and they’ll tell you… “It’s left at the crossroads.”
After being dumped on graduation day by the love of his life, Harry Boyd, Micah Lewis returned to the sleepy village he grew up in. Living next door to his mother wasn’t his best idea, granted, but when your heart was broken, there really was no place like home.
Six years later, secure and content in his job as midwife for a local birthing centre, the last person he expected to move into Lilac Cottage across the street from him was Harry Boyd. Seeing Harry again sends Micah into a tailspin and opens wounds he thought had long since healed. Although, Harry himself isn’t the only issue Micah has to face. That would be Harry’s very beautiful and very pregnant partner, Selena. But is everything as it seems?

( EXCERPT
 )



TOUR SCHEDULE
April 1: Joyfully Jay || Anne Barwell
April 2: Prism Book Alliance
April 3: Foxylutely Books || Love Bytes Reviews
April 6: Divine Magazine
April 7: MM Good Book Reviews || Because Two Men Are Better Than One || Charlie Cochet
April 8: Diverse Reader || Hearts on Fire Reviews
April 9: Nic Starr
April 10: Bayou Book Junkie || Elisa - My Reviews and Ramblings
April 13: Cia's stories || Wicked Faeries Tales & Reviews
April 14: Rainbow Gold Reviews || Gay Media Reviews || Multitasking Mommas

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
I live in Southend-on-Sea, a small seaside town just outside London on the South East coast of Essex, England that boasts the longest pier in the world; where I am ordered around by two precocious children and a dog who thinks she's the boss of me. I've been writing seriously for three years now and love giving voice to the characters warring to be heard in my head, and am currently petitioning for more hours in the day, because I never seem to have enough of them.

GIVEAWAY
Win a copy of Lisa Worrall’s ‘Un-expected’ and 3 runners up will get to pick any one of Sue Brown’s books!
RAFFLECOPTER
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Rafflecopter Link: http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/disp...?

COMING SOON

In-Decision (Left at the Crossroads #2) by Sue Brown
Publisher: Sue Brown Stories (April 15, 2015)
Amazon Kindle: In-Decision (Left at the Crossroads #2)

Little Mowbury is a sleepy English village deep in the Cotswolds. The kind of village where you’re only a local if your lineage can be traced back to the dinosaurs. Where you can find everything in the single village shop from morning newspapers to dry-cleaning, and getting your shoes mended. And, of course, where everybody knows everybody else’s business. It’s easy to find… you can’t miss it… just ask anyone and they’ll tell you… “It’s left at the crossroads.”
Eighteen months ago Jason Havers lost the love of his life and it's time to move on. Applying for the position of chef in a sleepy country pub, a million miles away from his previous life, may well be the fresh start he needs. His new employers immediately take him under their wing and before long he finds himself with a passel of new friends and a job he loves. What he doesn’t expect is Tom, a gorgeous midwife, who stirs up feelings he’s not ready to deal with.
But when someone from his previous life turns up in Little Mowbury, will Jason be able to keep them from revealing the secret he’s been keeping from those he’s come to love?





comments

Cole Tucker & Tom Spencer

Cole Tucker is an actor in gay pornography. He started making appearances in gay pornography in 1996 at the age of 43, previously working as a realtor. In 1999, he revealed in a story published in the London Standard that he was HIV Positive and also had a relationship with former British Tory MEP Tom Spencer.

In 2000 he was one of the celebrity gay porn stars taking part in the "Pillage & Plunder" cruise to benefit Pride Tampa Bay.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cole_Tucker

Thomas Newnham Bayley Spencer (born 10 April 1948) is a British Conservative politician and former Member of the European Parliament.

Spencer was educated at Pangbourne Nautical College and the University of Southampton. He served as Conservative MEP for Derbyshire from 1979–1984, Conservative MEP for Surrey West from 1989–1994, and as Conservative MEP for Surrey from 1994-1999. He was leader of the UK Conservative MEPs from 1995 to 1998 and was Chairman of the Parliament's Foreign Affairs Committee from 1997 to 1999. He decided not to restand for re-election to the European Parliament in 1999 after being found with gay pornography and two cannabis cigarettes in his luggage at Heathrow Airport. Spencer acknowledged being gay and said that his wife was aware of that before they married. Spencer was in a relationship with porn actor Cole Tucker, who was depicted in the porn found in Spencer's luggage.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_Spencer_(politician)

comments

Anja Edin & Gro Hammerseng

Anja Hammerseng-Edin (born 5 February 1983) is a Norwegian handball player. She currently plays for Larvik HK and the Norwegian national team.

She made her début on the Norwegian national team in 2006, and has played in the 2009 World Women's Handball Championship and the 2012 European Women's Handball Championship.

Anja Edin started playing handball when she was 5 years old, with her mother as a trainer.

Edin married fellow handball player Gro Hammerseng on August 3, 2013, and they have a son together. They are both playing for the Norwegian national team and Larvik HK.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anja_Edin

Gro Hammerseng-Edin (born 10 April 1980 in Gjøvik as Gro Hammerseng) is a Norwegian handballer playing for the Norwegian national team and Norwegian club Larvik HK. She has been the captain of the national team for several years, and in 2007 she was voted female World Handball Player of the Year.

Hammerseng started her handball career in 1990 at Gjøvik HK (1990–1995). She later played one year for Raufoss IL (1995–1996) and one year for Vardal IF (1996–1997) before starting her senior career in 1997 for Gjøvik og Vardal HK (1997–2003). Hammerseng was Gjøvik og Vardal's captain during her six seasons with the club. In 2003, after serious economic problems at her hometown club, Hammerseng signed with Danish top club Ikast-Bording, since November 2008 called FC Midtjylland Håndbold. Gro stayed 7 years in Denmark playing for the Danish club FC Midtjylland Håndbold, but on 17 February 2010 she signed under a 2-year contract with the Norwegian handball club Larvik HK. Gro has played for Larvik since the 2010/11 season.


Anja Edin cycled Gro Hammerseng and son Mio to her own wedding in the afternoon. Photo: Arne -Petter Lorentzen
Anja Hammerseng-Edin (born 5 February 1983) is a Norwegian handball player. She currently plays for Larvik HK and the Norwegian national team. Edin married fellow handball player Gro Hammerseng on August 3, 2013, and they have a son together. They are both playing for the Norwegian national team and Larvik HK. Gro Hammerseng-Edin (born 10 April 1980) is a Norwegian handballer playing. She has been the captain of the national team for several years, and in 2007 she was voted female World Handball Player of the Year.



( Read more... )

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gro_Hammerseng

comments

Taylor V. Donovan (born April 7)

Taylor V. Donovan is a compulsive reader and author of m/m romantic suspense. She is optimistically cynical about the world; lover of history, museums and all things 80s. She is crazy about fashion, passionate about civil rights and equality for all and shamelessly indulges in mind-numbing reality television.

When she is not making a living in the busiest city in the world or telling the stories of gorgeous men hot for one another, Taylor can be found raising her two daughters and two terribly misbehaved furry babies in the mountains she calls home.

Disasterology 101 won a 2013 Rainbow Award as Best Gay Contemporary Romance, The William Neale Award for Best Gay Contemporary Romance.

Further Readings:

Disasterology 101 by Taylor V. Donovan
Paperback: 398 pages
Publisher: MLR Press (July 17, 2013)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1608208818
ISBN-13: 978-1608208814
Amazon: Disasterology 101
Amazon Kindle: Disasterology 101

Kevin Morrison had it all. A house he worked hard for, a loving wife, and three beautiful children. But it wasn't until his marriage ended that he realized what the void he'd felt almost all his life meant. Coming out as a gay man at thirty-six is not an easy feat, but he is determined to be true to his heart. Meeting a man who shares his values, and is good with his children would be a bonus, but when the guy arrives in a uniquely wrapped package, and has very specific handling instructions, Kevin needs to decide if he's up for that kind of love. Obsessed with order and symmetry, and a paralyzing fear of germs, Cedric Haughton-Disley has lived with isolation and loneliness as long as he can remember. Desperate to be normal, he makes some much-needed changes in his life. If he can commit to his treatment, he might very well be able to procure some quality of life... even if that's all he can get, as finding love and having a relationship are only possible in Cedric's wildest dreams. But when a chance encounter leaves Cedric wishing for more, he decides to take a leap of faith, and pursue the guy he wants. Together the two men make an unlikely match. Cedric needs organization, and Kevin represents chaos. In order to stay together they both need to compromise, but will they be able to deal with Cedric's issues and the potential disaster, or let it break them apart

More Rainbow Awards at my website:  elisarolle.com , Rainbow Awards/2013

comments

2015 Rainbow Awards Submission: The Witch of Stalingrad by Justine Saracen

The Witch of Stalingrad by Justine Saracen
Lesbian Historical Fiction
Paperback: 264 pages
Publisher: Bold Strokes Books (March 17, 2015)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1626393303
ISBN-13: 978-1626393301
Amazon: The Witch of Stalingrad
Amazon Kindle: The Witch of Stalingrad

As the German Blitzkrieg brings the Soviet Union to its knees in 1942, a regiment of women aviators flies out at night in flimsy aircraft without parachutes or radios to harass the Wehrmacht troops. The Germans call them “Night Witches” and the best of them is Lilya Drachenko. From the other end of the world, photojournalist Alex Preston arrives to “get the story” for the American press and witnesses sacrifice, hardship, and desperate courage among the Soviet women that is foreign to her. So also are their politics. While the conservative journalist and the communist Lilya clash politically, Stalingrad, the most savage battle of the 20th century, brings them together, until enemy capture and the lethal Russian winter tears them apart again.

2015 Rainbow Awards Guidelines: http://www.elisarolle.com/rainbowawards/rainbow_awards_2015.html

comments

Cover Reveal: Crossed Hearts by K. Vale

Crossed Hearts (Hearts and Scars 1) by K. Vale
Link: www.goodreads.com/book/show/25150920-crossed-hearts

Kory Vansant doesn’t deserve to be alive.
As time sucks him dry of energy, sapping the final ounces of strength from his congenitally enlarged heart, he's forced to end his career as Kory Kent, porn star. Staring down death, he questions his life choices and prays for a miracle. For another chance at life, he vows to change who he is at his core.
His prayers are answered. A perfect heart now beats in his chest, but it comes at a heavy price. The donor is an innocent young man cut down far too prematurely.
And Kory's blemished history is nowhere near an ideal match.
As his debts skyrocket, Kory can’t help but think his resolve to walk the high road is being tested. After he meets the adorable Will Squire at the gravesite they both visit, he’s doubly damned because there’s no way he can keep up his end of the bargain. What happens when a man breaks a deal with a higher power?
Will often prefers the company of the dead to that of the living. Following a bad breakup, he pours himself into his two jobs—funeral director at his uncle’s mortuary and part-time paramedic. He’s drawn ever closer to Kory, as if fate sticks her fickle hand in and pushes them together like two unlikely puzzle pieces. But sometimes history can’t be buried, and maybe divine intervention isn’t always right. Will discovers everyone is imperfect, no matter how pretty the outer package, and opening one’s heart is never easy, but can be oh so worth the pain.

( Excerpt )



About the author:
K. Vale writes erotic romance of all stripes, from hot hetero to mouthwatering manlove. Find her MF work published under Kimber Vale. Come for the sex. Stay for the story. Stalk Kimber on Facebook and Twitter @KimberVale, and check her site for updates, new releases, and freebies at http://www.authorkimbervale.com.

Where to find the author:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kimber.vale
Facebook Author Page: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Kimber...
Twitter: https://twitter.com/KimberVale
Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/kimbervale/



Tour Dates & Stops:
April 6, 2015 Parker Williams, Inked Rainbow Reads, Divine Magazine, Molly Lolly, BFD Book Blog, Fangirl Moments and My Two Cents, Charley Descoteaux, Carly’s Book Reviews, Cate Ashwood, TTC Books and More, Bike Book Reviews, Scattered Thoughts & Rogue Words, Bayou Book Junkie, Love Bytes, My Fiction Nook, Wicked Faerie's Tales and Reviews, Elisa - My Reviews and Ramblings, MM Good Book Reviews, Book Reviews, Rants, and Raves, Rainbow Gold Reviews

Enter to win a copy of Crossed Hearts by adding it to your Goodreads "Want to Read" shelf. Kimber will pick a winner on release day. Follow the link: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...





comments

Days of Love is the Winner of the 3rd Annual Beverly Hills International Book Awards

‘DAYS OF LOVE’ CELEBRATING LGBT HISTORY ONE STORY AT A TIME IS THE WINNER OF THE 3RD ANNUAL BEVERLY HILLS INTERNATIONAL BOOK AWARDS

Dear Elisa, It is our great pleasure to inform you that you are a Winner in the LGBT Non-Fiction Category of the 3rd Annual Beverly Hills International Book Awards. Your book, Days of Love: Celebrating LGBT History One Story at a Time, truly embodies the excellence that this award was created to celebrate, and we salute you and your fine work. The entire team at the Beverly Hills Book Awards sincerely hope your participation in our contest will serve you well in creating the success your book deserves. You have our warmest congratulations. Warmly, ELLEN REID, President & CEO Beverly Hills Book Awards http://www.beverlyhillsbookawards.com/2015-BHBA-Winners-and-Finalists.htm#lgbtnf

‘DAYS OF LOVE’ CELEBRATES LGBT HISTORY ONE LOVE STORY AT A TIME A new book chronicling 2,000 years of same-sex love stories, from Alexander the Great to the latest Literary Award winner, makes the perfect Valentine’s Day gift. Days of Love, created and Edited by Elisa Rolle, makes inspiring reading and lays to rest the myth that LGBT couples are not capable of sustaining life-long relationships. Packed full of beautiful photos and illustrations it lovingly features the personal stories of 700 LGBT couples from the dawn of history to the present day. Many of the contemporary couples share their stories on how they met and fell in love, as well as photos from when they married or of the families they have started together. Days of Love is also a great source of LGBT trivia and stories that have all-too-often been written out of history. For example, did you know that Sir Isaac Newton, who laid the foundation for modern physics, may have had a relationship with a Swiss mathematician, Nicolas Fatio de Duillier? That the British author of 2001: A Space Odyssey Arthur C. Clarke had a 13-year partnership with a male Sri Lankan teenager, and they are buried together? This is only a fraction of the fascinating facts that you can discover. What comes across is an alternative cultural history of LGBT people. As we celebrate growing social acceptability and the increasing introduction same-sex marriage, we are reminded that many people past and present paved the way for our civil rights, not the least of which is the right to love whoever we want. Elisa Rolle explains in the introduction to Days of Love why she decided to compile this book: "I have always liked love stories, and to me, even if you only spent one day in blissful happiness, then it was a love story. I see the following pages like a family photo album, the enlarged LGBT family sharing their memories: you will read about couples who managed to stay together for more than 70 years, but also those who were able to have only some days of happiness."

A successful, multi-lingual career woman, Elisa Rolle’s job takes her all around the world, yet she somehow manages to find time to review books, write articles and interview authors for her site. Her website — http://reviews-and-ramblings.dreamwid... — is one of the most comprehensive online journals dedicated solely to LGBT literature, art, and film. She also founded ‘Rainbow Awards’, an online annual awards event that judges hundreds of LGBT titles in dozens of categories.

Days of Love: Celebrating LGBT History One Story at a Time by Elisa Rolle
Paperback: 760 pages
Publisher: CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform; 1 edition (July 1, 2014)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1500563323
ISBN-13: 978-1500563325
Amazon (Paperback): http://www.amazon.com/dp/1500563323/?...
Amazon (Kindle): http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00MZG0VHY/?...

( Reviews & Spotlights )

( Early Bird Reviews )


comments