Interlude

Snow & Winter

by C.S. Poe

Interlude is a collection of short stories spanning the complete timeline of the Snow & Winter series, beginning with The Mystery of Nevermore, to after the conclusion of The Mystery of the Bones. They feature the point of view of Sebastian Snow and Calvin Winter and consist of mini mysteries, as well as scenes from daily life.

Please note: While many of these titles were previously made available for free to readers, they have all since been rewritten, expanded, and edited for this collection. Several shorts are brand-new and exclusive, including Someone’s in the Wall, St. Louis What Now?, and Trope: Only One Bed.

Genres: M M Romance, Mystery, Romance, Contemporary, Audiobook, Short Stories, Crime

159 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 8, 2021

About the author

C.S. Poe is an author of gay mystery, romance, and speculative fiction. She’s a winner of the Next Generation and e-Lit book awards, as well as a finalist of the Lambda Literary award.

She resides in New York City and is a Gilded Age New York historian and board director for the Victorian Society of New York. She loves Romanticism artwork, the films of Buster Keaton, coffee in the morning and whiskey in the evening, true crime, and cats. She’s rescued two cats—Milo and Kasper do their best to distract her from work on a daily basis.

C.S. is an alumna of the School of Visual Arts.

Her debut novel, The Mystery of Nevermore, was published 2016.

cspoe.com

Reviews

[alyssa · Rating 5 out of 5]

making the executive decision that all long-running series now require at least one short story collection because of how much life these charming snippets give me. also the Queer Expectations Convention name drop? pure, magical gold. i love knowing the events that led up to their cameo in North and Shaw’s Indirection!

[Saimi Vasquez · Rating 4 out of 5]

Aqui tenemos una serie de historias cortas, muchas sin mayor sentido que una escena extra, algunas de ellas pueden entrar en cualquiera de los libros, sobre todo las vacaciones, pero lo que me parece mas importante es como aqui el autor nos muestra, por fin, el punto de vista de Calvin. Una de las historias es Calvin con Quinn, donde se encuentra con Neil y llegan a un acuerdo con respecto a su relacion con Sebastian. Y en la otra se refleja toda la lucha interior de Calvin contra su PTSD y como siente el que su vida y relacion con Sebastian es lo que lo mantiene cuerdo y a flote.
En fin, resulta entretenido tener estos pequeños vistazos de escenas de la pareja donde no estan involucrados en ningun misterio y solo es la relacion entre ellos y sus seres queridos.
Es un buen extra de la serie, sobre todo si quedas intrigado como yo, en saber el punto de vista de Calvin.

[C.S. Poe]

Buy Links:

Ebook, Paperback, and Audio
audio narrated by Wyatt Baker

coming soon... French edition with Mnemosyne Lit.

[Gerbera_Reads · Rating 5 out of 5]

I hope there will be more collections like this one because it was an absolute treat! We all wonder what happens to our beloved characters in between novels. These are their stories... One thing I love about C.S. Poe's writing is her brand of humor. It's so on par with her characters - a touch of hilarious, so much snarky sarcasm and self deprecation but never veering into mean. (I really do not care for funny stories but this is hard to pass up. Yep, it's that good) These stories made me laugh, made me melt and at times made me want to tear up. Sebastian and Calvin together are just precious even when they are not sleuthing while being in mortal danger. I enjoyed it from the first page to the last!

[Carol · Rating 5 out of 5]

Anyone that loves these two characters... antique emporium owner and amateur sleuth, Sebastian Snow and his now husband, NYPD Detective Calvin Winters, will love this little offering. It takes up where the book length tales leave off letting us glimpse briefly into what the two have been up to between the full length books. It's funny, it's warm, it's just what we fans needed while waiting and hoping that there is going to be another book in this series. Sebestian and Calvin have been married about 2 years when these insights take place. We see them search frantically for a new apartment...we follow them on the dream vacation that Calvin plans as a surprise for Sebastian...we watch Calvin search the walls of the new apartment for the "person" that he's sure is living there...just the everyday lives of our two favorite people as they fall more in love with one another. This little 157-page delight is a fantastic gift for all fans of these two sweet guys. Thank you Ms. Poe for this little treasure chest that allows us to be the "fly on the wall". Since it's Volume 1, can we dare hope that there will be a Vol 2, and 3 and 4 after maybe another dozen or more books in the series?

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s taken me an embarrassingly long time to realise the cover of these books are coloured this way to depict Sebastian’s vision impairment - not being able to see colour with everything a shade of grey. I really like this added touch.

Lovely collection of short stories to give some delightful downtime for these characters between their fast paced mysteries. I loved getting Cal’s POV and needed way more of it.

I’m very happy to discover the author has delivered with telling us the colour of Cal’s eyes.

This was such a charming collection of stories I wish there was more.

[Hank Edwards · Rating 5 out of 5]

I will admit right up front that I love the Snow & Winter series. I have the books in all formats: Kindle, paperback, and audio. The characters are wonderful and fully realized, and the mysteries are top notch. This collection of stories gives us glimpses of life "between the mysteries" of the four book series, as well as not only Sebastian's point of view (which the four novels are told from), but some from Calvin's POV as well. Poe does a great job of setting the timing (for instance, after "The Mystery of Nevermore," the first book in the series) and POV. I loved the glimpses into the lives Sebastian and Calvin build for themselves amid the chaos and flutter of the mysteries Sebastian inevitably gets drawn into. And Neil Millett, running neck and neck with Seb for crankiest character, makes a couple of guest appearances (I am anxiously awaiting Neil's set of stories... but that's beside the point). This is an excellent return to the Snow & Winter world with fresh insight and stories (my favorite it is the last in the collection, Trope: There's Only One Bed, told from Calvin's POV). Highly recommended, especially for fans of the Snow & Winter mysteries. If you haven't read those yet, start with those four books and then grab this collection to complete your experience.

[Chappy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was great...I needed a Sebastian and Calvin fix.

We got some stories from Seb's POV and even a few from Calvin's POV.

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

So cute - loved these moments with Winter & Snow ❤️

[Rachel Emily · Rating 5 out of 5]

For fans of Snow and Winter, this entire book is a delight. I LOVE all these shorts collected together - AND the new ones that she wrote, too!

I honestly loved the last two stories in the book the best I think. I truly love Sebastian and Calvin married and snarking and loving on each other, it's just so perfect. And I neeeeeeed the new series with Neil in it, I cannot wait to see him finally meet his match. His friendship with Seb is just so wonderful, they're just great friends now and I love it.

Honestly, I love this and if you enjoyed the main series you need to get this!

[BeckieLouLou · Rating 5 out of 5]

5 star series. Exceptional. Amazing writing, charming characters that are so well written, you feel like you actually know them. The interactions and conversations are stellar with wonderful dialogue and a perfect cast of friends, family and co-workers. A bit of sass that is smartly done, never over the top, just perfect. The romance, mystery and adventure are perfectly proportioned, incredibly interesting book after book. Binge reading was a joy as there was the perfect/little amount of recapping prior events.

Sebastian and his chronic snooping and sleuthing is just spectacular. While his ex was frustrated by it, his true love is accepting of it and knows just how to manage Seb to keep him safe while loving his curiosity. Seb and his ex’s relationship journey is such a great part of this story and their bickering in book 4 is so great. I loved watching them reframe their relationship into something different but better and I can’t help but wish for Neil’s HEA too. A swoony line from ex BF Neil: “You’re the whole package, Sebastian. Romantic. Loyal. Brave. Calvin’s met you every step of the way. And this time last year, he was… like me. But he saw the stars in you, and he reached.”

C.S. Poe is a gifted writer and created the most amazing world to drop into time and again. Contemporary, a bit gritty and a bit gory but also charming and sweet and cozy. The romance is sexy and spicy while the added layer of protectiveness and adoration rounds out the series in a spectacular way. Truly, the full package. I love each and every book in this series and ripped through them quickly and happily.

HEA, mystery, NYC, detective, antique dealer, small business owner, vers, m/m, series, must read in order.

[Caz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice collection of "between-the-books" shorts with Sebastian and Calvin off the clock.

[CrabbyPatty · Rating 5 out of 5]

I will admit it - I haven't always been the biggest fan of ficlets, drabbles, codas or whatever-you-may-call-them from series authors. But, C.S. Poe's "Interlude" has blown that out of the water .... and now basically I would pay to read random bar napkin scribblings or a grocery list penned by Poe.

This book of eleven (11) interludes fits in and around the existing "Snow and Winter" series and gives us some deep insight into Calvin (loved "The Good in the World"), the Customer from Hell vs. a nooner, a welcome glimpse into what's going on with Neil (Seb's ex-boyfriend), a belated honeymoon trip, a loving homage to M/M romance novels and the GayRomLit originally scheduled for October 2020 (thanks, COVID) and now being held in October, 2021 (mark your calendars!) and a few more gems.

I love Poe's awesome writing chops and her subtle humor and sarcastic wit, and I would definitely recommend "Interlude " AND I'm also really looking forward to Neil's book series. 5 stars!

I received an ARC from the author, in exchange for an honest review.

Visit my blog, Sinfully Good Gay Book Reviews

[Teeny · Rating 4 out of 5]

2nd re-listen. Rating stays the same.

I loved this short stories that span the whole series, little glimpses from their everyday lives, I just wish we had more POVs of Calvin's than Seb's because the whole series was from Seb's POV.

Anyways... this is a lovely series and so worth to give it a try.

--------

It was great visiting with Snow and Winter again, especially since I listened to the the series and the ending got me by surprise because I didn't want them to end! I loved them as a couple! They balanced each other out like nobody's business!!

Sebastian's snarkiness and grumpiness is at an all time high in this short stories and Calvin is always there to gentle him. Calvin is broken up after his therapy session but Sebastian, being there in their home, warm, waiting for him always pieces him back together.

I laughed so much! Can't wait for the next one!!! I just can't get enough of them!

[Shelby · Rating 5 out of 5]

I enjoyed this collection so much. I love Snow and Calvin as a couple and these little peaks into their lives outside of the crazy mysteries they keep getting drawn into was such fun. I enjoyed getting to see a little bit from Calvin's perspective as well. Sebastian's inner voice is just so much fun. I love his little neurosis. The story about the crying in the wall cracked me up cause I could just see Sebastian's brain racing with it all. Any story with these two in it is worth the read. Can't wait to read the next full length novel as well.

[Terri · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a treat this is, for fans of the series. I'm abjectly grateful to the author for letting us have a little more of these two.

[Annie Maus · Rating 5 out of 5]

Warning! Do not read C.S. Poe’s ‘Interlude’ in the library. You will be escorted out, dabbing your eyes with a hanky, chortling loudly. Unfortunately, I started it next to a sleeping husband. By the second chapter, I was banished from the bedroom.

These are some of the funniest scenes I’ve ever read. Imagine a blow job interrupted four times, or a protracted apartment rental search, where the “ideal home” has its bathtub in the kitchen. (All Manhattanites will shudder in recognition!)

Is Interlude a standalone? I think so. It’s a series of short stories which intersperse through the Snow & Winter collection. Some time ago, I did enjoy The Mystery of the Moving Image immensely, but had forgotten the details, and still followed Interlude perfectly. And I suspect this would have been true without reading any of the installments. One thing for certain. I will be going back and imbibing the missing editions!

Sebastian Snow is the sight-impaired proprietor of an antique store, a career which suits the shy, stuffy, old-fashioned man who can’t talk dirty without blushing. When a series of mysteries hit his store, he becomes entwined with homicide detective Calvin Snow, who appears to be a laid-back fellow. In book 1 of the Snow & Winter series , The Mystery of Nevermore, they fell in love and Snow came out as gay.

Sebastian and Calvin are yin and yang, which makes for stellar moments – of humor, eroticism and offers great perspective. Snow describes seeing Calvin: “The indescribable feeling that the personification of home was smiling at me.” Calvin may have been shot twice at work, but he admires Sebastian’s courage. “By refusing to hide who he was, being unapologetic of his interests… Sebastian really was a living embodiment of strength.”

Sebastian and Calvin make each other feel safe without any intrusiveness and encourage one another to take bigger risks. The arc of these stories shows how their love moves them past their vulnerabilities towards self-trust, moments and tidbits that are as much about love, itself, as the two characters.

And then there’s a crew of delightfully penned individuals, including Max, Sebastian’s assistant, a man with persistently bad timing, and Sebastian’s warm-hearted dad, a fountain of wisdom. In one short, Sebastian’s ex actually befriends Calvin! Though the stories are brief, I could describe and picture this supporting cast.

If you’re literary, you’ll enjoy Ms. Poe’s nod to different authors. If not, her language and dialogue is so smooth, you’ll understand the references without having read those writers! And if intimacy is your thang, you’ll be fanning yourself! Sebastian’s embarrassment with speech doesn’t generalize to action. Dirty? Yes, eight ways from Sunday.

Each short story in Interlude is a perfect nugget, start, middle and end, as Sebastian and Calvin’s relationship grows through little kindnesses, from the rush of newness to domesticity and the respect which builds permanent trust. Throughout, I smiled, laughed and cried, inside and out.

[Joyfully Jay · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Joyfully Jay review.

4 stars

Interlude is an anthology of stories featuring Sebastian Snow and Calvin Winter of C.S. Poe’s Snow and Winter series. The final book in the series, The Mystery of the Bones, came out last year and this collection brings us 11 stories that take place over the course of the series, as well as after the final book. The stories range from short scenes like The Good in the World, where a weary Calvin looks upon a sleeping Sebastian with fondness, to longer works that read more like short stories. According to the author, while some of these titles were previously available for free to readers, they have all been re-written, expanded, and edited for the collection.

This is obviously a book meant for those familiar with the Snow and Winter series, as it assumes both a knowledge of and a fondness for these characters.

Read Jay’s review in its entirety here.

[Gretchen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely loved it.

I received a free early copy in exchange for an honest review. This book is a series of short vignettes about Sebastian Snow and Calvin Winter. I found it absolutely exquisite. I like the author's grasp on her characters. They do not feel like architypes- they feel like men, with flaws and annoying habits and yet they remain utterly loveable, to the reader as well as each other. This book provides several glimpse into the couples' lives between their mysteries, on their ordinary days- a glimpse that makes the relationship seem all the more realistic. It is necessary to mind the directions in the book. The author indicates where each segiment is meant to be placed within the series so as not to spoil any events of the novels. I enjoyed reading this is book last however, it felt like reminiscing with an old friend.

[Love, Lizzy · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Pienso en la suerte que tengo de que Sebastián me salvara la vida. Pienso en como llevaría un millón de cuchillos mas a la espalda si eso significara protegerlo de todo lo horrible. Y luego pienso… pelearé de nuevo mañana. Porque todavía hay algo bueno en este mundo”

[…]

Una relación tan hermosa donde ambos se apoyaron mutuamente, agarrados de la mano sanando las heridas del pasado.
Con unos casos para resolver impresionantes que te llena de emoción con los datos tan interesantes que no tenias idea que podían existir.

Me niego a dejarlos ir pero se clavaron profundo en mi, los amo🥹❤️‍🩹.

[MiaReadsMMBooks · Rating 5 out of 5]

You know how sometimes you have those days where you really need to just get home, get changed into your comfiest items of clothing, order your favourite food delivery and just lay down on the sofa and feel the comfort of just being home. Yes, that feeling?

Welcome to Interlude.

I adore this series and I love that the author has pulled together this collection of short stories that add depth to the relationship between Seb and Calvin and wraps it up like a big warm (sometimes quite amusing) hug. It makes me want to re-read the series and recapture the magic that is Winter and Snow.

5/5 stars ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

[Eric Peterson · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Interlude" makes no bones about what it is - short vignettes and stories about Sebastian and Calvin, the heroes of "Snow & Winter". For lovers of the series, they are absolutely delightful. If you've never read the series, you'd probably enjoy them, but if at all intrigued, just go ahead and read "The Mystery of Nevermore" first, you'll be good to go. Half the fun of "Interlude" is the extra resonance they add to the stories you already know.

[Crystal D. Budy · Rating 5 out of 5]

These two are adorable. I love when authors write little short stories of slices of life that happen among the characters between the novels. This collection is a set of several short stories that occur between books 1 and 4. We even get a few set from Calvin's POV.

[lune · Rating 3 out of 5]

PRECIOUS

[Kristel (hungryandhappy) · Rating 5 out of 5]

These stories were the best!!
I already miss them!

[juli✨ · Rating 4 out of 5]

as someone else noted, all book series (but especially books in this genre) should have fun daily-life vignettes. Calvin and Sebastian doing cute things together makes me unbelievably happy <3

[Claudia the Night Owl · Rating 5 out of 5]

Snow & Winter is one of my favorite series ever and I was overjoyed to get to revisit Calvin and Sebastian in this collection of shorts. I especially love getting to hear a bit from Calvin’s perspective there’s a particular short with him coming home from a hard day at work and finding Seb asleep on the couch waiting for him and I can just feel the love these two share and it’s beautiful. A delicious cherry on top to a wonderful series.

[M.J. Calabrese · Rating 5 out of 5]

Now for more from my favorite writer and fantastic characters

These short, wonderful insights into two of my favorite characters by C.S. Poe. Love, romance and laughs made my evening. These vignettes fill in the blanks between the four books in the Snow and Winter mystery series (which I have on both ebook and audiobooks) and let her readers know what happens post The Mystery of the Bones. This just whets my appetite for more of these marvelous mysteries. A fan for life.

[DeeNeez · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved these tidbits of short interludes into Seb and Calvin’s lives. Sebastian just makes me laugh! Absolute favorite is Roger, Houston.

[Sadonna · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars!

This review and much more can be found at Love Bytes Reviews

Note: These stories and vignette take place between the timeframes of the series books and as such do contain spoilers. They are best enjoyed in context around the rest of the series books 🙂

Oh what an absolutely delightful visit with some favorite characters! I really enjoyed a second look at some of these previously released short stories and I particularly liked that there are some new offerings here as well. There are eleven shorts in this collection that range in order from just after the end of The Mystery of Nevermore (Dopamine: Take Only as Directed) to a “current” story post the events of The Mystery of the Bones (Trope: Only One Bed) when Calvin and Seb are in a more stable place 🙂

Some of these stories are definitely on the smexy side, for example Lunch Date (a nooner at the Emporium) and Roger, Houston (an unexpected layover on a delayed honeymoon). Both of these contain a healthy dose of comedy too 🙂 There are the unexpected surprise stories, such as Credit Scores and Cohabitation which leads to Calvin and Seb finally finding a new apartment after the struggle of living in Calvin’s studio post the loss of Seb’s place. I also loved the homage to Romance cons in St. Louis What Now? Plus there are some old favorites with a little bit of a tie in to a Romance con in The Ghost of Durango.

These stories also give us to opportunity to visit with favorite secondary characters in the series. These include Quinn, Calvin’s partner and Max, Seb’s ever solid employee at the Emporium. These characters try to keep Calvin and Seb from getting into even more trouble – usually with little success 🙂 Seb’s father continues to be a support for both Calvin and Seb. Beth, the bookstore owner of the business next to the Emporium is her usual curmudgeonly self. And of course we can’t forget Neil, Seb’s former boyfriend and NYPD CSI guy. What’s really nice here is we get to see Neil interacting with both Seb and Calvin. I’m still waiting for his story 🙂 Hint, hint!!!

Overall, this is a wonderful collection of the slices of life that make up Calvin and Sebastian’s relationship outside of the murder mysteries. I wouldn’t call them staid or calm – because I don’t think these guys will ever fall into that kind of life. There is also something going on with them that will keep things interesting and engaging. I know the main series is over, but I hope that we will get to drop in on this couple in the years to come to see how they are faring as they navigate life in the Big Apple as a married couple. Highly recommended for any fan of this series – you will love more time with these beloved characters 😀