Trey

Gates of Heaven #8

by M. Tasia

BONUS FEATURENORSE CODETalk about preconceived notions. NYPD Detective Anders Nilsen is sure Trey Stoneham is the scum of the a tell-all journalist with a sketchy PI background. But truth is stranger than fiction, and it turns out Trey is a hero twice over.When a serial killer Trey helped put away escapes prison, Anders has to stick to Trey like glue, which happens to be a job he’d gladly take on for a lifetime.The road to falling in love is fraught with emotional and perilous landmines, and Trey is fine facing danger – he’s dodged a bullet before. Well, not really, but it didn’t kill him. Falling for a real-life Viking might do him in, and what a way to go.Unless Trey’s able to face down the demon from his past and put him away for good, happily-ever-after will remain the stuff of novels.

Genres: M M Romance, Romantic Suspense

129 pages, Paperback

Published March 25, 2021

About the author

M. Tasia is an mm romance author who lives in Ontario, Canada. Michelle is a dedicated people watcher, lover of romance novels, 80’s rock, and happily ever afters (once the MCs are put through their paces), who grew up with a love of reading. She’s a firm believer that everyone deserves to have love, excitement, and crazy hot romance in their lives. Love should be celebrated and shared.

To all my readers: Thank you. There’s no escaping the truth – without all of you, there wouldn’t be me, the author. Your support and kind words have taken me from being a new author who was unsure and panicked to an author with over twenty books under her belt. Okay, I’m still unsure and panicked, but I’m a work in progress. (Takes a sip of wine.)

I love sharing my stories with you and hearing how my characters have touched you and how you’ve cheered them on, cried with them, and even wanted to knock some sense into a few. Your encouragement has inspired me to continue on my writing journey. All the late nights, missed events, and looming deadlines have been worth it, knowing these stories have entertained and
stayed with you long after the book was finished.
Michelle XO

Reviews

[Suzanne Irving]

I am very conflicted about this book. It’s a terrific ending to The Gates series, but it’s also the end of The Gates series. I have read all of these books and enjoyed every one of them and I will miss reading about them and the men they love. This book definitely does not start out with instant love between Trey and Anders but in typical M. Tasia style all’s well that ends well. I like a lot of things about M. Tasia’s writing but I must say that it is her characters that, more than anything, show her talent and keep me reading her books. They suck you in and have kept me reading way too late at night a lot of times. I highly recommend this series and also recommend that you read them in order.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Candice]

Probably one of my faves in this series. I really liked Trey (more than I thought I would).

[Emily Pennington]

Loving the Hero . . .

Trey Stoneham woke up in lots of pain, cuffed to a hospital bed with Detective Anders Nilsen watching him, or was it babysitting? Anders was a big guy, making the Viking-descendant stereotype seem pretty accurate. He called the nurse to take care of Trey’s pain, then sat back down. Another detective came in and took the cuffs off him. They verified the self-defense in Trey’s having to shoot Cooper to save Sawyer. After a few more questions, Trey drifted back to sleep.

NYPD Detective Anders Nilsen had thought Trey Stoneham was dirt. But all he saw was a decent guy, kind, polite, patient with the nurses. He realized he had badly misjudged the journalist/PI. So he remained behind to protect him, even when they told him he could leave. Trey’s former roommate, Gary Olsen, had been murdering women. When Trey found out, he turned the serial killer in and testified at the trial. But Olsen had escaped a prisoner transport bus 3 days ago. With Trey’s stomach pain worsening, he knew something wasn’t right and he also knew he was helpless right now with no chance of escaping Olsen if he came after him. Even more scary, Anders stayed by him the entire time with his expression changing from icy and unfeeling to concerned and sympathetic. His condition must really be bad if the stoic cop was showing such strong emotion. Sure enough, when he woke again, he was in the ICU. And Anders had been by his side for the past two days there. He had no choice but to ask Anders’ help in checking on his “family”; then he passed out again.

This book has all the feels and pulls the reader right in. It was wonderful to see how the two of them went from adversaries to respect to falling in love. You won’t want to miss their story to see the path they travel and if there is a HEA waiting at the end. There is much more going on here, but hopefully this is enough to convince you that you will not want to miss this one.

[Kate]

**********Contains Spoilers***********

I really enjoyed this book and thought that it was a good conclusion to The Gates Series. I think that Anders and Trey make an amazing team. Wow, Trey has been through so much and still doesn’t believe he’s a hero. Him and Anders butt heads initially but I liked how Anders realised that he was wrong about Trey from the get go and dropped his walls where Trey is concerned. They became friends that eventually turned into so much more.

I liked how their relationship progressed as it felt natural even if their relationship moved at warp speed but because they both know how life can change in an instant why wouldn’t they not want to hold back. I can totally understand why Anders shut off his emotions where his police work is concerned after hearing about the case that nearly burnt him out, a case of a missing boy that he got too personally involved with and the kid was already dead before the police were even called in.

His own f*cken father killed him so he could collect on his life insurance money to start his new life with his f*cken mistress. Some people really don’t deserve to breathe the same air as everyone else. Trey feels guilt over his old college roommate being a serial killer, even though he eventually stopped him he’s now escaped from prison and is killing women in DTLA so he believes he’s at fault since he’s only killing women in DTLA because Trey is there.

If Trey had never roomed with him he’d may never have been caught so he’d still be killing women elsewhere. I think Trey is so f*cken brave and loved that even though Anders is terrified of Trey trading himself for his roommates mother, he respects Trey’s decision and make sure he has all the tools to protect himself until help arrives. I’m looking forward to reading more books from M Tasia in the future. I’d definitely recommend this book, series, universe and author to everyone.

[Becca]

Well, I'm very sad this series is ending, but it couldn't have ended on a better note. Especially knowing that the next series is going to start with a character in this book that I can't wait to see again.
I have to agree, to a point, I didn't know quite what to think about Trey from that last book. It seemed like he was shady in some ways but when he saved Sawyer, I knew there was more than meets the eye with him. Especially when he was determined to save Sawyer in any way he could. I wanted to smack Anders so many times in this story because man, he did act like a punk so many times because he presumed to know what Trey was all about and he didn't have a clue.
But what I loved about Anders is he did admit when he was wrong. And he started to see a side of Trey that he assumed wasn’t there, and it was more confirmed what kind of man Trey really was, when they found out his major secret. And Anders really had to admit he was dead wrong. And he shouldn’t have jumped the gun on the kind of person Trey really is. Of course, it doesn’t help with his line of work. Being a cop tends to make you callous and quick to judge someone quickly before getting all the facts.
There were a lot of surprises in this story. A lot of things resolved, a many of things finally laid to rest. And the beauty of it all, another family formed. Not of blood, but of bonds and friendships and through the trials and tribulations they’ve been through. Through acceptance and love and knowing that someone always your back. I hope to get to see these guys again in the new series off and on. I will miss them like the Brighton Boys.

https://lovebytesreviews.com/

[Marion]

This is book 8 in The Gates series and it is just as wonderful as the previous books. You can read it as a stand alone but it will be easier to follow if you have read the previous books. This is the story of Trey Stoneham and Anders Nilsen. Trey is a journalist and part time PI. The story starts off with the repercussions of the previous book in the series. Trey is in the hospital suffering from a gun shot he got while saving Sawyer's life. He awakes to find himself handcuffed to the bed and a unexpected police presence in his room. Anders is a NYPD Detective whose vacation was cut short when his boss directed him to work the case involving Trey. His preconceived ideas about a shady journalist are blown out of the water as he watches over Trey. Trey's life is once again in danger. The serial killer that he identified and helped put in jail has escaped during a prisoner transport. Anders job is to protect Trey until they can apprehend Gary Olsen the serial killer. This is a really well written romance with a lot of suspense thrown in. Both MC have large walls up around themselves to protect their hearts. Both are in survival mode. They just don't realize that they need each other. This is their story. This is another great story by the author. I sat down and read it from cover to cover in one sitting. I really enjoyed it.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[C.B.]

Put your assumptions back in the corner! Trey is recovering from his wounds in the hospital after saving Sawyer. The family from the Gates is very grateful. His injuries were great and Det Anders N, is standing guard in his room. Trey, is handcuffed to the bed, resigned to the madness of the police investigation. Anders is wrapped up in preconceived motions and stereotyping of the type of man he believes Trey. During Trey's recovery, he and Anders get to know each other better. Histories are shared. Baggage is shared, and secrets are shared. Then an old enemy reappears and the drama and mysteries go nuclear. Does Trey have enough in him for this latest great battle? Will Det Anders pull his head out of his butt and see clarity? Can Trey pull of one more save? Excellent story! Great characters, and interesting new characters. I hope we can hear more from them. The description of the design and architecture makes me wistful. Well done! I received an ARC from Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[ButtonsMom2003]

Best read in order.

I really enjoyed reading this book but I know I would have liked it even more if I’d read the books in this series in order. I did read Sawyer, the book right before this one, but it had been a while so the details were gone for me since I read over 300 books a year.

Having said all of that, it took me a chapter or two to really get back into this but once I started, I read the book in one go. Trey really is a hero but it takes Anders a little bit to finally figure that out. This story has a nice mix of romance and suspense with a bit of sexy time. There were several places that I was almost biting my fingernails waiting to find out what happens next. I was very happy with how everything ended up.

I’m pretty sure this was the end of this series and a character that appeared a bit briefly, Brick, is the start of the next series called Fire Lake; I hope to start reading it soon.

A review copy was provided by the publisher via NetGalley but this did not influence my opinion or rating of the book.

[Leslie Zak]

Gay romance with danger

Wah! I don't want this series to end. Trey was badly injured saving Sawyer's life in the previous book. While recovering in the hospital, Anders, a NYPD detective is in his room giving him a hard time. He thinks Trey is a bottom feeder journalist. Trey is cleared of any charges in the shooting of Sawyer's kidnapper then he finally finds out why Anders is in Los Angeles. A man Trey helped convict has escaped prison back in New York and he swears vengeance against Trey. Trey has complications and needs more surgery but is worried about his "family" and asks Anders to take Finn and Marion from the Gates to an address along with his bank card. Anders is sure he will find something illegal but instead he finds a women's shelter that Trey is supporting. Anders is having to reevaluate his opinion of Trey and works hard to find the convict and protect Trey while he slowly recuperates. We get our HEA after more danger and excitement. Highly recommended.

[Stephanie W]

Always interesting to see how a story and its characters, flow from one book to the next.

We begin with Trey Stoneham, suffering from a lot of pain after enduring injuries that nearly cost him his life. Recovering from a gunshot wound, he saved the life of Sawyer (from a previous book in the series).
Detective Anders Nilsen initially didn't think very highly of Trey. Over time, his views began to change. His arrogance got in the way and was thankfully, knocked down a few notches.

Now Anders is charged with protecting Trey as his life is still in danger. While watching over Trey, he and and the detective, take time to get to know one another. Seeing them progress towards a little happiness was satisfying, given how it all began.


**I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.**

[Gavin Stephenson-Jackman]

Trey just can't seem to catch a break. Relegated to fluff pieces after his unplanned involvement with a serial killer in New York, he finds himself recovering from a gunshot, cuffed to a hospital bed under suspicion that he aided Cooper in abducting Sawyer under the watchful eye of NYPD detective Anders Nilsen. When the serial killer escapes custody and leaves a grisly calling card in Trey’s hospital room he finds himself in the embrace of The Gates and its very protective crew as he recovers. Anders is still at his side and despite their initial mistrust the two are growing closer together. When Gary's victims start appearing closer to The Gates and the people who Trey has begun to care for desperate measures are required. A wonderful conclusion to this romance mystery series

[K-Me]

This was the perfect ending to this series! Trey is my new book hero! Trey and Anders have Great Chemistry! These books are all the perfect length that you get to know the characters and have some action and romance build up! Being the last book I do not want to give too much about the early books away! I will say this told from both POV so happy to get into both Trey and Anders' minds! I quite liked Detective Anders!!! I received a copy of this book from booksprouts so I recommend this book as well as the series if you enjoy quick action romances with sweet and tough characters!

[Juniper]

Trey is such an interesting character. He has been through a lot, and trying to do the right thing has left him vulnerable. His relationship with Anders does not start on the best terms, but becomes something different as Anders starts to see who he really is. It is easy to be frustrated with Anders for making so many assumptions, but overall, it is satisfying to see their relationship grow and develop, especially against the backdrop of the peril Trey faces.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Stital]

A wonderful conclusion to a really great series, Trey was such a genuine and heartfelt read.

Like all the previous books in this series, it will give you all the feels. It pulls you in and tugs on your heart strings, by showing the soft and squishy side of the big bad alpha protagonist.
I loved The Gates and I'm so very sad to see it end, but I can't help but be grateful to Michelle for her wonderful portrayal of masculinity mixed with vulnerability and the fact that man can and should have feelings.

5 stars and a chocolate bar

[Amy]

Tearjerker, heartwrenching, sun behind the clouds, this story speaks to the heart. You cannot help but fall for Trey; he is pure, sweet, unassuming. Anders doesn't stand a chance. I love how he fell and fell hard. Perfect ending for this series. I hope this author bundles the series because it is worth reading all together.

I received a free copy of this book via Booksprout and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Wanda Newman]

Loved it!

This whole series was one I couldn't pass up. I've enjoyed every character. I laughed, cringed, cried and celebrated every aspect of their stories. I await the next series with Brick as the main character.

[Courtney Glover Towns]

Good ending

I have enjoyed this entire series. This book was a great ending to the series. After the way Trey saved Sawyer, I hoped he'd get his own book but never imagined the back story Ms. Tasks would give him.

[Cynthia Brooks]

Trey gets shot saving someone's life. Anders is sent to help protect Trey.. Someone from Trey's past wants Trey dead and Anders will do anything to keep him safe. I really enjoyed this book.

[Dawn]

This is a good interesting series. I enjoyed the storyline it is interesting and keeps you entertained. The characters are exciting and fun.

[Stephanie Panach]

The Gates boys always get me right in the feels. Trey was shot and almost died saving Sawyer's (one of the heroes of the previous book) life. Trey is a part-time Private Investigator and part-time journalist. His life story is one full of challenges and a whole lot of courage. His college roommate turned out to be a serial killer - who was only caught because Trey called the police after finding horrific evidence of the crimes. Trey and his roommate's mother have started over in L.A. helping women in terrible situations and trying to make new lives for themselves.

While he's recovering from being shot, Trey's former roommate escapes from Prison and starts killing again. And focuses in on finding Trey - to punish him for being sent to prison. Anders Nilsen is an NYPD detective on vacation visiting friends at the Gates when all of this happens. The roommate was originally from New York, and NYPD asks Anders to stay with Trey to keep him safe and help with finding the killer.

Trey and Anders, like the rest of the Gates crew, are just wonderful together. They aren't an immediate fit - even though the attraction is there. They both have to work through issues before they can trust each other completely. But the journey is worth the effort!

I loved the story - and the connections to Trey's past.

This entire series is worth a read - but you can read this without having read any of the other books.

I received this as an ARC from NetGalley, but these opinions are all my own.