Q&A with Josh Lanyon discussion
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What else are you reading? (June 2010 - May 2013) *closed*
Lori K wrote: "Victor Banis's latest-
is out today. I've been waiting for this one. (6th in the series) Thinking I can lock my office door since I'm actually working AT..."Hide your reader in a report cover, and act absorbed whenever someone bugs you.
;) This is why I ~work~ at home most of the time. It doesn't cut into my reading time!
Lori K wrote: ";) This is why I ~work~ at home most of the time. It doesn't cut into my reading time!"LOL
Lori K wrote: "Victor Banis's latest- is out today. I've been waiting for this one. (6th in the series) Thinking I can lock my office door since I'm actually working AT..."I read several stories out of an anthology of horror stories by V. Banis, and they put me off so badly that I've mostly avoided him since. (I did read all or part of that ghost story he wrote--The Gay Ghost(?)--but didn't care for that either.) His horror stories were seriously horrific; icky. I don't know; I'm laughing at myself right now--but so far I've found his writing more than capable, admirable even, but totally unromantic.
I was hoping a fan who I know has similar tastes to my own could tell me about this mystery series...why you like it, what you like about the character development. Is there a love story, etc. Pls. I'd appreciate it; because I'm always on the lookout for a good gay mystery series, but I'm so rediculously picky about it.
Candice wrote: "Lori K wrote: "Victor Banis's latest- is out today. I've been waiting for this one. (6th in the series) Thinking I can lock my office door since I'm actu..."I've not read anything else that V. Banis has written other than the deadly mystery series so I can't compare them to his other books. But I first enjoy them as pure mystery stories. They're not always done the same. Sometimes you know who the criminal is & you get his point of view or some other characters. I've found the cases by themselves interesting.
When the series first starts off, Tom & Stanley work for the police department. In later books they become private detectives. Their relationship progresses in each book & I think they're definitely a romantic pairing. I think he's writing about 2 men & not women disguised as men so it does have a different feel than some are used to but the 2 men do fall in love. There's some angst & they usually have struggles as a couple & it has humor, especially when it's from Stanley's point of view.
Everyone has different tastes but I love the series & Stanley & Tom as a couple (even if you want to hit one or the other at different points in the story) so I'll definitely get this latest one.
Candice wrote: "I was hoping a fan who I know has similar tastes to my own could tell me about this mystery series...why you like it, what you like about the character development. Is there a love story, etc..."I really enjoyed this series too. The main reason was that I fell in love with the character of Stanley. He's so feisty, out and proud, and doesn't take any crap from Tom. Of course Victor doesn't write like Josh but if someone asked me to recommend something to read after the Adrien English novels, this would be the first to come to mind.
I'm reading Shades of Gray. I had to put it down for a while because I can stand just so much angst in one sitting.I've just read Don't Look Back and although I couldn't put it down - when will I learn that I must NOT begin a book by an author I like at 11 pm because it means I'll read till 2 in the morning?? - it was difficult for me to find a connection with Peter. I think it was because, having amnesia, for a while he wasn't "whole" and he was trying to get to know himself too, so I felt a bit lost. That's probably what's also original in the story. I'll see what happens when I re-read it.
Candice wrote: "Lori K wrote: "Victor Banis's latest- is out today. I've been waiting for this one. (6th in the series) Thinking I can lock my office door since I'm actu..."I enjoy this series very much. The mysteries are fun and clever. I am about half way through this 6th book. I can tell you it is as or more romantic, in the portrayal of the relationship between Tom and Stanley, than many books I've read in this category (Yes, Adrien and Jake included...Ha).
I was actually going to go back today, and read some of the first one before I continue on. Stanley has come such a long way- he is, and I hate using this word for anything other than kittens, adorable in expressing his feeling for Stanley.
I admit that I have not read anything else of Victor's. I bought Angel Land and Dead of Night but have not got to them yet.
Was the horror too graphic or was it the relationships that put you off?
I know it's been mentioned before in this thread, but I read The Cranberry Hush: A Novel last weekend, and was just blown away by it. Is it really self-published? If so, why? It has to be by choice, right? Because I can't think why anyone would reject that book; it was so amazing. It kind of ruined and saved my Monday all at the same time. Almost no sleep, and I could hardly focus on work; I just kept thinking about the book. I reread the ending at lunch, and almost started bawling in the lunch room. :D This book is so wonderful and I really think it deserves a wider audience. It's not a genre book in my view.
Edina wrote: "@ A Deadly Kind of Love readers:I just used a FW coupon code (060311) to buy the first 5 books in the series. I have NEVER read a Victor J. Banis book and it is al..."
Come back and tell us what you think.
Just finished
The first was brilliant, great writing like for any genre this was bone fide satirical fiction. The second was not as amazing but still WELL WORTH the read.
The first was brilliant, great writing like for any genre this was bone fide satirical fiction. The second was not as amazing but still WELL WORTH the read.
I finished Victor J. Banis's A Deadly Kind of Love few days ago. I actually read the first five in paperback BECAUSE it is recommended at Amazon.com as M/M series along with Adrien/Jake series and Psycop series. I enjoyed it and I thought it was a good addition to the series
Ami wrote: "I finished Victor J. Banis's A Deadly Kind of Love few days ago. I actually read the first five in paperback BECAUSE it is recommended at Amazon.com as M/M series along with Adrien/..."Thanks for the rec, Ami! I am going to put them on my to-buy list!
Marie wrote: "I know it's been mentioned before in this thread, but I read The Cranberry Hush: A Novel last weekend, and was just blown away by it. Is it really self-published? If so, why? It has..."I know, it is unsettling. I can cry just thinking about this book. Wonderful.
Candice wrote: "Lori K wrote: "Victor Banis's latest- is out today. I've been waiting for this one. (6th in the series) Thinking I can lock my office door since I'm actu..."Victor Banis is a very versatile writer. But his Tom and Stanley series is my favorite! He is writing from a man's perspective and yet there is lots of humor. Also, it is very romantic. I would try the first two books. They sure sold me.
Everyone, it was awesome....you must read.
Lori K wrote: "Everyone, it was awesome....you must read."
Well I'm getting it!
Well I'm getting it!
going to pick up the latest tom/stanley - love the series - have just finished reading Marshall Thornton's Boystowns mysteries - excellent! so glad to have found another good author - am going to pick up the latest boystown book - I do hope I get it on Fictionwise - in the sale! quite a lot of good stuff about just now! Boystown: Three Nick Nowak Mysteries
Apologies - the exclamation button! seems to have got away from me tonight.
Minne, I hadn't heard of that series before. Perhaps I'll look into it. Thanks for the recommendation.
Since nothing new on my radar, I picked up Kate Sherwood's Lost Treasure. I don't want to read her M/M/M books (I try to stay away from threesome as I am able :p) but this one has "the one that gets away" theme, which I love, so I'm giving it a try. LOVING it so far ...
Yvonne wrote: "Candice wrote: "Lori K wrote: "Victor Banis's latest- is out today. I've been waiting for this one. (6th in the series) Thinking I can lock my office doo..."Thank you! He's so prolific that I hate to see so many m/m stories go to waste for me.
Reading for the mystery, as you say--Sounds great. Not infrequently, in m/m mystery writing, if the romance is involving, the mystery is weak, and vica versa. I'll give them a try. Did you like the first one?
I just read In Sunlight or in Shadow. WOW! What a perfect short story.(I only realized, after finishing it, that I don't read other writer's short stories anymore. For so long, anthologies held some of the only gay writing in regular bookstores, so I read a lot of them. Now I'm spoiled and want a longer, more involved and complete reading experience. Unless, it's Josh Lanyon's. His I still read as a matter of course.)
Anyway, this one was an absolute humdinger; yeah? The guys are such guys, you know? Exasperating, closed-mouthed, terrified and lonely. I just loved them. They broke my heart all through and the ending was surprising and made sense after all and was completely satisfying as well. Thanks so much for that one, Josh.
Ami wrote: "Since nothing new on my radar, I picked up Kate Sherwood's Lost Treasure. I don't want to read her M/M/M books (I try to stay away from threesome as I am able :p) but this one has "t..."Edit: Just looked and yeah, I've read Lost Treasure a few months ago. It's another great tale.
So I was interested in picking up Victor Banis' mystery series given all of the praise here and tried to find which was the first in the series, and found it surprisingly hard. I headed to Amazon's ebooks section (where I tend to live) and a search on Victor Banis lists the books but doesn't really help with the series order (although some at least had "Deadly Mystery" in parenthesis, and neither does his home page/biblio, nor his Wikipedia page, nor his Facebook page -- basically none of the first 10 or so google hits on him.
This is silly. I mean, really silly. At the moment, not being able to find the titles in the series and the order of the series (so I can start with the first book) is stopping me from buying them.
Why do authors have a web page if not to help readers find their books? And if they write books in a series, wouldn't it be kind to make it easy for readers to find all the books in the correct series order? So I now know that Victor Banis is the subject of Web Weekly's Spotlight interview, and all kinds of other completely irrelevant information so helpfully listed on his home page, but not which book is first in the mystery series -- no, that would be much too helpful, wouldn't it?
Sigh. Sorry. Wrong place to rant about this, I know. An example of how NOT to do things for authors. If you want an example of an author website well done, take a look at the new Josh Lanyon website.
Sigh. I run into this a little too often. Very frustrating...
The first book in the series is Deadly Nightshade. It was available free from ARe back in April. Any chance you picked it up then?I totally agree about the series order thing. Drives me absolutely batty when I can't figure out which book to read next. Or even worse, when I miss a book in a series, because it never fails that I get a big spoiler, like a major character dies at the end of the book I accidentally skipped. Goodreads has actually been a great resource in that sense, because it's been much easier to look up series order here than on most authors' websites.
ETA: Oh, and I having a snitty reading moment today. I started Lord Darcy yesterday, which is a bunch of fantasy/mystery stories. And what I've read is good, but not quite what I'm in the mood for. So I started Breaking the Rules this afternoon, which is good, but it's mostly a bunch of people being really screwed up and shitty to each other. Which I'm not really in the mood for, either. And I hate dropping books in the middle to read something else, but I really don't want to be reading any of these books right this minute. In fact, I think all the people being shitty to each other stuff is making me cranky, on top of the wrong-book cranky.
So, yeah. I'm cranky. And thinking about starting a third book.
ns wrote: "So I was interested in picking up Victor Banis' mystery series given all of the praise here and tried to find which was the first in the series, and found it surprisingly hard. I headed to Amazon..."
Searching on Goodreads finally helped me out...
But up to a few months ago, when I wasn't reading GR, this would not have helped me...so the principle of the rant still holds.
NS (the truly impatient addict)
Becky wrote: "The first book in the series is Deadly Nightshade. It was available free from ARe back in April. Any chance you picked it up then?I totally agree about the series order thing. D..."
Continuing my time-honored practice of completely missing the free pick-ups, somehow failed to grab it then (don't remember reading about it, although I might have). And you're right, Goodreads did help out, although I hadn't seen your post yet :).
ns wrote: "Becky wrote: "The first book in the series is Deadly Nightshade. It was available free from ARe back in April. Any chance you picked it up then?I totally agree about the series o..."
Well, if you pop over to Fictionwise, you can at least pick it up half price this weekend!
Becky wrote: "Well, if you pop over to Fictionwise, you can at least pick it up half price this weekend! "Ill-fated, that's my discount buying world :). I had just bought it from Amazon with one-click four seconds before I saw your post about Fictionwise...
I suppose it's ok. I don't mind paying more to good authors. It's also going to help to keep me in check with respect to the number of books I buy/read this year. Unlike most other people, I have a goal for the year -- read Less Than 500 books this year. I'm pretty sure there are very few people who aspire to cap their reading, rather than reach a designated number.
ns wrote: "Becky wrote: "Well, if you pop over to Fictionwise, you can at least pick it up half price this weekend! "Ill-fated, that's my discount buying world :). I had just bought it from Amazon with one-..."
Well, uh, in that case, yay! You don't have to bother with the hassle of plugging your Kindle into your computer to side load anything! (I know, that's a pretty pitiful excuse for an upside, but it's the best I can do. :P)
Becky wrote: "Well, uh, in that case, yay! You don't have to bother with the hassle of plugging your Kindle into your computer to side load anything! (I know, that's a pretty pitiful excuse for an upside, but it's the best I can do. :P)"Thanks, Becky, that actually isn't quite as pitiful as you think, given how much of a pain I find it to bring my Kindle down from my bedroom to my computers in my office room and type in "cp kindle/* ." (lazy-ass doesn't begin to describe me, I suppose :)).
OK, I just read Putting Out Fires (it's just a short story, so it didn't take long), and now I'm in a slightly better mood. :)
Josh wrote: "Rob wrote: "So I know it's an old book, but has anyone else read Bareback by Chris Owen? I finished it a few weeks ago and, man, did that thing just hit me in the chest like a 2 by 4...."I really enjoyed Bareback. The development of the 2 protags' relationship is quite moving. I enjoyed the sequel as well.
I tried to post twice and it didn't work...I am so frustrated. I just finished part one of a free read (that I won't name) that was going well, until the author killed off the love interest right at the end. It just wasn't necessary. The main character could have had all sorts of character growth without this happening, and I just feel...as silly as this sounds...abused.
I need to re-read something short that I loved to get this bad taste out of my mouth. Becky, can I be snitty with you?
mc wrote: "I tried to post twice and it didn't work...So one of the problems with the traffic and scalability issues here and elsewhere at other social media sites is that when there is congestion, people tend to retry multiple times, which only increases the existing congestion, making the problem worse :).
What the site admins would like is for people to hold off on usage, I expect, but of course, that's exactly the opposite of what happens.
I am so frustrated. I just finished part one of a free read (that I won't name) that was going well, until the author killed off the love interest righ..."
Ha! I think I read that book and disliked it as well! I strongly recommend reading "The French Have A Word For It." As far as free reads go, it's the best out there in the m/m world, and superfluous to add, I know, but a definitely sure thing as a bad taste remover :)
mc wrote: "Becky, can I be snitty with you? "The more the merrier! But I think NS's suggestion of reading The French Have a Word for It is probably a better solution for both of us. :)
I also read The Jock and the Wallflower (another short story) this evening, which was light on substance and heavy on fluff. But it left me thinking, "hmmm, I should check the submission guidelines and try my hand at one of these." Which is a significant improvement from what I was thinking as I read Breaking the Rules this afternoon- "I love this author, but I really hate these characters!" You know it's bad when the bad guys are child sex slavers and the good guys still come across as clueless and annoying. I mean, it shouldn't take much to look better than those creepos, and yet....
Hey everyone, I haven't been here in forever!!!!I recently read
&
. All great reads but my Dave was TGWYSJust finished
. It was amazing!Now starting
I'm reading an oldie- Anthony Burgess A Dead Man in Deptford. I have a small idea about Christopher Marlowe in a story- but this book is really stretching my reading mind, very powerful style and language. Reminds me how the writing can totally change the storytelling.
ns, I had re-read The French Have a Word last week, for the five/sixth time? Last night, after I posted here, I read another new (well, new to me) Petit Morts by Josh that I had bought last week instead. What a lovely palate cleanser. (Oh, and I didn't post again right away...I waited a while before I tried again, each time. I had to! The failed posting process ate the content and I had to summon my spleen again!)Sarah, I've never read Anthony Burgess. I'll check it out.
You know it's bad when the bad guys are child sex slavers and the good guys still come across as clueless and annoying Becky, this comment just made me laugh out loud. And sadly, I know what you mean.
I'm thinking of getting "His for the Holidays" - so many good writers in that anthology, and though generally shorts aren't my favorite, it sounds pretty good (and of course, there's a JL story in there!)Any thoughts or experiences with this book?
ns wrote: "This is silly. I mean, really silly. At the moment, not being able to find the titles in the series and the order of the series (so I can start with the first book) is stopping me from buying them."A while back I read Don't Make Me Think! (it's on web usability and way off the topic ;-)). I thought of it because the title fits your dilemma so perfectly. To sum it up it says: "Don't make me think (to hard) or otherwise you will lose me as a paying client." That's the point if you want to make people browse your website as well as buy books of a series.
btw: I have the same problem with the "Deadly" series. I have books 1-5 on my PC but the reading software lists them in alphabetical order. I never know wich one is the first and wich the last.
mc wrote: "I'm thinking of getting "His for the Holidays" - so many good writers in that anthology, and though generally shorts aren't my favorite, it sounds pretty good (and of course, there's a JL story in ..."
I own the audiobook (and "Icecapade" e-book). I only liked ZA Maxfield's and Josh' s stories.
I own the audiobook (and "Icecapade" e-book). I only liked ZA Maxfield's and Josh' s stories.
Mod
(I only realized, after finishing it, that I don't read other writer's short stories anymore. For so long, anthologies h..."
I'm so glad you liked it. It's my favorite short (truly short) story.
Mod
This keeps happening to me, by the way. I just had two long comments eaten. Probably a message from on high that I should be working right now not commenting.
Josh wrote: " The failed posting process ate the content This keeps happening to me, by the way. I just had two long comments eaten. Probably a message from on high that I should be working right now not co..."
Same thing just happened to me. I am wondering if GR is having a Great Failing of their DBs.
mc wrote: "I'm thinking of getting "His for the Holidays" - so many good writers in that anthology, and though generally shorts aren't my favorite, it sounds pretty good (and of course, there's a JL story in ..."[Okay, going to try this again, since it seems the last comment is floating lost in ether space]
I greatly enjoyed this book, but then it has four of my favorite authors. :D Each story is as different as each author. ZA's story was rather light and fun while Harper's was more dark and serious. Josh's and LB's stories were similar only in that old romances reunite. All four are great stories, and you won't be disappointed with any of them.
mc wrote: "I'm thinking of getting "His for the Holidays" - so many good writers in that anthology, and though generally shorts aren't my favorite, it sounds pretty good (and of course, there's a JL story in ..."mc, that's the best anthology in the m/m genre that I've come across. I liked all the stories in the book, although perhaps only one was somewhat weak. At least three were exceptional. I don't think you'll be disappointed.
And fwiw, if you haven't read Icecapade, I'd get it for that alone. It's one of my absolute favorites.
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Q&A with Josh Lanyon
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Wow, I'm flattered. No one's ever called me Satan, before. :-D