Nuts About You by Kate Lowell

Title: Nuts About You
Author: Kate Lowell
Purchase at Amazon
Purchase at All Romance eBooks
Cover Artist: Ana J. Phoenix
Genre: shifter/paranormal, romantic comedy
Length: 13k, 45 pages
Formats MOBI, EPUB, PDF

Nathan’s been crushing on one of his regular Bulk Mart customers for a while now. In squirrel form, he sits on Vince’s bird feeders, munching on seeds and enjoying the eye candy. Until the day Vince notices him raiding the feeder…

This story is giggleworthy! We’re in the head of Nathan, the squirrel shifter, part of a clan that gets very, very nervous about drama. So of course, snacking on sunflower seeds while peeping on his handsome human crush in the shower will create a bit of drama.  Put down your drink while you read this, unless you like wet Kindles.

Being short, this story is mostly set up and meet cute, which is unbelievably cute. And some sigh-worthy smooch stuff, mustn’t forget that…  Short, but it introduces the characters for a longer piece, which of course I'm off to buy.

Not claiming it's great literature, but since this is the most fun I’ve had reading in a long time, 5 marbles.

A picture is worth...

Tell us about this pair, 100 to 1000 words.

Cover Reveal: Snakes Among Sweet Flowers by Jason Huffman-Black

Title: Snakes Among Sweet Flowers

Author: Jason Huffman-Black

Publisher: Dreamspinner Press

Cover Artist: AngstyG

Release Date: June 20

Heat Level: 3

Pairing: M/M

Length: 79k

Genre/Tags: Contemporary, M/M Romance, Suspense, Thriller

Synopsis

Two-time ex-con Camden Sanders has decided that Hog Mountain—an isolated community on the outskirts of Atlanta, Georgia—is the perfect place to continue running small scams without the threat of more prison time. But there are a few problems with this plan. One is the neighborly citizens of Hog Mountain thwarting his dirty dealings at every turn with their kindness. Another is Jackson Rhodes, a closeted Hog Mountain police officer who can see right through Cam’s good ol’ boy act and plans to catch him red-handed despite the attraction they both can feel. But the biggest problem of all is that Cam’s past is threatening to catch up with him, and it could mean trouble for more than just himself.

Excerpt

When Cam parked his pickup in front of the pumps at his station, he was surprised to find a local police cruiser waiting by the closed garage door. A tall blond cop leaned leisurely against the front bumper, staring directly at him as he took his time getting out. The frown on the policeman’s face was at odds with his stance, and although Cam didn’t think he had much to worry about, he couldn’t help the hammering in his heart, the constricting of his chest.

He’d dealt with cops and guards enough to know there wasn’t a one of them that wasn’t a sadistic asshole. They thrived on making people like Cam suffer. Cam had yet to deal with the local law and had hoped his lucky streak would continue. He had to admit the officer knew how to wear a uniform, though, with broad shoulders and slim waist accentuated nicely. Too bad he couldn’t sit in the truck all day and ogle the man instead of having to deal with whatever he wanted. With a sigh, Cam gathered his wits and opened the truck’s door, stepping out, then turning back to grab his breakfast. Well, shit. Wasn’t this morning starting off with a bang.

Instead of walking toward the officer, he aimed for the front door of the gas station. He’d turned the area attached to the garage into a waiting area with mismatched office chairs and an old coffee table from the Goodwill. Cam had to jiggle the key in the lock a few times before the cylinder turned, and as he opened the door, he heard footsteps approaching.

“What can I do you for this morning, Officer?” Cam asked as casually as possible. “Your cruiser giving you trouble?”

Cam sat his breakfast on the counter that ran along the back wall, then stepped over to the window-unit AC and pushed the button to get it going. It wasn’t that hot yet, but it wouldn’t take long to get there. When he still hadn’t gotten an answer from the cop, he turned to find him doing a thorough visual inspection of the area, then stepping over to the glass door leading to the garage and doing the same, canting his head to get as much of a view as possible without entering. Cam frowned.

“Is there a problem, Officer?” Now he had a reason for concern. What was the cop looking for? Cam had a sudden itch to run for it, although he had no idea what he was running from.

The officer turned, and Cam squinted to read the name Jackson Rhodes above the pocket of his uniform. When Officer Rhodes’s hand came to rest on the butt of his gun, it was all Cam could do not to flinch. “Who is the second coffee for, Mr. Sanders?”

Cam glanced over to his breakfast and back to Rhodes, his nervousness kicking up a notch. “I… uh….”

“Is anyone else here, Mr. Sanders?” Officer Rhodes took a step forward.

Shit! Cam was going into a full-out panic. His gaze darted around the room, looking for some way out of the situation, but then just as suddenly, his subconscious gave him a metaphoric kick in the ass. What the hell? Was he going to let this asshole come into his place of business and fuck with him? He had nothing to hide. Well, okay, that wasn’t exactly true, but he wasn’t going to simply crumple over one question.

Cam slipped into his I-give-not-one-fuck persona and looked Officer Rhodes in the eye. “I don’t see where that’s even a little bit of your business, Officer. Want to tell me what this is about?”

Officer Rhodes took a few more steps closer, until he was crowding Cam against the counter in front of his food. “I’ve been hearing tales on your methods of auto repair. From changing the winter air out of tires to replacing dissolved halogen crystals in headlights or the deoxygenized water in a radiator. A quick background check shows you’ve served time in the past.”

Fuck it! Cam thought. He took a step forward too, coming chest to chest and nose to nose with the officer. “Yeah, I done time, and I paid my debt. I’m here making a fresh start and I won’t have you bad talking my business. I have a logbook of work done, signed off by the customers. It shows I did legitimate work, no matter what you hear.”

“I’d like to see this log, if you will,” Officer Rhodes responded. Damn, the man was fine. Light brown eyes sparking with challenge, blond hair cut short in a crew cut. He looks so clean-cut, you’d think he would squeak when he walks.

Instead of pulling out the log, Cam turned toward his breakfast. “Coffee, Officer? I do have two. Might as well share. It was like I knew I was going to have company this morning.” He busied himself by pulling out the creamer and sugar packets from the bag and placing them where Rhodes could get to them, then pulling out the rest of his purchase and divvying up the food as if he’d meant to buy the cop breakfast.

When Cam glanced over, Rhodes was looking around again as if making sure no one else was in the shop. Then he shrugged and started doctoring his coffee to his satisfaction. Cam did the same and took a sip before opening one of the cabinet doors below the countertop. He pulled out a receipt book and pushed it over to the officer, then scooped up his breakfast and coffee and settled into one of the chairs to eat.

While Officer Rhodes leaned over the counter and flipped through the receipt book, Cam took the opportunity to admire the fine backside on display. The cop was built like a brick shithouse and would make a great addition to his spank bank. No doubt Rhodes had a gaggle of cheerleader-esque girls in town who giggled when he walked by. And that was too bad. Cam wouldn’t mind giving the fine officer a strip search.

The sound of a throat clearing brought Cam back from his thoughts. He glanced up to find Officer Rhodes staring at him with a frown on his face. Oops.

Meet the Author

Jason Huffman-Black could be described as the porn star alter ego of the mild-mannered editor for several LGBT publishers. By day, Jason edits and writes in a cozy chair, while Mr. Huffman-Black travels the globe on such adventurous excursions as wrestling the one-eyed spitting serpent of Tangiers, ass-spelunking into the hidden tomb of King CockTut, and most recently, sharing a prison cell in a small third-world nation with a rather sweaty fur-covered hulk of a man named Javier.

Coming June 20th from Dreamspinner Press

Where There's a Will by Cari Z

Title: Where There’s a Will
Author: Cari Z
Purchase at Amazon
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Cover Artist: LC Chase
Genre: Superhero
Length: 228 pages
Formats MOBI, EPUB, PDF, print

Being a Hero in Panopolis means living the high life: parties, money, influence, even reality television. And I’m one of the most powerful Heroes in the city. I have plenty of fans, a manager who looks out for me (after himself), and a job that pays the bills. I should be enjoying myself.

Unfortunately, the downside of my superpower means I can’t touch anyone, which tends to put a damper on things. I probably don’t deserve all those perks anyway, since I’m working in secret with two of Panopolis’s biggest Villains to undermine GenCorp—my main sponsor and the company that controls what gets through my force field.

I obviously don’t trust my corporate overseers, but they’ve hired a new scientist who actually seems interested in helping me. Dr. Mansourian might have the answers to all my questions—not to mention a starring role in most of my dreams—but he’s hiding something big. If I let him have what he wants, I might not live to regret it.

Then again, the way things are going in Panopolis these days, I might not live either way.

Once again, I’m coming in late on a series I now have to devour completely. I grabbed the first two Panopolis stories in a single volume, so I have goodies for later. Because I just enjoyed this book so much.


Our POV character is Freight Train, almost never known as Craig Haney, a Hero in a city that requires all augmented persons to choose sides. Stumble into, or choose, a superpower, and you have to be either a Hero or a Villain, no middle ground. In Panopolis (nice touch, this is Gotham City, Metropolis, Your Home Town, and a touch of ancient Rome all rolled into one), the Heroes not only protect the citizens from the Villains, they’re the bread and circuses too. It’s not a real rescue unless the cameras are watching, is it? But it’s not scripted so it can go down the toilet fast, and the real powers that be, GenCorp, don’t care what it does to the people who fight the battles.

The force field that’s become part of Craig prevents almost everything from passing in or out, but his invulnerability comes with some serious limitations on survival, and intimacy is another casualty. He can neither touch nor be touched, and he’s so much a victim of his celebrity and his power that to be called by his real name becomes the most human contact he can hope for. And he almost never gets it. How this author turns something so simple into heartbreak is an art.

Dr. Ari Mansourian does call Craig by name, and he knows a few things about his force field. But who is this mysterious scientist, and what is he really doing in the GenCorp labs? That force field makes their burn slow enough to answer questions.

GenCorp happily pits their manufactured heroes against one another, offering this one a reality show while that one languishes in obscurity, or poverty. There’s a grim undercurrent of favoritism, keeping everyone off balance and asking the wrong questions.

All is never as it seems, and there are twists, turns, betrayals, saves, and some smiles, in true comic book hero style, with depth and a wry humor. Characters from the first two books have parts to play here, which neither spoil the earlier books nor overwhelm this one.

The writing is wonderful, and the situations are classic superhero seen through the jaundiced eye of the person who has to live them. The plot twists are canny, and one major issue was resolved with such audacious perfection that I gasped out loud and then screamed YES! at my Kindle.

The chance conversation that led me to this book was a happy one, because I quit watching Batman 4 movies ago and might not have picked this one up. But I’m off to read the rest of the Panopolis stories, because this was a terrific tale in every way! 5 marbles

The Empty Hourglass by Cornelia Grey

Title: The Empty Hourglass
Author: Cornelia Grey
Purchase at Amazon
Purchase at All Romance eBooks
Cover Artist: Jay Aheer
Genre: steampunk
Length: 69K, 201 pages
Formats: Mobi, epub, pdf, print

Thomas Escott has always wanted to be a toymaker, yet just as he achieves his dream, an accident claims his right hand. He’s certain his life is over—until he hears about groundbreaking prosthetics being made by a reclusive inventor.

Jethro Hastings is perfectly content to live alone up in the mountains working on a secret masterpiece: a humanoid automaton that will change the scientific community forever. He’s behind schedule, and the date of the unveiling is fast approaching, so when Thomas shows up on his doorstep offering help in exchange for a mechanical hand, Jethro agrees. Time, after all, is running out on another deal he’s made: one with the devil.

The devil gives Jethro’s inventions life, but he can just as quickly take life away—Jethro’s, to be exact. As the sand in the devil’s hourglass falls, marking the time until the end of the deal, inventions go haywire, people get hurt, and Thomas realizes he needs Jethro just as much as his prosthetic. Now he must find a way to save Jethro’s soul, but negotiating with a devil is just as difficult as it sounds.

Farfarello’s back, that sly devil. It’s nearly time for him to collect on Jethro’s Faustian bargain. Jethro’s got one eye on the hourglass ticking down the moments, and Thomas is gradually figuring out what's going on. Farfarello’s got a little more sympathy for the humans he deals with than his boss might approve of.

We’re in Thomas’s head, and of course, he doesn’t have a clue about all the background. He’s come to Jethro’s workshop to beg for a prosthetic hand to replace the one he lost in a workshop accident. Even with time ticking away, Jethro manages to outfit one last person in need, and now Thomas can help him with his exacting engineering. Theirs could be a real partnership on all levels, if Farfarello wasn’t hanging about in the background.

The story is pretty straightforward, without all the side plots built into Circus of the Damned, also in this series, but that’s okay, we get a sense of desperation and confusion here. The setting is steampunky in that it’s a low tech society in the main, with the spectacular gears and whistles getting brought out, but where I ran into issues is with the style.

I open Cornelia Grey’s books expecting to be drenched in her atmospheric prose, the word equivalent of chocolate. And here, while the style is readable, it doesn’t seem to be Cornelia Grey. Plus lots of anachronisms like “okay”, “the guy”, “warm and fuzzy”, and an unusual amount of swearing for genteel people, which sit strangely next to hansom cabs and automatons. It’s a mishmash I’d expect from someone who handles language much less skillfully that she does.

While I’m glad I read this book, it isn’t on the level I've come to expect from this author. 3.5 marbles

A Thousand Word Ficlet From Cari Z

Cari Z, whose wonderful Panopolis books have me completely absorbed, found a picture that inspired her.

********************

“Dance with me.”

I shake my head at Greg, who’s on his third glass of champagne tonight. I can’t blame him; his sister just got married. Everyone else is well into their cups at this point too―there’s something to be said for a southern wedding, namely that the food is better and the alcohol is freer than at any other event I’ve ever attended. The company, however? That definitely leaves something to be desired. We’ve gotten more dark looks for our matching suits than I can count, although that could be in part because Leila’s colors are purple and gold. Purple’s not a good look on me.

Still, it doesn’t make sense to rock the boat now. We’ll be gone in less than an hour, and I sincerely hope to never be the center of this much awkward attention again.

“Dance with meee,” Greg insists, leaning his head forward on his hands. He’s shorter than I am, very cute, and debilitatingly adorable when he wants to be. Like now. “C’mon, we practiced and everything!”

“Watching Dancing With The Stars doesn’t count as practice,” I say.

“It does, though! Rory, c’mon.” He grins at me. “You don’t have to dip me or throw me in the air. We just have to move together.”

“Greg…”

“What?”

I gesture around us. “What about them?”

“What about them?” he persists. “It’s Leila’s wedding, they’re not going to say anything. If they do, she’ll shut them down before we can even open our mouths. Rory.” His grin turns into a smile, soft and private. “Please, dance with me. Just one song.”

That’s the reason we’re wearing coordinated suits. I have a hard time saying no to him. “One song,” I agree, and stand up. The lights are dim, but I still feel like everyone is watching me. I’ve been in too many arguments, too many fights, to want to take that scrutiny in silence, but then Greg is in front of me, stepping close. He puts his right hand in mine, and I tuck my free hand in the small of his back. He feels warm even through the layers of suit, and when he brushes up against me, his eyes are locked on mine.

“Now we move,” he tells me, a bit breathless.

“Yes,” I say softly, and lead him into the first step of the dance.

***********

Mmm, yes, Cari Z knows how to get the guys to cuddle up. Or punch noses, or survive zombies, or... Cari's guys do a lot of things.

Love superheroes? You'll love them even more Panopolis style, with adventure, angst, and a couple of tropes stood on their heads.

Her latest, Where There's a Will, gets reviewed next week, but it's not a spoiler to say I LOVED IT.

Being a Hero in Panopolis means living the high life: parties, money, influence, even reality television. And I’m one of the most powerful Heroes in the city. I have plenty of fans, a manager who looks out for me (after himself), and a job that pays the bills. I should be enjoying myself.

Unfortunately, the downside of my superpower means I can’t touch anyone, which tends to put a damper on things. I probably don’t deserve all those perks anyway, since I’m working in secret with two of Panopolis’s biggest Villains to undermine GenCorp—my main sponsor and the company that controls what gets through my force field.

I obviously don’t trust my corporate overseers, but they’ve hired a new scientist who actually seems interested in helping me. Dr. Mansourian might have the answers to all my questions—not to mention a starring role in most of my dreams—but he’s hiding something big. If I let him have what he wants, I might not live to regret it.  

Then again, the way things are going in Panopolis these days, I might not live either way.

Preorder at Riptide, read May 2.

Come What May by A.M. Arthur

Title: Come What May
Author: A.M Arthur
Purchase at Amazon
Purchase at All Romance eBooks (eventually)
Cover Artist: N/A
Genre: contemporary
Length: 320 pages MMP
Formats: Mobi, audio, mass market paperback
Currently on preorder, to release May 23, 2016

Jonas needs Tate. He just doesn't know it yet.

Or at least, he doesn't want to admit it. Because there is no way Jonas Ashcroft is gay. He's a straight, carefree frat boy player, just like any good son of a conservative state senator. If only his struggle to convince everyone—especially himself—didn't leave him so miserable. No matter how many girls or bottles he drowns himself in, Jonas can neither escape nor accept who he is.

Enter Tate. He's smart, confident, and instantly sees right through Jonas's surly exterior. Sure, he's done things in life he's not proud of, but he knows who he is and what he wants. And what he wants is Jonas. As their easy friendship intensifies into something more, Tate introduces Jonas to a life he's never known. One filled with acceptance and sex and a love that terrifies and excites them both.

But some inner demons refuse to be shaken off so easily. When Jonas's old life barges in, he faces a shattering choice, one that could destroy everything he and Tate have fought so hard for. Sometimes love just isn't enough—and sometimes it's exactly what you need.

~*~*~*~*

Oh no, I can’t be gay, oh dear, I am gay, and oh my, I think I love you. Oh no, pushback from world. It’s not a new story, but one that can be given new life.


The execution is competent, and in places even inspired, but I’m not seeing enough to make me feel there’s a different twist on the old formula. Issues that were brought up that could have lifted this out of the pack got little attention until they resolved with a thud. Any one of them, with more care lavished, would have mattered more than all of them with only lip service. Jonas’ uneasy relationship with numbers, his father’s political campaign, Tate’s sister’s isolation, any one of these had enough heft to be more than background noise. All of them together should be beating readers’ emotions to a pulp. Instead, I struggled to recall the characters' names three days later.

I did catch cameos from characters from other books that made me smile, although this book seems to be from a different series. A few of the new characters were more stock, such as Jonas’ father and the young woman played by Evil Harpy #4.

Fans of this author will enjoy this book greatly, and more casual readers will also find something to enjoy. We may have to chalk my reaction up as an anomaly. 3.5 marbles