Review: Boats in the Night by Josephine Myles

After reading a couple of quite intense books I was in the mood for something fairly light. This book fit the bit for that exactly. It tells of Giles, who has recently had a bit of a minor breakdown after breaking with his lover, and is struggling with approaching alcoholism.  He's very wealthy and lives in a huge house near Bath with a canal at the bottom of his garden.  Smutty is a free spirit who has recently purchased a narrow boat. He's only had the boat a couple of days when the engine breaks down at the bottom of Giles' garden.  They're a mix-matched pair, but Giles is almost instantly drawn to Smutty.

There was lots to like about this story, but the main thing which kept me reading was in the two opposite attract  characters of Giles and Smutty. Giles is white, rich, upper-class, a little stuffy and conservative. Smutty is mixed race, was raised in a commune, has dreadlocks and no fixed abode. He makes his money as a street entertainer.  Despite their differences they work as a couple. Smutty longs for a place to call home and Giles' garden calls to him as somewhere he can exercise his love of self-sufficiency. Giles has been constrained for far too long by a now ex-lover whose love of propriety over-rode his love for Giles.  In Smutty's presence Giles learns that there's more to life than wealth, finding himself able to breathe again and feel freer than he perhaps ever has.  I read with delight their unfolding relationship as each learns to see life from the other's point of view. It was the early, awkward scenes between them that really caught my interest. Giles' blinkered viewpoint means that he often stumbles into saying the wrong thing, and only Smutty's laid back personality managed to get them through that initial almost offensive conversation.

The story is also about healing.  Giles needs healing from his minor breakdown, and his encroaching OCD and alcoholism. Smutty needs healing from past hurts.  They find this healing initially in each other's arms through the use of a number of well written sex scenes, and then later through discussion and conversation. The romance does move quickly but not so fast that I felt it unrealistic.

Any niggles I had about the story stemmed from the surprise reveal at the end. Whilst I understood the need for Smutty to have some closure on his past, in my mind it wasn't necessary and I was a little skeptical about the way that part was handled in the story, especially in the way that it linked with Giles. I don't want to say too much here because that would be spoilerish, but that part made me raise my eyebrows a little and marred what had been a pleasant and realistic situation.

Overall, though, despite my feelings about the end, I enjoyed this story.  Although it has some serious themes, the writing had a light touch to it which made the story move swiftly and meant that the ansgt level wasn't high.  I liked both main characters and was invested in their story and their romance which left me with a big smile on my face.  If you're looking for a lovely character based romance then I would recommend Boats in the Night with a grade of 'Very Good'.

Buy this book HERE.

Review: The Island by Lisa Henry

Shaw's ambition is to get the the inner circle of crime lord, Vornis and he's found the perfect way to do it. He's sourced a stolen painting and has been brought to an idyllic Fijian island to sell the painting to Vornis. When he arrives he discovers that Vornis has acquired a 'pet' in the form of a young man, Lee, who Vornis regularly beats and sexually tortures. Vornis gives Lee to Shaw as a gift whilst he remains on the island leading to a quandary for Shaw: He's no rapist but to refuse the gift will put his relationship with Vornis in jeopardy and Shaw has worked for six years to get where he is now. No sexual slave is going to stand in front of his ambitions, but it's not long before Lee's plight is tempting Shaw to take risks he should never take.

Let's start with a warning here: This book is not really for those who may have difficulty with stories containing abuse. Although many of the sexual abuse and torture scenes in this book are glossed over or happen off page, we do see the physical and emotional aftermath of Vornis' actions. Also, whilst Shaw doesn't take part in any of those scenes, he is complicit in what is happening to Lee. There is a good reason for this, one I can't say because it's a major spoiler, but for a lot of the book Shaw stands back whilst Vornis does what he likes to Lee. These were not easy scenes to read but necessary for us to gain a good understanding of what Lee goes through at the hands of Vornis. Having said that, I never felt that those scenes were used for cheap thrills or were sensationalist in any way. Instead they were harrowing, and added greatly to the dramatic impact of the story. The first two thirds of the story deal with Shaw and Lee on the island, but I was particularly pleased that the last third was focused on the aftermath of Lee's incarceration and his subsequent recovery. It made the romance part plausible.

Another part which I liked about the story was the realistic way we are shown how torn Shaw is over his part in what's happening to Lee. Shaw treads a very fine line with Vornis and the slightest mistake could lead to a loss of trust with the man. Loss of trust would lead to Shaw's death at best, at worst he could suffer Lee's fate. This means that Shaw has to be seen to be as amoral and sadistic as Vornis, even when it's tearing him up inside. It was this constant internal debate as Shaw found a balance between trying to help Lee as much as possible, whilst also appearing abusive towards him that made Shaw a sympathetic character. At times his guilt almost overwhelms him, especially when he realises that he might be crossing that line too far.

Despite the scenes of torture, this story is actually lacking in physical action scenes because the focus is more on tense dramatic scenes where the characters have to weigh every word which is spoken - although there were some action scenes, especially during the end, which packed an exciting punch. Much of the time the story shows the developing feelings that Shaw and Lee have and their uncomfortable relationship. The time frame for most of the story is a week, during which Shaw is on an emotional high alert and this shows in the intensity of the writing. I felt every minute of that time and as a piece of character driven drama this was almost flawless. I was grabbed from the start and could hardly put the book down. The reality of the way Lee is treated is not hidden from the reader and this meant that it wasn't always easy to read but it also doesn't downplay Lee's experience. I was very pleased to see that the romance wasn't in the book to 'heal' Lee. Sex was not a cure for abuse. Instead the book showed Lee's gradual recovery in a way which I found quite heartbreaking at times.

As you may image this is not a light and fluffy books. However, I didn't feel weighed down by excessive angst. The balance felt right between the heavier scenes and the scenes where Shaw is doing his best to make things better for Lee. I wasn't overwhelmed emotionally and read quickly through the book to find out the outcome. Those readers who are looking for a tightly written, tense drama, and who are able to read scenes of abuse, will find this book very much to their taste. I highly recommend The Island, with a grade of 'Excellent', and I'm now going to check out other books by this new-to-me author.

Buy this book HERE.

Review: Second Chances by Jeff Erno

This contemporary story with a science fiction twist raises some interesting ideas, mainly what would you do with your life if you had the chance to start over again? The main character here is a selfish, vain, ambitious rich man, Harold.  He's spent his entire life accumulating wealth by exploiting others. Now in his seventies and dying of cancer, Harold is alone and full of regret, especially about throwing away the opportunity he had for love with artist Jacob.  He's approached by scientist Dr Tim Drayton who offers Harold the chance of having his life over again in the body of Jesse, who after being in a road accident is now brain dead.  Harold can have his consciousness transferred into Jesse's 18 year old body if he donates a large sum of money to Dr Tim's research. Harold jumps at the chance and in doing so vows to live his life in a way that benefits other people.

Whilst I liked the idea for the story, I wasn't sure at first whether it would work for me because I really didn't like Harold. Part of me felt that he didn't deserve another chance in life and that dying a lonely unmourned death  was how things should end for him.  However, I found that as the story progressed I warmed to Harold/Jesse. He really does make an effort to change, to set aside his former selfishness, and this meant that by the end of the book I was rooting for him.  I particularly liked the way that Harold had a little difficulty merging his personality with Jesse's in order to fit in with Jesse's life.  This sometimes made me smile - such as trying to explain away why Jesse was suddenly a vegetarian, or had a vocabulary which exceeded the one he used prior to his accident - and sometimes it was bittersweet - such as finding out things about Jesse's former life and knowing that the boy who had those thoughts and aspirations was now dead.  I also liked that, even despite a lifetime of experience, Harold made errors of judgement.  He could have come across as a bit of a know-it-all but that wasn't the case and so, for me, what had initially been a rather a turn off ended being the strongest part of the story.

Another strength was in the character of Phillip who was just so delightful. I sympathised with him and his situation a great deal.  The love between the young men was there before Jesse's accident and so it's not surprising that things move quickly.  Harold/Jesse can't help but fall head over heels for such a lovely, caring and earnest man, especially given that for many years he had no-one to love him, so it seemed realistic that he would grab onto Phillip's love for all that he could.  The sex scenes between them were tender and loving.  I did find though that as the story progressed their relationship veered into 'too sweet' territory, so that on occasion I had to stop reading because I felt a bit overwhelmed by sugar.  However, that's not an uncommon thing for this author, and there will be many readers who will like those heartfelt sweet scenes more than I did.

*spoilers for this next paragraph so skip if you are bothered by that*

The part of the book which didn't work so well for me was in the secondary plot involving Tim and Jacob.  Generally the science fiction part of the story does require you to set aside some realism because there isn't a way that consciousness could be transferred onto a micro-chip (I suppose it wouldn't be science fiction if that were the case!), but the whole aspect involving Tim's research stretched my incredulity towards the end. I was prepared to accept the initial set up for the sake of the plot, but the final scenes set in the research facility didn't make sense to me, in particular who could have initiated the transfer into Phillip's body given that there was no-one left to perform the operation.  Or maybe I just missed something important there!

*end of spoilers*

I also found that the book had a very slow start. There are four main characters in the story (five if you include the original Jesse) and the first fifty or so pages is spent setting the scene for the events of the book.  I would encourage readers to stick with it though because the story does pick up after the main meat of the story begins.

So overall, I had mixed feelings about the story. I liked the change in Harold/Jesse, and the way his relationship develops with Phillip but the romance was too sweet for me in places. I liked the general idea of the book and questions it raises about science and ethics, but found the scenes involving Dr Tim a little over the top and confusing towards the end.  I'm giving Second Chances a grade of 'Good' and I would recommend it to readers who are looking for an unusual story with two lovely leads and who don't mind a sweet romance.

Buy this book HERE.

A Naked Man in Socks

Is it just me, or do there seem to be an unusually high number of sex scenes in m/m where the men leave their socks on?

Why?

Is it because some people have a bit of a feet phobia, and so leaving the socks on means they don't have to look at the other guy's hairy toes?

Is it because somehow it's deemed sexy to wear your socks during sex?

Personally, I'm with Jeff from Coupling on this one.  Leaving the socks on is not sexy at all. Miss the 'sock gap' and you're just a Naked Man in Socks.

Vamp Week at BER

There's definitely no sparkling from Wild Bill either, just a whole load of grunginess and filthy sex. Yum.

All this week at Brief Encounters Reviews we've been celebrating the re-release of Jordan Castillo Price's Channelling Morpheus series by hosting a vamp week.  There's a two part interview with JCP, plus reviews of all five CM books and some other vampire short stories.  There's also a chance to win copies of the CM books.

It's almost over, so don't miss the chance to join in the fun.

The Dreaded Three Stars

My mate Kris is doing a series at the moment about book gradings which has been making me think a little both about how people grade in general and also how I grade.  Mostly though it's made me think about the three star grade and different people's perceptions of that.  Here's a couple of perceptions in a nutshell:

Readers: Three stars isn't bad
Authors: Three stars for one of my books is bad

There's also the idea that if you are a reviewer then your average rating should be three stars. If you are under three stars, then you are a harsh reviewer; if you're over three stars then you're too lenient.  At the end of the year several reviewers proudly displayed their stats telling their readers that they were an average three star reviewer.  Firm but fair.  Apparently.

My average rating for reviews is 4.04 stars, so think what you like about that.

What I think about it is that, on the whole, I read books I think am going to like. Sometimes I'm disappointed, but most times I get what I'm hoping for. If I really like a book I give it four stars, so it stands to reason that many of my books will have four star ratings.  I still get this vague feeling of guilt though when I'm giving out lots of four stars, sort of like I'm letting the reviewing side down by liking the books.

Back to the topic at hand which is the thee star rating, or 'Good' if you look at the way I rate at this blog.  Different people have different ideas about what constitutes a three star rating.  Good Reads criteria is 'I liked it', which if you think about it is actually a decent description for a book. I think many authors should be pleased to know that their book was liked.  My 'Good' rating is slightly different to that and follows two separate ideas:

1. That the book may be a little bland
I read so many m/m books that there are some that fade into almost obscurity within a day of me finishing the book.  That doesn't mean to say that I didn't enjoy the book whilst reading. I probably did and found it very diverting or entertaining at the time. 'Good' books are those whose plot I can't remember or character names are forgotten, all within a relatively short time frame.  I once had a book that I needed to review. I read it before realising that the ARC had been given out weeks in advance so I held off reviewing until nearer the publication date.  When I came to write the review I couldn't remember anything about it. Not one thing.  I ended up re-reading the entire book before I could review which wasn't a huge chore because the story was fairly entertaining.  That is the perfect example of a grade three/Good book in my view.

2. That the book may have features or weaknesses which annoy me
These sort of books fall into two areas:

a) Annoying characters or plot devises like the Big Misunderstanding
b) Several annoying typos or errors or a written style that just does not appeal to me

Both areas will often lead to me being pulled out of the story on several occasions either to puzzle over a continuity error or to shout at a character/situation which irritates me.  It interrupts the flow of the reading, pings my 'not like' button, or leaves me feeling frustrated, but not enough that I want to stop reading.  There are some authors who will always get a 'Good' grade from me because I don't connect well with the way they write. That isn't the fault of the author, just that we're not compatible and I soon learn not to read books by that author any more.  Then again I may have an author who I love to read, but something about one of their books really gets on my nerves - maybe the actions of a character, or something in the plotting. I won't give up on an author for that, but it will mean I might rate them lower than I have previously.

As a reader, I don't think that a three star/Good review is a bad thing.  I've bought books on the strength of a three star review, and I've had readers tell me they have bought books based on one of my 'Good' reviews. After all, what hasn't worked for me may work for another reader.  The important thing, I think is that there IS a review, even one line, to say why the grade is given because that allows readers to make an informed choice.

So, my fellow readers, what is your opinion on the three star/Good review? If you see three stars does it put you off buying a book? Do you think three stars is a 'bad' review?  What are your criteria for giving out three stars? Do tell.

Review: Choices by Penny Brandon

Marc is bewildered when he finds himself in Simon's antique shop. He's been drawn there for some reason but isn't sure what. Simon knows though and shows Marc a magic mirror which gives him the image of his true love. Marc is shocked to discover that the image is of a man, especially as he is straight and never felt any attraction to men before. After some debate, Marc is determined to find this mystery man and see whether the mirror is right or not.

Choices is labelled a paranormal romance but really the only paranormal aspect is that of the mirror and that is over with in the first chapter. The story follows a 'gay for you' plot with Marc at first coming to terms with the fact that his true love is gay and then pursuing Liam. This is not the first book I've read with this theme of a man being told your true love is another man, but I liked the idea enough that I thought another book with a similar theme would be a fun read. Once the mirror scene is out of the way the story retains a fully contemporary story, except that Marc has to convince Liam that he's not crazy and that they are destined for each other. There were two themes in the story one of which worked pretty OK for me and the other which didn't so much.

The first theme involves Marc's change of personal viewpoint towards his sexuality. This could have been a well constructed and slightly angsty re-evaluation by Marc. Instead though, sex is used as a shortcut to feelings and even though Marc has never had any sexual feelings towards men in the past as soon as he sees Liam his body lights up like a Christmas tree. Then once he and Liam become intimate Marc decides that, at least for Liam, he's happy being gay. It was a little sudden for me which is a shame because the scene in the nightclub where Marc and Liam first meet was well written with a nice balance of awkwardness and earnest discussion from Marc. Those readers who don't like angst will like this part of the story because despite what could have been heavier themes the writer handles it with a light touch which renders the story rather sweet in places.

Once Marc is happy with being with Liam and the change in his sexuality, the focus of the story shifts to Liam who, due to problems in his past, has forsworn love forever. This was the part that didn't work for me because I thought the reason why Liam was never going to fall in love was rather ridiculous. I don't want to give away spoilers here but, really it was a very poor excuse, and I was glad that Liam's friend in the story also thought it was lame. Far too much time is spent with Liam pushing Marc away out of fear and I was glad when Liam's friend gave him a good talking to about it, making Liam see sense.

Perhaps one of the reasons why I found Liam's excuse for not committing a little annoying was because the author had done a good job in showing how well the men work as a couple. Lots of that is done through sex, but there are also a number of scenes where the men are getting to know each other where their chemistry was strong. Despite the relatively short time-frame to the story, I felt that the ultimate destiny shown by the mirror was also reflected in their interactions and so the romance worked for me.

Overall, those looking for a sweetly written gay for you romance with an engaging lead in Marc and a solid romance can't go wrong with this story. If I hadn't been slightly disappointed at the use of sexual arousal to force the change in perception for Marc, and in Liam's reasons for not wanting to commit, I may have rated this higher. As it is, it gets a grade of 'Good' from me.  There looks to be the possibility of a follow on story to this involving the shopkeeper Simon and I'm interested enough to want to read that if/when it's released.


Buy this book HERE.

Review: Crescendo: Song of the Fallen Book 2 by Rachel Haimowitz

I really loved the first book in this duology: Counterpoint (reviewed here) and have been looking forward to reading this second book.  Both books have to be taken together to complete the story and the first book left on rather a cliff hanger. It's been frustrating to say the least that I've had to wait for this book to be written and then, once it was out, had to wait through some other reviewing commitments before I had to get to it!

The story follows on directly from book 1.  Freyrik, prince of Farr has been summoned to the High Court, to account for himself before the Aegis, ruler over all the kingdoms. He brings with him his Elven lover Ayden, who is one of the things Freyrik has to explain.  Freyrik assures Ayden that he will be safe with him at the High Court, but almost from the start things do not go well for the elf.  When political betrayals and machinations affect both men, they are sent to discover the source of the power within darker lands.

Like with book one, my sympathy in this book remained mostly with Freyrik.  It was interesting to see the contrast between the Prince Regent at Farr in book one, to Freyrik at the High Court where he wields little or no power.  For the first two thirds of the book Freyrik is involved with trying to please both his brother - who has plans for Freyrik and a scheme to rid the lands of the Darkers forever - and the Aegis - whose motivations I was never quiet sure about until the end of the book.  These scenes were tense with unspoken emotions and with Freyrik's utter frustration with his lack of authority and power.  He is just as helpless here as Ayden is as an elf slave and under just as much, if not more, scrutiny.

In contrast I found myself getting more and more annoyed at Ayden's inability to see the bigger picture. You would think that for an elf aged many hundreds of years that he would have learned to take the long view of things, but no his impetuous nature, pride and inability to cope with boredom means that he's constantly getting into trouble, drawing attention to himself and getting punished in various painful ways.  By the time the section set at the High Court ended, I was totally exasperated with him.  I did feel very sorry for him on occasion especially when his magic is bound. That scene where Ayden realises that he has to cope without his 'song' was very affecting indeed.  The bad feelings towards the elves is brought more into focus in this part of the book too and the scenes where Ayden is abused for being nothing but an elf were well written and sympathetic.

Because Freyrik and Ayden are already in love by this second book, the emotional drive in the narrative was not so much the growth of feelings for each other, but how their love sustains them through difficult times.  I thought this was effectively shown through the way that the two characters think and act towards each other. They need to be strong as a couple in order to face some of the things that happen and to provide a solid support.

The last third of the book takes our heroes out of the oppressive High Court and on a quest. This was where Ayden's character improved for me.  His quiet (or not so quiet at times) support of Freyrik, the way that he does all that he can to help in a journey he thinks is fruitless reminded me of why he excels as a warrior.  He was in his element here and by the end of the book I had warmed to him once more.  The last part of the book moves quickly, covering much time in fewer pages than before and as such the pacing is swift, drawing to a breathless conclusion.  Not everything is tied up in a neat bow at the end - for example, I would have liked to know how Berendil fared, but the conclusion is satisfying. I was left feeling happy for the characters and hopeful for a new future for men and elves.

Overall, this was a pretty terrific book.  I liked the characters and in particular how the author had perfectly captured the frustrations of both characters for their situation - even if Ayden was annoying at times.  I especially liked the clever way that some of the ideas and concepts given to us in the first book are slowly turned on their heads. The last 50 pages were a surprise to me and that is always a good thing.  If you're looking for a complex, character based fantasy book then I would recommend both of these books in the Song of the Fallen duology with a grade of 'Excellent'.

Buy this book HERE.

A-Z Challenge Review: Visible Friend by KZ Snow

Why I bought the book: It's a KZ Snow book. How can I NOT buy it?!

Plot: Chris has just finished some time in rehab for a heroin addiction.  On his last night in the centre he finds a strange man in his room, Denny,  who seems to know Chris but vanishes mysteriously when Chris calls for help.  Putting it down to emotional nerves, Chris tries to move on with his life. It's not easy for him to face up to the reality of a lonely existence when even contacting old friends runs the risk of him sliding back into his addiction.  The reappearance of Denny brings both comfort and confusion to Chris as he tries to come to terms with who Denny is.

Whilst I found the plot to be arresting, meaning that I read this novella nearly in one sitting, the time-line jumps around a bit with a basic linear pattern which then moves back in time occasionally to flashbacks of when Chris and Denny were close. The flashbacks didn't work so well for me, as I found that they jarred a little with the smoother present day plot, and I was glad they they were relatively short. Just occasionally the characters would remember flashes of conversation and this worked better for me as it was more integrated into the linear storyline.

Characters: The story is divided up between the characters of Chris, who has a third person narrative, and Denny, who has a first person narrative. This is something that has been done before by this author and I found it was an interesting and successful way of showing character.  I think as a reader we need to see Denny's thoughts in able to understand who he is and what happens to him when he's not with Chris - although I have to admit, I found the explanation of that little vague and unsatisfying.  What did work though was Denny's utter loyalty to Chris and his unconditional love for him.  I thought the way that this came across strongly in Denny's thoughts, through his genuine care and concern for Chris, was effectively shown.

It's a brave move on the part of the author to have a main character who is an ex-heroin addict, especially as Chris makes no excuses for his past addiction. It just was, it happened and now he's clean and looking to move on.  I really liked this attitude in Chris, just as I liked that we really get to know why he loved the drug so much as well as seeing all the negatives about the addiction.  The story wasn't preachy and nor did it condemn. In fact it gave a very balanced portrayal of drug taking.  This made me like Chris a great deal, especially in the way that he has to cope every day with the reactions of others to the marks on his arms and his history.  More than that though I'm a sucker for a guy with nothing to lose but who has an inner strength to keep going. I found this in Chris.  His loneliness is intense, and he's tempted to return to the comfort of heroin, but he stays strong and focused.  I found that I was cheering him on in the book, wanting him to succeed and achieve the happiness he deserves.

Overall: I really enjoyed reading this novella, but I was left feeling vaguely cheated out of a plausible ending.  All of a sudden Denny is just available to Chris - like magic - and it was just too convenient. I'm not sure how the ending could have been any different and still had a HEA, and I was happy that Chris and Denny could be together as a normal couple, but it was a bit of a niggle at the end for me as a reader.

Having said that, this was still a great read with a very unusual theme - both the recovery from a heroin addiction and the nature of Denny and Chris' relationship.  As with all KZ Snow books the writing is excellent with a strong sense of character and emotion.  If you're looking for a story with a rewarding romance but which isn't afraid to face up the reality of life, then this would be the books for you.  Grade: Very Good.

Buy this book HERE.

Review: At His Throat, A Promise by Lilith Grey

Those of you who follow my reviews here and elsewhere will know that I have a fondness for master/slave romance books. I love the dynamic, especially when we can really get inside the head of the slave to see what drives him to fall in love with his master. At first the length of this book was a little daunting (it shows up as about 571 pages on my book reader), but I was quickly drawn into the story, and in particular the character of Ellis. So much so that the pages flew by and I finished it in a couple of days.

The story is set in the fictional city of Spire where there is a system of slavery. Children who show intellectual promise are bound as slaves between the ages of 16-20 and taken on by a Master/Mistress who in return for complete obedience and sexual favours will train a slave/s in their job - in the case of this book William is a prosecuting lawyer. After 20, the slave is free to be employed in that career and as they mature they can have their own slave to train. It's a system that works on the whole, except for those occasions where the master is abusive or when the slave is unable to conform to the submission. As the book begins we meet Ellis who is 17. His master has recently died and failed to provide any security for Ellis. He's in danger of being sent to the Facility where unclaimed slaves are held, so he attends an exclusive club in the hope that a master will claim him. It's there he meets another slave, Harte, who convinces his master to 'sponsor' Ellis until another master can be found for him. The three work well together and Ellis would like nothing more than to stay with William and Harte. However, he also longs for a master of his own.

What I've described above barely touches the surface of this complex novel. Ellis is an absolutely fascinating character. He's a submissive who likes being dominated, but he's also got a dominant streak. He's a perfectionist whose previous training makes him want to be the perfect sub - something which eventually causes Ellis a lot of problems. He sees the forbidden love between Harte and William (forbidden because Masters and slaves are not supposed to form emotional connections) and wants what they have, but can't allow himself to open up to them. Ellis is our narrator and I liked him almost from the start. That didn't mean he wasn't frustrating at times, because he definitely was, but he had my sympathy throughout. Ellis was the reason I could barely put this book down.

I also thought the three way relationship Ellis has with Harte and William worked very well. You could tell that they were perfect for each other - balanced in their relationship - and I read eagerly on to find that point when all three could be together. The story is made up of a lot of sex scenes between these characters and with others. Usually this isn't something I like, but each sex scene was constructed in a way that it showed us something about the characters, their relationship and how their roles are defined within the household and so I never got bored of the sex, finding it informative as well as very hot.

Although the main thrust of the story involves the romance between Ellis, Harte and William, there is a strong sub-plot involving the abuse of slaves. There are several secondary characters who are used to show how the system is skewered in favour of the masters and how helpless slaves really are when they are chosen by the wrong person. Ellis and Harte too are victims of poor judgments in the system and the way that this affects Ellis is a poignant part of the book. I liked that the author hadn't shown the slavery system to be all fun and games and this serious side to the book added some bite to the story. It also meant that there are scenes showing physical and sexual abuse which some readers may find upsetting. The warning on the publisher's page is not to be taken lightly.

There were a couple of things that bothered me a little. Firstly, whilst I could get behind a system where 16 year olds are taken into sexual slavery, the suggestion (and actualisation later) that some slaves are taken on as young as 14 or younger left a sour taste in my mouth. We meet one character who is a few weeks shy of his 14th birthday and even though I'm fairly broad minded that was too young for me. I would also have liked to have known a little more about this fantasy world created by the author. It's almost like an Alternative Universe, with lots similar to our world, but the fact that the story is so tightly focused on the three main characters meant that the book was missing out on some of the world building. We are still fed information about the society - and in particular how the slavery side of things work - but I would have liked more.

The complexity of this story and the range of emotional content means that I feel like I've not managed to do it justice in this review. It contains a strong romance in the setting of a master/slave relationship, yes, but it also effectively reveals the thoughts of a sometimes confused Ellis who craves and needs physical and emotional comfort. Despite the niggles I had, I really enjoyed this book and I'm likely to read it again in the future. For those who like master/slave books and don't mind non-con and dub-con sex, then this is a book I can highly recommend. Grade: Excellent.

Buy this book HERE.

Review: Love Means...Family

Love Means... Family is the seventh book in the Love Means series, and whilst I've enjoyed all the books so far, this one is starting the stretch the series a bit.  All the books have similar themes, which I suppose is one reason why people keep reading. They all focus on family and finding a place in the world where a gay man can be accepted and loved.  This book contains that theme too, although to a lesser extent than some, possibly to its detriment.

The book focuses on Arie, the best friend of Robbie from Love Means...No Boundries.  He's recently lost his sister and her family to a freak accident which has left his family in shock and grief.  In order to escape his mother's alcoholism and his father's demands that he needs to marry and produce an heir, Arie decides to visit Robbie at Geoff and Eli's farm.  Whilst there he meets 'Officer Hunky' also known as Duane. They quickly form an attachment but Arie has duties to his family in Mississippi and knows his relationship with Duane is only temporary.

Those who have liked the plots of the other stories in the series will like this one too.  There's a good mix of some emotional content and a sweet, if rather sudden, romance that develops between Duane and Arie.  The time frame for the romance was a little short for me, especially when Duane is wanting Arie to give up his life in Mississippi on the strength of a relationship which has lasted less than three weeks.  Actually this led to a bit of a niggle for me. There was lots of talk towards the end of the story about Arie moving to Michigan, making the sacrifice of his family and possibly his career for Duane, but at no point was the point raised that Duane could have moved to Mississippi more easily.  He could have been a traffic cop anywhere and he had no family to leave behind.

The characters themselves were nice guys with nice personalities. Here lies my main problem with the story. They were so nice that I found both men rather dull.  There was nothing to set them apart from each other.  Even Arie's violin playing, which could have been something which defined him more as a character is underplayed. However, I thought the grief he feels over his sister was realistic, and allowed for some good 'healing scenes'.  Duane has a boring job as a mostly traffic cop and a personality which leans towards protectiveness, but that didn't stop him from being a little bland.  It wasn't that I disliked the characters, far from it, I just didn't find them engaging and if I have to be honest, I struggled to keep reading because I just wasn't interested in them as characters.

One part I did like though was that we get to see a little more of Eli and Geoff.  Their nine month old son, Jakey, fairly steals the book from under the noses of Duane and Ari.  I was pleased to see that we get both the good things and bad things about raising a young child, and if Jakey was a little too placid and well behaved for a small child, I could forgive that. After all, he had a whole housefull of doting adults in which to entertain him!

The sub-plot involving a series of shootings was another part which worked for me. I pretty much guessed what was going on fairly quickly but the parts of the book which showed Duane aiding in the investigation of the shootings were some of the better written parts, especially when he and other officers are searching an old crumbling house.

Overall, for me this was one of the less interesting books in the Love Means... series. It wasn't bad, but not as enjoyable as some of the others and as such gets a grade of 'Good'. Fans, like me, will still want to read it but if you've not really read any of the other books then you'll probably think you're missing something if you take this as a standalone.

Where am I?

This is a bit of a clue to my favourite romance film

Today I'm guesting over at Clare London's LJ for her birthday blogging month.  I'm taking about my favourite romance films.  Do join me HERE and tell me which are your favourite romance films - if you have any.

It's all rather too much

Is anyone else feeling a bit overwhelmed at the moment, or is it just me? I've been busy pretty much all day and decided to take a break and read a few blogs.  Here's what happened:

1. Read review of  Nineteen by AJ Mars on Book Utopia's blog and thought 'ooh that looks good, I'll have to read that' before remembering my huge TBR pile.

2. Read review of the new ZA Maxfield book at Wave's and thought 'ooh that looks good I'll have to read that' and remembered the pesky TBR pile again.

3. Remembered that the book I'm reviewing for Wave next week is quite long at nearly 400 pages, so I ought to start reading it now.  ETA: I was mistaken, the book I'm reviewing for Wave next week is 571 pages so I DEFINITELY need to start reading it now - EEK!

4. Read Josephine Myles blog and remembered that I still have to read and review Boats in the Night.

5. Read Charlie Cochrane's blog where she talks about the recent print release of her 8th Cambridge Fellows book.  Remembered how much I loved the first book in that series and that I'd intended buying and reading the rest of the series.

6. Noticed that Pants Off Reviews had reviewed Second Chances by Jeff Erno which is another book on my review list.

7. Noticed that Jay had an interview with LA Witt and remembered that I really wanted to read the sequel to The Distance Between Us, but hadn't had time to buy or read it yet.

8. Started feeling guilty that I hadn't been able to read anything all week except a couple of short stories.

9. Started feeling even more guilty that my review pile isn't getting any shorter and that quite a few people are waiting for reviews.

10. Started to panic about my a) lack of reading motivation & b) lack of time for reading.

11. Closed down Google reader.


You're going to have to bear with me for a few days folks, because other than my shorts at Brief Encounters and the review I'm doing for Wave tomorrow, there's a whole lot of nothing happening for me, unless you count endless rounds of Jumblines on my ipad.  You know it's bad when you'd rather run for the hills, or crack open a mindless word puzzle, than open a book so just give me a few days to recoup. Those of you waiting for reviews will just have to be a little more patient, sorry.

A Couple of Shorts to Start the New Year

I know I usually do these on Saturday but I haven't done much reading over the past few days - due mostly to a re-read of Counterpoint: Song of the Fallen book 1 that I needed to do before I started the sequel, but also because a friend of mine recommended this totally addictive ipad word game app and I've been majorly distracted by that. Bad lady!

 Both the shorts are from the fairly newish Storm Moon Press. I've been very impressed by the quality of the short stories coming out of this publisher and these two are no exception.


 The Saturnalia Effect by Violetta Vane and Heidi Belleau

I read this story before Christmas and was going to review it then but I read a review at Pants Off Reviews (this was quite unusual because I rarely read reviews of books I'm going to review myself) which made me look at the story from an entirely different angle. Since then, I've spent a bit of time pondering the story. It begins as a fairly straightforward prison drama. Troy has been imprisoned when a robbery he was involved in with his twin brother went wrong. His brother killed a cop before going down in a hail of bullets, leaving Troy with the blame and a life sentence. He's struggling to get into the prison routine when former mobster Franchetti gives him a choice: Kill inmate Daniel or be killed himself. Troy sets out to seduce Daniel as a prelude to killing him, only to find himself drawn to Daniel whose presence offers safety and security to the out-of-his-depth Troy.

 Troy was a very interesting character. He's been dominated by his twin all his life and now is adrift without his guiding presence. He's mentally not too stable, on the verge of a breakdown and the pressure of having to kill Daniel, plus the fact that he keeps being attacked by Franchetti's goon, allows us to see a man on the edge. Daniel protects Troy, but a bad experience in the past makes him keep Troy at arms length. So far so good. There's then a point in the book where the story reaches a crisis point, before moving into a slightly paranormal ending involving a statue of the god Saturn. This can either be taken at face value into a HEA, or it can be seen from the deranged point of view of a man who has lost everything and retreated into the security of his own mind. It was all rather clever and engaged my brain as I re-read the story from the alternative side of things, making it a much better and more unusual story than I thought at first.

 The story isn't going to be to everyone's taste because there's a lot of rather graphic violence in the story, plus a hint of dub-con sex, but I thought it a unique twist on the usual romance stories out there.  Grade: Excellent.

 Buy this book HERE.

The Forester by Blaine D Arden

This story is a bit of a mix of fantasy and police procedure. It tells of elf Kelnaht who is a 'truth seeker' which is sort of the elf equivalent of a forensic police officer who uses his special elf-powers to determine the perpetrator of crimes.  The story begins with discovery of a female elf who has been strangled. As part of the investigation Kelnaht is approached by his former lover Ianys, who abandoned their relationship so he could get married and have a child. Kelnaht is still bitter about this, despite Ianys wife having since died.  Ianys confesses to Kelnaht that he is now the lover of The Forester, a shunned tree elf, who Kelnaht is also attracted to.

The fun of this story for me was in the details of the fantasy world created by the author.  We learn so much about elf society through the story, but it's done in such a subtle way that the information is slotted in amongst the story, rather than there being any clumsy info-dumping.  It was the little things - such as how Kelnaht has to fit his wings with his clothes, or the different roles that the elves adopt and their purposes in elf society which delighted me just as much as the larger story arc or the mystery.

The romance also worked well. It's an m/m/m story but the troubled relationship that Ianys and Kelnaht have together isn't glossed over or made instantly better. They still have a long way to go at the end and the HFN way the story ends fits well with the short format and the way the romance progresses.

This is the first story by this author but the richness of the prose and vivid setting in this story makes her one to watch out for in the future. Grade: Excellent.

Buy this book HERE.