Review & Giveaway: ROMANCING THE ROUGH DIAMOND by Clare London

Buy Links: 

Amazon US | Amazon UK | Universal Link

Length: 244 pages

Publisher: Dreamspinner Press

Cover Design: Alexandria Corza

Blurb

Romancing The...

Trust is the most precious jewel of all.

When Mayfair jewelers Starsmith Stones wins the commission for a gay royal wedding, CEO Joel Sterling is recommended to the brilliant young designer Matt Barth—only to discover Matt’s the man with whom he shared an anonymous and passionate kiss on the celebration night.

Disenchanted with the commercial jewelry industry, Matt nowadays prefers muddy archaeological digs to designing. Openly resentful of Starsmith’s hostile takeover of his family’s firm, he is horrified at the realization he’ll be working with the man who engineered that deal—but the opportunity to create something fabulous and unique for the royal couple is too tempting to refuse.

Working as a team reignites the spark between Joel and Matt. But when betrayal from within Starsmith threatens both the project and Joel’s confidence, will they have built enough trust to keep their newfound love as precious as the royal jewels?

Carra's Review

The fourth entry in Clare London’s “Romancing the…” series, Romancing the Rough Diamond was an entertaining read for me, and fits well with the series.  I always like when books start out with a fun or steamy first meet scene, then come back with the “that was YOU?” type of second meeting to throw things off between the main characters.  It’s how they find their way back to that chemistry of the first meeting that then draws me in.

The author does a great job of that here, and though at times Matt can come across as exceedingly gruff, his tendency to put his foot in his mouth helped endear him to me and balance out the brusque exterior.  He feels very much like an Everyman amongst some more polished characters.

The matchup of him with Joel is a good one, and while there are trust issues that cause some havoc (which I’m kind of on the fence about), I thought the two of them made a great couple.  

This one’s bouncing between 3.5 and 4 stars for me, leaning closer to 4.  If you’re a fan of the series—or just M/M romance in general, you’ll enjoy this latest story…though I do confess that Ugly Duckling is still my favorite ;-)  This book is for readers 18+ for adult language and sexual content.

About the Author

Clare London took her pen name from the city where she lives, loves, and writes. A lone, brave female in a frenetic, testosterone-fueled family home, she juggles her writing with her other day job as an accountant.

She’s written in many genres and across many settings, with award-winning novels and short stories published both online and in print. Most of her work features male/male romance and drama with a healthy serving of physical passion, as she enjoys both reading and writing about strong, sympathetic, and sexy characters.

All the details and free fiction are available at her website. Visit her today and say hello!

Website | Facebook | Mailing List | Twitter | BookBub

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New Release & Giveaway: ROMANCING THE ROUGH DIAMOND by Clare London

Buy Links: 

Amazon US | Amazon UK | Universal Link

Length: 244 pages

Publisher: Dreamspinner Press

Cover Design: Alexandria Corza

Blurb

Romancing The...

Trust is the most precious jewel of all.

When Mayfair jewelers Starsmith Stones wins the commission for a gay royal wedding, CEO Joel Sterling is recommended to the brilliant young designer Matt Barth—only to discover Matt’s the man with whom he shared an anonymous and passionate kiss on the celebration night.

Disenchanted with the commercial jewelry industry, Matt nowadays prefers muddy archaeological digs to designing. Openly resentful of Starsmith’s hostile takeover of his family’s firm, he is horrified at the realization he’ll be working with the man who engineered that deal—but the opportunity to create something fabulous and unique for the royal couple is too tempting to refuse.

Working as a team reignites the spark between Joel and Matt. But when betrayal from within Starsmith threatens both the project and Joel’s confidence, will they have built enough trust to keep their newfound love as precious as the royal jewels?

About the Author

Clare London took her pen name from the city where she lives, loves, and writes. A lone, brave female in a frenetic, testosterone-fueled family home, she juggles her writing with her other day job as an accountant.

She’s written in many genres and across many settings, with award-winning novels and short stories published both online and in print. Most of her work features male/male romance and drama with a healthy serving of physical passion, as she enjoys both reading and writing about strong, sympathetic, and sexy characters.

All the details and free fiction are available at her website. Visit her today and say hello!

Website | Facebook | Mailing List | Twitter | BookBub

GIVEAWAY!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Hosted By Signal Boost Promotions

New Release & Excerpt: ZEST by Clare London (An Accidental Baker Story)

ZEST

by Clare London

Publisher: Jocular Press (self-published)

Genres: gay, erotic romance, romantic comedy, small town community, opposites attract, age gap.

Series: The Accidental Baker #2

Length: 35k

Release Date: 19 August 2019

BLURB

When Donnie met Will, it looked like the recipe for a true romance. But Happy Ever After took just a bit more work.

Donnie’s new romance with silver fox veterinarian Will looks like a real recipe for love. But first he has to deal with the problems of his job, his friends’ demands, and worries about Will’s privileged background. To say nothing of Donnie’s thwarted dreams of a catering career—and baking something that doesn’t come out a disaster.

Will is fascinated and entranced by Donnie. A mature, professional businessman, he’s far less confident in romance—and in the bedroom. Yet his eagerness to look after Donnie and show him a better life are misguided, and have a disastrous effect of their own.

Donnie is everyone’s friend. He’ll help anyone out. But who’s there to help him when he needs it?

BUY LINKS

Amazon Universal - Barnes and Noble - Kobo - Smashwords 

EXCERPT

Will turned to him, with a determined set to his mouth, and asked to kiss him again. “Properly,” he said, huskily. “I’m struggling to keep my hands off you.”

Wow. No one had ever asked Donnie’s permission. Not about kissing, and not about very much at all. Donnie couldn’t stop grinning as he slipped an eager hand around the back of Will’s neck and tugged him in for a proper snog. The windows steamed up pretty quickly. If they hadn’t been stuck in their seat belts, and Will’s car had been anything larger than a new model Mini, who knows what might have happened? Could have been arrested for indecent exposure, if Donnie had his way.

“Do you want to come in for coffee?” he asked when they broke for air.

Will looked despairing. “I want to. Believe me, I do. It’s just… I have an early call I promised to a client, and I need to do some reading up on this particular cat’s problem before we meet.”

Donnie nodded slowly, watching the expression in Will’s eyes. It certainly looked like genuine regret. There was no mistaking how aroused he was under those expensive trousers. He ran his palm across Will’s chest, shamelessly feeling Will’s nipples harden under the cool fabric. He slid a finger cheekily in between two of the buttons. Then, sighing, pulled his hand away again.

Will gave a heartfelt groan. “Donnie?”

“Hm?”

“Tomorrow? Can I see you tomorrow? Is it too soon?” He laughed, a tremble in the sound. “Am I coming across too needy?”

“That’s okay by me,” Donnie said. Oh, but how!

“We can have an early supper again. Don’t let them bully you into working late.” 

Will had been listening, possibly too closely, to Donnie’s work woes. Or Donnie had been complaining too much. “No,” he said. “I’ll try.”

Still he was reluctant to let go. His fingertips kept tracing Will’s cheek, his ear, the edges of his neatly trimmed beard, the line of sinew to his throat. And when Will leaned his forehead against Donnie’s and kissed him again—sexy, even though it was with a closed mouth, and despite the fact the gear stick must have been jabbing him in the belly—it looked like Will was just as reluctant.

Donnie stood at the doorway into his building watching Will drive off until his car vanished around the bend.

Will.

Looked like he had it bad.

Get started with The Accidental Baker!

The Accidental Baker #1

Publisher: Jocular Press (self-published)

Genre/sub genre: gay romance, romantic comedy, small town community, meet-cute (4 couples).

Series: The Accidental Baker

Length: 17k

BLURB: Donnie Watson's baking disasters are legendary, but this Easter, his mismatched chocolate eggs bring accidental but astonishing results to four downhearted gay men. The chocolate sweets spill onto the pavement of a small parade of local shops—and go on a matchmaking tour like no other! From a bankrupt and betrayed baker, to a homeless but hopeful man, to a conceited bar owner in need of a reality check, and finally to the hapless but caring Donnie himself. 

After all, Love means you can have chocolate too!

BUY LINK (only Amazon and Kindle Unlimited): http://myBook.to/accidentalcl

About the Author

Clare took the pen name London from the city where she lives, loves, and writes. A lone, brave female in a frenetic, testosterone-fuelled family home, she juggles her writing with the weekly wash, waiting for the far distant day when she can afford to give up her day job as an accountant. She’s written in many genres and across many settings, with novels and short stories published both online and in print. She says she likes variety in her writing while friends say she’s just fickle, but as long as both theories spawn good fiction, she’s happy.  Most of her work features male/male romance and drama with a healthy serving of physical passion, as she enjoys both reading and writing about strong, sympathetic and sexy characters. 

Clare currently has several novels sulking at that tricky chapter 3 stage and plenty of other projects in mind . . . she just has to find out where she left them in that frenetic, testosterone-fuelled family home.

All the details and free fiction are available at her website. Visit her today and say hello!

Website/Blog - Email - Newsletter - Facebook - Twitter - Goodreads - Amazon - BookBub - GooglePlay - Instagram

Review & Giveaway: THE ACCIDENTAL BAKER by Clare London

Buy Links: 

Amazon US | Amazon UK | Universal Link

Exclusive to Amazon and Available to Borrow with Kindle Unlimited

Length: 16,000 words approx.

Blurb

Donnie Watson's baking disasters are legendary, but this Easter, his mismatched chocolate eggs bring accidental but astonishing results to four downhearted gay men. The chocolate sweets spill onto the pavement of a small parade of local shops—and go on a matchmaking tour like no other! From a bankrupt and betrayed baker, to a homeless but hopeful man, to a conceited bar owner in need of a reality check, and finally to the hapless but caring Donnie himself. 

After all, Love means you can have chocolate too!

Carra's Review

This cute set of stories that spring from one of the character’s mishaps is a super-quick read.  If you’re looking for A to Z relationships, that’s not what this little collection is about.  This is all about new beginnings and fresh starts.

The story starts off with Donnie and his best friend Henry in a scene that sparks off the rest of the stories:

Simon—whose brain-to-mouth filter doesn’t necessarily work as it should—and Trev, these two were my favorite of the bunch and the ones I thought showed the most promise to start on a relationship path.  I’m really hoping the author decides to give them their own full story at some point.

Jez and Eric; they have the most unconventional meeting and were the ones who intrigued me the most given their unique circumstances.  And that means that their scene was the most unsatisfying simply because that intrigue level means that the very short time they had on the pages wasn’t enough to sate my curiosity.  Again—I’m hoping for them to get something more.

Henry and Abi…okay, so I really was not a fan of Henry after that first scene with him and Donnie.  He just totally rubbed me the wrong way, and that translated into me not being invested at all in his character. 

And finally back to Donnie, and his introduction to Will.  After what transpired in the first chapter, I was glad to see things started going his way.

The very short glimpse into these four couples’ meetings did leave me wanting more (well, except for Henry), but this was still a fun way to pass some extra time.  Overall, I’m giving this one 3.5 stars.

About the Author

Clare London took her pen name from the city where she lives, loves, and writes. A lone, brave female in a frenetic, testosterone-fueled family home, she juggles her writing with her other day job as an accountant.

She’s written in many genres and across many settings, with award-winning novels and short stories published both online and in print. Most of her work features male/male romance and drama with a healthy serving of physical passion, as she enjoys both reading and writing about strong, sympathetic, and sexy characters.

All the details and free fiction are available at her website. Visit her today and say hello!

Website | Facebook | Mailing List | Twitter | BookBub

GIVEAWAY!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Hosted By Signal Boost Promotions

Spotlight: ROMANCING THE UNDERCOVER MILLIONAIRE by Clare London-Now Available in Audio!

ROMANCING THE UNDERCOVER MILLIONAIRE

by Clare London

Buy Links

Amazon (your local store) | Barnes and Noble | KOBO | Apple Books | Google Play | Dreamspinner Press

And now in AUDIO

Length: 68,000 words

Blurb

Can poverty and privilege find a loving compromise?

Alexandre Bonfils, a rich and spoiled second son, is tired of being ignored and decides to help when the family's exclusive wine business is in trouble. Going undercover in the warehouse, he loves the adventure - and the chance to be close to the sassy and sexy manager, Tate Somerton.

Tate is hardworking and financially struggling, bringing up his siblings on his own. A suspected saboteur at work is his latest challenge, but now he also has a clueless, though very attractive, new intern. There's an immediate spark between the ill-matched couple, until a shocking accident cuts short Alex's amateur sleuthing.

While recovering in the generous care of Tate and his family, will Alex realize what belonging really means? Passion and pride come together to fight for the company they're both committed to preserving, but can a personal bond remain when the dust settles?

Check out my review here!

About the Author

Clare London took her pen name from the city where she lives, loves, and writes. A lone, brave female in a frenetic, testosterone-fuelled family home, she juggles her writing with her other day job as an accountant.

She’s written in many genres and across many settings, with award-winning novels and short stories published both online and in print. She says she likes variety in her writing while friends say she’s just fickle, but as long as both theories spawn good fiction, she’s happy. Most of her work features male/male romance and drama with a healthy serving of physical passion, as she enjoys both reading and writing about strong, sympathetic, and sexy characters.

Clare currently has several novels sulking at that tricky chapter-three stage and plenty of other projects in mind… she just has to find out where she left them in that frenetic, testosterone-fuelled family home.

Clare loves to hear from readers, and you can contact her on all her social media.

Website | Newsletter | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads | Amazon

Visit the Romancing the… series today (all standalone romances)

New Release-Review & Giveaway: ROMANCING THE UNDERCOVER MILLIONAIRE by Clare London

Buy Links: 

Amazon US | Amazon UK | Dreamspinner

Length: 65,072 words 

Publisher: Dreamspinner Press

Cover Design: Alexandria Corza

Blurb

Can poverty and privilege find a loving compromise?

Alexandre Bonfils, a rich and spoiled second son, is tired of being ignored and decides to help when the family’s exclusive wine business is in trouble. Going undercover in the warehouse, he loves the adventure—and the chance to be close to the sassy and sexy manager, Tate Somerton.

Tate is hardworking and financially struggling, bringing up his siblings on his own. A suspected saboteur at work is his latest challenge, but now he also has a clueless, though very attractive, new intern. There’s an immediate spark between the ill-matched couple, until a shocking accident cuts short Alex’s amateur sleuthing.

While recovering in the generous care of Tate and his family, will Alex realize what belonging really means? Passion and pride come together to fight for the company they’re both committed to preserving, but can a personal bond remain when the dust settles?

Excerpt

“ALEXANDRE, GOOD morning.” Charles Bonfils, the patriarch of Bonfils Bibendum, the highly prestigious London wine merchants, a cousin of an English baronet, and a personal multimillionaire—if he ever had the poor manners to share actual financials with anyone other than his personal advisors—inclined his distinguished, salt-and-pepper-haired head at the young man sitting on the other side of his desk. “Good of you to turn up on time.”

Alex Bonfils inwardly winced. His father was one of the few people who could, without fail, make him feel four years old again. He resisted rubbing his palms dry on his designer slacks, but only just, and nodded in reply. “Papa, when you call, I come. Of course.”

Charles lifted one eyebrow; that was all.

It was enough.

“Father.” Alex took a deep breath and ran his hand through his blond hair, inevitably destroying the artful work of his personal stylist. “Okay, so I know I haven’t been your most reliable son—”

“I only have two,” Charles murmured. “And all I ask is that they are both full participants in the family business. Or any legitimate business, for that matter.” He sounded calm, but his fingers tightened dangerously around his antique ink pen.

“Yeah.” Alex assumed this summons was something to do with him missing the latest Bonfils management meeting. Or maybe it was because of those embarrassing paparazzi pictures taken in the nightclub last weekend with the twin male models. Or when he gate-crashed the Queen’s garden party last summer, or the fact that Alex had never bothered to finish his university business management course, preferring to go backpacking in Ibiza, or… or… oh, many more examples of how he continued to disappoint his august Papa.

“I think the time has come to face facts,” Charles said.

“Yes? I mean, it has? What about?”

Charles grimaced, obviously struggling to keep his temper. “You have shown little enthusiasm in the business to date, whereas Henri….”

Alex bit back a snort. Henri. His revered, very sober and sensible elder brother, with a gorgeous aristocratic wife and two precocious children to carry on the Bonfils family line. Henri was their father’s chosen heir to the business dynasty. Henri was brighter, smarter, more reliable, more respectable, more predictable—

“Alexandre? Are you listening to me?”

Alex jolted back to attention. “Sure. Go on. You were talking about Henri. How does that affect me?” He hadn’t meant to sound snappy, but constant comparison to a preferred sibling would do that to a guy.

“He’s Bonfils’s CEO for a reason, Alex. He’s committed to the company, a fierce supporter of the industry. He listens, and he learns. Then he works hard.”

The implication was there—Henri was and did all the things Alex wasn’t and didn’t.

“I can work hard.” Alex wished he sounded less defensive. He could work hard. He was just so rarely inspired to. Or rather, he was distracted by things more exciting, more dramatic, more intriguing than profit and loss accounts, stock turnover ratios, and five-year operational budgets.

He hid his shudder at the mere thought.

Surprisingly, his father didn’t scorn his protest. Instead, his gaze almost softened. “Believe me, I know you can. And you do, for the things you love. You have many excellent qualities, and the good intention of using them. But I can’t rely on mere intention for the continuing, successful management of this company. It needs to be your life’s work.”

Alex blinked hard. What was Charles saying? “Jesus, Papa. Are you firing me?”

Charles blew out a tight breath. “I cannot fire you, as you so quaintly put it, when you have a unique position as my son. However, I see no reason to burden you with an operational role any longer.” His tone hardened. “Alexandre, I think you should find yourself a new, personally satisfying project. You will no longer be needed at the monthly management meetings. Your personal allowance will continue—it was your mother’s last wish that all members of the family are supported, regardless of their role in the business—but I think it best for both our expectations if you distance yourself for a while from Bonfils’s Bibendum.” He placed his pen down on the desk blotter with exaggerated care.

Alex was speechless. It was an unfamiliar status.

For a long moment, Charles was still. Then he stood and half lifted his hand from his side, as if he was about to shake Alex’s hand or maybe—just maybe—pat him on the shoulder. Instead, he sighed deeply and gestured gently toward the door for Alex to leave. “And now, if you’ll excuse me, I have an appointment elsewhere.”

Carra's Review

I’ve really enjoyed this author’s previous Romancing books, so when I heard she had another coming out of course I was interested.  I will admit though, that the “Undercover Millionaire” part of it did give me pause since I usually steer clear of books titled with “millionaire”, “billionaire”, “trillionaire”…well, you get the idea.  But this is one of my favorite authors, so I figured I’d dive in anyway.

There was so much to love about Tate—how he takes care of his family, his dedication to his work, how he actually knows quite a bit about the wine in the warehouse in which he works (and just wine in general, even if he can’t usually afford it).  But between putting others first and his wariness to be with anyone romantically, it makes for a lonely life for him.  Alex is his opposite—millionaire playboy with no real focus in life, though he is quite intelligent and really does want to contribute to the family business—he just doesn’t know where he fits in it.  And of course we all know the saying about opposites attracting…

I like that the relationship between Alex and Tate evolved slowly, and how the time Alex spends with Tate and his family allows for Alex’s personality to soften.  It’s the classic taming of a playboy…though with that playboy still hiding his real identity which you know will lead to conflict.  

Then there were the unfortunate issues that kept cropping up at the warehouse, so there’s just a touch of mystery as the two try to figure out who keeps sabotaging things.  I did figure out the culprit pretty quickly, but the reveal was still pretty fun.

My rating for this book seems to be hovering between 3.5 and 4 stars, and while I like the other two Romancing titles from this author more, this was still pretty entertaining and had a satisfying happy ending.  This story is meant for readers 18+ for adult language and sexual content.

About the Author

Clare London took her pen name from the city where she lives, loves, and writes. A lone, brave female in a frenetic, testosterone-fuelled family home, she juggles her writing with her other day job as an accountant.

She’s written in many genres and across many settings, with award-winning novels and short stories published both online and in print. She says she likes variety in her writing while friends say she’s just fickle, but as long as both theories spawn good fiction, she’s happy. Most of her work features male/male romance and drama with a healthy serving of physical passion, as she enjoys both reading and writing about strong, sympathetic, and sexy characters.

Clare currently has several novels sulking at that tricky chapter three stage and plenty of other projects in mind... she just has to find out where she left them in that frenetic, testosterone-fuelled family home.

Clare loves to hear from readers, and you can contact her here:

Website - Email - Blog - Facebook - Twitter - Goodreads - Amazon - Google+

GIVEAWAY!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Hosted By Signal Boost Promotions