Series Spotlight: THE CHRISTOPHER BOOKS by Stephen G Hardy - Includes Excerpt!

SERIES TOUR 

THE CHRISTOPHER BOOKS

by Stephen G Hardy

Follow Christopher as he explores various types of relationships and the impact he has on the lives of others.

The books need to be read in order.

Overall Heat Rating for the series: 1 flame

BOOK DETAILS

BOOK 1

Search for Complete

Cover Artist: Ryan Mulford

Length: 80 127 words /335 pages

Release Date: June 4, 2023

Genres:  Contemporary LGBTQ+ Fiction with speculative elements.

Tropes: Friends to Platonic lovers

Themes:  Interpersonal relationships, Conversations as Catalyst for Change

It is a standalone story and does not end on a cliffhanger.

Goodreads

Buy Links - Available in Kindle Unlimited

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Blurb

“Why do I get the feeling that Christopher is the type of man that would make the perfect husband for any woman and, at the same time, the perfect wife for any man?” Laura says shortly after Christopher begins his new job at the TV station. Laura’s statement would turn out to hold more truth than she could imagine. No one who meets Christopher, especially not Laura, as well as David, a gay man he meets at a party, understands what it is about him that draws them to him. They also don’t realize that Christopher is searching for something, a search complicated by their desires for him.

BOOK 2

The Price of Happiness

Length:  84 447words/330 pages

Release Date: November 24, 2023

Genres: LGBTQ+ Contemporary Literary Fiction

Tropes: Love and loss

Themes: Parenthood, interpersonal relationships, finding oneself.

It is not a standalone story and end on a cliffhanger.

Goodreads

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Blurb

As Search for Complete left off, the birth of his twins had just completed Christopher. However, though he has what he had searched so long for, he now must deal with the associated costs, namely the unraveling of his relationship with Laura, the mother of his twins. The birth of the twins should have brought Laura joy, yet, instead, she finds herself on an intense emotional rollercoaster. Laura resents Christopher's happiness—resents that he is a better mother than she is. But most of all, Laura resents that the twins are Christopher's spitting image—nowhere does she see herself in them. Christopher fears his happiness in becoming a father has become Laura’s undoing. As he tries to help her adjust to the reality of their situation, Laura struggles to find herself in the tangled mess of their relationship.

In The Price of Happiness, Stephen Hardy has created a profound and moving novel on the themes of parenthood, identity, love and loss—and the cost of getting what we want.

BOOK 3

When the Sun and Moon Touch

Length:  87 639 words/353 Pages

Release Date: March 29, 2024

Genres: LGBTQ+ Contemporary Literary Fiction

Tropes: M2M relationships

Themes: Finding oneself, forgiveness, love

The stories need to be read in order. This  book does not end on a cliffhanger.

Buy Links - Available in Kindle Unlimited

Amazon US   |  Amazon UK

Blurb

Christopher has settled into life as a single father to his twins, Loren and Christine. Content with his life, he is contemplating the imminent return of their mother Laura, who has been traveling through Europe for nearly a year, when he meets Benjamin, a direct descendant of the sun. Suddenly, his contentment is upended as he tries to understand the reason for their meeting. Despite what Benjamin says, that they are meant to be together, Christopher initially tries to hold Benjamin at arm's length, believing that he is only to be for Benjamin what Joseph was to him—a friend and mentor.

Excerpt from Book 1

I began to question accepting Laura’s invitation when I heard the noise coming from the backyard as we approached the house. I disliked crowds, and it sounded like an immense crowd was on the other side of the gate.

People were everywhere—seated on lounge chairs scattered around the patio or at the rectangular dining table or milling about in various groups—talking loudly over the blaring music. Laura’s voice broke through the noise.

“I don’t see Peter anywhere. He might be inside. Shall we find him?”

“By all means. I would feel uncomfortable attending his party without meeting him.”

I followed Laura into the house. As we passed through the living room, my eyes fell on a few framed photos of a handsome couple on the wall.

In the kitchen, a solitary male figure was removing a tray of croissants from the oven.

“Hello, Peter.”

As he turned around, I recognized Peter as one of the men in the photos. Tall and slender, with dark hair and a mustache waxed into handlebars, there was a dapperness to him that I found pleasing.

“Hey, Laura. Lovely to see you!”

After setting the hot tray down, Peter hugged her.

“Peter, I want you to meet Christopher. He just moved here from Seattle and works with me at the station.”

“How do you do, Peter?“

Having grown used to the reaction my presence caused, I smiled patiently as Peter, unable to speak right away, shook my offered hand.

“I hope you do not mind my crashing your party. Laura assured me that you would not object to her bringing me.”

“No, of course, I don’t mind.”

The words tumbled out one on top of the other.

“Is there anything we can do to assist you?”

“No, I have it all under control, thanks. Please help yourself to the food and drinks out on the patio.”

“We will. Thanks,” Laura said, taking my arm and steering me back through the living room.

“Peter is very nice,” I commented as we stepped through the doors and headed towards the drinks table. “Can I make you something?”

“A mimosa, thanks. Yes, Peter’s a sweetie.”

We stood sipping our drinks as I scanned the crowd of mostly men, a mix of young and old, before Laura took me around, introducing me to the people she knew.

I instinctively searched their eyes for the essence of another while ignoring Laura’s scrutinizing gaze.

Laura needed to use the bathroom, so she left me standing under the large Ficus tree where we had sought shade from the sun. Within minutes of her departure, I was surrounded by a large group of people vying for my attention. Carrying on multiple conversations was challenging, but I did my best to make each person feel they had my full attention.

He caught my attention on the periphery of my vision: tall and well-built, resembling the small statue of the god Mars that sat on the table in Joseph’s shop. Our eyes met, and I felt my heart skip a beat, seeing something flash in his eyes. Smiling hopefully, I extended my hand to him.

“Hello, my name is Christopher Dunn.”

As he shook my hand, I took the opportunity to search his golden-brown eyes. My initial hope turned to disappointment, for while something was there, it was not another’s essence. Though disappointed, I was intrigued.

“Davidmartelli.”

He slurred the two names into one in his haste to get the words out.

As I gazed into his eyes, the feeling of a purpose to our meeting appeared—first Laura and now David.

“It is a pleasure to meet you, David Martelli,” I said, saying his name distinctly.

David blushed attractively, causing a twinge in my heart.

“Can I get you a drink?”

He looked so crestfallen when I held up my cup that I was tempted to down my drink and ask him for another.

“Oh, you have one.”

 “I do, but I appreciate you asking.”

I gave him a smile to back up my words. It was apparent that David was struggling to find something to say, the frustration evident in his handsome features. I wanted to get him away from the people surrounding us and talk to him alone, but I did not see how I could do so without offending everyone else.

Conscious of the eyes watching us, David blushed again and backed away.

For some reason, I knew that this behavior was out of character for him. Watching him walk away, I hoped we would meet again as I wanted to discover what I saw in his eyes.

About the Author 

Stephen Hardy was born in the San Francisco Bay Area but grew up in the Pacific Northwest. His career as a fashion designer took him back to San Francisco before he headed to New York City, where he met his husband of twenty years. Tiring of the hectic pace of the fashion industry, Stephen gave up his career to become a stay-at-home dad for his and his husband’s two adopted sons and a quiet life in Connecticut. Now residing in Phoenix, Arizona, and with the kids grown, Stephen returned to university, where he rediscovered his love for writing. His focus is on contemporary fiction, examining social issues regarding gender, sexuality, and relationships. Search for Complete is his first novel.

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Recent Release Spotlight-Excerpt & Giveaway: BE NOT AFRAID by AJ Saxsma

Be Not Afraid

Author and Publisher: AJ Saxsma

Cover Artist: Andrew Howard

Release Date: January 23, 2024

Genre: LGBTQ Literary

Themes: Coming out, accepting what we cannot change

Length: 120 000 words/431 pages

Heat Rating: 2 flames

It is a standalone story and does not end on a cliffhanger.

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Buy Links - Available in Kindle Unlimited

Amazon US  |  Amazon UK

Can you love yourself enough? Are you capable of it?

Blurb

Step into the small & intriguing Midwestern town of Larton where Lloyd Wood struggles daily with reviving his failing restaurant while refusing to relinquish any control, even in his family life. When a business guru arrives and promises to set the restaurant right, Lloyd is tempted by the promise of a miraculous turnaround.

Toby, Lloyd's son, seeks conformity compulsively. Each day, he audits and buries his true self deeper, yearning to fade into obscurity, anonymity. His desperation leads him to a program that vows to obliterate his authentic self, setting Toby on an unintended and riveting path of self-discovery.

Meanwhile, Dawn, Lloyd's wife, finds solace in a new church where love is not just a sentiment but a commodity. Lost in her family's shadow, she embraces a new identity amidst her new church family whose intentions seem questionable at best.

As the Wood family strives to escape their own truths, the chasms they create around themselves deepen and, one by one, threaten to swallow the people they care about most.

'Be Not Afraid' explores identity, family dynamics, the destructive paradox of denial & with a distinct strength in voice questions our capacity to accept what we cannot change...or can we?

Excerpt

TOBY AND DAWN WAITED in the doctor’s office. She’d picked him up from Jonah’s that morning, and he had been quiet in the car and at the house, and then quiet again to the doctor’s office in town.

The sign above the reception window read Dr. E.M. Gille, MD.

‘How you feeling, hon?’ Dawn said. She had a magazine in her lap, and she was rubbing Toby’s back. ‘How’s your stomach? Want to describe it to me?’

‘No.’

‘If you describe it to me, it’ll be easier to tell the doctor.’

‘It’s fine right now,’ Toby said. He was watching the TV on a stand tucked in the corner. The news was on. Another eyewitness had seen an angel outside town.

A nurse came into the waiting room. She was in pink smocks and stood on thick soles. She said, ‘Toby Wood.’

Both Toby and Dawn followed the nurse to an exam room, which she knocked on before allowing entry.

She examined Toby and made him describe the pain.

‘It just hurts sometimes.’

She stunk like cigarettes.

The nurse said the doctor will be right in.

Toby sat on the examination table. The sanitary paper crinkled no matter how he moved or how he settled.

He and Dawn waited for the doctor.

‘Does it hurt now?’ Dawn said.

‘No, Mom.’

They waited, and sometime later, a knock announced the doctor. He was clean shaven with close-cropped hair white as bedsheets. His brows were thick and bushy. His skin was cream and pink and aged. He wore a button-up and tie under his white coat. His teeth and eyes were bright.

‘Heya, Toby,’ he said. He didn’t look at Toby when he said it; he was reading Toby’s chart. He sat and scooted his stool close. ‘You’re having stomach pain.’

It wasn’t a question; it was a statement the doctor read aloud.

Toby quietly confirmed.

The doctor pressed with his fingers into Toby’s stomach and tested areas and asked if that hurt.

Toby said it did not.

‘Pain comes and goes. It’s not that bad.’

‘Out of ten, what would you say?’

‘A two, one and a half. It’s really not that bad.’

‘A two? One and a half?’

‘Tell the doctor when it hurts, hon.’

‘It comes and goes, Mom.’

‘Do you take any pain relievers?’

‘No,’ Toby said.

‘No, he doesn’t,’ Dawn said too.

‘Okay,’ the doctor said. He made notes.

‘He doesn’t always come to me when it hurts. I don’t know what to do, I don’t know what it is.’

The doctor’s tone was soft. ‘Well. Sometimes our bodies respond physically to factors within our environment, anxiety, stress, all these can stew in the body and hollow us out,’ the doctor said to Dawn.

She nodded intently.

‘Are you studying too hard? Maybe big tests coming up? Staying up too late with the video games?’

‘I study too hard,’ Toby said. He said it very quickly, almost before the doctor had finished speaking. ‘That must be it, the stress of studying,’ Toby said. 

‘Still.’ The doctor rolled the stool close to Dawn. He continued, ‘A boy his age should not have recurring stomach pain. I’d like to send him for testing.’

‘That’s what I said, I didn’t like the frequency of it. Didn’t I say, Toby?’ Dawn said.

‘Testing?’ Toby said.

‘I’d like to rule some things out.’

‘It’s not that bad, really. It’s only sometimes,’ Toby said.

Dawn said whatever test was fine and she agreed, and she asked if it could, maybe, be this or could be that, or, she said, she didn’t really know, Doctor.

‘Could I have you step out for a minute, Mrs. Wood?’

Dawn stepped out, and the doctor shut the door. The doctor had Toby come off the exam table and sit in a chair, and the doctor rolled over on the rolly stool.

He did not speak right away. He was deep in thought, and then he said, ‘Is there anything you have not told your mom, anything you’re worried about that, maybe, you can’t tell mom or dad? Stress is not good for the body. If you’ve kept something to yourself, I won’t say a word to your mom or your dad if you’d like to share it with me. Do you have something you’d like to tell me that you can’t tell them?’

Toby was quiet a very long time. ‘I’m just studying too hard.’

The doctor nodded and waited for more from Toby.

There was no more.

‘Well. Then. Take study breaks, okay? Allow yourself time to relax. Time to be. But I do want to run some tests. Whatever is triggering the pain, we’ll find it out. Okay? I promise, son, we will unearth with absolute certainty what is causing this physical reaction. Even if it takes a while, we’ll uncover the root of it. I can promise that. Okay?’

The doctor went from the room and scheduled Toby’s lab tests with his mother and the receptionist.

Toby sat in the room.

Alone.

He was listening to the doctor’s words over and again.

We’ll find it out. Okay?

I can promise that.

His stomach hurt.

About the Author

AJ Saxsma, born in Illinois in 1987, is a queer writer. He lives in Los Angeles with his husky. His literary work has earned awards from Almond Press UK and has been published in several genre magazines. As a screenwriter, his work has been an official selection for the Independent Horror Film Awards, Hollywood Screen Film Festival, Los Angeles Cinefest, and Los Angeles Horror Competition. He's also written the narrative scripts for four video game projects produced by Oculus for the Oculus VR system.

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Spotlight-Excerpt: SPARK & TETHER by Lilian Zenzi (Synchronists #1)

 

Spark & Tether

By Lilian Zenzi

Series Title: Synchronists

Release Date: Friday, January 19, 2024

Publishing Company: Lilian Zenzi, LLC

Cover Artist: design by Damonza Studios, art by Lucas @newmoonnero

Primary Plot Arc: Speculative Fiction

Genres: Romance, Science Fiction

Story Type: Novel (>50k)

Word Count: 103k

Universal Buy Link: 

https://books2read.com/u/mYqJWp

Blurb

Working odd jobs across the Outer Ring gets a little lonely sometimes—not everyone loves having a synchronist with supraliminal perception around. But all Sacheri wants, he tells himself, is to wander the stars.

Then he takes a salvage run to an abandoned moon where he meets the wry, reserved, strictly-by-the-rules archivist Jin. Mesmerized by their confidence and charm, Sacheri can’t resist showing off his abilities–and instead of the damaged ai he was tracking, he stumbles onto a signal left by a synchronist who went missing decades earlier.

Sacheri knows from previous experience that pursuing the truth—never mind justice—could destroy everything he loves. He would defy his employers, the institution responsible for the myconeural networks that make him a synchronist, and the leadership of several worlds. 

And it would complicate his new, passionate, and impossibly sweet relationship with Jin. They might be the best thing that’s ever happened to him, but they work for the very entities that ended Sacheri’s last investigation.

He knows better than to risk it.

But he’s never been able to turn away from someone in need, and there’s a voice in the void calling for aid…

Excerpt

PROLOGUE

Orinus Station, present day

Sacheri woke with a shiver in his nerves tracing his limbs like a lit fuse.

His synplants drew his awareness out into the station, into the whisper of leaves and the low hum of the machines, endlessly seeking. He had no solace to offer them, so he tried to sleep through it. Maybe inebriant would douse the burn; he’d have to find one, which meant leaving bed… but then, a walk might also help. The drink could keep him company on the return.

There was a certain maudlin poetry to wandering with the ghosts of memory, anyway.

#

He regretted his choices before he could finish the first bottle.

The empty corridors echoed, even the ones with lush vine-planted walls, fully surrounded by sound-absorbent tiling. The unsteady sound of his steps reminded him of less lonely times; the chatter of more populated halls made him sad. His synplants cleansed the inebriant from his system faster than he could drink, so he diminished them, set a timer on his standard implant, and ducked into a maintenance corridor, heading for the lifts that would return him to his temp residence.

He’d forgotten how many ghosts were in his head.

He drank more.

He passed through too many familiar places, muttering curses to himself about the council for bringing him to Orinus Station in the first place. He should have departed with Paradis, gone away to her fancy little moon, where he could wallow in heartbreak on a lakeside beach while she teased him about his lack of ambition. She’d have been careful not to remind him of anything—anyone—else.

Three more nights until he left for Elysia, into the far reaches of the Outer Rings, away from the myriad reminders, the constant calling of what should have been, all of his aching regrets.

He avoided the halls that would have taken him past Paradis’s private suites and the memories lying in wait for him there, and then he wandered past the next set of lifts, because it was what he and Jin had always done: long walks and quiet talks, so close their shoulders touched, their bell-clear, mesmerizing voice low and loving. He tried not to think about how much he missed them, and, failing that, tried not to think at all.

He trudged along, hugging the shadows at the edges of the walkways, arms heavy at his sides, until it was late enough that he could reasonably hope to get a lift to himself, and he had some hope of sleeping. The only humans he’d passed in maintenance took no notice of him, which was the whole point of using the back ways. But they might make small talk if they found him alone in a lift car, or, stars forbid, they might ask if he was okay. 

And then what was he supposed to do? Cry on them? Tell them to mind their own business? Explain how he helped bring something like justice to a few long-forgotten synchronists and how much it took from him? Or should he ask if they’d seen a certain lithe, black-haired investigator for the Council of the Outer Rings anywhere nearby? His eyes burned from both the inebriant and the exhaustion and the constant threat of tears. He wanted to sleep until the transport to Elysia was ready.

The bottle was empty, but he wasn’t ready to let it go; he thought he might sleep better with it nearby, just for company, even if the synplants wiped all traces of the inebriant from his system. He leaned against the rounded corner of the lift alcove, one heel against the wall to hold him steady, arms crossed over his chest, bottle dangling loosely from the fingers of his right hand. 

His luck almost held.

About the Author

Lilian Zenzi writes science fiction and fantasy, sometimes with romance and usually in queer normative worlds. Genre agnostic as a writer and a reader, she likes to keep space for comfort, hope, and joy along with the kissing, conflict, and big ideas. She resents having to write a bio and would rather be in the garden or making art.

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