Tuesday, October 2, 2018

New Release-Review & Giveaway: JAMES - UNCONTROLLABLE by Felice Stevens (Man Up #5)

James - Uncontrollable (Man Up, #5)

Author: Felice Stevens

Genre:M/M Romance
Release Date: October 2, 2018

Hosted by: Buoni Amici Press, LLC.

It's time to travel with James and Malcolm through their twenty year history as they battle each other and struggle to hold on to a lifetime of secrets.

James
Never good enough.
Not the real son.
I will prove him wrong—prove everyone wrong.
I am someone.
I will succeed.
I don’t need my brother to help me.
I don't need anyone.
My enemy holds my secret.
He teases me.
Taunts me.
Follows me with his eyes.
Our hot, angry kisses keep me up at night.
I don’t want him.
I hate him.
But I can’t stop thinking about him.
That there's more to him
I want to discover him.
The truth is unexpected.
My enemy might not only be my friend but the love I never thought to have.

Malcolm
Live, love, laugh.
Life is too short to worry when you don’t know how long you’ve got.
I want every day to be my best.
Like it’s my last.
My friends see what I let them.
Not the real me.
Only one man has ever crawled beneath my skin.
He drives me crazy.
Makes me wild.
Makes me care.
A night of bad decisions changes the course of my life.
Everything I've known no longer makes sense.
My enemy now stands by my side.
I’m no longer running.
I want to stay.
I want a future.
Hate has changed to something new and wonderful.
Something terrifying.
Uncontrollable.
Love.

Carra's Review

We’ve all been waiting on the edge of our seats for the story of the enigmatic owner of Man Up, and James - Uncontrollable didn’t disappoint! This story had it’s fill of tension and angst, with an enemies to lovers theme that as you might expect led to some scorching, passionate, emotion-filled scenes—plenty to keep me glued to the pages and reading this book straight through.

James didn’t have it easy early in life, and with his (and Rhoades’) father being the jerk that he was, it’s no wonder James took the path he did to become who his is today. Driven to be as successful as possible—just to show his now-gone father that he’s turned out to be more than he expected—and to help others who are at-risk or down on their luck, in the process he’s cut himself off from feeling anything for anyone on a personal, intimate level. Unless those feelings include loathing and hatred…

Malcolm comes across as a typical trust fund playboy, a love ‘em and leave ‘em type who travels the world partying and pursuing physical pleasures without a care. Looks can be deceiving though, and he has things in his personal life that he hides from even those closest to him. He’s an expert at pushing all of James’s buttons, and has been doing so for a long time.

A large part of the first half of the book focuses on James becoming who he is now, and how things between him, Malcolm, and his half-brother Rhoades get to where they are. That means a great deal of the tension and angst right up front, giving the story a rough edge until James and Malcolm show signs of giving in to what’s been building up between them for so long. Even once they do, James still keeps trying to push back…thank goodness Malcolm is the persistent sort! And all of those high-strung emotions naturally give way to a great deal of passion and intensity between them.

Once they do get together, it did feel to me like things progressed pretty fast to the point when they were declaring their feelings, so while the first two-thirds or so of the book went at a more even, steady pace the last part felt more accelerated. This could be due to the intensity of things between Malcolm and James once they finally give in to their pent-up feelings, but even so it still felt a bit fast to me. But I did like that not only was James finally finding what he needed with Malcolm, he also was working on resolving the built-up tension and hard feelings between him and Rhoades going back to when they first met.

James - Uncontrollable was a solid 4-star read for me, and I really enjoyed finally getting to know the story behind the man who made Man Up possible. There’s so much more to him—and Malcolm—than you might expect, and watching the battle between them as their relationship evolves was pretty entertaining. While you could read this as a standalone, I would recommend reading the series in order to get the most enjoyment out of it. This book is meant for readers 18+ for adult language and sexual content.

Felice Stevens has always been a romantic at heart. She believes that while life is tough, there is always a happy ending around the corner, Her characters have to work for it, however. Like life in NYC, nothing comes easy and that includes love.
Felice has written over twenty books in the gay romance genre. Her books been translated into German, French and Italian. Her novel. One Call Away, part of her Soulmates series, was mentioned in Buzzfeed as one of the best “Out for You” gay romances of 2017.
Felice lives in New York City with her husband and two children. Her day begins with a lot of caffeine and ends with a glass or two of red wine. She recently retired from the practice law and now daydreams of a time when she can sit by a beach somewhere and write beautiful stories of men falling in love. Although there are bound to be a few bumps along the way, a Happily Ever After is always guaranteed.

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New Release-Excerpt: SAVOR ME by Beth Bolden (Kitchen Gods #3)

SAVOR ME

KITCHEN GODS, BOOK 3

BETH BOLDEN

M/M ROMANCE

RELEASE DATE: 10.02.18

COVER DESIGN: AngstyG

BLURB

When Chef Xander Bridges leaves the warmth and safety of his car on a cold, stormy night and approaches a stranger, the last thing he expects to find is a future. He’s wanted to leave his job for awhile, but with no good opportunities on the horizon, he’s been stuck in a long, painful rut. But when he befriends the stranger viciously tearing up his own vineyard, Xander discovers something inexplicable. Maybe he’s not the bitter, sarcastic man that everyone, including himself, has endured for years.

Maybe, with someone like Damon in his life, he could be something more. Something better.

Damon Hess doesn’t just want more, he demands it. With his alcoholic past, there are no gray areas for him. Only black and white. In love or not. Sober or drunk. But the chance meeting with Xander opens Damon’s eyes, and gives him a vision full of something he hasn’t experienced in years: hope.

Hope that he can expect companionship and affection, hope that he doesn’t have to grapple with his family’s questionable Napa legacy any longer, and most importantly, hope that there’s a future worth believing in. But the longer he and Xander spend cultivating that future, the more Damon realizes that the key is so much simpler than he ever imagined--it’s Xander.

Savor Me is an 80,000 word contemporary m/m romance starring an irascible man with a soft, gooey marshmallow center and another who knows he likes men, but has never been with one before. It is third in the Kitchen Gods series, but can be read as a standalone.

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EXCERPT

“What’s all this?” Damon asked when he opened the door.

“Dinner,” Xander said, hefting one of the grocery bags a little higher on his hip. “I got the impression last time I was here that you were good with that espresso machine but that you don’t use your stove that much.”

Damon grinned, unexpectedly fierce and bright, and it nearly knocked Xander right back. “Guilty as charged,” he admitted, opening the door wider to let Xander come into the house.

It looked much the same as it had that night, a year ago. A little cleaner, perhaps, like Damon had gotten that text and had decided to neaten up in anticipation of Xander coming over.

This is not a date, Xander reminded himself.

He’d had to remind himself of this more than once when he’d been at the grocery store picking up food for tonight. First he’d agonized at the meat counter. When you brought a filet for dinner, what did it mean? What about salmon? Shrimp?

Love, marriage, or maybe even eternal devotion? A white picket fence?

Xander had to stop himself before he asked the butcher if the different cuts had deep, secret meanings, like flowers. There was no cut of meat that communicated: “this is just a friendly work dinner, but if you wanted it to be more, I could be convinced. And by the way, do you like men?”

“I decided,” Xander told Damon as they walked through the living room towards the kitchen, “that it would be completely stupid for you to hire me if I’d never even cooked for you before.”

Damon shrugged, one side of his mouth quirking up a little. It had the side effect of making his bottom lip look very bitable.

Xander set his groceries on the kitchen counter and began to unpack them like they held the secret to world peace. He was attracted to Damon and it was a problem, but their partnership didn’t have to be defined by his inconvenient attraction.

“I think I’d like to see you explore what you’re interested in,” Damon said quietly as he settled in one of the barstools. The same one Xander had occupied a year ago. Xander told himself that meant nothing. After all, there were only three barstools to pick from. Maybe that one was secretly the most comfortable and Xander had just gotten lucky.

It did something to the base of his stomach to think that Damon didn’t care; that he just wanted to give Xander the freedom and the space to do what he wanted. It had been a very long time since anyone had thought highly enough of him to do that, and Xander told himself not to be fooled into thinking that’s what this was.

“You really don’t care?” Xander asked in disbelief.

He’d never hired a chef before. Maybe when you hired one, you just naturally assumed you were getting their point of view, not your own.

“My point of view is the garden,” Damon said. “As long as you use as much of it as you can, I’m good.”

And Xander had taken at least that much away from their previous conversations about the restaurant, so he’d bought lots of vegetables, which he spread out across the counter now.

“Someday,” he told Damon, “all this will be from your garden.”

Damon set his elbows on the counter, forearms rippling with muscle, because even though he was wearing another plaid shirt, of course he’d rolled up the sleeves. But his intent couldn’t be to drive Xander crazy; it was just probably more comfortable. Maybe those crazy gorgeous forearms didn’t even fit properly into shirts.

Xander swallowed hard and looked away. “I figured I’d make a quick pasta with roasted garlic and sautéed vegetables. I got a nice salmon filet too.”

“Salmon’s good. I like salmon,” Damon said.

It was weird cooking in someone else’s kitchen, and it was even weirder doing it with Damon watching him so intently.

Beth Bolden lives in Portland, Oregon with her supportive husband. She wholly believes in Keeping Portland Weird, but wishes she didn’t have to make the yearly pilgrimage up to Seattle to watch her Boston Red Sox play baseball. She’s a fan of fandoms, and spends too much of her free time on tumblr.

Beth has been writing practically since she learned the alphabet. Unfortunately, her first foray into novel writing, titled Big Bear with Sparkly Earrings, wasn’t a bestseller, but hope springs eternal. She’s published eight novels and two novellas, with Catch Me, the next novel in the Kitchen Gods series, releasing in May 2018.

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Excerpt & Giveaway: THE SECRETS OF CHATEAU SWANSEA by R.C. Matthews

THE SECRETS OF CHATEAU SWANSEA

R.C. Matthews

Genre: Gothic Romance

Publication Date: October 1, 2018

A grisly murder leaves a haunted estate without an heir, and a powerful medium scrambles to find answers from beyond the grave.

Determined to escape the nightmarish memories of her childhood, heiress and psychic Maribeth Sommerset pursues the adventurous life of a psychic investigator, beginning with a murder and the spirits who hover behind at the haunted Chateau Swansea

Meanwhile, devoted steward of the chateau Arthur Dunn plays a dangerous game of deception to shield his employer's good name, landing himself at the top of Maribeth's suspect list.

Amid scandalous secrets and destructive lies, will Maribeth uncover the secrets of Chateau Swansea before the killer strikes again?

Don't miss out on this thrilling Victorian gothic romance!

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Excerpt

“The newspaper article mentioned other witnesses,” she said as she strolled through the chamber. “Who spoke of eerie wails and creaking floors?”

“Mrs. Hawkins, the housekeeper, as well as Mrs. Pickering, the cook.”

He folded his arms as she ran her lithe fingers across every available surface, occasionally closing her eyes and breathing deep. A sense of calm serenity surrounded her. Her steps were cautious, her focus absolute. He may as well have not existed for all the attention she afforded him.

“Would you care to inspect the balcony?” he asked, unlocking the double glass-paned doors.

She nodded and followed him outside. A lounging chair covered in a bold, floral pattern filled one corner. The short ledge around the perimeter, which barely reached Arthur’s shins, held several potted plants.

Maribeth sat on the ledge, exactly in the spot where Mrs. Turner fell, and she peered over the edge to the pond below. After bracing her palms on the ledge, she met his gaze. “This is where she tumbled, is it not?”

“Yes, indeed.” He dipped his head in acknowledgment. A lucky guess for a cunning lady. Let the show commence. “Is Mrs. Turner here with us?”

Turning her face skyward, she breathed in and out with long, measured breaths, closing her eyes, no doubt for dramatic effect. At least the woman was not predisposed to talking to the dead out loud. He found such one-sided conversations laughable.

“I’m afraid not,” she finally said on a sigh.

Why didn’t she leap at the opportunity to demonstrate her skills? This was the murder scene. If any connection was to be found, surely it was here. Confounding. He had no other word for the woman. Except inexperienced. She was green and had yet to hone her skills of deception.

“What did Mr. Turner say when questioned?” she asked, pulling him from his musings.

“Nothing.” Arthur lowered himself on the foot of the chaise longue and stretched out his legs. “By the time his solicitor arrived to attend the interrogation, Mr. Turner’s mind had slipped into oblivion.”

She lifted an eyebrow. “Do you think he knows what occurred?”

Arthur shrugged. “He resides across the hallway, and the incident occurred shortly before the scheduled Thursday tour. As such, Mr. Turner would’ve taken to his quarters to avoid the throng of visitors.” He focused his gaze on the doorway into Caroline’s chamber, away from Maribeth’s prying eyes. “I venture he must’ve heard something, at the very least.”

“Perhaps creaking floors or the wails of a malevolent ghost?” A hint of humor tinged her words. “Why do you suppose the rumors of the ghost of Madame Brown persist?”

The corners of Arthur’s lips curled up. “Well, for one, where is the sense in touring the séance chamber if it isn’t haunted by the infamous clairvoyant who resided here?”

“I see.” Maribeth folded her legs at the ankle, tapping her booted heels against the stone ledge. “So your employer is an opportunist?”

A gruff laugh escaped him. “By no means. The tours were his wife’s idea. She held a macabre fascination with the dead.” Among other things. “Even more so, I believe she enjoyed torturing Mr. Turner. He visited Chateau Swansea for a séance a few years before he met and married Caroline. When the former mistress died in childbirth, Mr. Turner acquired the estate and accepted guardianship of Madame Brown’s daughter. I believe Mr. Turner held an enduring love for the clairvoyant. Some say Arabella was jealous of Caroline living in her home and raising her daughter.”

The tap, tap, tap of Maribeth’s boots against the ledge stopped, and she shook her head. “The Turners were married ages ago. Why would the ghost attack now?”

“Because Mrs. Turner held a ceremony with her sister in the séance chamber only a week before the incident. This is why Mrs. Marsh worries the ghost may have murdered her sister.”

Her mouth formed a little O and her brow lifted with interest. “That’s right. You mentioned this at the inn. A first attempt?”

Book Tour Schedule

Follow the book tour from October 1 - 14, 2018.

Visit each tour stop daily and discover more features, excerpts, reviews, interviews, fun facts and more!

To check the latest tour schedule, visit the The Secrets of Chateau Swansea Book Page at Book Unleashed.

About R.C. Matthews

R.C. Matthews is the author of contemporary and historical romances featuring bold, sassy heroines and magnetic alpha heroes. Warning! The chemistry between her characters is off the charts hot, so read at your own risk. She resides in the Midwest and is surrounded by men: her husband and three sons. During her free time you'll find her watching The Walking Dead, reading a fabulous book or hanging out with her family.

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WIN FREE EBOOK BY R.C. MATTHEWS

Winner's Prize:

Devil's Core by R.C. Matthews (eBook) - The first book in a related series in which we first meet the heroine of The Secrets of Chateau Swansea when she is a little girl.

Contest runs from October 1 - 14, 2018.

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Monday, October 1, 2018

Cover Reveal & Excerpt: THE COMMITMENT COLLECTION by Karen Botha

COVER REVEAL

Buckle Up, G-Force and Jump Start Collection

Author: Karen Botha

Publisher: Self-published

Cover Artist: Jarmilla Takac

Genre/s: Contemporary gay romance

Release Date: October 18, 2018

Heat Rating: 4 flames

Blurb

On the road of life, passion is what drives us, but love makes us stay the course.

Elliott Judd is a superstar race car driver and hotter than hell. Men and women fall at his feet and he enjoys the easy pickings.

Kyle Beaumont, a straight mechanic with a body to die for, joins the racing team of his dreams with his mind fixed on the job.

But as the racing seasons come and go, these men realize they might be racing to the same trophy, each other. With their physical and emotional exploits driven to new depths. they face devastating disruptions when the past crashes into them. Are their feelings for each other enough to keep them on the right track?

Find how passion and lust turn to love, and whether these driven men focus on happiness in the journey or the destination in this hot, sexy three-book series.

Download your copy of Commitment Collection 1 - 3 now.

Buckle-Up #1

Passion, lust and desire are the fuel that drives us. So, buckle up for the ride of your life.

Elliott Judd is a superstar race car driver and hotter than hell. Men and women fall at his feet and he enjoys the easy pickings. No one has tamed this wild stallion, but is he ready to settle down for the right person?

Kyle Beaumont, a straight mechanic with a body to die for joins the racing team of his dreams, and with his mind fixed on the job, he doesn't realise that he is Elliott's next trophy of choice.

As the racing season and the fight to be the world number one starts, so too does Elliott's game of seduction.

Will Elliott crash and burn, or will Kyle succumb to this gorgeous man's onslaught?

Buckle Up is the first book in a gay romance series by Karen Botha and a story of unlikely love.

G-Force #2

Love breeds intensity.
Intensity breeds passion.

Recovered from a life-threatening accident, Kyle Beaumont is a powerhouse who is eager to show Elliott Judd just how far he can push his hotter than ever physique. Their physical and emotional exploits are driven to a depth neither has ever experienced with anyone else.

As a racing driver superstar, Elliott loves handling power, and he's geared up for taking everything Kyle throws his way. In fact, he craves it. But, when the past smashes into their lives, is the couple prepared to handle possibly devastating disruptions?

Set in a world of fast cars, intense love, and a burning desire to win at all costs, this is a love story brimming with unbridled lust. Join Elliott and Kyle as they race their demons to the finish line in hopes of taking home the ultimate prize-their undying love.

Jump Start #3

Falling in love is easy.
Making it work, well, that's where the fun begins.

Falling in love with Kyle Beaumont helped Elliott Judd find a romantic piece of himself he didn't know existed. The two men take the next step in their relationship when Kyle moves into Elliott's place, but despite the passion he feels for his talented mechanic and lover, the scorching hot race car driver suddenly feels out of place in his own home.

Kyle adores Elliott, and thinks of him as the love of his life he didn't see coming. But calling a mansion home and fitting into Elliott's space is more of a culture shock than he'd anticipated.Join Kyle and Elliott as they adjust to sharing their lives with one another, both in and out of the spotlight.

You'll laugh, you'll cry, and you'll wonder if these two will ever get it right.

Excerpt

His forehead is almost touching mine, our mouths millimeters from meeting. I want to pull away before I lose myself, but whatever my mind is saying my body is doing its own thing. My breath is fast and light, my head swimming with unspoken possibilities.

And yet I’m still unprepared. When his mouth covers my lips, it’s firm, not an innocent tease, but with his lips tight and unwavering, demanding my response. He’s shaved, but still his chin bristles against mine. And he’s taller than a woman. I don’t have to stoop, and his hair, although long for a man, doesn’t tangle in my mouth.

He presses his tongue into the seam of my lips and as they meet, an almighty crescendo cascades down from my head as the pent up tension of the last twenty-four hours releases into the pit of my stomach. It somersaults, my emotions bouncing, my breath catching, mingling with his.

My senses tingle and I don’t even realize I’ve placed my hands on his hips. His muscles ripple as he presses deeper against my body, matching my form on every level. Drunk with desire, my only need is to touch his taut muscles under the formality of his uniform so my hands creep around his back, pulling him into me. The pressure of his heart beats into my own chest. God, he’s rock solid. Everywhere.

About the Author

Karen Botha was born in Lincolnshire England where her father was in the royal air force. As a young girl she always had a passion for reading and writing. Working most of her adult life in digital marketing didn't leave her much time to pursue her passion for stories. at the age of 36 She retrained for a reflexologist and started working for herself. This helped her free up more than enough time to enjoy a re-found passion for writing.

Her first novel was inspired by true life experiences and tales from clients. But don't believe everything you read.

She enjoys traveling rugby and motor sport, this gives her inspiration and ideas for her books.

The first in the new LGBT series is a mm romance novel about a racing car driver and his mechanic.

She currently lives in London with her husband and rescue dog called Shadow.

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New Release & Giveaway: THE SECRETS OF CHATEAU SWANSEA by R.C. Matthews