Somehow missed these

When I was making my list of yaoi I realized that I somehow missed these below.

Crimson Wind by Duo Brand (164 pages)



This is a sequel to White Guardian but you don't really need to read it first. Prince Linth is getting fighting lessons of hottie General Sei, he wonders about Sei's relationship with PM Touri and then it goes into the backstory of how Sei at the age of 17 caught Touri's interest and how their relationship started. It also delves into another story of a judge (sort of) in a neighboring Kingdom helps a newcomer to the city and how they end up together. There was an interesting chart at the back that shows how years later the two stories come together. So not sure there is a vol. 3 or not. But as I said, you don't need to read the first one. It was okay, typical fantasy setting and typical yaoi story. But enjoyable.

Junior Escort vol. 1 by Sakurako Hanafubuki (200 pages)



Mizuhara and Aikawa are both actors for the same agency but Aikawa is a superstar. Mizuhara is assigned to keep him happy (aka sleep with him). When Mizuhara starts getting roles he fears that he's getting them because of Aikawa and not his talent. Also they are keeping the relationship secret from the press who start to follow them and get pictures of them kissing. There are several other volumes which I'm not sure have the same characters as there are other actors in this one who have small roles. It was okay, kind of a dumb premise (assigned to be his lover) and of course he doubts that Aikawa really likes him. It was okay, I've read worse but it didn't inspire me to run out and get vol. 2+.

Still Unmotivated

I've got the "I'm bored and even though I have books in my TBR file I bought and wanted to read, they are not appealing to me" illness that seems to be sweeping the internet. I've only read about 250 pages (new - I have flipped around some old faves) in 5 days. Almost unheard of.

Turquoise and Leather by Kim Dare (50 pages)



George is a dom at the bar when he sees Eric dancing. He's smitten but later realizes he's wearing a collar meaning he's taken. Eric continues to pursue him and finally its cleared up that's its just a necklace, not a collar but he's clueless to the whole D/s thing but George is hooked and takes him home. Its a bit of a rough go with Eric not understanding but George is willing to try and asks Eric to wear his collar after one night. I liked Eric a lot, totally hyper babbler, young and enthusiastic. It was kind of interesting to see George having to deal with someone who doesn't always do what he expects or wants and I liked that he was only offering D/s in the bedroom so it seemed more realistic that Eric would agree after one night. I mean really, if he changed his mind he just has to take the collar off and leave, its not like he was chained in the basement, um, penthouse, whatever. So I liked the opposites attract thing that happened but could have lived without the foot action. Feet. eewwww.

Inland Empire by James Buchanan (196 pages)



Book two takes up 3 months after Nick's injuries. He comes to visit Brandon to get his car out of impound and somehow gets involved in Brandon's case concerning Asian gangs/gambling/prostitution. Brandon is constantly freaking that people at work are going to think he's gay because Nick acts "too gay". I felt for Nick and thought he was amazingly patient because I would have hammered Brandon over the had and told him to take a hike a lot sooner but I was glad he wasn't a total doormat either. I really enjoyed the dynamic between the two and was totally in love with Roberta the transexual hooker. A great mystery with everything coming to a head with a bang and the relationship moving on in ways I was happy to see. A great series for those who like cop stories combined with some goth boys who like to play with rope. The only thing with the rope was I was totally lost but I didn't need to understand to get the gist of it.

Dreaming of Dragons by T.A. Chase (153 pages)



A revist with the emphasis on George and Mordred and their relationship and their attempts too figure out who was releasing the creatures into the present. I really like all four characters and how they kind of play but not totally (appeals to the kink in me) and how they genuinely care. I also loved how you found out more about Mordred and he figured things out about himself and his own personality. All in all I really enjoyed the story how it all came together in the end. A great read for me.

Bought and Paid For by Kim Dare (43 pages)



Parker is an oncologist who is roped into a bachelor auction because someone offered to pay minimum $10K for him. Turns out to be $25K and its none other than his ex from two years ago who cheated on him. Meanwhile you find out that there were extenuating circumstances and the ex has loved him always (and vice versa) and is now free to be with him again but figures the only way Parker would agree is to "buy" him for the evening. I liked the idea but the flashback didn't work so well, but on the whole I enjoyed it.

Book burnout?

Seems I suffered a bit of burnout after reading like a mad-woman last week. I ended up skimming through lots of my old books rather than focussing on something new. Reading an old favourite doesn't require the same level of concentration that a new one does, but I am getting back to it. I'm starting to freak because my TBR list is over 10. LOL I know for some (who shall remain nameless *Tracy*) that's NUTHIN' but for me its a big deal. Probably the reason I read like a madwoman right after I buy a bunch of books, so I can get the number down. ANYWAY, he's my short update.

Cheating Chance by James Buchanan (177 pages)



I've been vowing to read this series for evah because I really like this author and I like cop/mystery type books. I had a read a few shorts like in the Toy Box Rope anothology but never delved. So finally. Brandon is a tattooed pierced cop who meets goth boy Nick at a gothCon. Brandon lives in Vegas and works for the gaming people making sure you don't doctor the slot machines. They hit it off but Brandon is waaaaay in the closet. There is a whole mystery of someone cheating at slots and Nick gets sucked into it and Brandon has to rescue him. I really felt for Nick though, having to deal with someone who is so far in the closet and never plans to come out because of his job. I'd like to believe that police forces are not so closed minded but I'm afraid I might be wrong. So I really felt Nick got the raw end of the relationship deal and wanted to slap Brandon upside the head a few times. But they are adorable and combined all my fave things, goth boys, tattoos and piercings and motorcycles. Sigh. I'm reading the second one now.

The Lost Books by Evangeline Anderson (168 pages)



This is two stories, one shorty and one medium. In Broken Vows Daniel decides to head down to the gay strip and find out if he really is gay. He misses his stop and ends up in the vampire part of town. After being stopped by a nasty vampire he is rescued by Gabrielle who takes him home to remove the mark of the bad vampire and put his own Guardian mark to protect him. Daniel also gets him to show him the buttsecks ropes and falls in love (in minutes). Gabrielle sends him away because he's too young but finds him 8 years later when Daniel is a up and coming artist and he's been miserable because no one lives up to Gabrielle as a boyfriend.

In Blood Hustler James is out wandering around depressed because his companion of a hundred years or so is dead and rescues young (18) hustler Tad from a REALLY bad vampire. He ends up taking him home and they are attracted but he doesn't want to use Tad. Tad comes back the next day and they decide to try it. There is some thing where if he feeds off Tad while having sex with him then Tad stays permanently young but not a vampire and they are bound forever. Tad's all up for it but James isn't so sure. Tad's got some shit happening with being raped by his step-Dad, James eventually sends him home with his memory erased. When Tad remembers he almost gets suckd out (not off) by the bad vamp, the step-father gets his and Tad and James live happily ever after.

My only concerns was this ran very close to the insta-love thing for me. Because its a paranormal I can kind of let it go, but in Daniel's case it was within hours of meeting Gabrielle and in Tad's case I got the impression he just wanted someone to accept and love him and James fit the bill. Could have been any nice guy. But if I suspend my disbelief that two teenagers can fall in love for evah and evah within minutes of meetings I enjoyed it. And really, why aren't more bad guys like the step-father punished properly? There's always this high road bullshit. Nope, kill em I say. :-D So I was happy the uber-bad vamp got his dinner.

Off the Beaten Path by Katrina Strauss (140 pages)



Travis seems to spend most of his time sucking off his straight roommate and other guys at college where he's on a scholarship but doesn't advertise he's gay. He gets caught spray painting the gay granola frat house (he is innocent of course) and his punishment is to go on a volunteer work vacation with Kyle and two other members of the frat. He's NOT thrilled even if Kyle is hot and Kyle would rather eat meat than spend time with Travis. So they go to the park, share a tent and bodily fluids once they acknowledge their hotness. Kyle realizes Travis isn't so bad but thinks they are too different and unhappiness ensues. There is this who subtext with the baby raccoons that someone commented kind of went OTT on sweetness and while I love me some baby raccoons I have to agree. Could have found another way to end it but it didn't ruin it form. I have to say I loved the character of Mac, the token lesbian. LOL Now I'm all aware of women in books since Wave's post I have to say that I thought she was rational, funny and didn't get into the whole interfering mode that many chicks in books hit. The other gay character was fine as well but he was just kind of there for me. So I liked Kyle and Travis even if Kyle was holier than thou most of the time.

Beautiful Boys by Anne Cain (104 pages)



This is four interlocking shorts in that one or more character from each story knows/is friends with a character in the other stories. Number 1 is Dean who goes on vacation to Greece with his ex. Dumb move right off the start. His ex strands him on some desert isle (shades of Gilligan, really, can you avoid singing that song when you hear that phrase?) and he gets it on with some totally random stranger and is suddenly over his ex and in love. Ooookay. I didn't really get what the hell the stranger was on doing on Dean's isle but whatever.

Second one is Dean's brother Neil who believes his horoscope and bad luck and all that. On his birthday his coworkers throw a surpise party and during the stripper he breaks a mirror and is sure his life is over. The stripper (Jinx) helps him clean up and admits he can related because he brings doom and gloom to everyone around him. He claims to have a boyfriend but when Neil tracks him down he lied to protect him and they decide to get together and maybe bad luck is not quite so certain. I liked this on the best because it was kind of extreme and Neil was such a whack job that he was funny. So I found it amusing.

Third is Nathan (friend of Jinx) who is crushing big time on his straight roomie. Basically turns out roomie is soooo not straight and has been equally crushing and they hit the sheets, um, couch.

Fourth is Andy (Neil's coworker) and Luke who are graphic designers. They are constantly bitching as Andy won't admit that Luke is good and Luke takes over Andy's projects. One night at a bar they find out they live in the same freaking apartment building and start sniping at each other until they are forced to fuck it out. Umm. Okay. I'm way too meek to get off on hate you/fuck you relationships like this one.

All in all they were okay. But I'd say the second was my favorite and they are cute steamy reads that consist of mostly sex and not much talking except for #2.

One would think ....

based on the sheer volume of this post that I have toy poodle flu again or something. *shrug* S'possible. I'm blaming Jenre because she told me about the sale at Torquere. So its not my fault and the fact that work is slow and my daughter is away at camp all week has nothing to do with it. Nope, not my fault. *points finger at Jen*.

So shall we begin? (Sounds like the start of a prostate exam? - Or so I imagine - not having one.)

The Right Kind of Help by K.C. Warwick (14 pages)


I haven't read anything by this author that I can remember (maybe in an anthology?), anyway, poor Rowan is a young totally hapless wizard who has issues getting his magic to work right but he's sent on a mission to a neighbouring kingdom with Valiance, his elf body guard. Rowan gets them lost and its raining and a crappy day. Anyway, in the end Valiance helps Rowan harness his power, save the kingdom and promises to stay and help him. But what I loved about this story was the characters. Valiance is totally snarky and sarcastic and even though he thinks Rowan is cute just can't shut up the stream of sarcasm about his inept magic. And poor Rowan tries so hard but he just can't get it to work right. I just thought it was a really sweet story and like I said, I totally loved Valiance, but I love me a snarky man. Great read. I would definitely check out further works by this author.

Serendipty by Glyn Soitiño (21 pages)


This is the second book I've read by this author and I enjoyed it as well. Jeff is heading back home to Geneva after his father's funeral and his plane is delayed and delayed and delayed and finally cancelled. He's been scoping out the cutie but when the flight is cancelled he flips and his mouth runs away. Cutie David steps in to smooth things over and they get to chatting and flirting. The airline puts them up at a hotel and well ... the hotel was short rooms and some people share. You get it. :-) I liked both characters and I felt for Jeff. I've been on the receiving end of delayed or cancelled flights and it makes you want to say things you might not normally. So it was a cute story and touched on Jeff's troubled relationship with his Dad after his parents split. I liked it a lot.

Wearing Death by Jamie Craig (127 pages)



Jeremy hears a bump in the night and finds the local police detective on his door step naked with a tattoo of a dead woman on his back. Brendan then moves in with vet Jared along with his dog while he recovers and the police try to find the guy who kidnapped him and tattooed him and killed the girl in his tattoo. I enjoyed the story about two guys flirting and getting together with the sub story of who the bad guy was as Brendan refuses to stay out of the investigation even if he's officially off the case. My only issue was for some reason (perhaps I have brain damage) I can not keep the guys straight, which one is the vet and which is the cop? As I type this I'm not 100% sure that Jeremy is the vet. And the cover shows that one is black. Umm. Who? They never describe either one enough for you to figure it out. Not that it really matters but when you have two guys on the cover (I don't care what they look like, white, pink or green) I like enough description to be able to put a name to a face. Maybe that was my issue with the name, I didn't know who was who on the cover and it screwed with my head. (Or I'm just old and senile. One of the two.)

Night at the Office by Drew Zachary (10 pages)


Greg is working a second job as security in an office building. One night he hears weird noises from an office and checks and finds a guy watching porn. Seems the guy figured he'd be coming by and is looking for a bit of a dom. They have a hot encounter. I have to say this is one of my least fave DZ stories. It was more porny and I never really connected with the characters like I usually do. It was okay, but not outstanding.

Sleeping Bears Lie by Alex Draven (23 pages)


I bought this because I'd read a Halloween short by this author and loved it. Dan comes to the bar and finds his old lover Matt back at work and acting like he hadn't disappeared for 5 months and had apparently lied about where he'd gone. Dan agrees to take him back and they live happily together for several months despite his roommates' reservations and then Matt flips out and it gets all weird and they end up out in the forest in a bear cave and ... WTF? Matt's a bear? No, he's not a shifter? I don't think. A bear spirit? Why was he freaking out? I have no bloody clue. It left me totally confused and cold but I'm not into the whole native American mythology theme that I've read a few times. Just doesn't work for me and this one didn't.

Making Your Own Luck by Sean Michael (35 pages)



Isaac is having a bitch of a Friday the 13th. Anything that can go wrong does. He meets fellow college professor Rusty and they hit it off but seems events continue to transpire to thwart their budding relationship. I have to say this was one of the funniest books I've read in a long time. I laughed until I cried in places. Yes, its totally over the top but it was like a screwball comedy. Rusty never gave up on them getting it worked out and he finally convinced Isaac to think about making good luck rather than focussing on bad. I really needed a laugh that night and it so worked for me.

Letting in the Light by Fae Sutherland (172 pages)



Rowan takes a delivery to the local reclusive famous author Finn and is instanly smitten but Finn is a miserable old bastard (he's 49, Rowan is 25) but Rowan wants him and is not prepared to take no for an answer. He basically forces his way into Finn's life and their relationship starts as a booty call. There is a conflict with Rowan's BF/Roommate who suddenly decides he wants Rowan (even though he was straight I think) and it forces Finn to step outside his comfort zone. I enjoyed the idea of it, but I really had trouble getting past the age thing. It doesn't really bother me but I can't envision a HEA. When Rowan is 45 (my age), Finn would be 70. Ummm. Ewwwwww. My Dad's not even 70. Sleeping with someone older than my Dad? *shakes head* But if I put it in the the HFN context it works. I did like Rowan and his indomitable spirit. Nothing Finn did scared him off, in fact maybe he was a bit too chipper but I liked him.

Hero in Me by J.B. McDonald (20 pages)


Zach rescues Will from date rape. When Will decided he wants Zach, Zach pushes him away figuring he doesn't need to get caught up in the "you're my hero" thing that often happens. Will says fuck that and pursues him with a passion. It throws Zach completely off that Will doesn't follow the typical near-rape victim type and isn't behaving like he's "supposed" to. A cute story and nice to see Zach forced to reassess that maybe not everyone who's a victim of a crime has the same reaction.

Friends and Lovers by Thom Jaymes (17 pages)



Tate's roommate and good friend plans on moving into the frat house. Tate's crushing on him and Jeff jokes around about being gay with him but nothing. Tate is walking a drunk Jeff home from a party when Jeff stops to pee. He then starts stripping and demanding that Tate suck him off and they end up fucking in the bush (by a tree?) because seems Jeff always DID have a crush on Tate. Okay, why in the bush? They were on the way home. No lube, no condom. I just found the way they came together rather jarring and up until they got to the "suck me" part enjoyed it. I thought Tate should have told him to fuck off and sober up rather than drop his pants and take it. Had potential but it just didn't work for me at the end.

Destiny Drops In by (20 pages)


Andrew gets lost and stops at a bar for directions. Within 5 min. he's picked up Raj (who's not even 21 yet) and takes him home. Raj is sure that Andrew is the one, Andrew's just sure that he's a "slut for accents", my new fave phrase. Seems the sex is hot and 32 year old Andrew is willing to take a chance on a young guy. TBC

Destiny goes Spare by TC Blue (16 pages)


Its Raj's 21st birthday and Andrew's throwing him a party inviting everyone on his e-mail list. Good times ensue when Raj's parents arrive and seems they are only a couple of years's older than Andrew. Andrew freaks and Raj bolts with his asshole father. After a talk with Raj's Mom Andrew feels like a heel but Raj is not about to let his father ruin what he's sure his true love. They make up and work out their differences with his Dad. I can only imagine Andrews mortification at finding out his MIL is two years older than him. ACK!!! If that doesn't scare me off the young ones nothing will. ;-)

Billy and the Ghosts by Aaron Michaels (17 pages)



Billy gets roped into going to the graveyard on Halloween and kissing the grave of some old prostitute at midnight. He's been crushing on Jeff who goes with him. Just as he goes to do it he suddenly finds himself in the old west and the madam takes him to a male prostitute who looks just like Jeff. He has hot sex with the prostitute and then suddenly finds himself back in today and he had tripped and smacked his head. Him and Jeff kiss and thus starts a relationship you suppose. Kind of weird but hey, its a Halloween story so appropriate.

Conventional Wisdom by TC Blue (63 pages)



Trent meets Bill at the ComiCon and they hit it off. Smoking sex. Trent's a goth there for the gaming, Bill is actually Lucas, a famous in the closet actor in a sci-fi show and is thrilled that Trent has no idea who he is. They continue to meet everynight of the show until on nearly the last day Trent accidentally discovers who Trent is. He's upset needless to say but then realizes why Lucas would do that and after talking with his new friend Mary Lou (a 45 year old former beauty queen from the south - who I must say was an amazing character that I LOVED) he makes up with Lucas and they spent the rest of their time together, Lucas then goes back to California and Trent to home in DC but they commit to keeping in touch. There is a sequel which I'm glad to hear because I'd love to see these too get a HEA.

Boys of Summer by Cooper David (60 pages)



Hunter and Max were friends for a couple of years and even though Hunter was straight (he thought) they've been carrying on a secret affair for a few months. They go away for a week and Max won't have anal sex unless Hunter agrees to come out of the closet. Hunter's shitting bricks but finally agrees because he loves him. He's sure everyone (including his and Max's exes (girls)) will hate him because he's gay. In fact he's sure the whole world will freak out if they know he's gay. Okay, Hunter kind of annoyed me. Holy navel gazing. Do you really think the whole world gives a damn about who you are fucking? Sure some will, but most? Forget it. So while freaking he finally tells his friends and they're all like "yeah, so, we knew anyway". Big let down. It was a bit prosey for my taste. Lots of talking about how he felt and how scared he was and how much he loved Max. Do guys think like that? It was a sweet story and I was glad for Max's sake that Hunter did step out of the closet but you'd think he'd never met a gay person in his life and seen one who had accepting friends and family. They are out there, I know plenty of them. Wanted to slap him. Not a good sign.

Crimson Regret by A.R Moler (10 pages)



Brian gets dolled up like a great Devil and goes to his colleague's Haloween party. He's hanging out and meets Zorro. They hook up in the shed for mutual blow jobs when Zorro gets gets a work call and has to jet. Brian freaks out and realizes he doesn't even know the guy's name. He gets his colleagues to tell him the guys name, Tristan (I like that name) and he plans to look him up. Seems Tristen is a homicide cop, hence the call. So not much plot, just a quick hook up with maybe more, we never know. It was a cute short read.

What you Wish For by Alex Marcus-Jacobs (34 pages)



Jared dumps his girlfriend figuring he'll never find a woman. He goes to visit his best friend Jess and his cousin Rox the lesbian tarot card reader is there. They convince him to have his cards read and she kind of freaks him out and says he can find true happiness if he's prepared to make big changes and look at things differently. He kind of freaks and leaves to go to a bar nearby. He starts talking to this Russian guy who is the owner. He's crying on his shoulder about how his ex wanted him to be all agressive but it really wasn't his thing and Nichol says "maybe you need a Dom" (I'm summarizing) and when Jared goes "hell yeah" Nichol makes a move which promptly makes Jared freak because he only now noticed he's in a gay bar and had avoided using the term she/her during his ex diatribe. So he runs and then thinks about Nicol and being dominated and shuts out his friends. He finally decided to go for it after talking to Rox (who gives him shit for avoiding Jess) and he goes to see Nichol. He says what he wants and Nichol does the whole D/s thing in the bar and Jared is happy as a pig in shit. It was an okay story but you'd think a young university guy with access to the internet could find female Dom's too if he liked girls. LOL But whatever. I liked Jess, I thought Roz was over the top with the "draaaammmaaa. oooohhh the cup of beans" (or whatever card came up).

Update whatever number

Seems I've been doing a fair bit of reading lately. Perhaps I need e-books anonymous. Sigh.

Wranglers Discovery by Vivien Dean (70 pages)



Derek is pissed off after losing his case to Sam who he considered a snot-nosed little show-off when Sam comes with the offer of a drink and friendship. Derek is so not interested, or is he. He gradually realizes that maybe he does feel something and makes an overture to Sam and they start to get to know each other. The sex is hot and the friendship builds as he realizes Sam isn't quite what he thought. I really liked it because it didn't fall into the cliches of lawyers trying to get ahead that it could of. They are both driven to succeed but both have integrity and a few times when Derek could have used his position to hinder Sam's career he didn't and was honest about his abilities even if he felt awkward. Its definitely a HFN as they are just getting to know each other when it ends but I see there will be a continuation where they have to go beyond "just having a good time" to are we serious. I'll definitely be following up their story.

Three of a Kind by Sean Michael (161 pages)



After getting the crap beat out of him by his boyfriend and running Zane's piece of crap truck breaks down in Arizona. He's rescued by Butch who takes him home to Randy his artist boyfriend. They help him heal physically and emotionally eventually bringing him into their relationship. Yeah, Randy is a total spinhead stereotypical artist who can't remember why he opened the fridge from one moment to the next but I didn't find him that annoying and I liked how they were willing to be patient with Zane and show him that sex and love doesn't have to be painful and they never pushed him for more than he was willing. So a sweet story about a young guy (under 21) learning about love and relationships after a total disaster the first time.

Spot Me by Andrew Grey (90 pages)



This is all about body building and weight training which I have no clue about but I'm assuming that part was realistic, beats me. Anyway, Dan is 40 and at the gym with his friend one day and sees Gene who is a body builder who's 28 and on magazine covers. He assumes there is no way in hell he'd be interested but they manage to go out and start to develop a relationship when Dan's dom ex shows up and wants him back and Gene's bodybuilding ex also puts in a show to stir things up. I enjoyed the book and it was about being more than what you appear and not being liked because of your body alone and Dan realizing what kind of relationship he wanted after 10 years with an ex where he kind of went along for the ride. I also loved Dan's best friend Lonnie who was NOT a typical overbearing friend but really supportive and a great guy who's girlfriend was not pissy that he was friends with a gay guy. Some funny lines between the two friends too. I think that relationship really made the story even better for me.

Finding Love Nowhere Diner by TA Chase (179 pages)



Tim leaves town when his secret lover gets married because he refuses to be a piece on the side. Somewhere in Texas he inadvertently gets a job at a diner and meets Bernie, a trucker who stops in. Eventually Bernie and Tim go back to Minnesota when Tim's uncle falls ill and they confront his ex and what really happened between then and what's going on between the ex and his wife. Seems nearly everyone working at the diner is gay or gay friendly and I loved how Tim kept wondering how the hell he'd dropped into the gay utopia in Texas of all places. It made it more realistic that he realized that wasn't "normal" and of course Bernie's not quite what he appears but all in all I really enjoyed this book a lot and liked Tim and Bernie and I'd be very interested to read more about secondary character Chad. A great read.

Love Knot by Hiroko Ishimaru (175 pages)



Kiego comes home to find a guy passed out on his step. He takes him in and seem that Emiya has escaped from some kind of gov't lab because he can see things. He asks to stay with Kiego and is totally ignorant of EVERYTHING (has no clue what porn is). They are attracted but eventually Emiya's handlers find him and take him back. Kiego goes looking for him and it seems that due to falling in love or having sex or something, Emiya has lost his powers so eventually the lab lets him go free. There's kind of a cute epilogue where its about Kieog and Emiya just living after they are normal people. Kiego is a private eye but a pretty useless one and they argue about spending money betting when he can't do that either. This is one of the few yaoi where it seems to follow one plot from beginning to end, often it seems to be a series of unrelated shorts but I liked this and was cheering for Emiya to escape from the nasty gov't overlords. :-)

Golen Cain by You Asagiri (175 pages)



Shun is tired of never being good enough and not being able to live up to his big brothers image so goes to a club one night with some friends. Somehow he gets dragged up on stage and pictures are taken of him nekkid. He is rescued by Cain, a supermodel and they start a relationship. Then it turns out Shun's brother had a relationship with Cain and its assumed the brother was killed in an accident that Shun thinks was his fault but he's not dead and there's a big misunderstanding (even in yaoi huh?) where Shun thinks Cain was in love with his brother but in the end the brother starts to get better and Cain and Shun continue their relationship. It was pretty good. Another one where the story went the whole way through. I felt for Shun and how his parents treated him after his brother's accident and trying to live up to an impossible image.

Bittersweet by Maura Anderson (58 pages)



Dave goes to pick up some chocolate treats for his best friend's (girl) wedding and meets Brand, the owner of the shop who is just his type. Biker bad-boy. They are both attracted but when Dave makes a move Brand shuts him down after having a bad experience with his ex who was a "suit". Dave's friend manipulates the situation so they can get together and eventually Brand admits he judged him unfairly and they get together at the wedding rehersal dinner and the wedding the next day. My complaints about this book? Too freaking short. Please I need more than a tease and there was no use of chocolate on body parts. Humph. Would love to see more of these guys. I didn't even find out what the tattoos look like. More please. No, I don't want to use my imagination (although the cover is nice), I want details.

Its been 5 days since my last post

I thought I'd start with a confessional. I'm not even Catholic but I always loved when they say that in a movie. Moving on.

Seeking Something Wicked by K.Z. Snow (159 pages)



This is book two in the series who's name escapes me. Why the hell didn't someone make me read these before? Ridley. Sigh. This is Tole and Ridley's story more or less. They are settling in with Pablo from book 1 but Tole's feeling a bit blue. He starts talking to Ridley and thinks maybe something could happen between them. Meanwhile people start disappearing and Ridley is kidnapped by some witchy woman from a neighboring city and the three guys set off to get him back and stop her killing spree. I was sooooo not ready for it to end. Book 3, must get ASAP. Can't wait for more.

No Going Home by TA Chase (276 pages)



I was fortunate enough to have won a paper copy of this book on Wave's site. Thanks so much TA and Wave. Anyway, I started this at the waiting for the fireworks competition the other night and got downright pissy when it was too dark to read. Sunday morning I got up and promptly read until I finished it. Its a long time since I got that hooked on a paper book. :-) I loved the characters and how Les helped Randy be comfortable with who he was. Also loved the character of Tony. Just a great feel-good read.

Love a la Carte by Haruka Minami (no idea how many pages because manga has an aversion to page numbers it seems, 175 or so, the usual)



This is quite a different yaoi than I've read (not that I've read that many) but I really enjoyed it. It basically the story of 6 boys in a photography Club with Izumi being the central character. They go to photography club camp at Shino'oka's place (rich boy) and seems EVERYONE is hot for Izumi. (Appears to be the gay photography club). One guy makes a play for him but Shino'oka kicks him out and stakes his claim. Seems that the other guy is exes with another member and they get back together during the saga. The difference is a) they have way more sex than usual in this one LOL b) while Izumi kind of resists the first time, after its over and Shino'oka apologises for "forcing" him, he basically says if he didn't want it wouldn't have happened and after that they are all going at it like rabbits, like getting totally kinky and begging for it. LOL None of this "don't touch me you pervert stuff", they are all into it and admitting it. So that was nice because I get a bit tired of "don't touch me - oh god I'm coming" thing. I quite enjoyed this one.

Chicken Ranch: Hunger by Amanda Young (110 pages)



Declan is kicked out of home and desperate for work. Someone recommend the Chicken Ranch, a bordello (cool word) for men. He goes out to apply even though he's technically a virgin. His first night on the job Killian shows up and is his "first" and its pretty hot, but hey, he's a client. So Declan settles in and down the road he runs into Killian in the supermarket. They start dating outside of work and there is some tension when Killian offers to pay for sex after they finally "do it". Not good. So there is some angst there but meanwhile Declan is saving money for college and you get to know some of the other working boys. I quite enjoyed this despite my reservations with Pretty Woman syndrome (even though I like the concept). I liked that Killian wasn't perfect and had a stutter when he was nervous and Declan was resiliant and while he didn't "enjoy" what he did, he did what he had to to get ahead. So all in all a fun read. Maybe more about other characters? That would be good.

Fire Season by Lex Valentine (127 pages)



This is book 3 in a series but you can read it alone. Holden is a dragon shifter in the family business (funerals). Garret is the new financial whiz kid who is hired and they are stuck together as roommates for a work retreat. There are some ulterior motives behind the roomies and it seems that Garret is Holden's mate even though Holden is ruler straight. Ooops. He freaks at first but over the weekend gets into it and by the end is content with his mate ALTHOUGH and here is my although, I know there is another story coming which is m/m/f and they kept saying "someday we'll share a woman" "Do you like that redhead? She'd look great between us" which kind of annoyed me but I know its set up for the next book, but I was kind of grrrrr. The way Garret let Holden discover manly sex was very nicely done and what they did have was very steamy. I liked both characters but will not be reading about their next adventures unfortunately, its just not my thing, nothing against the book or the author.

David Inside Out by Lee Bentle (184 pages)



Another paper book I won. (I need to stop complaining.) This is a YA about a high school boy David who develops a crush on his cross country team mate Sean. He doesn't want to admit he's gay but him and Sean start fooling around but Sean always ignores him after and freaks out. David finally admits he's gay and that's that and he also realizes that Sean is a jerk who wants to use him for sex but not have a relationship. Not a HEA in the romance sense, but in the sense that David discovers who he is and accepts that even if the going is tough in high school. A nice read, I would get my daughter to read it.

Animal Attraction 1 edited by Vincent Diamond (190 pages)



This is an anthology of stories that revolve around animals in some way. Vets, animal lovers, whatever. I'll try and summarize some of my faves because there are too many to do, 14 in total.

Make Me Beg by Aaron Michaels - Holy crap, right off the bat a SMOKING hot little number about a guy who adopts a stray cat and his older lover. They play a bit at him pretending to be a cat begging for attention. As I said, it really grabbed me and it was playful and sweet and hot and sexy at the same time. Also rolled in there was the fact that neither one seemed able to voice the "L word" but both knew it went without saying. I think this was my fave of all of them.

Cold Iron by KC Warwick - Set in a kind of fantasy land, Talin is escaping from the People of the Hills when his horse throws a shoe and goes lame. He goes to a blacksmith who helps him and tells him he can stay and he'll help him fight back. Talin's "owner" shows up and despite Bran's efforts some kind of mind control makes Talin start to leave. Cloud the horse comes to the rescue as iron seems to kill Hill people. Bran had helped him because he did not jeopardise his horse's health to save himself. One of those castles and fantasy stories which are not really my thing but I quite enjoyed this one.

Gerbil Falls in Love by Dianne Fox - Probably my second favorite. Finn takes his hamster named Gerbil to the vet to get him checked out in advance of adopting a second hamster and to discuss putting them together. The hot new vet gives some advice but when things go bad Finn calls him to make a house call. They go out for dinner and have a great time but Finn is a bit annoyed Decker won't put out even though they both obviously want it. But he can't stay away and despite obvious chemistry Decker doesn't want to be a one night stand. EVENTUALLY they get together and its very steamy. And he calls his second hamster Mouse, a nice touch. :-) I liked both characters and enjoyed Finn's confusion as to how this dating but no sex thing seemed to work and where it was going.

Puppy Tax by J. Rocci - Sky takes his dog to the hospital every week to visit the sick. He's kind of got a crush on the pediatrician Dr. Tony. They finally manage to make a date and basically its just a sweet story of two guys dating and getting to know each other and loving Sky's "furry children". No big drama, no angst, I liked it.

There were others I enjoyed and on the whole I wouldn't say there were any I disliked. It was fun to see how animals could be worked in either as pets or wildlife and the men who care about them. I'd recommend it. I know there is a #2 and I started it but I think I was burned out on animal stories after 14 so I'm taking a break.

Shorty update

Seems I haven't read much since I got back from my vacation, well, not that I can remember right now. Might add something when I get home.

Sweet Oblivion 3: Fluid by Jordan Castillo Price (63 pages)



Knew I forgot one. Wild Bill and Michael are at a arty party and end up "performing" for the photographer who's art is on display. Wild Bill sees a tasty treat but gets sidetracked. They notice another vampire there and when they see her going home with the treat they decide to teach them about safe eating. The guy lives on a houseboat and the other vamp bails. Wild Bill is freaking and ends up in the water. Michael saves him but seem the treat was hunting vampires as well. There is more self discover for both Michael and Wild Bill. What did Michael do to the human who tried to kill Bill? Would he have acted differently if it was reversed? Did he make the right choice with the other vamps he offed? As usual, just another little step in the journey that makes you want more and more. Sure there's hot sex but the character growth is always there and leaves you ready for the next step.

Horesefall by Jade Buchanan (77 pages)



Okay, I bought this when I saw a blog post about the second one and I read "twins" and went "ooooh, must buy this". Okay, its not really twincest (Does my slight disappointment make me pervy? Too pervy perhaps would be a better question.) but it was enjoyable. Oliver goes out to a horse farm to do a safety plan and meets hot owner Bayard. Instant attraction and yeah, the fact that the guy says he has a twin tweaks his interest too but he's not around. As Oliver leaves he finds a hobbled horse. He helps him and poof - horse turns into hot twin brother. So he takes him home and eventually he and Bay start a relationship even though Marshall watches them "consummate" if you will. Eventually Oilver admits he's hot for Marsh too and Bay agrees to share like they've done in the past. HFN

Horsefall Taste Test by Jade Buchanan (42 pages)



Just a little follow-up. Oliver comes home early after a cancelled appointment and they go for a picnic. After some food play Oliver and Marshall get down to it and ooops, Oliver calls him Bay. This brings up some angst as Marsh thinks that since Bay was first Oliver would choose him and that Oliver won't move in with them because he's not sure of their relationship. So there's a little talk where they all admit to a) not being so paranoid b) not being so insecure and c) not being so self-sacrificing and HFN. I'm still waiting for the twincest part. Ack. Sorry, sorry, my bad. I liked the characters though and could understand Marsh's feelings and also Oliver's reticense given where they live (Alberta - not exactly gay friendly). I'll check out the next one. Oh and since its set in Canada bonus for me.

Don't Look Back by Josh Lanyon (128 pages)



Peter wakes up in the hospital and can't remember anything after being attacked but the cop beside his bed seems to think he's a thief. Like can't remember ANYTHING, his friends, why his closet is so freaking neat, etc. Its basically a story of Peter trying to figure out what and why he can't remember and prove his innocence despite mounting evidence against him. It was pretty clear to me who the bad guy was, but I'm good with that because I often read the end of a mystery first. :-D I really liked Peter, you really felt how weird it must have been to not even know who the people in his photos were or why he didn't own any jeans. Great little mystery with a great character.

More Holiday Reading

Sparks Fly by Clare London (210 pages)



Kris, look, do you see it? Are you happy now? :-) So Aiden's a total computer geek and Nic is a rich playboy entrepreneur who plays (with anyone) as hard as he works. He worked closely with Aiden getting his dating company set up and now wants to make some changes. Aiden can barely stand him and is as surly as they get (to everyone apparently) but Nic is attracted and so is Aiden although he'd rather chew his left leg off than admit it. Through several false starts and arguments they finally seem to get it together when a computer hacker strikes which causes chaos. I liked that both guys KNEW they had issue. Aiden knew he was a jerk most of the time and Nic came to realize that he was sleeping with people as the easy way out, rather than say no and he wanted to change it and there was more to him than that. So that was nice but there is no way in hell I could ever be in a relationship like that because conflice-avoidance-moi would have run for the hills the first time he got pissy at me and sometimes its hard for me to related to stories that have a volatile nature (not physically violent) just because it freaks me out personally. But I did enjoy it muchly.

Sindustry 2 by many many authors (332 pages)



Again, too many to mention them all and I have to say I don't think there were as many that I loved as the first one, but in the first one there were a couple that I really didn't like where as that didn't happen here. So fewer highs but fewer lows. So for the ones I liked:

Dance for me by Maria Albert

Carlo is saved from near rape at a strip club by bouncer Michael. Seems the owner of the club takes in damaged strays and helps them out like Michael and other workers at the club. He offers Carlo a place to work/stay as long as he wants. Michael and Carlo are attracted but both have issues and it gets ugly but in the end HEA of course. I liked both characters and felt for Carlo and what he had endured to end up as he had.

Leather Dancer by Andrew Grey

Denny is dragged to the gay erotic expo by his friend Kye and sees his neighbor who he's been crushing on dancing in a leather get-up. He catches him when he falls and they finally end up introducing themselves and getting together. A cute story but seriously, I wanted to see more about Kye and I'd love to see the man-slut meet his match. So I think I liked him better than either main character.

Wanting More by Carey Z.

Alex goes home with a guy from his club (which he does for cash sometimes) when, oops, the guys partner walks in on them about to have sex. Eeek. Then the partner shows up at the stip club and Alex gives him a lap dance to remember. They start spending nearly every weekend together (for a price) and Alex finds himself with a nice Dom to make him happy. He plans on quitting the life to go to culinary school and when he tells James he gets a frosty response that basically tells him he's nothing more than a paid companion. Of course they work it out. I liked the characters and they were both at fault for the BM, but it wasn't too bad and resolved quickly thanks to Alex's friend.

Ghosts of Alcatraz by Carol Lynn (115 pages)



I don't generally read this author because she's famous for a plot device that makes me crazy. Instant love. Not instant lust, I can get behind that, but total comittment within hours of meeting or even before meeting. Sigh. But I can live with it. Its set 10 years in the future when prisoners at the renewed Alcatraz prison are being mysterously killed. A paranormal expert is sent in who has to pretent to be the warden's lover. The pretending lasts about 3.5 hours then they are madly in love forever and ever. Sigh. Anyway there is a nasty demon and some not quite so nasty ghosts that pretty much rip up the ghost guy and there is a gov't conspiracy and a faked betrayal but in the end the ghosts/demons are vanquisted and you have a HEA. It was okay, but as I said, copious eye rolling often ensues when I find this plot.

E-pistols at Dawn by Z.A. Maxfield (210)



Jai is a reporter for a mag famous for outing famous people. As a gay man he has a favourite book and when someone does a spoof of it as a sexy book he is determined to find the bitch and make her pay. He starts an elaborate on-line stalking thing to find her, only her turns out to be a him. You find out (but Jae doesn't) that Kelly is the author of the original book. By chance Jae finds Kelly and is attracted to him and kind of backs off on his story but keeps up the cyber relationship. Kelly is OCD and agorophobic and has Will (a former rent boy) who looks after him and his business. Kelly finds out Jae was the fake person and angt ensues. They get back together and more angst ensues, eventually ending in a HEA. To be honest, I would have kicked Jae's ass to the curb permanently after the first time and there would be no second chances and could he have picked a worse time to reveal his second idiot move? Is it wrong to love one of the secondary characters more than either main character. It was like "yeah yeah yeah, Kelly and Jae, get on with it, where's Will and what's he doing?" He better have a book coming or I'll start a write-in protest or on-line stalking or something. I thought Kelly's issues were dealt with in a humerous way, he didn't let it consume him but I think Jae annoyed me too much for me to like him as much as I should have.

Details of the Hunt by Laura Baumback (163 pages)



I didn't read this for a looong time (its old by e-book standards, 2006) because I read a short blurb somewhere once and the alien seemed too alien and I thought I'd be weirded out. Duh. I loved the story. I thought Aiden was funny and I loved how he accepted Talos right off the bat. Yeah, he was weird looking and big and grey, but he always liked him and just accepted him even though he was 700 years in the future it never got him down. I didn't like the Dr. at all, even after she came around, what a judgemental bitch, even 700 years from now? But anyway, I think Gentic Snare is coming so I must read that because I'm totally in love with them both now.