Special thanks to Leontine from Leontine's Book Realm for the super header.


Wednesday, March 31, 2010

Quick Update

Here are just a few shorts I've read lately.

Broomsticks & Stones by Jane Davitt (57 pages)

Peter is a lawyer and magician. His boss tasks him with carrying a magical family jewel to the family castle where it will be claimed by the newly selected head of the family. He explains that Peter can only use magical means to get there which equals traveling by broomstick. In a snowstorm he's forced to land in a forest were he seeks refuge with Jamie. He's instantly attracted but Jamie drugs him and hides the jewel. He fears he'll be chosen next and if he doesn't claim the stone the family castle will crumble and he can avenge his mother's mistreatment by her family. After some hot smexin it seems this has all been a set-up by Peter's boss and Jamie must make some hard decisions about family revenge or love. This was an okay paranormal but there were things I wish had been explained. It talked about Peter being a summer child and Jamie an autumn child and that came with special powers but it was just kind of referred to then nothing. So even though it was 60 pages there were lots of ideas and concepts thrown out that I would have liked to see developed more fully.

Taste Test: Chocolate & Power Tools by Vic Winter, Jennifer Joyce, Angel (41 pages)

This is three stories that combine chocolate and/or power tools.

You Don't Bring Me Chocolates by Vic Winter - Dylan and Eric have been together 10 years (it follows their relationship) and Eric, a total romantic, refuses to celebrate Valentine's Day. In fact he leaves and comes back the next day refusing to tell Dylan where he's going. Finally after 10 years Eric insists he tell him. There as a paranormal twist which took me by surprise but I was getting pissed right along with Dylan. I would not have waited 10 years to find out what my BF was doing every Feb. 14. (I can't remember nor find any power tool reference in this one.)

Laying Plans by Jennifer Joyce - Bex and Terry are fashion designer partners (in both senses). On V-Day Terry sneaks out to buy a drill and installs some D-rings on their bed. Bex a former chef makes a superb dinner including home-made chocolates. Terry gives him a gift of hand/ankle cuffs which they put to good use. This is told in present tense 1st person which took me awhile to adjust to, but it was a sweet story about an established couple.

Stolen Chocolate Tastes Sweetest by Angel - Rafe is relieving the patrons of an AIDS benefit of their excess jewels and cash when he's caught by his old History prof. He makes Rafe give the stuff back and takes him home and they start a relationship although Rafe continues his life as a thief. For V-day, Damian makes a chocolate cake and has also made a special "toy" for Rafe that involves an old cake beater and a silicon mold of his penis. I didn't really relate to this because I found Damian a bit odd that he would accept Rafe's "career" because he had the hots for him, but you don't read about homemade sex toys very often.

Pineapples and Chocolate by EM Lynley (12 pages)

This a freebie at ARe that Chris pointed me to. Ben is at the supermarket hoping to find a hook-up. He sees a hottie and makes his move but embarrasses himself with a pineapple trying to hit on the guy. He figures he's lost his chance but at the check-out Derek agrees to come home for a drink. They barely get in the door when they take full advantage of the condoms Derek bought. The ending to this story left me smiling. So if you like shorts you can't go wrong with the price and it's a very cute read.

12 comments:

Chris said...

The twist at the of Pineapples & Chocolate took me by surprise, but really made the story for me!

I agree about the Jane Davitt short - it seemed as if there was a previous story that I had missed or something.

Not feeling inspired to get the chocolate & power tools one...

Tam said...

That was it Chris. I wondered if it was set in a world that had been explained somewhere else so I had missed out on the basic info. Not sure though.

You're not missing anything with Chocolate and Power Tools. It was only okay.

Patti (@TheLoveJunkee) said...

Argh - I want to know why he wouldn't celebrate V-day and where he went every year!

Pineapples and Chocolate sounds cute.

Tam said...

I was the same Patti. I couldn't believe the guy waited 10 years to finally lay down the law. I know he was perfect otherwise but I think I would have had a hissy well before then. LOL Not the V-day part so much but the not telling me part.

The freebie was a cute one.

Average Reader said...

Great reviews, Tam! Chocolate and power tools? Is there a theme that Torquere hasn't explored? And the premise of the third book makes me smile -- poor guy goes to the supermarket hoping to meet someone? I guess it could work ...

Chris said...

You have to pick up that one, Val. It will surprise you. :)

Tam said...

They say supermarkets are the new pick-up joints. I remember a few cities at one time were trying special singles nights at the supermarket. So you'd know that Tuesday between 7 and 9 there would be lots of other singles there looking for potential dates. I suppose it's one way to quickly figure out someone's preferences. Cart full of steak and chicken is going to have the vegans steering clear, or junk food vs organics, frozen vs fresh, baby formula and pablum (run, run, run now). :-D

Smokinhotbooks said...

Whoa 12 pages? That's really really really short. But it's free therefore I must go forth and read!

Tam said...

It is really short but it's similar to a Torquere Sip. They are usually 10-15 pages. The pdf file was bigger but there's some promotional blah blah in there. The whole book takes place maybe over 2 hours so not much set up, just a little slice of life, but yeah, for the price of $0.00 you can't go wrong. LOL

Janna said...

Okay, I'm back. I was here before but then got distracted by the link to Eyre's tumbler account. Nice hottie btw! :)
I downloaded the free story a couple of hours ago after I saw it at Chris's too! Most free shorts aren't that interesting, but it sounds like this one might be a pleasant surprise.

Tam said...

He is pretty isn't he Janna. Tumblr makes it easy to get distracted.

For a freebie it definitely a good read. Better than some I've paid money for. LOL

Chris said...

Heh, isn't that the truth?! I can think of quite a few Sips that weren't as good!