Random Update #2

Yesterday I volunteered for a bit at my daughter's book sale at her school. I was sent home early because they had enough kids helping out but I had a good look at some of the books. Of course there weren't any m/m books although. I did find something called A Queer Kind of Love by George Baxt, it's supposed to be a mystery of some kind. For a buck you can't go wrong. Lots of rain here and there was thunder but obviously not as bad as in Alabama. I have friends there but luckily they were out of the path of the storms. I haven't heard the damage but I saw some pictures which were very scary.

Hope everyone is having a great week.

Firecracker by Jaye Valentine (28 pages)
Noble Romance

Isaac and Jeff pay some rather dangerous sex games. Isaac likes to have sex with strangers and Jeff, a cop, backs him up. It's a game to them and they know they love each other. After a shopping trip, Isaac decides to dress up like a woman and get "pimped out" by Jeff. Although Jeff changes the game a bit when he brings his old college friend Leo into it. Leo was one of the "strangers" that Isaac sucked off in an alley a bit ago. Leo will be the pimp, then Jeff will come in and "arrest" Isaac for prostitution. Things go well until the cops pull up and it's not Jeff, it's real cops and they take Isaac off somewhere with the threat that if he keeps them happy they'll let him go, then Jeff comes to the rescue as the whole thing is all a set-up. After some three-way sex with Leo back home, Isaac starts to question their games as he was really freaked and realized what "could" happen even if Jeff is looking out for him. This was very hot but I could see trouble on the horizon with Leo. They went from total strangers to inviting the same guy twice to play and ... I see things taking a negative turn. I think if it had been kept to total strangers I would have liked it better and I could have seen it being more their kink.

Rediscovery by Ariel Tachna (58 pages)
Dreamspinner Press

Michael is at a gay gamers convention and sees a hot leather vendor, however after a very scary experience at a BDSM club he doesn't want anything to do with doms and leather. However he sees Lee watching and playing with the kids of one of the women from the m/m romance booth next door and starts to wonder if maybe his image of all guys into leather being mean gruff doms is wrong. When he sees Lee waiting for a table for dinner, he invites him on impulse and gets to know him. After the show they go on a date and Lee explains his philosophy of life of really stopping and looking where you live, at the life around you rather than racing through which in turn makes Michael look at his own life. This is a slow sweet romance, with two guys getting to know each other. Michael is quite up front about why the leather bothers him, but Lee is vanilla and it's just how he makes his living and they work through Michael's fears and don't rush into anything. If you're looking for something without a lot of angst and drama it's a good choice for a soothing read.

The Charlie Factor by Diana DeRicci (178 pages)
Purple Sword

Charlie, a former firefighter, is recovering from nearly dying in a fire set by his ex. He needs to walk with a cane, is badly scarred, his leg damaged, and can never work again. To top it off, once his coworkers found out he was gay they pretty much shunned him. He's moved to the beach and one day Gregory's dog comes over to say hi. Charlie is stand-offish, but when Greg helps him avoid a sink-hole they become friends even though Greg is straight. Charlie is attracted for the first time since the accident, and Greg is starting to get freaked out as well because he's feeling things for a guy. When Greg goes home to California for Thanksgiving he talks to some of his gay friends and he admits he may be gay. When he goes back he's determined to make a move. Charlie's resistant at first and there is some mini-drama but they work things out, and it's going well until while out walking the dog, Charlie falls and then shuns Greg because he doesn't feel worthy. Greg decides to move back to California for a job, will there be any chance for them? It's nice to have a scarred hero, someone who's not perfect and Greg didn't care about the scars or disability. Of course Charlie was a total ass about the "I'm not good enough thing" and Greg's dad doesn't take to well to the "I'm gay" declaration, but his friends were great and Charlie's sister was good at kicking his ass. So it's a nice GFY with a handicapped hero.