22 December 2017

Blog Tour Review + Giveaway: Why I Left You by Colette Davison

 

Book Title:  Why I Left You
Author: Colette Davison
Publisher: Smudged Ink Press
Cover Artist: Charlotte L R Kane
Genre/s: gay contemporary romance
Length: 72,000 words/234 pages
Release Date: November 7, 2017



Synopsis

Jamie is struggling with university, money and depression. The last thing he needs is for Brett—the guy who left him four years ago—to walk back into his life. Yet it could be just what he needs.
Ever since Jamie left him, Brett has been running away from commitment. But when he meets Jamie again, he’s forced to re-examine every aspect of his life.
Brett and Jamie are drawn back together by an undeniable spark, but unless they can come to terms with the past, their relationship won’t survive the present.


**Contains explicit language and scenes**



Teaser


 

Excerpt

 Holy shit. Jamie was kissing him. Brett’s head told him to back off and walk away, but his body remembered those lips and how much he’d once enjoyed having them pressed against his own. His body wanted to lean into the kiss and respond with four years’ worth of regret. For a few precious moments, he let himself give in to desire. His heart hammered against his ribs, desperate to escape his body and reclaim what it had lost. His fingers tingled as he wrapped an arm around Jamie’s shoulders and held him tightly, his thumb making small circles on Jamie’s shirt.

Then his brain kicked into gear again. What the fuck was he doing? This was the guy who had ripped his heart out in the worst possible way. Besides, Jamie was clearly at least half-gone. What they were doing was a mistake at best.

He pulled away, breathing heavily as he stared at Jamie, whose pupils were blown wide.

“You’re drunk,” Brett said in the most matter-of-fact tone he could manage.

Jamie curled his upper lip and turned away, shaking his head. It was dumb for Brett to follow him, but he did it anyway. They’d been best friends long before they’d realised they were attracted to each other. Brett had always looked out for Jamie, back when they’d lived next door to each other. Those instincts kicked in.
“Let me walk you home.”
Jamie stopped and rounded on him, fists clenched, teeth gritted. “Don’t pretend you give a shit.”


Review

I loved this MM romance novel, has to be my favorite one of 2017, even though it was an emotional ride.


Brett and Jamie will have you happy, mad, sad, and sometimes even confused.


Brett and Jamie have a past and now a present. But, can these two have a future with everything that needs to be said?

Brett is fighting guilt from something that happened with Jame four years ago, that he has always thought was his fault. While all along, Jamie has been fighting his own guilt for choices he made and has been angry with Brett for the past four years because he didn’t understand why in his time of need Brett just disappeared.

Four years later they meet and start again. Can they make it through all the struggles they will have to face? When the only way to face them is to confront the past and everything they have kept within, ‘together’!?

This is my honest unbiased review.🙂
❤️Kristina

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About the Author

Colette’s personal love story began at university, where she met her future husband. An evening of flirting, in the shadow of Lancaster castle, eventually led to a fairy tale wedding. She’s enjoying her own ‘happy ever after’ in the north of England with her husband, two beautiful children and her writing.  




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Giveaway


  Giveaway Enter the Rafflecopter Giveaway for a chance to win a $10 Amazon gift card. 




REVIEW AND BOOK TOUR SCHEDULE



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DECEMBER 21
MM Good Book Reviews REVIEW LATER

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21 December 2017

Random Review: Dawning Ascent (The Pearson Prophecy Book 1) by Jen L. Grey


Title: Dawning Ascent (The Pearson Prophecy Book 1)
Author: Jen L. Grey
Publisher: Jen L. Grey
Cover design: Eden Elements
Genre: YA Fantasy/Romance
Release Date: December 7, 2017
Length: Novel



Synopsis

Power comes with a price.
Treated like an outcast in her own kingdom, Ariah learned to live in the shadows. As she comes into her powers, she catches the eye of her life long crush and an unlikely ally. Trusting either of them could help her along a dangerous journey…or could bring her journey to a dangerous end.
When enemies come to light and distrust spreads, Ariah’s safety is put in jeopardy. If she places her trust in the wrong people, her hidden powers will be unveiled to those who wish to use them against her. To survive, Ariah must learn who has her best interests at heart. If she chooses wrong, it could mean not only her own death, but the crumbling of the entire country.
Game of Thrones meets Practical Magic in DAWNING ASCENT, a coming of age fantasy read for adults and young adults alike!




Review

Dawning Ascent (The Pearson Prophecy Book 1) by Jen L. Grey is the author’s debut novel as well as book 1 in the Person Prophecy series. Ariah Pearson, is the middle child and oldest daughter of the King’s Advisor. That doesn’t mean she isn’t special in her own right. Ariah has powers of her own that she has to contend with. There’s also the fact that she is in love with aa man she may never be able to be with. All of these are things that Ariah needs to get accustomed to in her life.

The book starts off with a prophecy about Ariah, her sister and her family. The intrigue escalated from there. As Ariah grows up, she realizes that her elemental powers are strong. In fact she’s stronger than everyone realizes and yet, she had to keep it hidden from the world. What I liked about this novel was the fact that there were many different elements to the story. It wasn’t just a coming of age romance. There was underlying political intrigue and plots as well as the fact that the women had powers that the men of the community revered and looked up to. The story was well developed, the characters and world was well thought out and the side characters were interesting.

While I typically don’t read books that are written in first person present tense because I find them hard to get into, the author did a very good job with this one. It pulled me in right from the beginning.


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Teasers











Meet The Author


Reading has always been one of my favorite hobbies, even as a little girl. When I was a toddler, my parents would read stories to me over and over. I would hear them so often that I had the books memorized and could recite the story word by word.

The past year, I started having stories stuck in my head and finally decided to start writing. My favorite genres are fantasy, paranormal, and contemporary romance. So of course that's what I'm inclined to write. 

I have a husband, two young daughters, and a mini Australian Shepherd. I've lived in Tennessee the majority of my life and love the state.

I'm extremely addicted to caffeine and enjoy drinking coffee and lattes.



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20 December 2017

Release Day Blitz and Review + Giveaway: Short Order by Pat Henshaw

 
Title: Short Order
Series: Foothills Pride #8
Author: Pat Henshaw
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Publication date: December 13, 2017
Price: $3.99/£2.99
Format: eBook
Genre: Contemporary Gay Romance
Cover Design: AngstyG
Length: 28,400 words/89 pages
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 Synopsis

When recent horticulture graduate Dr. Fenton Miller arrives in Stone Acres, California, he thinks his only concern is which job offer to accept after spending the holidays working at his cousin’s plant nursery. But after he rents a room from another shorter-than-average man, sous-chef John Barton, Fen falls in lust.
While he’s attracted to Fen, John’s got bigger concerns when two men from his past arrive in town and pressure him to return to San Francisco. Although John tries to stop Fen from getting involved, Fen realizes his lover is in trouble and is determined to protect him.


As the holidays get closer and Fen makes his own enemy, the joy of the season gets lost in the ill will around them. To ensure love triumphs, Fen and John must stand tall to show that short, dark, and handsome is a recipe for love.







Teaser
 


Excerpt

That night I stood freezing at Barton’s door, admiring Blue Cottage. The snow drifts piled on the lawn made the house look greeting-card perfect. I searched for a doorbell. Instead, a lion-headed knocker snarled at me. I grinned. Every house needed an intimidating guardian, right?
A man who looked about my age and height opened the door and slipped out, shutting it behind him. I was curious to see inside, but I got that the guy wanted his privacy. No problem.
“Hi. I’m Fen.”
He looked me over, then turned to the left along the shoveled porch. As he walked, he played with the keyring, bouncing a key in his hand. Did I make him nervous? If so, was that a good thing?
“This way.”
Okay. I took a breath and followed his pert ass and brisk steps as we rounded the porch to a steep staircase. From my brief glance at his face, he seemed okay. I was still slightly put off by his brusque manner. But hey, I reminded myself, I was renting from him, not fucking him.
In silence I followed him up to a small porch and a solid-looking back door, which he opened after only a little fumbling.
I was greeted by the stuffy, closed-up odor of a place long left undisturbed.
“You’d be my first renter. It’s furnished, but I can store anything you don’t want.” He made quick eye contact with me. The words erupted from him like I made him uncomfortable or something. Maybe it was my piercing and the tattoo, or maybe the hair color. I tried a smile, but he blushed and turned away, gesturing to the rooms.
Even though the air inside was chilly, I looked around and fell even more in love than I had when I’d first seen the house. The 1940s era furniture and knickknacks turned what could have been sterile rooms into my kind of home. I exhaled, letting the ambience settle in my soul as I wandered through a country kitchen, tiny dining room, sitting room, two bedrooms, and a classic bathroom, ending eventually at a circular tower room. I fell even deeper in love along the way as I touched the scratched kitchen table, a velveteen-covered parlor settee, a solid-looking four-poster bed, and the needlepoint-cushioned window seat in the tower.
If I were Barton, I’d charge thousands a month for this place. I prayed he wasn’t me and was relieved when my prayers were answered.
“You want to keep the furniture?” He still didn’t look at me as he bent over the kitchen table to fill out the rental agreement. Who needed him staring? I could live with letting his voice pour over me and seeing his kissable lips.
“I can’t imagine living here without all of it.” Or maybe even you, I thought, eyeing his pert butt wiggling at me as he wrote.
He stopped, stood, and eyed me for a few seconds before bending and going back to writing. I hadn’t said that about his butt out loud, had I?
As I was daydreaming about his ass and the scarred table, he stopped writing, looked over the form, and finally twisted it toward me. “Sign here, initial here, and date it. Then I need your rent for the month.”
I was signing before he changed his mind. The rent was ridiculously cheap. “No deposit?” There had to be a catch, right?
“No.”
I glanced up. He was gazing down at the table, or maybe at my hands. Or my groin? I signed as fast as I could and wrote a check to John Barton, the name on the rental agreement. So he had a first name, and we had a deal.

I drove back to my cousin’s house whistling. Within an hour, and with Beth and Kate’s help, I was moved in. Having only clothes and electronics made the move a one-trip job. Then I went food shopping for breakfast stuff and frozen dinners. We all celebrated by eating a late dinner outside town at a diner called the Rock Bottom Cafe. Renting a place with a wonderful kitchen hadn’t automatically taught me to cook.

Even with an enigma for a landlord, my life was perfect.


Review

Short Order by Pat Henshaw is a short novella about a horticulture graduate Dr. Fenton Miller  who moves back to Stone Acres, California after graduation. Working in his cousin’s plant nursery, Fenton rents a room from sous-chef, John Barton and instantly falls in lust for the shorter than average man. John keeps his distance from Fen, not letting him into his past. He becomes an enigma that holds many secrets. Then again, Fen does as well. It’s not until Leo and Ricky show up that the past surfaces causing John and Fen to open up further to each other.


I’ve had the pleasure of reading one other book in the Foothill Series by Pat Henshaw. It was the first one that came out called What’s In A Name?.  Short Order did not disappoint. For an 80 page novella, there was quite a bit of detail and back story given. The characters were well thought out and the world development was quite nice. What I would like to see though is for this to be extended so that we can get a better glimpse into the lives of the characters. All in all,  I would recommend Short Order by Pat Henshaw to anyone looking for a cozy afternoon read.





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About the Author


Pat Henshaw, author of the Foothills Pride Stories, has spent her life surrounded by words:  Teaching English composition at the junior college level; writing book reviews for newspapers, magazines, and websites; helping students find information as a librarian; and promoting PBS television programs.
Pat was born and raised in Nebraska where she promptly left the cold and snow after college, living at various times in Texas, Colorado, Northern Virginia, and Northern California.  Pat enjoys travel, having visited Mexico, Canada, Europe, Nicaragua, Thailand, and Egypt, and Europe, including a cruise down the Danube.


Her triumphs are raising two incredible daughters who daily amaze her with their power and compassion.  Fortunately, her incredibly supportive husband keeps her grounded in reality when she threatens to drift away while writing fiction.
 

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