Loved V’s thoughts on the latest installment of the Wake Up Married serial! 😀 Click through to read more!
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Patchwork Paradise by Indra Vaughn: emotional, gripping, beautiful
So excited for my co-writer Indra Vaughn’s latest release, Patchwork Paradise!
Oliver and Samuel’s relationship is fairy-tale perfect. They share a gorgeous house in Antwerp, go out with their friends every weekend, and count down the days to their dream wedding. But their happy ending is shattered one late night, and just like that, Ollie is left bereft and alone.
The months that follow are long and dark, but slowly Ollie emerges from his grief. He even braves the waters of online dating, though deep down he doesn’t believe he can find that connection again. He doesn’t think to look for love right in front of him: his bisexual friend Thomas, the gentle giant with a kind heart and sad eyes who’s wanted him all along.
When Thomas suddenly discovers he has a son who needs him, he’s ill prepared. Ollie opens up his house — Sam’s house — and lets them in. Ollie doesn’t know what scares him more: the responsibility of caring for a baby, or the way Thomas is steadily winning his heart. It will take all the courage he has to discover whether or not fairy tales can happen for real.
Word count: 73,300; page count: 262
Vespertine by Leta Blake and Indra Vaughn #LGBT #Review
Aw, a lovely 10/10 review of Vespertine by Marc over at Rainbow Gold Reviews! Thank you!
Saison d'entraînement – Leta Blake
Lovely review! Merci! <3
"It had just the right amount of everything that I like in an M/M Romance book!" Review of Training Complex by Leta Blake
“WOW did I really get into this book! It was everything I could have asked for in a sequel to Training Season. It was full of DRAMA and lots of kinky sex and fabulously flamboyant Matty and stern-but-kind-of-falling-apart-but-still-hot Rob and once again it’s like Leta Blake read my mind. Throughout all the highs and lows they always knew they loved each other and it was a beautiful thing to see.
Can I just mention how Leta B. always seems to manage to get the right amount of drama in a book without going over the top? Or maybe she did go over the top in this one, but it’s MATTY people! He’s supposed to be over the top. I love it!
I’m trying to remember if I disliked anything about this book, but I can honestly say that I can’t think of anything. It had just the right amount of everything that I like in an M/M Romance book, ESPECIALLY a Matty.”
via Goodreads | Erika ‘s review of Training Complex.
Buckle up – Matty’s back!
Figure skater Matty Marcus didn’t capture Olympic gold, but he won rancher Rob Lovely’s heart.
After Rob sold his ranch and Matty hung up his skates, they started a new life together in New York City. Now Matty has taken on a fresh challenge as a figure skating coach, and Rob’s second career as a physical therapist should be everything he’s dreamed of. But in the brutal heat of their third summer in the city, Rob yearns for the wide-open country, and the intensity of city life awakens Matty’s demons.
Matty asks for increasingly intense BDSM scenes, and his disordered eating and erratic behavior ramp up the stakes. Rob struggles to stay in control, and after a well-intentioned anniversary gift goes awry, he still thinks he can handle the fallout. But the concrete jungle is closing in and his coping skills are unraveling.
Their love is deep, but Rob will have to admit the truth about what he really wants before they both tumble into chaos.
Click for reviews and praise for Training Complex!
Buy at Amazon
NOW AVAILABLE! Will & Patrick Meet the Mob! Episode 5/6 in Wake Up Married serial by Leta Blake & Alice Griffiths!
Follow Will & Patrick in this fifth installment of the romantic-comedy serial, Wake Up Married, by best-selling author Leta Blake and newcomer Alice Griffiths!
Patrick has finally accepted that he’s in love with Will, but his newfound determination to do something about that runs up against his father-in-law’s mobster plans. Though just what those plans are have as yet to be determined. As far as Will and Patrick can tell, they consist of blowing through town, wreaking small havoc, and turning the Patterson family’s lives on end.
Will must face the truth about his family before he can fully come to terms with his feelings for Patrick. And Patrick has to decide if this whackadoodle world is something he truly wants to be part of forever.
Episode 5 of 6 in the Wake Up Married serial.
****
Also, you can pre-order the finale! Will & Patrick’s Happy Ending!
Saison d'entraînement, Tome 1 : Entraînement de Leta Blake
“Voici une lecture à côté de laquelle, il ne faut absolument pas passer. J’ai vibré intensément, j’ai souffert avec Matty et me suis énormément attachée à lui. J’avoue avoir eu la gorge nouée à plusieurs reprises. Pour ma part, j’attends impatiemment le second tome. Je remercie l’auteure et la Maison d’Editions, pour nous avoir offert la chance de lire cette magnifique histoire.”
Merci! 😀 Thrilled with this lovely review. Thank you to Juno Publishing for the translation and publication services!
Will & Patrick's Happy Ending! Preorder Available!
"Rifter" Series by Ginn Hale
Susan discusses one of my all time favorite series ever ever EVER!
"Thanks Leta for this lovely series!" Review of Training Complex by Leta Blake #gayromance
The ending was perfect, goats and all, there were happy tears in this house at least. Thanks Leta for this lovely series.
via Goodreads | Bev’s review of Training Complex.
Buckle up – Matty’s back!
Figure skater Matty Marcus didn’t capture Olympic gold, but he won rancher Rob Lovely’s heart.
After Rob sold his ranch and Matty hung up his skates, they started a new life together in New York City. Now Matty has taken on a fresh challenge as a figure skating coach, and Rob’s second career as a physical therapist should be everything he’s dreamed of. But in the brutal heat of their third summer in the city, Rob yearns for the wide-open country, and the intensity of city life awakens Matty’s demons.
Matty asks for increasingly intense BDSM scenes, and his disordered eating and erratic behavior ramp up the stakes. Rob struggles to stay in control, and after a well-intentioned anniversary gift goes awry, he still thinks he can handle the fallout. But the concrete jungle is closing in and his coping skills are unraveling.
Their love is deep, but Rob will have to admit the truth about what he really wants before they both tumble into chaos.
Click for reviews and praise for Training Complex!
Buy at Amazon
A l'ombre de Smoky Mountain – Leta Blake
"This book was every bit as outstanding as the original!" Review: Leta Blake – Training Complex – Hearts on Fire Reviews
“Sometimes it’s hard for a sequel to live up to the expectations of a first book that leaves such a lasting impression, but I’m thrilled to say that this book was every bit as outstanding as the original – *happy grin*!”
via Review: Leta Blake – Training Complex – Hearts on Fire Reviews.
!["I don't think any fans of Training Season will be disappointed in [Matty & Rob's] continued journey. Leta Blake is a story goddess!" - 3 Chicks After Dark Reviews "I just can't get enough of Matty and Rob and love them so much." - Jay, Joyfully Jay Reivews "These two love like no others. Leta brings that all consuming, old fashioned, From Here to Eternity feel to the love they have. Of course on a hotness scale it just explodes. SO HOT!" - Diverse Reader Reviews "This sequel gave me a book hangover of the best kind!" - Rainbow Gold Reviews](https://letablake.files.wordpress.com/2015/06/training-complex-e-reader-copy-682x1024.jpg?w=535)
“I just can’t get enough of Matty and Rob and love them so much.” – Jay, Joyfully Jay Reivews
“These two love like no others. Leta brings that all consuming, old fashioned, From Here to Eternity feel to the love they have. Of course on a hotness scale it just explodes. SO HOT!” – Diverse Reader Reviews
“This sequel gave me a book hangover of the best kind!” – Rainbow Gold Reviews
Buckle up – Matty’s back!
Figure skater Matty Marcus didn’t capture Olympic gold, but he won rancher Rob Lovely’s heart.
After Rob sold his ranch and Matty hung up his skates, they started a new life together in New York City. Now Matty has taken on a fresh challenge as a figure skating coach, and Rob’s second career as a physical therapist should be everything he’s dreamed of. But in the brutal heat of their third summer in the city, Rob yearns for the wide-open country, and the intensity of city life awakens Matty’s demons.
Matty asks for increasingly intense BDSM scenes, and his disordered eating and erratic behavior ramp up the stakes. Rob struggles to stay in control, and after a well-intentioned anniversary gift goes awry, he still thinks he can handle the fallout. But the concrete jungle is closing in and his coping skills are unraveling.
Their love is deep, but Rob will have to admit the truth about what he really wants before they both tumble into chaos.
Click for reviews and praise for Training Complex!
Buy at Amazon
A l’ombre de Smoky Mountain de Leta Blake
Merci! Lovely review of the French translation of Smoky Mountain Dreams!
“I feel like a better title for this book would be ‘Perfect Season’ .” Review of Training Season by Leta Blake
“I feel like a better title for this book would be “Perfect Season” because that is what it was all about to me. It’s what we want: perfection. It’s what we want to see in others: perfection. It’s where we want our lives to be – the place we want to live. It’s just not always the most realistic viewpoint to carry.
I’ll spare you the blurb, which actually describes this gem perfectly.
From the characters to the prose to the level of angst and love this one delivers a Gold Medal winning performance. I loved both characters – though sometimes I didn’t like them very much. It felt absolutely real. We all strive for the “Perfect Season” in our lives and so very rarely do we get it – until we look back on what we’ve done, seen, loved, and worked towards and realized that it really was all for a reason. Sometimes we get kicked down so hard that we think we’re so far underground we won’t see the light of day, well, ever – and yet we keep going. The drive, the motivation, to do something like Matty is doing seems foreign to many – but people who have it, who give like that, who commit like that, it’s overwhelming, painful, endorphin producing, rewarding, and downright costly. All at the same time.
What great fortune to also find a book that contains BDSM but is not about it. No fancy schmancy clubs here with paraded twinks naked with collars. No discussion or negotiation, no BDSM101 lecture, nada. No “Boy” this and “Sir” that protocol. Just honest need, want, and desire that gets expressed with a more D/s theme running through. I will definitely say that this one has two kinks that are neither common nor comfortable for a great amount of people: breath play and medical (enema). Yet I would challenge anyone to read this and not to understand what was going on, how these fit in to the story, and come away with the thought that it was those things that identified the book. Because they just so don’t. The scenes’s are memorable for how they express the characters relationship and growth and understanding. They are expressions – of something far greater and far more importance. Divine.
A top 5 pick of the year for me. I very rarely stay up until 4am to finish a book. I did here and didn’t regret it one bit and didn’t even wake up tired. I woke up with this feeling that I’d just left my Grandma’s house on Christmas day after all the food, festivities, and love and I so want to go back to that place again. For that moment, in that time, at that place – it was, for me, The Perfect Season.”
Amazon.com: AlexJouJou’s review of Training Season.
“A tale told with such flair and tenderness, and with such insight into the two main characters that I will read it over and over again.” – Susan Mac Nicol, The Romance Review Site
“If you are looking something real with passion that leaps off the pages, read this book. Now. You will NOT be disappointed.” – Mama Kitty Reviews
“I am stunned. I am shocked. What did I just read? A wonderful story? A gorgeous tale of love, hope, loss, acceptance, forgiveness? All of the above? You bet your sweet ass.” – The Risque Redhead Reviews
“I loved it in pretty much every way it’s possible to love a book and its characters.” – Lisa, The Novel Approach
5 stars for The Winter Spirit by Indra Vaughn! “Heartwarming, romantic, and full of the holiday spirit.” #gay #romance
The Winter Spirit by Indra Vaughn
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
I absolutely LOVED this book! It’s heartwarming, romantic, and full of the holiday spirit. I strongly recommend it for Christmastime, especially, but it’s a good read for anytime of the year. I stayed up late beta reading because I had to see how these adorable characters get their Christmas miracle.
“If you’ve read “Training Season”, you need to grab this sequel as quick as you can!” Review: Leta Blake – Training Complex – Hearts on Fire Reviews #gayromance
If you’ve read “Training Season”, you need to grab this sequel as quick as you can, and if you haven’t, what are you waiting for??? Total awesomeness and highly recommended!!
via Review: Leta Blake – Training Complex – Hearts on Fire Reviews.
Buckle up – Matty’s back!
Figure skater Matty Marcus didn’t capture Olympic gold, but he won rancher Rob Lovely’s heart.
After Rob sold his ranch and Matty hung up his skates, they started a new life together in New York City. Now Matty has taken on a fresh challenge as a figure skating coach, and Rob’s second career as a physical therapist should be everything he’s dreamed of. But in the brutal heat of their third summer in the city, Rob yearns for the wide-open country, and the intensity of city life awakens Matty’s demons.
Matty asks for increasingly intense BDSM scenes, and his disordered eating and erratic behavior ramp up the stakes. Rob struggles to stay in control, and after a well-intentioned anniversary gift goes awry, he still thinks he can handle the fallout. But the concrete jungle is closing in and his coping skills are unraveling.
Their love is deep, but Rob will have to admit the truth about what he really wants before they both tumble into chaos.
Click for reviews and praise for Training Complex!
Buy at Amazon
“This is the first book I’ve read by Leta Blake and it will definitely not be the last.” Review of Smoky Mountain Dreams #gay #romance
“This is the first book I’ve read by Leta Blake and it will definitely not be the last. This was an emotional and loving romance. I could not put the book down.”
via Amazon.com: Janis F’s review of Smoky Mountain Dreams.
Christopher Ryder and Jesse Birch are two men hanging on to the past. While Christopher has let go of his failure as a country singer in Nashville, he’s still trying to please his narrow-minded, non-accepting family. His beloved Gran loves him the way he is, but Christopher feels painfully invisible to everyone else. He’s happy enough performing at the Smoky Mountain Dreams theme park in Tennessee, but even when Christopher is center stage he aches for someone to see the real him.
There’s more than meets the eye when it comes to bisexual Jesse. He’s raising two kids and fighting with family after a tragic accident took his children’s mother. There’s no room in his life for dating, his kids are his priority, and he doesn’t want more than an occasional hook-up. He sure as hell doesn’t want to fall hard for his favorite local singer, but when Christopher walks into his jewelry studio, Jesse hears a new song in his heart.
Smoky Mountain Dreams is available now at:
And now at KOBO.
“The brunet”, “the blond”, and “the younger man” are ruining your books! And here’s why! #epithets #makeitstop
I DNFed two books this week because I couldn’t deal with the authors’ wild overuse of epithets. One was self-published and the other was published by a press, so this isn’t just a self-pub thing. Authors, beta readers, editors, please, for the love of all that is holy, understand that epithets are unnecessary about 99% of the time. Every single time you use one, ask yourself, “Is this necessary?” I promise that the answer is nearly always no.
I googled looking for an explanation so that I wouldn’t have to actually write up everything myself. I found one on Tumblr that I’ll share here. Yes, it’s about fan fiction, but, dudes, this applies to all writing. Published work is actually expected to be held to a higher standard than fanfic most of the time, am I right?
GO READ THE ENTIRE POST but I am going to just cut and paste in some screen caps of the most important parts.
Do you look at your mother and think, “The dark haired woman made waffles for my breakfast.” NO. You think, “Mom is making me some awesome waffles because she is awesome.” Do you look at your best friend and think, “The accountant walks toward me with purpose.” NO. You think, “Jake strides toward me purposefully.” Do you look at your wife/husband/lover and think, “The brown-eyed artist smiles and laughs at my joke.” NO. You think, “Jamie smiles and laughs at my joke.” Do you look at your friend from Iceland and say, “The Icelander chewed her food viciously.” NO. You think, “Ragna chewed her food like she was starving.” OR WHATEVER.
Yes, it’s dehumanizing. It’s also the exact opposite of intimate. If you’re writing a romance, and you’re coming up to a pivotal scene that’s supposed to show physical and emotional intimacy, nothing is as distancing as, “The blond man licked the tip of my cock and I moaned.” The blond man? Unless this is a trick and your character doesn’t know his name, those words have no business in a love scene. That is not intimate. That is not connected. That’s not romance.
Yes. All of this. It’s harder and you’ve got to work for clarity, but it’s so much better to come up with well-structured sentences that make the subjects the pronouns are referencing abundantly clear without resorting to the use of epithets between lovers or friends. Or even acquaintances who definitely know each other’s names.
Yes, but keep in mind that the use of the epithet should always have something to do with the action. So, in a love scene, for example, there’s really no reason for one lover to call the other “the sheriff” in his head. “The sheriff fondled Darren’s nipples and whispered, ‘I love you,’ in his ear.” Nope. NOPE. Not intimate. Not sexy. And not how actual human beings think. I swear to God, you have never ever ever been in bed with your boyfriend/girlfriend/wife/husband and thought, “The department store manager licked his lips and dove down for a kiss.” Not even a single time.
So please, please, please stop doing it in your books. I want to actually enjoy and finish the books I pay for. I want to stop thinking, “Why did the press get 60% of their royalties and let this book go to print like this?” I want to stop thinking, “This self-pubber needs stronger beta readers and a friggin’ editor.” I want to be all like, “YES, I LOVED THIS BOOK! LET ME GIVE YOU MORE MONEY FOR ANOTHER ONE!”
And that’s all I’ve got to say about this today. I just had to get it off my chest. Thank you.
B.A. Brock on King of the Storm
Fantastic, deeply personal interview with BA Brock about his new book. I’m so excited to make time to read this one!
REVIEW: “If Only In My Dreams” by Keira Andrews
I loved this story, too! Perfect for the holidays! *wallows in wintery goodness*
