What's on the Reading Radar? #WishList #TBR

What have I been up to this week? Uhm... I'm sitting here trying to figure out where the week has gone. Where has the month gone?! Looking back, I've been really busy and a lot has happened. GRL is coming up next month and I've been preparing for that. Been working Constant and Assassin's Retirement. Twin Flames is going to audio, so... busy. I think I need another week in this month, perhaps two. There's just so much to do!

Title: Sweet Nothings
Series: The Chosen One: Prequel
Author(s): Macy Blake
Length: 230 pages
Publisher: 

Genre: Romance / Shifter / Gay / 

Notes: This is one of my favorite series because it makes me happy. Where the Chosen One series is a yummy poly romance. This prequel is not poly, but about Henry's family and how they all came to be adopted by an Alpha and human. It made me want to reread the main series again. 

Blurb: Sam Baker couldn’t be more normal. He’s a teacher at the local middle school and the most exciting part of his day is dealing with a classroom full of hormonal preteens. His life takes a turn for the weird one stormy night when he finds a small boy on his doorstep. A boy who growls, flashes unnaturally blue eyes, demands for Sam to call the alpha-- whatever that is-- and gives Sam the one name he wishes he could forget: Vaughn Jerrick.

Vaughn Jerrick is the alpha to a pack of wolf shifters and a doctor to the supernatural world. After sharing a steamy one night stand with Sam years ago, Vaughn couldn’t consider the possibility of a future with the man, no matter how much he wanted him. Bringing a human into his world is against the rules, but one phone call changes everything, and Vaughn finds himself face-to-face with the man who could give him everything he’s ever wanted.

Rescuing one small child turns into saving six from a dark and uncertain fate, and although Sam doesn’t understand the world he’s been forced into, he would never turn his back on children in need, even if it means confronting his past with Vaughn.

As Vaughn and Sam join forces to protect the children put into their care, the future they’ve both dreamed of is within their reach, but first they need to survive the sinister force looking to rip away everything they’ve come to hold dear.

Title: Broken Prince, Mismatched Eyes
Series: 
Author(s): Layla Dorine
Length: 367 pages
Publisher: 

Genre: Romance / Fantasy / Gay /

Notes: Last week I asked for recommendations and this is one of them.

Blurb: All of his life, Caden DeMott’s mismatched eyes have made him the target of superstition and scorn. Though he is the son of a nobleman, he’s been allowed to run free over the hills and moors, mostly ignored by his family. No one ever thought to inform him that he had been betrothed since infancy, until the day his fiancé, Prince Rhys Gwyther arrived to marry him.

Rhys is the prince of the small island country of Mauritania, a land rich in gems, rose oil, and pearls, but poor in skilled artisans and seeds to grow crops. In order to further cement the trade route to the mainland, he’s been sent to marry a man he’s never met, and bring him back to Mauritania. Unfortunately, an accident years before has left Rhys with a lot of emotional baggage and very little trust in strangers.

But trust is exactly what Caden and Rhys are going to need if they are to make a life together, and help unravel the mystery of who’s been smuggling valuable gems and pearls off the island. Add in the realization that Caden’s stepmother, Mildred and her island representative, Maxwell, have been importing inferior goods for years, forcing Mauritania to become more dependent on them, and trust becomes even more difficult.

Caden possesses the knowledge to finally allow Rhys’ father to unravel the plot to ruin Mauritania, but only if the king and his son are willing to put their faith in Caden’s loyalty to his new home. Something that is difficult to do after Caden is accused of cheating on his marriage vows to Rhys with his guard, Luc. Will Rhys believe him innocent? Or will their marriage be over before it truly has a chance to begin?

Title: Chosen Wolf
Series: (Moonlight Mountain Book 1)
Author(s): Minerva Howe
Length: 112 pages
Publisher: Turtlehat Creatives; 2 edition (September 19, 2018)

Genre: Romance / Paranormal / Shifter / Gay / 

Notes: 

Blurb: Brantley is perfectly happy with his life. He has a good job, a strong wolf pack behind him, and a trip into Denver every so often to take care of his needs. So when the Pack has the kind of meeting that only happens once in a blue moon, he's more annoyed than worried. At least until the meeting turns out to be the stuff of Pack legend, with a vampire appearing to choose a new guardian from all of the eligible male wolves.

Vampire Paul has a good arrangement with the Moonlight Mountain pack. He gets to choose a wolf as his guardian, and they get a draught of his blood to strengthen their line. His connection with Brant is immediate, and he knows Brantley will be the first guardian in maybe centuries who will match him need for need. Paul likes games of dominance, likes to put his guardians to the test. Brantley is pretty sure he doesn't even like men, let alone a vamp who's into whips and chains. Can Paul convince Brantley that they really are made for each other?

Author's note: This is a previously published story with a new edit and new material. The publisher has changed. This is a paranormal fated mates story that contains strong elements that some readers may find darker.

Title: Eramus
Series: Shadows in the Dark, 1
Author(s): Charlie Sweeters
Length: 41 pages
Publisher: 

Genre: Romance / Sci-Fi / Gay / 

Notes: 

Blurb: Rayden crash lands on Eramus, a strange planet of which not much is known, and he is rescued by a group of strangers who take him to safety – or so he thinks.

When those whom he had assumed were his saviors turn out to be his captors for reasons that are a culmination of years of animosity between his own race and theirs, Rayden realizes that he will have to fight for his life if he is to find his freedom.

This, however, is easier said than done as he is faced with a potentially deadly challenge in which his contender is none other than the Shade, the mysterious and powerful ruler of the planet.

Title: The Heku Series
Series: 
Author(s): TM Nielson
Length: 5279 pages
Publisher: T.M. Nielsen; 2 edition (October 11, 2014)

Genre: Epic Romance / Paranormal / Sci-Fi / Urban Fantasy / 

Notes: Last week when I was asking for recommendation, this was one given to me. The first two books in the series were free on Amazon (at the time of creating this post) but for $10 you can get all 9 books, which I thought was a great price, especially for the word count.

Blurb: 

Contains all 9 books of The Heku Series with the bonus novel : Return of the Encala.
Heku (Book 1 of the Heku Series)
Valle (Book 2 of the Heku Series)
Encala (Book 3 of the Heku Series)
Equites (Book 4 of the Heku Series)
Proditor (Book 5 of the Heku Series)
Ferus (Book 6 of the Heku Series)
Eternity of Vengeance : Extended Edition (Book 7 of the Heku Series)
Ancients and Old Ones (Book 8 of the Heku Series)
Banishment (Book 9 of the Heku Series)
Return of the Encala

They live among us, blending with the human society, while behind closed doors and heavily guarded compounds, they continue age old practices of the immortal. The heku are indigenous to this planet and are far older than the earliest signs of man. They are militaristic, violent, and highly secretive. They are bound by strict rules that separate them from, and protect, the mortals.

Chevalier has never been told no. For thousands of years he’s sat on the Equites Council, ruling body of his heku faction, and for thousands of years his every order has been followed immediately and without question.

One of the most important rules of the heku, is that no one is to feed from unwilling donors. Following a tip that a young mortal woman is being brutally attacked by his own kind, he seeks her out and immediately begins to experience unnatural feelings for the woman.

Emily, a beautiful rancher from Montana, has spent her entire life being violently attacked by beings she assumed were vampires. It isn’t until she meets Chevalier that she learns of her startling family history, a history that immediately throws her into the volatile world of the heku.

In a bid to protect her, Chevalier moves Emily into his isolated coven, which marks her as a prime target for the Valle and the Encala, enemy factions of the heku. Emily fights to fit into the militaristic world of the heku as her head-strong personality and independent ways turn their perfectly balanced world on end. She immediately befriends Kyle, a heku from Chevalier’s coven, and together they find Emily a niche among the immortal.

Emily’s violent past interferes with Chevalier’s plans, and he must first undo what her abusive ex-husband did before he can convince her how much he cares about her, and how much she’s worth to his faction. Chevalier’s growing feelings for Emily are unnatural to his kind, and must be hidden from the rest of the Equites Faction if he’s to remain a formidable part of their Council.

His jealous tendencies rage as Emily gets closer to Kyle, and both heku struggle to make her realize how important she is to the faction and how endangered she now is.

Title: And I Darken
Series: Claim the Throne
Author(s): Kiersten White
Length: 494 pages
Publisher: Delacorte Press (June 28, 2016)

Genre: Fantasy / Dracula Retold / 

Notes: This was recommended to me last week.

Blurb: NO ONE EXPECTS A PRINCESS TO BE BRUTAL. And Lada Dragwlya likes it that way. Ever since she and her gentle younger brother, Radu, were wrenched from their homeland of Wallachia and abandoned by their father to be raised in the Ottoman courts, Lada has known that being ruthless is the key to survival. She and Radu are doomed to act as pawns in a vicious game, an unseen sword hovering over their every move. For the lineage that makes them special also makes them targets.
Lada despises the Ottomans and bides her time, planning her vengeance for the day when she can return to Wallachia and claim her birthright. Radu longs only for a place where he feels safe. And when they meet Mehmed, the defiant and lonely son of the sultan, who’s expected to rule a nation, Radu feels that he’s made a true friend—and Lada wonders if she’s finally found someone worthy of her passion.

But Mehmed is heir to the very empire that Lada has sworn to fight against—and that Radu now considers home. Together, Lada, Radu, and Mehmed form a toxic triangle that strains the bonds of love and loyalty to the breaking point.

From New York Times bestselling author Kiersten White comes the first book in a dark, sweeping new series in which heads will roll, bodies will be impaled . . . and hearts will be broken.

Title: Allison's Adventures in Underland 
Series: (Harem of Hearts Book 1)
Author(s): CM Stunich
Length: 320 pages
Publisher: Sarian Royal (December 17, 2017)

Genre: Dark Romance / Fantasy / RH / Bisexual / 

Notes: 

Blurb: Um. Um. Um.
Are you reading this?
If you are, I need your help.

I was at a party; I was running; I fell.
And get this—this is the part you'll never believe—I fell down a rabbit hole.
Like Alice in those old books.

Except in those books, there wasn't blood everywhere.
In those books, the characters weren't all male, attractive, and interested in me.

Forget everything you know about the Mad Hatter, the White Rabbit, the March Hare …

This isn't Wonderland; this is Underland.
Violence, sex, drugs, and magic … that's all there is in this place.
There's me, Allison, and there are the men that want me, the enemies that hunt me, and the darkness that's quickly rolling in.

And only I can stop it.
So if you're reading this, will you help me?
Please. I just want to escape this place and go … home.

ALLISON'S ADVENTURES IN UNDERLAND (Book 1 of 3 in the "Harem of Hearts" series) -- is a full-length reverse harem/new adult/dark romance novel, a gritty retelling of "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland". Don't expect a children's tale; these characters are nothing like their more innocent counterparts. This book contains: drugs, cursing, violence, sex ... and love found in the darkest shadows.

Title: The Soul Spell
Series: (Fae Academy)
Author(s): AY Venona
Length: 253 pages
Publisher: 

Genre: Romance / Fantasy / Gay / 

Notes: 

Blurb: I, Elian Gustan, find myself in an unfortunate predicament. Adrian Larsa, the captain of the most elite group of alphas, shows me so much love I’m so loved-up. But here's the rub: it’s a love of the brotherly kind. Yes, it's cute, but its cuteness has long run its course and now becomes a major heartache because Adrian is not my brother. He is my soulmate. But then again I might be mistaken. I mean, who knows really? 

Enter Alexander Brunn, the most beautiful man on the planet. He is as heroic as Adrian. Together, they are the perfect couple—too perfect that they make me feel like a villain in my own godforsaken story.

And then here comes the Gatherings, the anniversary of the Founding of the Seven Realms and the only event that the gods attend. This year turns out to be full of surprises from good to bad—to worst. Guess who gets the worst part?

Set in the same universe as Alpha Academy, this book is an m/m suspense and scifi-fantasy romance with an mpreg theme. It contains a certain tragic element but with a satisfying HEA ending.

Title: Moonrise
Series: 
Author(s): Hannah L. Corrie
Length: 244 pages
Publisher: 

Genre: Romance / Sci-Fi / Enhanced Human / Aliens / Gay / 

Notes: 

Blurb: Fed up with this world? Thought about moving to Mars?

Not enough distance? Well, then!

What if you had the chance to become something completely different? To change what you are and leave the world you know, the solar system you know, behind? Would you take the plunge?

Yago Solas never got to ponder and much less answer those questions, but he faces the consequences when an escaped alien creature infects him with a mutating virus that takes everything from him, even his humanity.
The experiments intended to heal him soon turn to cold interest in his new physiology, and the very people supposed to save him become his enemies, his hunters, his looming demise. And why not? Who could feel sympathy for a twisted creature like him, much less love him now, looking like this?

Still, the Maker smiles down on all his childen. The space ship on which he is being held as a prisoner crashes and sends Yago stumbling into an alien culture and into the lap of Azekial Yyn-Thyr, a snarly, grim A'shian guard captain. The wary alien doesn't care how Yago looks, but he may yet prove to be his demise; A'shian legends tell of a species that caused a cataclysm responsible for stranding the A'shians where they are, and the Terrans might just fit the bill…

Thank you for stopping by and reading!!

Pact Days: GryFalconi Society and Culture #ValespianPact

Welcome back Thursday's Pact Day. I'm going to piggyback off last week's post about the GyrFalconi and the Twenty Year War to discuss GyrFalconi culture and society prior to Terren occupation. In the middle of writing this post, I got a story idea that takes place on post-war Aries 7. LOL!



Before the Twenty Year War, the GyrFalconi only lived in the high places. They lived in their mountain cities that oversaw the agriculture production and their massive sky cities that several million called home.

Aries 7 is not the homeworld of the GyrFalconi. Only the adept of the Divine Egg has recorded their origin world which the GyrFalconi left in order to explore space. For several centuries, GyrFalconi crossed many solar systems and a galaxy until their wanderlust abated. They then split into seven groups, each group settling on a different world. In their language, Aries means pioneer and applied to those who fearlessly trek into the unknown. The number 7 is the number of their group. They were the last to settle after seeing groups one through six safely ensconced into their new homeworlds.

When the GyrFalconi settled Aries 7, they retired and dismantled their space program, using the technology to build the sky cities and concentrating on making the planet their home. They are relatively peaceful and don't physically war with each other. Their battles are waged in politics or certain professional games, so they have no air defense and only police their city streets.

They allocated land for crops and flowers that were maintained by machinery. The manufacturing facilities were built underground to keep the planet surface pristine. The overseers live in the mountain based cities. Vehicles are used by nesters caring for non-flying hatchlings or young chicks. If the distance between destination is too great for flying, there is a public transit system. But if they can fly to their destination, they will.

Their society is built around age and gender tiers. Chicks stay in the nest until maturity (which depends on the gender) and then they leave to begin their own nest. During their breeding age, they have steady work but take jobs that allows them to be home as frequently as they are needed. After the breeding age, they become a part of the infrastructure. GyrFalconi have three genders: female, males, and nesting males. (I will probably come up with official names for the tiers later.) Males and females are brilliantly colored and distinct. The nesting males have dull feathers in tones of white, gray, and browns.

The parents of the hatchlings who are nesting males and females will take the chicks for community play dates. The chicks will play with each other and the parents will watch who their chicks are most drawn to. It is considered abuse if a parent is found trying to force/coerce their chick to have relationships with hatchlings they have no interest in. That will get their chicks taken away and the authorities digging into every personal aspect of their life. As the nesting males and females pair up, the parents will arrange a betrothal and ensure the two chicks spend much time with each other so that they will bond.

Around the age of fifteen, male and females will leave their family's nest. Females starts a foundation and gradually builds a nest of her own in preparation of the nesting male joining her when he matures. The nesting male will stay in the parents' nest the longest. He cannot go to his bonded female until he has matured. If he goes to his bonded female's nest, it will spur her into the breeding stage. If he is not mature, then his cloaca is unable to hold an egg. So he stays with his parents until he molts, loosing all of his dull feathers and growing new, more colorful ones. The breeding males and females are both very colorful and pretty, but when a nesting male matures, they are stunning beyond compare. After the nesting male's new feathers come in completely, he can join his bonded female.

When a male leaves the nest, he too will build a nest but it isn't the same. Sometimes he will only house himself, but often times males will join together with other breeding males. Breeding males start compiling finances and commodities that will later be used to help support any chick they sire. A breeding male can only sire additional chicks if his portfolio says he is capable of supporting them. Being able to provide for multiple chicks is a point of extreme pride among breeding males. They don't have relationships with the chicks until the chicks are older, but that is a natural part of their makeup.

Something to note about GyrFalconi, sex and relationships are two different things. Males and females have sex for fun and to breed. Females are friendly with breeding males outside the breeding grounds and they respect each other but they don't form bonds or relationships beyond light friendships. If for some reason the females dies, the breeding males will check in the nesting male caring for their chicks but they won't nest with the nesting male nor will they take the chicks from the nesting male. It's just not done.

Females bond to and have deep emotional relationships with their nesting males, but they don't have sex with them. Nesting males are asexual. They enjoy cuddles and romance and taking care of the chicks, but they have no desire for sex. On the other hand, breeding males love to have sex. If he nests with other breeding males, they will have sex with each other when they are not trying to attract a breeding female. Rarely, a breeding male will be invited into the nest by both the nesting male and female. This doesn't happen often and is considered weird by society's standards but that nest isn't shamed (to keep from scarring the chicks) but there is gossip because most don't understand why.

In the middle of the cities are protected breeding grounds where the males and females go when they are ready to sire a chick. The female will choose a male and see him every day until she conceives. The egg takes about 40 days to grow and at that time, she will line up her cloaca with her bonded and pass the egg to him. The nesting male will hold the egg in his body until it is ready to hatch. When he feels the egg is ready, he'll lay the egg and within the hour the hatchling will break free. (GyrFalconi don't have the feather mass to lay an egg and sit on it until it hatches. This is an adaptation they underwent the centuries they travelled space.) Once the chick hatches, the hatchling is the sole responsibility of the nesting male. The female supports him but doesn't help rear the chicks. Therefore, chicks are very close to their nesting parent and that closeness never dims.

When the GyrFalconi move beyond breeding age, the females will take jobs in the government. They aren't required to be at home as much for their nester and will choose public service careers that consume most of their time. Even the nesting male will become active, mainly in home economics and helping out young nests. Post breeding males will also enter public service, going to school for higher education, become philosophers, cultural teachers, or studying with the adepts, becoming spirit walkers or spirit trackers.

If a GyrFalconi dies, spirit walkers will collect the spirits and help it return to the Divine Egg from where they will be reborn. If the spirit is lost or trapped, a spirit tracker will find it and guide it to where it needs to go. Spirit walkers are known for their ability to speak to the spirits before they return to the Divine Egg. This is how they are able to record unusual information about the universe. If the GyrFalconi is murdered, the spirit will stay until the spirit walker can relay such so their death will be avenged. GyrFalconi believe that if they die anywhere in the universe, their spirit will always return to Aries 7. Since a spirit tracker can always find them, there had never been a permanently lost spirit.

This is the society and culture that was torn apart when Terrens invaded Aries 7. There are those in the sky cities who want to pretend that the last twenty years didn't happen, going so far as shunning the wingless from returning to families and homes. The victims of the Terrens stubbornly forge on once again becoming the embodiment of what it means to be Aries, fearless pioneers into the unknown.

Thank you for stopping by and reading!!

BLOG TOUR: Rebuilding Hope by Jessie G

I'm excited to be hosting Jessie J today!! She has just release book in her new Kindred series, Rebuilding Hope. I got to ask her one question. "What do you love about your main character?" This is what she has to say!


Jessie J: Holden is an old soul in a young, failing body. Life had been a constant trade-off. Instead of health, he got brains. Instead of a loving family and good friends, he had the one and only Abigail to be both. But he's not bitter. Convinced that his time is limited, he puts those brains to work trying to help others and when the system tries to stop him, he goes around it. Through it all, he never loses his snark. His sense of humor shines through the darkest scenes, infiltrates his thoughts, falls out of his mind whether its the right time or not, and makes him a character you want to root for. He's not feeling sorry for himself, he has no interest in regrets. He simply wants to leave his mark and go out smiling.


Meeting Crowley changes the course he thinks he's on and shows him the path he was supposed to be following all along. Crowley is not intentionally stoic, but those around him believe that a Zenith should be shown the utmost respect. It wears a little thin and there are few places he can truly be himself. Until Holden, he doesn't realize that there could be someone to share the burden. Someone to make him smile. An equal partner who is enamored of him, but would never be overshadowed by his station. Crowley has a possessive, protective streak a mile wide, but he adores Holden's intelligence, humor, and independence and will do anything to encourage them.


Together, they made me laugh, they made me cry, they made me crazy, and I was cheering right up until the very end. I can only hope that those same feelings come through in the story.

BOOK DETAILS

AUTHOR NAME: Jessie G

BOOK NAME: Rebuilding Hope

SERIES NAME:  A Kindred Story, Book #1

PUBLISHER: Jessie G Books, Inc.

PAGE/WORD COUNT: 200 pages, 64K words

CATEGORIES: Gay, Contemporary, Shifter

COVER MODELS: TankJoey & Connor Jay

PHOTOGRAPHER: CJC Photography

COVER ARTIST: Andrew Reyna

BLURB: Holden Bancroft was born with a better than average brain and not much else. Often described as strange and sickly, his attempts to conform only made him look foolish and a life-long diet of pills hasn’t provided a cure. Deciding to strengthen the only tool in his arsenal was liberating and learning became his greatest joy. But each episode is another reminder that his time is limited, and Holden intends to use everything he’s learned to help the small town of Hope before he dies.

Alpha Crowley Lomond, Zenith of the Americas, isn’t exactly happy with his ascension. Leading isn’t the problem, it’s acting like he’s somehow better than every other shifter that chafes. But while living and working beside them may seem noble, Crowley is more than just an alpha. As Zenith, he’s their example, their teacher and guide, and the one they will turn to when their way of life is threatened.

Meeting changes them in ways they never could have predicted and unveils a web of deceit that began long before they were born. Together, they will have to unravel the lies and reconcile the consequences if they are to protect the shifter way of life. Along the way, Crowley will become the Zenith his Kindred was born to love and their enemies will learn that there's nothing more dangerous than fated mates.

BUY LINKS

Amazon Universal: http://mybook.to/RebuildingHope

Coming to all other retailers this week

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/42034081-rebuilding-hope

 

AUTHOR BIO

Like many readers, I've dreamed of being a writer most of my life. Thanks to social media, I was able to follow my favorite authors and hoped to glean some words of wisdom as I pounded out half-formed ideas with alarming regularity. It isn’t always easy, but it’s definitely been worth it and with four series in the works and a full schedule of releases planned for the next two years, it's been amazing to have made this dream my reality.

I am a firm believer in marriage equality, love at first sight, power dynamics, and happily ever after. I'm a lover of strong secondary characters and series filled with families—biological or chosen. All are themes you'll find throughout my books.

Contact Links:

Website: http://www.jessiegbooks.com

Email: jessie@jessiegbooks.com

Newsletter: http://eepurl.com/bhuja1

Social Links:

Facebook:  https://www.facebook.com/JessieGBooks

Google +: google.com/+Jessiegbooksmm
Instagram: https://instagram.com/jessiegbooks

Pinterest:  http://www.pinterest.com/jessiegbooks/

Tumblr (NSFW 18+):  http://jessiegbooks.tumblr.com/

Twitter:  https://twitter.com/JessieGBooks

Website: http://www.jessiegbooks.com

Author Pages:

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/author/jessieg

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/jessiegbooks

What's on the Reading Radar? #WishList #TBR

What have I been up to? 

Well, Twin Flames will be releasing on audio later this year, so working on stuff for that. I'm behind on Assassin's Retirement and got stuck on Chapter Twenty-Seven and took me a bit to figure what I needed to do to go forward. I need to get ahead another chapter or two and then I'll start working on Constant again. (I needed a break from Constant.)

I am looking for book recommendations. I finished listening to Anne Bishop's Others series and its spin-off. I also listened to Joe Abernathy's Exhale. Both series are very engaging and I'm looking for more like them. 

My folder was a bit sparse today. I haven't been book browsing in a little while. Let's see what I catches my fancy this morning.

Title: Duty Bound
Series:
Author(s): Lynn Lorenz
Length: 112 pages
Publisher:

Genre: Romance / Sci-Fi / Gay /

Notes:

Blurb: When Jax Jupiter loses his job on a space station, he takes a position on a deep space freighter--as the ship's sex counselor. It's a position he's held before with almost deadly results, but he's desperate. Captain Logan Forge runs a tight ship and watches over his small crew. When their regular counselor is taken ill, they have to take on a new man, and from the moment Logan lays eyes on Jax, naked in the shower, he knows the sexy as hell counselor will be nothing but trouble. And when someone tries to kill Jax, that trouble lands at Logan's door, because it looks like he's the prime suspect. Jax has been here before, but can he trust Logan, a man who has deadly secrets that Jax has stumbled on?

Title: Shifter's Price
Series:
Author(s): Jamie K. Schmidt
Length: 220 pages
Publisher:

Genre: Romance / Paranormal / FF / MF / MM / 

Notes:

Blurb: In a post-apocalyptic society, sex is currency.

After a meteor destroyed most of the planet, a ragtag group of survivors tries to reform civilization. But this brave new world has new creatures in it as well. Shifters can be any creature they want. Techs can channel electricity out of the air.

Bethany joins up with Lewis and Clark expeditions to travel across the ravaged countryside to find her brother. Lucas, a shifter, has agreed to be her bodyguard and the only thing he has to offer is his body. His sister Lisa is in a similar situation only she haggles with a leather making mistress for the journey. M/F, F/F, M/M and everything in between happen along the way. But there are forces in this dark society that stalk both Shifters, Techs and humans and the team needs to work together to rescue their friends or pay the ultimate price.

Title: Beyond Meridian
Series:
Author(s): CC Bridges
Length: 99 pages
Publisher: NineStar Press (September 3, 2018)

Genre: Romance / Sci-Fi / Gay /

Notes: I'm not sure, but I feel as if I have read this book before. I'll have to check.

Blurb: Captain Rick Raine thinks he’s just picking up a passenger and some cargo when he takes on Karl as a member of his crew. He didn’t sign up for battling privateers, the United Planetary Alliance, and his own heart. But everyone has secrets in space, even a naive kid who knows more than he should.

Karl is on a mission, deep in the heart of enemy space. Sam saved him from a life of servitude and now it’s time to return the favor. For that he needs a ship and someone to fly it. Captain Raine seems like the perfect guy, a good pilot and an honest thief. But Karl doesn’t count on falling for the spacer, not when he has a mission to accomplish and the UPA’s secrets to keep.

Title: Sunshine and Bullets
Series: (The Bullets Book 1)
Author(s): Coralee June
Length: 297 pages
Publisher:

Genre: Romance / Romantic Suspense / Reverse Harem / Contemporary / 

Notes:

Blurb: Sunshine.

It’s a nickname I haven’t heard since I lived on Woodbury Lane, where the houses were pretty but the secrets? Deadly. It was a pet name known only to the Bullets. Rough, violent, and ruthless, they laid claim to the town — and my heart.

I wasn't supposed to fall for a boy from the wrong side of the tracks—especially not four of them. But they were the only ones who understood that sometimes hell hides in plain sight.

I was the girl with all the conveniences a privileged upbringing could provide. The world only saw two loving parents and a pristine home life, but I knew the truth. And it was going to get me killed. So, I disappeared, from everyone and everything I’d ever known. I changed my name and my appearance, but the scars I carry, they’re still the same.

The Bullets are all grown up now, too — a crime boss, a pro fighter, a bounty hunter, and a federal agent. Life took them in different directions, but they once shared the bonds of a brotherhood forged under the harshest conditions. Together they were fearless. Brutal. Unstoppable.

I'm praying they can find that unity again. If I'm going to survive this, it'll take everything they have. Because that's the thing about running from the past.

Eventually, it catches up to you.

Title: Of Gallantry and Magic
Series:
Author(s): Alex Hintermann
Length: 155 pages
Publisher:

Genre: Romance / Fantasy / Historical / Gay /

Notes:

Blurb: Sir Tristan son of Derrick Dragonbane would like to settle down and raise dragons, but he is obligated to follow in his father’s heroic footsteps. While he interviews for a novice knight position at one of the most prestigious courts in the Middle-North, he meets a brash, bearded commoner who compels him to reassess his goals, as well as his sexuality.

Title: The Darkling Hunters
Series: Fox Company Alpha
Author(s): Rhiannon Ayers
Length: 538 pages
Publisher:

Genre: Romance / Urban Fantasy / Paranormal / Bisexual / MMF / Angels & Demons /

Notes:

Blurb: For darkling hunters Dex Peterson and Sam Spencer, working for the Darkling Eradication Agency means putting their lives on the line every single day. They’re used to tracking down soulless monsters and burying them in an early grave. But when their new assignment lands them smack in the middle of a darkling turf war, they realize their military experience and government backing won't be nearly enough to survive the crossfire.

Enter Sydney Carpenter, a bad-ass, no-nonsense, wait-right-there-so-I-can-come-kick-your-ass warrior woman with more than enough experience to take down the darkling horde. She’s saved their bacon more times than they can count, and having her on their team will almost guarantee victory. If this was nothing but a routine mission, the three of them could wipe the floor with these depraved monstrosities and call it a day.

But this is anything but a routine mission. Love, lust, and deadly secrets have the power to destroy even the best-laid plans. For the three of them to survive, they’ll not only have to accept their unspoken need for each other, they’ll have to put it all on the line to save the mission—and their souls. And when Sydney finally reveals a terrifying secret, they’ll have to face the reality that nothing in their world is as it seems.

WARNING: Contains two hardcore Marine soldiers guaranteed to make your panties melt.

Thank you for stopping by and reading!!

Pact Days: GryFalconi and the Twenty Year War #ValespianPact #Cosntant #AlphaTrine

Welcome to Pact Day!

Today I want to talk about the conflict that changed the GryFalconi in many ways, crating disparity in their society. They are one of the species that have a more fleshed out background than other species with more details to their history and people. 

In the series, the navigator of the Oethra 7, Axis de la Rynch, is a GryFalconi. Visually, GyrFalconi are brightly colored between their skin color and feathers. Those living in the high places of Aries 7 have wings and have an arrogance that, in the recent years, has hurt the victims of the Terren invasion more than helped.

Axis is a biped and almost as tall as Dargon, who is 2.4 meter tall (7.87 feet). He has dark brown skin and a plume of red-tipped gray feathers instead of hair. His round eyes are large and black with an outer ring of yellow. He has dark-colored finger nails and a wide, boney-plated nose which gives him a flat-faced appearance. 

The GyrFalconi's coloring of feathers and skin is very vibrant and different from being to being. The males are much more brilliant in their variations than the females, their plumage used to attract others during mating. The dullest of the GyrFalconi are the nesting males before they reach their prime. I'll talk more about that in next weeks blog post. GyrFalconi coloring doesn't help them hide in their surroundings but meant to make them stand out. It has been several hundred generations since they have had to worry about predators plucking them out of the sky or from the foliage. 

Axis is one of the GyrFalconi who didn't escape when the Terrens attacked the place where he lived. He was captured at a young age and was part of the group who had their wings removed so they could be put to work in the mines. 

Now, you might wonder why the Terren still used a primitive way of mining for valuables? This is far into humanity's future, surely they would have a better way of removing the crystals from Aries 7 than slave labor? 

Sure there is equipment that can be used to strip a location of valuable ore. But there are rules to invasion. You don't bring in the high tech, valuable equipment for phase two of the takeover until threats from the population has been subdued and the opposing military force decimated. There is a risk of sabotage and loss of equipment that would take years to replace. Aries 7 is not near the Terren controlled space of the Milky Way, but situated within the Andromeda Galaxy, and not reached quickly or easily. Therefore the Terren's had to secure the planet before they could completely take advantage of Aries 7 natural resources.

There is another reason that has to do with keeping the structural integrity of the M'Cathaian crystals. If shattered, they are useless.

Keep in mind that the four Terren companies that govern the humans were on the brink of collapsing because they had expended more money than they could bring in with the resources they currently controlled. The highly sought after M'Cathaian crystals were extremely valuable and the Terren military didn't have the non-combat personnel to extract the gems themselves. They needed the revenue the crystals would bring. So in their desperation, the people of the mountain communities the Terrens subjugated were utilized to work in the mines that would bring in money that would allow the Terrens to continue their endeavors on Aries 7. 

The GyrFalconi's lack of obvious technology reinforced the Terren's superiority complex. Since GyrFalconi could fly, they had every few transportation vehicles. They did have a half dozen sky cities but no recognizable manufacturing or industrial facilities. The GyrFalconi had a military force, but not a large one. Their people didn't war against each other and until the Terren's surprise attack, they didn't worry overmuch about invasion from space. They were part of the Valespian Pact and as such, their sector was patrolled by Galactic Imperial Patrol (GIP).

The Terren's had invaded and occupied a portion of Aries 7 for three Galactic Standard years before Valespia's Andromadan Galactic Legion arrived to evict them. The Twenty Year War started but the humans had plenty of time to do irreparable damage to the GyrFalconi under their control. 

Six months before Aries 7 was liberated, Axis was captured. He was young at the time, almost old enough to have his own nest but not quite. The Terrens removed his wings and forced him into the mines even knowing that GyrFalconi who lost the ability to fly and kept in the mines usually died within a year. 

Those who were liberated from Terren control were quickly shunned by the GyFalconi in the sky cities and not allowed to rejoin kin in the high places or even the mountain towns.

The GyrFalconi who had their wings removed were only one kind of injury left the wake of the Terren occupation. Warehouses filled with incubating eggs were discovered. The hatchlings born in captivity had underdeveloped wings, and no one knew exactly what the humans did to cause such changes in the GyrFalconi. Originally, the hatchlings were given to the winged in the sky cities but when it was discovered the hatchling's wings would never grow big enough to allow them to fly, the hatchlings were returned to the ground cities, further widening the rift in between the winged and wingless. The wingless adopted the hatchlings and the subsequent generations were born with inferior wings.

Within the first six Galactic Standard months after Aries 7 was liberated, GIP reported back to the Galactic Imperials, describing the way the victims of the Terren occupation had been shunned by those still whole. The Galactic Imperials sent aid to the displaced, stationing GIP planetside to ensure the supplies weren't redirected to the sky cities. Modern cities were built ground level and the GIP helped as best as they could to treat not only the physical wounds of the survivors but the emotional ones. A governing council was established, and a police and military force created. The displaced GyrFalconi did not expect their winged brethren would treat them fairly and learned quickly how to not only to protect themselves physically, but also through the courts and the spiritual clergy.

Schools were built in the ground cities, catering to occupations that would better be suited to those now bound to the land. Some GyrFalconi sought ways to take to the sky and became pilots, while others left their homeworld for the stars, becoming highly sought after starship navigators. They had retained their natural sense of location of their spacefaring ancestors, allowing them to know where they were in the galaxy in relation to their homeplanet. 

This incident colored the opinions of the people of the Valepsian Pact, placing Terrens in such poor light that even after several years post event, animosity remained high against humans. The monetary compensation the Terrens agreed to would help the rebuild parts of Aries 7 but no amount of money could mend GyrFalconi society. The harmony between the people was broken and their own fears created additional harm that the victims of the Terren occupation will never forget, even if they eventually forgive. 

Thank you for stopping by and reading!!

What's on the Reading Radar? #WishList #TBR

My week has been super busy. I have created an author page on Facebook and I'm putting together a quarterly newsletter that will deal mainly with new releases. Working on getting Twin Flames (Sumeria's Sons, 1) produced as an audiobook. And there is just a ton of other things that I need to do. For some reason, this week has felt busier than previous ones.

Title: Destiny: A Prequel to Bound by Destiny
Series: The Harvest Young
Author(s): MA Church
Length: 68 pages
Publisher: 

Genre: Romance / Sci-Fi / Gay

Notes:

Blurb: Raiden Shou knew who his mate was before he took his first breath. Hard to believe? Well, when it comes to these Tah’Narians and their young, nothing is impossible. 

Did destiny bring Raiden and Dayo together? Or something else? And does it really matter when the love of a lifetime awaits?

Follow Raiden and Dayo from birth to their mating day. See how their bond evolves as they grow older, how the struggle of being part of the Tah’Narian royal family takes on an unexpected meaning to the young warriors, and how their hopes and dreams cumulate into a future they can’t wait to embrace at long last.

Title: Black Annis: Demon Hunter
Series: (Revenge of the Witch Book 1)
Author(s): Aubrey Law
Length: 212 pages
Publisher: 

Genre: Romance / Urban Fantasy /Dark Paranormal / Lesbian / 

Notes:

Blurb: Hell has no fury like a Black Witch betrayed

The legendary and dreadful witch Black Annis rises again after she was brutally executed and snatches the body of an unsuspecting young woman in modern Los Angeles. Annis must adapt to the new world after four-hundred years of torment in the Lake of Fire and her hatred of the Priesthood with their demon allies is eternal. The hunt for her enemies has begun but the woman's body she selfishly possessed will change Annis in ways she never imagined possible. Can a Black Witch's cold empty heart ever know love?

Powerful Necromancers, deadly Archdemons, and even the angels of Heaven all want to spill the blood of Black Annis. Those who seek to kill her will not rest until she is dead again and her dark soul is returned to the Lake of Fire.

Title: Queen of Gods
Series: (Vampire Crown Book 1)
Author(s): Scarlet Dawn, Katherine Rhodes
Length: 399 pages
Publisher: 

Genre: Romance / Vampires / Paranormal / Reverse Harem / Poly / 

Notes: I've been on the fence about reading this sreis. RH is good but I like my multiple partner romances to have a little bit more love and respect between all the characters. I was reading the blurbs for the next two books and the little content warning sold me. "*CONTENT WARNING: This book contains graphic language, violent content, and sexual situations (M/F, M/F/M, M/M/M, and M/F/M/M). It is intended for audiences 18+ ONLY.*" Yes, please.

Blurb: Magic is life. 
Bound to S'Kir, the Unseen Gods wait to reunite with their brethren. Only an ancient prophecy keeps their hope alive.

Blood is life.
Locked away from S'Kir on earth, the Vampire Overlords and an Original Druid hold their crowns with brute power. The Law is all that keeps their savage nature hidden.

Until one defiant vampire is awakened early from her Rest and summoned to the vampire stronghold. In her wake, all hell breaks loose...

Magic always wins.
But never without blood.

*CONTENT WARNING: This book contains graphic language and sexual situations. It is intended for audiences 18+ ONLY*
*Slow-burn Reverse Harem (for one woman) with guaranteed sexy times in each book*

Title: The Mercenaries of the Stolen Moon
Series: Tales of the high Court, 4
Author(s): Megan Derr
Length: 100k
Publisher: LT3 Press

Genre: Romance / Fantasy / Pansexual / Bisexual / Trans / 

Notes: Releases 11/21

Blurb: For twenty years Myra has served the High King, so familiar, respected, and envied the rest of the palace calls him the High Secretary. For twenty years he has kept his secrets buried, and after so long he dares to believe he has left his past behind. But during the Festival of Harmony, tragedy strikes, and Myra's past is dragged into the present.

Once third in command of Fathoms Deep, Charlaine is used to shadows and secrets, but even he is shocked to learn what his best friend, and the man he secretly loves, has been hiding all these years. In the wake of a terrible tragedy, he doesn't know what to do—except whatever it takes to help his friends.

Though Jac is a member of the Three-headed Dragons and primary bodyguard to the High Consort, she is used to being overlooked and underestimated. But she didn't earn her spurs by backing down, and she's not about to do so now—even if she must defy the High Throne itself to save the man she's falling in love with.

Title: Murder of Crows: Shaman States of America
Series: Stealheads
Author(s): James Osris Baldwin, Chrishaun Keller Hanna
Length: 185 pages
Publisher: 

Genre: Romance / Lesbian / Urban Fantasy / 

Notes:

Blurb: Monsters are real - and we are their prey.

Elizabeth Fox is small, dark, and deadly. As the new leader of the Steelheads, Washington’s top monster hunting team, she must face down monsters in single combat, absorb their power, and banish their spirits – or die trying.

A family is slaughtered in their Seattle penthouse by a prehistoric nightmare too powerful for the cops to handle. The Steelheads are called in to destroy the monster and rescue the only survivor: a young girl who is at the center of another bloody mass murder the very next day.

The girl is innocent.

Whatever has control of her is not.

Starring a fierce Valkyrie who must learn to rely on her teammates - a mysterious and devastatingly handsome sniper and a Marines combat veteran with an encyclopedic knowledge of monsters - Murder of Crows is set within the expansive world of the Shaman States of America. Join Liz, Inari and Jack as they take on monsters, gangsters and each other in Book One of the Seattle Steelheads series!

Title: Fairy Dusted
Series: 
Author(s): Shannon West, Susan E. Scott
Length: 209 pages
Publisher: Painted Hearts Publishing; 2 edition (August 28, 2018)

Genre: Romance / Fantasy / Urban Fantasy / Gay / 

Notes:

Blurb:

When FBI agent Cole Gregory is called to his bureau chief’s office and recruited for a special task force, he is confronted with the commander of the force, a handsome, enigmatic man named Commander Levi who makes Cole feel restless and uneasy. Cole learns of a world beyond our own, one entered only through special Blood Gates, into a world where Faeries and Demons rule, and where Fae and Paranormal creatures exist. These creatures are dangerous to humans, and the FBI has a secret special task force to keep the Blood Gates sealed. An astonished Cole is informed that he has been selected as a member of this force. While all that’s hard enough to believe, even worse is the way Commander Levi looks at Cole, as if he wants to consume him. When Levi changes into a powerful demon right before his eyes, Cole begins to wonder if he’ll even survive this encounter, or will this demon take possession of not only his body but his very soul?

Slade is another FBI agent and Cole’s best friend. When Cole suddenly goes missing and no one can explain where he is, he goes looking for him and stumbles into an open Blood Gate, where he encounters a powerful and handsome wizard, who tries and fails to send him back to the human world.

They seek help from others in the Realm and soon become caught up in a powerful war raging in the Faery Domain, one that his friend Cole, along with Levi, are already mixed up in. When Cole and Slade are both taken by the evil Faery king and slated for sacrifice, they realize they have to stick together and use all their training and a bit of luck to make it out of this alive.

Title: Edge of Nowhere
Series: 
Author(s): Felicia Davin
Length: 299 pages
Publisher: Etymon Press (July 31, 2018)

Genre: Romance / Sci-Fi / Gay / 

Notes:

Blurb: Kit Jackson has two talents in life. He can navigate the void known as the Nowhere to teleport himself across long distances and he can keep his mouth shut. These talents have earned him a reputation as a discreet, reliable Nowhere runner—he’ll smuggle anything for the right price—and that’s how Kit likes it. Morals don’t earn money, and neither do friends. When the private research firm Quint Services makes Kit an astounding offer for a mystery delivery, he says yes.

The parcel turns out to be an unconscious man, and even for Kit, that raises questions. When something monstrous attacks them in the Nowhere and throws them into an unknown wilderness, Kit and this stranger, a man named Emil, have to rely on each other. Kit just wants to make his delivery and get paid, but he finds himself increasingly entangled in Quint Services’ dangerous research—and his own attraction to Emil.

Emil Singh left his career in the Orbit Guard to work at Quint Services Facility 17, a base hidden in an asteroid, to prepare a team to cross the Nowhere into other worlds. It’s the chance of a lifetime and he can’t wait to explore the universe. But then Emil witnesses a terrible accident in a Facility 17 lab and gets sent to Earth for questioning. Something isn’t right, but before Emil can investigate, he and the Nowhere runner hired to transport him are knocked off course. Is the monster that attacks them a creation of Quint Services? What else is the corporation hiding? He has to get back to Facility 17 to protect his team and he needs Kit’s help. Can he trust the cynical young smuggler?

Title: Syn Consulting
Series: Dragos War Chronicles, 1
Author(s): AG Carothers
Length: 189 pages
Publisher: 

Genre: Romance / Paranormal / Urban Fantasy / Bisexual / Gay / Poly / 

Notes:

Blurb: Continue to hide or help save the very kin she's hidden from?

Welcome to SYN Consulting, the top business strategy consulting firm in Europe, home to a motley crew whose leader has a life changing secret. CEO, Danica Lestrange, is the first female dragon born in the last 800 years. Hidden from the rest of her kin and raised in the human world, she built a life that she would defend until her death.

A devious plan is unearthed while working on a new business deal that could plunge the dragons into another war with the humans. The humans may have forgotten the last dragon-human war, but the dragons have not. Will the war reveal this hidden world to the humans, or will the clans come together to defeat their enemies and maintain their anonymity?

Danica must gather her allies and help the very dragons she's hidden from her whole life. She can only hope that she'll be strong enough to protect her chosen family.


This is the first book in a new series about dragons who want nothing more than to live in peace, but refuse to be subjugated. In war there's also love, and love is blind. Love doesn't care about gender, race, species (in this case), or sexuality.

Warning: This book contains explicit sexual content between consenting adults. The sexual scenes are MM, MF, and MMF. There are romantic relationships depicted that are MM. There is also a high level of explicit language, snark, kink, and possibly bad puns and fart jokes.

This book does end in a cliffhanger. Book 2 will be released in November 2018.

Title: Legacy
Series: (Deity Rising Book 1)
Author(s): Kilian Grey
Length: 447 pages
Publisher: Zurr Sol; 1 edition (September 3, 2018)

Genre: Romance / Fantasy / Gay /

Notes:

Blurb: A fractured hierarchy. A buried past. The wind tells all, to those who listen.

Tension is high among the kingdoms of Alimphis and information about the past is prohibited. The Kingsley royal line has lived under restrictive rules from the deities, Emoris and Lathil, but the royal family also holds a great secret.

Prince Faust has kept his affinity for magic hidden by the order of his brother, King Konrad. His life is thrown into chaos when Emoris discovers he can wield all four magic stones and tries to kill him. King Konrad sends Faust away under the guise of a prestigious court merchant. Outrunning the deities isn’t easy, and Faust is exposed to the corruption and lies that have settled in the kingdoms.

With the help of a rather amorous mercenary and King Konrad’s allies, Faust embarks on a path to restore order to Alimphis’s kingdoms. Emoris and Lathil will stop at nothing to ensure he fails, even pitting him against his own family. Faust isn’t alone in his fight as those with power gather to assist him. But is he ready to shoulder the weight of war?



This book (series) contains dark themes, M/M moderate heat, and is intended for mature audiences.

Title: The Returned
Series: The Complete Trilogy
Author(s): Emyrs Apollo
Length: 284 pages
Publisher: 

Genre: Romance / Fantasy / Gay / 

Notes:

Blurb: In an ancient world of magic and mythos, a war has broken out. As the dragon guardians vanish and old gods rise to bring chaos and destruction, lovers Emerys and Aeron find that they are the only ones who can bring peace to a desolate land.

But ancient magic is more than meets the eye, and the pair must triumph and rise... or die.

Title: Unbearable Mates
Series: 
Author(s): Calandra Hunter
Length: 114 pages
Publisher: 

Genre: Romance / Paranormal / Gay /

Notes:

Blurb: Bear shifter Peter Harris just wants one thing: catch the wanted criminal he's been tracking down. His latest case has led him to an art gallery in the small town of Wethersville, and his plan is simple: Attend the exhibition opening, pretend to like paintings, and solve the case before moving onto his next one. But running into his destined mate changes everything, especially since his mate might just be the most arrogant man Peter has ever met. 

Swan shifter Henry Sinclair just wants one thing: for the exhibition opening he's organised to run smoothly. Everything seems like it's going according to plan until he meets his destined mate, and he isn't sure what's worse: that there's a wanted criminal at the gallery, or that his true mate is a selfish jerk who doesn't like art.

After a passionate quickie turns into a passionate argument, Peter and Henry decide to team up for now. The sooner they get rid of the thief, the sooner they can get out of each other's lives.

But as the evening goes on and they learn to work together, they also learn about each other. Can they get a second chance to make a first impression, or has the situation become unbearable?

This is a 38000 word standalone shifter romance with a HEA and explicit sex scenes between two men. No cliffhangers.

Title: Queen Takes Checkmate
Series: Their Vampire Queen, 5
Author(s): Joely Sue Burkhart
Length: 301 pages
Publisher: Joely Sue Burkhart (September 9, 2018)

Genre: Romance / Paranormal / Vampires / Poly / Myths 

Notes: Okay this was tagged on at the last minute since the book came out this week. I have been waiting for this conclusion to the series. I will probably have devoured this book long before this post goes up on Saturday. :)


Blurb: The god of light has met his match. But whose life will the red serpent claim?

Killing the queen of New York City has added a million new responsibilities to Shara Isador’s list. The former queen’s Blood must be dealt with before they turn thrall. The queens Keisha Skye coerced into sibling relationships must either be formally sworn to House Isador or freed. Though Shara can’t in good conscience allow anyone into her house who took part in the rampant torture in which House Skye indulged.

While every single day, Shara feels the weight of the red serpent coiled around her throat. The goddess’s gift grows heavier with every passing moment. If she doesn’t act, the serpent will consume everything she loves. But if she goes after Ra as promised…

Someone she loves very much will die.

Any of her Blood will gladly pay that cost, but Shara loves them too much to even consider losing one of them.

Who will survive the epic showdown with Ra, the god of light, and will this be the end of Shara Isador’s story?

Thank you for stopping by and reading!!