Wednesday, December 19, 2018

Holiday Reading #3 #holiday #reading

Welcome to the third of the five posts for this years holiday reading! 

These aren't in any particular order and are across all genres and orientations. Enjoy!


Title: The Mistletoe Promise

Genre: Romance / Paranormal / Non-Shifter / Omegaverse / 

Notes: 


Blurb: One Kiss. One Promise. The Magic of Christmas. 

Omega Everett is ready to be a father. He has a decent job, a nice place to live, and so much love to give. With no delusions of finding the perfect alpha and living happily ever after, he decides to take matters into his own hand—or test tube, anyway—with the help of a fertility clinic. On the day he finally gets the amazing news he's going to be a father, the rest of his world collapses as his company shuts down.

Everett’s life quickly turns around as he moves to a new city with an amazing new job just as the holiday season begins. Determined to maintain his family’s tradition of going out to eat on Christmas Eve, he heads to a place recommended by his phone, only to find himself arguing with the maître d over getting a table for one.

Alpha Graham’s dating life had somehow been reduced to blind dates set up by his brother, of all people. When his Christmas Eve date cancels at the last minute, he decides to make the most of it, grabbing a drink at the bar of the up-and-coming restaurant—at least until he sees a hot omega being turned away. He can’t let the omega eat alone on Christmas Eve, so he steps in.

Sparks fly between the two and the evening ends with a kiss under the mistletoe, sealing their promise to meet again in a year’s time, when both men might be in a better place to start something more than a hook-up.

The magic of Christmas is sealed with a mistletoe kiss leads the men on a journey to find themselves and their happily ever after.

Promise Under the Mistletoe is a super-Hallmarky-sweet with-knotty-heat non-shifter Mpreg Christmas Romance complete with a sweet baby, mistletoe, and a trip to see Santa.




Title: The NorthstarA Christmas Novella (Accidental Roots)

Genre: Romance / Contemporary / Gay / 

Notes: 


Blurb: The holiday season can’t be over soon enough for John Hall. His ex-boyfriend emptied the bank accounts and ran off with his personal trainer months earlier leaving John unable to pay his creditors. Now he’s forced to close the independent movie theater he runs, a bad end to a bad year. Gay, single and closer to fifty than forty, John doesn’t see a lot of hope in his future. In the dark of night he wonders if staying afloat is worth the effort.


Chance Allsop made a promise to his dying mother he hopes he doesn’t regret. Ten months after her death he’s finally in Skagit Washington, visiting the old movie theater where his parents met and fell in love decades ago. The whole thing seems like a lark until he lays eyes on the handsome owner. With his mother’s spirit at his back Chance fully intends to win John Hall’s heart.




Title: Family in a Snowstorm

Genre: Romance / Contemporary / Bisexual / 

Notes: This says it is (Snow Globes Book 2) thought it isn't listed as such, I think the first book is last year's holiday story, Home in a Snowstorm.


Blurb: Last Christmas, Daniel Wu found a place to call home with Jeff and his adopted daughter Abby. A year later, they confirm his place in their family with a surprising and warm gift. However, when Abby’s biological father returns making demands, Daniel’s happiness is threatened.

With the worsening weather, a much more urgent problem arises when Abby goes missing. Will Daniel and Jeff be able to find her before the storm sets in, and will they manage to keep their small family intact?



Title: The Twelfth Date

Genre: Romance / Comedy? / Contemporary / Gay

Notes: 


Blurb: Friends with benefits? Best Christmas present ever.

Nicky Masters is a hot mess and he knows it. After all, every boyfriend he’s ever had has told him so, and—since they usually follow it up with some version of, “too much work, not worth the effort”—avoiding boyfriends altogether sounds just about perfect. The only problem? The part about Nicky secretly yearning for things like true love and a happily ever after... something that scoring a job at bLoved, the gay dating app that promises to help find exactly that, seems perfectly suited for.

So far, even with his in at bLoved, Nicky still hasn’t managed to find what he’s looking for, but what he has found is almost better: Felix Ramirez, the hot AF new hire with the sexy smile who—for some reason Nicky still can’t figure out—actually said yes when Nicky volunteered as tribute to be Felix’s new friend (with benefits!).

Perfect, right? Just as long as Nicky doesn’t go and do something stupid, like fall for him...

If there’s one thing Felix “the Ram” Ramirez knows, it’s how to be thankful for what he’s got. Pushing for more is a bad idea—something he learned the hard way when doing exactly that caused him a career-ending injury that cut his Major League Baseball career short. Ever since then, he’s decided it’s best to just roll with whatever life hands him, and when it hands him Nicky Masters, life starts to look pretty damn good again.

Well… except for the part about Nicky not being interested in anything more than a friends-with-benefits arrangement. Still, if that’s all that’s on the table, Felix will take it, because the last thing he wants to do is scare Nicky away by pushing for more. At least, until Christmas rolls around and—thanks to bLoved’s Twelve Dates of Christmas promotion—Felix realizes that with a little holiday magic, he just might have a chance at getting everything he wants this year…

The Twelfth Date is a gay romance novel of approximately 79,000 words that contains a boner from New Orleans, an alien viral plague** which brings out Someone’s Inner Drama Queen (spoiler: S.I.D.Q. wasn’t actually doing that good a job of hiding), an overworked Bedazzler, approximately 5,367,542 air miles, lots of prayers to the God of C*ck, parentheticals (soooooo many parentheticals… see previous spoiler re: Someone’s Inner Drama Queen), and the kind of love that makes it feel like Christmas all year long.

Every Stella Starling romance takes place in the same interconnected, contemporary world. The Twelfth Date is a standalone book with cameos from other Stella Starling stories and it (mostly) takes place during the Christmas season of the same year as another #boyfriendsbybLoved book, The Boyfriend Game.

**Please note that no actual aliens were harmed in the writing of this book. While they may exist Somewhere Out There, aliens do not, in fact, exist in the universe of Stella Starling. The Twelfth Date is a contemporary romance set in the real-ish world. If you’re looking for something with little green men—or with less hyperbole and exaggeration—then this may not be the book for you.




Title: The Magician's Angel

Genre: Romance / Contemporary / Mystery / Gay /

Notes: 


Blurb: Vaudeville stage magician Christopher Fiend lives for the spotlight. His chance at big time stardom awaits him in Chicago, the next stop on the circuit after the little town of Twelfth Junction.


Edward Smith wants nothing to do with his family's theater. Until Christopher catches his eye on opening night, then treats him to a very special performance during intermission.

When a dead body turns up in the middle of Christopher’s act, suspicion immediately falls on him. If Christopher and Edward can’t work together to clear his name, Christopher won’t make it to Chicago in time. Edward knows he shouldn’t get attached to a man who will be gone in two days, but his heart—and a very special angel—have other ideas.

The Christmas Angel series of holiday romances follow the travels of an angel ornament through the decades as she inspires (and sometimes nudges) lonely men to find their Happily Ever After. The Magician’s Angel is the third in series, which can be read in any order.




Title: Celebrations in the Season of Long NightsEscape from the Holidays

Genre: Romance / Paranormal / Gay

Notes: 


Blurb: Having escaped his abusive family by winning a scholarship to college, Shahin promised himself he would never go back. So when his plans for winter break fall through and he’s left homeless for a month, he decides he’d rather camp in the park than go home. But he doesn’t realize it's the solstice, the longest night of the year, the start of the season when the supernatural is at its strongest.


Yima is a demon-hunter, a duty passed down through his family. He doesn’t resent it, but it does get lonely, especially since his work is at its most difficult and dangerous when everyone else is celebrating with family. After he rescues Shahin from an demon attack and finds that he has nowhere safe to stay, he takes him back to his flat. He just arrived in town and hasn’t even gotten the electricity turned on, leaving the two men with little to do but talk.

It isn’t a surprise when they end up in bed, though what at first feels like a temporary comfort grows over days spent together into a deeper bond. Nomadic Yima has to find a way to stay without demons coming after his lover, and Shahin has to decide whether he can risk his heart loving a man who constantly puts his life in danger.




Title: Old Christmas Magic

Genre: Romance / Paranormal / Gay

Notes: 


Blurb: Drew McLean has had a run of bad luck and it’s dampened his Christmas spirit. But the last thing he expects to find for the holiday is a demon.


While strolling in the late-night snow, Drew hears screeching tires and a sad scene is awaits him around the corner. A man kneels beside a dog hit by a car, distraught and broken.

The man is Artem, a demon sent to find a pure soul. Drew matches that description to a T. The problem is Artem’s never really been good at the demon gig.

Will a little Christmas magic help them both find what they’re looking for?




Title: The Holiday Agenda

Genre: Romance / Contemporary / Gay / 

Notes: 


Blurb: Twenty-year-old Jimmy Abbott has never had a good birthday. Born on Christmas Day, he’s used to being overshadowed by the holiday season. With no family, no friends, and a crappy job as an in-store Santa at MerryMart, this is shaping up to be just another in a series of terrible Decembers.


Then he runs into Cole again: a confident and charismatic barista at the local LGBT+ coffeehouse. Cole is the opposite of Jimmy. He has wonderful friends, a supportive family, and he’s teeming with holiday cheer.

Jimmy and Cole haven’t seen each other since a series of explosive, no-strings-attached hookups last year. It was Cole's fault —when he realised his feelings for Jimmy were more than a booty-call could satisfy, he ran. But the moment he sits on Santa’s lap, it’s clear those feelings never left. This time, he won’t run.

As the two men form a deeper connection, Cole begins to learn how lonely this time of year can be for people without his privilege — people like Jimmy. Determined to give Jimmy a good birthday for once, Cole introduces Jimmy to his world, where he is welcomed with open arms by Cole’s friends at the coffeehouse. Their agenda: this year, Jimmy is going to have a family.

It's beginning to look a lot like Jimmymas.

The Holiday Agenda is a super-cheesy found family MM romance novella featuring snow-covered kisses, gingerbread lattes, and the power of love and friendship during tough times. While it is a part of the Agenda series and features the coffeehouse, it can be read as a holiday standalone.




Title: Miracle on Three King's Day

Genre: Romance / Contemporary / Gay /

Notes: 


Blurb: Levi’s family knows he needs to find a way out of his funk and be a part of the world again. His brother, Jesse, invites Levi to join him in sunny Spain for the holidays, but a delay at the airport finds Levi at Jesse’s home while his brother is stranded in Scotland. Luckily Alejandro—Alex—is on hand with a key, a friendly smile, and a willingness to keep Levi company. He might even manage to draw Levi out of his shell for some mutual flirting. 


Levi surprises himself when he accepts an invitation to spend New Year’s Eve with Alex at Alex’s café, but is he ready for more when it means jumping back into life feetfirst? Besides, with an ocean between them and Alex hiding a part of his life that Levi isn’t sure he can handle, they’ll need their own Three Kings’ Day miracle to stay together.




Title: Love Blooms

Genre: Romance / Paranormal / Gay /

Notes: 


Blurb: Nico Hamurişi is the one and only son of Santa Claus. All his life, Nico has known he’s expected to fall in love and find lifelong commitment by the Christmas of his thirtieth year—like every other heir before him. But knowing and accepting are vastly different things, and as the final countdown begins, Nico has yet to embrace his fate. His once great enthusiasm for eventually becoming Santa has been dimmed by uncertainty over how the Santa Line will be affected when he marries a man.


With only a year left, will Nico have time to find love and commitment all while learning how magic will transform the family line to accommodate who he is and who he loves?




Title: Christmas Angel

Genre: Romance / Historical / Magical? / Gay /

Notes: 


Blurb: When John Trent, a dedicated member of the new Bow Street Runners, finds an exquisite carved angel floating in the Thames, he can’t stop thinking about it. He tracks down its creator, a sad and quiet young sculptor. But neither the angel nor the sculptor is done with John just yet. The blasted angel refuses to leave him be, behaving not at all like an inanimate object should.


Alec Allston is resigned to the fact that his love will ever be a river that flows out and never flows in. All he wanted to do was create a special gift so that a small part of himself could be with his unattainable and noble beloved, always. But when the gift keeps showing back up at his shop in the hands of a windblown and rugged thief-taker, Alec will need to reconsider his conviction that love is destined to remain an ethereal ideal.




Title: Midnight Angel

Genre: Romance / Contemporary / Magical Realism? / Gay /

Notes: 


Blurb: Dinner is overcooked. The guests haven’t arrived.

Luke is sitting alone at his dining table on New Year’s Eve. He was hoping to romance Nathan, one of the people he invited for this intimate evening meal.

As midnight draws closer, it seems an angel, who has magically appeared in Luke’s apartment, is the only person to drink champagne and watch the fireworks with.

But this angel has other ideas. He’s about to grant Luke the New Year’s Eve party he thought he wanted.




Title: Little X(A Tinsel and Spruce Needles Romance Book 2)

Genre: Romance / Hisotircal / Sweden / Lesbian /

Notes: Though it is not listed as such, I think Candlelight Kisses is the first book in this series. It appears that Little X can standalone.

Blurb: Malmö, Sweden, 1996



Sofie Andersson is a dyslectic born under the star sign Aries, who drives the local buses for a living. Her hobbies include knitting terrible hats and intermittent lesbianism. This December she is on the point of moving into her first flat of her own, figuring out her place in the world, when an instant attraction to a handsome stranger leads her to question everything she’s taken for granted.


Title: Christmas Miracles

Genre: Romance / Contemporary / Friends to Lovers / Gay / 

Notes: 


Blurb: They say anything can happen at Christmas...


Two best friends have been in love with each other for years, but neither of them have ever said anything or even hinted at their feelings. John, with lingering injuries, is in chronic pain, and his massage therapist best friend, Brett, tries to help.

Both of them are surprised when sparks fly when they touch. But could it work out, with John being so closeted? It would take a miracle!

Tis the Season to be Merry in Christmas Miracle, a 50,000 word friends-to-lovers gay romance from Riley Knight to keep you warm all December long! Adults only, and Merry Christmas!




Title: Little Tree

Genre: Romance / Contemporary / Second Chances / Gay / 

Notes: 


Blurb: A few days before Christmas, David Weathers finds himself hopping a plane to his childhood home in Florida and doesn’t know why. His parents are gone, he has no siblings, yet something draws him on.


David can almost feel the magic in the air, but then he discovers Jared Acosta, the man who broke his heart twenty years earlier, has moved three doors away. Reluctantly David accepts Jared’s invitation to dinner, only to find that twenty years may not be enough for some wounds to heal.

Soon David seeks advice from his mother’s best friend Marisol, a vibrant, wise woman who believes in second chances. Can she convince David to take a chance on the man who is working so hard to be near him now? Will he be able to forgive a past that left both him and Jared unlucky in love?




Title: Wrapped up in YouA Learning Curves Novella

Genre: Romance / Contemporary / Lesbian / 

Notes: 


Blurb: It's been two years since Cora and Elena of LEARNING CURVES discovered how easy it is to learn to love--but with Christmas just around the bend, they're going to have to learn to cope when both their families descend on their household for the first time ever. With her brothers and parents underfoot and a million dishes to cook, it's hard enough for Elena to plan her double surprise for Cora, even harder when she has to corral her wayward brothers into it--but when Cora's own surprise plans tangle with Elena's, it may be impossible to tie up the holiday in a neat little bow.


There's mayhem and laughter, warmth and unexpected turns--and even if it all doesn't go according to plan, neither Cora nor Elena care so long as they can stay wrapped up in each other.




Title: Two Parts Mistletoe

Genre: Romance / Fantasy / Bisexual / Gay / 

Notes: 


Blurb: Kingston has worked hard to get where he is: owner of his own shop, master potion maker, well-respected...and lonely, too busy with life to enjoy more than his regular visits to Acacia House. If he wishes his loneliness might be eased by Hux, the man he meets at Acacia twice a month, well, someday he'll work up the nerve to ask. Maybe.

Then Hux unexpectedly visits his shop, distressed and in desperate need of help to save his employer from a love potion...



Title: Tinsel Fixes Everything

Genre: Romance / Contemporary / Second Chances / Gay /

Notes: 


Blurb: They say you never get over your first love.


After a meteoric rise to baseball stardom, Chase Meadow’s dream is cut short and he’s back home for good, helping his brothers run the family bar while he finds his feet. Plenty of things have changed since he left for college. Although one thing he recognizes right away is Joel Levine.

From setting eyes on the skinny, stammering teen their first day of high school, until reluctantly parting five years later, the two of them had been inseparable. And now, Joel is definitely someone not easily forgotten.

But as Chase settles back into home town life, he finds that under the superficial differences—the leather jacket and tattoos—Joel is still the same person he fell for when they were fifteen. While they’re both older and wiser, Chase never stopped loving Joel. And as Christmas rolls closer, Chase starts to think that maybe Joel never stopped loving him either.

They say you never get over your first love.


Some people don’t have to.




Title: Something to Celebrate

Genre: Romance / Paranormal / Demi / 

Notes: 


Blurb: Niko doesn’t hate the holidays; that would require too much commitment. He just doesn’t care about them anymore. He’s a demi, disillusioned mess and he doesn’t care about much at all. That is, until an enticing stranger blows into his life this Christmas and catches his attention—and his heart.

Fan is lost and lonely, a winter spirit adrift in a human world that has all but forgotten them. And then they meet Niko, a young man with the ability to see them, and they remember what it means to stay somewhere. To want someone.

Chance brings them together. But is chance enough to build a relationship on?




Title: Christmas Lane (Lighthouse Bay Book 1)

Genre: Romance / Contemporary / Gay

Notes: 

Blurb: It’s recent college graduate Zach Greenfeld’s favorite time of the year and he’s just received a temporary gig planning Lighthouse Bay’s Christmas parade. Not only does it speak to his penchant for organization, it also puts him face to face on a daily basis with his unrequited crush—Holland Stone. But his new job starts off in disaster when the most important float—Santa’s sleigh—gets damaged. 

Holland needs to win the Lighthouse Bay Christmas parade float competition in order to grow his new dollhouse-making business. The prize is an article in a major city newspaper, and nothing beats free advertising. Except, eager to help the adorable parade organizer, he volunteers to help fix Santa’s sleigh, leaving no time to work on his own float, and putting his prize at risk.

Damaged floats, snowstorms, and a last-minute parade emergency force Zach and Holland closer than ever. All they need is a little bit of Christmas magic to help them realize they belong together.

*Christmas Lane is a sweet, May/December, small-town Christmas romance with an HEA!*




Title: The Magical Mr. Winters

Genre: Romance / Contemporary / Gay

Notes: 

Blurb: A short holiday story for anyone who still believes in the magic of love and Christmas.

Scott hates winter, especially snow. When a handsome and mysterious man moves in next door; he finds himself captivated by the gentleman's almost magical charm, and when Scott decides to introduce himself they find there may be more between them than just a love for coffee. But, Will Scott's cynical nature and reservations prevent him from experiencing the joy of new love and the holidays.

Join Daniel Elijah Sanderfer for this magical and refreshing tale of how love can teach us how to appreciate the simple things in life; like snow.




Title: A Miracle in the Library

Genre: Romance / Contemporary / Young Adult / Gay

Notes: 

Blurb: Seventeen-year-old Mitch McCann has been trying to dodge his bullies for eighteen months. He isn’t out, but that hasn’t stopped the popular gang at school from tormenting him for being gay. Three weeks before Christmas, in a desperate attempt to shake his pursuers, Mitch flees into the abandoned community hall, only to discover the building is far from empty; inside he finds a fully stocked library as well as Mr. Nichols, the very welcoming librarian.

The library turns into Mitch’s refuge of choice, where he can read books that answer his endless questions, without fear of encountering abuse. His peace of mind is shattered when nineteen-year-old Cian Leavy enters his sanctuary. Cian is the boy who made Mitch realize he’s gay, and he’s more attractive now than he was eighteen months ago, when Mitch literally ran into him.

Will Cian unwittingly disrupt Mitch’s life again? Or has the scene been set for a miracle in the library?




Title: Seeking Warmth

Genre: Romance / Contemporary / Young Adult / Gay

Notes: see reader advisory

Blurb: Benny Fuller is on his way to rock bottom. He’s seventeen, fresh out of juvie, homeless, and desperate to find a job. His dad’s in jail and his drug-addicted mom is in no shape to take care of his sick sister, Angel. A run-in with his ex-boyfriend, Scott Sullivan, makes Benny feel even worse. He’s a thief with no future. Scott is smart, with plans for college and a great future ahead of him. Benny knows Scott can do so much better than him. Because no matter how hard Benny tries, he can’t seem to find a job or a way to take care of Angel. 

The further Benny falls, the more he needs Scott’s help. Benny will have to let go of his pride and trust Scott and the Sullivan family in order to get the Christmas miracle Benny and Angel so desperately need.

Reader Advisory: This is an older (15+) YA story with themes of homelessness, drug use and prostitution (off-page), neglect of minors, and foster care.




Title: Not So Secret Santa

Genre: Romance / Contemporary / Gay

Notes: this seems to be a part of a long running series, so I'm not sure it can be read as a standalone.

Blurb: THE MAIN EVENT

Leslie Scott couldn't keep a secret if his life depended on it...and, this one's a doozy. After years of blissful co-habbing, Leslie plans to ask the love of his life, Oliver Brown, for his hand in marriage. Leslie agrees to help with the Kissmas Drag Stravaganza at his dear friend's nightclub, Club Delish, which is also the site of the impending proposal. Every detail is planned with Swiss watch precision: enjoy the show, bring Oliver back to a private room, seduce him then pop the question. But, as with all things Leslie, his scheme goes tits up. Never one to shy away from drama and public displays of affection, this proposal turns out to be one for the books.




Title: Made in Paris (Made In Series, Book 1.5)

Genre: Romance / Contemporary / Gay /

Notes: 

Blurb: New York. Paris. A friendship across continents and ages.

In Paris, days before Christmas, and on the most important stage of their lives, Dorian and Jean-Paul stumble upon the many letters they exchanged over the years since they became penpals at the tender age of ten.

Watch what happens when friendship turns into more.

Distance, tragedy, and fear. 


Will anything get in the way of their love?

A sweet gay romance set in the most romantic city with a happy ever after from the author of Made in Portugal, Ana Newfolk.

Grab your copy and discover a love...made in Paris.

Made In Paris is a 10k word standalone gay romance short story with a HEA ending and no cliffhanger.





Title: Ten

Genre: Romance / Contemporary / Gay /

Notes: 

Blurb: It's ten days until Christmas.

After losing his husband in an auto accident the year before, Chris has decided to go all out to find someone new before the big holiday - planning ten dates in ten days. Somehow, though, none of them is quite right. And as each new day and date passes, Chris starts to notice a strange pattern in the guys he's dating.

What do they all have in common? And is one of them Chris's new Mister Right?

Only time will tell.



Thank you for stopping by and reading!!

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