Review of Lace by KC Wells

 By KC Wells

2.5 Stars

 When Shawn’s best mate Dave breaks up with his girlfriend, Shawn tries not to get his hopes up. After all, Dave’s still straight, right? Wrong. Dave reveals he’s bisexual, and that pounding you hear is Shawn’s heart. He’s loved Dave for so long, but he’s not about to jeopardize their friendship by telling Dave how he really feels.

But when Dave discovers Shawn’s little kink, it opens up a whole new chapter for the two friends. Except Shawn can’t help but worry – if there was no kink, would Dave be there? And is Shawn brave enough to find out?

A standalone short story of lust, lace – and love….

A cute short story that deals with a taboo subject – men in panties!  

Shawn is an out gay man who likes lacey things against his skin, and love love loves his best friend Dave.  Dave has newly discovered he isn’t as straight as he thinks he is when he starts thinking about Shawn in all sorts of hot encounters.  But when Dave stumbles upon Shawn’s secret kink, they admit their lust and fall into bed.

We really like the premise of this short story, best friends that fall into bed, brought together by a little kink.  And we really liked the first few chapters, but fell apart for us for the second half.  The POV switches between Shawn and Dave, and you feel that attraction they have for one another, and their nervousness to take the next step and ruin a friendship.  But after they finally get over themselves they jump into a serious sex-fest.  We found the transition between their friendship and the between the sheets action a little stark.  One minute they are shy and sweet and the next, some hardcore kink and hardcore between-the-sheets. 

Don’t get us wrong, it was hot and we really enjoyed the kink.  We haven’t read much that features men in panties, but really enjoyed how main stream KC Wells attacked the kink.  Be warned that this is a book that will make you blush, woohoo, it is hot between Shawn and Dave.

But outside of the bedroom I didn’t feel the chemistry, and the mis-communication, or rather, lack of communication made the story just too predictable.  This book starts with BEST FRIENDS yet, they never seem to be able to talk?  Like how Dave deals with his bi-sexuality, by not talking to his GAY BEST FRIEND?  Okay, you get our frustration.  Just left us felling, well, disappointed.

Lace deals with an interesting subject, and makes it easy for the reader; unfortunately that wasn’t enough to save this book for us.  We believe this is going to be a series, and although felt Lace missed the mark, we are excited about the next in the series.

Review of The Boyfriend Recipe by Alex Miska

 by Alex Miska

2 stars

What would you do if you humiliated yourself in front of a Naked Kitchen Adonis… and then he appeared in your bakery months later?

DAVID
I watched in horror as my sister shattered yet another poor guy’s heart… only this time, I can’t get sweet, sexy, straight Hunter out of my head. My daily latte runs to Moore Delicious, the bakery where he works, aren’t helping. And now I’m in a bind: my favorite cousin insists that I attend her wedding. With a date. So she whips up a half-baked scheme that will piss off the family that disowned me and secure an ally by my side: ask my sister’s ex to pretend to be my boyfriend. The question is, will Hunter agree to play along?

HUNTER
Six months ago, I walked into my apartment to find a gorgeous man standing in my kitchen, wearing only a towel and a smile. And what did I do? Instead of saying hello and joining him in nudity, I stormed into the bedroom and accused my girlfriend of sleeping with her brother. To be fair, I didn’t know he was her brother at the time, and she really was cheating on me (just not with him). So I hide in the back every time the Naked Kitchen Adonis visits Moore Delicious… until the day he asks for more than his usual coffee, cookie, and suggestively-shaped banana. His proposal is intriguing. I like it. And him. A weekend spent serving up a little revenge while cozying up to the N.K.A. is more than tempting. The lengths we’ll have to go to make it believable definitely won’t be a hardship… but if things heat up, David will be the first man I’ve ever slept with.

We love short stories, love little snippets of how people fall in love, and The Boyfriend Recipe is one our favorite ideas, the fake-relationship.  Although this book has all the right ingredients (see what we did there – Boyfriend ‘RECIPE’) it didn’t work for us. 

Hunter is a Bi man, very recently broken up with his girlfriend Tonya after finding a naked man in their apartment.  The man is actually her brother David.  On chance David happens into the bakery where  

The number one reason that we aren’t super-fans is that we got a bit confused with the POV.  Yes, the chapters are labeled of who is speaking, but maybe there isn’t enough distinctions between their voices.  We actually had to flip back a few times to remind ourselves who was speaking. 

We aren’t big fans of romance with a side of angst, and Boyfriend Recipe doesn’t have a lot, but it never really fulfils its big issues.  David’s parents think he can choose to be gay, and there is great workup from David, but at the wedding there really isn’t much of a confrontation, it fizzles. 

And finally the sex.  Yes in 103 pages there is some heat between David and Hunter, but once Hunter reveals he is a man/man virgin and refers to it as his ‘precious flower’, we almost DNF.  But, then even after his weird outburst, that the wedding party and other refer to the next day, he goes ahead and jumps between the sheets with David, someone he is playing at a fake-relationship.  Ugh, it just didn’t work.

So, all in all, this was not our cup of tea, and thankfully at 103 pages it was a quick read.

Review of Just a Summer Deal by E. Davies & Zach Jenkins

by E. Davies & Zach Jenkins

2 Stars

"You think you can go gay for the summer?"
"I'm the bad egg in Team Gay."

Gay romance author Aaron Douglas has almost everything going for him: a successful career, fun friends, and loving parents who live just far enough away. Unfortunately, he's earned a love 'em and leave 'em reputation, though. Finding a gorgeous gay romance author in this little Colorado town is a thrill, even if Conor says he's straight. When Aaron's landlord kicks him out, the solution is obvious: Aaron can stay with Conor, they can write and fix up Conor's cute farmhouse together, and they can pretend to date. That's all. Aaron won't fall for another straight guy again...even one as amazing as Conor.

"What do I know about gay romance?"

Conor Kennedy just wants to renovate and sell his old farmhouse, escape this small town, and find a nice girlfriend. His novels don't sell, though, and his repairs are taking forever. Everything feels broken until Aaron jokingly offers the perfect solution. Why not pose as a cute gay couple for the summer? Both of their careers will benefit and they'll both get the company of a great new friend... plus Hope, the stray golden retriever who's chosen to live with them. But all Conor can think about is the most illogical thing of all: he wants to do more with his gay co-author than write romance novels.

"Will you sweep me under the rug again?"

Living in tight quarters during the renovation while writing a book together challenges both men to stick to the terms of their deal. They're opposites in almost every way, and the tension is thick. As their fake relationship deadline approaches, questions loom over them both: were they only faking, or has something real blossomed between them? When the internet learns of Conor's past, will their love be strong enough to keep them together?

We aren’t usually a fan of second-chance romance, but it works so well in this short story.  Waiting for Clark is a must read!

Let’s start this review by saying that we did finish this book, but it was a bit of a struggle.  This is a gay-for-you romance, and the story idea has so much potential, but just didn’t come tighter in the end for us.

First off we meet Aaron, a successful, out, m/m romance author who is living a complete bachelor’s life; partying with friends, one night stand and living the good life.  He does however have a crush on another m/m writer, Conor, who is straight, and reaches out to him to see if they can connect.  They meet, and really like each other and decide to collaborate on a book tighter.  Somehow that translates into a fake-relationship for media, and living tighter to fix up Conor’s farmhouse.  But all this comes with a deadline, the end of summer.

See, sound like a cute premise, and we were SO SO SO hopeful.  They meet, fireworks, write and renovate a house and fall in love, all in an idyllic country setting.  That’s the first half. But man, it just has so many issues.  First off, the gay-for-you is done so much, but it can still be done well.  But, there isn’t real transition for Conor.  One minute he is trying to set up a one-night-stand with his neighbor, and the next minute he is making out with Aaron to post on Social Media.  Huh?  Conor never really explores his sexuality, just *knows* he wants to be with Aaron.  The between the sheets feels awkward, like they are kissing and then the next is full on. 

We are also a bit confused about that too. There is no chemistry between Aaron and Conor, none, zip, zilch; they just don’t seem to mesh with each other.  Other than both being romance authors, they have really no connection, nothing that keeps them coming back to each other.  They bicker ALL THE TIME about the book, about writing schedules, process, what to write, leaving tools around the house, and on and on and on.  Honestly, this is like after living with each other for like 2 weeks.  If this was us, we would have moved out!   

For 2 writers you think they would be better at communication, but nope, and the characters struggle with this internal angst “does he feel the same” “is he still faking this relationship” “what is going to happen at the need of the summer”. We honestly wanted to bang our head against the wall – for pete sake, just talk to each other!  There is so much miscommunication, confusion and unnecessary angst and it takes up way too much time.

So, all in all, it is really hard for us to say this, but we weren’t really a fan of Just a Summer Deal. We tried so hard to like this cute idea of a book, but it never really came together for us. 

Review of Hard Tail by J.L. Merrow

by J.L. Merrow

3 Stars

His job: downsized out of existence. His marriage: on the rocks. It doesn t take a lot of arm twisting for Tim Knight to agree to get out of London and take over his injured brother s mountain bike shop for a while. A few weeks in Southampton is a welcome break from the wreck his life has become, even though he feels like a fish out of water in this brave new world of outdoor sports and unfamiliar technical jargon.

The young man who falls literally through the door of the shop brings everything into sharp, unexpected focus. Tim barely accepts he s even "in" the closet until his attraction to Matt Berridge pulls him close enough to touch the doorknob.

There s only one problem with the loveable klutz: his bullying boyfriend. Tim is convinced Steve is the cause of the bruises that Matt blows off as part of his risky sport. But rising to the defense of the man he s beginning to love means coming to terms with who he is in public in a battle not even his black belt prepared him to fight. Until now.

Hard Tail is a slow-burn, coming-to-terms-with-your-sexuality, m/m romance, that is an easy sweet read.  This is our first J.L. Merrow book and we really enjoyed it.  The story is set from Tim’s point of view – a newly separated late 20’s out-of-work accountant that temporary moves back to his hometown to look after his brother’s bike shop when he breaks his leg.  And one of the employees at the shop in Matt.  Sweet Matt.  We don’t really get to know a lot about Matt, but being from Tim’s POV that isn’t surprising.   Matt is a out-gay man, a klutz that has a live-in boyfriend named Steve.

What did we like about Hard Tail?  Tim’s voice is perfect; he is sarcastic, humorous and self-effacing.  We also really like the British writing, the slang, the places, so fun, and paints the picture of the idyllic countryside in which the book is set.  But the real gem of the story is the other character, Tim’s brother Jay and a friend named Adam.  Seriously J.L. Merrow should write a book about Adam!  And we can’t forget about the scene-stealer Wolverine! We do have to mention that there is some between-the-sheets action, although enjoyable, it doesn’t have the steam we hoped Matt and Tim could generate. 

There were a few things that did make Hard Tail a bumpy ride for us.  The homophobia in the book, even from Tim himself, gets a bit much.  And how Tim comes to accept his sexuality, there doesn’t seem to be much thought about jumping into his first gay experience.  Speaking about jumping, we go from some fooling around between Tim and Matt to love-you-forever’s and moving in together, wished J.L Merrow had flushed this out a bit. 

All in all this is a sweet romance, with a funny POV, and generally an easy read. We will be picking up more J.L. Merrow books soon.

Review of FU: Fixer Uppers by Devon McCormack

by Devon McCormack

3.5 Stars

MIKEY

I've never messed around with a guy before. Not that I haven't been attracted to guys. The opportunity just never came up.

I stand at the front door, naked. My bro's roomie, Scott, is pissed about how much noise I made with the girl I just escorted out of their apartment, but I figured we were alone, and I couldn't help that she liked to scream out to let me know she was enjoying herself. Just like I can't help that the raging boner I have right now is for Scott, not her. I don't know what it is about the angry glare he's giving me that turns me on so much, but I just want to tug on his curly brown locks and hear him call out my name as I show him a good time.

Scott doesn't want anything to do with me. At least, I think that's the case, but I learn just how wrong I am one night when we wind up tearing each other's clothes off and racing for the bedroom. He blows my mind...and well, me too. We spend the next few days messing around before I head back to California. That's supposed to be the end of it. But after my sister makes a crap investment on a rundown house near my bro's apartment in Atlanta, I jump at the opportunity to help her fix it up. I don't want her to have to stay with our parents, who I've avoided since I left for college--don't get me started.

Scott volunteers to work on the project too, which gives us plenty of time to have a little fun together. It's supposed to be about fixing up the house, but the more time I spend with him, the more I realize it's not the only fixer upper Scott's working on. He's doing something to me--making me better. And even though I'm heading back home when this is all over, I don't want it to end. Because I'm falling for Scott...so hard.

If you have read anything by Devon McCormack you know he brings the heat, and FU: Fixer Uppers does not disappoint.  This is an easy read, with some fun charters and some serious steam.

What did we like about FU: Fixer Uppers?  Although Mikey is an arrogant egotistical bro, that is his charm. He is full of himself, and knows who and what he is, and that is a huge turn on.  And we loves Scott’s prickly exterior, his self-doubt, makes him endearing and makes you really root for his happy ending. And pray that Mikey doesn’t bereak his heart.

The relationship between Mikey and Scott is fun, hot and easy to understand.  They are both hot guys and enjoying having a good time together.  Mikey’s reaction to being so attracted to another man isn’t really a topic in the book, rather, it is explained the he has crushes on other men, but never acted on them. 

Where to book lost us a bit was the drama with Mikey’s family, and honestly we were a bit confused.  We understand what happened to their dynamic, but felt that Mickey’s continuous seriously angry reaction 15+ years later was a little stretched.  The relationship between Scott and his father was more believable, and so tended to highlight the disconnect between Mikey and his parents.  This is really the story of why Mikey is the player he is and how he doesn’t really settle down.

There is a lot going on the FU: Fixer Uppers, friends-with-benefits, sister’s divorce, house renovation, family drama, self-worth issues,  and a few other things , but somehow they kinda sorta work together?   Maybe.  But be warned, there is a lot, a lot, a lot of sex, like every other page.  We enjoyed the between-the-sheets, up-against-the-wall, in-the-moving-truck (you get the picture) sexy time, but there is a lot, so you might need a cold shower after finishing the book!