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Archive for the ‘Excerpt’ Category

It’s just one day to go until this anthology from Love Lane Books is released so I thought I would invite some of the contributing authors to answer a few questions about their work.

My guest today is Jenny Blackburn. Welcome Jenny and thanks for answering my questions.

1. Please tell me a little about your story in the anthology

I have two stories in Love Lane Books’ Valentine Delights.

Cupid’s Spark
On call techie, Brady, doesn’t hesitate to leave his group’s annual Valentine gaming weekend for an out-of-hours job helping hot University student, Dale, with computer issues. A broken computer, he can handle. How will he handle a broken heart when the guy he has been crushing on seems to be hot for someone else?

It Feels Like
Sharing a table and witty banter with a sexy stranger in a crowded cafe could be the jump start Ben’s love life needs. Jesse ticks all his ‘dream man’ attributes, but sensible Ben refuses to risk his heart without careful consideration and vetting from trusted acquaintances. Jesse seems determined to change Ben’s mind and maybe his secret will tip the balance in his favour…

Bonus excerpt from It Feels Like:

“…The guys I normally flirt with would probably think The Odyssey was a bar name and They Came Like Swallows a porno.” His lips twitched and Ben couldn’t help but laugh.

“Would they think Anything by Cummings was a sex instruction video?” he joked.

“Yes, and The Catcher in the Rye a sex position.” They sniggered and received a look from the occupants of the table beside them.

“Of Human Bondage.” Ben leant forward to say in a quiet voice. Jesse leant toward him and he held his breath at the growing intimacy.

“Everything That Rises Must Converge.” Jesse wiggled his eyebrows for emphasis.

2. What’s the best Valentines Day gift you have given/received

Back in 2003 I was starting at a new evil day job and had this handsome man assigned to train me. He asked me out on Valentine’s day and 13 years later he is still my patient and understanding (read: long suffering) partner.

His gifts are always well received – last year he bought me a terabyte portable hard drive with ribbon tied around it. I was ecstatic and immediately started transferring my MM eBook collection to it. His return gift was peace and quiet for the day.

3. What else are you working on?

My head holds many universes of smexy guys interacting with each other in goose bump inducing ways. They come out to play in my dreams and interfere with my focus in my waking hours. Up to now I have only had time to scribble down a plot before the next story takes over and demands attention. My sister has endured many a dot point outline and demanded it be allowed to mature into a full story.

These short stories are the first step in sharing my boys with the world. My trouble is wading through all the contenders to select one deserving pair to write about next.

Bio:

Born in Papua New Guinea, a proud descendant of the Manx and Vikings (with lashings of Irish, English and Scottish, a splash of French and a drop of American Indian) and bearer of a Scottish title; Jenny Blackburn insists she is a true blue Aussie. She is intrigued with labels and titles; specifically to prove she doesn’t fit them.
Jen learned storytelling at her father’s knee and soon had the job of telling her younger sister ‘calming bedtime stories to put her to sleep’ (cue hysterical laughter and sneaky parents enjoying the character voices and imaginative tales from their hiding spot around the corner).
Her mother thought Jen could be a successful lawyer (she is stubborn and argumentative) and everyone agreed she had a lively imagination (not fibbing; stretching the truth). Jen found she needs to read to survive and everything else invades her reading time.
She is currently squeezing into the role of Business Intelligence Analyst at her evil day job. She lives with her supportive (long suffering) partner and teenage daughter. And a mad budgie.

Links:

Facebook profile: https://www.facebook.com/2read2write2live

Facebook author page: https://www.facebook.com/JennyBlackburnAuthor/

Twitter: https://twitter.com/HojuRose

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/hojurose/

Email: 2read2write2live@gmail.com

Available now from Love Lane Books 

Price: FREE

A collection of short stories specially for Valentine’s Day including

Cupid’s Spark & It Feels Like… by Jenny Blackburn
Cupid in a Stroller by Avery Duran
Something beginning with ‘V’ by Alex Jane
Up in the Air by George Loveland
Wings of Love by A. Russo
Close your Eyes by Sue Brown
Sauce for the Goose a “Cambridge Fellow” short by Charlie Cochrane
Smack Happy a “With a Kick” short by Clare London
The Heart Outside a “Texas” short featuring Jack & Riley by RJ Scott

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Callum's Fate_600x956Release Day – Callum’s Fate by Dianne Hartsock

Synopsis

In 1780, Scotland, following a harsh year of drought, Callum Mackenzie is forced from his father’s farm in the hopes of finding work.

But as fate would have it, Callum is lured onto the moors by the will-o-the-wisp. Lost in the dark, he falls into enchantment, encountering faeries and nymphs, until he stumbles into the arms of a licentious Barrow-Wight who lays claim to his soul.

Hearing his silent pleas, Donal sends Liam the gruagach (faery) to rescue Callum and bring him to his farm, a place of refuge from the Fae.

Callum is happy working on Donal’s farm, slowly falling in love with the beautiful, silver-haired gruagach.

Yet there’s something wrong in the nearby forest….

Despite Donal’s warnings, Callum is lured into the forest and becomes tangled in its magic, easy prey for the Barrow-Wight.

Will Liam be able to strike a deal with the Barrow-Wight to save Callum’s life, or has Callum found his last resting place instead?

Buy Links links

 

Don’t miss the sale on Amazon! 30% off for the first 48 hours after release.

 

WIP: http://www.waywardinkpublishing.com/product/callums-fate-by-dianne-hartsock/

Amazon US: http://www.amazon.com/Callums-Fate-Dianne-Hartsock-ebook/dp/B01B383YP0/
Amazon UK: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Callums-Fate-Dianne-Hartsock-ebook/dp/B01B383YP0/
Amazon AU: http://www.amazon.com.au/Callums-Fate-Dianne-Hartsock-ebook/dp/B01B383YP0/
Amazon DE: http://www.amazon.de/Callums-Fate-Dianne-Hartsock-ebook/dp/B01B383YP0/

ARe: https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-callum039sfate-1973471-143.html

 

Video Trailer

 

 

Excerpt

 

Mists closed around him and hid the moon in a veil of cold grey. He came to a stumbling halt, fear pounding through him in time to the wild beat of his heart. As he caught his breath, he heard the unmistakable sound of flowing water, perhaps a creek winding through the heather. Callum gnawed his lips. Danger lurked on the water’s edge for an unwary man.

On the other hand, men built homes along the waterways and learned to guard against the faery folk. He sighed. Either choice spelled risk, but hunger and loneliness won out and sent him in search of the water’s path through the thick heath.

The gray fog made it hard to see his way and he cursed when he stepped into the creek before he knew he’d come to it. An icy chill raced up his leg and he glanced around, feeling as if he’d been startled from a dream. The mists were gone, leaving the fields bright with moonlight. Faint music caught his ears and he spied several globes of light in the distance. Will-o’-the-wisp? He didn’t know, but the haunting melody tugged at his heart and he walked toward it, careful of his footing.

It was caution that saved him before he made the fatal mistake of stepping into the faery ring that suddenly appeared at his feet. He might have become lost in their dark realm. He stared down, delighted with the brightly dressed wee folk fluttering and dancing in the circle of mushrooms. Laughter floated up to him and he smiled reflexively. Several of the pretty creatures spied him and flittered up to tug at his clothing with tiny hands. These were male, scantily dressed, and one saucy lad winked a bright eye and flew up to nibble at his lips.

Callum laughed and shooed them gently off. “I’m not fool enough to join you,” he told the three hovering near his face.

 

About the author

 

DIANNE HARTSOCK is the author of m/m erotic romance, both contemporary and fantasy, the psychological thriller, and anything else that comes to mind. Oh, and a floral designer. If she can’t be writing, at least she has the chance to create through the rich colors and textures of flowers and foliage to bring a smile to someone’s face.

 

Currently, Dianne lives in the Willamette Valley of Oregon with her incredibly patient husband, who puts up with the endless hours she spends hunched over the keyboard letting her characters play.

 

Social links

 

Website: https://diannehartsock.wordpress.com/

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

Twitter: https://twitter.com/diannehartsock

Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/diannehartsock/

 

 

 

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It’s not long to wait until Rag and Bone is out – a full length novel set in the Magpie world and featuring brand new protagonists but as a lovely little taster, here is A Queer Trade, introducing Ned and Crispin and a brand new type of magic.

~~~

Title: A Queer Trade

Author:K J Charles

Pages: approx 50

Available: NOW

Blurb:

Apprentice magician Crispin Tredarloe returns to London to find his master dead, and his papers sold. Papers with secrets that could spell death. Crispin needs to get them back before anyone finds out what he’s been doing, or what his magic can do.

Crispin tracks his quarry down to waste paper dealer Ned Hall. He needs help, and Ned can’t resist Crispin’s pleading—and appealing—looks. But can the waste-man and the magician prevent a disaster and save Crispin’s skin?

A 16,000 word story set in the Charm of Magpies world, and a prequel to the novel Rag and Bone (March 2016). This story was first published as part of the Charmed & Dangerous anthology.

Excerpt:

Ned Hall, waste-man, was not enjoying his day.

He was generally happy in his work. It wasn’t a job for the weak, heaving waste down narrow stairs and hauling the handcart over cobbled or rutted streets, and after a while you could never get the paper dust out of your skin, but he liked it. Liked dickering over ha’pennies, liked seeing the odds and sods that came up in the piles, and mostly liked being his own master, a very long way from the docks.
It was a good life. A queer trade, to be sure, selling on psalters to wrap pork in, or dead men’s love letters to go round an ounce of baccy, but it suited him. So it was impossible to say just what was wrong now.
Ned pulled at his ear, scratched inside it with a finger. He’d done that so often it was beginning to feel sore, but he couldn’t stop, because he couldn’t shift the feeling that he could almost, not quite, but maybe, if he could just turn his head the right way, hear something.
Except there was nothing there to hear, and it was driving him to Bedlam.
He clapped both palms to his ears, gave them a rub so vigorous that he felt they might come clean off, and was engaged in that undignified act when a knock came from behind.
“Mr. Neddy Hall?”
Ned turned to look, and blinked. A gentleman, of sorts, stood in the doorway, in a tentative sort of way, like he was trying not to be there. A flash sort, dandyish clothes. Slim, no great height, or age either: about twenty, Ned reckoned. A narrow, nervy sort of face, and a head of hay-coloured hair, that yellow-brown shade.
“That’s Ned, if you don’t mind. Something I can do for you, sir?” The ‘sir’ was for the clothes, mostly: there was something about the way the visitor stood, hip tilted and weight on one foot, that didn’t say authority.
“Um, I’m trying to find some waste paper. Can you help me?”
Ned spread his arms wide, an invitation to look around that the young man took up, reddening as he grasped the silent point. The small room was paper from floor to ceiling, great piles and drifts of it, mounds of the stuff, white and yellow and browning, plain and printed and scrawled upon, a few bundles bound with string, most loose.
“You want waste, I’ve got it. How many hundredweight?”
“I mean, some specific paper,” the young man said, a little reproachfully, as if Ned should have known that. He had a trace of one of those country accents that sounded like a stage pirate talking, so you could hear the r in ‘paper’. “My ma— My, uh, teacher died and the house was cleared while I was away. They sold a lot of papers they shouldn’t have and they wouldn’t tell me where they sold them, and I have to find them. It’s terribly important.”
His eyes were wide and pleading, Ned observed, but the greater part of his brain was taken up with the observation that the toff talked like a molly. Not like the Cleveland Street boys, or anything. Just, a light voice that danced a bit and put a lot of stress on a few words, the sort of voice that made you think, I know your sort.
And the molly knew he knew, because the colour swept across his pale skin. “Can you help?” he asked, and there was an obvious effort to go a bit more manly there.
“What name?” Ned asked.
“Uh, Tredarloe. Crispin Tredarloe.” The young man did something Ned would never have predicted: he stepped forward and put out his hand. “Pleased to meet you, Mr. Hall.”

Buy Links:

Amazon UK | Kobo | Amazon US | Smashwords | ARe

Author Bio:

I’m a writer of romance, mostly m/m, often historical or fantasy or both.

I’m also a freelance editor, and I blog about writing and editing at kjcharleswriter.com.

I live in London, UK, with two kids, a tolerant husband and an even more tolerant cat.

Follow me on Twitter @kj_charles or friend me on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/kj.charles.9

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Book title: Favorite Toy

Author: Louise Lyons

Words: 35,600 words

Blurb:

Determined to stay single, Dean Simpson and his best friend Ryan have been playing a game, where each man chooses a potential hook-up for the other, usually someone nothing like their usual type. But with Ryan now off the market, Dean agrees to one final round of the game and allows his friend to choose his toy for the evening.

Casper Mancuso is about as far from Dean’s type as he can get. Casper is pretty, flamboyant, and attention-seeking, but sexy with it. Dean decides one night can’t hurt, but when Casper makes it clear his aim is the same as Dean’s – to have one bit of fun and then move on – Dean finds himself surprisingly disappointed.

With both men keen to avoid a relationship at all costs, it seems there can be no chance for anything between them. And yet the pair are drawn to each other and despite some hurtful comments and a very public argument, they just can’t stay away from each other. Eventually Dean is forced to admit that the very antithesis of what he usually likes is exactly what he’s been waiting for.

Excerpt:

My heart sank as one of the other trainers from the gym caught up to me. “Wait up, Dean. I’ll go with you.”

I glanced at Mark and nodded. “Okay.”

“Where are you headed?”

“Not sure yet. I just wanted some fresh air. Maybe Subway.” It was the first thing that came into my head, although I really didn’t fancy a sandwich.

“I could go for that. Meatball marinara. Mmm.”

“I like the tuna.”

“I always have cheese and slather it in ranch dressing, and get a cookie.” Casper’s words made me smile and I wondered if he’d be having Subway today. Shit.

“Are we eating in, or taking it back to work?” Mark pushed open the door and walked inside.

“Um, maybe sit outside here?” I followed him to the counter, lining up behind a family ordering an early lunch. Most of the tables both inside and outside were empty and I stared up at the menu board as I waited, even though I knew I’d order tuna. Mark bought a foot-long meatball marinara with cheese and salad and I requested a six inch with cheese, salad, and ranch dressing. As we sat down at a table outside the window, I looked around and caught sight of Casper, just yards away and heading right for us. Automatically I ducked my head and unwrapped my sandwich, hoping he wouldn’t see me. My heart thumped wildly and my dry mouth made me wish I’d ordered a drink.

“Are you okay?” Mark raised his eyebrows.

“Yeah.”

Casper entered Subway, apparently not having noticed me. I’d kick myself if I didn’t speak to him. I might not get another chance. The fact that he’d happened to turn up at this exact moment, when he could have gone anywhere, or not even taken a break at this time, was too much of a coincidence for me to throw away. Hesitating, I debated going into the shop to speak to him, or waiting for him to come out where Mark might hear. While I thought about it, Casper got his sandwich and came out again and then I had no choice. I jumped up quickly, scraping my chair noisily on the pavement, and his eyes immediately met mine. He halted, half in and half out of the door, then shuffled forward to get out of the way of someone trying to enter.

Mark looked up at me and frowned. “Dean?”

“I’ll be back in a minute.” I moved away from the table toward Casper, aware that only about six feet separated us from Mark. “Can I speak to you for a minute?”

“What about?” His eyes narrowed.

“I wanted to say sorry. I─”

“Don’t bother. Like we both said, it was a hook up.” His voice was much too clear and I glanced anxiously at Mark, who stared back at me with wide eyes.

“Casper…shh. Can we just…?”

“Don’t shush me!” Clutching his wrapped sandwich fiercely in one hand, he planted the other hand on his hip and glared. “I don’t know why you even bothered speaking to me! You slept with me for a bet, and we all know what your real type is. Don’t think I didn’t see you with that blond guy on Friday.”

“Fuck.” Grabbing his arm, I tugged him a few steps along the street until he wrenched free. “Thanks a fucking bunch. You just outed me to one of my workmates.”

“Oh!” His scowl vanished and his cheeks flushed. “Shit. I didn’t know. I’m sorry, Dean.”

“Forget it. Like you said, I shouldn’t have bothered.” Mortified, I turned away and went back to the table. Mark’s expression said it all. I didn’t need to hear anything he might have to say, but I listened anyway. Casper had already disappeared.

Buy Links:

Amazon UK | Kobo | Amazon US | Smashwords | ARe

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Clean
by Mia Kerick
Published by Young Dudes Publishing
306 pages
Available now.

Clean

Blurb:

High school senior Lanny Keating has it all. A three-sport athlete at Lauserville High School looking at a college football scholarship, with a supportive family, stellar grades, boy band good looks… until the fateful day when it all falls apart.

Seventeen-year-old Trevor Ladd has always been a publicly declared zero and the high school badboy. Abandoned by his mother and sexually abused by his legal guardian, Trevor sets his sights on mere survival.

Lanny seeks out Trevor’s companionship to avoid his shattered home life. Unwilling to share their personal experiences of pain, the boys explore ways to escape, leading them into sexual experimentation, and the abuse of illegal drugs and alcohol. Their mutual suffering creates a lasting bond of friendship and love.

When the time finally comes to get clean and sober, or flunk out of high school, only one of the boys will graduate, while the other spirals downward into addiction.

Will Lanny and Trevor find the strength to battle their demons of mind-altering substances as well as emotional vulnerability?

Clean takes the reader on a gritty trip into the real and raw world of teenage substance abuse.

Excerpt

PROLOGUE

Lanny

Trevor wouldn’t even look at me when I walked over to the gas station this morning to say hi. And Jimmy’s Fuel Stop is like three miles from my house so it took a major effort to walk there, especially since I’ve been feeling like total crap lately. Another one of my shaky human bonds bites the dust. I need to go out and get myself a cat.

“Can’t you see I’m working, Keating?” That was all he said.

But I’ve always been good at reading between the lines. I could tell what he was thinking as he stood beside the gas pumps, totally caught up in not looking at me. “Take a hike before you get me fired, loser. Some of us got goals in life….” So I took off before he had a chance to make me feel like I shouldn’t have ever made an appearance on the planet earth. But I still know it would have been better had I never been born…maybe Joelle would still be okay.

It’s Saturday afternoon and nobody’s home. Mom and Dad are probably off at the park with Joelle, sloshing through the wet snow together so she gets her daily exercise. Or maybe they took her to the make-your-own-sundae-place to improve her fine motor skills by sprinkling sweet
toppings on big scoops of ice cream. I’m in Mom and Dad’s bathroom, bent inhalf with my head stuck in the closet, searching the cluttered shelves for anything that will get me high enough to escape. And I mean anything.

That’s when I see the cough syrup. The bottle in front is almost new, and there’s an older bottle of a different brand right behind it, little more than halfway full. Seeing these medicine bottles reminds me of something Chad suggested about a week or two ago— that we should try robo-tripping. He told me that if we drink enough cough syrup, the DXM in it would get us high in a “super blissful, tingling-body-parts way,” which sounded pretty decent to me then and still does now. Not completely surprised I remembered Chad’s exact description of a DXM
high, I thank God for this dextromethorphan stuff that suppresses nasty coughs, because it looks like I’m going to find my much-needed buzz after all.

Pleased that I don’t have to resort to sniffing glue from the tube on my father’s basement workbench or huffing my mother’s hairspray—and believe me I came close—I snatch the bottles with a shaky hand. They’re both sticky with the syrup that dripped down the side last time one of the Keating’s had a major head cold accompanied by a hacking cough. Licking my fingers
provides me with a hint of the cherry flavor I’m probably going to be barfing up later tonight. But I don’t care. I can’t get through a single day without some help, and by that I don’t mean help from my human friends, seeing as I have none left.

Bio:

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Mia
Kerick is the mother of four exceptional children—all named after saints—and five nonpedigreed cats—all named after the next best thing to saints, Boston Red Sox players. Her husband of twenty-two years has been told by many that he has the patience of Job, but don’t ask Mia about that, as it is a sensitive subject.

Mia focuses her stories on the emotional growth of troubled young people and their
relationships, and she believes that physical intimacy has a place in a love story, but not until it is firmly established as a love story. As a teen, Mia filled spiral-bound notebooks with romantic tales of tortured heroes (most of whom happened to strongly resemble lead vocalists of 1980s big-hair bands) and stuffed them under her mattress for safekeeping. She is thankful to
Dreamspinner Press, Harmony Ink Press, CoolDudes Publishing, and CreateSpace for providing her with alternate places to stash her stories.

Mia is a social liberal and cheers for each and every victory made in the name of
human rights, especially marital equality. Now marital equality is the law of the land!! WOOT!! Her only major regret: never having taken typing or computer class in school, destining her to a life consumed with two-fingered pecking and constant prayer to the Gods of Technology.
 

 Author Links

Website

Facebook

Amazon
Author Page

Buy Links

Amazon

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Review

This was quite a steep learning curve for me as I had never read a YA romance. I sort of expected wall to wall angst – and there was certainly plenty of that – but I also got a well researched story with a compelling arc and precisely drawn characters. It is all written in the first person from the POV of both characters. This can cause problems if, like me, it takes you a moment or two to remember where you are after a gap in reading but it was easy to tell whose head we were inhabiting because of the huge difference in style between them. I enjoyed the self-consciously grown-up phrasing of Langford but the palm goes to the choice of a breathless almost inarticulate barely punctuated babble for the inner monologue of ultra-cool boy Trevor whose favourite word is “whatever”.

I think teenagers would love this book. Ms Kerick certainly seems to have tapped into their world view which, if my kids are anything to go by, can be best summed up as “I didn’t ask to be born, nobody understands me, nobody cares, life sucks and so do I”. It’s a horrible time of life even if they aren’t facing the kind of pressures undergone by the protagonists of Clean. Luckily there is a happy ending but it has to be earned by both Langford and Trevor.

Some of the tone in the latter part of the book is rather preachy, in part due to Langford clinging to his Twelve Step Plan but not helped by the extraneous material. The final author interview was a particular problem because in my version it ran on directly from the end of the book and I thought the two things were connected and it was part of the story. Ending a book by feeling stupid isn’t a particularly nice feeling. There was also a section at one of the major climaxes of the book where Langford’s name was used instead of Trevors and that was a HUGE pity because I had to step back from the story to sort it out in my head and so was more detached than I should have been at a very important, in fact life changing, moment. These are editorial problems and are unfortunate but don’t really detract from the story.

To sum up I think this was a very good sample of YA literature, probably very good for older teens to read – there are some sex scenes – very informative and quite touching in some sections. I’d also recommend it for parents of teenagers.

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Rainbow Snippets

rainbow snippets

Here’s my snip for this week’s Rainbow Snippets.

Rainbow Snippets is a Facebook group where interested parties can share 6, approx, sentences of a published work or a WIP and other interested parties can read them. The only rule is that the protagonists of the book have to feature somewhere on the LGBTI+ spectrum.

So technically my story Calon Lan probably shouldn’t count because my POV character is a straight woman! But maybe it does because she’s observing the development – or is it a continuation – of a romance between her brother Alwyn and a friend. Here Alwyn is making a case for his friend to come and help on the farm, and it’s illegally long so it can finish off the section.

“A miner? What use will a miner be?”

“He worked with the ponies.” Alwyn glanced at Bethan. “He’s sleeping at his sister’s. There’s eight of them in the house. And he’s a good man. A worker.”

“And he’s a friend,” Bethan said. “Nye, why not? We could see how he does? Even if it’s only a few weeks?”

Nye’s fork paused on its journey to his mouth then lowered to his plate. He turned from brother to sister, his mouth tightening in the exasperated moue he always made when they ganged up on him. “Well.” His tone was grudging until she reached to touch his hand. “Ponies, horses – all the same, isn’t it, apart from the size.”

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Rainbow Snippets

rainbow snippets

Back again with the usual post of six, approx, sentences from my current WIP, Calon Lan.

Rainbow Snippets is a Facebook group that convenes once a week to share bits of stories, published, unpublished or works in progress, for comment, constructive criticism or because we just feel like sharing. It’s good fun and a great way of getting to know people and showing support. Click the graphic above if you have Facebook and fancy joining in the fun. There should be a post where everyone has deposited their link for this week.

So – my six, as usual following directly on from last week’s. Farmer Nye is bemoaning the difficulty in working the land when all the men have gone off to war.

“I wanted to talk to you about that.” Alwyn’s voice, so rarely used it was just a gruff whisper, was so unexpected that it cut sharply over Nye’s grumbling. “I have a friend who needs a job. Was in my platoon. He’s home, not fit to go down the pit.”

“A miner? What use will a miner be?”

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rainbow snippets

Better late than never, I guess?

Here’s my snippet for this week, carrying on directly from the last one I posted here. Bethan is observing Alwyn crossing the yard towards the house.

Her adored big brother, dark and quick, had turned heads, but now he could barely catch anyone’s eye, even those who loved him. She studied him, his mouth drawn awry by the scars that seamed the right side of his face, his once smooth skin like old oak bark, the stub of an ear. He was too far away for her to see the drooping lid that covered the clouded remains of the eye that had once been so bright. She suppressed a shiver and got up to fetch his plate.

Alwyn ate quickly, just nodding as Nye complained about the new man at the chapel and how he was playing ducks and drakes with the Sunday services, and again when Nye commented on the high prices for fodder.

“They say it’s all going to France to feed the draft beasts – better prices from the War Office than from honest farmers – and how are we supposed to work our acreage when they’ve taken the best horses and called up most of the men?”

More next week. xx

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Rainbow Snippets

rainbow snippets

Week 2 of the snippetry and here’s a little more of Calon Lan – an historical MM romance set during the Great War and told from the POV of the sister of one of the lovers. Here Bethan and Nye continue their conversation about Alwyn’s letters.

“They went through a lot together. It must be good for him to have someone who understands.”
“You’d think he’d sooner forget the bloody war.” Nye’s mouth was full of boiled ham and potato but Bethan heard the swear word clearly.
“Nye Harrhy, I’ll wash your mouth out,” she said. “I won’t have language like that in my house.”

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Author Name: Laura Stone

Book Name: Bitter Springs

Release Date: December 3, 2015

Pages or Words: 302 pages

Categories: Fiction, Gay Fiction, Historical, M/M Romance, Romance, Western/Cowboy

book title

Publisher: Interlude Press

Cover Artist: Collen M. Good

Blurb:

In 1870s Texas, Renaldo Valle Santos, the youngest son of a large and traditional family, has been sent to train with Henry “Hank” Burnett, a freed slave and talented mesteñero—or horse- catcher—so he may continue the family horse trade. Bitter Springs is a sweeping epic that takes themes from traditional Mexican literature and Old Westerns to tell the story of a man coming into his own and realizing his destiny lies in the wild open spaces with the man who loves him, far from expectations of society.

 

 

Excerpt:

The day before the wedding, a visitor arrived at Vista Verde an entire week early. Renaldo, ready to wash up and eat dinner after a long, hard day—his side ached from roping cattle as a part of Paloma’s training, his hands were full of bits of raw hemp from the stock lassos, and one of the calves had kicked him high on the thigh—walked back from the barn using his hat to slap at the dust on his chest and thighs. He noticed a tall, striking young black man standing at the door to their home speaking with their father. They didn’t see many black men this far from civilization—with the Civil War ending so recently, many were staying close to where they’d been forced to live, were heading far out west where there were more opportunities to make a new life or were going north seeking less hostile society. Who he could be?

He was about as tall as Renaldo, maybe an inch or two more, broad-shouldered and whip-thin, dressed in well-worn, simple clothes. He had a close-cropped beard, but instead of hiding the shape of his jaw, it accented its sharpness. His light eyes, almost luminescent even at this distance and glowing like amber, were ringed with thick lashes, nearly to the point of being girlish, but there was nothing feminine about the man. With his lean but strong-looking chest, muscular arms and curved backside, he managed to carry himself with a confident air while standing idly; his body was still, but in a way that made Renaldo think of a raptor sitting on an abutment, watching and waiting.

“Oh, here he is,” Estebán said, motioning for Renaldo to join them, saying, “Señor Burnett, allow me to introduce to you my son, Renaldo.”

This? This was the legendary mesteñero, Henry Burnett? He couldn’t be much older than Renaldo, who realized his jaw had dropped. He closed his mouth quickly and moved toward them as if drawn like metal shavings to a magnet.

Burnett, however, looked amused, as the edge of his mouth quirked up. “Pleased to meet you,” he said, his voice deep and husky.

Renaldo couldn’t look away, shocked that his expectations couldn’t have been more wrong. This was a vibrant young man. But… this was the man he would be alone with on the prairie for months? His stomach twisted at that thought, and at how unexpected it all was, causing his heart to race and face flush. Yes, it was unexpected. That Burnett had come so much sooner than they’d expected had to be why Renaldo couldn’t find his voice and felt so upended.

Mijo,” his father said sharply.

Renaldo shook himself slightly, and then nodded, saying, “Señor Burnett, it’s very good to meet you, finally. Please forgive my shock, as I don’t believe we expected you so soon.”

Burnett laughed, a rolling, melodious sound, and replied, “Well, then just imagine my shock when I come here all the way from Nacogdoches expecting one Valle man, only to find him gone and you in his place.” He smiled. “Your padre seems to think you’re a better match, so that works for me.”

That smile, bright teeth framed by full lips, eyes crinkled at the corners, helped lessen some of Renaldo’s shock and, if he was being honest, some of the worry that he carried about spending a lot of time with a hard, taciturn man Renaldo knew he would be unable to please. At the realization that this was who he would be with on the plains, just the two of them with no one else for weeks on end, Renaldo became excited, finally looking forward to this task. A young man with an infectious grin wouldn’t be such a chore to be stuck with after all.

Buy the book:

Interlude Press Web Storestore.interludepress.com

Amazonhttp://amzn.to/1Ybi7Ab

Barnes and Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/bitter-springs-laura-stone/1122753096?ean=2940152391107

Apple iBooks Store: https://itunes.apple.com/us/book/bitter-springs/id1046777460?mt=11

Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/582322

 

Meet the author:

Laura Stone is a born and bred Texan, but don’t hold that against her. She’s a former comedian, actress and Master Gardener, and currently keeps busy as a media blogger, ghostwriter and novelist when not busy raising her three children. They’re not fully raised, but then, neither is she.

She lives in Texas as proof that it’s not completely populated by hard-line right-wingers. And because that’s where the good tamales are. Her first novel, The Bones of You, was published by Interlude Press in 2014 and was named a finalist for two Foreword Reviews IndieFab Book of the Year Award. Laura Stone at Laura-Stone.com and on Facebook at facebook.com/9LauraStone

Where to find the author:

Facebook: facebook.com/9LauraStone

Twitter: @stoneyboboney

Tour Dates & Stops:

Rafflecopter Prize: Grand Prize: $25 Interlude Press Gift Card, First Prize: One of five e-copies of ‘Bitter Springs’ – either click the copter to enter or visit one of the following links for more opportunities.

 

3-Dec: MM Good Book Reviews, Scattered Thoughts & Rogue Words, Velvet Panic, It’s Raining Men, Hearts on Fire

4-Dec: Vampires, Werewolves, and Fairies, Oh My, Gay Book Reviews, Divine Magazine

7-Dec: Two Chicks Obsessed With Books and Eye Candy, Unquietly Me, Elisa – My Reviews and Ramblings, Bayou Book Junkie

8-Dec: Book Reviews, Rants, and Raves, My Fiction Nook

9-Dec: Elin Gregory, TTC Books and More

10-Dec: Fangirl Moments and My Two Cents, Michael Mandrake, Love Bytes

11-Dec: Inked Rainbow Reads, Jessie G. Books

14-Dec: Dawn’s Reading Nook, QUEERcentric Books, Happily Ever Chapter

15-Dec: Cheekypee Reads and Reviews, Emotion in Motion

16-Dec: BFD Book Blog, Prism Book Alliance

 

 

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