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Art by Nikki Gulley

This is the first of a series of interviews with the authors who contributed stories to the Manifold Press anthology, A Pride of Poppies.

My first guest is Adam Fitzroy.

What inspired you to write your story for the anthology?

I know very little about military matters so it was obvious I wasn’t going to be writing anything technical with a battlefield setting. Much of my family history revolves around a particular small English village (in Suffolk, as it happens), and I started wondering what life in such a place would have been like with all the young men away at war. Initially the idea was to look at four families of different social classes, but that turned out to be a grandiose idea which needed to be pruned severely in order to fit the required word-count!

(more…)

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It’s always great to see a new book from Sue Brown and I’ve been anticipating this one – the next in the Little Mowbury series Left at the Crossroads.

Here’s the blurb:

Little Mowbury is a sleepy English village deep in the Cotswolds. The kind of village where you’re only a local if your lineage can be traced back to the dinosaurs. Where you can find everything in the single village shop from morning newspapers to dry-cleaning, and getting your shoes mended. And, of course, where everybody knows everybody else’s business. It’s easy to find… you can’t miss it… just ask anyone and they’ll tell you… “It’s left at the crossroads.”

Eighteen months ago Jason Havers lost the love of his life and it’s time to move on. Applying for the position of chef in a sleepy country pub, a million miles away from his previous life, may well be the fresh start he needs. His new employers immediately take him under their wing and before long he finds himself with a passel of new friends and a job he loves. What he doesn’t expect is Tom, a gorgeous midwife, who stirs up feelings he’s not ready to deal with.

But when someone from his previous life turns up in Little Mowbury, will Jason be able to keep them from revealing the secret he’s been keeping from those he’s come to love?

I really enjoyed the first in the series, Un-Expected by Lisa Worrall, and had been wondering who would be the hero of this story. I hope there are very many more episodes.

You can get your copy here:

Amazon US ~ Amazon UK ~ Kobo ~ ARe

Happy reading.

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I hope you were all able to take advantage of this weird and wonderful weather. Being able to stroll around outside in a tee shirt in April has been a real treat but today the lazy wind is blowing and we’re all glad we haven’t put our winter woolies away.

So if you’re chilly and have decided to stay inside it might be a good idea to have something to read, yes? And so it might be an idea if I posted a recommendation.

Right then. This is a book I bought some time ago but managed to lose in the depths of my Kindle. It took me a while to realise that if I don’t tag and add books straight away they disappear into the largely inaccessible files and never appear again. So it was a pity that I couldn’t read it and appreciate it straight away but it gave me a heck of a treat this week.

The Bridge on the River Wye by Adam Fitzroy

I get a real kick out of reading books set in places I recognise, even more of a kick when I know from the start that I’m unlikely to find those weird assumptions – like every tiny English village having its own tea shoppe – that can jolt one out of a narrative. I knew I was in safe hands with this author so just settled down to bask.

Bridge tells the sometimes sad, sometimes edgy, but generally good humoured tale of sous-chef Rupert who has returned from Australia leaving his fraudulent partner in jail, his dog in kennels and his money lord knows where. Luckily for him, charismatic TV chef Ren is glad to employ him again and Rupert looks about him for old friends. One person he particularly wanted to see again was market trader Jake, whose organic fruit and veg is beyond par and the rest of him was pretty juicy too.

What has happened to Jake, why he left the market and what Rupert can do to help him and his beleaguered family make up the rest of the story.

This is such a British story, but I suppose there are parallels to be seen in every agricultural district. Small time operators who wish to sell ethically produced high quality wares are bound to be pushed around by the agri-giants. Town dwellers often under-estimate the isolation of country dwellers and in this case Jake etc are made even more isolated by the presence of the Bridge in the title, the scene of a personal tragedy.

If you like the more cosy sort of mystery and heroes more at home with kitchen tools or a trowel than a Glock and nicely drawn portraits of kids and dogs that aren’t the least bit cutesy-poo, then I think you’ll enjoy this book as much as I did.

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Foolish Encounters Anthology

So here it is – the banner above links to the page on Wilde City Press where, by the wonders of modern technology, the books are stored.

This is the blurb:

An accident, a chance encounter, a thought blurted out, a boat blown off course, a change in direction that suddenly runs into the line of fire – the smallest misstep can change everything. These foolish encounters are the moments around which lives pivot and sometimes spin out of control. Join us for tales of imprudent choices and bad decisions that can lead just as easily to hilarity as they can to tragedy.

Over the past week I’ve been delighted to have the company of Angel Martinez, Freddy MacKay, JC Wallace, Tali Spencer, Tinnean and Amy Lane for a series of interviews. Click on those links and comment to the posts for a chance to win books of your own choice.

I haven’t done an interview of my own – seems a bit daft really – but here’s an excerpt of my story The Lunar Imperative, which is a about werewolfs in spaaaaaace!

Haken leaned back, pressing his head into the padded rest as the expected vibration of re-entry began. The seat, built to conform to Galactic standard, creaked under his weight, and a sharper jolt set his teeth on edge. Raimi’s shoulder nudged his, a warm pressure against the barely healed scars on his upper arm, but he didn’t have a chance to enjoy it before Raimi leaned away again.
“Sorry Sarge.” Raimi’s voice could barely be heard over the scream of the engines. “I didn’t expect it to be so rough.”
The pod ship lurched. Haken peered down the cabin to the helm where the pilot busied himself at the console. Occam could fly anything, deep space or atmospheric. He didn’t smell concerned, so Haken figured they could all relax. He leaned a little to look back into the body of the pod.
“Everyone all right?” he asked. “If you’re going to hurl do it in a bag. I might be able to explain one stinking pile of vomit away but not two or three.” That drew the expected sounds of derision and Haken settled again, confident that the rest of his men were calm. But Raimi was still tense, craning his neck to look out the view port. He was bright, willing, and could think for himself. He matched the rest of them in fitness and held up well under pressure, so well that Haken sometimes forgot how inexperienced he was in comparison with the rest of the team.
The tiny window to his right flashed bright with atmospheric lightning. Raimi groaned, and then glanced towards Haken as though fearing he had been heard or requesting reassurance. He often did that, Haken reflected. And if they had been of the same rank, Haken would have been delighted to offer more than reassurance. It would be no chore to offer comfort, companionship, and, he suspected, a great deal of mutual pleasure. Instead, he knuckled Raimi in the thigh.
“Occam knows what he’s doing,” he said.
“Damn right I do.” How Occam had heard him, Haken had no idea. “We’re going to have a bumpy ride, lads. Time to buckle in.”

Intrigued? Oh I do hope so.

Foolish Encounters – just the thing for April 1st, and that’s no joke.

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Late again but – ah well. Better late than never.

This week I have read a lot of non-fiction – boning up on stuff for work plus a couple of those terrific serendipitous finds on a market stall – but I have fitted in a couple of fiction titles too. It’s one of those I want to wax fulsome about today and a rare and fabulous thing it is too.

Gyrfalcon by Anna Butler

Oh look at that cover!! What a thing of beauty. This book is published by Wilde City Press, rapidly becoming my go to place for finding books with LGBTTQ protagonists that are a bit out of the ordinary. And this book too is something a bit different. What I found here is genuine old school military science fiction, every bit as good as the Vorkosigan Saga, and promising to be as long and as enthralling.

The first of a proposed six book series, Gyrfalcon follows the adventures of Bennett, a highly trained operative in Shield, a special forces organisation that, in addition to regular armed forces, protects the last remaining colony of long lost Earth. Shield seems to be an amalgamation of the SAS and commandos but with a high level of technical training and the ability to formulate long term strategies against the enemy, Maess – aliens that nobody has ever seen who wage war on the surviving humans with the aid of robotic drones built in a parody of human shape.

As if this ongoing war wasn’t trouble enough, Bennett is undergoing a lot of personal conflict in his estrangement from his family and the impossible demands from his long term partner, Joss, who wants Bennett to give up his Shield commission and come home to share in a life of luxurious academia.

But Bennett has another mission – a really crazy one, it’s his idea and it has taken 2 years to line up all his ducks – and he needs a ship. The massive dreadnought Gyrfalcon is commandeered on his behalf, and there he finds the other thing he needs – a team of superb pilots and the best of the bunch, Flynn, who is nearly as crazy as Bennett.

The world building is terrific but I was left wanting more. I don’t think it’s a bad thing at this stage in a series. I don’t need to know the whole history of the human diaspora and I’m certainly given enough to be going on with. Because this book isn’t a mass of dry exposition – it is action from page one. A glance at the blurb will reassure potential readers that there is a romance component but it is most definitely NOT a Romance. This is action, adventure, military drama and thriller combined with exciting hardware and some nicely judged psychological crises. Not all the good people are nice, not all the bad people are villains. Flynn, in particular has his moments where I was muttering Wheaton’s Law to myself. But it’s a very satisfying start to what I hope will be a nice long and complex series.

All I need to know now is how long I have to wait until the next episode!

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Title: One Snowy Night
Author: Louise Lyons
Length: short story
Genre: gay romance
Publisher: Wayward Ink Publishing

Synopsis

One snowy night, Keith Brambles learns that appearances can be deceptive

Keith Brambles, is an up and coming British singer. He has had one disastrous first date after another, finding most men are only interested because of who he is. After yet another failed meeting, he sets off for home, driving too fast for the conditions. He loses control of his car in the snow and finds himself stranded – with no mobile phone signal and an outfit completely unsuitable for braving the freezing conditions.

Just as Keith has begun to think he’s destined to spend a night in his car, possibly suffering from hypothermia, a potential rescuer arrives, but Keith wonders whether he might have more to fear from the man, than the weather.

***Originally published in the Stranded Anthology

onesnowynight-savoyfont

Buy Links

Amazon US: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00TXHK0PG/
Amazon UK: http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00TXHK0PG/
Amazon AU: http://www.amazon.com.au/dp/B00TXHK0PG/
WIP: http://www.waywardinkpublishing.com/product/one-snowy-night-by-louise-lyons/
ARe: https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-onesnowynight-1754336-149.html
B&N: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/one-snowy-night-louise-lyons/1121282702?ean=9781925222258

Excerpt

“You’re Kent Brambles,” his rescuer said; a statement rather than a question.

Shit. “Uh…yes. Keith, actually. Kent’s just my…um…my…”

“Stage name?” The man grinned, but then grimaced a little.

“Yeah. I’m guessing my…uh…my music isn’t your cup of tea,” Keith said nervously.

“I’m into my rock and roll.” He smiled again and extended a large hand. “Mike Talbot.”

Surprised, Keith swapped hands with the cup of coffee, and slid his small, frozen hand into Mike’s big warm one. Mike gripped it firmly and gave it a brief shake, then let go.

“So what are you doing out here, driving in these conditions?” Mike asked.

“I…um…I went to meet a friend in Lincoln. It wasn’t snowing when I set off,” Keith replied.

“A friend? You mean a date?”

“Yeah.”

“What’s he doing letting you drive home in this shit? Couldn’t you stay over?” Mike’s brows furrowed, and Keith’s eyes widened. Appearances certainly could be deceptive. White Van Man, big, bearded, and apparently tattooed, didn’t seem to care that Keith was gay. Keith silently reprimanded himself for stereotyping his rescuer.

“Well…he…um…” He paused and shrugged. “It was a first date. He was only interested because of who I am.”

“That must be a pain in the ass. Do you get that a lot?” asked Mike.

“More often than not.”

“Maybe you’re looking in the wrong place, or for the wrong type of guy. You should try one who’s not into your music, and you might have better luck.” Mike grinned and winked.

About the author

Louise Lyons comes from a family of writers. Her mother has a number of poems published in poetry anthologies, her aunt wrote poems for the Church, and her grandmother sparked her inspiration with tales of fantasy. Louise first ventured into writing short stories at the grand old age of eight, mostly about little girls and ponies. She branched into romance in her teens, and MM romance a few years later, but none of her work saw the light of day until she discovered Fan Fiction in her late twenties.

Posting stories based on some of her favorite movies, provoked a surprisingly positive response from readers. This gave Louise the confidence to submit some of her work to publishers, and made her take her writing “hobby” more seriously.

Louise lives in the UK, about an hour north of London, with a mad Dobermann, and a collection of tropical fish and tarantulas. She works in the insurance industry by day, and spends every spare minute writing. She is a keen horse-rider, and loves to run long distance. Some of her best writing inspiration comes to her, when her feet are pounding the open road. She often races into the house afterward, and grabs pen and paper to make notes.

Louise has always been a bit of a tomboy, and one of her other great loves is cars and motorcycles. Her car and bike are her pride and joy, and she loves to exhibit the car at shows, and take off for long days out on the bike, with no one for company but herself.

Social media links

Website: http://louiselyonsauthor.wordpress.com/
Facebook: www.facebook.com/louiselyonsauthor
Twitter: www.twitter.com/louiselyons013

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Title:
Passing Through

Author:
Jay Northcote

Genre:
contemporary m/m romance

Length:
43,000 words approx

Release date:
Friday 20th Feb 2015

Publisher:
Jay Northcote

Passing Through

Buy links:

Blurb:

 

Don’t waste a chance at happiness…

Leo is a lonely workaholic with no time for romance in his life. His job in London takes all his energy and commitment. When he goes to Cornwall to stay with his terminally ill uncle, Edwin, love is the last thing Leo expects to find.

Tris lives in a cottage on Edwin’s land. Gay, but still half in the closet, he and Leo bond over their affection for Edwin, and the pull of attraction between them proves too strong to ignore. In Tris’s arms, in the wilds of Cornwall, Leo finds a peace he’d forgotten existed.

On his return to London, Leo finds himself grieving for more than just the loss of his uncle. When some unexpected news gives Leo the chance to return to Cornwall, he’s afraid it will be too late to rekindle things with Tris. But having learned much from his stay with his uncle, Leo doesn’t want to look back and wish he’d done things differently.

It’s time to seize the day—if it’s not already too late.

~~~

I asked Jay a question: Have you ever had to seize the day? And did it work?

I’m a big believer in the whole ‘carpe diem’ philosophy. We only get to live once and I think it’s important to take the opportunities that life gives us, and grab them with both hands. In Passing Through, Leo has to make some big life changes if he wants to be able to be with the man he loves. But seizing the day isn’t always about romance and relationships.

In my own life there have been many turning points where I’ve had to make a scary leap out of my comfort zone in order to move forward. One of the biggest in recent years was writing my first book. I definitely had that ‘now or never’ feeling about it. I could spend the next ten years of my life thinking about drafting that novel, or I could just do it…. So, I signed up for Nanowrimo in 2012 and got the words written. It was hard, exhausting, scary, and then trying to find a publisher for it was another rollercoaster ride. But it worked out and I’ll never regret taking that first step into the unknown.

Excerpt:

On the beach they crunched along the shingle to the edge of the rocks, then turned to look out over the sea. It was almost completely dark now, and the moon was rising, casting streaks of bright silver on the oil-black water.

They stood in silence, watching and listening to the crash of the waves. Leo’s heart felt suddenly too large for his chest. He was overwhelmed by the beauty of the place, a place that had barely changed since his childhood. The sea came and went with the tides, the sands shifted, but the rocks were constant. Yet here Leo was, an adult now rather than a boy, and his uncle reduced to an echo of the man Leo remembered—physically, at least. Unexpected tears prickled the backs of Leo’s eyes as a rush of emotion so strong that it made him draw in a sharp breath assaulted him. He swallowed hard, forcing the feelings back down.

Out of his peripheral vision, he saw Tris turn towards him, but Leo carried on gazing out at the gentle, rolling movement of the sea. Tris shifted his feet in the sand, bringing him closer. The warm skin of his arm brushed Leo’s, and Leo ached for more contact. He needed human warmth and touch to chase away the cold emptiness in his heart.

Author Bio:

Jay lives just outside Bristol in the West of England, with her husband, two children, and two cats.

She comes from a family of writers, but she always used to believe that the gene for fiction writing had passed her by. She spent years only ever writing emails, articles, or website content. One day, she decided to try and write a short story–just to see if she could–and found it rather addictive. She hasn’t stopped writing since.

You can keep up with Jay at the following links:

www.jaynorthcote.com

Twitter

Facebook profile

Facebook Author Page

Jay’s books

 

 

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Stolen Dreams

~SUE BROWN~

TOUR ORGANIZER: CREATIVE MINDS PROMOTIONS

PUBLISHER: Dreamspinner Press

COVER ARTIST: Brooke Albrecht

RELEASE DATE: 30th January 2015

LENGTH: 240 Pages

Stolen Dreams

BLURB: After cheating on and losing the man he loved, Morgan Conway decided to get his life right. Now he owns a coffee shop and is engaged to Jase, an actor and rising star. All is perfect in his world until the man he thought was gone forever walks into his shop. His hidden feelings rush to the surface, unfortunately there for everyone to see, including his fiancé.

Shae Delamere was crushed when Morgan cheated on him five years ago. But he has a reason for seeking Morgan out. As Morgan and Shae get to know each other again, they discover the extent that friends meddled in their lives to keep them apart. Morgan cannot deny he is still in love with Shae, but he is engaged. With some hard decisions to make, Morgan struggles not to hurt the men he cares about—again. Shae has secrets he came to share with Morgan, but revealing them now could keep them apart for good.

BUY LINKS:
DreamspinnerAmazon UKAmazon USKoboAll Romance

AUTHOR BIO:

Sue Brown is owned by her dog and two children. When she isn’t following their orders, she can be found plotting at her laptop. In fact she hides so she can plot and has gotten expert at ignoring the orders.

Sue discovered M/M erotica at the time she woke up to find two men kissing on her favorite television series. The series was boring; the kissing was not. She may be late to the party, but she’s made up for it since, writing fan fiction until she was brave enough to venture out into the world of original fiction.

AUTHOR LINKS:

Website: http://www.suebrownstories.com/
Blog: http://suebrownsstories.blogspot.co.uk/
Twitter: http://twitter.com/suebrownstories
Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/suebrownstories

GIVEAWAY DETAILS:

Because two of her book tours (for The Next Call and Stolen Dreams) are going to run simultaneously, we have decided we would have a common giveaway for both the tours! It makes for an awesome giveaway as you’ll see 😀

There will be FIVE winners chosen from this contest:

  • First Winner will get a $20 Amazon Gift Card.
  • Second Winner will get a paperback copy of Stolen Dreams. (The contest is open for everyone and not limited to a specific region!)
  • First Runner up will get e-copies of The Next Call and Stolen Dreams
  • Two Second Runners up will win an e-copy of either The Next Call or Stolen Dreams.

Contest Begins: 26th January, 2015

Contest Ends: 28th February, 2015

Rafflecopter Link: http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/0f7bf72010/?

During this final week of the tour you can find Sue at the following sites:

Feb 23rdElin Gregory – Promo Spotlight

Feb 24thDiverse Reader – Book Review

Feb 25thCharley Descoteaux – Guest Post

Feb 26thInked Rainbow Reads – Book Review

Feb 27thElisa: My Reviews and Ramblings – Promo Spotlight

Fallen Angel Reviews – Book Review

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55c46-1868508 I’m so torn this week.

Decisions decisions. I’ve read some terrific stuff, one of which is an autobuy followed by an automatic cry the author’s name to the skies read and another is a first novel of a VERY promising author and then there were a couple of comfort reads. What to do?

Well, since it’s my blog I decided that the autobuy book doesn’t need a blog post – I need a fandom so I can discuss the finer points without having to worry overmuch about spoilers! And since I enjoyed the first novel equally as much, I have decided to give it the recommendation it deserves.


Of course, I’m talking about The Gilded Scarab by Anna Butler which released on Monday last.

For a start it has, hands down, one of the finest most exciting action sequences I’ve read right there in the first chapter as protagonist Rafe Lancaster pilots his aether, phlogiston and petrol-distillate powered biplane in battle over the veldt of South Africa during the Second Boer War. I should maybe mention that this book would probably class as steampunk except that they have done away with all that tedious coal and stoking!

I adore the whole steampunk vibe with shades of Rider Haggard stiff-upper-lippery, men of enormous personal bravery and magnificent whiskers and clothing with buttons and laces enough to slow the between the sheets action down to a delicate pavane before the frantic scramble of consummation. There are manners, there is politeness, there is what should be done and the heroes dance between the expectations of society, each other and necessity to try to achieve happiness.

Add espresso machines powered by cold fusion – something I’ve often suspected as I hurry past places like Costa coffee – and a complex alternative to Parliament, and finally, by God, The British Museum under a slightly different name and I was an exceedingly happy reader.

Rafe is a great hero, charming, witty and not too good, which is as well because we spend the whole book in his head, the other MC is a good complement to him, there are plenty of terrific secondary characters, and oodles of plot interleaved with the romance. Kudos to Dreamspinner for providing a brilliantly apt cover.

Look, just read it, okay? Highly recommended.

The Gilded Scarab

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Title: Theory Unproven
Author: Lillian Francis
Publisher: Love Lane Books
Available: 20th February
Book cover: Meredith Russell

Theory Unproven

Blurb:

Working with elephants in their natural habitat has always been Eric Phillips dream. Getting what he’s always desired introduces him to Tyaan Bouwer, the bush pilot that flies in his supplies, and Eric discovers the allure of South Africa goes beyond the wildlife and the scenery.

But in an area where bushveld prejudices and hatred bleed across the borders, realising their love will be a hard fought battle. Keeping hold of it might just kill them.

* * * * *

An unexpected job offer finds zoologist Eric Phillips transported from the elephant house at a zoo just outside London to the wildlife reserves in the South African bushveld. Being able to work with his own herd of elephants, and analysing their behaviour, more than makes up for the remote nature of the research station. The one bright spot on the horizon, quite literally if the sun hits it at the right angle, is the silver freight plane that brings his supplies and half an hour in the company of Tyaan, the gorgeous but taciturn pilot.

With wide open spaces and clear skies, Tyaan Bouwer is never be happier than when he’s flying over the bushveld, the landscape beneath him a changing vista of colour and texture. It’s that view and the freedom to be able to climb in his plane and fly that’s kept him in the small town where he was born and raised. South Africa might be a rainbow nation but in the northern regions where neighbouring countries are far from liberal minded, prejudices and hatred bleed across the borders. Tyaan’s not in the closet, not really. Get him to the city and with his strong, silent routine he can pull a guy without even trying. He’s fine with that as long as they don’t press him into trying to see them again. It’s not like he wants a relationship. And just maybe when he gets home he’s hovering in the doorway of that closet, but he’s never met anyone worth taking the risk for.

The day he’s sent to Limpopo to collect Eric that all changes. He tries to bury the feelings of want that Eric conjures in him, but he can’t resist the bonds of friendship that forms between them.

As a zoologist Eric likes to think that he’s adept at anticipating how a creature will react in any given situation, and they don’t come any more beautiful and skittish than Tyaan. Despite Tyaan’s jittery behaviour Eric has a theory they could be good together but when things go catastrophically wrong it appears their relationship will remain a theory unproven.

Click on the graphic below for a selection of buy links.

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