RainbowEbooks.com is running a 30% off every title sale now through
January 2nd. If you got an ebook reader under your tree, or just want to
stock up on some great reads and want to support a LGBT owned and
operated site, now’s the perfect time to do it!

www.rainbowebooks.com

Karl Blake’s good at a lot of things: killing bad guys, rescuing hostages…and looting priceless diamonds, but when a bullet ends his career as a mercenary he discovers that he’s really bad at living in a huge house with nothing to do. A shy, oddly sexy gardener with an unexpected liking for rough sex seems just what the doctor ordered for his boredom. But Adam’s got secrets that make Karl’s seem mundane, and if the two of them are going to find a future together, there’s a lot more to deal with than dandelions in the lawn.

With the past and the present combining to push them apart, betrayal, hurt, and mistrust around every corner, the two of them need to focus less on labels and more on what they are to each other.

Because a rose by any other name…

Buy it now at Loose id

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The Angel. That’s what the young hustlers call Noah Everett, the man who’ll help them get off the streets. Once a hustler himself, Noah doesn’t take his own good advice, which is, “Don’t let this ruin your life.” Haunted by the past and those he couldn’t save, Noah carefully keeps others at bay until his self-imposed loneliness is shattered by determined, ambitious, but homeless eighteen-year-old Jeremy Kincaid.A ruthless pimp has targeted Jeremy, but if Noah will fight to get anonymous young men out of the life, he’ll fight harder to keep Jeremy from getting in, even if it means a return to old stomping grounds to make a deal with the devil. To save Jeremy, Noah risks more than just his body. He risks his soul as well, because Willie Carnell, pimp, was once Billy Cordell, Noah’s lover.

Buy it now at Torquere

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Inspiring portraits of gay men and their families from all across America.

An evolution has quietly been occurring in the world of parenting. Recent surveys reveal that millions of children have found loving homes either by being born to, or adopted by, gay men. This book is a celebration of these remarkable new families.

Gay Dads includes twenty-five personal accounts from men describing their unique journeys to fatherhood and the struggles and successes they have experienced as they raise their children. This is the first book to provide such an expansive exploration of this extraordinary new family unit. With beautiful black-and-white photographs of each of the families, Gay Dads is a moving tribute to familial love.

Buy it now at Amazon

Novels are supposed to reach out and grab your attention within a seconds. Author Claire Thompson has generously shared some of her favorite opening lines, as well as a ton of others (including two of mine :)). Swing by Claire’s blog and share your favorite.

http://clairethompsonauthor.blogspot.com/2010/04/it-was-dark-and-stormy-night.html

Sam Keller knows he’ll never find the excitement he craves in Middleton, Iowa—not while he’s busting his ass in nursing school and paying rent by slaving away in a pharmacy stockroom. But before his mother died, he promised her he’d grow up to be a good man, so he needs a stable career and a good husband, not a dead-end job and empty sex.

Then Sam meets Mitch Tedsoe, an independent trucker who makes a delivery to a shop across the alley. Innocent flirting quickly leads to an affair, and when Mitch offers to take Sam on a road trip west, Sam jumps at the chance for adventure with his fantasy man… but Mitch also comes with a past. A threesome with the other man in Mitch’s life would have been just another kinky ride, but somewhere between the Mississippi River and the Colorado Rockies, Sam falls in love.

But can a relationship born out of escape and indulgence become something that lasts? Will a fantasy man be willing to settle down into reality, or is the adventure and excitement Sam finds with Mitch just another stop on a delivery man’s journey? For better or for worse, eventually Sam is going to discover the answer, because no matter how far away he travels, eventually all roads lead home.

Buy Special Delivery here.

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Stefan Joss just can’t win. Not only does he have to go to Texas in the middle of summer to be the man of honor in his best friend Charlotte’s wedding, but he’s expected to negotiate a million-dollar business deal at the same time. Worst of all, he’s thrown for a loop when he arrives to see the one man Charlotte promised wouldn’t be there: her brother, Rand Holloway.Stefan and Rand have been mortal enemies since the day they met, so Stefan is shocked when a temporary cease-fire sees the usual hostility replaced by instant chemistry. Though leery of the unexpected feelings, Stefan is swayed by a sincere revelation from Rand, and he decides to give Rand a chance.

But their budding romance is threatened when Stefan’s business deal goes wrong: the owner of the last ranch he needs to secure for the company is murdered. Stefan’s in for the surprise of his life as he finds himself in danger as well.

Buy Timing here.

The author of the internationally syndicated column “Savage Love” brings much-needed humor, and a reality check, to the bitter gay-marriage debate with this polemical memoir. As Savage (Skipping Towards Gomorrah) and his boyfriend, Terry, neared their 10th anniversary, Savage’s mother put on the pressure for them to get married. But, Savage notes, there were several other points to consider before deciding to tie the knot: among them, the fact that marriage doesn’t provide legal protection in Washington State; Terry prefers tattoos as a sign of commitment; and their six-year-old son declared that only men and women can get married. Furthermore, Savage himself worried that the relationship would be jinxed by anything more permanent than a big anniversary bash, though the one they plan quickly assumes the proportions and price of a wedding reception. While documenting the couple’s wobble toward a decision, Savage skewers ideologues, both pro– and anti–gay marriage, with his radical pragmatism. Disproving Tolstoy’s dictum that “happy families are all alike,” he takes a sharp-eyed, compassionate look at matrimony as it is actually practiced by friends, his raucously affectionate family and even medieval Christians. When he explains to his son what marriage is really about, you want to stand up and cheer, and the surprise ending is both hilarious and a tear-jerker. As funny as David Sedaris’s essay collections, but bawdier and more thought-provoking, this timely book shows that being pro-family doesn’t have to mean being anti-gay.

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Best known for his syndicated sexual advice column, “Savage Love,” Dan Savage shares his own story in The Kid, a hilarious account of his efforts–along with his partner–to adopt a child. (Whoops, make that his boyfriend; Savage can’t stand the “genderless” P-word: “Straight people and press organs that want to acknowledge gay relationships while at the same time pushing the two-penises stuff as far out of their minds as possible love ‘partner.’ I hated it.”) Savage doesn’t give an inch on the sexuality issue; it’s hard to imagine that a homophobic reader would even pick up The Kid, but if it happened, Savage’s unapologetic presentation of his life would quickly scare that reader off. Which isn’t to say that he paints a rosy picture of homosexual cohabitation: the very first scene finds Dan’s boyfriend, Terry, locking himself in the bathroom after a fight over the music on the car stereo. The misadventures continue through each step of the open-adoption process, in which Dan and Terry get to know their baby’s birth mother, and the first few weeks of parenthood. The Kid is a wonderful, charming account of real “family values” that proves love knows no limits

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Someone once said that a literary classic is a book that captures the essence of its own time, place, and culture while simultaneously transcending those limits to achieve universality. By that definition is already a classic. It is an absorbing inspirational journey into one man’s obsession to create a family. Not just a gay book this is a profoundly human testimony to the strength of the human spirit. Overcoming all odds, Dr. Morgen and his life partner, Sam, show us how love caring and unshakable determination can triumph over prejudice and disappointment.

Ghosts of Alcatraz by Carol Lynne
When prison inmates begin dying in shocking and sometimes gruesome ways, warden Jensen Black decides to bring in sexy parapsychologist Brian Phipps to investigate. Getting to the bottom of what’s killing the men for whom he’s responsible is the plan. Falling for the lamb of a man with the heart of lion isn’t on the agenda, but his heart has a mind of its own.

The attraction between the two men is instantaneous, but before they can fully explore the depths of their passion the ghosts set their sights on Brian. And as their relationship heats up, the danger escalates, leaving both men to wonder if they’ll ever make it off Alcatraz alive. Let alone, together.

Hemovore by Jordan Castillo Price
Ten years ago, the Human Hemovore Virus blazed through the world, and left the few victims who survived unable to eat, allergic to sunlight and craving the taste of blood.

Mark Hansen used to think V-positives were incredibly sexy with their pale, flawless skin and taut, lean bodies. Not anymore. Not since he’s been stuck procuring under-the-counter feline blood for his control-freak boss, Jonathan Varga. Why cat blood? Mark has never dared to ask.

It’s not as if he’s usually at a loss for words. He can dish an insult and follow it with a snap as quick as you can say “Miss Thang”. But one look at Jonathan’s black-as-sin gypsy eyes, and Mark’s objections drain away.

So he endures their strange, endless routine: Jonathan hiding in his studio, painting solid black canvases. Mark hurling insults as he buffs the office to a shine with antiviral wipes and maps out the mysterious “routes” he’s required to drive.
Then a blurb in Art in America unleashes a chain of events neither of them saw coming. As secrets of Jonathan’s past come to light, it becomes clear all his precautions weren’t nearly enough.

That’s What Brothers Do by Derekica Snake
To save his family, he sold his innocence. To save his sisters, he sold his body. To save his love, he sold his soul. Why? That’s what brothers do…

Gaven by JC Owens

When the Masarians attack Gaven’s people, they are defeated and Gaven himself is taken captive. By a man claiming to be his father. It turns out his entire life has been a lie, and now his ‘father’ will give him into the hands of another man to indoctrinate and train him. Gaven vows he will never shame his people by giving into the Masarians’ way of loving other men.

But Vlar, the legendary warrior to whom he has been given, has other plans. The blood-drinker is determined to have Gaven and to make him yield.

In the past couple of weeks, I’ve read a lot of good books. I thought I would share two of them with you today. Two that stand out above the rest. You mileage may vary, but I enjoyed both novels quite a bit.

When Irish Eyes Are Sparkling by Tom Collins & Thirteen

Liam O’Shaughnessy wasn’t expecting to fall in love again, not so soon after yet another artful break up. Then Oliver Sutton, paramedic in training, walked into his Aunt’s Irish Pub, and shocked Liam’s wounded heart back to life. The fiery eyes were irresistible; the magnetic draw between them was undeniable, but the man himself was an enigma. Still, Oliver had much to teach Liam, and Liam was a very willing pupil.

Oliver Sutton only expected to have a brief, summer fling with Liam O’Shaughnessy, but as the young waiter eagerly learned all about gay sexual pleasure, Oliver felt less and less willing to give him up. Yet Oliver knew the relationship could not last. Sooner or later, Liam would come to know Oliver’s other, less civilized self, and that would be the end.

Unbeknownst to Oliver, however, Liam, too, had another self, one he also was keeping secret: his twin.

By Degrees by JB McDonald

Tim and Conner have been best friends since childhood, when Tim was orphaned and Con’s father jailed. Throughout tumultuous years they’ve been there for each other, over email, the phone, and occasional visits. Tim figures things can only get better when his best friend announces he’s moving to the same city.

Con has been in love with Tim since high school, but knows not to say so–at least until a robbery puts him in the hospital, and morphine loosens his tongue.

The last thing Tim wants is a relationship. He’s prepared to flee, but Con refuses to lose his friend that easily. They’ve been together through thick and thin, and he’s prepared to show Tim that they’ll stay together through it, too–even when life and love change things irrevocably.

The Gambler by Chris Johns

Charlie Fellows is an Englishman with a serious gambling problem. To payoff his debts, he signs himself into a ten-year contract as a modern day sex slave to a millionaire who has a large estate in the Caribbean. THE GAMBLER tells of Charlie’s life in servitude in this erotic novel where the punishment is harsh but the rewards are often hot and steamy.

However, while serving his sentence, Charlie falls in love with Winston, a young Caribbean male, who stays by his side through his trials and tribulations. THE GAMBLER is a melting pot of extreme sex, corporal punishment, sadness and joy, but mainly the story of a deep love between two men from entirely different backgrounds.

I don’t do a lot of book recommendations on this blog. I usually just share what I’m reading with you all and leave it at that. A rare once in a while, I find something I love enough to pimp to my readers.

Jay Quinn’s novel, Back Where He Started, is one of those books I would recommend to anyone. It’s sweet and poignant, and funny. I laughed and even shed a few tears while I was reading it. If you’re a fan of romance, this is a book you have to read. I can’t say enough wonderful things about it.

They say true freedom arrives when all the kids are gone and the dog dies. With his family grown and his husband Zack having decided to become a middle-aged clich and marry his secretary, Chris Thayer is about to discover that starting life over at 48 is just as complicated, frustrating and thrilling as the first time around. After relocating to the North Carolina beach community of Emerald Isle, Chris finds a new appreciation of his role as the heart of the home to his grown children and becomes involved in the patchwork lives of his neighbors. To his unending surprise, he also finds himself the object of a new man’s affections, a rowdy jack-of-all-trades with an unnervingly direct stare. In the same quiet, understated manner that he demonstrated in his critically acclaimed first novel, Metes and Bounds, Jay Quinn gives the traditional Southern novel a decidedly untraditional twist.

The Red Church by Scott Nicholson

For 13-year-old Ronnie Day, life is full of problems: Mom and Dad have separated, his brother Tim is a constant pest, Melanie Ward either loves him or hates him, and Jesus Christ won’t stay in his heart. Plus he has to walk past the red church every day, where the Bell Monster hides with its wings and claws and livers for eyes. But the biggest problem is that Archer McFall is the new preacher at the church, and Mom wants Ronnie to attend midnight services with her.

Sheriff Frank Littlefield hates the red church for a different reason. His little brother died in a freak accident at the church twenty years ago, and now Frank is starting to see his brother’s ghost. And the ghost keeps demanding, “Free me.”

People are dying in Whispering Pines, and the murders coincide with McFall’s return. The Days, the Littlefields, and the McFalls are descendants of the original families that settled the rural Appalachian community. Those old families share a secret of betrayal and guilt, and McFall wants his congregation to prove its faith. Because he believes he is the Second Son of God, and that the cleansing of sin must be done in blood. “Sacrifice is the currency of God,” McFall preaches, and unless Frank and Ronnie stop him, everybody pays.