One Wedding, Two Brides by Heidi Betts – a Review

One Wedding, Two Brides by Heidi Betts – a Review

 

Amazon / B&N / Kobo / BAM

 

Description:
Jilted bride Monica Blair can’t believe it when she wakes up next to a blue-eyed, smooth-talking cowboy in the middle of nowhere and with a ring on her finger. It had sounded like a great plan at the time. Get married, get revenge, and get her money back. So why is she cleaning out stables and trying to keep her hands off the hot cowboy helping her? Ryder Nash would have bet his best Stetson that you’d never see him walk down the aisle. But when the city girl with pink-streaked hair and a frog tattoo hatches a plan to expose the conman who married his sister, no idea is too crazy. And even though Monica might be the worst rancher’s wife he’s ever seen, he can’t stop thinking about the wedding night they never had. What was supposed to be a temporary marriage for revenge is starting to feel a little too real…

 

Review:

I had to chuckle at the opening of the One Wedding, Two Brides by Heidi Betts. 

“Before you get serious about a cowboy, make sure he values you more than his truck”…… 

Monica is going to be a bride, but before her big day arrives, her groom marries someone else !

So after getting dressed in her wedding dress and downing a bottle of champagne, Monica goes to confront her wayward groom and his new “floozy” bride (her words that are drunkenly thrown at the couple) 

Monica is then “escorted” out of the reception over the shoulder of a tuxedo wearing cowboy (the things Monica thinks she sees because she’s drunk are funny) ?

The “cowboy” explains to her that’s he’s the brother of the bride (but I don’t think she’s really listening) because she comes up with what she thinks is a great idea ….. 

She’s going to make Matt the Rat (her words for the wayward groom) jealous by being the perfect wife, and he will regret throwing Monica away !!!! And her new groom …. yes you guessed it …. the brides brother ?

Ryder is a confirmed bachelor, his ex girlfriend threw that comment at him at his sisters wedding. And he has to admit, that’s she was probably right, he wasn’t ready to settle down, he had a rundown ranch to turn around and a new venture to get off the ground (equine assisted therapy) 

And when Monica offers to pay him to be her groom, the offer is tempting, but he can’t take advantage of her offer, but then Monica makes him a business deal, he looks at it, that it might just work, but can he really live with a woman full time ? And will he be able to keep to the “business only” deal ? 

Monica wakes up the following morning with a hangover and a ring on her finger …. Her reaction is priceless ( I had to stop reading on the bus as I was laughing too much). And after Ryder explains what they did in Vegas last night, he leaves his bride to wander around his/their home, whilst he goes out to work on the ranch. 

The story is a little predictable, but it’s the getting there that was the fun part, very humorous, well written and thought out. Do Monica and Ryder make it a “proper” marriage ? Does “Matt the Rat” realise his mistake and beg Monica to take him back ? 

Reviewed by Julie B.

Copy provided by Publisher

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Assassin Games (Tarnished Heroes #2) by Sidney Bristol-Review, Excerpt & Giveaway Tour

Assassin Games (Tarnished Heroes #2) by Sidney Bristol-Review, Excerpt & Giveaway Tour

ASSASSIN GAMES
Tarnished Heroes #2
by Sidney Bristol
Release Date: July 23, 2018
Genre: adult, contemporary, romantic, suspense

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / B&N / KOBO / iBooks / Google Play

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date July 23, 2018

Anderson Gratney does odd jobs that usually involve a gun and covert ops for the CIA. His latest assignment? Kidnap a CIA analyst in order to keep her safe. Easy. Except there’s nothing simple about the beautiful, careful Carol Sark, who tempts him the more he learns about her.

Coming face to face with a masked man in her home is the most terrifying experience of Carol’s life—until he kidnaps her. He claims he’s there to keep her safe, but she doesn’t know who to trust. And until they can figure out who the threat is, she’s forced to take him at his word.

Time is ticking, and even though she drives him nuts, Anderson very much wants to keep her alive. Unfortunately, the assassins have other ideas

•••••••••

REVIEW: Andy is a decent guy, a bit rough around the edges but he’s good at what he does. A loner, but knows right from wrong.
Andy works at the moment for the CIA (a contract worker) he is watching Carol an analyst working on a code to pull out information on a string of deaths.

Carol’s character, when the when it got tough, she wasn’t a pushover, she was clever and definitely an asset.

The agency know they have a mole, they just don’t know who and how it’s connected. Her analysis can help tie things together.
And when the assassins figure out that Carol is getting to close, Andy is the one sent in to get close to Carol. And if she needs to disappear, then he’s there to help her.

Being kidnapped isn’t high on Carol’s list of things to do. And when the kidnapper explains that he’s here to help keep her safe, Carol isn’t sure who to trust.

The plot was interesting, a few twists and turns kept me reading until I was done.
The characters are well written, and the scenes followed each other really well.

I haven’t read any other the other books in the series, but I think I’ll have to go back and take a look ?

Click HERE for Rachel’s review of SPY GAMES book one

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Julie ?

“I have the strangest urge to kiss you,” she said without embarrassment tightening her throat. Must still be a little tipsy.

“Don’t.” Andy’s voice was sharp, his reply immediate.

“Why not?”

“It wouldn’t be a good idea.”

“What constitutes a good idea?”

“Anything that doesn’t put you at risk or would result in some form of positive gain.”

“But you aren’t a risk to me, are you?”

“Carol, you should go back to bed. It’s late.”

“You don’t want to answer the question. You have that moral code, and I don’t fit in those boxes. That’s your problem with me. You kill people and gather information. I’m a round peg when you deal with square holes. Why is kissing you a bad idea? If it’s not good, then it’s bad. What’s so wrong with kissing? If we’re analyzing good and bad—”

“Stop, Carol. I’m warning you.”

And yet, he didn’t move, he didn’t flee; he remained right where he was.

“If we’re classifying good as no harm and leads to gain, well, it seems like it would be more good than bad. Fostering physical familiarity, building that trust. You know, you could have probably continued to pretend to be Mark, whisk me away somewhere and keep playing that role which would both endear me to you emotionally and create greater trust, but you didn’t. You destroyed the persona of Mark—why? Because it wasn’t a truth, because he was a lie, because it was a danger to you?”

“We’re all on the same side. I wasn’t going to lie to you. Just—stop it.”

“Even if lying means everyone gets what they want? You get the program, I get the fantasy, everyone gets something?”

What had he said before? He liked talking to her. He hadn’t expected to have to play the part of Mark that long.

Part of Andy was Mark.

Was it all a lie? Or was this the wine still talking?

“You keep saying stop it, but you don’t move, you don’t act. Are you telling me to stop it, or yourself? Is the big truth here that it wasn’t all a lie, but you want it to be? Is that what’s going on here? Is that why you’re doing all of this? Look at me and tell me to stop talking, stop asking questions. Do it.”

She was playing with fire. Just because she didn’t fit Andy’s system, because he thought of her as a good person, it didn’t mean she was safe. She was facing a new reality outside the CIA and country she’d grown up in. And that meant she had to be different. She had to face her problems head on, and she was starting with Andy.

He turned his head so that he faced her. His nose had been broken a time or two and little scars marred his face here and there. Dark eyes stared at her, so hard and dark he might not even be Andy right now.

Was she right? Was Mark in there?

It can never be said that NYT & USA Today Bestselling author Sidney Bristol has had a ‘normal’ life.  She is a recovering roller derby queen, former missionary, tattoo addict and board game enthusiast. She grew up in a motor-home on the US highways (with an occasional jaunt into Canada and Mexico), traveling the rodeo circuit with her parents. Sidney has lived abroad in both Russia and Thailand, working with children and teenagers. She now lives in Texas where she spends her time writing, reading, hunting Pokemon, playing board games and catering to her furry overlords, aka the cats.

Connect:

Site: http://sidneybristol.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Sidney.Bristol.Romance.Author
Twitter: https://twitter.com/sidneybristol
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/SidneyBristol

 

 

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Interview with Cover Model Joey Grant Luther

Interview with Cover Model Joey Grant Luther

TRC: Hi Joey and welcome to The Reading Cafe.

 We would like to start with some background information. Would you please tell us something about yourself?

Follow Joey on Instagram / Facebook

JGL: I’m originally from Virginia. But have spent more than half of my life in NYC, so I think that qualifies me as a ‘New Yorker’ now. I have been a model for over two decades and am currently represented by Wilhelmina Models, Im a licensed wildlife rehabiltator, and a vegan, and I love pigeons and my motorcycle!

TRC: What were your dreams and aspirations growing up?

JGL: I was shy and reserved as an only child, but dreamed about being a singer- but the idea also terrified me.

TRC: Would you please tell us about your experience as a ‘wildlife rehabilitator’?

JGL: I found a small bird one day on a NYC sidewalk and became determined to save his life. I called around and found a lady, Rita McMahon, that saw injured birds at a veterinary hospital here in NYC. After finding several injured birds over the next few months, I began volunteering with her and interested in becoming a wildlife rehabilitator. A couple years later I became a NYS Licensed Wildlife Rehabilitator. She opened a wildlife center (wildbirdfund.org) about eight years ago, and I have been a volunteer rehabilitator there for most of the last eight years. Working with wildlife (mostly birds) has given me a much deeper respect for all animals and inspired me to become vegan.

TRC: What first sparked your interest in modeling? Is there a defining moment where you knew that modeling was something you were interested in pursuing?

JGL: I was on tour in Germany doing ‘Carmen-A Rock Opera’ and it was tough- traveling every day on a bus and performing for three hours a night for six months. When the tour ended in Munich I got a modeling agency there and started to work. The pay for a day of modeling was about what I received for a month of being on tour. It wasn’t a tough decision to switch careers at that point. I worked in Munich, Madrid, Athens, then came back to New York and signed with an agency here and have been very fortunate as a working model for over two decades.

TRC: Have you ever had a photo shoot that went completely wrong?

JGL: I can’t say that I have had any terrible experiences, Ive been very lucky. I have shown up for work and the client decided they didn’t like me once or twice and they didn’t use me. But thats the great thing about being represented by a good agency- once you are booked for a job, you get paid whether they use you or not.

TRC: Nudity in modeling or acting can be controversial. Some pictures can cross the line between sexuality to pornography. What would you tell young models/actors /body builders just entering the business about nude modeling and photography?

JGL: Most photographers have extensive websites and social media so you can tell the type of nude photography they are shooting before you say yes to a shoot. If you are uncomfortable doing something, don’t do it. There are so many respectful photographers out there that are willing so shoot a beautiful body in a respectful artistic way. If a situation ever goes from ‘artistic’ to ‘sexual’, just walk out!!!

TRC: The modeling industry exposes you to many people and sometimes it can be very stressful. What do you do when the stress becomes overwhelming?

JGL: You have to look as modeling as a job, not as an ego booster. Like any job, it can be stressful at times and rejection in inevitable. When work is good, I think of it as doing my job well. For me, a daily workout and meditation relieve most of the stress in my life. Volunteering is also a great way to take my mind away from the stress I do have in my life.

TRC: At times, there has been a ‘stigma’ surrounding the male model and the romance-cover industry but the popularity of the romance storyline has skyrocketed in the last few years especially with the erotic and sensual cover images. What is your opinion about the recent popularity and the very busy industry of the ‘romance cover model’?

JGL: Sex and romance are a beautiful part of life, I think thats why people enjoy reading about it. Who doesn’t want to feel sexy and be in love? As a cover model, we just have to be comfortable with the picture thats being taken.

TRC: Do you believe the cover image plays a deciding factor for many readers in the process of selecting a book or new series to read?

JGL: Yes, of course, at least with the romance novel industry. We have been so conditioned to ‘judge a book by its cover’, that usually the picture or the title is what sparks the reader to pick it up. I know Im guilty of this. I also rely on reviews, and am very loyal to authors. Even in other genres I find myself reading all of the novels by an author I like. Then I’ll look for another enticing ‘cover’ to pick up.

TRC: Do you remember the first romance/novel cover on which you appeared? Do you have a favorite?

JGL: I don’t remember the first cover I did but my mother might. She has boxes of them. There was a time in my early career that I was shooting five or six covers a week. I’ve included some of those pictures.

TRC: Do you know the number of novel covers that your image has appeared?

JGL: I don’t know the exact number but if I had to guess, Id say its well over 200.

TRC: What do you do to relax?

JGL: I LOVE riding my motorcycle, I enjoy playing the piano (I have a piano teacher) and learning new music, I meditate daily, I read, and I have a great circle of friends that I spend a lot of time with, I travel often, and I love the beach!

TRC: What three things would you like to accomplish in the next five years?

JGL: To be a better piano player, meditate daily and see India, and build a successful skin care business.

TRC: What is something that few people know about you?

JGL: Most people don’t know that I moved to NY to be a singer and worked as a singer for the first four years I was here.

TRC: Who or what are your inspirations?

JGL: My personal aspirations a pretty simple- to just be content with who I am and find gratitude every day for the things in my life, and more beach time. Professionally, Im starting a mens skin care line that I hope to have off the ground by the end of the year.

TRC: What type of music do you listen to? What songs are on your current playlist?

JGL: Ludovico Einaudi, Diana Krall, Dua Lipa, Emeli Sande, Kenny Chesney. As you can see, I enjoy most genres of music.

TRC: On what on your currently working?

JGL: Modeling- Im booked for a catalog over the next few weeks (a regular client). As I mentioned before, Im starting a mens skin care line. Ive tried to take great care of my skin and my body throughout my career, so helping other guys do the same seemed like a natural next step.

 

LIGHTNING ROUND

Favorite Food: Impossible Burger (its vegan and the closest thing I can get to the real thing)

Favorite Dessert: Ben and Jerrys non-dairy Cherry Garcia

Favorite Movie: All time favorite has to be Lion King

Favorite TV Show: All time- Breaking Bad and The Good Wife – Im fascinated by our legal system, Currently- Wild Wild Country

Last Movie that you saw: Jurassic Park: Fallen Kingdom

Secret Celebrity Crush: Every character in Zootopia

Dark or Milk Chocolate: Dark chocolate (the vegan answer)

Do you have any pets? I had a rescued pit bull, Bebe, that passed away a year ago, and a bird named Nacho that passed away last month, so currently have an empty nest, but Im sure that won’t last long.

Pet Peeve: People that don’t respect pigeons.

TRC: Thank you Joey for taking the time to answer our questions. Congratulations on all of your success. We wish you all the best.

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At The Dark Hour by John Wilson-Review, Interview & Giveaway

AT THE DARK HOUR by John Wilson-Review, Interview and Giveaway

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca /Amazon. uk / B&N / KOBO / Chapters Indigo /

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date July 19, 2018

A loving affair is destroyed by the Blitz on London. Julia ends her relationship with Adam. Her concern is for her children and that, if she is divorced, she will lose them. What is the nature of love? Does it have gradations? Love, and it’s textures, lie at the heart of this story. Love is where you find it. And sometimes it ambushes you. And, often, it is hidden.

•••••

REVIEW: AT THE DARK HOUR by John Wilson is a fantastic tale of historical fiction set in 1940 London, England during the London Blitz.

Told from third person perspective, following several timelines, from the outset the reader is pulled into a logistical nightmare as our anti-hero Adam Falling, a member of the King’s Council (KC) finds himself charged with infidelity- an affair with a fellow KC’s wife, all the while, himself married with a twelve year old daughter. As art begins to imitate life, Adam is the lead defence attorney for another man accused of adultery but not before Adam’s legal skills are in demand for a Czechoslovakian refugee who is charged with treason and potential threats against the English crown. What ensues is the build-up of three legal cases, defence and prosecution, and the culmination of secrets, lies, and questionable evidence that are procured and presented in an effort to protect several men whose extra-marital dalliances have destroyed too many lives in the face of the on-going destruction set upon by WWII.

John Wilson pulls the reader in 1940 London, England during the London Blitz bombing. Rationing, and the evacuation of children to the rural countryside, finds families torn apart, as the destruction of London threatens not only their lives but their spirit as well. As darkness befalls London, so too do the blackout restrictions for those whose lives remain at risk by an invisible threat from the skies.

AT THE DARK HOUR is a lengthy story line that focuses on the legal drama of Adam Falling, down on his luck, chronically ill attorney whose on-going affair with the wife of a fellow member of the KC begins to unravel as suspicion leads to accusation, lies, secrets and cover-ups. Adultery is illegal; divorce requires an admission of fault; love becomes dependant upon a hierarchy of importance for the heart. John Wilson takes the reader into the ethically questionable side of courtroom law as the world outside is vanquished by death and destruction of the nightly bombs.

The structure of the novel is broken down into four parts plus an epilogue. The use of quotation marks for traditional speech is absent but that is not to say the conversations go unmarked. Indentation and the use of hyphenation (-) denote speaking parts but the author does not always differentiate between speakers or characters; memories and events recalled are italicized for ease of context.

AT THE DARK HOUR is a wonderfully detailed, complex and focused story line with a large ensemble cast of colorful secondary and supporting characters whose role in Adam’s life culminates in a series of events leading to a frenzied trial of revelations and lies. John Wilson’s AT THE DARK HOUR is a thought-provoking, cautionary tale of infidelity and the destruction of lives. An intelligent, impressive, imaginative and profound story with spirited but flawed characters whose passion for life upsets the balance of the status quo.

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Sandy

TRC: Hi John and welcome to The Reading Café. Congratulations on the recent release of AT THE DARK HOUR.

We would like to start with some background information. Would you please tell us something about yourself?

Website:https://www.johnwilsonauthor.net/


John: I come from Wigan in Lancashire although my mother was Scottish. Both of my grandfathers were coal miners although my maternal grandfather had to work above ground because of the disabling injuries he received at the Somme during WW1. He became quite a figure in the Scottish Mineworkers Union and had been intending to stand for Parliament in 1939 for the Labour Party but got called down to London by Clement Atlee to work in the Directorate of Labour. A young Harold Wilson would come around for Sunday lunch and walk my grandad’s dog.

My father joined the RAF at the start of WWII and was a navigator / bomb aimer in Halifaxes with Bomber Command before transferring to 624 squadron flying special ops out of North Africa. After the war he went to Strawberry Hill to train as a teacher which is where he met my mother. I did not find out until after she died in 2004 that she had been working with the Code-Breakers at Bletchley Park.

My paternal grandfather died of a lung related disease before I was born.

My parents were naturally rebellious and adventurous and travelled widely, living in South Africa, Rhodesia (as it then was) and, when I came along Cyprus and South Korea. So, I had an unusual and peripatetic education.

I went to Cambridge to study law – where I played bass guitar (badly) in a band called the Underachievers – and then did the Bar exams. Before University I spent most of a year working in a bakery in Wigan. After Bar exams I worked in a wholefood warehouse before going to live for a while in Connecticut and then Paris where I got a job as a bi-lingual secretary at UNESCO.

TRC: Who or what influenced your career in writing?

John:I have always written and the urge to write is something I have little control over. I was much influenced by writers such as Orwell, Evelyn Waugh, Graham Greene, Aldous Huxley and Herman Hesse. In particular, I read nearly everything that George Orwell wrote and his essay “Why I write” had a profound effect on me as I recognised in me what he was saying about the impulse to write. It made perfect sense. I was also strongly influenced by a number of Russian writers such as Dostoyevsky, Bulgakov, Zamyatin and, more recently Andrei Kurkov. I also found the writings of Sol Stein and, in particular, his books Solutions for Writers and Solutions for Novelists, extremely helpful.

TRC: What challenges or difficulties have you encountered writing and publishing your novels?

John:The biggest difficulty I had with writing At the Dark Hour was finding the time to write. I had a very busy practice at the Bar, particularly before I took silk in 2011 and so time was very short. I was also writing a lot of academic things, either whole text books or chapters in large well known standard texts. These were all contractual and subject to deadlines and, regrettably, my fiction writing had to take third place behind my practice and my contractual obligations to write text books and articles.

In terms of getting published the difficulty was in finding a literary agent who would be prepared to represent me, although I got close on two or three occasions. My novel is long and it takes some commitment from potential agents to read it when, at the outset, they do not know whether it will be worthwhile. I also found the traditional publishing model to be extremely slow. Teaming up with Clink Street Publishing has been an excellent move for me as everything has moved very quickly and they have been extremely helpful with such things as pricing and, for example, practical things like working out how wide the spine of the book will need to be.

TRC: Would you please tell us something about the premise of AT THE DARK HOUR?

John: At the Dark Hour came to me in three separate phases. As a Bar student who had never really been to London before I was spellbound by the beauty of the Temple but intrigued by the signs everywhere, in the form of plaques or Latin inscriptions that pointed to the enormous devastation that had been wrought by the Blitz. I was one of the editors of Pegasus, the Student Magazine, and decided to research this story. I went up into the galleries in the Inner Temple Library and found monographs by long dead and long forgotten barristers who had written down their experiences of being under the bombing. I subsequently discovered that these sources had all been missed by the primary historians of the age. I thought it was an interesting story but it did not amount to a plot.

A few years later I was commissioned by the BBC to write some radio programmes. We did two series. My first producer worked primarily on Women’s Hour and my second producer worked on producing radio plays. After we were done he left me a voice message asking me to write some radio plays, on a subject of my choosing, which he would then produce for radio. I agreed and decided to write some radio plays about treason trials during the blitz. However, I never had the time actually to sit down and write them. I thought that this would tie in nicely with a story about the destruction of the Temple although it still did not amount to what I thought was sufficient for a plot.

At about the same time my chambers moved out of the Temple and I did not return there until 2002. By now I was a divorce lawyer. My practice and my academic work meant that I learnt a lot about the misogynistic nature of the divorce laws in the 1940s – if a man succeeded in proving that his wife had committed adultery she would lose the custody of her children and all financial support – and it was this final strand that brought everything together in my mind. Linked to this was a long-standing supposition I had about the nature of love. Is it possible to love two people at the same time? Well, I concluded that it was but, when it comes to that sticking point you will have to conclude that you love one person more than you love that other person. In those circumstances, do you love the other person at all?

So, the book contains a series of love stories all set against the backdrop of the destruction of the Temple and of the divorce laws that had such an impact on people’s actions. Julia Pemberton breaks off her affair with Adam Falling because she does not want to be divorced and lose her children. But it is too late. Her husband has found out and petitions for divorce. Central to the story is the development and then the end of their affair. Is it really over? Is there any way back for Adam? Why did she end it? Will they even survive the blitz? And interwoven into this narrative is a further adultery trial where Adam is representing the co-respondent accused of committing adultery with the respondent wife whilst Jeremy Pemberton KC, whom Adam has cuckolded, is representing the cuckolded petitioner.

TRC: What kinds of research/plotting did you endeavour, and how long did you spend researching /plotting before beginning AT THE DARK HOUR?

John: I did my early research into the Blitz and the Temple whilst still a student. In terms of research generally, I had the benefit of reading the complete writings of George Orwell and, in particular, his wartime diaries. I read every book I could find on London and the Blitz as well as reading fiction that was written during that period such as Greene’s Ministry of Fear and The End of the Affair and Tragedy at Law by Cyril Hare. I read practically all of the Times Archive for the period, concentrating in particular on the small ads where much of the “grain” of the time could be found as well as finding all sorts of diaries from the time that had been subsequently posted online. Because the plot involved an alleged attempt to poison London’s water supplies I needed to learn all I could about the London Metropolitan Water Board. I found reference to a book online and tracked it down to an antique book shop in the West Country. I ordered it and it was delivered to my house in the South of France a few days later. It had belonged to the head of the Water Board – his signature was there with a flourish in the frontispiece and, from looking up his obituary I realised that this book had probably been languishing in the book shop for over forty years. I read a small article in the Evening Standard about the Westminster Public Record Map where all the bombs were charted and recorded during the blitz. So, I went to the Westminster Public Library and took out the original bomb maps with carbon copies of typed reports of the bombs or handwritten copies still sitting there.

In the mid-1980s I was representing a defendant in a long running vice trial at the Old Bailey. Whilst being kept in the holding cell just beyond the dock he tried to commit suicide in an imaginative way that involved tying a small piece of string tightly around his neck and then tying his tie equally tightly but with the knot at 180 degrees to the first knot. As I was waiting for the day to begin all hell broke loose and I was summonsed to the cell behind the dock. The warders had succeeded in cutting him free but he had an enormous red wheal around his neck. It was very dramatic and I thought to myself: I can use this. Which I did subsequently in ATDH. I got him off.

I suppose I began writing At the Dark Hour in earnest in about 2007 / 2008. However, I was stymied by my other commitments. My wife and I took three months off in 2008 with a view to me finishing the novel but I was also in the process of writing my text book, Cohabitation Claims which had required a lot of writing and re-writing as the law kept changing. That was published in April 2009. Then I was commissioned to write two chapters of Jackson’s Matrimonial Finance which came out in January 2012. In the meantime, in 2011, I was asked to write a second edition of Cohabitation Claims. This proved to be a lengthy and difficult job and it was not published until October 2015.

In the meantime, I was continuing to write ATDH when I could find the time and showing the work in progress to friends all of whom loved it. The turning point came for me in the summer of 2014. I was conducting a very big trial in the High Court and my solicitor asked to see what I had written. It was about 570 pages long at this point but unfinished. He read it in five days. I told another friend about this over a beer on the Friday night and he asked me to send it to him. I sent it to him at 7 am on the Saturday morning and on the Sunday at 9 am he wrote back to say that he had read it all, staying up until 2 am to finish it. He was only disappointed that, after 570 pages it was not complete. I realised that this was becoming ridiculous so, that summer, when we went down to France, I sat down and finished it in a matter of weeks. It was all up there in my head and I just knew that I needed to write it all down.

So, I suppose my research started in 1981 and limped haphazardly along. It was largely completed by 2007 although I continued to learn new things. There were then spurts of writing when I could find the time between other commitments but it was not until 2014 that I decided just to write the final parts down.

TRC: Do you believe authors of historical fiction should follow historical accuracy and fact? Do authors have a responsibility to be factually accurate?

John:Broadly speaking I think that authors of historical fiction should seek historical accuracy. It makes the story credible and it keeps the reader believing in what has been written. So, in ATDH, if newsvendors are shouting “Victories in Libya” that is what happened on the day in question. Or when a civic official is taking an oxyacetylene lamp to the railings around Lincoln’s Inn Fields that is because that happened on the day. When Julia sports a coat that she purchased from Bradley’s in Chepstow Place for twelve and a half guineas the previous season it is because that very coat was on sale that season. However, subject to that general belief in accuracy I do not think that it is essential. I have tweaked some of the facts ever so slightly for dramatic effect here and there and I suspect most readers will not spot them. There is a libel trial involving three literary siblings called the Renshaws. Only two of my readers realised that this was in fact a trial that actually took place on the days in question involving the Sitwell siblings. I don’t think that this sort of “tweaking” with the historical record causes any harm or other problems.

TRC: How did publishing your first book affect your writing style going forward?

John:I don’t think that having my first book published has greatly affected my writing style going forward in that I think that it has largely been formed now. My work means that I am writing most days of the week. I remember acting for a famous science fantasy writer on his divorce. We were having a companionable fag outside the Hastings County Court and I asked him what he thought of the financial documents I had prepared for his case. He said that he liked my prose style. I had to say to him that this was not the point: it was the content rather than the style that mattered. I have written so many things now from radio programmes to co-writing the European Youth Forum Policy on Youth Unemployment and Training that I think that my style is quite adaptable to whatever it is I am writing about at the time.

TRC: Do you believe the cover image plays a deciding factor for many readers in the process of selecting a book or new series to read?

John:Yes, I do. I was greatly assisted with the cover of this book by Gareth Howard of Clink Street Publishing. Amazingly, we both had almost exactly the same concept of what the cover page should look like. Then it has to be kept as simple as possible because, frequently, it will be seen only as a “thumbnail” picture.

TRC: When writing a storyline, do the characters direct the writing or do you direct the characters?

John:This is a very good question. With my story line I had in my mind a very clear narrative arc. However, I am also of the view that, if you direct the characters in your story, you remove their free will and they turn into cardboard. So, I would not say that I direct the characters. However, there is often a range of things that a particular character could do in certain circumstances and as long as you can keep them broadly on track they can do what they like. I found this quite infuriating at times and there was one particular character, Roly Blytheway, who caused me no end of grief as he would not do what I wanted him to do. But it was very rewarding, in the end, to let him do things his way.

TRC: The mark of a good writer is to pull the reader into the storyline so that they experience the emotions along with the characters. What do you believe a writer must do to make this happen? Where do you believe writer’s fail in this endeavor?

John:This question covers an awful lot of ground. I remember when I began thinking seriously about writing a novel, studying the writings of those authors who had the ability to “pull you into the storyline”. When our hero is pressing himself against a damp brick wall to stay hidden why do some writers make you feel as though you too are breathless and feeling that same brick wall whilst other writers will leave you cold? As mentioned earlier I found the writings of Sol Stein extremely helpful on this. The old mantra is that one must “show and not tell”. I think that this is correct but simplistic. Yes. The writer must show and not tell. However, he or she must do a lot more than this. It is necessary to imagine every scene from all particular angles. To make oneself aware of the time of day, the quality of the light, any ambient factors that would play on the protagonist and then distil those down into a few sentences. For me, every short scene had a long gestation. One needs to cut back on the adverbs and adjectives. If you tell the reader that your protagonist is nervous you are taking the imaginative involvement away from the reader. If you show the reader your protagonist trying to light a cigarette with a tremor in his right hand such that he spills all his matches on the floor you give the scene to the imagination of your reader.

I think that writers frequently fail in this endeavour because they do not make a sufficient attempt to show rather than tell. They do not fully picture the scene in question in their mind’s eye and then seek to reproduce that scene so that the reader can see it as well. I think that this is sometimes down to lazy or sloppy writing and it is a sign of disrespect to the reader who, of course, is entitled to the utmost courtesy.

TRC: Do you listen to music while writing? If so, does the style of music influence the storyline direction? Characters?

John:I don’t tend to listen to music when writing unless it is necessary for the plot. Thus, in the two funeral scenes in the novel the choice of music for the funerals was very important to me and to the scenes in question. And so I listened to a lot of classical music when trying to imagine these and trying to picture how the music chosen would affect the actors at these dramas. Pergolesi was particularly important.

TRC: What do you believe is the biggest misconception people have about authors?

John:From my point of view I think that the biggest misconception people have about authors relates to the whole question of writer’s block. When I was starting out I assumed that with “writer’s block” that meant that the author did not know what was supposed to happen next. Perhaps that is true of some writers. Bruce Robinson (of Withnail and I fame) has spoken movingly about “the Block”. However, I came to the conclusion that writer’s block is rarely about not knowing what is supposed to happen next. It is more to do with finding the paradymic scene that is more than the sum of its parts or dealing with issues such as “point of view” or “pacing”. These, in my experience, are the true sources of writer’s block.

TRC: What is something that few, if anybody, knows about you?

John:One of my favourite songs is “In my Secret Life” by Leonard Cohen. The lyrics of the song speak for themselves. I can relate to that. I have my secret life and, by and large, it remains so.

TRC: On what are you currently working?

John:I am working on a number of projects. I wrote a novella in 2016 called “A Short While” which, simplistically, is about cancer in the Home Counties. My god-daughter, Hannah Sharp, who is a very talented artist and actress, and I are turning it into a screenplay and we are on the fourth draft. I have written some children’s stories about two wombats, Wallis and Wendy, escaping from the circus on their tandem to go and play at the Ayer’s Rock Country and Western Music Festival. I am collaborating with Candida Spencer, a very close friend and great artist and she is in the process of illustrating it for me. I have another novella on the boil which starts in Gipsy Hill in the mid-1980s with a hundred mechanical parrots squawking “give me your money!” in a suburban garden. I am also working on the prequel / sequel to At the Dark Hour. I have two chapters of an academic book to write by September and the third volume of Cohabitation Claims text book is due out next year. I have decided to share the writing out with other people on this because it is too much for one person to do. I have also, I hope, recently finalised the next issue of Family Affairs, a magazine that I edit which I hope will be reaching our subscribers’ trays this week.

TRC: Would you like to add anything else?

John:I am a huge fan of David Bowie and I liked, in particular, the way that he would always seek to collaborate on his future work.

LIGHTNING ROUND

Favorite Food
Tuna

Favorite Dessert
Summer (red) berries covered in melted white chocolate

Favorite TV Show
Death in Paradise

Last Movie You Saw
Source Code

Dark or Milk Chocolate
Milk Chocolate

Secret Celebrity Crush
Ingrid Bergman

Last Vacation Destination
Iran

Do you have any pets?
Two cats: Dooley Wilson and Monty Wilson. Dooley is a black cat.

Last book you read
A Gentleman in Moscow by Amor Towles

TRC: Thank you John for taking the time to answer our questions. Congratulations on your the release of AT THE DARK HOUR. We wish you much success.

Tuesday 17thJuly

Behind Closed Doors Book Review

Wednesday 18thJuly

Belleandthenovel

Thursday 19thJuly

Short Book and Scribes

Friday 20thJuly

Bound 2 Escape

Evermore Books 

Monday 23rdJuly

Blue Striped Square

Tuesday 24thJuly

Celticlady Reviews

Wednesday 25thJuly

Portable Magic

The Reading Café

Thursday 26thJuly

The Writing Greyhound

Friday 27thJuly

Donna’s Book Blog

John Wilson’s publicist is graciously offering a  paper copy of AT THE DARK HOUR to TWO (2) lucky commentators at The Reading Cafe

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Dirty Sexy Player (Dirty Games Duet #1) by Laurelin Paige-Review & Excerpt Tour

DIRTY SEXY PLAYER (Dirty Games Duet #1) by Laurelin Paige-Review & Excerpt  Tour

DIRTY SEXY PLAYER
Manwhore #5
by Laurelin Paige
Release Date: July 23, 2018
Genre: adult, contemporary, erotic, romance

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / B&N / KOBO / Chapters Indigo /

RELEASE DATE: July 23, 2018

Weston King knows how to play. But wild nights and owning an extensive collection of women’s panties don’t carry the thrill they once did, so when his business partner Donovan suggests an outrageous plan to allow them to take over their competition, Wes takes him up on the offer. The crazy idea? Marry the competitor.

Elizabeth Dyson, the bride-to-be in question, is on board with the plan. She wants access to her trust fund and can only get it once she marries. Each has something the other wants – all they have to do is pretend to like each other well enough to tie the knot.

Only trouble is, playing fiancé to Elizabeth isn’t quite that simple. Wes finds her sexy and brilliant…and soon wishes their engagement wasn’t fake at all. Not that he’d ever tell her that.

But a lover boy like Wes can only stand an empty bed for so long…and even the best of players has to put down his cards eventually

••••••••••••

REVIEW: DIRTY SEXY PLAYER is the first instalment in Laurelin Paige’s contemporary, adult DIRTY GAMES erotic, romance duet focusing on businessman and Reach Inc. partner Weston King, and twenty-five year old Dyson Empire heiress Elizabeth Dyson. Weston King and his business partner were first introduced to the reader in the author’s Dirty Duet Series. I am not quite sure where in the time line of this particular series the Dirty Duet series takes place but considering the premise of both, there is a possible cross-over and parallel story.You do not have to have read the Dirty Duet to understand or follow Dirty Sexy Player.

Told from dual first person points of view (Elizabeth and Weston) DIRTY SEXY PLAYER (first released in audio April 2018) follows the enemies to lovers/ fake romance-marriage trope between businessman Weston King, and Dyson Empire heiress Elizabeth Dyson. Upon the death of Elizabeth’s father Dell Dyson, founder, CEO and majority shareholder of Dyson Media, Elizabeth became the sole heir to the bulk of his fortune but circumstances prevent Elizabeth from taking over as her father added a misogynistic provision that Elizabeth must be twenty-nine or married before she is able to gain control. With her father’s cousin slowly dismantling the Dyson Empire, Elizabeth was desperate to secure her share of the family business. Enter Weston King, who, with the not so subtle push from his business partner Donovan Kincaid, reluctantly offers his hand in marriage in an effort to help Elizabeth gain control of Dyson Media, that in return merges Dyson advertising subsidiary with Reach Inc. What ensues is the acrimonious relationship between Elizabeth and Weston that is continuously impacted by jealousy, subversion, betrayal, secrets, lies and presumed expectations.

Weston King is a player who wants nothing to do with marrying Elizabeth Dyson, a woman he deems unworthy of his attention and time but desperate times call for desperate measures when Donovan makes Weston an offer he cannot refuse. Elizabeth isn’t happy about a marriage of (in)convenience but if it means saving her father’s company from a complete dismantling then a feisty Elizabeth is ready to do anything including marrying a man whose dislike for our heroine is palpable and heart breaking. Immaturity, misunderstanding and a distinct lack of communication are only some of the obstacles for our leading couple.

The relationship between Weston and Elizabeth is caustic, antagonistic and acidic. Weston’s belligerent attitude is off-putting, and his on-going need to throw his past sexual conquests into his fake-fiance’s face are petulant and immature. From the outset, their palpable sexual attraction is disguised by the bitter and testy back and forth. Elizabeth wants a no-sex relationship but all good ideas are overcome by want and need. The $ex scenes are intimate, erotic and intense.

We are re-introduced to Weston’s business partner Donovan Kincaid, an alpha male who controls Weston like a puppet on a string; Weston’s friends with benefits Sabrina Lind; fellow business partner Nate Sinclair; and Elizabeth’s mother Angela Dyson.

DIRTY SEXY PLAYER focuses on the hate-love relationship between a woman desperate enough to embark on a long-term business and marriage arrangement with a man who despises the ground upon which she walks. Faking her love for Weston is complicated by Weston’s need to hurt the woman with whom he is falling in love. The premise is spirited, clever and edgy: the characters are combative and colorful; the romance is provocative but struggles in the face of preconceived notions and the inconvenient truth. DIRTY SEXY PLAYER ends on a cliff-hanger, you have been warned.

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Sandy

The excerpt is intended for mature readers 18+ due to language and sexual content

I looked at the windows past him, trying to distract myself. Lights flashed and swirled around the dance floor in time to the beat, the only part of the music which made it into the sanctuary of the bubble room. I could tell it was crowded, but I couldn’t make out faces the way they could probably make out ours. “I don’t know if anyone’s looking,” I said.

“Don’t worry about them. Just focus on what you’re doing.”

Easy for him to say. He wasn’t facing them. He was only looking at me.

Nope. I couldn’t think about that either. Just had to focus on the task at hand.

I closed my eyes. “So just pretend that I… That we are… That under my dress…” I couldn’t even say it.

Weston leaned forward and murmured near my ear. “Yes, pretend that under your dress you are not wearing any panties. I have my dick out. I’m working you, and you are showing me exactly how you like it. Now go.”

Just like that, my panties were damp.

I didn’t know if he was saying those things to loosen me up or to get a rise out of me, either was possible.

Whatever his intent, it did the trick. He set the scene. I felt my face flush like the women in the videos as I imagined him rubbing his crown against my slit before nudging his tip inside and then burying himself to the hilt.

I opened my mouth in a silent gasp, acting out how I was sure it would feel. Good. It would feel so good.

This was so…weird. So hot and sexy and arousing and weird.

I wondered if he was feeling it too, feeling turned on, or if it was just me. It wasn’t like I could ask though, and knowing probably wouldn’t help my performance anyway.

So I concentrated on me. Focused on the task.

“Do I move or something?” I bucked my hips forward and felt the friction against my crotch as it rubbed the fly of his pants.

Mmm.

“Yeah,” he said breathlessly. “That’s good. That motion. Just like that.”

“Okay. Okay.” I rocked against him again, and again, my hips tilting back and forth, my clit brushing against his fly. Every time, stroking and kindling a fire in a fireplace I hadn’t had cleaned for some time. I spread my thighs a little wider and braced my knees against the bench so I could swing my pelvis all the way forward, in and out, in and…

Oh.

I froze. “Is that—?” But I didn’t have to ask. There was most definitely a fat, thick ridge pressed against the crotch panel of my panties. I guess that answered the question of whether he was feeling it too.

My eyes flew open. “Oh my God!”

“Look,” he said, ready to defend himself. “There’s an extremely attractive woman sitting on my lap. I cannot help what happens to my cock. It has a mind of its own.”

A really big mind of its own.

In 2013, Laurelin Paige self-published her first novel. Her husband was just laid off, she had three kids, one with special needs, and they had just filed for bankruptcy so she needed this novel to work. Less than 1 year later, her debut novel, Fixed on You, was at the top of the bestseller lists and was named one of the top ten selling books of 2014 by Publishers Weekly (the only self-published book to do so) and a Top Ten Favorite Read of 2014 by People Magazine. Her successive self-published novels have been smash hits with readers.

Laurelin Paige is the NY Times and USA Today Bestselling Author of the Fixed Trilogy. She’s a sucker for a good romance and gets giddy anytime there’s kissing, much to the embarrassment of her three daughters.

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Who’s The Daddy (Dirty DILFs #3) by Taryn Quinn-a review

WHO’S THE DADDY (Dirty DILFS #3) by Taryn Quinn

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / B&N / KOBO / Chapters Indigo /

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date July 23, 2018

I’m a good girl. I teach little kids, brake for squirrels, and always donate to cookie drives though I so don’t need the extra ten pounds.

My sympathetic nature led to me sleeping with my ex after his granny’s funeral. The next day, he dumped me—again—via text, and I decided I needed a fresh start.

Luckily, I found a new apartment near my new school. Yay me. I also found myself unexpectedly naked with Dare, the smoking hot, single dad mechanic who works next door.

Dare did more than clean my spark plugs that night, let me tell you.

Then my worlds collide when Dare shows up at his son’s parent-teacher conference.

Next thing I know, surprise! Pregnant.

Dare knows I’m worried about my job at the Catholic school. And about how I’m going to handle the baby that might be his.

Please, God, let it be his.

I just never expected Dare to propose marriage. And he wants me to become his wife in all ways.

Especially the Biblical ones.

••••••••••••

REVIEW:  WHO’S THE DADDY is the third instalment in the contemporary, adult DIRTY DILFS erotic, romance series co-authored by Taryn Elliott and Cari Quinn aka Taryn Quinn. This is former race car driver, auto mechanic and single father Charles ‘Dare’ Kramer, and primary school teacher Kelsey Ford’s story line. WHO’S THE DADDY can be read as a stand alone without any difficulty. Any important information from the previous story lines is revealed where necessary.

Told from dual first person perspectives (Kelsey and Dare) WHO’S THE DADDY follows the building relationship between former race car driver, auto mechanic and single father Charles ‘Dare’ Kramer, and primary school teacher Kelsey Ford. Crescent Cove is the perfect place for Kelsey Ford as she embarks on a new school year filled with surprises and fun including her friends with benefits relationship with auto mechanic Dare Kramer, the man who stars in all of her fantasies and dreams. Never expecting to meet Dare at a parent-teacher interview throws Kelsey into a tailspin including the problematic situation of dating the father of one of her students. As the weeks pass, Kelsey’s ongoing flu-like symptoms force Dare to face the truth that the woman he’s dating could very well be pregnant. What ensues is the building relationship between Dare and Kelsey, as they embark on a quick lust to love romance towards their happily ever after.

The relationship between Dare and Kelsey begins as a one-night stand but turns into something more. Kelsey’s last boyfriend walked away wanting to find himself, while Dare’s ex-wife wanted nothing to do with settling down to raise a family. The $ex scenes are intimate, erotic and intense.

WHO’S THE DADDY is a fun and sexy read with a wonderful group of sassy friends whose back and forth, humorous comments and quirky styles are spirited and energetic. All of the previous story line couples play secondary and supporting characters including Seth and Ally (Have My Baby #1), and Oliver and Sage (Claim My Baby #2), as well as the introduction of Dare’s precocious son Weston, his younger brother Gage, and Kelsey’s sister Rylee. Dare and Rylee’s story line is next in PIT STOP: BABY.

Reading Order and Previous Reviews
Have My Baby
Claim My Baby
Who’s The Daddy

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Sandy

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The Naked Truth by Vi Keeland-Review Tour

THE NAKED TRUTH by Vi Keeland-Review Tour

Amazon.com / B&N / KOBO / Chapters Indigo / Google Play / iTunes

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date: July 23, 2018

It was just a typical Monday.

Until the big boss asked me to make the pitch for a prospective new client.

After two years on shaky ground at work because of my screw up, an opportunity to impress the senior partners was just what I needed.

Or so I thought…

Until I walked into the conference room and collided with the man I was supposed to pitch.

My coffee spilled, my files tumbled to the ground, and I almost lost my balance.

And that was the good part of my day.

Because the gorgeous man crouched down and looking at me like he wanted to eat me alive, was none other than my ex, Gray Westbrook.

A man who I’d only just begun to move on from.

A man who my heart despised—yet my body obviously still had other ideas about.

A man who was as charismatic and confident as he was sexy.

Somehow, I managed to make it through my presentation ignoring his intense stare.

Although it was impossible to ignore all the dirty things he whispered into my ear right after I was done.

But there was no way I was giving him another chance, especially now that he was a client
…was there?

••••••••••••

REVIEW: THE NAKED TRUTH by Vi Keeland is a contemporary, adult, stand alone erotic, romance story line focusing on corporate CEO and Wall Street investor Grayson Westbrook, and attorney Layla Hutton.

Told from dual first person perspectives (Layla and Gray) using present day and memories from the past, THE NAKED TRUTH follows the second chance relationship and romance between corporate CEO and investor Grayson Westbrook, and attorney Layla Hutton. Two years earlier while on probation for violating attorney-client privilege Layla Hutton was sentenced to two hundred hours of community service at the minimum-security prison for white collar criminals. Enter corporate CEO and investor Grayson Westbrook, a man serving a three-year sentence for a crime he did not commit. Fast forward to present day wherein Layla will come face to face with the man who broke her heart but a man hoping for a second chance at a happily ever after. What ensues is the rekindling romance between Layla and Gray, and the potential fall-out as Gray’s past, a past that all but destroyed his life, has something of Gray’s he knew nothing about.

THE NAKED TRUTH is a story of betrayal, secrets and lies; of second chances, misunderstanding and the undeniable truth of attraction and palpable sexual chemistry. The back and forth, yin and yang between Layla and Gray is fraught with the painful and heart breaking memories of the past-a past that is about to come full-circle for our story line hero. Layla Hutton is a strong, independent woman who found herself caught between the proverbial rock and a hard place, risking her license to protect a client in trouble. Gray Westbrook served three years for a crime he did not commit but in doing so lost everything including the woman he thought he had loved.

THE NAKED TRUTH is a flirty and inspiring story with sexy, sassy and determined characters. The premise is spirited; the romance is passionate and intense but I dislike the use of a certain four-letter word I feel is unnecessary in romance story lines. Vi Keeland writes clever and breathtaking stories that will leave you breathless by the end of the book.

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Sandy

Vi Keeland is a native New Yorker with three children that occupy most of her free time, which she complains about often, but wouldn’t change for the world. She is an attorney and a New York Times, Wall Street Journal, & USA Today Best Selling author. Over the last three years, ten of her titles have appeared on the USA Today Bestseller lists and three on the New York Times Bestseller lists.

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Forged in Flood by Dahlia Donovan-Review, Excerpt & Giveaway

FORGED IN FLOOD by Dahlia Donovan-Review, Excerpt & Giveaway

FORGED IN FLOOD
by Dahlia Donovan
Release Date: July 14, 2018
Genre: contemporary, adult, M/M/M, erotic, romance

Amazon.com / Amazon.ca / B&N / KOBO / Chapters Indigo / Apple

ABOUT THE BOOK: Release Date July 14, 2018

When one drunken night forever scars three best friends, will they ever find a way to pick up the pieces?

Eaten up with guilt, Ivan Black spends ten years hiding from the world. He retreats to his family forge to wallow in misery. Alone. So lonely his heart aches with it.

Wesley Cook and Rolland Spence have been together since university. They struggle through the physical scars of the accident, building a life in the ruins of their dreams. They find happiness but continue to miss their angry ginger Viking—Ivan.

In all the anger of wasted years, the three men find a way to forge a relationship as hot as the fires in the smithy.

Forged in Flood is a British contemporary M/M/M romance. With heartache, hot men with foul mouths, and plenty of heat, enjoy getting to know Ivan, Wesley, and Roland.

•••••••••••••

REVIEW FORGED IN FLOOD by Dahlia Donovan is a contemporary, adult, M/M/M erotic, romance story line focusing on three friends-Wesley Cook, Rolland Spence, and Ivan Black- whose lives spiralled out of control ten years earlier following an horrific drunk, driving incident that left each man emotionally and physically scarred but none more so than Ivan Black, the driver of the car that destroyed their lives.

NOTE: FORGED IN FLOOD is an erotic romance story line with M/M/M/ sexual scenarios.

Told from three third person perspectives (Wes, Rolland and Ivan) FORGED IN FLOOD focuses on the rekindling relationship, second chance romance between blacksmith Ivan Black, and podcasters Wesley Cook and Rolland Spence. Ten years earlier, the three university rugby stars, had fallen in love with one another but a night of drinking followed by a drunk driving accident saw Ivan Black run from the men who had stolen his heart. Fast forward to present day wherein a freak rainstorm has threatened to wash away everything Ivan holds dear including the memories he so desperately tries to remember. Enter Wesley Cook and Rolland Spence-Ivan’s former lovers, and the men who refuse to allow their mate to wither and die.

FORGED IN FLOOD is a quick read that follows the on-going volatile and emotional breakdown of Ivan Black as he is unable to come to terms with the guilt from the accident that nearly took their lives. Locked away, far from family and friends, Ivan struggles with his inability to recall the smallest events but does daily battles with the memories of the night that destroyed them all. Wes and Rolland’s continuing efforts to bring Ivan back into the fold is once again met with caustic rejection from the man that they love.

The wonderful secondary and supporting characters include Ivan’s brother George, and his sister Sarah, as well as Sarah’s over-protective husband Remi. The family knows Ivan misses the men that he loves but they too, are unable, to pull Ivan from his self-imposed purgatory.

FORGED IN FLOOD is a story of second chances; of one man’s battle to forgive himself; and two men who are desperate to reconnect with the man that they love The premise engaging and thought-provoking; the characters are dynamic and animated.

Copy supplied for review

Reviewed by Sandy

The Blacks of Boscastle had run the forge since before the sixteenth century. All the men and many of the women in his family had been blacksmiths by trade. Ivan had always felt particularly proud to follow in their footsteps. They’d worked through rains, wars, and plagues.
I’m not going to be the first to run over a spot of bad weather.
There was one major downside to everyone in the village having fled—there were no distractions. Ivan had far too much time on his hands to think. His mind went back in time to an event best left untouched. One dismal night, one massive car crash, and three young lives drastically altered forever.
He’d restricted himself to Boscastle and the smithy since then, promising never to take risks ever again. And he hadn’t, not really. His life had become incredibly boring and predictable.
Ivan gritted his teeth and slammed down the hammer in his hand to stave off the onslaught of memories. “Sodding rain.”
As a young man, Ivan and his two best mates had been the pride of their university. Rugby stars in the making; all three had already signed contracts to turn professional upon graduation. The offers hinged on them staying healthy and keeping their heads in the game.
One accident had ruined it for all three of them.
All my fucking fault.
Of the three young men, Ivan had gotten off easiest as far as long-term issues. He’d suffered a severe concussion along with cuts and bruises. The accident left him with memory problems, a short fuse on his temper, and blindingly painful migraines; his balance had also been greatly affected by the damage to his brain.
His mate, Wes, had the injuries that were most visible. His face, hands, and arms had been left covered with scars. He’d also lost the sight in his right eye.
The third of their trio, Rolly, had gone through multiple surgeries on his left leg. Even with the best care, it would never be the same. He’d walk with a limp for the rest of his life.
Three promising sports careers flushed down the toilet by one foolish mistake. Everyone consoled Ivan by reminding him that any of them could’ve been behind the wheel. They’d driven drunk a thousand times before and gotten lucky each time.
Their luck had simply run out. They’d taken their lives (and the lives of anyone else on the road) into their own stupid, drunken hands. The car had flown around a corner on a rain-slicked road and rolled several times before crashing into a tree.
For Ivan, his dreams going up in smoke hadn’t been the worst part. Not a day went by where he didn’t regret losing his best mates. Guilt, more than anything, kept him from trying to breach the gap and contact them.
He’d hidden himself away in Cornwall to avoid ever having to see either man again.
Fucking enough, you fuckwitted moron.
Beating yourself up won’t change anything.
Sod this sodding rain.

Dahlia Donovan wrote her first romance series after a crazy dream about shifters and damsels in distress. She prefers irreverent humour and unconventional characters. An autistic and occasional hermit, her life wouldn’t be complete without her husband and her massive collection of books and video games.

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