Archives for March 2018

The Beauty of Forever by Elyzabeth M. VaLey

March 15, 2018 By 1 Comment


The Beauty of Forever by Elyzabeth M. VaLey
A Christmas Realm Tale Book 1
Publisher: Evernight Publishing
Genre: Contemporary, Holiday, Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Paranormal
Length: Short story (89 pages)
Other: M/F
Rating: 4.5 Stars
Reviewed by Sorrel

Once dead, always dead.

Christopher Beaufort works in what could easily be the most cheerful place on earth, Santa’s Christmas Realm, but as a vampire, he is nothing more than a shadow among the living.

Worn out by the demands of his job as Chief Toy Officer, Santa assigns a human woman to help him, Samantha Kraus. Tantalized by the fiery red-head, Christopher makes it his business to seduce her, but as he does, something within him begins to stir.
To know more about kamagra, its benefits and will advise others to consume these viagra in australia herbal pills for curing sexual disorders, these do not carry any side effect. Fort Lauderdale counseling can be a discount viagra very challenging alternative for many family members. Safety information generic: Avoid taking viagra on line try that pharmacy shop with more reliability because they have deep belief of experiencing only positive results on their erection problems.Millions of worldwide users have made Kamagra their choice for the treatment. Immediately take the help of your doctor as it might cause harm to your own viagra samples cheap health.
Life is a gift in which every moment counts.

When Samantha Kraus accepted the job of assistant manager at Santa’s, she expected elves, fairies and maybe some shifters, but definitely not vampires. Least of all did she imagine her boss would be one of them or that she’d be attracted to him.

Though she tries to remain professional, Samantha finds herself falling for Christopher. But, can a vampire’s heart ever beat again?

Not just a romance but a holiday romance set in the North Pole with Santa, elves, vampires and more…

It’s a whole other world with magic! It definitely surprised me when reading about vampires at the North Pole. It was a first for me. It is not just an erotic novel, it’s much more than that and I loved that aspect of the book.

When Santa appoints a human, Samantha, to work under Christopher, it was apparent that he did not like the decision, even if he liked her. However, with every page more of the wonders of the North Pole showed up and I became as astonished as Samantha with the new world. I would have loved to have read more about their world and the different species that live together.

Samantha and Christopher are attracted to each other but all Samantha wants is to try to focus on her work and making his work easier. That is not easy. With them working together, it was inevitable that they get together. That being said their relationship heals each other. The climax to the relationship wrapped up nicely and it was satisfying to see them go through the motions of positivity and end up with each other.

This book is a wonderful story for a Christmas romance that any erotic reader would absolutely love.

Filed Under: Erotic Romance, Reviews Tagged With: , , , , , , , ,

No Getting Over You by Cerise Deland

March 15, 2018 By Leave a Comment


No Getting Over You by Cerise Deland
Publisher: The Wild Rose Press
Genre: Contemporary
Length: Full length (151 pages)
Other: M/F
Rating: 3 stars
Reviewed by Fern

Viv LaClare is so over being the matron…the widow. She wants to live again, laugh, maybe even dabble in a little affair…if she can find the right guy. Enter the studly Navy SEAL designated to drive her around town on wedding errands. She’s hot for his body, but when her newly healed heart gets ideas, she’s not sure she can risk it on a man with one of the deadliest jobs in the world.
Erectile dysfunction is also sildenafil 100mg tablets known to a lot of people by not just advertising but by show casing its effects and that is what made a large number of males in the United Kingdom order the medicine online to save their time and ear many benefits that does not exist with conventional mode of purchase. Kamagra is the most robertrobb.com acquisition de viagra renowned medication for men’s erection problems. Now that is indeed a Click Here levitra samples fast treatment for your problem. Since these drugs are visit that viagra cialis samples given only on prescription by a doctor, your medical history and background might be checked.
Britt Ackermann is done with one-night stands and women who party with a SEAL for bragging rights. He wants a lady with guts, sass, and more than a lick of sense. He has doubts a woman like that exists. So when he meets the Matron of Honor at his teammate’s wedding, she hooks him at ‘hello.’ He wants all the nights she’ll give him even if he can’t promise her tomorrow.

Viv has been taking on more work and more responsibility in her job and while she’s truly delighted her co-worker and best friend, Abby, has found the Navy SEAL of her dreams, it makes her feel a little tired and lonely to see Abby so blissful. When Britt knocked on Viv’s door to help her with all the last minute running around for Abby’s wedding he had no idea how much his life would change. Wounded in combat with his fellow Navy SEALs Britt is determined to get through his duties as best man then carve out a new life for himself. While he hadn’t been looking, after meeting Viv he knows he wants to include her in all his future plans.

I found this to be a lovely, slow-burning style of love story. While there are a few steamy sex scenes, I feel most traditional romance readers should find this a good, slow-paced style of story and not find the descriptive sex too overpowering. Almost the whole story revolves around Viv and Britt and their helping their friends, Abby and Nick, throughout their wedding. The pace is easy enough I found myself half way through almost wishing for the wedding to be over so I could see how Viv and Britt dealt with reality and “normal” life – not while they were constantly thrown together with the million and one pre-wedding duties they both needed to do as Best Man and Matron of Honor. While the preparations and wedding itself only took a few days it really felt to me a bit like a soap bubble out of time and each of their real life, so while their attraction and connection during this intense time together was great, it didn’t give me a lot of confidence of how they would build a solid and lasting relationship that would remain steady outside of this small space of time.

The characters of Viv and Britt were interesting and had a number of complex layers that I really liked. I also loved the strong cast of secondary characters, Abby and Nick, their team-mates and family. I could easily see a number of future characters for follow-up stories down the line and wouldn’t be surprised if there are more of these to come. While the sex was graphic I didn’t feel like it over-shadowed the story itself. There was a lot of story both before and after the main intimacy and this helped it feel a lot better rounded as a story to me.

While I would have preferred to see Viv and Britt develop their relationship a bit more outside of the wedding setting, this was otherwise a great, slow-burning and character-centric story that was both sweet and spicy. I feel it should appeal to a wide range and readers and I’ll be interested in further stories to see some of the strong secondary characters develop.

Filed Under: Erotic Romance, Reviews Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Heart of Glass by Ari McKay – Spotlight

March 15, 2018 By Leave a Comment

>

Long and Short Reviews welcomes Ari McKay, who is visiting with us today to celebrate the recent release of Heart of Glass, the third book in the Lawyers in Love series.

Hello, everyone! We’d like to thank everyone at Long and Short reviews for the opportunity to spend a little time with you today. We are collectively Ari McKay, and our latest release is Heart of Glass, the third story in the Lawyers in Love series from Dreamspinner Press.

If y’all don’t mind, I’m not going to say much about the story itself, because the blurb covers all the major points pretty well. Heart of Glass is our 17th story with Dreamspinner Press, and I’d like to talk about our writing, and more importantly, YOUR writing.

Like almost all authors, McKay and I were readers long before we were writers. Reading is the first place that writers learn their craft, and part of me is absolutely delighted at the thought that maybe, just maybe, someone who reads our stories might use them as the inspiration to start writing themselves. Because that, to me, is the mark of a really good writer – one whose readers look at their work and think “Hey! I could do this, too!”

That might be a little counterintuitive, I suppose. I mean, you would think it was the really great writers, like Poe, or Shakespeare, or F. Scott Fitzgerald and the like who really inspired writers. Maybe they do for some, and I personally love Shakespeare and Poe. But they weren’t who drove me to want to write. My inspiration instead came from genre writers. Asimov and Clarke. McCaffrey and Drake. Rowling and Herbert. Those are the writers I set out to emulate, because I think when it comes right down to it, McKay and I both consider ourselves less writers and more storytellers. There are plenty of literary writers whose mastery of language is a high art, but they aren’t necessarily able to touch their readers. That’s the job of a storyteller. I like to think that if I lived a thousand years ago, I’d be one of those people spinning tales by firelight to entertain my family. Because while the words are important, to me the tale itself is the real art form.

Maybe it was all my years of reading and writing fanfiction, but I’m able to look past the mechanics, even grammar and spelling, if the story is a really good one. In many ways I’m more entranced by what the author is trying to say than how they say it. I’m not claiming that spelling, grammar, and a good polish aren’t necessary to be a successful author, because they definitely are. They matter because a lot of people really are turned off by blatant errors, as they should be. But those are things that can be learned, or that a really good and patient editor can help an author find. But the spark has to come from within the writer. All the editing in the world won’t turn a bad tale into a good one, but it can make a good one great.

Every story that we’ve written has come bursting out of us because we felt the need to tell them. If you feel that need, if there is a story inside of you that you just KNOW has to be told, you should write it. Don’t tell yourself you aren’t good enough. Don’t falter because you feel you don’t have technique, or don’t know the exact right words to use. Too many people who would be wonderful authors flounder because they don’t feel they’re “good enough”. Judging your own writing can be really hard. If you want to write, write! If that story inside you is begging to get out and be shared, do it! Share what you’ve written, and be proud of it! You can do it! We did, and now, six years later, we’ve come farther than we ever thought we could. If we can do it, so can you!

To ensure this is the case the powerful viagra sample canada formula is made by a cGMP certified pharmaceuticals manufacturer. Less serious side effects viagra for sale australia may include: warmth or redness in your face, neck, or chest;* runny or stuffy nose;* headache, dizziness;* upset stomach; or* back pain. This is one thing that helps people to love this medication way too much and enjoy it thoroughly, which is why even the younger generation of men facing Erectile Dysfunction (ED) or purchase levitra http://djpaulkom.tv/ghost-in-the-machine-dj-pauls-self-driving-car-is-nuts/ male impotence prefers chewable Kamagra Soft Tabs from Ajanta Pharmaceuticals over the other products can cause effects on the psychology as this product can. The best and most cheap viagra without prescription recognized treatment for low back pain. Thanks for giving us a few minutes of your time. We love to hear from readers, writers, bloggers, anyone with a love of good stories. Please feel free to contact us if you have anything at all you’d like to say!

Fear of being like his unfaithful father has put high walls around senior litigator Asher Caldwell’s heart. Can former district attorney Zach Richardson knock them down to reveal the passionate man beneath the commitment-phobic workaholic, or will Zach’s own jealousy destroy what they’re trying to build?

A new life and a new love—that’s what Zach’s hoping for when he leaves the DA’s office and lets his friends give him a makeover. But the jury’s still out on whether the experiment was a success. His new look gets the attention of his boss and secret crush, Asher Caldwell, and leads to a seduction. Unfortunately, to Zach’s horror he learns that Asher assumed he was a paid escort. Asher is equally mortified to discover he had sex with an employee. Even so, the encounter meant a lot to both men, and they want to give dating a shot. Their romance born out of mistaken identity might work if Zack can trust Asher to be satisfied with the love of only one man… and if Asher can trust himself.

About the Author: Ari McKay is the professional pseudonym for Arionrhod and McKay, who have been writing together for over a decade. Their collaborations encompass a wide variety of romance genres, including contemporary, fantasy, science fiction, gothic, and action/adventure. Their work includes the Blood Bathory series of paranormal novels, the Herc’s Mercs series, as well as two historical Westerns: Heart of Stone and Finding Forgiveness. When not writing, they can often be found scheming over costume designs or binge watching TV shows together.

Arionrhod is a systems engineer by day who is eagerly looking forward to (hopefully) becoming a full time writer in the not-too-distant future. Now that she is an empty-nester, she has turned her attentions to finding the perfect piece of land to build a fortress in preparation for the zombie apocalypse, and baking (and eating) far too many cakes.

McKay is an English teacher who has been writing for one reason or another most of her life. She also enjoys knitting, reading, cooking, and playing video games. She has been known to knit in public. Given she has the survival skills of a gnat, she’s relying on Arionrhod to help her survive the zombie apocalypse.

Website | Facebook | Twitter | Goodreads

Buy the book at Dreamspinner Press or Amazon.

Filed Under: Erotic Romance, Guest Blogs Tagged With:

Where My Stories Come From by Andrew Grey – Guest Blog

March 15, 2018 By Leave a Comment


Long and Short Reviews welcomes Andrew Grey who is visiting with us to celebrate the recent release of Running to You, an M/M contemporary romance from Dreamspinner Press.

I get asked a lot where I get my stories from and the best answer I can give is that I have some kind of well of them deep in my soul and they bubble up through it. I know it sounds enigmatic, but it’s the best answer I have. Usually when I’m working on a story and as I draw to the end, another set of characters begins pushing their way forward in my head. I can actually see them putting their hands up sometimes saying, “its my turn now.” I love it when that happens because it means that all is right with the world and my head is ready to flow from one story to the next. That doesn’t always happen and there are times when I have a sot back, take a few days, talk to Dominic a lot, and find something that will spark an idea. Running to You was one of those stories that took a little searching for, but once it found me, Billy Ray and Carlos really bowled me over completely and took my breath away. Love truly can bloom in the depths of winter.

Home, love, and possibilities he never imagined are waiting for Billy Joe to claim them. But first he needs to escape the horrors of his past.
A twisted act of cruelty and prejudice drives Billy Joe from his Mississippi home, and he makes it as far as Pennsylvania—where his car breaks down just as the year’s first snowstorm blows in. Fortunately, Carlos is there to lend a hand.

Carlos is no stranger to hardship. His family rejected him for being gay, but with determination, he put himself through school and became a librarian. Carlos sees the same willpower in Billy, and he wants to help Billy and his son succeed in a new life that is very different from the one they left behind. With his support, they start to adjust, and before long, both men want more than encouragement from each other. They want the chance for a future together, but their families have other ideas… and Billy’s will stop at nothing to get what they want.

Enjoy an Excerpt

As they passed into Pennsylvania, the snow began coming down faster. The day was growing to an end, the light fading fast. He checked the map at a rest area and intended to make it to Harrisburg before stopping. It was maybe an hour away, and he knew he’d be able to find a place to stay. Tyler was hungry, so Billy Joe passed him a few crackers and a bottle with a little juice inside, and kept going.

The snow grew thicker, reminding Billy Joe of how unfamiliar he was with driving on roads like this. At home, the few times it had snowed, everyone just stayed inside until the sun melted it away again and then went on with their business. This snow didn’t seem like it was going to behave that way.

He saw the sign for Shippensburg and got off the highway, traveling very slowly. He drove into a business area and pulled into the Walmart parking lot. Billy Joe wrapped Tyler in a blanket and carried him into the store, where he found the section for winter wear and bought them each a warm coat. Then he got them something to eat, and they returned to the car. He made it back to the freeway, intending to continue the last little bit for the night, when the car lurched and then cut out.
Owing to these properties it helps in erectile dysfunction, low libido in men, prescription viagra prices weakness in male organ and weak erection. Acidity can lead to gallbladder stones, levitra no prescription as well. Close Link Between Heart Health and Erectile Health Ultimately, what is good for cardiovascular health is also deteriorated due to sedentary buy viagra italy lifestyle, intake of alcohol, smoking, medication, diabetes, stress, low libido, anxiety, depression and fatigue. The veins stay at that cialis 5mg sale zone for more than 4 to 5 hours.
Billy Joe coasted to the side of the road and pulled to a stop as all the lights inside the car went dark. The wipers stopped and snow built up on the windshield and back window, the cold creeping in as the heat ceased blowing in.

“I’m cold,” Tyler said after a few minutes.

“I know, honey.” He got the blanket and put it over him, trying to figure out what to do. He needed to get help and had his phone, but who did he call? Billy Joe was well away from anyone he might know, which was good and bad. He didn’t want to call the auto club in case his parents could trace him. He was just about to give up and call anyway when headlights appeared behind him, coming to stop.

About the Author:Andrew grew up in western Michigan with a father who loved to tell stories and a mother who loved to read them. Since then he has lived throughout the country and traveled throughout the world. He has a master’s degree from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and works in information systems for a large corporation.

Andrew’s hobbies include collecting antiques, gardening, and leaving his dirty dishes anywhere but in the sink (particularly when writing) He considers himself blessed with an accepting family, fantastic friends, and the world’s most supportive and loving partner. Andrew currently lives in beautiful, historic Carlisle, Pennsylvania.

Amazon Author Page | Barnes and Noble Page | Dreamspinner Press | Facebook | Facebook Group | Goodreads | Twitter | Website

Buy the book at Dreamspinner Press, Amazon, or Barnes and Noble.

Filed Under: Guest Blogs, Romance Tagged With: , ,

The Bachelor’s Unexpected Family by Lisa Carter

March 14, 2018 By Leave a Comment


The Bachelor’s Unexpected Family by Lisa Carter
Publisher: Harlequin Love Inspired
Genre: Contemporary, Inspirational
Length: Full length (220 pages)
Heat Level: Sweet
Rating: 4 Stars
Reviewed by Xeranthemum

Second Chance Family

Young widow Kristina Montgomery moves to Kiptohanock, Virginia, hoping it will give her and her teenage son, Gray, a fresh start. She longs for the peace and quiet only a small town can provide. But her plans are thwarted by her new neighbor, Canyon Collier, a former Coast Guard pilot and a crop duster. Gray is instantly drawn to the pilot and his teenage niece, Jade—and Kristina’s not far behind. She and Canyon are soon bonding over parenting their charges and their spark becomes undeniable. Could it be that the spirited pilot is just what Kristina needs to teach her heart to soar again?

A case in point is the medication for a long time without experiencing withdrawal or tolerance problems. free prescription for levitra Many women experience irregular menstruation, and they treatment it a side effects of levitra little thing, but they ignore the possible danger for irregular menstruation. This is one viagra uk of chinese herbal treatments. uk tadalafil It is a condition, in which a man is unable to provide sufficient number of healthy sperms, your dream of owning a child becomes futile. Love is being thwarted by the past; a widow’s grief and guilt, and a man’s burden from his family’s reputation. One needs to let go and the other needs to believe he’s not defined by the choices of others. The thread woven throughout The Bachelor’s Unexpected Family is faith. Faith in dreams, in neighbors, in love and in God, can work miracles even when they are no bigger than a bouquet of flowers.

This is a very sweet romance between Kristina and Canyon. I enjoyed watching them when they were together. When it was just them away from everything else; when they forgot about their hang-ups, worries and their tendency to overthink things; I got the solid sense that they truly would be perfect and wonderful for each other. Their easy camaraderie and playful banter was engaging.

I liked how Canyon took to the role of being a parent and how Kristina’s son, Gray, made her realize the rut she had gotten them both in. Jade, Canyon’s niece, and Gray are great secondary characters. As for the hero and heroine, they each had a gaping hole in their hearts that needed healing. The heroine lost her first husband and couldn’t find a reason to move forward, and Canyon never had a healthy family role model so it left him feeling like he was on the outside looking in. How could he be a good father figure to Jade? After seeing the love of a mother for her son, as Kris is to Gray, he felt his insecurity more keenly. Those levels of heartache aren’t a good thing and the author made that very clear. Ms. Carter also made it quite apparent that God has some definite plans and he is working through the townspeople of Kiptohanock. There were some wonderful people there including Kris’s brother, but Margaret especially so.

The one moment where I felt the book didn’t reach me is the moment supposedly where Kris has this great epiphany. It sounded so powerful and firm, and there was this great moment of opportunity, and then … dud. Seriously? She choked? All that and she couldn’t say the words? Grrrr. It’s a good thing there was at least one little kiss in the story that showed me that the chemistry is strong enough to stir their passions so they’d work harder at getting together.

There’s a little drama to spice things up; again showcasing the strong points in each of the main characters as they face their worst fears. It was a relatable plot conflict because high school kids do get into that type of trouble. It was well written and effective.

I’m quite satisfied with the story, the romance and the happily ever after that I found within the pages of The Bachelor’s Unexpected Family. I liked that all the plot threads were tied up, and Kris finally got to touch Canyon’s hair as she’d been wanting to all through the book. Heck, I actually had the itch to do that myself, the writing was that convincing. All in all, this is a really nice romance to spend an afternoon with.

Filed Under: Reviews, Romance Tagged With: , , , , , ,

Her Best Friend’s Husband by Doris O’Connor

March 14, 2018 By Leave a Comment


Her Best Friend’s Husband by Doris O’Connor
Publisher: Evernight Publishing
Genre: Contemporary
Length: Short Story (77 pages)
Other: BDSM, M/F, M/M/F, Ménage, Anal Play, Spanking, Voyeurism
Rating: 4 Stars
Reviewed by Sorrel

Your best friend’s wedding is not the time to realize how much you love him…

Wedding organizer Naomi Young is not only head-over-heels in love with her best friend, she lusts after his husband.

Which is all kinds of wrong—isn’t it? Maybe not. Especially when she discovers the attraction is not as one-sided as she thought.

Although, it might seem a little awkward if you haven’t heard of the idea, benefits delivery overnight viagra can be worth considering. Ginseng is a unique levitra shop uk combination of peptides, biotin, enzymes and volatile oils. The canada viagra generic average tough guy is not likely to express their sexual problems unless pushed. These problems may arise due to psychological aspects rising due to tension and anxiety, family complications, depression, and nervous ailments; due to diseases like diabetes, obesity, high blood pressure, high levels of cholesterol in blood, enlarged prostate, heart disease, clogged blood vessels, intake of alcohol, sleep disorders, smoking and multiple sclerosis. commander levitra this Dom Dawson Monroe has never had a problem going after what he wants. Both he and his new husband Josh Garrison enjoy a woman’s soft touch, so who better to satisfy that need than the one woman Josh is madly in love with? Time to claim them both as his submissives.

Convention be damned. Happiness is to be found in the soft curves of Naomi’s body, as long as they can convince her that this is forever. Only time will tell if the loving twosome can become an even more loving threesome.

A surprise of a lifetime…

Naomi is a dark-skinned woman with curves everywhere who agrees to organize her best friend Josh’s wedding to Dawson. The only thing is she never thought that upon returning they would make a move on her. Both of them!

Dawson is a Dom while Josh and Naomi are both subs. This is a BDSM story. The chemistry between Dawson and Naomi was the first thing I noticed when I started reading the book. There were instances where I was sure he was attracted to her but then there were other occasions where he sounded more annoyed or angry with her. The wedding was a bit confusing but the book also had some off-the-charts sizzling scenes.

The book tried to show how the relationship between Josh and Naomi progressed from best friends to lovers. I would have very much liked to see more of how Josh and Naomi’s relationship changed. A highlight for me was when it showed Naomi and Dawson getting to know each other and becoming more attuned to each other.

The author did a wonderful job in portraying the chemistry between the characters and pulling the reader into the love story even though this book had a short length. There definitely was a romance here.

This is a smooth and steamy read and I would love to read more about these characters.

Filed Under: Erotic Romance, Reviews Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , ,

Top 5 Things I Wished I’d Known by Laura Lascarso – Guest Blog and Giveaway

March 14, 2018 By Leave a Comment


Long and Short Reviews welcomes Laura Lascarso who is visiting with us to celebrate the recent release of When Everything is Blue. Enter the Rafflecopter at the end of the post for a chance to win a $20 Amazon gift card.

Top 5 Things I wished I’d known before I was published and one bonus!

1. There be rejection. I had been warned going into publishing that rejection is a part of the process, but I was continually surprised at both the volume of rejections and the range of reasons why my work was getting rejected. I’ve since moved from mainstream to indie publishing, which has significantly improved my spirits, but in the meantime it never hurts to build up a thick skin.

2. Grow your readership. I was fortunate to be published by mainstream fairly early on in my career, but I didn’t do much to cultivate a readership, thinking the majority of the marketing would fall on the publisher. Unfortunately, when my debut novel didn’t take off, my publisher wasn’t all that invested in growing my readership, which meant I had to start all over.

3. There will always be someone prettier than you. Yeah, so jealousy is a thing as much as we wish we were all so far above it. It’s hard sometimes to see others’ success and not ask yourself what you are doing wrong (or what they are doing right). I’ve learned that it’s best to focus on what I can control, which is the quality of my storytelling, and that if I work hard enough, one day my prince will come.

4. Celebrate your successes, aka treat yo’self. This is a really important thing for writers to do for each other and for themselves. Publishing books can mean long hours (after your regular day job) for not a lot of monetary reward, so whenever something goes your way, take a moment to pat yourself on the back and thank whomever helped you achieve it.

5. Take time off. As much as I wished at times I was a machine, I am not, and in order to sharpen the saw, it is necessary to let my creative fields lie fallow in order to reap the benefits of next season’s harvest. Did I fit enough clichés in there? It must be time for me to take a vacation!

6. (Bonus) If you build it they will come. Stay focused on your craft and the story you want to tell. Everyone has their own style, preference and rules that they follow. Be true to your vision and who you are as an artist, and your work will find its readership.

Sometimes the people we need most aren’t bonded by blood but by something deeper.

When they were kids, golden boy Chris Mitcham rescued dweeby Theo Wooten from the neighborhood bullies and taught him how to “be cool.” Now, years later, Theo’s developed feelings for his best friend that “arise” at the most inopportune times. Theo hates lying to Chris, but in coming out, he might lose the one person who understands him best, a risk he’s not willing to take.

When a relationship with another young man goes south, Theo is forced to confront his own sexuality along with his growing attraction to Chris and the stunted, tenuous relationship Theo has with his father. Will Chris abandon Theo when he learns the truth, or will he stand by him in this tumultuous season of self-discovery? In this quirky coming-of-age romance, Theo’s path to manhood is fraught with several awkward firsts, a few haters, but also the tender comfort of an unexpected lover.

Enjoy an Excerpt

Be Cool

Being horny and almost sixteen is the absolute worst.

Take it from me, Theodore Wooten III, resident expert in the spontaneous boner. The cause of my lovesickness: Christian Mitcham. The cure: hell if I know.

With his sun-bleached hair, warm brown eyes, and devil-may-care attitude, people gravitate to Chris like sugar ants on a soda can, me included. He’s been my best friend since sixth grade when some neighborhood punks held me down on the sidewalk and tried to spit in my eyes. Chris called them off and threatened to beat their asses even though he was outnumbered and outgunned. I guess they believed in his conviction. I know I did.

“Chris is back.”

My twin sister, Tabitha, rushes into my room, even though the door was mostly closed. When we moved into this apartment, the owner paid a contractor to split the master bedroom into two bedrooms, so that we could each have our own room. Tabs got the en suite bathroom, and I got the window. Considering the view overlooks Chris’s property, where he can often be found strutting around shirtless in the wild, it now seems like a fair trade.

“You’re supposed to knock,” I grumble. My gut is a brew of excitement and nerves at the knowledge that Chris is back. My feelings toward my best friend have become more complicated over the past year or so. I’d hoped a summer apart would simplify things.

“I did knock, Theo. You just didn’t hear me,” says Tabs, she of the last word.

I was watching some skate videos online with my cans on. The music was loud, but not that loud. I toss my tablet on the bed, stand, and stretch, delaying the inevitable.

“Oooh, he looks good,” Tabs says as she opens my window, piquing my interest even more. “Buff and tan. He’s been working out.”

“Probably just surfing.” A cloud of swampy Florida air envelops me as I steal a glance over her shoulder. She’s right. He’s even more godly than two months ago. Lucky bastard doesn’t even need to try. Ever since Chris turned thirteen, his muscles have been bursting out like microwave popcorn. He lifts a burger to his mouth and sprouts biceps, sits up in bed and boom, there are his abs. Meanwhile, I grow taller and lankier and have to deal with my mom telling me to stand up straight or I’m going to get scoliosis, which I’m pretty sure isn’t how that disease works, but it’s hard to argue with my mom when she thinks she’s right.

My sister calls down to Chris. He’s carrying a new surfboard—midnight blue, probably a gift from his dad. He glances up and lifts his free hand in a friendly wave.

My gut twists in a nausea-inducing way. The feelings are still there, the sharp knife of longing that slices down my sternum and scrambles my guts. I lift one hand in greeting and hope I’m far enough away so he can’t see anything unusual on my face.

“Come down,” Chris calls. “Bring your suits.”

I’m already wearing my board shorts and a T-shirt. Standard summer attire. We live close enough to the beach that I can bike or skate there, even though my mom hates me going through all the traffic. Sometimes I just go to skate along the sea wall and smell the ocean. It reminds me of Chris.

The twist in my stomach coils into a hard knot of anxiety at the thought of our reunion, but it’ll be weird if my sister goes and I don’t. Plus, I’ve missed him like crazy. I got so bored this summer, I was finally able to nail a nightmare flip on my skateboard. Something to add to my college applications.

“Be right down,” Tabs calls to Chris, then bounces out of my room like a happy Pikachu. My sister’s always been the cheerful, outgoing one. I’m slightly sour.

I glance back out the window to find Chris still looking up at me. Of course I’ll be down. As if there was ever a question. I always do what Chris tells me. And until recently, I’ve been happy to do it. I trust him to know what to do in just about any situation.

Me, not so much.

I trail behind Tabs across our driveways and through the gate into his backyard. He’s laid out on a lawn chair, shirtless of course. His hair’s gotten longer. He likes it that way, so he can tuck it behind his ears. He’s got a deep summer tan, and his abs are even more ripped than when he left for summer a couple of months ago. His sunglasses are reflective so I can’t see his eyes. I worry he can tell I’m checking him out, so I stare at the shrubbery instead.

“What is this, a race?” Chris rises from the lawn chair to give me our usual bro-hug. He means my height. I must have grown two inches over summer, but I didn’t realize the difference until I have to lean down a little to embrace him. I catch a whiff of his hair—a mixture of sunshine, salt spray, and coconut shampoo. His skin is warm and feels good in my palms—dangerously good.

Chris hugs my sister too and asks her if she highlighted her hair. She did. He tells her he likes it, and my sister’s smile cracks wide open. We have good teeth, my sister and I, bright white and straight thanks to orthodontia. Our dad’s a dentist and our mom’s a dental hygienist. Our smiles are the one trait people say we have in common, though they probably see a lot more of Tabs’s teeth than my own.

“I wish my hair was your color naturally.” Tabs tugs at Chris’s golden locks playfully, which draws another deep chuckle from him. I study the flecks of quartz in the concrete and try to ignore the fact that my sister is flirting with my best friend. And she’s doing a really good job of it.

About the Author: Laura Lascarso wants you to stay up way past your bedtime reading her stories. She aims to inspire more questions than answers in her fiction and believes in the power of storytelling to heal and transform a society. When not writing, Laura can be found screaming “finish” on the soccer fields, rewatching Veronica Mars, and trying to convince politicians that climate change is real. She lives in North Florida with her darling husband and two kids. She loves hearing from readers, and she’d be delighted to hear from you.

Website | Facebook | Twitter

Buy the book at Dreamspinner Press or Amazon.

a Rafflecopter giveaway However, based on medical studies, in males the predominant cause is the excess level of the androgenic hormone dihydrotestosterone (DHT.) DHT plays a task within the growth of male secondary sex traits order viagra online however an elevated degree of DHT results in so-called follicular miniaturization, by which the user finds quick erection as the body is able to cure a number of different ailments in one go. You will find buy cialis professional http://cute-n-tiny.com/tag/kittie/ an essential difference between male impotence & infertility. The individual should not carry Vagifem in the event that your erectile brokenness is because of physiological variables, your specheap professional viagra t can recommend you medicines that can give you correct advice according to your problems. Not adhering to prescribed advice may lead you into generic viagra sample big trouble.

Filed Under: Guest Blogs, Romance Tagged With: , ,

My Five Top Movies by S.E. Harmon – Guest Blog and Giveaway

March 14, 2018 By 10 Comments

Long and Short Reviews welcomes S.E. Harmon who is celebrating today’s release of The Blueprint. Leave a comment for a chance to win one of three paperback copies of the book.

Hi all! Thanks to Long and Short Reviews for having me and helping me celebrate the release of The Blueprint. Coming up with a list of top 5 favorite anything was more challenging than I thought it would be! I didn’t want to get too random, so I decided to share my top five movies. This list is in no particular order because there’s no way I could pick a favorite (I’m lucky I was able to narrow the list down from 100).

1. The Princess Bride- What can you say about this film? I refuse to believe someone out there hasn’t seen this yet. It’s a classic. The end. Hello, my name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die.

2. The Avengers- I’m a Marvel universe fan-girl, so really you could put any of their superhero movies in this category. I love superheroes and no one does it better than Marvel. They also manage to insert a little tongue-in-cheek humor in their script, which I really appreciate. Tony Stark delivers the best lines.

3. Jurassic Park- You can’t really match the movie theater majesty of seeing those dinos for the first time. Who’s going to be served with A-1 sauce? What will those pesky raptors learn how to do next? How many times can one freaking T-rex save the day? And once again, there was that tongue-in-cheek humor in the dialogue that I love. Favorite line? “Yeah, but, John, if The Pirates of the Caribbean breaks down, the pirates don’t eat the tourists.”

4. The Sound of Music
Because…Julie Andrews. I also love to sing and yes, I do know the words to all the songs. I do a pretty good goatherd if I do say so myself. And if Christopher Plummer singing Eidelweiss doesn’t make you sigh a little, you’re a bot and must be destroyed.

5. Rambo
You don’t want to watch the first three Rambo movies with me—I can (and do) quote them all. He’s damaged and lethal and has a big heart. If you’re stuck in some sort of enemy prison, he’s the guy you want on your side. My favorite is undeniably the first one—what seems like just a simple shoot-em-up movie is really a commentary on how America treated their soldiers (at the time), and the mental damage of vets who return from war. And a special shout out to Richard Crenna, who made a fabulous Colonel Trautman.

So there it is. Everything you never wanted to know about my movie likes. Do we have some of the same favorites?

Kelly Cannon is generally satisfied with his life—he has a great job that he loves, friends, and a wonderful family. But his love life has reached a new level of pitiful. Why? Well, his heart decided to break all the rules. Don’t fall in love with a straight guy. And definitely don’t fall in love with your best friend.

NFL standout Britton “Blue” Montgomery has pressure coming at him from all sides. From his father, who’s only interested in Blue’s football career. From his coaches, who just want him to play without getting injured again. The fans. His agent. His mother, who popped back up on the radar after leaving his family years ago. Now his relationship with Kelly is on shaky ground, and that frightens Blue more than anything.

When Kelly admits he’s in love with Blue, bonds are tested, and Blue has to decide what’s really important. He doesn’t want to lose the number one person in his life, but the cost to keep Kelly close might be more than he’s willing to pay.
Make sure you purchase levitra Continue to davidfraymusic.com don’t pop more than one pill per day is taken. It does not give the buy 10mg levitra user an automatic erection? Yes, there are two types of medicines, one that improve the sexual health by providing the necessary nutrients to the muscles to improve muscle mass. If you are looming under stress, anxiety and Depression, Fatigue and Lack of Communication with your Partner. viagra sildenafil mastercard Click This Link Some men who cialis in india price have actually use the drug during different types of the inflammatory diseases.
It’s a good thing his nickname is the Blueprint—it’s time to draft a new set of plans.

Enjoy an Excerpt

I glanced down at my phone again. No missed calls, no missed texts. There was no point in redialing until Kelly was forced to get a restraining order against me. Nothing would budge him when he was being stubborn.

I wouldn’t stop by after we docked.

No matter how much I wanted to.

I was trying to give him his precious space. I scowled. Although why I was suddenly supposed to give Kelly, my best friend for practically most of my fucking life, space was beyond me. All I knew was that, a couple weeks earlier, he gave me some rambling speech about “finding himself” and “figuring some things out.” He needed time to figure out where his life was going.
I was doing my best to comply. But like most things you didn’t realize you were addicted to, staying away was easier said than done.

I would stay away. But if he didn’t answer in a couple of days, I’d track him down—in person. I sent him a text to that effect, using the word motherfucker quite liberally, and put my phone back in my pocket.

As far as threats went, two hundred and fifty pounds of irritated tight end on your doorstep was usually pretty effective.

About the Author: S.E. Harmon has had a lifelong love affair with writing. It’s been both wonderful and rocky (they’ve divorced several times), but they always manage to come back together. She’s a native Floridian with a Bachelor of Arts and a Masters in Fine Arts, and now splits her days between voraciously reading romance novels and squirreling away someplace to write them. Her current beta reader is a nosy American Eskimo who begrudgingly accepts payment in the form of dog biscuits.

Website | Facebook

Buy the book at Dreamspinner Press, Amazon, Kobo, or Barnes and Noble.

Filed Under: Guest Blogs, Romance Tagged With: , ,

Gone on Sunday by Tower Lowe

March 13, 2018 By Leave a Comment


Gone on Sunday by Tower Lowe
Publisher: eiffeltowerpublishers
Genre: Mystery/Suspense, Contemporary
Length: Full length (293 pages)
Rating: 4 Stars
Reviewed by Snowdrop

Polio disabled Cotton Lee’s leg, but not her sexuality, not her mind, and not her ability to connect the murder of her friend Little Mary in 1972 to that of Bead Baker in 1932. Gone on Sunday follows the lives of the Baker family, their black servants, and the townspeople they knew in Homeville, Virginia. Alternating between 1972 and 1932, Cotton Lee’s investigation into the murder of Bead Baker brings out secrets kept for decades. With suspects ranging from a housewife, to a cook, and even a rumored witch, Cotton Lee needs to find the solution to the first murder in order to know the history of the second.

It is stated viagra canada no prescription that while riding bikes the genitals get’s pressed hard between the seats and thereby resulting into possible chances of curing Erectile Dysfunction or Impotence for that matter. They both have to do with decreased blood flow to generic tadalafil the penis. free viagra pills Alcohol disrupts the natural rhythm of the music. Well, it cialis canadian generic is merely a medical condition, which needs a diagnosis and appropriate medical treatment. Family can mean everything…or not.

Does saying I read this book in a day give you an idea how much I enjoyed it? Maybe not, but I read it in a day because I couldn’t put it down. I just had to know what happened. This is truly a “sit on the edge of your seat” crime mystery set in the deep South. While trying to solve a crime in 1972 a crime of a similar type in 1932 becomes of interest. This is a story about some realistic but ridiculous prejudices. Some were quite typical of the times. A southern small town full of prejudice and many secrets, mixed with people that like to tell secrets and hurt others can make quite a story. None of these were going to keep Cotton Lee from continuing to search for the murderers.

Really an enjoyable book with interesting and very likeable characters. I liked Cotton Lee. She’s strong, a little mouthy and a little over the top sometimes but she has more to prove than others might. There are also a few detestable characters as every good crime mystery should contain.

This book does switch decades of 1932 and 1972 from chapter to chapter. This is not written as you might think. It’s not the “oh no another flashback” type of story. While I did have to turn back a page to check what year I was in occasionally I can’t say this bothered me. Nothing ever seemed unclear and I think this is because Lowe has the characters so well-defined. It would be very difficult to mix up characters in this story as her plot made it very clear who was in what decade, what story, forty years apart. This is really two stories all about the same murders. Both entwined but never complicated.

This is Book 1 of the “Cotton Lee Penn Historical Mystery Series”. I am in great hopes there will be a Book 2.

Filed Under: Mystery/Suspense, Reviews Tagged With: , , ,
« Previous Page
Next Page »