Becoming Ted

Title: Becoming Ted

Author: Matt Cain

Publisher: Storm Publishing

Release Date: June 4, 2024

Genre(s): Contemporary M/M Romance

Page Count: 416

Rating: 4 stars out of 5 

Read book blurb here

43-year-old Ted is devastated when his husband of what Ted thought were 20 wonderful years, Giles, leaves him for a younger, more exciting man. And once Ted begins to realize how Giles has demeaned him and held him back from his dreams, Ted begins working toward his childhood dream of becoming a drag queen. It takes Ted a while, but he gets there in the end, and in between is a big-hearted story that captivated me to the very end. 

There's a lot of characters here but Matt Cain richly develops each one - Ted's parents and their expectation that Ted will continue with the family's ice cream business, his new relationship with Oskar who grew up in homophobic Poland, Ted's best friend and top supporter Denise who values her independence but hopes for "a future that might just involve happiness", 90+ year old Stanley who is not letting life pass him by, even Lily, the very un-cute terrier with "weapons-grade halitosis." 

There's a lot of baggage to get past here, but the book resonates with the idea that "There's no point regretting things we did in the past because if it wasn't for them, we wouldn't be where we are in the present." There are numerous flashbacks to Ted's childhood and his relationship with Giles, but at times it's hard to immediately realize the time period has shifted. And there's a subplot involving mysterious letters that just didn't work for me, but I absolutely loved the conclusion of this book, which admittedly is a total feel-good fest of happiness

although I think Giles should NEVER be seen again and doesn't deserve one bit of forgiveness, but then that's just my bitchy belief

Click here to reveal a spoiler

But I love how Ted becomes liberated from his sense of duty and realizes that he can "put myself first and follow my dream - but I can also take the people I love along with me." 4 stars and many thanks to Storm Publishing for the ARC. 

I received an ARC from Storm Publishing, via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.

You Should Be So Lucky

Title: You Should Be So Lucky 

Author: Cat Sebastian 

Publisher: Avon 

Release Date: May 7, 2024 

Genre(s): M/M Sports Romance, Historical 

Page Count:  400 

Rating: 5+ stars out of 5 

Read book blurb here

I've read several Cat Sebastian books, and hold a particular fondness for The Queer Principles of Kit Webb, but this book? Sebastian knocks it out of the park (yup, a baseball metaphor). 

I loved this book in a way that makes me ponder the philosophical meaning of baseball (despite not being a huge fan of baseball).

It's slow and often seems pointless. It's beautiful, when it isn't a mess. There's a vast ocean of mercy for mistakes: getting hits half the time is nothing short of a miracle, and even the best fielders are expected to have errors. The inevitability of failure is built into the game.

It's 1960, and Eddie O'Leary, a sunny shortstop with one of the most beautiful swings anyone's ever seen, sure hands and excellent fielding, has been traded by the Kansas City A's to the New York Robins, a new expansion team scrapping the bottom of the league. He's experiencing a slump, the likes of which is hard to even watch, and the Robins aren't speaking to him because he insulted everyone on the team when he learned he was traded. 

Mark Bailey is in the midst of a slump as well, a gray miserable half-life of merely surviving a tragedy that is slowly revealed over the course of the book. He's a writer at the Chronicle assigned to write a weekly diary of Eddie O'Leary over the course of the season. 

The stage is set, and what unfolds is gloriously elegiac as the two men move from reluctant collaborators to a sort of friendship and then into a relationship. The book is short on explicit sex scenes, and long on matters of the heart. Here are two men who form a relationship that works in the midst of a time where being gay is something to hide, something to deny. 

Eddie and Mark are beautifully articulated, and even the secondary and tertiary characters are fully fleshed out. You end the book caring these people. At 400 pages, I could have easily read another 100 pages and still want more. 

And I love the way Sebastian give us deeper things to ponder than merely a meet/cute, fall-in-love relationship. There's the nature of fate, the idea that statistically statistics don't really matter at all, and sometimes ....

Rooting for a team doesn't always mean that you need them to win; sometimes you just want to see them fight, do their best, or even just showing up. Sometimes you want to look at a guy and say: Well, he's fucked, but he's trying.

5+ stars for this book. You should be so lucky to pick up this book! 

And a final wonderful thought from Eddie: "I'm not saying things happen for a reason - I hate that. I'm saying that things happen. And it doesn't have to mean anything except what it means to you. Nobody else gets to decide. "

I received an ARC from the publisher, via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.

A Death at His Majesty's (The Simon Simpson Mysteries, #3)

Title: A Death at His Majesty's (The Simon Simpson Mysteries, #3)

Author: David Dawson

Publisher: Park Creek Publishing

Release Date: April 18, 2024

Genre(s): Historical Murder Mystery

Page Count: 280

Rating: 4 stars out of 5 

Read book blurb here

The first two book in the Simon Sampson Mysteries series are set in late 1932 and 1933 in London and Berlin, respectively, featuring political conspiracies and high intrigue. The main character, Simon Sampson works for BBC news and his close friend Bill (Florence Mills) manages the BBC library, although they are each equally comfortable in the arena of spies and espionage. 

A Death at His Majesty's serves as a prequel to the series, set in 1929 London when Bill was Noel Coward's beleaguered assistant and Simon worked as a journalist for the Chronicle. They meet when the prop girl, Maureen Lyon, Bill's former lover, is founded murdered by the stage door of the Majesty, when Noel Coward's operetta Bitter Sweet is set to open. A second death leaves Bill and Simon searching for a common thread to the death and uncovering a killer that may have connections to those in powerful places. 

As always, Dawson does an exception job of setting the scene with historic details about the era, and the gay men and women who lived in an other version of London. Ironically, "it's not even illegal in this country for women to be ... Sapphic ... as far as I know. The law's just obsessed with buggery, you know. Between chaps. The ladies are left alone." Yet this did not prevent women who frequented bars such as Paradise Regained, the Cherry Tree or the Honey Pot from pressure from the police. 

We also get Bill's POV throughout the book and get more of a glimpse into her background, and her acerbic personality. But we also see all the societal pressures that Bill fought against; Simon's Aunt Cynny, who has an important job in the Home Office, serves as an example of the few women who managed to overcome these assumptions and pressures. 

Personally, I didn't think the mystery and conclusion as gripping as the end of A Death in Berlin (but then, it is hard to top that ending!) and some characters like Darling were sort of shoe-horned in without a lot of depth, However, learning how Bill and Simon became friends and getting more pieces of the history of pre-WWII, I did like this installment in the series. I think the author has definitely found his niche, and as always, I'm looking forward to the next book! 4 stars. 

I received an ARC from the author in exchange for an honest review.

Death in the Spires

Title: Death in the Spires

Author: KJ Charles

Publisher: Storm Publishing

Release Date: April 11, 2024

Genre(s): M/M Murder Mystery, Historical

Page Count: 273

Rating: 5 stars out of 5 

Read book blurb here

Jem, Nicky, Aaron, Hugh, Toby, Ella and Prue - The Seven Wonders, or at the start "Feynsham's set" - Toby's curated collection of fellow students who met their first year in Oxford, becoming fast friends, until Toby's murder in the spring of their third year, 1895. Ten years after, Jem loses his lowly clerk job because of a note sent to his employer: 

Jeremy Kite is a murderer. 

He killed Toby Feynsham. 

Ask him why. 

Following Toby's death, they never told the police what really happened earlier that horrid evening and they went on with their lives, with varying degrees of success. Jem, who fell perhaps the lowest in the aftermath, decides once and for all to uncover who murdered Toby ... and why. 

 KJ Charles gives us the world of Oxford seen in a hundred movies (The world was before them, a great sunlit path through pleasant meadows with a glittering city at its end ready for them to conquer.) - Hugh Grantesque boys in long robes on the quad, friends arm in arm walking down the hallowed paths, student theatricals, etc.: 

"They were facing south, looking over Front Quad and Broad Street and toward the main spread of Oxford, and the setting sun turned everything before him to glowing rose gold. The domes and spires rose like masts from the sea, like prayers to heaven, a glory of human brilliance in stone ..." 

But it's also a world where while there is love and friendship, there is more. "Ah, British friendship ... Tolerance as long as everyone knows his place, but God forbid your subjects should declare themselves your equals." As Nicky says "So: all of us could have, none of us would have, one of us did." And while we ponder Toby's murder, we are lead to ask if murder can ever be justified and if worse crimes have gone unpunished. 

It's all deep, heady stuff and KJ Charles shepherds us through the discoveries, the abject sadness, the philosophical and the practical, all the while giving us a small M/M romance (with absolutely no hint of a HFN or HEA). I found this book deeply moving, completely engrossing and 5+ stars and a Recommended Read if you have the heart for it. 

I received an ARC from the publisher, Storm Publishing, in exchange for an honest review.

Blackmailer's Delight

Title: Blackmailer's Delight

Author: David Lawrence

Publisher: Broadbound Publishing LLC

Release Date: February 12, 2024

Genre(s): M/M Historical Romance

Page Count: 325

Rating: 4.5 stars out of 5 

Read book blurb here

In the midst of the French Revolution, the English "Revolt of the Housewives" erupted in 1795, whereby the mostly female rioters redistributed food stores to those in need, after one of England's coldest winters, setting fair prices for the food and paying the proceeds back to the original owners. I love how the women strived to give all involved a good outcome, and in a sense, this reflects the overall tone of David Lawrence's book. 

Throughout the course of Blackmailer's Delight, we find, yup, blackmailers, some perfectly horrid characters, miscommunications and misunderstands galore, and situations where there seems to be no good outcome. And at first, the tone of the writing - for me personally - was a bit much to really digest. There's a certain formal tone and a huge amount of descriptions that bogs down the story and many of the actions and events in the book are told after the fact, or recalled as a memory, resulting in a lack of immediacy. 

But once the plot is fully in swing, I was surprised by how much I enjoyed it all. Daniel Thornton goes to Grantham to care for his ailing uncle, declaring that he wished to find the goodness in the world. Yet when confronted with Luke Morley "this young man I've joked with, caroused with, argued with, f@cked with, and tried to emotionally blackmail. Everything, it seems, except to speak to properly.") he believes the absolute worst of him, and yet believes most of what his ex Clarence tells him. 

Clarence starts out as a simply horrid character who I was eager to write off, and yet Daniel manages to find a good resolution to their former relationship. He manages to circumvent the supposed blackmail plan for his marriage to Luke's sister, and the solution is really a stroke of genius all the way around. The secondary characters are well-developed and fleshed out and as the book come to an end, there is a world of possibilities for all the characters. 4 stars.

I received an ARC from the Publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Curio

Title: Curio

Author: CS Poe

Publisher: Emporium Press

Release Date: February 5, 2024

Genre(s): M/M Contemporary Romance

Page Count: 60

Rating: 5 stars out of 5 

Read book blurb here

Llewellyn Cooper (Lew) and his aunt Julia ("Remember the summer you took up performance art in the park and destroyed all your panties in front of picnicking families?" "It was art, Lew. I was making a statement.") run the Curio Cabinet in NYC's West Village and have lately been fascinated by Professor Bow Tie (Henry), a natty dresser (albeit with thick thighs and a lumberjack beard) who sorts endlessly through old photos in their shop, occasionally buying a photo or two.

Julia insists Henry and Lew would make a great couple. And even after a somewhat fraught first date ("I started to giggle. And not in a cute way either - but in a hysterical way that'd have had a nineteenth-century woman locked away."), Lew and Henry find they are, indeed, a good fit. 

This novella packs in a lot - quirky well-developed characters, an Easter egg (or two?), and the start of what looks to be an interesting relationship. Toss in a robbery, a WWI-era mystery, a steamy sex scene (and, yes, this all fits nicely into this 60-page novella) and you have a thoroughly enjoyable story that I personally loved. 5 stars.

I received an ARC from the author in exchange for an honest review.

Cross My Candy Heart

Title: Cross My Candy Heart

Author: A.C. Thomas

Publisher: NineStar Press

Release Date: February 6, 2024

Genre(s): M/M Contemporary Romance, Valentine's Day

Page Count: 95

Rating: 4 stars out of 5 

Read book blurb here

This novella answers the question: "How do you let someone know you're totally crushing on them when dressed as a slightly mangy teddy bear or in a duck costume with candy-striped tights and big webby feet?" 

After his latest bad relationship with a truly horrid ex, Justin is working three jobs to get his head anywhere close to above water. And as an employee of "Season's Greetings," he delivers singing telegrams. AND his latest one is a doozy - Adam Hubert (who I picture as James Garner with a heavier brow and a scowl) is definitely not feeling the Valentine love with this anonymous embarrassing delivery. And to make it worse, Adam is his daily 7:15 am "extra-large Americano with a double shot of espresso" order / crush at the coffee shop where Justin also works. 

What follows is a sweet story of two guys who find they may not be perfect, but they are perfect for each other. But along the way, each man spends far too much time bemoaning their unworthiness - way, way too much time, IMHO - plus the requisite miscommunication and some angst. But no worries - a very improbable resolution to who is sending Adam these singing telegrams (plus a pretty darn steamy sex scene) makes for a very satisfying HEA. 4 stars. 

I received an ARC from IndiGo Marketing and Design in exchange for an honest review.

The [Fake] Dating Game

Title: The [Fake] Dating Game

Author: Timothy Janovsky

Publisher: Afterglow Books by Harlequin

Release Date: January 23, 2024

Genre(s): M/M Contemporary Romance

Page Count: 245

Rating: 4 stars out of 5 

Read book blurb here

Timothy Janovsky is a "new" author to me, so I started this book with absolutely no expectations. And I ending up loving the book; sometimes in much the same way a parent loves their child but doesn't adore everything they do. 

So, great start and a great hook. Holden James and his beloved mother watched Madcap Market, a zany reality show that pit teams against each other in winning a $100,000 prize. Holden dreams of getting on the show as a homage to his mom who passed 6 years ago. Asking his long-term boyfriend Buckley to join him on the show doesn't end up well and they end up breaking up in an epic scene in a crowded restaurant where a nearby diner who is an agent says "Are you two filming test footage for a reality series? Because, if so, this stuff is really juicy. This is my card ..." 

Traveling alone and checking into a decrepit LA hotel with a Tower of Terror vibe and a room that smells like farts, Holden meets Leo Min, the muscly temp concierge with an attitude and then the fun begins. The two team up to get on Madcap Market and win the $100K by pretending to be boyfriends. Their attraction is sizzling and at times involves a vegetable "you could theoretically slice up for a salad." 

I like how these two men are so dissimilar yet somehow there's something that works so well between the two. There is an unexpected joy to this relationship that starts out fake and works its way to the cusp of something more. Until, they start filming the show and ....Holden's ex-boyfriend Buckley appears on the show as a contestant, with a nasty plan for vengeance. 

 Aargh. The entire flow of the book changes, the fun stops and serious times are ahead. I resented this 180, but stay with it, because the book goes deep and it's worth the angst as Holden finally deals with his mom's death and he and Leo come to the HFN they really deserve. A very strong 4 stars.

I received an ARC from the Publisher, via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.

Puzzle For Two

Title: Puzzle for Two

Author: Josh Lanyon

Publisher: JustJoshin Publishing

Release Date: May 27, 2023

Genre(s): M/M PI Mystery

Page Count: 316

Rating: 4 stars out of 5 

Read book blurb here

Puzzle for Two gives us an improbable case ("Possibly the whole pretend-t0-be-my boyfriend to decoy my maybe suicidal wife thing?") with Zach, a young PI resolved to keep his father's PI agency afloat while fending off creditors as well as his competitor ex-Marine Flint Carey who is determined to buy him out. Never mind that Zach might be a bit too inexperienced, the case stinks to high heaven, and his client is ... unsettling, the $12,000 fee alleviates a lot of Zach's qualms, for now. 

In reading this PI murder mystery, I'm again struck by how beautifully Lanyon creates character. It's in the turn of a phrase, a succinct description, a pause. One really gets a sense of each of the characters here - untried but determined Zach, the unnerving client Alton Beacher, Zach's delightfully quirky sister Brooke with her mad researching skills, Zach's obsessive ex Ben. And Flint Carey is at first defined by Zach's (misguided) perception of him and the way that perception changes bit by bit is a delightfully slow burn. 

I really liked the interplay of all these distinct characters and how the murder / mystery works so well as a classic detective story. And here's hoping that Lanyon decides to continue this series! 4 stars.

I received an ARC from the author, via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.

Broadway Butchery (Memento Mori #3)

Title: Broadway Butchery (Memento Mori #3)

Author: CS Poe

Publisher: Emporium Press

Release Date: June 22, 2023

Genre(s): M/M Crime Procedural

Page Count: 311

Rating: 5+ stars out of 5 

Read book blurb here

I have to admit I struggled a bit with this book. No, no, no .... I loved "Broadway Butchery" (I'm not an idiot) but it was hard to decide if I wanted to devour it in a frenzied stay-up-all-night, sob in my pillow marathon .... or savor every page, every nuance of the flowering relationship between Larkin and Doyle, set my Kindle aside for a few moments, gently wipe away my tears of joy, and just bask in the wonderfulness of this book. So, yeah, I definitely basked. 

 Also, I went back and browsed the first two books in this series because, yeah, this series is all sorts of wonderful, but also because I had to refresh my memory about the earlier murders, as well as the slow and careful way Larkin and Doyle's relationship begins. And in Broadway Butchery, CS Poe really ramps it all up by revealing (some of) the layers of her intricately crafted underlying plot, and laser-focusing on Ira and Everett. 

As always, each character - no matter how minor - is beautifully fleshed-out. My new favorite is Dr. Baxter in the office of the chief medical examiner:

"Oh, I do love a man with a sense of justice." "You love any man!" one of the other pathologists shouted from behind Baxter. He said, without missing a beat, "It gets lonely down here."

And, of course, there are countless moments between Ira and Everett that I bookmarked, but here's just one:

It was like a bubble had formed around them just then, encapsulating them in an untouchable privacy lasting one a heart, a breath, long enough for Doyle to say in his quiet, smoky voice, "I'll do anything for you."

The words hit Larkin square in the chest and repeated over and over like an echo trapped in a cave.

I'll do anything for you.

Anything for you.

For you.

Damn. 5+ stars for "Broadway Butchery." 

I received an ARC from the author in exchange for an honest review.

Undressing the Duke (Lords in Love, #7)

Title: Undressing the Duke (Lords in Love series #7)

Author: Erica Ridley

Publisher: WebMotion

Release Date: June 16, 2023

Genre(s): M/M Historical Romance

Page Count: 118

Rating: 3 stars out of 5 

Read book blurb here

Please note this is #7 in a series of books about a (fictional) matchmaking festival in Regency England, but the book works as a stand-alone (and is the only M/M romance in the series). 

Donovan, the Duke of Southbury, having reached the age of 36 without marrying, is forced to attend this festival, despite having absolutely no interest in a wife.  Donovan has been enthralled for the past 20 years by his burly French valet, Geoffrey Vashon. The two men play chess, cards, drink, play violin duets, and talk late into the night, as the Duke tries desperately to tamp down his lust.

Donovan's only hope is to perhaps marry a widow or someone willing to enter into a marriage of convenience "in which duke and duchess did each other the blessed courtesy of leaving one another the hell alone." But never fear, Donovan and Geoffrey explore their mutual desire and get their HEA.

As a short novella (118 pages), there isn't a lot of character development, especially for Geoffrey (we don't get his POV) and while the ending is satisfying, it relies on some improbable change of hearts.  Overall, I would have liked perhaps a villain subplot or something that allowed us to get to better know and understand the MCs.  3 stars.

I received an ARC from the publisher, via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.

The Problem with Perfect

Title: The Problem with Perfect

Author: Philip William Stover

Publisher: Canelo Hera

Release Date: May 10, 2023

Genre(s): M/M Contemporary Romance, Fake Boyfriend

Page Count: 336

Rating: 4.5 stars out of 5 

Read book blurb here

Okay, I loved this book. Every snarky aside, every astute comment about the horrors of celebrity worship, Uncle Clams and the rests of the glamorous Giblet Triplets, Fire Island, etc. It's all very good stuff. 

From page one, the (okay, very implausible) story grabs your attention with the tale of Ethan, who quickly learned "I couldn't control the big things but I could make the details of my life shiny" and as the creative genius behind gay lifestyle show Myles of Style, strives for his next big network promotion to VP of Diversity Programming while keeping his star Chase Myles engaged and charming, not to mention stopping him from using an iron in a segment about getting rid of facial wrinkles ("So what? I wasn't going to plug it in") or claiming he is a queer role model like "Harley Milk." 

But when Chase jets off to "Dabu Bobby" ("It's in the Middle East somewhere ...") with a Greek fishing tycoon, Ethan realizes the only way he can finish all the promotional material he needs yesterday is to find a Chase Myles substitute ... one Beau Myles, Chase's twin brother who lives in a yurt in upstate New York ("His hair must have been cut with a rock, his beard makes him look like he should drive a buggy or brew his own ale in Williamsburg ...") and is desperate enough for money he is willing to be manscaped, tweezed and spray-tanned to within an inch of his life. 

What follows is a sweet, sexy, irreverent adventure (no explicit on-page sex but the perfect touch of lusting and longing) complete with a fake/fake boyfriend plot, a weekend on Fire Island (more Cherry Grove than the Meat Rack), and the realization that, as Beau says, "You don't have to be perfect, you just have to be yourself." 

Granted, it takes a while (okay, far too long) to get Ethan to fully understand how he is not living the life he wants to, but the perfectly lovely epilogue and HEA is like the icing on the cake. 

4.5 stars for a great read with plenty of heart mixed with gobs of snark (and topped with "Power Top Pop" - a ghastly "combination energy drink and personal lubricant" [...] in four fabulous flavors. Each one inspired by a different Golden Girl.") Let's just say I adore Philip William Stover's snark. 

I received an ARC from the publisher, via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.

Jayne and the Average North Dakotan

Title: Jayne and the Average North Dakotan

Author: Chandler Myer

Publisher: Atmosphere Press

Release Date: January 21, 2023

Genre(s): Coming of Age, Coming Out, Drag Queens

Page Count: 332

Rating: 5 stars out of 5 

Read book blurb here

Ooh, I loved this book from just reading the title, and doncha know it's a pretty great read! It does thoroughly answer Randy Larson's burning question: "How did I end up hungover in a green taffeta gown with a gargantuan Jayne Mansfield drag queen mothering me? That's a complicated story. You see, I was destinated to live the life of an average North Dakotan. Then, everything changed." 

32-year-old Randy grew up in Minot, North Dakota ("Why not Minot?") and after the death of his parents (who basically raised him as a middle-aged man reading the Minot Times and eating dinner at 5:00 pm), Randy decides to move to an interesting big city with a gay community (and a subway ... "I've never been on a subway, but I know it's a glamorous way famous and sophisticated people get around"), which turns out to be Washington DC. 

Randy dreams of having a fairy godmother to teach him all the things he needs to know about being gay ("she would also explain how a "thruple" works) and after a disastrous showing at the 17th Street High Heel Drag Race, finally meets 6'9" Jayne Mansfield, who introduces him to the Brothel (Joan, Bette, Bette, Marilyn, Cher and Lea DeLaria), moves into his miniscule apartment, teaches him how to drink massive quantities of vodka, badgers him to buy clothes other than Toughskins, and that's just the first day. 

What follows is a glorious melange of kissing a lot of frogs until Randy finally finds his Prince Charming (or as Jayne says "Prince Pretty Pants"). It's a hysterical, heartwarming, weird and strange story, with every character beautifully fleshed out. Randy goes from a sweet, doughy closeted nerd to, well .... a better dressed doughy nerd with a better decorated apartment, a lot more confidence, and self-esteem. Randy has grown up into a feisty, self-sufficient adult and you cheer for him every step of the way. 5 stars.

I received an ARC from the Publisher, via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.

Diamond Ring (Unwritten Rules #3)

Title: Diamond Ring (Unwritten Rules #3)

Author: KD Casey

Publisher: Carina Press

Release Date: April 13, 2023

Genre(s): M/M Sports, Second Changes

Page Count: 380

Rating: 5 stars out of 5 

Read book blurb here

Having read (and loved) Fire Season (the second book in this series), I really looked forward to the book, and in particular the author's skill in writing about baseball and some of its hard truths.

Rookie pitching phenom Jake Fischer and catcher Alex Angelides meet in their exhilarating first season where they make it to the Series, but things don't work out the way they'd hoped and planned. Jake's torn UCL means surgery with a 15-20% failure rate and 12 to 18 months of recovery. And a fight between Jake and Alex is the way they leave their fledging relationship. 

10 years later ... Alex and Jake reunite for one more season, Jake hoping to make it through the season without getting cut. For Jake, it's a sobering view of what can never be - "to be ten years younger, with a good elbow, with the career he was supposed to have. A championship ring, a record-breaking contract. To stop feeling a hot wash of shame when his parents and friends ask him when he's going to settle down. To give up this stupid fucking dream and begin his actual life." 

Where this book really works for me is in the way the author deconstructs the fairy tale, not only of a successful baseball career, but the relationship between Jake and Alex, which doesn't end right away with an unrealistic HEA. And Casey does not stint on how Jake works so hard to manages his mental health: 

 " ... his therapist asked why he thought he rearranged things when he was stressed. "I guess it's my way of controlling the stuff I can control," Jake said. Because that made it sound normal as a habit. Practically healthy. His therapist smiled, and nodded, and asked him when he felt out of control, casually enough that Jake's honest answer slipped out. All the time. 

 KD Casey really brings their A game here as we get a complex story of success and struggle, sweat and heartache coupled with a sizzling connection between Alex and Jake that they finally get right. 5 stars.

I received an ARC from the Publisher, via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.

Death at the Deep Dive (Secrets and Scrabble #7)

Title: Death at the Deep Dive (Secrets and Scrabble series #7)

Author: Josh Lanyon

Publisher: JustJoshin Publications

Release Date: August 14, 2022

Genre(s): Cozy M/M Mystery

Page Count: 199

Rating: 4.5 stars out of 5 

Read book blurb here

This latest installment in the Secrets and Scrabble series is one of my series favorites. In Ellery's brief time in Pirate Cove, he's built up the Crow's Nest bookstore with the able help of his assistant manager / sleuth Nora Sweeney, is restoring his ramshackle Victorian gothic mansion, gotten the pretty much perfectly dreamy boyfriend - Police Chief Jack Carson - and has been involved in far, far too many murders. 

Buck Island's history is a rich melange of pirating and sunken treasure, with the Shandy family featuring prominently. Vernon Shandy has been missing for almost 60 years, and with Ellery's discovery of a sack of Spanish coins, it appears that Vernon did find the famed Blood Red Rose treasure. Ellery believes that Vernon was murdered and Vernon's sister Vera tasks him with solving the murder, offering up a list of suspects, including Ellery's great aunt Eudora. 

Ellery's great aunt Eudora Page has always been in the background of the series, mostly as the vehicle to bring Ellery to the island by willing him the bookstore and mansion, the Captain's Seat. But here we finally get to meet Eudora - as an young attractive woman in 1963. We've grown to love the village of Pirate's Cove and Bucks Island and its residents and in solving the mystery, we poignantly learn Eudora's dreams and her sadness. 

And in the end, the perfectly dreamy Jack Carson comes through with a perfectly romantic scene, and I am left to look forward to the (final?) installment in the series where we meet Jack's parents?? Learn if Ellery returns to acting to finance restoring the Captain's Seat? See if Jack finally learns to cook?? 4.5 stars. 

I received an ARC from the author, via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.

44.1644 North

Title: 44.1644 North

Author: Josh Lanyon

Publisher: JustJoshin Publishing

Release Date: February 9, 2023

Genre(s): Murder/Mystery, M/M

Page Count: 142

Rating: 4 stars out of 5 

Read book blurb here

I find Josh Lanyon's take on this true-crime mystery fascinating. This 140+ page novella uses the framework of an annual gathering at the site of a 20-year-old fictional disappearance of a young woman (Deidre O'Donnell) in a small New Hampshire town in order to discuss the real 2004 disappearance of Maura Murray.

Our MC Skylar Brennan is a podcast host who has a degree in criminal justice and teaches courses in criminology, and as such is a step above the "murder and makeup" crowd or the two "documentary" makers whose research consisted of visiting strip clubs in Montreal. All the usual suspects are discussed - it's the boyfriend, the father, the local creepy-guy, someone in the police department, it's the supposed mysterious passenger in the car, ad naseum. 

Lanyon does an exceptional job of examining Deidre's character (and by extension Maura's) and putting her actions into a context that seems logical and entirely possible. And at the end of the story (and a somewhat hurried heart-stopping resolution), it's jarring to get a fictional solution to a fictional case, while we may never know what actually happened in the case of Maura Murray. 

And because this is Josh Lanyon - we get a hurried but sweet start of a relationship between Skylar and Rory who is sent to investigate the case on the behest of (the unnamed in the book) BAU Chief Sam Kennedy. 

4 stars for a very poignant take on a true-crime story.

I received an ARC from the author, via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.

The Secret Lives of Country Gentlemen (The Doomsday Books, #1)

Title: The Secret Lives of Country Gentlemen (The Doomsday Books #1)

Author: K.J. Charles

Publisher: Sourcebook Casablanca

Release Date: March 7, 2023

Genre(s): M/M Historical Romance, Mystery/Suspense

Page Count: Rating: 5 stars out of 5 

Read book blurb here 

With the exception of  Band Sinister, I have shamelessly adored every K.J. Charles book. And this book? Ooh, it's so good. After a thought-provoking quote by Adam Smith about smuggling ...

The smuggler; a person who, though no doubt highly blameable for violating the laws of his country, is frequently incapable of violating those of natural justice, and would have been, in every respect, an excellent citizen, had not the laws of his country made that a crime which nature never meant to be so.

... we meet the MCs at the Three Ducks a week into a passionate connection after seeing each other across a crowded molly house room (isn't that how the song does?) But when Kent (an alias because of his Kentish heritage) tells London that he is going back home, with promises to return on a regular basis, London nastily shuts him down. 

But never fear, Kent and London meet again on Romney Marsh, located in Kent and with its proximity to the English Channel, a hotbed of smugglers since the 1600's. London's (Gareth) father unexpectedly dies, making him a baronet, Sir Gareth Inglis, master of Tench House. And eventually, Sir Gareth encounters Kent again - who possibly has the greatest name ever - Josiah Doomsday, the crown prince of the Dymchurch Doomsdays, a family of smugglers .... er, Free Traders, with a rich history in the Marsh. 

What ensues is an absolutely engrossing story of the life on the Marsh, how the Doomsday family takes care of those in need, how the ethics of smuggling are muddled at best, and how Josh and Gareth get past their minor problems ("Because you're a smuggler and I'm a baronet, You're Josh Doomsday and I'm outmarsh. I informed against your sister and you blackmailed me in public!) and become everything to each other. 

It's equal parts wildly romantic and terrifying, as various nefarious characters start attacking Gareth and his family, claiming they are owed something - something unnamed but they clearly believe Gareth knows what. The suspense ratchets up, the family intrigue continues, and everything resolves in a helluva dramatic ending, and I would gladly read another few hundred pages about Josh and Gareth.

So, I was overjoyed to learn that the second book in this series, A Nobleman's Guide to Seducing a Scoundrel is in the works. 5 stars and I simply cannot wait to read more about Romney Marsh and its families and characters! 

I received an ARC from the Publisher, via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.

Murder at the Seven Dials (A Bow Street Duchess Mystery)

Title: Murder at the Seven Dials (A Bow Street Duchess Mystery)

Author: Cara Devlin

Publisher: First Cup Press

Release Date: January 28, 2023

Genre(s): Historical Murder Mystery, M/M

Page Count: 317

Rating: 4.5 stars out of 5 

Read book blurb here

In this first book of Cara Devlin's new Regency-era murder/mystery series, we are introduced to Hugh Marsden, a Bow Street Runner, and Audrey Sinclair, the Duchess of Fournier. They are brought together by a horrible murder - the bloody slashing death of an opera singer in a suite of rooms where Philip, the Duke of Fournier, is found drenched in blood and incoherent, knife by his side. Officer Marsden believes the case open-and-shut, while Audrey is absolutely convinced of her husband's innocence.   

What follows is an intriguing murder mystery, as Audrey recklessly forges ahead with her investigation, only to be stymied and eventually aided by Hugh Marsden.  We quickly learn that Audrey and Philip's marriage is a shield for their respective secrets - Philip's secret is why Audrey knows that Philip was not interested in an affair with a woman, while Audrey's secret is a heck of a plot device as she is able to discern past events when she touches an item.  For example, as she finds an earbob from the dead opera singer, she sees a partial image of the killer. 

Hugh Marsden has a past, which slowly comes into focus as the story unfolds.  The murder / mystery is densely plotted and continues to hold interest as the intrigue gets more complex and more suspects and motives are unveiled.  In addition, the author deftly balances the drudging respect that Marsden develops for Audrey, with his interest in her as a woman.  It's a nicely done very slow burn, which has some interesting possibilities.

When the murderer is finally revealed, it feels a bit too abrupt, or maybe it's just that we've been led along a merry bloody chase and then suddenly it's over.  However, I was delighted to read the first chapter of the next book in the series,  and am anxiously to read more about Audrey and Marsden.  4.5 stars.

I received an ARC from the Publisher, via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.

Hide and Seek

Title: Hide and Seek 

Author: Josh Lanyon 

Publisher: JustJoshin Publishing

Release Date: October 19, 2022 

Genre(s): M/M Romance, M/M Mystery 

Page Count: 305 

Rating: 4 stars out of 5 

Read book blurb here

I devoured this book in one sitting because, bottom line, I am a total sucker for second chance romance. 

And this story of Andy returning to the appropriately-named Safehaven to help out his injured great uncle Cuthbert and reconnecting with his first love, bad boy Quinn Rafferty, fits the bill.  

Leaving an abusive ex-cop boyfriend, Andy returns to Safehaven to tend the antiques shop "Time in a Bottle" while Uncle Cuthbert lies in a coma, the victim of a savage beating in connection with a break-in. There are a few obvious suspects - the deliciously dysfunctional couple Clark and Fleur Skylar - and as the break-ins continue, the mystery grows. 

When Quinn Rafferty disappeared one night (when he was 18 and Andy was 16), Andy believed him dead ...

"Because otherwise why wouldn't Quinn have let him know where he was? Why wouldn't Quinn have told Andy what was going on? After everything - after what they had meant to each other -  But it turned out Andy had been as wrong about that as all the rest of it. Clearly, Quinn had not felt the same."

Sometimes the bad boy is just a messed-up kid who doesn't know where to turn. And sometimes that kid becomes (how can I say this ....) an "international man of mystery" which works for the story but lets Quinn off the hook in a way by too quickly encapsulating what made Quinn the man he is today.

In any case, Andy finally solves the mystery which has led us through a tantalizing array of suspects and motives.  I suspect some readers are not going to be as forgiving of Quinn; however, the mystery kept my interest throughout and c'mon, the bad boy and a geeky museum curator get back together. 4 stars.

I received an ARC from the author, via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.

The Gentleman's Book of Vices (Lucky Lovers of London, #1)

Title: The Gentleman's Book of Vices (Lucky Lovers of London, #1)

Author: Jess Everlee

Publisher: Carina Adores

Release Date: November 29, 2022

Genre(s): M/M Historical

Page Count: 304

Rating: 3.5 stars out of 5 

Read book blurb here

Overall, I found this a very enjoyable read. 

However, my favorite character ended up being Charlie's fiance Alma ("the sweet, fun-loving woman he would spend the rest of his life lying to") rather than the two protagonists.  And while it's historical, there are quite a few anachronisms (did they use the word "butch" in the 1880's?), oh, and although Miles is the author of  "the most buggery-filled book of the age"  .... sex scenes are few and far between, usually quickly fade to black. 

Miles Montague, aka Reginald Cox, earns wads of cash writing said smut, using the proceeds to poorly and halfheartedly manage his inherited bookstore.  Charlie is soon to be married and wants to get Miles' autograph on his favorite Cox book "Immorality Plays ("in which two moralists seclude themselves in a country house to pen a treatise against sin, only to find themselves compelled by dark forces to act out each crime they denounce") prior to settling down in marriage and stowing his beloved porno collection safely away for good.

Charlie frequents The Curious Fox, the London molly house equivalent of Cheers, with quirky characters like Noah Clarke / Miss Penelope Primrose, bartender Warren Bakshi, the proprietor Mr. Forester and Miss Jo, an occasional refuge from the Sapphists' club.  The development of the secondary characters is somewhat spotty, with Noah being fairly well fleshed out, and Miss Jo and The Beast remaining (to me at least) somewhat enigmatic.  

So, yeah .... good bones ...  this book has certainly got them, especially as this is the author's debut book.  The author does a good job of setting the scene along with some interesting sentences like this one describing Noah: ""The fellow slipped down off the bar like he was made from liquid and scurried into Charlie's arms. They hugged. They kissed, right on the mouth." And Alma is truly interesting, and not just a throw-away character in the role of the unwanted wife.

The first part of the book works really well, as Charlie meets Miles and they fall into some very interesting situations, but the second half of the book felt too busy and populated with far too many happenstances, odd reveals, with an overly complicated conclusion that may be best summed up as huh? Wait a minute .... huh?

There is a second book coming starring Noah and David Forester, so I do look forward to reading their story, and catching up on Alma, and Charlie and Miles as they all move into the next chapter of their lives.  3.5 stars.

I received an ARC from the publisher, via NetGalley, in exchange for an honest review.