Take A Shot

I stumbled across "Take A Shot" (by Samantha Wayland) on Eden Finely's facebook fan page (Absolutely Eden) when a fellow follower asked for the title of a hockey book she read a while back. Her description sounded fabulous, so what do I immediately do? Check the comments for answers and download said book.

["If you want to score, you have to take the shot.

Chris Kimball is good at keeping things to himself, but when he breaks his leg during a hockey game, he quickly realizes his biggest secret might be impossible to keep. It was hard enough being in love with his best friend and teammate, Tim Robineau, but when Tim takes care of him as he recovers, Chris’s feelings only grow stronger.

Tim is aware that some people think he’s dumb, but they’re wrong. He’s just an easy-going guy who enjoys spending time with his team and friends—especially Chris. Tim has dated a lot of women who couldn’t understand that, and figures he’s cursed when it comes to love—but he’s not. He just doesn’t know it.

Yet."]

Short, sweet. Forced proximity. Best-friends-to-lovers. Bi-awakening. What more could you want? Fluff and steam? Oh yes, there's tons of that too ;)

This short story was previously published in the Changing on The Fly Anthology, and it’s connected to Samantha’s Crashing series’s (which I’ll have to check out very soon).

#takeashot #samanthawayland #books #queerbooks #queererotica #bodicerippers #bookstagram #bookphotography #ilovebooks

Never Have I Ever Gone Skinny Dipping

"Never Have I Ever Gone Skinning Dipping" by Riley Hart was originally published in the fifth volume of the Heart2Heart anthology (alongside Lucy Lennox's "Welcome To Knockwood"--I'm accidentally keeping with the theme here ;) ). 

["Mickey Boring has always felt like his life is…well, boring. He’s a little shy, a little nerdy, a librarian who loves books—not real cool, in his opinion. The only exciting thing about him is the fact that he’s a secret writer of spicy stories who lives out his fantasies in the stories he pens. Oh and he loves writing those things in public—at a coffeehouse to be exact, owned by his crush, Ronan Winters.

When Mickey gets the prompt Never Have I Ever, on a message board, he knows exactly how he wants to end that sentence…Never Have I Ever Gone Skinny-Dipping…to live out a missed opportunity from eight years ago. And he’s determined that Ronan Winters is the man he’s going to get to go with him.

Mickey just has to figure out how to ask him first. No big deal, right?]

This book was soooooo cute! D: Mickey was a hot mess, all blushes and stampering words. Ronan was just hot, all--well, just picture a Fabio-type person, all tan and fit and confident and practically perfect. They were a odd match (on the outside--but this match is pretty typical for the genre (and for a good reason)), but they clicked and it was easy (once they let their guards down) and it was fun (once Mickey could figure out how to talk) and it was fate (once Ronan told Mickey who he was--or who he had been).

#neverhaveievergoneskinnydipping #rileyhart #heart2heart #heart2heartanthology #books #queerbooks #queererotica #bodicerippers #bookstagram #bookphotography #ilovebooks

Welcome To Knockwood

Lucy Lennox just published her short story "Welcome To Knockwood" (again). It was previously published (as "Never Have I Ever Fallen In Love") in the fifth volume of the Heart2Heart anthology (which I missed--it's theme/prompt was 'never have i ever'). What better way to spend an evening than reading books you just downloaded (instead of the ones piling up in you TBR pile)?

["This was the stupidest thing I’d ever done. “Take an adventure,” they said. “Do something wild,” they said. Flying in a floatplane to a tiny town in nowhere, Alaska, was definitely wild. At least, for me.

I was a Florida boy, born and raised. But when the website I worked for tasked me with writing an article about something I'd never done before, my stupid mouth had blurted, "I've never been to Alaska!"

But when I land on a pristine blue lake and don't die, I can't help but fall a little bit in love with the breathtaking place.

And... okay... maybe I fall a little bit in love with the grumpy pilot too.

If only I could convince him to set aside his mistrust of outsiders and give me a chance..."]

Short and sweet. Grump and sunshine. Small town shenanigans and meddling friends and finding your place in this big world.

I could have totally handled a whole novel of them. Spacing out their adventures, adding more steam scenes, more puppies and more love and more grumpy brothers (well, some of them weren't grumpy).

Speaking of brothers, I now do remember this story coming out. I figured I'd read it when Lucy finally got around to writing the Knockwood series/Valentine Brothers series. Pete Valentine is the grumpy pilot. His brother, Rocco Valentine, was in "Thick as Thieves" (part of Lucy's Aster Valley series). Sadly, she isn't an octopus and hasn't had time to write it (yet).

#welcometoknockwood #neverhaveieverfalleninlove #lucylennox #heart2heart #heart2heartanthology #books #queerbooks #queererotica #bodicerippers #bookstagram #bookphotography #ilovebooks

The Midnight Dance (Ever After #2)

Who needs to read TBR books when you can read things you just accidentally found? Who needs to start a series at the beginning when you can just read the second one? Who needs more queer Cinderella retellings?

This one is T.L. Gehr's "The Midnight Dance" from her Ever After series (a book I just accidentally found, the second book in the series, and a queer Cinderella retelling).

["Elam Ascher:
It was supposed to be a one-night stand.
I have a year to prove myself to City Ballet, to convince them to make me a permanent member of the corps. I don’t have time for a love affair. But Charles is so lost and lonely and I’ve never had someone care about me like this before. I can’t keep away, no matter how many times I tell myself I should.

Charles White:
It was supposed to be a one-night stand.
I’ve known I was gay for years, but coming to terms with it is another story. I’ve wanted men before, but never like this. I’ve never wanted to wake up in his arms, cook dinner together, find him waiting for me when I get home from work. Elam is younger than me, more confident, more attractive. He can do so much better than me. I want him anyway.
One night dancing together leads to weeks of dancing around each other before Elam’s wicked stepbrother breaks his leg. With Charles’s homophobic family trying to push him into marriage and Elam’s determination to stand on his own two feet (even if one is out of commission), can the lonely pair still find their way to each other?"]

I'm not sure if this book was good cheesy or bad? Like...one second, it's freaking adorable and so fun and clever and cute! Then the next second, I'm cringing a bit. 

It was overall a bit dramatic and filled with miscommunications, but my god, it was so damn good. It was an excellent Cinderella retelling. The trigger warnings are heavily needed though, heavily (these families are monsters).

Did I read the whole thing anyway? You better bet I did. Did I love it anyway? You better bet I did. Did I add the rest of the series to my TBR piles? ...yeah, yeah I did.

Trigger Warnings: homophobia, internalized homophobia, violence, neglect, abuse, bullying, anxiety/panic attacks, mention of conversion therapy, and more

#themidnightdance #tlgehr #cinderellaretelling #cinderella #queercinderella #thespindlescurse #thechristmaswishes #kissoflife #everafter #everafterseries #books #queerbooks #queererotica #bodicerippers #bookstagram #bookphotography #ilovebooks

The New Guy

I stumbled upon Sarina Bowen in the very beginning of my discovery of the queer (mm) romance novels. For some reason, I haven't binged through her things yet, but maybe "The New Guy" will be my reason.

["My name is Hudson Newgate, but my teammates call me New Guy.
That was my nickname in Chicago, too. And Vancouver. That’s what happens when you keep getting traded. Brooklyn is my last chance, especially after my poor performance last season.
But I can make this work. The new guy knows to keep his head down and shoot the puck. The new guy puts the game first.
What he doesn’t do is hook up with the other new guy—a hot athletic trainer who lives in my building. Gavin needs this job with my team. He’s a single dad with responsibilities.
We can’t be a couple. My arrogant agent–who’s also my father–will lose his mind if I’m dating a dude. And my team needs me to score goals, not whip up a media circus.
Too bad Gavin and I are terrible at resisting each other…"]

This book made me ugly cry. Like sobbing, hard, in the middle of the night when I should be sleeping because its a work night. Tears streaming down my face so hard I couldn't read but just kept reading and crying and reading and the cycle was brutal. As was like 50+ pages of this book. Like fuuuuuuuck reality and trying to protect yourself and jobs and life. 

It was also fluffy as hell. Like all of the clouds and cotton candy at a hockey game and ice cream when you're sick and cheesecake from your favorite restaurant just because. 

It wasn't easy for them, far from it, but it was so damn worth it (so was the ugly crying).

#thenewguy #sarinabowen #books #queerbooks #queererotica #bodicerippers #bookstagram #bookphotography #ilovebooks

Gravity

I've been addicted to author fan pages on facebook lately. They have so many relatable means to the genre and their books. They also have toooons of recommendations for new books/series/authors. Between that and Facebook's algorithm giving me even more recommendations, I'm swamped with new books to read. I told myself I would wait until I read most of (most of---not all of, gotta be realistic here) before I started anything new-new...but here we are. ;)

Here's Tal Bauer's "Gravity."

["C’est cela l’amour, et tu es mon rêve...

Bryce:
Hockey is my life. This game pulled me from my tiny Quebec hometown all the way to the NHL, and now? I’m the number one player in the league. Team capitaine for the Montréal Étoiles. I’m shattering records and packing arenas every night, and I’ve promised my team: we’re going to win the Stanley Cup this year.
But I’m keeping big secrets. I'm thinking dangerous thoughts, and dreaming about impossible things. Like how a man’s lips might taste, or how his body might feel in my arms.
I can’t go there. I’ve got to focus. Team. Hockey. Cup. What my heart wants doesn’t matter.
So why am I falling head over heels at the NHL's All-Star Weekend?
I can’t do this. I can’t fall for Hunter Lacey. He’s a hockey player. We’re both in the NHL. He’s on a different team. And, oh yeah, he’s straight.

Hunter:
I’m a middle-of-the-road, nothing-special hockey player. Good enough to be drafted into the NHL, and I’ve been on the roster for the past two years, but I’ll never make the Hall of Fame. I’m just trying to keep my head up and get through each day, until this wild ride comes to an end.
Deep thinking isn’t really my thing. Look inside myself? Lotta beer and burgers there.
I never thought I’d be invited to the All-Star Weekend, but here I am. And there’s my hero: Bryce Michel, league superstar.
Saying hello to Bryce turns into hours spent together on the ice, and then an invite to dinner, and then days at each other's side. I’m in heaven. He’s my hero, and this is the coolest—
Then Bryce’s lips land on mine, and the world turns upside down."]

This book was heart-breaking and soul-renewing and earth-shattering and hope-resurrecting. It made me hold my breath, giggle, sob, and smile like an idiot. It was...so much. It was poetry and French lessons and the psychology of hockey and the meaning of family. It was falling in love all over again with this genre, and I couldn't be happier. 

I will most definitely be adding Tal to my author-binge list

#gravity #talbauer #books #queerbooks #queererotica #bodicerippers #bookstagram #bookphotography #ilovebooks

Meet Me In The Blue (Hemlock Harbor #1)

Why read books I've saved up on my TBR list when I can read a book that came out yesterday? Here's A.M. Johnson's "Meet Me In The Blue," the first book in her latest series Hemlock Harbor.

["Meet me… in the place where the sun kisses the horizon and sinks into blue shades of you and me.
Meet me there… where everything was always perfect. You and me and the damp grass at dawn and the gray dirt in the late evening rain.
Meet me where we were ourselves and not these two people who can’t even say I love you.
Meet me there and maybe we’ll remember…
We’ll remember the us we were before them, before miles, before lost hours, and you’ll ask what color the sky is, and I’ll say blue like your eyes.
And you’ll smile, and I’ll forget I ever missed you.

Luka and Rook have been best friends since they were nine years old.
Five years ago, Luka threw it all away.
When his dad’s health takes a turn for the worst, Luka must come home to say his goodbyes and mend the bridges he burned all those years ago. But coming home is harder than he imagined, and after reuniting with his family, there’s only one person he needs.
Rook…
His best friend.
The one man he pushed away, the one man, no matter how hard he tried to forget, he can't stop himself from loving.
Even if loving him means breaking his heart all over again."]

This book was fillllled with nostalgia. Between the childhood flashbacks to reconnecting to falling back in love to the loss of Luka's father. The entire book, all of the prose and description and looooove, was pure poetry. 

And sadness. I cried. a. lot. I mean, there was (obviously) a happily ever after, but the build up and cancer and the fighting-you-own-fears things was terrifying and thrilling and incredibly sad. 

But their love? Fucking hell. Their love. It was obvious and transcendent and glorious and easy (and not so easy). It was scraped knees and clubhouses, it was broken hearts and broken promises, it was reacquainting and refalling. It was sunshine and puppy kisses and being yourself and saying what you mean. It was shades of blue (all of the different shades of happiness and sadness in one color, making it's own story--I can do poetry too).

#meetmeintheblue #helmlockharbor #helmlockharborseries #amjohnson #books #queerbooks #queererotica #bodicerippers #bookstagram #bookphotography #ilovebooks