Got to get you naked! – #MFRWsteam #GayRomance #BDSM #NewRelease

Welcome to the monthly MFRW Steam blog hop! Looking for the hottest romance around? Today’s your lucky day! A slew of authors are sharing erotic snippets, to entice, tease and arouse you.

Today is also release day for my gay erotic romance tale Playing to Score. So of course, my excerpt comes from the new book. Hope you enjoy it. When your heartbeat has returned to normal ;^), use the links at the end of this post to visit the other authors participating in today’s event.

 

With the right opponent, even Scrabble can be foreplay.

Matt was supposed to be just a hot hook-up. Then he turned on the charm and brought out the bondage gear.

Jason Hofstadter comes to the Four States Annual Scrabble Tournament for two reasons: to play for the trophy and to get laid. Every year since his first, he’s managed to score with one of the other guys attending. He figures that he’s hit the jackpot when he spots handsome, bookish Matt Sawyer, who's competing at the Four States for the first time.

Shy and seemingly innocent, Matt turns out to be full of surprises. First he jumps Jason in the rest room at Starbucks. Then he reveals that he's into BDSM and encourages Jason to top him. Finally, despite his lack of experience with tournament play, Matt ends up facing Jason across the board in the semi-final round. When Matt throws the game he should have won, Jason is forced to confront his own feelings: about winning, about casual sex, and about Matt.

Note: This book was previously published by Totally Bound under the title Crossed Hearts. It has been revised, expanded and re-edited for this release.

Excerpt (Rated X)

The lift chimed as it reached Jason’s floor. The doors slid open. They tumbled out, hands still tangled in each other’s clothing. The corridor appeared to be empty—hopefully, everyone was down in the ballroom, listening to speeches, watching videos of last year’s highlights. Matt caught Jason again, halfway down the hall, flattening him against some stranger’s door and claiming his mouth.

“Wait—Matt, hold on, just a second…” Matt stole his breath. Jason couldn’t talk, couldn’t think. He was ready to explode. He struggled out from underneath the younger man’s weight and half-dragged Matt down to his room at the end of the hall.

He fumbled for his wallet in the pocket of his tight jeans, every motion transmitted to his aching dick. He managed to extract the key card, while Matt circled Jason’s waist from behind and rubbed his cock up and down Jason’s crack. Jason’s hand trembled as he tried to slide the card into the slot. The light remained red. “Matt, please! I can’t do this…” Matt reached down between Jason’s legs, stroking then squeezing. “Damn it, Matt!” Jason protested, weak from the pleasure that shimmered through him.

Finally, the LED turned green. Jason wrenched himself from Matt’s grasp and pushed the handle. The door swung inward. The two men fell into the room and collapsed onto the bed.

“Got—to get you—naked,” Matt panted, tearing at Jason’s clothing. In an instant, Jason’s fly was open and his cock was blissfully, ecstatically free. The next instant, wet heat engulfed him as Matt swallowed him whole.

“Oh—baby…” Matt’s mouth was as energetic and muscular as the rest of him. He sucked Jason with a single-minded ferocity that Jason could not resist. He lay on his back, overwhelmed, watching the dark head bob up and down, jerking his hips each time his knob grazed the back of Matt’s throat.

Pleasure coiled tighter in his belly. He dangled on the edge once more, ready to topple over. Matt’s tongue wound around his shaft, circled his bulb, flicked at the sensitive little ridge underneath. The guy was a genius, holding him there on the brink, taking him higher and higher but never letting him go.

The pressure built. The sensations became more intense. He wanted to come, needed to come. “Please,” he begged. “Please, Matt, don’t torture me! Finish me off.”

The boy stopped. It was like stepping from a raging hurricane into the eye of the storm. Jason moaned in frustration.

“You want to come?” Matt was grinning like a fiend. He’d put aside his glasses at some point. His eyes were pools of hot chocolate.

“Of course I want to come.”

“Wouldn’t you rather come in my ass?” Cool as a cucumber, the other man sat up and peeled off his shirt. His nipples were pink raspberries against the creamy skin of his chest. The sight made Jason’s mouth water. Matt stood beside the bed and pushed his pants down to his ankles. He stepped out of them and kicked them across the room. His cock reared up, long and meaty, the livid bulb glistening with pre-cum.

Jason’s fingers twitched. His balls ached. He’d never been so hard, so needy.

Matt climbed back onto the quilted bedspread. He knelt with his back to Jason then sank forward onto his elbows, offering Jason his perfect butt.

The pale globes gleamed in the street lights that filtering through the curtains. Matt shifted position, further separating his thighs. His gluteals flexed then relaxed. Jason stared, fascinated, dying to stroke those firm mounds of flesh, to grope and knead them, but somehow not daring to move.

Matt’s dark-furred balls hung between his splayed thighs. His crack was hardly visible, just a shadowy furrow between those swelling buttocks. Jason couldn’t see the whorl of the boy’s hole but he could feel it calling to him.

“Jason?” Matt’s voice woke him from his voyeuristic trance.

“Uh—yeah.”

“What are you waiting for? You’ve got condoms, right? And lube?” Matt looked over his shoulder, grinning as usual.

“Of course.” Jason’s dick slapped against his belly, leaving a wet trail.

“Well, go get them, then. Unless you’ve changed your mind.”

Why wait? Get your copy today!

Kinky Literature – https://www.kinkyliterature.com/book/8642-playing-to-score/

Amazon US – https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08VRVVYZG

Amazon UK – https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B08VRVVYZG

Smashwords – https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1067359

Barnes and Noble – https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/playing-to-score-lisabet-sarai/1138737494?ean=2940164803995

Kobo – https://www.kobo.com/th/en/ebook/playing-to-score

Add on Goodreads – https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/56935995-playing-to-score

Be sure to visit the other sexy authors participating in today’s Steam Hop!

 

Sizzling Sunday: Super Hot Gay Romance! #mmromance #scifi #SizzlingSunday

For today’s Sizzling Sunday post, I’ve got an intensely erotic, X-rated excerpt from my latest release, a sci-fi, MM romance entitled The H-Gene.

About the Book

When love is forbidden, the whole world’s a prison

After a gay plague killed millions and sparked brutal riots, the Guardians locked up all H-positive men in remote quarantine camps – including Dylan Moore. H-negative guard Rafe Cowell blames the lust he feels watching prisoner 3218 on loneliness and isolation. When he finally meets the young queer, he discovers that Dylan is brilliant, brave, sexy as hell — and claims to be in love with Rafe.

Excerpt

“Relax,” said Dylan. “Sit down.” He seated himself on the bench, the polished wood cool against his bare buttocks. Like an automaton, Rafe did the same. The black man kicked off the biohazard gear. For a moment they simply stared at each other.

Dylan felt his nipples tighten and his cock lift under the guard’s scrutiny. It really was lucky the guy was so attractive. It made everything easier.

He could read the emotions shuttling across Rafe’s face. Hell, the guy was an open book. The anger was mostly gone. Now fear, guilt and lust battled it out on those noble features. Dylan sat quietly, holding Rafe’s eyes, his own cock growing harder with every passing second. 

Rafe’s nostrils flared. He breathed through his mouth, panting as though he was running a marathon. His gaze flicked down to the rod of flesh rearing up from Dylan’s groin.

“What do you want?” he asked finally, his voice almost a whisper.

“You know what I want. You.”

He leaned forward, brushing his lips across Rafe’s. The other man started. Dylan seized the guard’s shoulders and pulled him into a fierce kiss. Rafe did not resist. In fact, he opened his mouth to allow Dylan’s questing tongue inside.

Exultation flared in Dylan’s heart. Still devouring the guard’s mouth, he slid his hands down Rafe’s massive biceps and then over his solid chest, pulling at the Velcro that kept the shirt closed. The guard’s skin was smooth, warm, and moist with sweat. Dylan’s fingers skimmed over the patch of tight frizz between Rafe’s breasts, then fastened on one fat nipple. Rafe gasped, grabbed Dylan’s head, and deepened the kiss.

This was almost too easy. Dylan cupped the huge bulk of Rafe’s erection, trapped inside the tight trousers. “I want to see you naked,” he said, close to Rafe’s ear. “Please, baby…”

Rafe abruptly broke the embrace. Damn. Had he moved too fast for the homophobic guard? Rafe turned his broad back to Dylan and shucked off his shirt. Dylan licked his lips at the sight of the muscles shifting in that sleek, chocolate brown expanse. Rafe kicked off his boots then yanked his pants down to his ankles. Finally he peeled off the gloves and tossed them onto the concrete floor.

When he faced Dylan again, his eyes were glowing coals. His cock rose like a pillar of basalt between his powerful thighs. His abdomen rippled as he sucked in breath. He was magnificent, like some ancient god. Dylan wanted to worship him.

Sinking to his knees in front of the naked guard, Dylan kissed the glistening bulb of that formidable cock, tasting soap and sweat. He was about to swallow as much of that engorged length as he could manage when a heavy hand gripped his skull. 

“No,” Rafe commanded. “On the bench. On your hands and knees.”

Dylan hastened to obey, his lust almost smothering his sense of triumph. He presented his rump for Rafe’s inspection, spreading his thighs as much as he could, given the width of the bench. His cock twitched when Rafe palmed one buttock. He nearly came when the man spread those cheeks, exposing his rear hole. He held himself still, struggling for control, as Rafe ran a spit-moistened finger up and down his crevice.

He’d be tight. It would hurt. Nobody had taken him there since Miguel had died, years—centuries—ago. And Rafe was so huge—but Dylan knew he could bear it, for the sake of his plan. In fact, the thought of that enormous cock ripping into him made him harder than ever.

Dylan expected violence. Based on their last encounter in the control room, he expected the guard to force his way into Dylan’s ass. He was astonished when, instead, he felt the wet prodding of the other man’s tongue wriggling against his sphincter. The slick pressure sent tendrils of electricity spiraling through him to tighten around the base of his cock. After a blissful while, the tongue was replaced by a careful digit pressing into his hole, circling, massaging, luring him to relax. He arched back, opening himself to the second finger that Rafe had inserted. Rafe pushed deeper, spreading his fingers to stretch the ring of muscle. Every movement transmitted itself to Dylan’s cock.

“God, that feels good!” he moaned. “More. Please!”

Rafe did not speak. Dylan heard him spit. The probing fingers were replaced by a rounded mass Dylan knew was Rafe’s cock head. The guard rubbed the bulb back and forth over the loosened entrance. Dylan shivered at the sensations. The man was driving him crazy.

Steady pressure built at his rear entrance. Dylan’s muscles screamed in protest as Rafe’s cock breached him. Then, in the wake of the pain, pleasure rushed in, full and deep, as deep as Rafe’s prick buried in his ass. Dylan clenched around the invading bulk, reveling in the sensation of being filled. Rafe pulled partway out, then slid smoothly back in to the hilt. Dylan felt the weight of the other man’s balls swinging against his butt cheeks. Oh, God, it was good, so good…

Dylan sank down onto his elbows, elevating his ass and allowing Rafe to plunge deeper. The guard thrust steadily, hard but not too hard, exactly the way Dylan craved. A big hand reached around his hips and squeezed his cock. He whimpered, overcome by the pleasure.

“You like that, boy?”

Dylan knew he didn’t need to answer. He wasn’t sure that he could. He felt fingernails scoring his butt flesh as Rafe picked up the pace. The guard rammed his cock into Dylan’s hole, again and again, each stroke more savage than the last. But Dylan was ready now, warmed up, loose and hot and hungry for whatever the guard dished out.

Get your copy today!

Kinky Literature – https://www.kinkyliterature.com/book/7233-the-hgene-after-the-plague-book-1/

Amazon US – https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08CVNK6NL

Amazon UK – https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B08CVNK6NL

Smashwords – https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1032512

Barnes and Noble – https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-h-gene-lisabet-sarai/1137338272?ean=2940164186050

Kobo – https://www.kobo.com/th/en/ebook/the-h-gene

Add on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/54529211-the-h-gene

New release and giveaway! #gayromance #homophobia #giveaway

Happy Sunday! I have another new release that I am featuring today – and another giveaway. Read on for news about my dystopian scifi MM romance The H-Gene, first book in what (I hope) will be a series called After the Plague.

I’m giving away an ebook copy of the book to one lucky reader who leaves a comment with his or her email address.

Below you’ll find the blurb and an exclusive excerpt. The excerpt is PG, but the book itself is definitely five flames – explicit gay romance with a HFN ending.

Blurb

Dylan Moore will do anything for freedom. Seven years ago, a gay plague spread to heterosexuals, killing millions and sparking brutal anti-gay riots. The Guardians rounded up men who tested positive for the homogene and imprisoned them in remote quarantine centers like desolate Camp Malheur. Since then, Dylan has hacked the camp's security systems and hoarded spare bits of electronics, seeking some way to escape. He has concluded the human guards are the only weakness in the facility's defenses.

Camp guard Rafe Cowell is H-negative. He figures the lust he feels watching prisoner 3218 masturbate on the surveillance cameras must be due to his loneliness and isolation. When he finally meets the young queer, he discovers that Dylan is brilliant, brave, sexy as hell — and claims to be in love with Rafe. Despite his qualms, Rafe finds he can't resist the other man's charm. By the time Dylan asks for his help in escaping, Rafe cares too much for Dylan to refuse.

Dylan's plan goes awry and Rafe comes to his rescue. Soon they're both fugitives, fleeing from militant survivalists, murderous androids, homophobic ideologues and a powerful man who wants Dylan as his sexual toy. Hiding in the Plague-ravaged city of Sanfran, Dylan and Rafe learn there's far more than their own safety at stake. Can they help prevent the deaths of millions more people? And can Rafe trust the love of a man who deliberately seduced him in order to escape from quarantine?

Note: This novel was previously released by Pride Publishing under the title Quarantine. It has been revised and re-edited for this release.

Exclusive Excerpt (PG)

He halted outside the second gate, across from the raised bridge. He was more than twenty feet from the moat, but the rotten egg stench still assaulted his senses. There was no way Dylan could have made it across that hellish river. The guy must be here somewhere, between the outer fence and that stinking pit of poison.

And when I find him? Rafe couldn’t help asking himself. Then what? If I don’t bring him back, I’m pretty much signing my own death warrant.

He pushed the thought away. Turning left, he began a slow circle around the camp. As in the inmate precinct, there were no trees, just the occasional boulder making long shadows in the setting sun.

Rafe examined each unlikely hiding place, searching without success for Dylan or any sign that he’d been there. Concrete towers at each corner of the fence supported spotlights and housed the transformers that fed current to the steel mesh. No one crouched in the angles between these buildings and the barrier. The maintenance entrances were all inside the fence, so Dylan couldn’t be hiding inside the cement boxes.

Where the fuck are you, Dylan? Give me some clue.

It took Rafe more than an hour to make his way around the eight-mile perimeter and back to the bridge. By then the sky overhead had turned azure, while red and orange clouds striped the western horizon. He stared again at the steel webbing arching over the moat. Could Dylan have somehow figured out how to lower the pivoting segment to cross over, then raise it again?

Considering all the amazing technical feats the inmate had managed inside, nothing was impossible.

He inserted a pair of nose plugs fished from his jacket pocket, then approached the bridge control box. When he touched his left and right index fingers to the sensor panels, the compartment swung open. There was no sign of tampering. He pressed the “Down” button. The hinged section squealed slightly as it swung down and locked into place.

Rafe sucked in a deep breath and squeezed the trike accelerator. The vehicle sped up the ramp, across the temporary span, and down the other side. Remembering his training, still holding his breath, he activated the “Up” button from the matching control box on the far end of the bridge. The moving segment flipped back to the open position.

He brought the cycle to a stop some thirty feet beyond the moat and let his lungs empty. He stared back at the ugly bulk of Malheur Camp. The floodlights came on, bathing the ground around the fence in a sickly yellow glare. The barren soil where he stood, outside the range of the lights, was still a featureless gray. Evening deepened as Rafe perched there on the trike, trying to figure out what to do next.

If Dylan had made it past the moat, he’d be on foot. Rafe could easily catch him on the cycle, but only if he knew which direction the boy had taken. Dylan was probably too smart to keep to the road. On the other hand, he’d said he was headed for the city. Rafe guessed he meant Sanfran. Ellay was too far away and, since the eruption of 2024, nobody really considered Portland a city anymore.

Southwest, then. If he wanted to find the boy, that’s the way he should head. But maybe he should give up, go back to the camp and admit that they’d all been outsmarted. The Guardians would probably discipline both him and Turk, but what could the higher-ups do, really? Fire them for incompetence?

Rafe gave a bitter laugh. As the sound died away, he thought he heard something else—something like a moan, barely audible but definitely human.

He listened carefully to the quiet night. There it was again—a soft sound of someone in agony, coming from near the bridge.

Dylan! Rafe scrambled off the trike and headed towards the sound, holding his breath once again.

He scanned the bank. There! By the edge of the moat, in the shadow of the criss-crossed girders, there was something that looked like a pile of rags. He inched closer, trying to ignore the sting as the toxic vapors attacked his skin. The bundle of cloth stirred and coughed. Rafe rushed over, crouched down and turned the body onto its back. Then he gasped and choked himself as noxious fumes rushed into his throat.

Dylan’s cheeks and brow were peppered with oozing sores. His eyes were swollen shut. His thick tongue protruded between cracked lips. His fingers twitched feebly.

Rafe half dragged, half carried the younger man away from the river of poison. He stretched the limp body out on the ground, shielded by the trike. “Dylan!” he cried, as the fresher air filled his chest. “It’s me, baby. Oh, God, Dylan!”

Dylan coughed and sputtered. Greenish spittle trickled from his mouth.

“Breathe, kid. Breathe!”

Dylan seemed to hear. His raw lips moved, as though he wanted to say something.

Rafe needed water, to wash the man’s wounds and clean away the chemical residue. He needed antibacterial salve and collagen strips and enzyme patches to stimulate healing. Not to mention an oxygen tank to force the poison out of Dylan’s lungs.

That meant civilization, or what passed for it here in the wastelands of Oregon. The closest settlements, though, were at least two hundred miles away.

Rafe lifted Dylan’s body once more and settled it on the seat of the trike. Dylan slumped against the windscreen. Rafe mounted the bike behind the inmate, slipping one arm around his waist for support while steering with the other.

“Rafe?” Dylan’s voice was weak but intelligible. He raised his head then let it flop back on to Rafe’s chest.

“Yeah, it’s me. Just relax, boy. Hang on. I’m going to get you some help.” Rafe started the cycle and turned it towards the ribbon of crumbling asphalt that stretched westward.

The other man leaned against Rafe’s body. “Mmm,” he murmured. “Good.”

Strangely enough, it was good. Despite his worry about Dylan, Rafe felt a kind of contentment as they raced off into the night. The wind was fresh and cool in his face. The motor hummed between his thighs. Dylan’s weight was a welcome reminder that, for once, Rafe was not alone.

The cycle ate up the miles. Dylan slept, curled against him. Inside Rafe’s chest, a quiet joy took root and grew stronger. For the first time in years, Rafe felt free.

Buy Links

Kinky Literature – https://www.kinkyliterature.com/book/7233-the-hgene-after-the-plague-book-1/

Amazon US – https://www.amazon.com/dp/B08CVNK6NL

Amazon UK – https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B08CVNK6NL

Smashwords – https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1032512

Barnes and Noble – https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-h-gene-lisabet-sarai/1137338272?ean=2940164186050

Kobo – https://www.kobo.com/th/en/ebook/the-h-gene

Add on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/54529211-the-h-gene

Don’t forget to leave a comment (with your email). You could win a copy of this dramatic, arousing novel.

Just who is the cat and who is the mouse? #GayRomance #BDSM #HistoricalRomance @KetaDiablo

Craven and his friend Anthony are in over their heads the night they're caught spying on Beresford Hall. When Craven meets the dark, mysterious Dominic Beresford, he wonders if fate really does step in and take you by surprise when you least expect it.

Dominic Beresford has led a licentious existence, one that includes wealth, luxury and a carefree attitude when it comes to sexual liaisons . . . until the night he catches two young men spying on his property. Intending to frighten them into never breaching the privacy of another again, he takes them at gunpoint into Beresford Hall.

He is inexplicably drawn to one of the young spies, Craven Saunders, and cannot fathom how this handsome young man was able to turn his world upside down in such a short time. Dominic’s game of cat and mouse suddenly runs amuck.

The question is . . . just who is the cat and who is the mouse?

Review Snippets

“Magnolia Heat is well worth the read. I will be looking for more from Ms. Diablo in the future (especially if Craven and Dominic are involved.” Book of The Week and 4.5 Stars” Whipped Cream Reviews ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

“Carnal delights that are erotically written and hot, hot, hot to read. The sexual interactions are incredibly well written.” Rainbow Reviews 5 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

“This book moves along at a very fast pace, keeping you on the edge of your seat, panting for more. Magnolia Heat is a great read!” Dark Divas 5 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

“The way Diablo breathes life into her characters is fabulous. From the sexy mysterious Dominic Beresford to the unassuming student Craven, I was hooked from page one!” Moonlight, Lace and Mayhem, 5 Stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Excerpt

“Perhaps you’d care to tell me your name and why you were snooping about my private property?”

“Craven Saunders, sir, and we weren’t snooping―”

“What do you call it, young man, agate-picking?” He shook his head, his voice stern. “I detest it when someone lies to me. If you’re determined to spy on others, be man enough to admit it.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Yes, sir, what?”

Craven’s tone took on the innocent pleading of a child. “We were spying, Mr. Beresford, but I promise it won’t happen again.”

“Oh, I’ve no doubt about that, Mr. Saunders.” He arched his neck, the sleek, hair shining like onyx beneath the candlelight in the room. “I must inform you, my valet, Higginbotham, claims you’ve been spying for weeks. Knowing Higginbotham is an honest man, I conducted an investigation myself last Friday eve.” The man swiped a hand across his erotic mouth, the gesture turning Craven’s knees to marmalade and his already dry throat to an arid desert.

Craven hung his head. Damn, he could do nothing but confess. “Your man spoke the truth.”

When Craven garnered the courage to look at him again, the man gave a shake of his head. “Craven, an odd name, is it not?”

“Yes, sir,” he interjected. “It means―”

“I know what it means―weak, spineless, fearful.” The world tilted on its axis when the man took another step toward him and raked him over with those deep blue orbs. “Do the adjectives describe you, Saunders?”

“No, Mr. Beresford, sir, I don’t believe they do.”

He studied the man, captivated by smooth, silky cadence of his voice. If indeed Beresford stood before him, Anthony couldn’t have been more correct. Magnificently stunning, he oozed male virility. The dim light of the bedchamber could not hide it. His mouth full, his nose straight, every feature of his face must have been crafted by a skilled artisan, or, perhaps, a patient God. Craven couldn’t drag his gaze away from the man’s luminescent orbs. His stomach somersaulted and he longed to be touched by him, fucked senseless. Had he been out in the sun too long that day?

“Well, we shall test the theory about your namesake.” The man’s languid once-over sent shivers down his spine. Closing the remaining distance between them, he took Craven’s chin between his thumb and index finger and forced him to look into those piercing eyes. “What makes you think my name is Beresford?”

Get your own copy of Magnolia Heat by Keta Diablo

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00IMGBC0G

About the Author

Keta Diablo lives in the Midwest part of the United States on six acres of gorgeous woodland. When she isn't writing or gardening, she loves to commune with nature. A pair of barn owls returns to the property every year to birth their young and show them off in the high branches of the oak trees. Nothing more adorable than these white fluffy babies with heart-shaped faces. A lifelong animal lover, Keta devotes her time and support to the local animal shelter. Emma LaPounce, a rescued feline, has been her furry companion for the last ten years.

Keta is an award-winning and bestselling author who writes in several genres: Western Romance, Historical Romance, Paranormal Romance and Contemporary Romance. Occasionally, she writes Gay Romance. Her books have received numerous accolades, including RWA contest finalist, Authors After Dark finalist, Top Pick of the Month and Recommended Review from many top review sites, and Best Romance Finalist from The Independent Author Network.

Keta would love to have you follow her on the Net:

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Review Tuesday: Building Bonds - #ReviewTuesday #GayRomance #BDSMRomance

Building Bonds by Morticia Knight

Pride Publishing, 2018

Despite the fact that he builds bondage furniture for a living and secretly masturbates to kinky gay porn, Kyle is sure he’s not a submissive. It doesn’t matter how much his slave-boy friend Marshall teases him, Kyle has no interest in finding out more about the BDSM lifestyle. Indeed, the notion terrifies him.

Indeed, after being dumped by his selfish and emotionally abusive partner Roger, Kyle’s pretty reluctant to get involved with anyone, kinky or not. He tells himself he’s content to live a quiet, solitary life, rather than exposing himself to the pain of another relationship. Then he meets Gavin, part-owner of the soon-to-opened BDSM club Kiss of Leather. Kyle’s attraction to the sexy, self-possessed Dom is immediate and intense, but that just increases his shyness and embarrassment in Gavin’s presence.

Gavin’s initial interest in Kyle is strictly professional; the club wants to engage Kyle as their exclusive carpenter, to design and construct all their equipment. However, he soon realizes he wants more, that he wants to dominate the handsome but awkward carpenter. When Kyle mentions Roger, Gavin assumes that the ex was a former Master. Only when Gavin offers Kyle a trial six-month contract as his submissive does Kyle confess to his near-total ignorance of kink.

Kyle wants Gavin so badly he agrees to become his “boy”, even though he has little understanding of what that entails. Gavin is happy to teach him. Gently but firmly, he introduces the younger man to the physical and emotional joys of submission. By the time the contract is half over, both men realize their feelings go way beyond sexual attraction.

I’ve known Morticia Knight as a fellow author and blog contributor for years, but for some reason this is the first book of hers I’ve read. I found it satisfying from an emotional perspective, less so from a logical or literary one.

Building Bonds is pure romance, pure fantasy – the soulmate trope becoming all the more compelling when it involves D/s, which demands the ultimate in devotion and trust. When I turn the light of reason on the plot, however, I find it somewhat implausible. Everything happens too fast. I don’t think a real Dom would push a total novice the way Gavin pushes Kyle (though everything is thoroughly based on consent). Furthermore, given how emotionally damaged Kyle seems to be, I wonder if it’s realistic that he’d be able to open up to Gavin the way he does.

The book also felt too short to me. Gavin and Kyle meet, get together, and fall in love. Nothing much else really happens. I expected some external conflict, perhaps from Roger’s reappearance, but that didn’t happen. I also wondered whether Kyle might not freak out from the emotional demands of his interactions with the Dom and need some space. Instead, they have a very hot scene involving a violet wand, end up confessing their love to one another, and that’s it – the end.

There’s a reasonable amount of kinky sex in the book, with a well-managed escalation of intensity. Still, for some reason the story felt a bit “vanilla” to me. This might be, paradoxically, because of Gavin’s constant emphasis on Safe, Sane and Consensual. Of course in the real world, this is probably what one wants, but in erotic fiction one craves a bit of risk, a bit of danger.

Overall, I enjoyed Building Bonds – but it left me wanting more. More story. More conflict. More character depth. Maybe more extreme and challenging sex.

More.

Seven things about Jon Palmer - New #gayromance from @Parr_Books

 

Seven things about character Jon Palmer from new release gay romance, Like a Thief in the Night.

1. He wears an Armani jacket for work.

2. He prefers to wear ripped jeans and a t-shirt

3. He’s used to heights since he’s had to scale the roof of an apartment block all summer

4. He likes hot chocolate before bed

5. He owns a pair of blue rubber toe post sandals

6. He has a tiny art studio in a beach suburb

7. Circumstances force him to quit his city job

Like a Thief in the Night

Gorgeous businessman Saxon Dearing buys a pied de terre in the city where he works. Only using the place on three nights, he goes home to his beachside house for the rest of the week. At thirty-two, immersed in his work, he doesn’t know he’s lonely until delicious, twenty-five year old Jon Palmer literally drops into his life during a thunderstorm.

Artist Jon struggles to sell his paintings from a tiny studio, and works in a city gallery to pay his rent. As the two men fall in love, Jon can’t overcome the idea his lack of success is a barrier to telling handsome, wealthy Saxon how he feels.

When his boss offers him a dangerous way of making money, Jon must make a choice.

Will he risk telling Saxon he loves him or let his lack of confidence lead him astray and away from the man who loves him, too?

Excerpt

The invitation to kiss lured Jon in a second. The delicious feel of his lover’s lips mingled with the emotion that swished in his stomach. He clung to Saxon, sharing heated kiss after kiss until his heart raced. He drew away trying to cool the moment.

Saxon traced a finger along Jon’s cheek to his jaw. It left delectable sensation in its wake.

Jon took a deep breath. He returned to sitting in the shelter of Saxon’s arm and stared at the screen where the movie played on.

Moments passed before Saxon spoke softly.

“I know you go home Saturday after work, but can I see you tomorrow night? Will you come to the beach house? I know it’s clingy, maybe even surprising, but I feel like I don’t want to let you out of my sight.”

The sentiment sent a wave of warmth into Jon’s heart. If only things were different, we’d fall in love. I already feel safe with him. I want to love him and have him love me. He won’t love a felon. Jon sighed.

Saxon must have mistaken the sigh for a refusal. “You probably have plans, of course.”

Jon hurried to correct the idea. “No. I’d love to see you, Saxon.”

“Where’s your phone? I’ll put my address and both my numbers in your contacts.”

Jon couldn’t help smiling. He likes me a lot, for sure. He stood and went to his jacket. He brought his smartphone back to the couch and sat beside Saxon. “Here you go.”

Saxon bent his head to key in the information.

Just watching him gave Jon a soft glow of affection for the man.

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