Drew
A wounded heart. A shared love of music. A whirlwind romance with the power to heal.Drew Axel is ready for a change after his famously public split from famed actor, Rozen Lane. When he stops to perform in his childhood town, getting back to his roots, the last thing Drew expects to find is love.Especially with a fellow Swiftie.Taylor Meade has two loves in his life: His floral shop and his favorite female singer. Despite being in the business of weddings, Taylor has given up on finding the perfect man to fit into his Swift-inspired dreams. That is, until he wakes up hungover in rockstar Drew Axel's tour bus.As fate draws Drew and Taylor closer, they both soon discover music isn't the only thing they have in common. Will Drew give up a life of glitz and glamor for his wildest dreams? Or will Taylor find himself fighting more than just Drew's bad boy reputation?Readers seeking a bad boy rockstar romance with forced proximity set in a cozy little town may find this story ticks those boxes. While Drew and Taylor may have cameos in future stories, each book in this series can be read as a standalone.
Ryzen
True evil lurks in the darkness...Recruited at eighteen by the CIA, Ryzen is one of the best snipers in the world. Now, he's working with the Federal Protection Agency to aid them in their fight to track down the vile people who perpetuate crimes against children. Always hidden behind his dark sunglasses, Ry is a mystery to everyone and he prefers it that way.Ry remembers Knox from when he had his psych evaluation, and that the profiler's report was what resulted in his discharge from the CIA. He's not impressed with the man, and even more disturbed by the way he makes Ry feel.A profiler with the FBI, Knox Hunter is investigating a series of murders. The victims are all male, between twelve and fourteen, and all have the same MO. With the Mayor pushing for re-election, a report of a serial killer could jeopardize the campaign's success, so Knox is sent in to work with the FPA to try and close the case, fast and by any means necessary. The only problem is, Knox is an office man, not a field man, and this new path could be the most dangerous one of his entire career.Will Ry be able to keep Knox safe while they track down and put away this serial killer, or is he destined to be the biggest threat-to Knox's heart?Trigger Warning: Murder, Violence, Drugs, Abuse, Captivity, Crimes against children.
Daron's Guitar Chronicles
A SLOW BURN GAY ROCK STAR ROMANCEThe year is 1991, and the guitarist known as Daron Moondog stands at a crossroads between music and love.Daron is trying to keep everyone in his life happy-himself included-but the hustle of the music business is starting to take its toll. He's composing and recording soundtracks, writing songs for other bands, working on fundraisers, and Remo needs him on tour with Nomad. This is all great for Daron's bank account, but what about his heart?What about Ziggy? The singer who broke Daron's heart.Ziggy has a major solo album in the works, and has plans for a major tour. And he wants Daron as his music director.Ziggy always wants more.This is volume nine of the serialized internet phenomenon that had legions of readers leaving advice for Daron every week and questioning his questionable life choices.
Gabe
An investigation goes awry.Their world gets turned upside down.Embers ignite in close proximity.FBI Agent Gabe Long finds himself reluctantly assigned to keep an eye on Sebastian Roth after the detective meets with a couple of too-related-to-be-coincidental "accidents." He isn't too happy about having to play babysitter to a stubborn, impulsive, and relentless investigator who won't let go of a dangerous pedophile ring case, but the man has clearly gotten himself into some hot water.Frankie Zolnai is a skilled physical therapist known for his compassion and commitment to his patients. His warm smile and gentle demeanor create a safe space for those in need of healing. At the request of his best friend, Newt, Frankie agrees to provide PT to Sebastian after an accident leaves Sebastian injured.Gabe and Frankie's paths cross and as the two connect over their shared medical knowledge, sparks fly. As the two men get to know each other, Gabe reveals things about his past very few people know. Frankie quickly becomes a person Gabe can count on to be there-a rare thing for Gabe.Gabe wasn't looking for love, but that might just be what found him-in the most interesting of ways.Trigger Warnings: Violence, death, mentions of kidnapping, and other crimes against children.
You Can Save Me
Sixties folk singer Dane Donovan vanished from a desolate highway rest area in 1979. Forty years later, he's found hitchhiking in the California desert on a cold winter's night. He hasn't aged a day, but the roadmap of scars he wears tells a chilling tale.Veteran detective Walter Muse took over Dane's missing persons case twenty years ago, but his haunting connection to Dane Donovan goes back to a peculiar run-in as a child with The Troubadour and his Talking Board at a traveling carnival. He receives a late-night call with Dane's whereabouts and races to Laurel Canyon to see for himself whether Dane is real - or a ghost meant to taunt Walter and his somewhat precarious hold on his sanity. Walter's carefully honed detective instincts are thrown out the window, however, when his obsession with the case develops into an undeniable attraction to the mysterious singer.Dane is on a mission to stop a new killer hell-bent on picking up where Dane's kidnapper left off, and Walter is determined to protect him, no matter the personal and psychological cost. They'll have to rely on new friends and trusted colleagues as well as the power of a mystical spirit board to stop the killing, and have a chance at a real future together.
In Thrall
A touchstone novel of lesbian adolescence, set years before gay liberation. "Dear Miss Maxfield ... what I'm really afraid of is that I am a homosexual human being. I wish you were one too but I don't think it's possible there could be so many in one school, do you?--probably there is only one person who is homosexual in one place at one time and that one person (I am afraid) is me ..." First published in 1982 and set prior to Stonewall, Jane DeLynn's In Thrall is a touchstone narrative of lesbian adolescence. Publishing Triangle called it one of the "best gay and lesbian novels of all time." After sixteen-year-old Lynn writes her thirty-seven-year-old English teacher a letter, they embark on one of the funniest--and saddest--love affairs in fiction, shrouded in secrecy and guilt. Years before gay liberation, all Lynn knows about "lezbos" is that they wear their hair in crew cuts, buy suits like her father's, and sprout mustaches over their upper lips. Trying to pass as "normal," Lynn continues to neck with her boyfriend and make homophobic jokes with her friends. Feigning innocence with her parents, she checks the mirror for telltale signs of "perversion" each night. Profound, witty, poignant, and highly charged, In Thrall has been compared to The Catcher in the Rye and to Edmund White's A Boy's Own Story. "The single most wonderful quality of this novel," the Los Angeles Times Book Review writes, "is its absolute credibility." This new edition includes a foreword by Irish author Colm T籀ib穩n.
Kapowie!
In the seventh book of the Lambda-Award winning Pinx Video Mystery series, Noah and his friends are on their way to a taping of the Kapowie! reunion show. As a teenager, Marc was a cast member. He's convinced the producers to hire partner Louis to handle craft services for the all-night shoot. Noah and the new guy at the video store, Eldridge, tag along as helpers. Things go swimmingly, until movie star Finn Henderson takes a drug overdose and they all become trapped in the sound stage-possibly with a killer!
His Rival
The world is a lot bigger than what everyone gives it credit for, and three sky pirates: Johnny, Di, and George have found some of the secrets that the world has to offer, but they still have more to find.Why are Spirits from a video game now accessible through a Spirit Orb? What is the Vhaehentis, and what is Kiyoko Evens doing? Who is the Dark Warrior, and what do they have against Johnny?The trio are joined by fellow soldiers Natasha and Orion as they venture to Manhattan in search of one of the Spirit Orbs. The feel of the city is off, and their story continues from there.The second book in the Pirates and Spirits series, following the 2015 book: From Start.
Victory, Virus, Votes
The end of World War I sees an upheaval in American society-the Great Migration of Black Americans, the devastation of the Spanish Flu, and women's struggle for the vote. Victory, Virus, and Votes: 1917-1920 brings history to life through the lens of two young Jewish lovers fighting to find their place in a turbulent world. The continuing saga of Deborah Levine and Miriam Cohen explores key historical occurrences such as the suffragists' Night of Terror, the Great Molasses Flood, and the Women's Land Army. This fourth book in the Deborah and Miriam's Boston Marriage Series will enrich and thrill readers as they witness the power of love and integrity in the chaotic beginning of the Modern Age.
What Could Have Happened
The eighteenth novel, What Could Have Happened, continues to deal with the saga of a Christian Ministry trying to help people with a variety of personal issues, particularly dealing with unwanted same-sex attraction and gender confusion. The grandson of the founder of the ministry, Ted Gordon, took it upon himself to interview the previous directors to see how they could have made different choices for themselves and the ministry. Many of the directors had previously struggled with their own addictions and compulsions before encountering a religious experience which helped them choose a more normal course of living. Once they became a part of the ministry, they were harassed, injured, and even killed by militant groups that opposed their mission of helping others. In all cases, they had to admit they could have made better choices while they were previously in rebellion against the commandments of God. Ted learned things about them that he had never known because he was younger than they were. At the end of the project, he could write a history of the ministry and have it published. The readers might be shocked at what they would learn about the trials of trying to help the lost, confused, and addicted.
Gray For You
Who auditions for an adult film without realizing it? Me, apparently...Gray: I'm not the kind of guy you take home to meet your mother. I'm an ex-adult film star with a GED and a giant co...llection of movie credits I can't talk about in polite company. I might be good at helping other guys get their happy endings, but I've more or less given up on finding one of my own.Until Tyler Lang walks into my life.That's right, my co-star for my final film is Tyler Lang--America's heartthrob, until he disappeared from the radar last year. Tyler's got a reputation for being a bad boy, a partier, and apparently straight, but the sweet, vulnerable-looking kid who shows up at auditions is completely different. And now that I'm getting to know him, I can't help wondering what it is that's made his eyes so sad--and wishing there were some way I could make it better.I'm not supposed to get a happy ending. So why the hell won't my heart listen?"I'm yours. In whatever way, for however long you want me. Just say the words and you'll have me forever."Tyler: I know what you've heard about me. Another spoiled child-actor, all grown up and out of control. I wish I could tell you you're wrong, but the truth is, I'm a little bit of a mess. Okay, so maybe I'm a giant mess. And now, after getting arrested with an ez-bake oven's worth of drugs I don't even remember buying, I'm washed-up at the grand old age of 21.After a year of rehab and community service, all I want is to work again. So when my agent sends me a new script, maybe I don't read the fine print as carefully as I should. Which is how I end up auditioning for an adult film. A high-brow, literary adult film. But still. There's no way I can go through with this. After all, I'm so deep in the closet I'm not sure I'll ever find my way out. And I wouldn't do this movie--except for one thing: Gray Evans.Strong, kind, and honest, Gray makes me feel seen in a way I've never been before--and makes me want to be better. And somehow, around Gray, everything seems possible. Like maybe there's a world where I'm not a total screw-up. Maybe there's a world where I can come out, and not tank my career. And maybe, just maybe, there's a world where Gray, who's smart and brave and so together, could want someone like me.Gray For You is Book 2 in the 8 Million Hearts series. While each book can be read on its own, they're even more fun to read together. Gray For You is a 150,000 word m/m romance full of snark, sweetness, and a healthy serving of steam. Movie star romance and hurt/comfort themes. No cheating, no cliffhangers, and a guaranteed HEA.
Nick, Very Deeply
They say soulmates don't exist. But they've never met Nick Sawyer...Eli: In my defense, I didn't think I'd see Nick again. If I had, I would never have kissed him.I got a fake ID because I was bored, not because I planned on meeting anyone. But from the moment I saw Nick--all tall, dark, and librarian-y, with hardcover books falling out of his messenger bag and eyes that made me forget how to breathe--I knew I needed to know him better.So maybe I told a little white lie about my birthday. And maybe I went into the city again, and again, just so I could run into him. And maybe, on that last morning, I kissed him, because I knew it was goodbye.Except, turns out, it wasn't. Whoops.Only now, I have to spend the rest of the year working with Nick, and it's clear he wishes we'd never met. He says I have to move on, but the more I get to know him, the more impossible that seems. How do you move on from someone as strong and smart and sweet as Nick? How do you get over the first person who's told you that you matter?And what the hell do you do when, out of nowhere, he kisses you again?"I can't keep fighting this. I need you. I need us."Nick: I tried to keep my distance. I tried to forget that kiss. I tried to remind myself how dangerous it was, just being around Eli. How much I was putting in jeopardy.I tried... but I never stood a chance.Eli is everything I'm not. Reckless and wild, where all I've ever been is cautious. Open and loving, where I've only ever been scared. Willing to take risks, to be vulnerable, to be brave. I want to be brave enough to deserve him.I know it's wrong, but before I know it, I've fallen for this crazy, beautiful boy and his ocean-blue eyes. Before I know it, I'm kissing him again."I'd take it all back if I could." That's what I'm supposed to say. But the truth is, I wouldn't. I would choose Eli every time.Even if it means losing everything.Nick, Very Deeply is Book 5 in the 8 Million Hearts series. While each book can be read on its own, they're even more fun to read together. Nick, Very Deeply is a 135,000 word m/m romance full of snark, sweetness, and a healthy serving of steam. Teacher/student and hurt/comfort themes with a delicious slow burn. No cheating, no cliffhangers, and a guaranteed HEA.
Oliver Ever After
Me, my high school ex, and a five-star hotel room on reunion night. He can't break my heart twice, right?Oliver: It took me 7 years to forget my high school boyfriend, Luke, and just one night to--You know what? Scratch that. It took me 7 years of pretending to forget Luke to convince myself that maybe going to my high school reunion was a good idea, that maybe I could show all the kids who'd bullied me just how little I cared about them, and show Luke how little I'd thought about him.Uh, news flash: it didn't work, and it didn't even take me a full night to realize how wrong I was. It took approximately 5 minutes of moonlit conversation in our high school parking lot (super romantic, I know) to figure that out--though I guess inviting Luke back to my hotel room, dragging him into bed, and then having a panic attack in the middle of the, uh, festivities didn't exactly help matters.And that would have been fine, honestly. Completely humiliating and a memory I would cringe over until my dying day, sure, but fine--if only I weren't stuck at home, helping my father with a health crisis and dodging Luke's calls--and my feelings about them. Luke's a player--he always has been. I know better than to get involved with him again.So how the hell do I get my heart to listen?"I'm not asking for much, really. Just you. Just every little thing about you. That's all I want."Luke: Oliver Luna. The guy's haunted me since high school. Oliver's the first person I ever fell in love with--and the last. He's the guy who showed me what I was made of--and it turns out, what I'm made of isn't pretty. I know I'm a jerk--which is why I don't date. I won't risk hurting anyone else the way that I hurt Oliver. And I've never forgiven myself.I guess that's why I decided to go to this reunion. I figured maybe, if I apologized, I'd be able to let Oliver go. Maybe I'd be able to stop thinking about him at 4 a.m., unable to sleep, googling him for the 10 millionth time. That's how it works, right? You say you're sorry and you get to move on?Only, first, Oliver tells me he's already moved on, and somehow that just makes me feel worse. Like, what the hell, heart? That's what you wanted, wasn't it? And then, just when I think I'll never see him again, Oliver lets his guard down, just a bit, and all I want to do is pull him into my arms and make his pain go away. Honestly, who even am I at this point?I have no idea how to fix all the pain I've caused. All I know is this: I'll die before I let Oliver walk out of my life again.Oliver Ever After is Book 3 in the 8 Million Hearts series. While each book can be read on its own, they're even more fun to read together. Oliver Ever After is a 135,000 word, second-chance romance full of snark, sweetness, and a healthy serving of steam. No cheating, no cliffhangers, and a guaranteed HEA.
Sugar Season
They say it's better to have loved and lost. They have no idea what they're talking about...Graham: I already had my happy ending.A whirlwind romance. More love than I knew what to do with.And then it was over, almost as soon as it began. After my husband died, I thought I'd never find that kind of love again.But what we had together was more than most people ever get.I'd had my chance at happiness. I couldn't ask for more. But I'm not a monk. And I'm not above the occasional stupid decision.Like meeting a cute guy at a bar...and hooking up with him in the parking lot...And then realizing that he's none other than Ryan Gallagher-My dead husband's estranged brother. Like I said-stupid decision. I'm not interested in Ryan. I can't be.And he swears he doesn't want things to go further either.Sure, I promised his parents I'd look out for him.And fine, maybe I can't get his eyes-and other body parts-out of my head. But this can't go anywhere.It can't mean anything.I know that. So why the hell did I just wake up with him in my bed? Sugar Season is Book 3 in the Maple Springs series. While each book focuses on different characters and can be read on its own, they're even more fun to read together. Sugar Season is a 75,000 word steamy, contemporary, second chance m/m romance. No cheating, no cliffhangers, and a guaranteed HEA.
Beneath Orion
What do you do when you can't trust your heart?Colin: Trust is dangerous.That's the first lesson I ever learned.Love hurts-that's the second. My family situation growing up was...not great, to say the least.My foster parents told me it was wrong to be gay.My classmates told me it was gross. And my heart? My heart told me it was sick of hurting. So I made my peace with never falling in love. With never being in a relationship.With never giving someone my heart-and never letting them break it. And then I meet Charlie Keller. Charlie, who's strong and steady and makes being a single dad seem like the hottest thing on the planet.Charlie, who's sweet and kind and looks like a Paul Bunyan wet dream.Charlie, who's never been with a man before, but says he wants me anyway. Charlie makes me crave the love I swore I didn't need.And on these cold winter nights, he warms me to my core.Opening my heart to him is reckless. Risky. Asking for trouble.But I'm not sure I'm strong enough to stop myself. Worse-I'm not sure I want to. Beneath Orion is Book 2 in the Maple Springs series. While each book focuses on different characters and can be read on its own, they're even more fun to read together. Beneath Orion is a 55,000 word steamy, contemporary, gay-for-you m/m romance. No cliffhangers, no cheating, and a guaranteed HEA.
Broken Contracts
Power opens all doors. Some should stay closed. Adam Slate sees something other humans can't: Connections, all around him. People, places, relationships, possessions, all as clear as letters on a page. But seeing the web makes it too easy to pull the strands, and even his riskier machinations-an illegal slave trade for one, and a gathering of dark magicians, for another-are growing boring. That is, until he runs across a slave with a connection he can't see. Everybody's looking for something, and Micah can craft a persona to suit any taste. Or so he thought until his newest owner. He tries one tactic after another to please Slate, to no avail. It's as if Slate can see straight through Micah's many masks and doesn't like what lies-or doesn't lie-beneath. In relentless pursuit of Micah's mysterious connection, Slate's magic opens a gateway to a place that seems like nowhere. The damage mounts, but the door sings a siren song that Slate can't resist. Micah's connected to something in the darkness, and Slate's determined to find out what-even if it kills them both. A standalone The Powers That Be prequel.**See Riptide Page for content warnings**
A Pimp's Dark Love
A Pimp's Dark Love is a psychological thriller, but it is also a window into the dark world of pimping, prostitution, and The Game. It is a story of loyalty, manipulation, and love turned dangerous, where one decision can change everything. Written with raw truth, it keeps that world real while humanizing the people inside it, women with histories they never asked for, men shaped by pressure and pride, and the choices that look different when survival is on the line.If you pick up this book, read it for the tension, the drama, and the twists, but also for the truth beneath them. Read it with an open heart for the voices that never get heard, and for the lives that deserve to be seen as more than a story after the fact. A Plot Twisting Psychological Thriller! The sex trade is a dark business in Toronto's underworld, where pimps chase power and women live by whatever rules the game demands while striving to be known as the baddest. Every woman has her own story about what led her into it. Heart-wrenching at times, some of those stories connect to Gelato Icy, a name-brand pimp whose world is built on control, reputation, and the women around him. But when men in the game stop playing by the rules, Gelato is hit with a ransom call to save one of his top girls. In the midst of revelations and bloodshed, his whole life takes a brutal turn, leaving him to face the other end of the game.
Zacharie & Jeremy - A supernatural encounter at the Louvre (A Halloween queer MxM urban fantasy - short story)
After a first success in France and thousands of readers already won over, this short story, a French MxM urban fantasy of 2023, is now available in English. Heartbroken after a break-up, Jeremy, a young employee at the Mus矇e du Louvre, needs to move on. He has to finish organizing the launch party for the new exhibition event, "Halloween - Myths and Oriental Masterpieces", whose centerpiece is the Varakk djinn vase, in front of which each guest from the Tout-Paris will be asked to make wishes "for the game."But be careful what you wish for. Jeremy is far from imagining the incredible night he's about to experience, filled with evil spells, witchcraft and... romance, especially with Zacharie, a young antique dealer as mysterious as he is appealing. A night of fantasy, surprises... and passion, sure to please lovers of fantasy and MxM stories. The perfect Halloween read! This queer book contains explicit content that may offend an uninformed public. - Madelline R. Kennedy, a 33-year-old American with a passion for MxM stories, has teamed up with French author J矇r繫me Patalano to add epic appeal to this story (originally a short novella), which could well be... the first of a new MxM urban fantasy saga. The French also know how to tell a good MxM story - J矇r繫me Patalano. - Readers' comments: - "This story has it all: emotion, a spicy scene, legends and fantasy!" - Severine- "You'll never see the Louvre in the same way again, trust me..." - Nano No禱l- "It reminded me of my childhood, especially the Ghostbusters movies! Loved it." - Clemence
Brace for Impact
As Craig and Toby struggle to keep their faltering marriage alive, the climate crisis intrudes, part of a threesome in their relationship.Craig wants to take drastic action but Toby just wants to live his life as best he can before climate breakdown escalates. "You fight for your life by any means necessary," Craig insists. "If someone breaks into your house, you pull out a baseball bat or a gun. When there's a mass shooting, you run, hide, or fight back."But when it involves global warming? And fossil fuel industries buying politicians who protect carbon emissions at the cost of human lives?Craig wonders if a letter to the editor is effective. If blocking traffic at a rally once or twice a year is enough.Toby threatens to leave him if does anything stupid. And to report him to the authorities.But Craig feels he'll need to commit violence one way or another, either by condoning the status quo or by doing whatever he can to fight those who keep destabilizing the climate. So he joins a group of eco activists whose efforts are far more extreme than even he had expected.Will Craig survive the violent police crackdown on protesters?Will his relationship with Toby survive the additional stress of betrayal?And will either of them survive the new wildfire that's just started at the edge of town?
Your Sons and Your Daughters are Beyond
A short story collection for lovers of Angela Carter, Carmen Maria Machado, Molly Aitken, and Kirsty Logan."Who's afraid of a girl who shines bright?"In this spellbinding collection of uncanny short stories, Rosie Garland invites readers into a world where the familiar is transformed, and the boundaries between the natural and supernatural blur. "Your Sons and Daughters are Beyond" explores the extraordinary lives of people who defy expectations, transcending the limits imposed by society and the laws of nature itself.Garland's stories are equal parts enchanting and disquieting, weaving together elements of magical realism and the haunting undercurrents of our deepest fears and desires. With a deft hand, she unveils the extraordinary within the ordinary, inviting readers to embrace the transformative potential within us all.Brace yourself for a journey into the unknown, where the impossible becomes reality, and the boundaries of imagination are pushed to their limits."Echoes of Angela Carter's more fantastical fiction reverberate...enjoyably energetic" - THE SUNDAY TIMES''Uncanny, surreal, resonant, Rosie Garland's sharp, compact stories of transformation and otherness are rich and strange fables for unstable times."- Ben Tufnell, Author of 'The North Shore'
Divided Road
The chance of a lifetime or their final performance?Owen Stanton has been a member of the Kiwi band Flightless since high school. So far, he's managed to walk the fine line between playing fiddle for the band and pursuing his classical violin career. An opportunity arises to audition for a prestigious string quartet, and Owen takes his family's advice to go for it. After all, it's not like he's going to make the cut, right? And if he does, the decision won't have to be made until after the band's highly anticipated performance at a popular New Zealand music festival. Jared Murphy joins Flightless when their keyboard player faces a family crisis and needs to take a break. Soon he and Owen are writing music together and creating something beautiful between them. It's a shame it won't last. After all, Jared's only standing in.When the once in a lifetime invitation comes for the band to play at Rocktoberfest, decisions need to be made, even if taking the right path may end up in divided roads. Divided Road is a book in the multi-author Road to Rocktoberfest 2024 series. Each book can be read as a standalone, but why not read them all and see what trouble our bands get into next? Hot rockstars and the men who love them, what more could you ask for? Kick back, load up your kindle and enjoy the men of Rocktoberfest!
The Backup Plan
ThadFailing to make it in pro ball left me absolutely devastated. Baseball has been my life, my dream, but it's time to move on.Becoming a sports agent was always my back-up plan, and now that I'm interning at the biggest queer-focused firm in the country, I'm doing my best not to let my bitterness toward baseball affect my future. That's really difficult when I'm assigned to babysit Kelley Afton, hotshot rookie pitcher for Philly. He has everything I ever wanted, and he doesn't even appreciate it. I didn't become an agent so I could soothe the ego of diva athletes.His constant need for validation from others frustrates me to no end, but that's probably a good thing. Because if he didn't have that, I'd find him irresistibly my type.Attraction could lead to crossing lines which would put my position at King Sports in jeopardy, and I can't have that.I don't have a backup for my backup plan.
Fallen Thorns
"A great death is in the air."Arlo is lost. He thought he had everything figured out.Go to university, fall in love, get a job.But life doesn't always work like that, and before he has a chance to figure it out, he dies.In the space of a night, Arlo is plunged into a new world of immortality and finds a group of people who swear to always have his back.Dying is never easy, but they promise him eternal safety.But something is after him. Something no one could have ever predicted.He craves to figure out his purpose before he falls into something he can never come back from.
Three Decades of Stories
THREE DECADES OF STORIES is a unique collection in one volume of Patrick Gale's two editions of dark, moving, often witty and eccentric stories, GENTLEMAN'S RELISH and DANGEROUS PLEASURES.It also includes the acclaimed long story, CAESAR'S WIFE. Ranging from a lonely prisoner governor's wife, to a housewife desperate for a makeover; a father's trip to his former school to a long-term mistress offered an unexpected marriage, this is a volume that highlights Patrick Gale's skill of digging beneath the surface of relationships and exposing the often brutal mechanisms that drive them. What readers say about THREE DECADES OF STORIES: 'While all of these have been released in other compilations it is great having them all in one place' ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ 'Nice to have them all in one volume and they are great stories to revisit' ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐
Misplaced
In an alternate reality where body parts are as easily changed as clothing, what happens when things go missing?Nan chases down a stranger to return a missing mouth and finds themselves in the coat-strewn apartment of a makeshift family: Jessica, a charismatic older woman, her adopted son Adam, and Reena, the icy-eyed enigma Nan does their best to avoid.As rumours of stolen parts and illegal brain tampering hang over the city, Nan and Jessica investigate the origin of the disembodied fingers left at their doorstep. The more they uncover, the more Nan realizes that their body and their memories might not be their own- and Reena's mysterious past may be the key.Will Nan be able to figure out which bits of themselves to trust, or will it all go to pieces?
Upon the Midnight Queer
Holiday tales, retold queerly...A silk hat turns snow into life and a chance at love for a man with little hope of either. Two men with a connection sparked in passing attempt to withstand everything the tumultuous Toronto of 1981 throws their way, with their only remaining hope being Christmas Eve itself. A much-maligned queen of the snow teaches a young boy how to use his magic to find others of his kind. And a reindeer shines a light of its own, and with the help of the daughter of Father Time, brings gifts-and hope-to all those usually left behind.Holiday magic connects these tales and more-tales heard and seen and sung before, familiar and joyous, or tender and bittersweet-all to the last told upon the midnight queer.Upon the Midnight Queer is the second short story collection from Lambda Literary Award finalist 'Nathan Burgoine, and includes the brand new Little Village Holiday Novella, "Folly."
Ulwich Preparatory Academy
One year left & everything has changedUlwich is an all-boys prep academy with a reputation for producing young men that excel in all aspects of life. But the exclusive school isn't as rosy as it appears on the surface. Mitch and Andy were once friends-best friends. Four years later, they have another chance. But is two semesters enough time to remedy years of hurt?Calvin has always known what's up at Ulwich, and he's had Benjamin Price's number for years. They aren't supposed to want each other, but they can't seem to stay away either.As senior year at Ulwich draws to a close, the darkest aspects of the school are forced into the light. After everything they've endured, can these young men still be the gentlemen they were meant to be or is the damage too great?
Feast While You Can
For readers of Nightbitch and We Ride Upon Sticks, an "exciting new hybrid horror-romance" about queer love in a small town that serves as an unsettling reminder that the horrors of modern life is a monster ready to possess us all (New York Times Book Review). Angelina Sicco was born and raised in Cadenze, an ugly little mountain town that's dead most of the year. Determined to be content with her lot in life, she walks her mongrel dog, attends her brother's heavy metal concerts, holds court in the local dive bar, and does everything she can to bait hot, queer women to her sleepy, conservative hometown. But on the night of a family party, Angelina runs into the sternly handsome Jagvi, who's back in town for a spell. Upon Jagvi's arrival, an ancient evil is awakened, and a monstrous force infiltrates Angelina's life. Only Jagvi's touch repels it -- the final trigger for a secret, passionate romance. But this monster feasts on all the passion, heartbreak and mess that makes up a life, and Angelina Sicco's life has never looked tastier. What will Angelina do to protect her future? And what will it cost her?
Death Understood
When a brutal murder threatens the national security, Intelligence Agent Denise Cleever must follow the bloody trail deep into the Red Heart of Australia. Headed by the charismatic brother and sister team of Becky and Rhys Hiddwing, the powerful Hiddwing Institute is an ultraconservative think tank whose dark tentacles are insinuating themselves into the very core of Australian society. Seven years ago, family patriarch Oliver Hiddwing and his sister Clara disappeared on an expedition in the remote Outback--never to be seen again. Now Becky and Rhys want Oliver and Clara declared dead so they can inherit the vast fortune and invest it in the continued expansion of their right-wing empire. Deep undercover at the Institute, Intelligence Agent Denise Cleever tries to get as close as she can to the truth without becoming entangled in the organization's treacherous grasp...until a shocking discovery brings with it the realization that the truth--and her only chance of survival--lie in the unforgiving harshness of the Australian Outback. Death Understood is the second title in the Denise Cleever thriller series. Originally published by Naiad Press in 2000.
Cardinal Rules
The end of May approaches, and college is done for the spring semester. DJ plans to spend the summer reflecting on his traumatic childhood and trying to heal with relaxation. It isn't until his very close friend invites him to go with them for a getaway at their hometown's Pride party to live it up for the weekend. To help him feel comfortable, he invites his only family; his sister, Sierra.At first, DJ enjoys making new friends and getting involved with the community. His tensions and anxieties melt away with the drag shows and brunches that lead up to the block party. His adventures slowly become interrupted by a stalker lurking around the festivities to torment him. It's not just any old stalker.It's a cardinal!One by one, guests go missing at the hands of the deranged killer. Can DJ save himself and his acquaintances before the masked cardinal takes their lives? Will this ride be canceled from all of the mysterious murders?Cardinal Rules takes elements from '80s and '90s slasher horror, filled with blood, gore, and a little glitter. It's time to put pride back in murder!Second Edition, previously published March 2021
The Price of Cookies
Two brothers face their mother's impending death.A convenience store clerk balances compassion with duty.A grieving soldier receives a package of cookies meant for someone else.In this series of connected flash fiction pieces, people navigate the trials of life with tears, arguments and, above all, love and compassion. "Lives interwoven and cookies that arrive too late."This bravura collection of linked stories provides a profound lesson in empathy, of pouring yourself into someone else's life, someone else's pain, to see it from the inside, looking out." - Will Ferguson, Giller Prize-winning author of 419About Finnian BurnettFinnian Burnett is a professor, writer, and lifelong learner. They hold a doctorate in English pedagogy from Murray State University and teach college English, creative writing, and early British Literature. They've run the Golden Crown Literary Society's Writing Academy since 2015 and served as the Director of Education for several years. Under their former name, they published several novels with Sapphire Books Publishing, including two rainbow award winners. Their novella-in-flash, The Clothes Make the Man was released through Ad Hoc Fiction. They are a US transplant to Canada and after years as a permanent resident, they finally had their citizenship ceremony. They are now an official Canadian! (And yes, they cried during their ceremony.) They live in beautiful British Columbia with their wife.
A Heart Full of Hope
Opposites attract, repel, and bicker like fools in this adorable small town lesbian romance about finding what truly matters in life.Smalltown handywoman Hazel Lee has learned to live her best life regardless of what the universe throws at her. But her patience is sorely tested when a bossy, big-city executive blows in and starts questioning Hazel's motives for helping an elderly friend.High-powered businesswoman Imogen Alexander has her career all set. Then her elderly uncle takes a bad fall in his home. Imogen figures she can surely run his life as tightly as her work, but she doesn't count on an annoying local woman being all up in his business.Hazel has one leg, two jobs, and a whole bunch of opinions. Worse, now meddling old Uncle George seems intent on match-making the women together.But what could an icy standoffish executive in hot skirt suits possibly have in common with a cute butch with charm to burn?
Imperfectly Perfect
Two settled souls. One happenstance. But will fear get in their way?Savannah Logan wants nothing more than a quiet life with her daughter. But when her brother dies of cancer, her world is thrown for yet another spin. Fighting through her grief, she takes on the hospital and doctors, suing them in a battle that will only benefit her brother's family. But she finds herself more than intrigued by the lawyer's assistant. The only problem is that Savannah refuses to make the same mistake twice, and what she needs is friendship, not love.Fallon Schroeder has sworn off love. But the curvy, ray of sunshine that just walked through the office door has caught her attention. Proposing a no strings attached relationship is the best she can offer, and when Savannah accepts, Fallon is all in. The only problem? Every day, Fallon finds herself a little more in love with Savannah and her energetic daughter.Can these two women overcome their fears and find love? Find out in this spicy sapphic romance novel that touches on domestic violence, spousal abuse, and deep, lasting grief.
The Step Don't (Peach State Stepbros #2)
ASHAll stepbrothers need Step Don'ts.Colin and I have ours.Like, don't pit our parents against either of us. Don't hog the TV. And definitely...Don't.Keep.Secrets.These rules have done more than help us keep the peace between us.After all these years since our parents got together, I can't imagine my life without Colin.To most people, he's the hot, straight tight end for Peach State.But to me, he's my backward-cap-wearing, football-loving, piggyback-ride-giving best friend and fellow Alpha Theta Mu frat bro.Life's pretty incredible living together at the same frat house, but suddenly, I find myself keeping a particularly naughty secret.I tell myself Colin wouldn't want to know what his bi bro does in private, but then why do I feel like I'm committing a huge Step Don't?COLINThere's nothing I'm more of an expert in than my stepbro, Ash.He's a quick-witted, nerd-boy genius who's always there to help a friend cram for a test or capture bugs for me when they invade my space.He's my favorite person.Making him happy gives me a rush...but for the first time, he's keeping a secret from me.When Ash cops to his Step Don't-his new extracurricular of doing dirty things on camera-I'm confused.He is too, so we work together to figure out why this excites him so much.In places we're likely to get caught.After all, what's a little exhibitionism between stepbros?I didn't even realize I could be into guys-or be so intoxicated by these new experiences-but exploring my bisexuality with Ash is the best thing that's ever happened to me.And with each touch, each time we up the stakes, I discover I want more than just Ash's body.I want his heart too, even though that surely must be the biggest Step Don't of all.
The Brothers Bishop
Yates, the award-winning author of Leave Myself Behind, crafts another poignant and elegant work--the powerful story of two brothers who discover just how difficult it is to go home again.
Oh, How We Laughed*
Oh, How We Laughed** Cried, chuckled, suffered, retreated, enjoyed, blanked, masked, cringed, smiled, consumed, planned, protested, disappeared, felt, ruminated, withdrew, celebrated, raged, meditated, screamed, froze, danced, existed...Jace Reh and Theo Brown bring together artwork, poetry, and prose from Queer, Disabled South Australians for the anthology, Oh, How We Laughed*. Creativity and laughter are universal. They aren't a constant but are a strong point of connection. We experience fear, joy, loss, exhilarating highs, depressive lows, and so much more. How we express those emotions might be different or not at all, yet amongst all this we can always strive for a laugh.The creative works featured in this anthology draw from a wide range of experiences and expressions. They share thoughts through fiction and pure creative forms. They delve into sharp realisations and convey these in direct non-fiction texts. There are pieces that feel like mere glimpses into single moments of the creators' lives. They all collate into this anthology, which is designed as an exhibition in printed form. The works are presented for readers to browse at their leisure, focus as intently as desired, or be guided from start to finish as curated to balance the peaks in emotions and pace of the individual styles.Oh, How We Laughed* is the second book in the Blue Feet Anthology series and is edited by Alex Dunkin. The first book in the series, Green, is an anthology by South Australian emerging creative researchers.Oh, How We Laughed* is a showcase of creative expression featuring Theo Brown, Freddie Foeng, KJ Hepworth, Rainier Hotchkiss, Sally Ann Hunter, J.A.M., Fig Kershaw, Victoria Knight, Tabitha Lean, Leon McAloney, Tushar Patel, Jace Reh, Tikari Rigney, Denver Rurrk, and Cameron Rutherford.Cover art by Tikari Rigney.
Pucking Mobbed
Storm was exactly that. He was a force of nature who took the hockey world by storm. It destroyed everything. His connections gave Storm everything except his hockey career. He worked his fingers to the bone for that. Getting picked up by a pro team at seventeen and finding himself thousands of miles from the only person who loved him was terrifying. Three years later, Storm wonders if it wasn't also the dumbest move he ever made. He's not sure any of it was worth the cost because he lost Barrett. Barrett doesn't tolerate much. He doesn't have to. As the son of a known mobster, he's not tested often. His only soft spot is Storm, and the guy abandoned him for some stupid game. Barrett knows Storm is talented and deserves the life he leads. But Storm made his choice when he chose his career, knowing Barrett couldn't follow. That hasn't stopped Storm from tormenting him and refusing to let him go. Maybe there isn't a fair answer. There doesn't feel like a compromise exists. So why can't Barrett walk away? Pucking Mobbed is the tenth book in Charity Parkerson's Thin Ice series. These books are steamy sports romances meant to heat up your day. This series is best enjoyed when read in order.
The Bait
When three men turn up in their sleepy little town of Tallowwood, Harry and Asher know something's wrong. Not because someone could find them, but the fact that Asher's informant and oldest friend, Yunho, failed to alert them. Messages and phone calls unanswered; Harry and Asher go to Thailand to find Yunho is missing.Harry and Asher find themselves thrown back into the game of shadows and murder, in a race across the globe to find him and find who's behind the kidnapping.The list of their enemies is long, their web of entanglement even longer, and Harry and Asher are about to find out who is predator and who is prey.
Her Last Secret
In 1930's Paris the music is jazz, the art is experimental, and American ex-patriots of color are welcomed. Aspiring journalist Vera Clay packs her suitcase and travels from Philadelphia to France, where her Aunt Evangeline set new roots a decade earlier. While the language, culture, and self-acceptance feel foreign to Vera, the possibility of love is familiar. It is Paris during the 1930's. Cigarette smoke curled above the heads of caf矇, book store, and jazz club habitu矇s carry rumors of an approaching firestorm. Some Parisians prepare to defend their lives and country. Others join the tidal wave of hatred threatening to immolate most of Europe.
Great HEX
DARRAGH CULLEN WOULD TRAVEL TO THE MOON AND BACK FOR HIS BOYFRIENDS. AND HE MAY JUST HAVE TO.An early Spring has every witch in Atlanta hot in anticipation of the rites of Ostara, a time when the Solar Equinox promises as much power as it does heat. HEX, Darragh's magic shop, is as busy as its ever been, and he's ready to welcome the shift with open arms. Alongside the company of his lovers.So what if Learco Clarke has been acting strange? It's only natural for the temperatures to rise as the Earth shifts to welcome the sun back from his Winter away.So what if Cernun Kyteler's aura feels new and harsh against his own? Spring, after all, sets the stage for rebirth and renewal.Darragh loves his boyfriends regardless. And he's about to find out just how far he'll have to go to keep that love.Great HEX is the third installment in the HEX'd Series.
Interesting Facts about Space
A fast-paced, hilarious, and ultimately hopeful novel for anyone who has ever worried they might be a terrible person--from the bestselling author of Everyone in This Room Will Someday Be Dead. Enid is obsessed with space. She can tell you all about black holes and their ability to spaghettify you without batting an eye in fear. Her one major phobia? Bald men. But she tries to keep that one under wraps. When she's not listening to her favorite true crime podcasts on a loop, she's serially dating a rotation of women from dating apps. At the same time, she's trying to forge a new relationship with her estranged half-sisters after the death of her absent father. When she unwittingly plunges into her first serious romantic entanglement, Enid starts to believe that someone is following her. As her paranoia spirals out of control, Enid must contend with her mounting suspicion that something is seriously wrong with her. Because at the end of the day there's only one person she can't outrun--herself. Brimming with quirky humor, charm, and heart, Interesting Facts about Space effortlessly shows us the power of revealing our secret shames, the most beautifully human parts of us all.
Hate To Love You
Two unlikely roommates, hot summer nights & a forbidden sapphic romance.Ryleigh: When Alana suggested I move into the second house on the Lovers Estate, I took her up on it. Even though that meant sharing the space with Alana's little sister, who happened to hate my guts.Wrenn: Of course my older sister just had to open her big mouth and invite her friend to stay with me. It was bad enough having to see her in my sister's wedding, but to see her at my kitchen table? I thought after we hooked up that it might be the start of something, until the next morning when I woke up alone. Now all she wants to do is talk about what happened and I just want to avoid her.Ryleigh and Wrenn are sure they still hate each other but as the summer nights heat up, so do their feelings.Hate to Love You is a small town, Femme/Femme, Roommates to lovers, best friend's little sister, spicy romance. Hate to Love You is book 2 in the Lighthouse Lovers series and can be read as a complete standalone.
The Dream-Slaves
To fight the gods-you must first become a slave.Our universe is dead. All that's left are memories. But the powers indigenous to the new world are fighting back.Alexander, a handsome immigrant fleeing trouble in his poor native land, doesn't even have a claim to his own name in the magic-rich city of Norio, where they call him Aleixo. But his name may be the least of what the sorcerers of Norio take from him, when a seemingly random invitation to cater-waiter at a party of the wealthy and famous sweeps Aleixo up into a maelstrom of imperial politics and a millennia-long war between humans and gods. The empire of Norio rules the world because of its monopoly on magical high-tech devices called dream-slaves-and now the head of imperial intelligence has proof that Aleixo isn't human at all, but a dream-slave assassin, smuggled into Norio by the empire's enemies.Rescued by a cabal of sorcerers from a foiled attempt to kill him by a renegade sorcerer, Salvador, and his mysterious other-human ally Ydris, Aleixo finds his identity and humanity stripped from him in harrowing psychedelic adventures that transform his memories and bind him to a history of conflict, activating fabulous abilities he never dreamed he had. The world Aleixo lives in isn't what he's always believed it was: the forces that rule his destiny are not just economic class, race, gender, sexuality, body, nationality-they are much more sinister, and much more powerful. The greatest powers have secretly colonized his planet, and made its history strangely similar to our own. Aleixo discovers he may be the last line of defense against the dystopian present and future of Earth. He leads the struggle for emancipation as he grapples with who and what he is: is he human, or just a dream?
Zigzag
Philip Gambone's long-awaited second book of short stories takes off from where his highly acclaimed first collection ended, taking us now into the lives of older gay men, their adventures and challenges, heartaches, and joys. Set largely in Boston, these sixteen loosely interconnected new stories are about men who have experienced and witnessed a lot: marriages and break-ups; rekindling old loves and starting new romances with unlikely partners; the search for sex in an online era; the loss of familiar gay culture; the death of loved ones due to old age, sickness and AIDS; and always the adventure of living in a world where they have to make up the rules as they go along.Gambone takes us to a radical faerie wedding, a closeted French teacher's classroom, the weekly caf矇 gathering of a group of older gay bohemians, a randy eighty-year-old portrait painter who insists his clients pose in the nude, a gay man who discovers his brother is HIV positive, a man in a wheelchair who hires a straight, 23-year-old companion, another who periodically hooks up with a married man half his age, and a long-married gay couple whose weekly visits to a sports caf矇 in Boston's Italian neighborhood presents a delicious and dangerous temptation.Some of these men fight the temptation to live nostalgically in the past; others embrace the new opportunities that come with deeper insight and age. Whatever the case, in each story, Gambone explores how, as older gay men, each of his characters ultimately arrives at a place of greater equanimity, self-acceptance, wisdom, and even spiritual growth.As George Stambolian said of his first collection, "Philip Gambone has done something extraordinary-he has written with honesty, humor, and compassion about the lives of ordinary gay men. His characters speak to us in voices that are almost hypnotically real. They charm us with their words only to catch us with startling revelations of truth."Now these "ordinary gay men" have reached a new, more complex stage in their lives, where the pull of multiple responsibilities, conflicting desires, and cross-generational connections both enriches and tests the identities they've built up over the years. Exhilarating, heart-warming, sexy, and very real-these stories zigzag through the twists and turns of each character's life toward a place where gratitude, peace, clarity, and joy radiantly triumph.
Twilight Manors in Palm Springs The Great New Orleans Powder Puff Caper
Brian & St矇phane are Back, Spreading Mischief, Mayhem, and Loads of LaughsBuckle up for a wild ride in the fifth installment of the Twilight Manors series! Brian and St矇phane embark on an unforgettable journey to New Orleans via Amtrak-St矇phane to dazzle at a Powder Puff Convention, and Brian to soak up the city's vibrant chaos. But their adventure takes a jaw-dropping turn when the train is hijacked by the outrageous Barbie Liberation Front!As the pair are plunged into the heart of Texas, they encounter a bizarre cast of characters: a jubilant hooker, a man with an unusual affection for sheep, a curious peeping Tom, a woman claiming to own Ingrid Bergman's DNA, and a footsie-loving Mennonite woman. Each character adds to the madness.The craziness escalates upon their arrival in New Orleans, where the convention reveals its own set of troubles. Someone is kidnapping chihuahuas, and the stakes couldn't be higher.Join Brian and St矇phane as they navigate through a whirlwind of opera, voodoo, tortoise painters, biker gals, killer chefs, and the biggest ding-dong on this side, or any side, of the Mississippi. Oh, and don't miss St矇phane taking a cure for his homosexuality-SPOILER ALERT: it doesn't work!Dive headfirst into Twilight Manors in Palm Springs: The Great New Orleans Powder Puff Caper for a side-splitting, page-turning adventure you won't want to miss!
