Gay – Page 15 – A. L. Lester

#AmReading

This week, alien/human, d/s, m/m (with tail-sex); m/m guardian spirit cop pines after falling apart young man; and a tentative sapphic slow-burn with menopausal werewolves.

This is a five books series top and tailed (geddit?!) by a free prequel and a collection of short stories. I was a bit nervy about dipping my toe into the universe to start with…the relationship between Ondry and Liam is a sub/dom one, which would usually put me off picking up a book because they are rarely, in my opinion, done well. However…it’s Lyn Gala, so big plus. And it turns out to be an unusual and satisfying take on the dynamic. I found myself sucked right into the universe, the love story between the human and alien MCs and the alien psychology. The world-building is brilliant. It’s a lovely, absorbing series and I really recommend having a look.

His Mossy Boy by R. Cooper

I guess I should just start a weekly homage to R. Cooper spot on the blog. This is part of the Beings in Love series and it’s the first one I’ve read. It’s a sweet story about misfit Martin, who controls his misery with booze and drugs. Somehow though, Ian, the town’s quiet, unassuming deputy is always there to collect him up and put him on his feet again, sometimes literally. You’ll have to read the story to find out who or what Ian is. I think I’d have benefited from reading Treasure for Treasure first, but I’m looking forward to reading that next!

Silver Moon by Catherine Lundoff

I’m having a re-read of this before I plunge into the recently released sequel. For some of the women of Wolf’s Point, menopause not only comes with hot flashes, it comes with lycanthropy. And to cap it all, Becca’s husband dumps her and she starts to have feelings for another woman. Becca is just so normal–bemused, annoyed and frightened. She struck a chord with me because I feel like that about the change even without the werewolf thing. No arguments about whether or not you can have the window open if you can transform into a tall, clawed, furry monster. It’s got elements of thriller as well as a tentative romance and none of the stuff about fated mates or anything like that. The women are chosen by the land as guardians. Hard recommend.

That’s the lot!

Flowers Under My Pillow – Guest Post by Nell Iris

Hi everyone, I’m back! Thank you so much Ally, for inviting me to your blog to talk about my brand new release, Flowers Under My Pillow, a contemporary story infused with some of the Midsummer magic of the olden days.

The idea for the story came from old Swedish folklore. In olden times, Midsummer was considered a time of magic. Its proximity to the summer solstice makes it one of the brightest nights all year because the sun barely (or never) sets, and it was believed to be one of the most magical nights of the year. The boundaries between the human world and the paranormal were blurred, and anything could happen.

Plants and herbs with healing powers were believed to be extra powerful during this night, so people picked them and dried them to preserve the power of Midsummer all year. Walking barefoot—or rolling around naked—in the morning dew supposedly helped keep you healthy and strong during the year, and people also collected the dew and added it to bread and beer to help leaven and ferment. They also used the dew for medicinal purposes.

People also believed you could predict the future on nights like this, and this is where the idea for my story came from.

If a young lady wanted to know who she was going to marry, all she had to do was pick seven kinds of flowers on Midsummer’s Eve and put them underneath her pillow and she’d dream of her future husband. There are variations to the tradition; in some places, you had to pick nine kinds of flowers, and in other places, you needed to jump over the corresponding number of fences before putting your bouquet under the pillow. And if you didn’t do it in silence, you broke the magic and it didn’t work.

So I took this idea and adapted it to suit my purposes. I threw out all the heteronormative crap and made a man dream about a man because this is the 21^st century and even old folklore needs to be more inclusive, amirite? 😊

Traditional Swedish folklore tells you that if you pick seven kinds of flowers in silence and put them under your pillow on midsummer's eve, you'll dream of the man you'll marry. Flowers Under My Pillow available now!

Excerpt:

“You’re certainly beautiful enough to be a hallucination,” he murmurs. “Are you some kind of forest spirit, here to lure me into your lair?”

His thumb strokes, strokes, strokes my lip, but his words make my breath stutter. Make my words stutter. “Wh-wh-what did you just say?”

“I asked if you’re a forest spirit, here to captivate me and hold me prisoner for the rest of eternity.” His smile tells me he’s joking.

“I can’t believe you said that.”

“Why?”

“My mom calls me her forest spirit son. She has a mad scientist daughter and me. The forest spirit.”

“So you are here to abduct me.” He runs his finger along my hairline and then twists an errant lock around his finger. “I can totally believe it. What’s happening here is too surreal; you must be some kind of sprite.”

I snort. “You’re ridiculous.”

“I come willingly. I’m yours; do what you want with me.” He tugs lightly on my hair, his brown eyes twinkling like stars in a night sky.

“Whatever I want?” I let my gaze fall to his mouth; the darkness of his beard surrounding his full lips makes them shockingly red, like sun-ripened strawberries.

“Yeah.”

I run my finger along the seam of his mouth and my skin buzzes at his touch, as though one of the bees had gotten stuck between my digit and his skin. His eyes darken and hypnotized, I trace the outline of his lips. Then I skim my fingers down his beard, careful to not disturb the blossoms. “Every year, I pick the same flowers as I did that first year. And now, you’re wearing them.” His beard looks wild, wearing my bouquet. The cow-parsley is sprawling everywhere, the forget-me-nots and buttercups are dainty and almost disappear among the thick strands, the daisies take up too much space, and the cornflowers are so blue against the dark hairs they’re almost too bright to look at. It should be crazy, but it’s amazing and I can’t take my eyes off him.

“May I take a picture of you?” I ask.

“Of course.”

I take out my phone, and he smiles at me as I snap several photographs of him before stuffing my phone back into my pocket, my hand returning to his face like a magnet, my finger softly ghosting over his lips.

What would kissing him feel like? Would his beard scratch and prick me? Or would it be a gentle rasp, drawing my blood to the surface, arousing me? I squirm at the thought.

His brown eyes burn into me and his grip strengthens on my hand. “Anything,” he whispers.

I move closer to him, crane my neck until our noses nudge. I let my eyes fall closed and wait for a heartbeat, giving him the opportunity to pull away if he wants to, but he doesn’t. So I rub my nose along his, feeling the first tickle of his beard against my clean-shaven cheek. It provokes a shudder and spurs me on. Unable to wait a nanosecond longer, I lean in, and hum when our mouths touch.

It’s a chaste kiss, so light and fleeting I wouldn’t have believed it was real if it hadn’t been for his beard tickling my lips, inviting me to press a little harder. My heart hammers so hard in my chest, I’m certain he can feel it pulsing through my lips, certain it reverberates through the forest like some ancient, shamanistic drum. The kiss is everything I’ve ever dreamed of and I want more. I need more.

Flowers Under My Pillow

Smiling brown eyes. A dark beard. Dandelions. Sunny, happy dandelions.

For thirty years, Frode’s had the same dream. Every Midsummer’s Eve since he was a kid accompanying his sister to pick flowers to put under his pillow, he’s dreamed of the same man. A dream he never shares with anyone, that makes him wish for impossible things…like true love.

“It’s you.”

Then one Midsummer’s Eve, the man of Frode’s dreams stands before him in the flesh. Both men recognize each other despite never having met in real life. Both men are instantly drawn to each other and want to know more.

“Who are you, Viljar? Are you even real?”

Their questions are many but do the whys and the hows matter? Or should they allow the Midsummer magic that brought them together to lead the way into each other’s arms? Into each other’s hearts?

Traditional Swedish folklore tells you that if you pick seven kinds of flowers in silence and put them under your pillow on Midsummer’s Eve, you’ll dream of the man you’ll marry.

M/M Contemporary / 17 477 words

Buy Flowers Under My Pillow: JMS Books:: Amazon :: Books2Read

About Nell

Nell Iris is a romantic at heart who believes everyone deserves a happy ending. She’s a bonafide bookworm (learned to read long before she started school), wouldn’t dream of going anywhere without something to read (not even the ladies room), loves music (and singing along at the top of her voice but she’s no Celine Dion), and is a real Star Trek nerd (Make it so). She loves words, bullet journals, poetry, wine, coffee-flavored kisses, and fika (a Swedish cultural thing involving coffee and pastry!)

Nell believes passionately in equality for all regardless of race, gender or sexuality, and wants to make the world a better, less hateful, place.

Nell is a bisexual Swedish woman married to the love of her life, a proud mama of a grown daughter, and is approaching 50 faster than she’d like. She lives in the south of Sweden where she spends her days thinking up stories about people falling in love. After dreaming about being a writer for most of her life, she finally was in a place where she could pursue her dream and released her first book in 2017.

Nell Iris writes gay romance, prefers sweet over angsty, short over long, and quirky characters over alpha males.

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Find LGBTQ+ books for Pride

opened white book — Photo by fotografierende on Pexels.com

It seems to be The Week Of Promo ™ this week, so I thought I’d do a little blog post on all the different bundles, bookfairs and books giveaways I’m involved in.

They all end at the end of Pride Month, so you need to have a browse before 30th June 2021. There’s a good mix of giveaways, audiobooks, ebooks, sapphic and gay romance here, so hopefully you can find something you like!

Sale

JMS Books, 30% off all ebooks

Giveaway

Win an Ereader and 30+ LGBTQ+ Books from Booksweeps!

Gay Romance

Sapphic

June Lesbian Romance Book Sale

Free stuff!

Plus, remember this month’s Pride StoryBundle… pay what you like for sixteen intelligent, nuanced queer stories!

You can join my newsletter for a free story and for regular pointers towards new-to-you authors and releases.

Interview: Ana Ashley

I’m delighted to welcome Ana Ashley today to talk about her new release, How to Catch a Vet! Her story fits in very well with my ‘slightly crazed smallholding’ vibe… Welcome, Ana!

Hi everyone! I’m really pleased to be here today to talk about my new book, How to Catch a Vet. This is the sixth book in the Chester Falls series, which is a small-town romance with all the feels. Don’t take it from me, check out the reviews and you’ll want to move into Chester Falls in no time!

Now for the questions. What started you writing? How did you fall into this writing gig?

I’ve always had this hidden desire to be an author but it wasn’t something I thought about too much until I voiced it in a coaching session. Once those words were out I decided to see where it led me. Four years on and I’m now doing this gig full time.

Where do you write?

I have a makeshift office but it’s not where I tend to write. I prefer to move around. Sometimes I sit outside on the various seating areas we have around the house, or the pool, if it’s not too hot. I like the dining table too because it allows me to spread. My favorite place of all is coffee shops, but sadly it’s been over a year since I’ve been able to do that.

What do you like to read?

I read mostly gay romance. It’s partly research but mostly pleasure because I absolutely love the genre I write in. I also read some craft books about writing and publishing but I need to be in the right mood for those. I’m a romance girl all the way.

What are the three books you’d take to a desert island? Why would you choose them?

Oh my goodness, what a question to ask a reader! I really don’t know. I always think that even my favorite books, if read over and over, would become old news if I couldn’t access other books. I love to reread books and I always find new things I hadn’t noticed before, but I normally have a break between rereads. Can this island have power so I can take three ereaders full of books?

Writing is an intrinsically solo occupation. Do you belong to any groups or associations, either online or in the ‘real’ world? How does that work for you?

My writing goes through stages. Sometimes I need total silence, and other times I need someone around to talk things through. I have a close author friend and we usually skype and write together. We have the option to talk or just be silent but we’re there for each other regardless. I’m in quite a few author groups and have had the pleasure to meet some of my author friends personally at conferences. I love making that personal connection with people.

What do you like to do when you’re not writing?

I love baking so when I’m not writing I’m usually thinking of something to bake. We also have a really big garden so I’m learning how to grow things and look after the various fruit trees that came with the house when we bought it. I find it’s good exercise and it helps clear my mind and thinking about my writing, or if I’m stuck in a particular plot point.

Tell me a little bit about your most recent release. What gave you the idea for it? How long did it take to write? What did you enjoy about writing it? What did you hate?

How to Catch a Vet is partly the plot bunny from a reader. She messaged me after How to Catch a Boss released last Christmas saying that Santi, the brother of one of the MCs needed a dedicated and off-the-charts sweet vet that would help him with the great dane he adopted.

In total the book took me 2 weeks to write but many more weeks of research and gathering information. Santi, one of the main characters has an eye condition called retinitis pigmentosa, which is the reason he had to leave the military. At the same time his Dog, Duchess Olive McPickles, also ends up needing a procedure which is quite common with great danes. These two things alone made it the most challenging book I’ve written research-wise. It was also super fun because alongside this we have a menagerie of animals that steal the show at every chance they have.

After five novels and two shorter stories, writing in this world is like coming home and I always love to include recurring characters. It’s something my readers love as well since they get to see their favorite characters come back. There’s also plenty of shenanigans, so there’s that, too.

How to Catch a Vet

The first thing I learned at Vet school was to always expect the unexpected.
Well, I sure never saw Santiago Torres or his adorable Great Dane coming.

Santi is everything I’m not. Tall, confident, overbearing, and if I’m to believe his advances, he’s also very experienced in…well, you know what.

I always play safe, but it’s time to ditch the v-card. We couldn’t be more different, but that doesn’t matter because this is just a one time thing.

I’m not going to want more, right?
I’m not going to fall for him, right?

How to Catch a Vet is the sixth book in the Chester Falls series and features an opposites attract story between a virgin and a player, a Great Dane with a tendency to rescue- read kidnap- other people’s pets, and a small town like no other.

Buy How to Catch a Vet!

Find Ana!

Website : Email : Goodreads : Bookbub : Facebook : Facebook Group : Instagram : Tiktok

Admitting I'd been bullied at school was one thing. Admitting I was still a virgin at almost thirty was another altogether.
Despite the hotter-than-the-earth's core kiss, Santi didn't want to start anything. He was dealing with his stuff, and I understood that.
We could still be friends, couldn't we? I could make sure my grownign feelings for him didn't get any bigger, couldn't I?
Ana Ashley, How to Catch a Vet. Out now!

Taking Stock: Deleted Scene

Here’s a deleted scene I found from Taking Stock. It’s Patsy Walker, who runs the Post Office, talking to HER friend Sally, who’s Laurie’s housekeeper. It’s whilst he’s in hospital recovering from his stroke. I took it out because it didn’t move the story along at all.

Book cover of Taking Stock — Taking Stock

“He’s going to be a handful,” Patsy Walker said to her friend Sally Beelock as she filled the tea-pot. “You’ll have trouble with him.”

Sally pulled a face. “You don’t need to tell me that,” she said. “He’s already talking about coming home and the stupid idiot can’t even stand up without help yet.”

“He’s improving though, yes?” Patsy asked.

“Yes, definitely. And it’s only been a week. They say that he needs to keep trying to move everything, his arm, his fingers, his leg, and the more he does that the more it’ll help.” She sighed. “They don’t know if it’ll all come back properly, but they say there’s a good chance.”

Patsy passed her a mug of tea and sat down opposite her at the kitchen table where she could see in to the shop. There weren’t any customers at the moment, but the early autumn day was warm and she had the outside door propped open as usual, which meant the bell wouldn’t ring if anyone came in.

“How are you managing?” she asked Sally. “It must have been a shock. He’s only what, thirty?”

“Thirty-three,” Sally said absently. “Yes. I thought it was curtains for him to be honest, Pat. Jimmy came down to get me at Carsters once the ambulance had gone. He didn’t tell me much, just said I should get into the hospital. Apparently he was unconscious, pretty much.”

Patsy patted her hand. “Well, he’s going to be fine, love. You’ll see. Look at Roger Chedzoy. He had a stroke four years ago and you’d never really know to look at him now.”

“He’s sixty-three though,” Sally said. “I mean, there’s never a good age, is there? But Laurie’s so young.”

Patsy nodded. “And that means he’s got more fight in him and he’ll get over it quickly. You’ll see.”

Category: Gay