Vertigo by Sharita R Lira writting as Michael Mandrake

Summary:

After losing his lover to mental disorder, Dr. Hayden Curry throws himself into work, silently wishing he could experience something extraordinary in love. He finds his match in David, a creature Hayden revives after discovering him and hauling him back to his lab. Upon awakening, David asks Dr. Hayden’s help in discovering more about himself. Hayden agrees but senses secrets in David. Will he get to the bottom of things and be able to continue the special relationship he and David have, or will the secrets that come forward tear them apart?

 Reviewer: RedDragonfly

Hmm, where to start ... I had a really difficult time with this one. I had been struggling trying to find something new and different to read,  so when I came upon this I had hoped it would be captivating. 

While the plot was very intriguing and mysterious, at times, I found it lacking and initially it failed to hold my attention. From the beginning, I struggled to keep reading, ended up having to put it down and come back to it later. I found it hard to believe Hayden gave into David the way he did so easily, barely questioning why. Hayden seemed to follow everything David said, yes he struggled with it for a while, but then just gave in. When David finally revealed his true nature, again it was with an easy acceptance. I wished for more of a challenge between Hayden  and David. I didn’t like the apparent manipulation David used to plant himself into Hayden’s life. While David loved Hayden unconditionally, the way in which he brought it forth with a lack of honesty left his feelings seeming a little flat. As David slowly revealed all the secrets he had kept from Hayden, Hayden always seemed to forgive and accept them too quickly. The ending left me with mixed feelings. I did finally see the depth and beauty of the love between Hayden and David. I was able to see just how unconditional their love for each other truly was. 

 Now I don’t want anyone to think this was in any way bad, because it’s not! Yes, it took me a while to get into the story, but once I did, it managed to hold my attention. It just took a bit for the build up to grab my interest. It had many qualities that were unique and inspired. It ended up being a truly challenging book for me. I did  rather enjoy it in the end. 

 I give this 3 stars … unique, different, but yet enjoyable

Publisher: Less Than Three Press
Source:  Manic Readers  

Loose Snow by Julia Talbot

Summary:

Jack and AJ had a thing once, but Jack wasn’t ready to settle down. They still work together at the Forestry Service, seeing each other every day, but the situation comes to a head when Jack encounters loose snow out on the trail, and gets caught in an avalanche. Will AJ see things differently after Jack’s brush with death?

 Reviewer: Reddragonfly

This was a very interesting and yet confusing story about Jack and AJ,  who just can’t seem to see eye to eye. They work together, even though emotions seem a bit strained. It left me feeling more confused than  anything else … 

AJ is older than Jack by a few years, but he’s looking for someone to spend the rest of his days with. They have a falling out where Jack proclaims he isn’t ready to settle down. But what got me so confused is why it seems that it’s Jack who is pining away for AJ. I thought Jack didn’t want to be in a steady relationship?  So now Jack has gotten himself into some serious trouble, while out checking on the trails he gets caught in an avalanche. He’s can only  hope AJ will make it in time! AJ gives off the feeling that he never really got over Jack. And yet, now we see AJ struggling to come to terms  with what happened to Jack, as he realizes he almost lost him. Yet … he  needs to rethink things? 

So yeah, in all, it was a bit confusing  (I feel like i'm repeating myself here now ). I couldn’t quite grasp the actual idea of the plot. I’ve only read a few of Julia Talbot’s books before this but I did enjoy them. I only wish it could have been longer. Maybe if we had more preamble for when AJ and Jack were first  together, leading up when they fell apart it wouldn’t have been so confusing. I  think it would have given the story more depth and the emotions would  have come through more. 

I give this 3 stars…even though it was  confusing at times, it was still a nice short story; maybe we can look  forward to a sequel later on? 

 Publisher: Torquere Press

Source:  Manic Readers

Rack 'Em by A.H. Scott

Summary:

In a small, French village, a grand dame of envied collectibles has been murdered in the night, as a trail of treasure and tears leads onto the doorstep of an unsuspecting Vancouver auction house. Recaptured bobbles of devotion from two fated lovers of long days gone by, bring together varied egos into the life of an antiques dealer.
Beauty came to Vancouver, as if it were a smiling wind from across the ocean. For this harried male, a pair of bodacious Italian belles and woman of gentle grace from China proved to be something extra for him. Man and woman, who were once strangers and adversaries, became bound in each other’s arms and hearts. A liquidator in fine fabric has woven itself ...

 Reviewer: Fashionta

In my personal opinion, this book was hard to follow—almost as if A.H. Scott did not have English as her first language. Upon researching her, however, I found she is, indeed, an American. I am perplexed, then, why the author has chosen to stylize her words in a manner that is atavistic and too floral. She injected a lot of flowery words that took a paragraph or more to describe what could have been done more succinctly in one sentence. The storyline was not easy to follow as it did not grab my attention from the first page. It seemed to ramble and wander and even the action paragraphs did not flow smoothly. I would not personally recommend this book to younger readers as it might be a bit out of their comfort reading range. 

 

The book is, however, a very descriptive read and you do get the sense of the moment and being in that moment for a brief amount of time. But again, if you do not like a book with a protracted story line I would not recommend this book. If, however, you enjoy rambling along then by all means read and enjoy.

Here is an example of how the book was written. Word for word.

“Seeing Vincent’s reaction to the store’s moniker made mouth motion with gum even faster, “True Love would be a neat addition in our store,” stopping the chewing for a moment, maturity rose, “That irony is something priceless.”

The idea trying to be conveyed here is that the man is chewing gum and when the store’s moniker is seen he reacts by chewing his gum faster. This is the style in which the entire book is written.

Overall this book gets a 3 from me for the effort but it should have been gone over by a proofreader and corrected. Not to mention the fact that it should have tossed out and started over. The storyline sounds great but not in the manner it was executed here.

 

 Publisher: Eirelander Publishing                                                                      

Source:  Manic Readers

 

The Sin Eater's Prince by Keta Diablo

Summary:

Owen Rhys, the sin eater, has been shunned by the local villagers all his life--except for Andras Maddock, the local physician. In love with the one man he believes will never return that love, Owen is shocked when Andras saves him from death at the hands of a vampire.

Dagan, Dark Lord of the Underworld, vows to avenge his father’s death and obtain the Prince of Wales’s mystic sword from Andras. The claymore’s power holds an immunity the vampires have coveted for centuries.

Star-crossed love, sorcery, and bloodlust collide on a vengeful path where only one side will remain victorious

 Reviewer: White Daisy

The year is 1842, a time of great superstition in Pembrokeshire, Southwest Wales.

Owen is a sin eater and due to his mother's early death, he never experienced a gentle touch or pleasure of a sibling's companionship. He  was raised by his father, who was a sin eater himself. Owen's existence is to help people in their darkest moments, although the act of absorbing a dying person’s sins so their soul is free to go to heaven makes him unholy and shunned by the village. He is always alone. As the story opens, Owen is awakened with a premonition of someone's death. 

Andras Maddock and the young lass Carys, are the only humans who are kind and friendly with Owen. This morning Carys comes to Owen for a pint of goat milk for a small infant. She asks Owen to return to the village with her as the doctor Andras expects him. In my opinion, Owen  had a gift to see other people’s spirits and he is the one who escorts the souls to rest. It is in a way like Owen is eating the sin from a dying person, so their souls can pass on with a clear conscience. He is to me a kind of a priest. Why Owen as a sin eater is shunned in this story is illogical. 

Owen is dazzled with Andras. Even more, Owen can’t understand the physician's kindness toward him. At twenty-five years of age Owen hides his attraction toward Andras, not  knowing Andras feels the same pull toward Owen. The morning after Carys goes home, Owen travels to Maddock Manor, to where Andras lives. Owen suspects that Andras is a vampire. He has a deeper feeling that Andras is deadly dangerous, but even so, Owen can’t change how he feels. After Owen does what is expected from him as a sin eater, he decides to return to his lonesome home, even if Andras asks him to sleep in the  Manor and return to his home in the morning. But Owen hungers for Andras,  vampire or no, and Owen can’t stay in Andras company. While walking  home through the night, Owen is attacked by a new vampire, Traherne, and saved by Andras. Traherne is a powerful vampire and Andras can save Owen only with his sword, the Price of Wales's claymore. Andras must hide his sword from the other vampire clans because it is a powerful tool: it gives vampires the power to walk in the sun.

The storyline wasn't as interesting from this point on. People in the village start to die and villagers decided blindly it is Owen fault because he is a sin eater. The villagers behave crazily.  As a reader, I didn't enjoy such characters. The romance between Andras and Owen was enjoyable, but nothing special. I'm giving this 3 stars. 

     

 Publisher: Keta Diablo                                                                                        

Source:  Manic Readers

 

Geisha for Hire by Shawn Bailey

Summary:

Jayce Ito thought there was nothing he wouldn't do for his childhood best friend, Marley Bonds, until she asked him to help her out posing as a geisha for a client's birthday party. He'd done a lot of foolish things for Marley, but this just bordered on insanity--especially when the recipient of the gift turned out to be none other than his new boss, Reuben Danza. Reuben Danza had received some outlandish birthday gifts in his thirty-two years on earth, but when his best friend Payton Roberts hires a beautiful geisha to perform at his birthday party to impress some important clients, the drunken Reuben decided to let loose a little and show the Japanese men that he really knows how to have fun. But the plot backfires when Reuben gets interested in the geisha and wants to date her.

 Reviewer: Red Dragonfly

I'd recommend this book for someone who is interested in reading a yaoi novel (which it's listed as on Phaze's website) because if I hadn't  known this was written by an American author I would have thought for  sure it came from Japan. It had a lot of things that I consider normal  in yaoi novels (rape, mc in denial, mc walked all over, everyone in love with mc) but for some reason in this novel those things bugged me. 

The main character for the novel, Jayce, is not only pushed around by his best friend and mother (who convince him to dress up as a geisha  multiple times even when he keeps saying he doesn't want to do it), but he is also pushed around by his boss Reuben and an author that he edits for. He also continues to state that he is a guy and not gay almost the entire book even when he is having sex with a man. One of the biggest problems I had was that the first time Reuben and Jayce have sex, Reuben pretty much rapes him and never remembers it happening because he was so drunk. I also had a problem with how many times Jayce almost slept  with Genji, the author he was assigned to edit for, and how often he got turned on by him when he was supposedly with Reuben and in love with him. I just didn't feel like he loved him.

I normally love  Shawn Bailey's books and I've read everything that the author has  written but Geisha for Hire wasn't one of my favorites, this novel had a  few things that bugged me so I'm only giving this book 3 stars. 

   

Publisher: Phaze                          
Source:  Manic Readers

Immersed in Pleasure by Tiffany Reisz

Summary:

The Manhattan Mermaids: Believed to be the most beautiful women in the city, they entertain wealthy, powerful men in an exclusive club called Fathoms....and are all virgins. Derek Prince doesn't believe they really exist, until he meets the stunningly sensual Xenia. She drives him wild with desire, but giving in to temptation means losing her position at Fathoms. Derek is incredibly turned on by the thought of being Xenia's first...but will he be willing to wait for her?

 Reviewer: Dolce Amore

A year ago, Derek Prince met a virgin mermaid. 

Waiting for his perpetually late date to come, Derek sees the stunning Xenia. She isn't just wet and wearing transparent clothes, she is beautiful … and one of The Manhattan Mermaids, from the Fathoms club, a sect of mermaids who entertain men yet are paid not to have sex.

Those who come here wish to see something truly unusual, something magical or mythical. Beautiful women, naked, exquisite and all virginal.

Believed to be the most beautiful women in the city, they entertained the wealthiest, most powerful men in the world. One could tell a mermaid if you met her on the street by two things, Derek had heard—they wore little silver mermaid pendants around their necks, and they had silver-and-blue metallic tattoos on their feet and ankles.

 

After understanding how much Xenia loves her position at the club, Derek decides to spend time with her and wait for her. After a few months, she becomes his closest friend. At their one year anniversary, she confesses that she stopped working for Kingsley Edge, and Derek asks her to marry him.

“I can’t accept this gift,” he said solemnly and Xenia’s eyes fell.

“Why not?”

“It’s too precious for you to just give it away.”

“But—”

“So how about a trade?”

Derek reached into his pocket and pulled out a large shimmering sapphire-and-diamond ring—sapphire, the color of the ocean, the color of Xenia’s eyes.

 

What do I think about the book? That it was interesting. Half of the story is told by Derek to his friends Christian and Mark, and the other half is revealed as it happens. I don’t like too much the style because it takes away depth and feeling from the story. 3 stars

 Publisher: Harlequin                             

Source: Net Galley

Bone by Sable Stone

Summary:

A man's muscles can entice when they endanger Mark, a fraternity football star, struts out of a strip club riding high. Nick leaves a gay bar feeling low and lonely. When the men meet in an alley, Mark knocks Nick to the asphalt, wielding a baseball bat to break half the bones of the body beneath him. Nick survives and discovers the body's curious truth: a broken bone will mend stronger than it was before. Feeling intrepid and invincible, Nick dares himself to enjoy sexual conquests that were mere fantasies before the assault. Satisfied only when he remembers Mark's menacing muscles, Nick begins breaking the rest of his bones to heal fully into the kind of man he always wanted - and wanted to be. Mark, instead, is destroyed, his cocky quarterback conviction defeated both on the playing field and in bed. Distracted when the snap of a hiked ball reminds him of cracking Nick's bones, Mark breaks his throwing arm. As the fracture heals, Mark's resolve to find Nick strengthens, but Mark can't decide if he should plead for forgiveness or finish him off.

 Reviewer: White Daisy

This story is divided between two different characters: Nick, who lives and works in Miami, and Mark, a student and jock. Nick lives in South  Beach of Miami and works at Design District as a interior designer. 

The first time Nick and Mark's paths cross is on an unforgettable night when Mark visits Miami with his friend Rob for a vacation. As a reader, I saw, that even if Mark was really smart and  intelligent, he never shown his true self to people around himself. But that could be due to his young years and college status. However, to actually  punch the crap out of an unknown guy in front of you and then to sodomize him with a bottle—how low can you actually fall? I felt sick  for Mark as such a weak character. He is a good smart guy, who  becomes a gay basher because he acts along with Rob. Even if Mark knew, he can’t help but to act on impulse. 

I liked Ron as Nick's best friend. He is an interesting character. And even more, I  love how Mark starts to get crazier bit by bit. That is at least some  punishment from his conscience. Mark's conscience is goading him little by little to admit his wrong act. I love this part.  

I  was appalled at Mark's choice of a friend. Even if he knows that Rob  isn’t a good person, he is still his friend and stands by his side, but  at least only as long as his conscience allows it. His thoughts concerning Rob are clear as a day. I would say stay away from a friend such as Rob. 

"Every  time he thought about Rob, he thought Rob could probably do it again, over and over, like fucking. He could beat a man down, go home, go to  bed, wake up, and beat on another one. There was no remorse, no sentiment. Only code."

 

From that awful night we can see that both main characters, Nick and Mark, hadn’t been  themselves since. Nick's behavior is risky and daring. In his mind, he  wants to get hurt and get his bones broken again and again. I believe Nick should visit a psychiatrist. This isn’t normal behavior, and even  if he is into pain as a kink, he should join a private club or similar. The way this story ended, left me cold. I have to admit, I didn't enjoy reading this story. The end of was too open and unsolved. I'm  giving 3 stars. 

  

Publisher: Starbooks                    

Source: Manic Readers