Showing posts with label Must Read. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Must Read. Show all posts

April 18, 2016

Cover Reveal & Exclusive Excerpt! Illuminate the Shadows, Shatterproof Bond #1 by Isobel Starling



The thrilling, funny sequel to 'As You Wish'.

“A Scotsman and an Englishman fall in love…

After the most amazing week of his life at Dunloch Castle on the banks of Loch Ness. The charming, mysterious Samuel Aiken has turned Declan Ramsay's life upside down. Declan has experienced a remarkable change. He has come to terms with the fact he is bisexual, and he has fallen head-over-heels in love with his boss’s son Sam. However, falling for his boss’s son was never going to be an easy path to happiness, mainly because the boss in question is multi-millionaire property tycoon and former MI5 operative, Sir James Aiken. 

Sir James is repulsed by his son’s homosexuality, and so discovering that his employee, Declan Ramsay- the man he installed to run his luxury property rental empire- is in a relationship with Sam, does not go down well. 

The lovers cannot hide from the looming presence of Sir James Aiken for long! Soon enough James makes his move, and Declan will find out what he will have to endure to stay with Sam, and what he will have to give to feel worthy of Sam's love.”

Pre-order links ARe Smashwords Goodreads

“Declan strolled out of the living room, a look of determination on his face. He wanted to punch his brother in the mouth for what he’d said, and had to breathe deeply to harness his bubbling anger. Sure enough, when he turned to the top of the stairs, Oliver sat half-way down, looking a little queasy. Declan parked his arse on the top step and looked down at his baby brother.

“Ye’ve only been sharing fer a few weeks… he’s a fast worker, that one,” Oliver said with a sarcastic sneer.

“DON’T” Declan said roughly, barely keeping the anger in check. He was so very disappointed with his brother. “What the fuck is yer problem? What does it matter who I love? What I get up te in the privacy of my own home, with my body is, frankly, none a yer damn business.” He paused to take a couple of calming breaths and simmered with frustration at the look of disinterest on his brother’s face. 

“This is important te me. Sam and I are a couple, and we wanted to share our happiness with you and Belle, just as you shared yours wi’ us.” Declan glared at Ollie who now wouldn’t even look him in the eye. The silence was palpable, and the more Declan looked at his brother, the more he began to pity him. After several minutes Oliver couldn’t hold his pinched, scowling expression any more.

“It wasnea supposed te be like this,” He burst out suddenly, sounding like a whiny brat. “You were supposed te meet a nice lassie, and we’d have son’s and take them te football, and hiking an’ fishing. Normal stuff, ye know”

Declan winced at the outburst. Normal stuff… bollox te that! 

“Oliver, that’s not me. That was never me. And as fer meetin’ a lassie, I’ve tried, a lot. I tried for so many years te be like the other lads, but I hated the man I became. I was goin’ through the motions, and it made me so fuckin’ unhappy.” Declan ran his hands over his bearded face and into his hair. Oliver was silent and taciturn. Declan decided to try another strategy.

“When you wake up in the morning wi’ Belle sleeping beside ye. How’d ye feel?”

Oliver’s glance darted to meet Declan’s. “Why?”

“Just say, fer fucks sake” God, my brother is stubborn bollox.

“I guess I feel… peaceful, contented, I suppose. She looks beautiful, like a fairy princess, or sum’ thin’,” He admitted candidly.

“And you know ye love her, fer certain?”

“Aye, from the moment I laid eyes on her at that Aikens corporate party”

“Well, since when do straight people have first dibs on happiness? Eh?” Declan challenged. “I’m attracted te women, and I’m attracted te men, but I have never woken up beside anyone feelin’ anything, but discomfort, like I was in the… wrong place. I felt sick, I felt like a liar. Every. Time. And it ate away at me. It’s no’ fair te me, and it’s no’ fair te the women I was foolin,’” Declan took a breath to organize his thoughts.

“But Sam… Sam is different. Jesus, if I could only put into words how he makes me feel” Declan felt the tears crowd his eyes. Talking about his feelings had always been difficult. He’d been the stereotypical emotional cripple before Sam, but this time words flowed unbidden. 

“I know who I am when I’m wi’ him. When I wake up in his arms, I’m so at peace I don’t wantae get out of bed. He makes me laugh until I cry. He always cares for me, no matter that I’m a maudlin, moody control freak. I look at him, and fer the first time in my life, I’m home.” Declan paused to catch a breath “If you truly think our love is wrong… well… tough shite. This is my life, and he is who I choose to live it wi’. If ye cannae be happy fer us, I just feel sorry fer ye.” The words felt clumsy and poorly constructed, but he needed to say them, and he hoped his brother would hear and accept them.

Sam and Annabelle stood in the open doorway, listening to their partners talk. Belle’s hand was absently rubbing her brother’s back for comfort as Declan explained how he felt for Sam. “I’m so happy for you” She said “I can’t believe we’ve hooked brothers” She drew Sam into a hug and when they parted Declan was standing at the door.

“Can I have a go?” he asked with a wry smirk on his face. Sam gripped the front of Declan’s shirt and pulled him into an embrace. The downstairs door slammed.”

Sale Alert!!


Sale Link ARe



Inspiration strikes at the strangest of times. 

Born in Germany, Isobel Starling spent most of her twenty-year professional career making art. She relocated to the UK and,faced with the dreaded artist’s creative block, Isobel started to write and found she loved it more than making art. 

Isobel’s first novel “Schonling” was a best seller in the GLBT-Bisexual genre on the ‘All Romance ebooks’ site. 
She has just completed her sixth book, and signed French translation rights for novella “As You Wish”. 

She adores the M/M genre and enjoys writing about wounded souls and the complexities of personal relationships. 
Despite not having found proof yet, Isobel believes in love at first sight and endeavours to give her men a thrilling journey and a satisfying ending!



March 28, 2016

Audiobook Tour & Giveaway! More Than Everything, Family Collection & The One Who Saves Me, Home #6 by Cardeno C.



More than Everything: Family Collection

Written by: Cardeno C. 
Narrated by: Ezekiel Robison 
Length: 7 hrs and 46 mins 

Time might not heal all wounds, but with two motivated and strong-willed men on a campaign to win him back, Charlie will get more than he ever thought possible.

As a teenager, Charlie "Chase" Rhodes meets Scott Boone and falls head over heels in love with the popular, athletic boy next door. Charlie thinks he's living the dream when Scott says he feels the same way. But his dreams are dashed when Scott unexpectedly moves away.

Years later, Charlie meets brash and confident Adan Navarro, who claims all he wants is a round between the sheets. After eight months together, Charlie is convinced Adan returns his love. But when the opportunity comes to be open about their relationship, Adan walks away.

Time passes and life moves on, but when Charlie learns the only two men he's ever loved are now in love with each other, his heart breaks all over again. Scott and Adan tell Charlie they want him back, but Charlie doesn't know if he can trust two people who have hurt him so deeply. Time might not heal all wounds, but with two motivated and strong-willed men on a campaign to win him back, Charlie will get more than he ever thought possible.

US / UK / iTunes
ebook links

The One Who Saves Me: Home, Book 6

Written by: Cardeno C. 
Narrated by: Alexander Collins 
Length: 6 hrs and 45 mins 

At 14, Andrew Thompson and Caleb Lakes become best friends. As the years pass, they stand by each other through family trauma, school, and the start of their careers. They share their first sexual experiences, learning and experimenting, and they talk each other through countless dates and breakups.

Decades of trust and loyalty build a deep and abiding friendship, one that surpasses any relationship in their lives. But when the parameters of their unique friendship change, neither man knows how to break out of their established roles to build something new. After all, boyfriends come and go, but best friends are forever.

US / UK / iTunes
ebook links



Cardeno C. - CC to friends - is a hopeless romantic who wants to add a lot of happiness and a few "awwws" into a reader's day. Writing is a nice break from real life as a corporate type and volunteer work with gay rights organizations. Cardeno's stories range from sweet to intense, contemporary to paranormal, long to short, but they always include strong relationships and walks into the happily-ever- after sunset.
Cardeno's Home, Family, and Mates series have received awards from Love Romances and More Golden Roses, Rainbow Awards, the Goodreads M/M Romance Group, and various reviewers. But even more special to CC are heartfelt reactions from readers, like, "You bring joy and love and make it part of the every day."


Pre-order Now!! Between the Lies, Club Syn #1 by Draven St. James


Professor Graham Darrius leads a double life, everyday he enriches the lives of students, but at night he struts the stage as Ebony Powers at Club Syn. The two personas cannot mix, which is an easy rule to follow until a sexy man from Iowa stumbles through the door. 

Spencer Neil, has never stepped foot into a gay bar and holy shit did he get more than he’s ever imagined. What did he know about drag queens, go-go boys and heated exchanges in dark corners? The world he lives in is academic and predictable. At least until he meets Graham, and sees that sometimes all is not what it seems.

Beneath the shock of discovery, misunderstandings, silk stockings, and wicked instruction Graham finds himself falling for Spencer and Spencer finds he’s getting a whole different kind of education.





Spencer’s head dropped forward. God, his cock throbbed at the feel of Ebony’s body so near. The spicy scent of Ebony’s perfume filtered through his aroused brain. He couldn’t get his muscles to cooperate and turn to face his temptation.

“You’re giving off some mixed signals with your silence, hon.”

The touch of fingers along his back had him tensing with need but chained by confusion. He bit his lip to hold in whatever whimpered plea might have escaped. He’d spent years suppressing his sexual nature, so the tendency toward silence was automatic by now. It was far more difficult to make himself let out noise of any kind, much less anything intelligible.

“I may be a lot of things, but I don’t seduce unwilling men.” Ebony’s soft caress left his body, and Spencer swayed toward the touch.

“Stay,” Spencer whispered before he could rethink the word, but he knew he meant it. Whatever Ebony had to offer him, his body sure as hell wanted…needed.

The warmth of Ebony’s body caged him in the small space, like a furnace. The click of the lock being set into place had his heart speeding. What am I doing?

“And what would you have me do?” Ebony murmured, pressing close enough Spencer could feel the definite outline of a hard-on against his ass. “With you all alone in here?”

Spencer wished he’d had time to read a book on bathroom hookups, or maybe watched more porn. “I have no idea.”


I’m a born and raised Oregonian. I’ve traveled extensively in search of mischief and mayhem to fill my books. My ventures have been quite successful in inspiring a wealth of stories both sexy and humorous. It gives me a great excuse to do some crazy stuff in the name of research. Of course at the end of the day, coffee within reach, laptop at the ready is where I find my peace.


March 4, 2016

Excerpt & Giveaway! Bodyguard to a Sex God, Bodyguards Inc. #1 by R.J. Scott

A pretty-boy actor, an ex-cop bodyguard, and a stalker intent on murder.

Bodyguard Adam Freeman draws what everyone else thinks is the short straw at the convention for a procedural cop show - as bodyguard to TV actor Logan Brady. Or as the Internet has labelled him, Logan 'Sex God' Brady. 

Logan is taking part in a convention at a London Hotel for his show 'Night Cop' and someone is threatening his life. 

Adam gets more than he bargained for when his client combines coming out of the closet with them both trying to stay alive.

"....Body Guard to a Sex God by Rj. Scott is crazy good. Not only are the main characters strongly written, so are the sub characters. The writing makes it very easy for the readers to feel what the characters are feeling. This is a fun whodunit lite read that will keep you guessing until the very end. Just when you figure it out, the game changes...."




“You know why having a bodyguard is a bad thing, Jimmy.” Logan slumped back into the corner of the SUV seat and closed his eyes. How had it come to this? The letters had started out like a million others he received. Simple and to the point, they declared love and forever and very often included lace panties or some other random piece of clothing. He’d had wedding invites sent to him with his n 76yame next to the applicable girl or boy; hell, he’d had notes claiming babies as his. Nothing quite as disturbing as these letters, but then again, this person sending them was probably a mental patient or something. Mostly harmless. That was what he had to think otherwise he’d be jumping at his own shadow.

“Bodyguards Inc. is the best, Logan, and they are very discreet. I’m forwarding the mail to you with the details for the guy who is looking after you. He’s the most suitable they have for you apparently. He’s done a lot of these celebrity gigs. You have to know I’m paying a lot of money for the best.”

“You’re paying? Don’t you mean I’m paying?” Logan snapped. He immediately regretted the tone in his voice. Unlike a lot of industry agents, Jimmy was a good guy. “Sorry. I’m on edge.” Jimmy chose to ignore the quick outburst; he was good at doing that.

“BI has a fine reputation. I know a guy who knows the brother of a cousin to the man who runs it.”

Logan had to laugh. Jimmy knew everyone in one huge network of people. Locating a bodyguard agency via a friend of a brother of a second cousin twice-removed wouldn’t be a shock for a resourceful man like Jimmy.

“Anyway,” Jimmy continued, “we also have the new bodyguard that will be in place soon after you get back from the UK. Your English guy will be coming to the States with you to do what they call a handover. I’m guessing they’ll exchange notes.”

“Why can’t the US bodyguard start now and just go with me?”

“He’s not contracted until the first of the month, and the network wants you to have someone with local knowledge when you’re in England. This BI company will be more than suitable. And don’t forget you have Mike looking out for you up until then.”

“Great.” Logan felt tired and just this close to cancelling the UK trip. If it wasn’t for the fans he would be letting down then he may well have done so by now.

“Stacia wants to go with you. She’ll back you up. It won’t be any different than any other trip for the show. Just play the happy boyfriend and let her do her thing, and let the bodyguard do his as well.”

“I’m not taking Stacia. I won’t put her in any kind of danger.” As it was he had already begged off a dozen or so joint invites and begun to create a little media space between him and Stacia. She would stay safe that way.

“I don’t think the decision will be yours to make if she gets her way,” Jimmy pointed out.

“We were talking…” Logan wasn’t sure how to word this. “Stacia and I that is. She said Bryan isn’t doing so well with this whole her-pretending-to-be-my-girlfriend thing. Says it’s holding her back and that he loves her. Hell, he as good as proposed last weekend. Time has come to end this with her.” Bryan was a good guy, an cop who adored Stacia. He’d been damn patient for the last six months since he and Stacia had met. They had to keep their relationship a secret just so Stacia could keep making people believe she was with Logan.

Jimmy sighed. “I know that. She called me as soon as he asked her. She’ll cover you in London, but post-convention we probably need to find someone else. Talk to her, Logan, find out how she wants to deal with it. A discrete breakup with you in stages that we can filter to the internet should take care of it.”

Anxiety twisted inside Logan at the coming change in his ordered life. Stacia had been his wingman for three years now. The blonde beauty was the perfect foil for him and provided that brick wall between what he was and what he let people see. They’d met through the show. Night Cop had just entered its second season and she was brought on as a series baddie for a few episodes. She was a close friend, knew all his secrets. And he was a bankable commodity; her career had gone from strength to strength since they’d ‘gotten together’. She’d just landed a recurring role on a new comedy. Had to be a good thing for her; she deserved a good career and a man who loved her.

“Matt doesn’t have to hide,” Logan said. He couldn’t stop the sadness in his tone. He wanted what actors like Matt Bomer had. A partner he could really love, kids maybe someday, but still able to do what he loved—act. Finding another woman to be his plus one in order to keep his cover to the public at large was getting to be too much and he hated the lies.

“Then you need to make a choice,” Jimmy said patiently. Logan could probably quote word for word what his agent and closest friend was going to say. “Your decision is easy. Be honest with yourself and with everyone else, then deal with whatever happens next. You know whatever you decide, there will always be work for you and I will have your back in anything you choose to do.”

“I know you will, J, and I love you for it, man. It’s just… I’m coming up on thirty and I don’t have a clue what kind of roles will be out there for me as I age, let alone if I came out of the closet. I’m not sure I’d still get work as the ‘Sex God’ the tabloids keep labeling me as.”

“You don’t need the money,” Jimmy pointed out. “You could do what you want to do, go into directing, go back to school. Hell, Lo, you’ve been acting since you were fourteen, in public and in private. Aren’t you ready to be yourself now?”

“It’s not that easy. I can’t just decide to come out as gay.”

“You can. It’s very easy.”

“What are you saying, Jimmy? That I should make a different decision? I’ve been pretending for so long and hiding… and hell, what about Stacia? She’ll be embarrassed, humiliated.”

Jimmy chuckled. “This is Stacia we are talking about. She’s got balls of steel and she just wants you happy. We can manage this in a million ways. Call you bisexual, use the morals get-out clause in your contract. You can take some time off, decide what you really want now. And, Lo, remember…”

“What?”

“Thirty is a good age to change your life.”

Logan ended the call and he switched to his email. The mail from Jimmy with details of the bodyguard company was at the top of the list and he clicked on the link to view the attached photo. His eyes widened when he saw the cute blond in the photo. Well. Cute might just be the wrong word. The man was looking stern, there was no smile, and Logan couldn’t see the color of the man’s eyes or anything. But hell, the body and face were fine.

At least his bodyguard would provide him with some male eye candy to stare at when he was surrounded by a million and one screaming fangirls. The document described Logan as thirty-one, blond, brown eyes, five-ten, ex-cop, specialist in hand-to-hand combat. Brown eyes, eh? Logan loved brown eyes. And hell, with this guy he wouldn’t mind a little hand-to-hand combat either.

They arrived at the studio. The blacked-out windows combined with utilizing the lesser-known back entrance to the studio meant he wasn’t spotted. He loved his fans; without them he wouldn’t be where he was, and he doubted Night Cop would have been renewed past season one. Now on season five, he really considered himself fortunate for the show to have such a loyal fanbase. It was only… some of the fans were really intense and despite being six foot and more than capable of running quite fast, he wasn’t beyond being scared when large groups of screaming girls—and boys—got up in his space.

“Okay back there, Logan?”

Logan nodded to his driver. Mike was one of the only people outside Jimmy who knew the real Logan, and sitting in the back with scripts on the long drive from home to here had meant several long conversations with the burly driver. Jimmy had handpicked Mike and normally Mike would have gone to the UK with him, but his daughter was having a baby. There was no way Logan was taking the experience of being here for his daughter away from Mike. She was already six days late and the hospital wouldn’t let it go much further. If only she’d had it on time Mike would be going with him, could be the brick wall between him and the fans. But on the other hand, Mike wasn’t a trained bodyguard, he was just a big guy with a soft heart.

“Just organizing the trip to London,” he answered and waved his phone in front of him. Mike nodded in the mirror. The SUV pulled in beside a whole row of similar vehicles, and turning the engine off, the driver turned in his seat.

“Did Jimmy find someone good?” Mike looked concerned.

Logan recalled Adam Freeman’s details. Not the fact he was five ten with brown eyes and blond hair but the stuff Mike would want to know, the fact the guy was qualified to look after him.

“Adam Freeman, British and a former cop, came over from some kind of special department out of London, counterterrorism or something. He’s a specialist in hand-to-hand combat and is good at his job apparently.”

“An English Jack Bauer.” Mike smirked.

For a second a flash of his frequently used Jack Bauer fantasy slid into Logan’s thoughts, but he ruthlessly pushed it to one side. “I wish.”

They exchanged smiles. They’d done the whole ‘I wish I was going, sorry to let you down’ chat and they didn’t need to say anything else. Logan climbed down from the SUV.

“Later,” he said. Mike sketched a wave goodbye and left to park. Logan strolled through the maze of small buildings and onto lot five, exchanging hellos with anyone he crossed paths with. The LA sun was starting to heat the air and he shrugged off his jacket. Today was the final day of shooting episode ten and it was outside work right on into the night. That was what he needed, hard, physical fight scenes in the dark with fake rain. Hell, at least it would make him forget the letters and the fact that Jimmy was right. He had a meeting with the network in a couple of weeks and he needed to take that time to consider his entire future. He owed it to himself, he owed it to Stacia, and he owed it to the show.

Jimmy would back whatever he decided. This kind of support was invaluable to have from your agent. If Logan came out as gay or bi or whatever Jimmy spun for him, then he could at least stop lying. He’d need to handle it carefully. Stacia could be part of the fallout through no fault of her own and he didn’t want her to be laughed at in any way.

“Logan, makeup now; I have you with Teresa in twenty.” A harassed assistant scurried over with a clipboard in hand. “We need the post-fight scars and the tattoos and we need it for ten.”

And so it started.




RJ Scott has been writing since age six when she was made to stay in at lunchtime for an infraction involving cookies and was told to write a story. Two sides of A4 about a trapped princess later, a lover of writing was born. She reads anything from thrillers to sci-fi to horror; however, her first real love will always be the world of romance. From billionaires, bodyguards and cowboys to SEALs, throwaways and veterinarians, she writes passionate stories with a heart of romance, a troubled road to reach happiness, and more than a hint of happily ever after.