Reading Challenge Month 2018 at Joyfully Jay

Reading Challenge Month 2018 kicks off over a Joyfully Jay's blog.

I may have a couple of books in the prize pot for Diverse Books week. Any idea what they might be?

Anyway, while you ponder that, here's the link to the instructions.  

Your questions answered

Well actually they're my questions, but I've answered them because I know they're what you guys are thinking.

About the Series
Renaissance is book 2 in my series, Village Love. Village Love is set in the fictional Sussex village of Slopy Bottom. I'll let Rick (from Resistance) tell you how Slopy Bottom got its name.

“It’s one p, Slopy Bottom. The village has been there centuries. Local historians think it started life as Slope Bottom since the oldest houses are on the low slope at the bottom of a hill. The rest of the village spread out into the valley as the years went by but the name stuck. At one point the village was all but owned by a French lord, which could account for the mispronunciation, and it appears to have been Slopy Bottom ever since.”

Who’s this Rick you mention? I notice he’s in the blurb for book two, as well.
Rick is the village gardener/handyman. His story of how he struggles to fit his sexuality and his London-born Pakistani boyfriend in to his life in his sleepy village home is told in Resistance (Village Love #1). Rick and Mal’s  meet-cute is told in a short story, Resonance. As Resonance doesn't take place in the village it has been assigned as Village Love 0.5.

Do I need to read the other books in the series to read this one?
No. Each book deals with a separate couple. However, in such as small village people bump into each other all the time. So yes, characters will appear that the reader is introduced to in the previous books. 

Where can I buy the previous books?
Resistance Universal Amazon link myBook.to/Resistance_LF
Resonance Universal Amazon link  myBook.to/ResonanceL_F

At all the other usual suspects: Kobo // B & N // Smashwords. And on my Payhip page. If you buy there and share on social media you’ll get a discount.








Will there be more books in the series?
Definitely. I'm gearing up to start work on Book 3, Trevor’s tale. I have very brief story lines, if they work out, for at least a Book 4, and maybe a Book 5. If you read a particular character that you like drop me a line and let me know, I've undoubtedly got a plan to pair him with someone!
I've already been asked about Adam, the coffee shop owner. Yes, he will definitely get his story told.

Why are you telling me this now?
Because Book 2, Renaissance, is now out. So if you've read Resistance and wanted Smudge's story, it's here.

Buy Links: Kobo // Payhip // B&N // Smashwords

Universal Amazon link: myBook.to/Renaissance_LF

Grab a bargain

To celebrate the upcoming release of Renaissance, all the other books in the Village Love series will be reduced in price leading up to the release on 3rd April.

Resistance will be $0.99. That's 75% off! A reduction of $3.
And Resonance will be free.

Amazon
Resistance 

Kobo
Resistance 

Payhip - To obtain the discount use the 'share' button.
Resonance 
Resistance 

Smashwords
Resonance 
Resistance

NB apologies to anyone that has tried to grab Resonance at Amazon for free. Despite me contacting them for a price match, Amazon have yet to reduce the price :( Unfortunately all the power is with the authors in Kindle Unlimited.

Who’s next in Slopy Bottom?

With Rick and Mal’s story told (at least for now) many of the reviewers have expressed an interest in finding out about other inhabitants of the village.

Who are the most likely candidates to get their story told?

Smudge: Owner of the print shop. With his tats, multi-coloured fauxhawk, and gauges Smudge stands out in the village quite unlike anybody else. Does his image and devil may care attitude mask a desire to find ‘the one’?

Adam: Purveyor of fine coffee and snacks. Adam came to the village with a babe in arms and no wife. That was 15 years ago and he’s still alone. It hasn’t always been that way; he’s had a lover in the village. Not that their relationship was common knowledge, thankfully, since it blew up in their faces. A younger, career-minded lover and a kid in primary school, while trying to establish his own business...it was never going to work. Broken promises had upset Benjy more than Adam. No, they’d had their chance and now they suited friends better than lovers. A couple more years of Benjy being his sole focus while his boy finished school and then maybe Adam would have time to find someone of his own. But you can never tell when cupid’s arrow will strike.

Raleigh: Church organist. When the vicar and his wife he arrived in Slopy Bottom several years ago they brought the curly haired, angelic organist with them. The only openly gay character in the village at the start of Resistance, he is beloved by both the young and the elderly of the village. But is his heart as guarded as his past?

If you follow my #rainbowsnippets you'll know who's next ;)

Resistance Buy Links: Kobo // ARe

Universal Amazon link: myBook.to/Resistance_LF

Village Love - A series review

Stella at Scattered Thoughts and Rogue Words has reviewed the Village Love series to date and given both books 4 stars.

Resonance

"The short was a beautifully surprise especially cause it is very detailed in the writing"

"Characters well delined, medical procedures well explained and an intrigued atmosphere. I truly felt myself in that room with Mal and Rick."

"It’s very rare to me to find good shorts around, Resonance was a winner."

Resistance 

"Rick and Mal and their relationship is exactly what I like to see in my books, it was sweet and sexy, but most of all was realistic"

"I adore romance set in small villages like Slopy Bottom, the peace, the people, the nature and the sceneries Lillian was great at describing."

"I can’t wait to know more about these boys and a couple more of guys I fell in love with while reading Resistance. I’m so happy to know (cause I’m stalking the author and I’m not sorry about it) there is so much coming soon."

"I feel to recommend it especially if you’re looking for an angst-free, light and well written story."


The reviewer also praised Garrett Leigh's cover art, calling it "different and so welcomed." The cover art for Resistance is up in the Rainbow Awards Cover Art contest. Show Garrett (and different) your love by going to vote for it.

Buy Links: Kobo // ARe

Universal Amazon link: myBook.to/Resistance_LF

Series review for Village Love

4 'feels good' hearts for the Village Love series (so far) from Dan at Love Bytes. And 4 hearts for each individual book. Find his full review here.

I love that these stories spoke so personally to him... "The whole MRI sequence, the shoulder injury, and the mate named Smudge, all played to my personal experiences, and in the case of Smudge, got me thinking about a friend from the UK that I lost touch with more than thirty years ago."

"The tale of these two meeting and overcoming each of their fears and concerns along the way was a fun read. I really liked the men, as well as the background characters in the little village of Slopy Bottom. Dare I hope for other tales from Slopy Bottom? Only time, and the author, will tell…"

"I highly recommend the two stories I’ve reviewed here today. I guess you could read Resistance without reading Resonance first. But why would you? They are both a delight."

Resistance is currently available across all retailers
Kobo // B & N // Smashwords. And on my Payhip page. If you buy there and share on social media you’ll get a discount.

Universal Amazon link: myBook.to/Resistance_LF

Resonance is currently available at 
Kobo // B&N // Smashwords // Payhip

Universal Amazon link:  myBook.to/ResonanceL_F

Release Day for Resistance

It's finally here. Resistance has gone live. 
For the first 3 months Resistance will be exclusively available to buy at Amazon and to borrow on Kindle Unlimited.  Universal Amazon link: myBook.to/Resistance_LF

Cover designed by Garrett Leigh
at blackjazzdesign.com

The Book

How long can you wait on a promise?

After his first night with Mal, Rick broke the habit of a lifetime and invited the sexy radiographer to spend the weekend in the sleepy English village he called home. Rick isn’t in denial but he’s afraid to reveal his sexuality in the close-knit community that has known him since he was a babe in arms.

The sex is amazing but equally Mal loves lazy days spent in the garden at Slopy Bottom, and every precious moment he spends with Rick. For Mal the village quickly becomes an oasis of peace, far from the noise and grime of life in London, a slice of tranquillity with Rick at the heart. But Mal has defied his family and his religion to be true to himself, and there is no way can he join Rick in his self-built closet, no matter how comfortable it is...

Rick is afraid revealing the true nature of his relationship with Mal will change the way his neighbours see him. He adores these people, this village, and he can’t face the thought of losing everything over who he chooses to sleep with. When the alternative is giving up a man who has slotted perfectly into his life—a man who he might just love—it’s no choice at all. But, knowing what has to be done isn’t always as easy as putting it into practice.

Add it to your Goodreads bookshelf here. 

About the Series

Resistance is book 1 in my new series, Village Love. Village Love is set in the fictional Sussex village of Slopy Bottom. I'll let Rick tell you how Slopy Bottom got its name.

“It’s one p, Slopy Bottom. The village has been there centuries. Local historians think it started life as Slope Bottom since the oldest houses are on the low slope at the bottom of a hill. The rest of the village spread out into the valley as the years went by but the name stuck. At one point the village was all but owned by a French lord, which could account for the mispronunciation, and it appears to have been Slopy Bottom ever since.”

Rick and Mal? Haven't you written about those characters before?

The simple answer is yes. Rick and Mal appeared in a one-off short story, Resonance. Resonance spawned this story which in turn spawned a whole host of storylines. As Resonance doesn't take place in the village it has been assigned as Village Life 0.5.

Do I need to read Resonance to read Resistance?

No. Several of my beta readers didn't read Resonance before working on Resistance and found it had no impact. However, Resonance is the story of how Rick and Mal meet and will obviously shed further light on their relationship.

Where can I buy Resonance?

Resonance is currently available at ARe and Amazon.

At Are it has been free on a semi regular basis since release. It is currently free until 31st July.

At Amazon it is 99p or the equivalent. Here's a universal link to take you to your local Amazon store.

Will there be more books in the series?

Definitely. I'm already working on Book 2, and Book 3 has been urging me to write it's opening scene in the last couple of days (I resisted, but I did make some scrappy notes). I have very brief story lines, if they work out, for at least a Book 4, and maybe a Book 5. If you read a particular character that you like drop me a line and let me know, I've undoubtedly got a plan to pair him with someone!

Excerpt

‘A smile can always be heard in your voice’.

He could almost hear his mum uttering those words of wisdom—just nine of many in her repertoire—and for a moment Rick wished that his parents still lived in the village. That he didn’t need to travel halfway around the world for a hug from the woman who’d always been there for him.

Not that she’d entertain his chiping for more than a moment before he got a bannicking. She’d always listened to his complaints, would offer advice where necessary, but stupidity would be followed by a whack upside his head or being chased off with the yard brush. He smiled at the memories the thought conjured up. No, his mum would provide no help in this situation. He’d be thirty in eighteen months, old enough to deal with his relationship woes, especially since they were problems of his own making.

Rick forced the widest smile he could manage and gripped his phone while he waited for the call to connect. Leaning on the old wooden farm gate that cut his property off from the lane beyond, Rick scratched at the short hair at the back of his head. The lane was empty; his cottage the last before the cobbles narrowed to a dusty footpath and disappeared into the lush green of the woodland.

“Mal,” Rick said the moment the call was picked up at the other end, not even giving his lover a chance to utter his standard greeting.

Too bright. Too quickly. He knew his voice would be giving him away but he couldn’t stop himself. “Look, Mal…” He glanced at the overnight bag at his feet.

Mal sighed, breaking Rick out of his contemplation. “What’s happened now?”

“Happened?” Shit! Mal didn’t sound at all surprised that he’d called. Not angry, either. Just resigned.

“Yes. What natural disaster has befallen your sleepy little village this weekend? Has the church spire collapsed and killed the verger? Or has Mr P K Pig had his roof blown off and you have to fix it post haste to protect him from predators?”

“What?” For someone who’d had the entire conversation planned in his head before he’d pressed Mal’s speed dial button, Rick was far too rapidly losing control.

“Tell him that it’s his own fault for building his house out of straw and winding up hairy men.”

“Mal, are you okay? What is this obsession with pigs? Have you succumbed to the enticing waft of bacon from the flat upstairs?”

Every time Rick woke up at Mal’s flat, the aroma of gently crisping bacon all but lured him up the stairs to 35B. Not that Mal had banned Rick from eating bacon when he visited, but bringing a pack of sliced pig into the flat of his Muslim boyfriend seemed a trifle insensitive. The neighbour in 35B was a behemoth of a man, unlikely to be satisfied by a couple of slices of bacon. More than likely he was up there every Sunday morning roasting the whole pig. He was hairy too, from the full beard and tufts of hair sprouting from the V-neck of his T-shirt that Rick had glimpsed when they’d bumped into each other in the communal hallway last weekend. More a bear than a wolf…

Had Mal been lured by the scent of bacon into the hairy arms of the biker upstairs, all because Rick kept mucking him around? Surely Mal wouldn’t—

“Rick!” Mal sounded exasperated and Rick wondered how many times he’d called his name while Rick was lost in nightmares involving bears and bacon. “I asked you what your excuse was this time. Why can’t I come over to you this weekend?”

“I wasn’t phoning for that.” Rick’s gaze dropped to the bag by his feet once more, and he hoped the guilty feeling rising in his gut hadn’t transferred to his voice.

“Really?” Mal’s tone held a trace of hopefulness that made Rick’s stomach lurch. Had his constant changing of plans caused Mal to worry about Rick’s commitment to their fledgling relationship? “Because you’ve had some type of handyman emergency on both previous occasions I was supposed to come down and stay with you.”

“I still managed to see you both times,” Rick argued. But it was a weak response and he knew that spending time together wasn’t the issue Mal was highlighting.

“And I appreciate that you made the drive up here after you finished your work. But I thought we were going to try to make a go of things, not just grab a couple of hours together on a Sunday afternoon or fall into bed on a Saturday evening because you’re too tired to go out anywhere.”

“I had fun both times.” Whether they were shagging like bunnies or meeting for a late lunch and a walk in the park, Rick enjoyed Mal’s company. Something more than passion had flared brightly between them the first time they met, but Mal lived in London, over an hour’s drive from Rick’s sleepy village, and not wanting to lose touch was the only reason he’d agreed to these alternate weekends. Well, actually, it had been Rick’s idea, and yet, so far, Mal hadn’t set foot anywhere near Rick’s home.

“So did I—” The line crackled and Mal’s voice dropped out for a second or two. “Sorry, lost you for a moment there. I like you Rick, probably too much for a relationship that’s only in its sixth week, and I want more than a couple of hours here and there. I want the lazy weekends. I want to see where you live.”

“I want that too.” Rick kicked the bag at his feet. “I’ve just been really busy.”

“I know you work for yourself and you have to take the work where you can. I hope you don’t hate me for pushing you. I can help if you have to work this weekend. Or I can just sit in the spring sunshine and read a book. The sun is shining in Sloppy Bottom, isn’t it?”

Rick couldn’t help it, he laughed. “Slopy Bottom, you idiot. Wait, hate you? What have you done?”

“I was trying to pre-empt this call.” Mal sounded sheepish.

I wasn’t cancelling. The lie teetered on Rick’s tongue but he couldn’t let it fall. He didn’t want to risk Mal calling him on it.

“How?” Rick asked, although he had a feeling he knew. Those strange dips in the conversation would make sense if Mal—

“I’m already on the train.”

Of course he is. Rick’s heart picked up in a rabbity beat as the thrill of seeing Mal again warred with the familiar nervousness that always accompanied the thought of bring a guy back to the village. The nerves had always won out in the past, previous lovers not even getting as far as an invite, but Mal was different. Mal was…saying his name again.

“Rick? Are you still there? Rick, dholna—”

“Dholna?”

“Er, it’s Punjabi.”

“I kind of figured that for myself,” Rick said with a chuckle. “What does it mean?”

“It’s an endearment.”

“Like ‘babe’.”

“Sure, let’s go with that.”

Oh, right, so, not like babe then. Dholna. Rick repeated the word several times in his head, determined not to forget it.

“It seemed like a good idea at the time, but I can see how this could be considered press-ganging you into something you’re not comfortable with. Do you want me to get off at the next stop and go home?”

“No!” God no. “No. Do you want me to get the car out? I can drive over to Hillchester and pick you up from the station?”

There was no station in Slopy Bottom. With a population hovering at around five-hundred, give or take, since the time the first track had been laid over a century ago, the tiny village hadn’t warranted the encroachment of civilization. Nor had it mourned being passed by, not until the commuter couples arrived to buy up the empty farm hands’ cottages; the wives praising the adorable quaintness of the place, while the husbands—who would happily spend an hour on the train—were bemoaning the twenty-minute drive to the station in town.

“Thanks, but I’ve arranged for a cab. I had intended to take you completely by surprise and hope you thought it was a good one.”

“It is a good one.” Rick agreed, bending to pick up his overnight bag and hoisting it over his shoulder.

“I promise I won’t do anything to out you while I’m visiting.”

“No rainbow flag T-shirts? Or skipping through the village?”

“Definitely no skipping. I can’t even run. That’s why I cycle.”

“You can’t run?”

“Have you seen Friends?”

“Who hasn’t?” Rick faltered in his stride up the garden path. “Oh my God, you’re Phoebe! You know I’ll do everything in my power to get you to run now.”

“Thanks. So glad I told you. Wanker.”

“You allowed to swear?”

“Double wanker.”

“I am very ambidextrous. I’m sure I can take care of both of us at the same time.”

“Don’t I know it. But I’ll not talk about it. They’ll be no smutty talk or double entendres. No touching in public or holding hands.”

Touches that they had both bestowed without thinking, while walking through many parts of the city when he’d visited Mal. This would be harder than he’d imagined.

“Nothing until you’re ready,” Mal continued. “I promise. Looks like this is my station coming up. I’d better go.”

“Tell the cab driver to drop you at the top of the lane. There’s nowhere to turn around down near me without coming into the driveway. I’ll walk up there in a bit and wait for you. See you soon.”

“Bye.”

Rick disconnected the call and unlocked his front door. He took the stairs two at a time and burst into his bedroom. He dropped the bag on the ottoman under the window and then quickly made the bed. Satisfied the room was reasonably tidy, Rick turned his attention back to the bag and unpacked the items he’d packed an hour earlier to take with him to Mal’s.

Cover art quandaries

Yesterday was the cover reveal for Resistance. Book 1 in the Village Love series. So today I thought I'd talk about cover art and the problems you face when choosing a design for a book in a series.

Resonance was only ever meant to be a one off story. A way of processing my own fear that I discovered in that magnetic monster of an MRI scanner. And seeing if I could write a story in 1st person POV (Barefoot may have been the first story I had published in that POV but it wasn't the first I had written. That honour falls to t he very first version of Resonance.)

Of course when Garrett and I discussed the cover for Resonance there was no thought of a sequel and the gorgeous dandelion cover only had to stand alone. A year on and a sequel is written and all of a sudden I have a problem. Did I scrap a perfectly good (and in my opinion beautiful) cover and bring in something new for the series or did I try to find a common theme that could be used to tie everything together.

I already knew that I had no intention of getting rid of the existing cover for Resonance. It’s striking and different in a genre of headshots and naked torsos. The cover for Resistance would have to tie in to it somehow. Not only that but going forward the idea chosen for Resistance would have to work for the remainder of the series.

“Rick’s a gardener,” Garrett said. “Let’s use another flower.”

“But how would that work for the rest of the series?” I cried. (I tend to get over-emotional about my covers. Ask Meredith Russell.) “The next book is about the guy that owns the print shop! How would a flower work?”

Garrett, as excellent as she is at reading minds, had no response. Authors and their covers can be a very delicate issue. Best handled with kid gloves, eh?

The ball, as they say, was firmly in my court. I pulled out all the flowers Rick talked about in the book and started googling images. One link took me to a website on Victorian flower meanings. There were hundreds of them.

Surely they wouldn’t have a flower that meant Resistance.

They didn’t.

They had two!

One was a fungi (I know! Imagine getting a gift of fungi) and the other was a Tansy.

I sent both images to Garrett and another gorgeous cover was born*.


*(and yes we went with the tansy.)

Available now for pre-order at Amazon, Resistance will be on sale at Amazon and to borrow on Kindle Unlimited from 5th July. Universal Amazon link: myBook.to/Resistance_LF

Resonance is currently available at ARe and Amazon.

At Are it has been free on a semi regular basis since release. It is currently free until 31st July.

At Amazon it is 99p or the equivalent. Here's a universal link to take you to your local Amazon store. myBook.to/ResonanceL_F

Village Love -- The Series

About the Series
Resistance is book 1 in my new series, Village Love. Village Love is set in the fictional Sussex village of Slopy Bottom. I'll let Rick tell you how Slopy Bottom got its name.

“It’s one p, Slopy Bottom. The village has been there centuries. Local historians think it started life as Slope Bottom since the oldest houses are on the low slope at the bottom of a hill. The rest of the village spread out into the valley as the years went by but the name stuck. At one point the village was all but owned by a French lord, which could account for the mispronunciation, and it appears to have been Slopy Bottom ever since.”

Rick and Mal? Haven't you written about those characters before?
The simple answer is yes. Rick and Mal appeared in a one-off short story, Resonance. Resonance spawned this story which in turn spawned a whole host of storylines. As Resonance doesn't take place in the village it has been assigned as Village Love 0.5.

Do I need to read Resonance to read Resistance?
No. Several of my beta readers didn't read Resonance before working on Resistance and found it had no impact. However, Resonance is the story of how Rick and Mal meet and will obviously shed further light on their relationship.

Where can I buy Resonance?
Resonance is currently available at ARe and Amazon.
At Are it has been free on a semi regular basis since release. It is currently free until 31st July.
At Amazon it is 99p or the equivalent. Here's a universal link to take you to your local Amazon store.

Will there be more books in the series?
Definitely. I'm already working on Book 2, and Book 3 has been urging me to write it's opening scene in the last couple of days (I resisted, but I did make some scrappy notes). I have very brief story lines, if they work out, for at least a Book 4, and maybe a Book 5. If you read a particular character that you like drop me a line and let me know, I've undoubtedly got a plan to pair him with someone!

Resistance - What is it about?

You've probably heard me talking about Resistance quite a lot over the last few weeks. Release day will soon be upon us -- 5th July -- and I'm getting everything prepared.

I can't show you the cover yet -- I'm saving that for next week -- but I can share the blurb.

Resistance

How long can you wait on a promise?

After his first night with Mal, Rick broke the habit of a lifetime and invited the sexy radiographer to spend the weekend in the sleepy English village he called home. Rick isn’t in denial but he’s afraid to reveal his sexuality in the close-knit community that has known him since he was a babe in arms.

The sex is amazing but equally Mal loves lazy days spent in the garden at Slopy Bottom, and every precious moment he spends with Rick. For Mal the village quickly becomes an oasis of peace, far from the noise and grime of life in London, a slice of tranquillity with Rick at the heart. But Mal has defied his family and his religion to be true to himself, and there is no way can he join Rick in his self-built closet, no matter how comfortable it is...

Rick is afraid revealing the true nature of his relationship with Mal will change the way his neighbours see him. He adores these people, this village, and he can’t face the thought of losing everything over who he chooses to sleep with. When the alternative is giving up a man who has slotted perfectly into his life—a man who he might just love—it’s no choice at all. But, knowing what has to be done isn’t always as easy as putting it into practice.


Resistance is the follow up novel to my short story Resonance, which is currently free at ARe or 99p, or the equivalent, at your local Amazon store.

Add Resistance to your Goodreads shelf.

Resonance -- Village Love 0.5

Cover designed by Garrett Leigh
at blackjazzdesign.com

The Book

Resonance: The quality in a sound. The power to evoke enduring emotions. Sometimes one can result in the other.
 
Rick Brandt would never have said he was claustrophobic; after all he’s been in plenty of enclosed spaces in his job as the village’s only handyman cum gardener.  He even squeezed into a disused coal chute to rescue a trapped dog for an elderly resident. So why did opening his eyes in the MRI scanner induce a breath stealing freak-out that has him jabbing at the panic button.

Luckily, Mal, the radiographer running his scan has a pleasant voice and an excellent bedside manner that soothes Rick’s frayed nerves and rabbity heartbeat. Soon the resonance of his tone has gone beyond calming and Rick is lost in a fantasy of the man behind the voice. But things aren’t always what they seem and when Rick’s shocked surprise at the reality causes offence, the likelihood of him getting to experience Mal’s true bedside manner appears to be slipping away.

Resonance is currently available at ARe and Amazon.

At Are it has been free on a semi regular basis since release. It is currently free until 31st July.

At Amazon it is 99p or the equivalent. Here's a universal link to take you to your local Amazon store.

Add it to your Goodreads bookshelf

Reviews

From amazon uk

 sexy and sweet, 9 Nov. 2015

By 

Clare London

This review is from: Resonance (Kindle Edition)

This was sexy and sweet, a lovely example of how Ms Francis draws her characters so vividly, in shorter as well as longer books. Written from Rick’s point of view, it showcases his believably masculine character, often lusty but immediately sympathetic.
Mal the radiographer is nervous in front of a new lover but confident enough to make the first move. How refreshing to have the town/country divide in their background and nationalities, not just in the scenery LOL.
There was much more to enjoy than just a very sexy love scene. And one of the best and boldest opening scenes I’ve read for a long time.

 Wonderful, 28 Oct. 2015

By 

En Em

This review is from: Resonance (Kindle Edition)

I loved this story. It actually took me a little by surprise that I became so invested in the characters so quickly, but as always, Lillian's writing style drew me in and hooked me. Combining the sensual scenes and the 'two worlds colliding' it made for a wonderful story. I really hope this is just the beginning for Rick and Mal.

From ARe

Submitted By: arieslady52 on Feb 25, 2016

A little jewel of a book. A tale of falling in love told with sweetness, compassion, and hope. More sensual than sexual, laced through with exquisite descriptive detail and gentle good humor. That the characters involved are gay and male diminishes none of the appeal; this story will resonate with anyone who has taken the risk of falling in love. This is now on my "Re-read" list.

Excerpt

“I cancelled an appointment with the vicar’s wife for this.” I gasped out as a tongue traced the outstretched dragon’s wing that crested my shoulder and wrapped around my bicep. “I’m officially going to hell…” That wicked tongue caught the edge of my armpit on the way back and in my surprise I inhaled a mouthful of quilt cover. “In a hand basket.”

Warm breath ghosted over my flesh and my skin broke out in a rash of goosebumps.

“If my Ammi knew I was picking men up at work she’d be mortified.” Pausing in his ministrations, he rested his forehead at the base of my neck and sighed. “Or vindicated. Always a disappointment.”

I thought of his body. Of him. Long legs with muscled thighs. Dark hair that flopped endearingly over his forehead. His laugh, sudden and surprising from his studious demeanour. The encouraging comfort of his voice. The gentle focused way he was taking me apart with just his mouth and the lightest touch of his fingertips.

“Not to me, Mal. Not to me.”

Exhaled into my skin on a damp breath I could barely make out his response but I think he mumbled “So glad you freaked out today”, before returning his attention to my artwork and his lips to the body of my dragon.

Something thick and heavy still lingered in the air along with the smell of sweat and spices and sex.

In an attempt to lighten the mood, I said, “You know, when I said I fancied an Indian it was only innocent flirting. I thought you’d take me out to dinner.”

“Hmm.”

His lips caught a ticklish spot on my side and I squirmed.

“Homemade is better. And, I don’t know about the quaint old village where you come from, but around here it’s frowned upon to do this in a restaurant while our dinner’s cooking.” Amusement was back in his voice, which had been my intention. “Now shh while I find out where that tail goes.”
His mouth ghosted over the small of my back, pausing to tongue at my dimples. I wriggled, rubbing my rock hard cock against the welcome friction of the mattress. It felt as though he’d been teasing me for hours but in reality we’d only met for the first time…

Green fingers

I really don't have green fingers. I can kill a plant with a single glance.

But today I thought I should give it a go. So I'm channelling my inner Rick. Hopefully I can keep them alive more than a few days.

Don't know who Rick is? He's one of the MCs of my short story Resonance, and he's a gardener cum handyman.

His story will be continued in Resistance where you can find out how his relationship with Mal develops.

Resonance is regularly free at ARe or 99p at Amazon.

Resistance will be released in early July. Watch out for a cover reveal coming up in the next few weeks. I've added it to Goodreads for those of you who like to log prospective reads there.

And I'll keep you updated on the state of the flowers :)

Rainbow Snippet 14/15 May

Rainbow Snippets is a Facebook Group that invites authors to post 6 sentences of their work each weekend. It can be from anything you like, your current WIP, a recent release, the golden oldie that even you had forgotten you had written, or just a scrap of an idea (as long as it has 6 coherent sentences). Nothing of your own work worth mentioning? How about a 6 sentence review of your favourite LGBTQ+ story.

I've finally remembered to post a Rainbow Snippet. Seemed appropriate to pick the opening lines of Resistance since it has just been sent off to the editor's for spit 'n' polish. All, some of none of these words may make the final cut. So grab 'em while they're still around.

Resistance is the follow up story to Resonance. Six weeks later...

A smile can always be heard in your voice.

He could almost hear his mum uttering those words of wisdom—just nine of many in her repertoire—and for a moment Rick wished his parents still lived in the village. That he didn’t need to travel halfway around the world for a hug from his mum.

Not that she’d entertain his chiping for more than a moment before he got a bannicking. She’d always listened to his complaints, would offer advice where necessary, but stupidity would be followed by a whack upside his head or being chased off with the yard brush. He smiled at the memories the thought conjured up. No, his mum would provide no help in this situation. 

Puffless

I've been fairly quiet on the blogging front.

I blame campnano.

I've worked out that when I put myself under the pressure of aiming for a monthly target and attempting to get words down every day, then other things have to suffer.  Unfortunately the first thing that goes is the blogging.

I try not to feel guilty about this. I know I can't reasonably do everything that I want to. But trying to switch off that guilty worry that you're not doing enough is harder than you’d think. Everywhere you look people are telling you that the only way to sell your book is to get out there and sell yourself on social media. Hah! I’ll happily tell you all about other authors’ books that I've enjoyed but I'm no good at selling myself. My own trumpet remains well and truly puffless.

But I digress. Campnano took place in April and I aspired to write 40k of Smudge’s story. Considering I’m lucky to hit 20k in a month this was a huge task that I set myself. I’m really chuffed that by the 30th of April I was 6 words shy of 32K and well over 75% of my target. And Smudge’s story (the sequel to Resonance’s sequel--confused yet?) now has all its scenes, in varying degrees of completion. Unfortunately they were also written out of order so I now have to fill in the blanks and jiggle everything into its rightful place in the story and hope that the continuity works. I'm thinking another month to tidy this story up and ready to go to the betas.

I should have some news on Resistance, the sequel to Resonance and the continuation of Rick and Mal's story, later on this month.

In the meantime I need to work out when I last posted a Fiction Friday post and what I've read since then (I warn you one of my recs will be fan fiction!).