Winner of the Kele Moon Giveaway

I have a winner to announce for the giveaway with Kele Moon! But let me first thank Kele for being my guest and for donating a copy of one of her books to give away! I loved having her and I hope to read Finding Eden soon (once that pesky move is out of the way... ;)).

This time random.org picked the following commenter as the winner:

*drum roll*

Jet!

Congrats, Jet! I'll email you and I hope you'll enjoy reading Kele's book! Thanks everyone for playin!

Interview with Kele Moon & Giveaway Finding/Beyond Eden

Today we have the wonderful and talented author Kele Moon as our guest. Last year her debut novel Beyond Eden made quite an impact in erotic romance land. The reviews and ratings on Goodreads were very positive and I personally loved this dark, deviant ménage (about Danny, Paul and Eve) very much as well. Therefore I’m honored that Kele Moon is here today to celebrate her latest release, the prequel to her debut novel: Finding Eden. In this second book in the Eden series she goes back in time, and tells how Danny and Paul’s love started before Eve entered their relationship and they all became part of the threesome that’s the core of Beyond Eden.
Find out what Kele says about the difficulty of writing a prequel and go backwards, about her love for character driven plots and about other books in the Eden series.

Also, at the end of the interview she will give away an e-copy of Finding Eden or Beyond Eden to one lucky commenter!

Welcome to Rarely Dusty Books, Kele!


I met Danny and Paul, the heroes of Finding Eden, last year October when I read Beyond Eden and they made a huge impression on me. So much so that now, almost one year later, I can still vividly remember them. What do you think is it about these guys that make them so memorable? Or, in other words, how would you introduce Paul and Danny to my readers?

I think what makes them memorable is that Danny and Paul are both deeply flawed characters. They have issues that makes them less than perfect, but they both have things about them that make them extremely redeeming. Danny’s is his ability to love Paul and Eve so deeply he would say, do and be anything for them. And Paul’s a hard person not to love. He’s a nice guy. He has a big heart and like Danny, he loves deeply, but his life has been difficult and left him somewhat scarred.

Plus, Paul and Danny are this amazing contrast to each other. . . Danny is a natural rebel, a bad boy who hates rules and has a complete disregard for what anyone thinks about him. But, there is this small thread of softness in him when it comes to relationships. Danny is a romantic. He wants the love and the beauty. Where as Paul is this all around great guy who thrives off rules. He’s nice as can be. He volunteers for good causes. A real Boy Scout type, but when it comes to sex Paul is such a deviant. He’s easily the kinkiest between the two and his tastes are SO dark. The combination between the romantic bad boy and the kinky boyscout is different and lots of fun to write. Hopefully it’s equally fun to read!

Finding Eden is the prequel to Beyond Eden. How difficult was it to write a prequel after Beyond Eden was already written/published? Did the fact that the prequel is an M/M and Beyond Eden a ménage story have any influence on that?

It was insanely difficult to write a prequel and go backwards. It would have been easier if I’d KNOWN I was going to do it and made the crumb trail a little easier. . . But, I didn’t make the decision until later. I wanted to revisit the Eden universe and a sequel is a hard sell when using the same characters because you have to mess up the HEA in order to add conflict. Between you and me and the lamp post, I do have a sequel partially written and I’m sorta madly in love with it. . . But, I had to shelf it for the time being. Rather than sulk over not being able to sell the sequel, I simply started a prequel.

It wasn’t until after I’d committed to it that I realized just how hard it was going to be to write backwards. . . The fact that it was M/M wasn’t really a big deal. I love M/M. I have several WIPs that are just M/M so it wasn’t the lack of girly parts. It was more trying to get to a happy for now ending knowing that these boys have such a long road ahead of them before Beyond Eden.

Plus, it was emotionally draining. . . I put a lot of the grittier details in this book that were glazed over in Beyond Eden. Paul’s abuse. Danny’s issues with his alcoholic father. It’s a dark book, I won’t lie about that. But, I think the love Danny and Paul have for each other sorta redeems the darkness.

Do you use pictures of models or movie stars as inspiration for (the looks of) your characters? If so, which pictures did inspire you for Paul and for Danny?

You know, I don’t. . . I don’t have one picture for each boy showing what they look like. . . In Claiming Eden (that’s not done yet) I actually show Danny from an outsider’s perspective who describes him as a walking Versace ad. Tall, dark, angular, intense. . . One of those handsome young men you see posing in black and white for jeans or men’s suit ads. That pretty much describes Danny. . . Oddly enough an image of him is easy for me to find if I start looking at dark, handsome models.

Paul is much harder. I spent some time obsessing over finding an image for him, someone masculine, but somewhat angelic. Big and buff, but approachable and unassuming. The closest I can find and I’ve LOOKED is Bradley Cooper. Him in Valentine’s Day, in a business suit and being darling. . . That’s the closest I can find to older (Post Beyond Eden) Paul. . . Younger Paul, forget about it. . . I ought to make a contest for people to find an image of him in his football days. . . Because I’d love to find one!!

I have spent an INSANE amount of time watching this final scene from Valentine’s Day thinking of Danny and Paul. . . But, watch with caution unless you want the movie Valentine’s Day spoiled. . . ‘Cause this is the ending. It was a largely MEH movie with the exception of this one scene (In my opinion, anyway):

www.youtube.com/watch?v=6EAjrENSoSA&feature=related 

(sadly, embedding the clip isn’t possible, so you’ll have to use the link instead for some Bradley Cooper and Eric Dane sweetness)

Younger Bradley Cooper getting his guy action on isn’t quite Paul but still nice nonetheless:

(or use this link)

Thus ends my tour of naughty Bradley Cooper scenes ::cough:: Weren’t we talking about some book I wrote or something?

*dreamy eyes* Oh… uhm…yes… Is Finding Eden as deliciously deviant as Beyond Eden? Or did you choose a different angle?

Yes, it’s absolutely as deviant as Beyond Eden. In some ways I think it’s MORE deviant.

Though the progression is different. In Beyond Eden it was them coming out of the darkness. . . It ended on a light note. . . In Finding Eden, it’s them falling into the darkness. It starts out innocent to an extent (as innocent as Danny and Paul can get, anyhow) and then gets progressively darker. No question, this book is Danny’s journey. It’s his fall into the dark world of BDSM and it’s not a simple or easy journey for him.

Beyond Eden is deeply emotional and highly character driven. Does Finding Eden have the same focus on character development or will this one be more plot-oriented? Does one or the other have your preference? And if so, why?

I’d say this one is character driven. . . I lean towards that. It’s my strength as a writer. All my books are character driven. The one difference is that Beyond Eden was condensed to the three main characters. We didn’t even SEE anyone else in that book except Eve’s parents in the beginning and Paul’s fiancée. . . In Finding Eden, there are secondary characters. We see a bit more of their world outside the relationship. . . And in Claiming Eden, the next book in the series, I expand their outside world even more. Since this is their fall into BDSM I had to show the people and places that played into that dark seduction.

How would you describe your own writing style? Which aspects of your style do you pay special attention to?

Like I said before. . .I think my writing style is character driven. It’s emotional. It can certainly be dark. In this book it’s dark, in Beyond Eden it was dark. But, oddly enough I can write light too. I wrote a quick one shot titled A Kiss for Luck that was light and sweet and everything Beyond Eden wasn’t. I’m sure it gave some people whiplash. LOL! But, I do need the balance. I work on several stories at once, some dark, some light. . . But, all of them are character driven and laced with deep emotions. I have this passion for love. I adore watching it unfold in my characters. However it happens, dark, light, deviant or sweet, I enjoy the journey. . . It’s all about the love ::grins::

On your website we can read that there’s a third book in progress, Claiming Eden. Can you already tell us something about it? Will it feature only Paul and Danny again or will Eve be in it as well? What is its place on the timeline?

Claiming Eden takes place directly after Finding Eden, so no. . . Eve’s not in it. It was supposed to be part of Finding Eden until I realized the feel of it was completely different once we moved into the next step of Danny’s life. A new character, Circe, is introduced and her voice was SO strong and her perceptions of Danny and Paul were so different from what we’ve seen before, it had to be its own story.

And I like it as two stories. . . Finding Eden is JUST Danny and Paul. It’s their love story. It shows the evolution of these two injured, broken young men finding love in friendship at a time with both of them would have literally crash and burned without it.


Thanks so much, Kele, for the insight into a writer’s mind! I’m excited that there will be more books in the Eden series: it seems that we not only have a sequel to the prequel to look forward to, but also a sequel to Beyond Eden itself.
 

~~~~~

Giveaway:

Kele Moon is generously offering a copy of her ebook Finding Eden (M/M) or Beyond Eden (M/M/F) to one lucky commenter. To enter leave a comment telling us which of the two books you’d like to win.

The giveaway is international, and we will announce the winner on Saturday, August 27, so be sure to leave your comment before then and don’t forget to check back or leave a way for us to contact you in your comment or profile.

Good luck to you all!

~~~~~
Linking:
Author’s website | Facebook | on Twitter | on Goodreads
Buy Finding Eden here
Buy Beyond Eden here
Read an excerpt from Finding Eden here
~~~~~

We have a winner!!

Covered in paint and desperately longing for my bed, I visited Mr Random.org to help me pick a winner for the international giveaway with L.A. Witt, whose On The List is released today! *throws confetti* Congrats, Lori!

And the lucky winner of one of L.A. Witt's ebooks, is:

Tam

*throws more confetti* Congrats Tam!! I'll send you an email to find out which one of Lori's books you'd like to receive.
Thanks everyone for your comments and for participating! And many, many thanks to the wonderful L.A. Witt for donating a copy of her book!


Don't forget to check out tomorrow's interview with Kele Moon, who is giving away a copy of her newest release Finding Eden (M/M) or it's sequel Beyond Eden (M/M/F).

(btw the house is cleaning up very nicely and I'm confident we get everything ready on time :)).

Have a great Sunday!

~

Happy Gay Friday & Happy News and Happy Excerpt

I’m doing something that I rarely do: writing this post on a Thursday. I just never have the discipline to do that. But this week is different, because this week it’s an exceptionally happy Friday. After weeks, months – okay days – of stressing about our new home, we can finally open the champagne bottles tomorrow, uhm… today… well, Friday. We’ll be the proud owners of a cute, old - but new to us-, little house!

So, by the time you read this, I probably will be covered by dust and paint already. Yeah!! I’m so happy that that prospect doesn’t even worry me in the least. Go figure. *g*

There’s more happinez! Today is the release of Kele Moon’s Finding Eden! Woohoot! Congrats Kele!

And the best thing is, I not only have an amazing excerpt to share today, but Kele will be visiting RDB on Monday too and she’ll be giving away a copy of her book to a lucky commenter. So, be sure to come back on Monday to hear what she has to say about Danny and Paul, the hot heroes of Finding Eden, and have your chance to win. :)

Here's the excerpt:

“I’m not a sadist,” Danny said defiantly. “No way, it doesn’t get my dick hard.”
“You haven’t tried it,” Paul reminded him. “It might.”
“I don’t wanna hurt you,” Danny said, giving Paul a pleading look. “Not tonight. I’m tired and sorta drunk and I just—”
“We can do something else,” Paul offered casually, taking another long drink of Danny’s beer, enjoying the game in a way he probably shouldn’t. Seduction was always a challenge, and he had an unfair advantage with knowing Danny as well as he did. It almost felt like cheating. “You may not be a sadist, but you are absolutely a Dom. No question, being in control gets you off. I know it does.”
“You don’t know that.”
“I do know that.” Paul gave a laugh of disbelief. “Give me a fucking break, Danny Boy. A real submissive is like a drug to natural tops like you. I could have you hard in ten seconds if I wanted to.”
“Fuck you,” Danny said with a snort of disbelief. “You wish.”
“I can prove it,” Paul said, dropping his voice on purpose. The look he gave Danny was softer, more compliant as he leaned closer to him to set down the beer. “Do you want me to?”
“You’re fucking with me.” Danny pulled back, lust flashing in his eyes before they narrowed in defensiveness. “This is a game to you.”
“Yes,” Paul assured him, giving Danny a seductive smile. “It’s a game. No losers, only winners. It’s fun. Wanna play?”
Danny swallowed hard, his eyes still narrowed as they ran over Paul. “I should say no.”
“Oh, you should,” Paul agreed, feeling wonderfully devious as he reached for the hem of his shirt and worked at pulling it over his head, being slow about revealing his stomach muscles, watching with a sense of satisfaction as Danny’s gaze started to follow his movements. “Say no, Danny Boy. That makes it fun. I like a challenge.”
“You’re a freak.”
“I know,” Paul said with a wide-eyed look of false innocence before he finally tugged his shirt over his head and tossed it aside. He leaned back into Danny, licking his lips for one long moment before his eyes met his. “Can I touch you?”
“Sure,” Danny sighed, his voice low and breathy, the tension falling out of his shoulders as he leaned back on his open palm.
Paul reached out, running his hand over Danny’s thigh before he cupped his cock through his jeans, rubbing his palm against the long length of it. “You’re hard.”
“Yup.” Danny lifted his eyebrows, not appearing too put-out over his defeat. “You win. Happy?”
“Not yet.” Paul ran his hand over Danny’s stomach, his fingers tracing the outline of the muscles there as he gave him another soft look. His cock was hard too, his skin humming with arousal. The rasp of desire in his voice wasn’t an act as he looked at Danny longingly, falling victim to his own spell because Danny was just that compelling. “I wanna please you. Will you tell me how?”
Danny reached out to him, his fingers tangling in the hair at the nape of Paul’s neck and tugging him forward. Paul went with it, his eyes closing under the weight of his desire. He gave in to the moment and let Danny claim his lips in a hard, searing kiss. Danny’s tongue slid into his mouth as if he owned him and if Paul wasn’t hard and aching, desperate for more of what Danny had to offer, he would have laughed in his face.

~~~~~
Find the blurb here | Buy Finding Eden here

Happy Gay Friday Everyone!

~

International Giveaway & Interview with L.A. Witt

“I’ve written in airports, waiting rooms, planes (including on the floor of a cargo jet)… even in the emergency room.” - Interview with L.A. Witt

We’re very happy to have M/M author L.A. Witt (Lori) as our guest today! Both Sharon and I are a fan of her writing, so we bundled up our questions to ask her a few things about her books. Lori is the author of the sweet romance series Changing Plans; Getting off the Ground, Infinity Pools and the third one coming out this Sunday, On The List. And this is only the tip of the iceberg with this versatile author. She covers contemporary, paranormal, ménage, erotica and now BDSM romances. As if that wasn’t enough, she also writes M/F erotica and romance under the name Lauren Gallagher.

Check out what Lori has to say about fan input, why she shifts between so many different genres/subgenres and who her favorite musical band is. Stick around to the end because Lori is giving away any ebook from her backlist – winner’s pick!

Hello Lori and welcome to Rarely Dusty Books!

Janna: Your upcoming release On The List is the third book of a series and at your website you write about sequels: "It's always a possibility, but not every book will have a sequel." At what point in the writing process do you decide if a book gets a sequel/ turns into a series? Do requests from readers for sequels play any part in that decision?

It depends on the books. With the Changing Plans series (of which On The List is book #3), I knew before I finished outlining Getting off the Ground that there would be a sequel. I didn’t actually plan on writing the third book until after Infinity Pools was published, and a reviewer commented that she was sad to see their story end, even if they did get a HEA. So I gave it some thought, and realized I’d left room for one more small story thanks to some comments Derek made in Infinity Pools.

So yes, reader requests definitely come into play. Numerous readers commented that they wanted to see more of Brandon and Dustin from Rules of Engagement, so I wrote Rain. Similarly, a lot of readers wanted Kieran from The Distance Between Us get his own story, so I wrote The Closer You Get, which will be out in November. If enough readers tell me they want to see a sequel to a particular book, I listen. I mean, sometimes the story is over and there simply isn’t a sequel. But most of the time, when multiple readers want one, they’re seeing something I’m not, so I take heed, and they’re usually right. So yes, reader feedback absolutely plays a role in whether or not a book gets a sequel.

As for ongoing series, it just depends. The Given & The Taken was definitely the start of a series. It was almost too much story to fit into one book, and there’s so much more ground I want to cover with those characters, so it was a foregone conclusion before I ever started writing it that there would be more books. On the other hand, both Cover Me and Light Switch were written and submitted/sold when I realized they were the perfect preludes to Trust Me and Reconstructing Meredith, respectively. Both of those sequels were written and sold before the third books, Search Me and Meredith Reclaimed, came to mind. I’m pretty sure those series will each conclude as trilogies, but who knows?

Sharon: Can you tell us about your writing space/environment?

At the moment, I write in a spare bedroom in our apartment, but whenever I can, I like to get out of the house and write on the beach, in restaurants, in parks, etc. Ideally, I like to be completely alone (except my cat and a select few chat buddies with whom I can instant message even while I’m writing) with music playing. That said, I can—and have—written in all kinds of less than ideal places. I’ve written in airports, waiting rooms, planes (including on the floor of a cargo jet)… even in the emergency room. I’ve told that story a few times: I actually asked the staff to put the IV in my right arm so I could still write with my left hand. So while I do have an ideal, preferred atmosphere for writing, I can and do write anywhere.

Janna: Do you have a preference when it comes to writing M/M or M/F?

Probably M/M. I love writing M/F, but for some reason, it takes a lot for an M/F story to grab me by the hair the way an M/M story does. Which is kind of funny, since I started out writing hetero romances, and didn’t branch out into writing M/M until I’d written about half a dozen M/F novels. Go figure.

Sharon: Do you have a muse and if so, tell us about her/him?

Nope. I just have an itch to write, and once I get a pair or trio of characters into my head, they don’t shut up until I write their story. That’s one reason I write as fast as I do: There’s only so long I can tolerate a particular band of characters poking at the inside of my skull before I lose my mind.

That said, I am occasionally the unsuspecting victim of random acts of plot bunny violence. They come out of nowhere sometimes, the bastards.

Janna: What is the difference between writing a stand alone book and a series? Do you use a different approach?

I write every story like it’s a standalone, but if I know there’s going to be a sequel, I’ll keep it in mind. I’ll make notes about the sequel as I write the first one, but otherwise, it’s not much different from writing a standalone. For example, when I wrote Getting off the Ground, I knew Derek lived on Maui, but I didn’t yet know what he did for a living, what kind of house he lived in, what kind of car he drove. I didn’t want to know yet…I wanted him to be just as much of a mystery to me as he was to Elliott. Then as I outlined Infinity Pools, I started learning more about Derek, and the story unfolded organically from there.

Really, the only time a series changes the way I write is when the prequel is already done and published. The Distance Between Us and Cover Me were both done, sold, and on the shelves when I started their sequels, so I had to make sure I didn’t screw up any details that were already set in stone in the first books. That’s a non-issue with standalones, obviously.

Sharon: What authors/genre do you like to read for pleasure and what was the last book you read?

I read mostly fantasy and sci-fi, believe it or not, but I really read anything that sounds interesting, regardless of genre or author. I just finished reading Lolita for like the fifth time because I like drooling all over Nabokov’s prose.

Janna: What is your modus operandi in deciding whether your next novel will be M//F or M/M?

The characters usually decide for me. If I start with the characters, then…well, they’re either all male or one’s a female. If I start with the plot, sometimes it only works with M/M (involves someone being closeted, DADT, etc) or M/F (a single mother, for example), sometimes it can go either way, in which case…I don’t really know how it happens, it just…happens. LOL That said, one of my M/M novels started out as M/F, but was later rewritten as M/M and worked much better. There’s really no rhyme or reason to it, though.


Sharon: If I got in your car and turned on the radio, what would I hear before the cops came and took me away ?
(if you don’t have a car…what would I find on your iPod? )

Most likely? 30 Seconds to Mars. My fangirl adoration of that band is well-known. If not them, probably Breaking Benjamin (my dear minion Andy has recently introduced me to them), Erasure, Adam Lambert, or…more 30 Seconds to Mars. Can never have enough 30 Seconds to Mars. Mmm, 30 Seconds to Mars…nom nom nom…

Wait. Sorry. What was the question?
<g>

Janna: With Out Of Focus you expanded into the genre of BDSM. Is this genre more difficult or easier to write for you? Why is that?

BDSM is definitely different. I don’t know if it’s necessarily more difficult, it’s just…different. There’s a whole different dynamic there when you start playing around with dominance, submission, pain play, etc. I find everything about it fascinating, so I love writing it, but it’s definitely challenging.


Janna: Can we expect more BDSM stories in the future?

Abso-freaking-lutely. As we speak, I’m plotting an M/M BDSM, and I have another that’s written but just needs a serious overhaul before I sell it. Trust me, there will be plenty of kink in the near future.


Sharon: I read on your website you are also planning an Urban Fantasy (squee!) I am a big UF fan. Can you give us any details about this yet? Are we talking vampires, shifter or Fey…Oh, myyyyyyy! ;) and would this be M/M or M/F?

I already have one shapeshifter fantasy out, which is Static, available from Amber Allure. This is a story of a shapeshifter who can shift genders at will, and loses that ability. In January, the first book in the Tooth & Claw series, The Given & The Taken, will be available from Samhain. This is a vamp/were ménage story, and is kind of half-thriller half-romance. Both are M/M (well, M/M/M in the latter case), but I suspect I’ll be writing some hetero UF too.

As far as what types of UF I’ll get into in the future? Impossible to say. A year ago, I’d only written contemporary stories. Now I have vamp/were, gender shifters, cyberpunk (A Chip In His Shoulder; Riptide Publishing, Oct ’11), and steampunk (Noble Metals; Carnal Passions, Jan ’12) under my belt. What’s next? No idea.


Sharon: Do you have a “type” of story you like writing more than the others? I love my M/M stories to be so sweet my teeth rot out and I like my M/F romances to be dark.

I like to shift gears between stories. If I’m writing something dark, I need to write something light afterward. If it’s something fairly light, then I want something darker and deeper afterward. Lately I’ve also been shifting between heat levels: sometimes it’ll be super hot, other times it’s light on sex scenes. I usually can’t write more than one kink story in a row, same with thrillers. Keeping it mixed up keeps me from getting into a rut, but it also means I never quite settle on any kind of type.


Sharon: Is there anything you would like to add before you go?

If the cops call, I’ve been here the entire time.
Sharon: We got your back. ;)


Wow, I don’t know about all you guys, but I think Lori is pretty amazing. No matter what kind of romance you like, she has something for everyone. Head to her website or Goodreads page and check out her backlist. Because she is offering one lucky commenter an ebook of their choice!


~~~~~

Giveaway:

To enter leave a comment telling us you want in, for a chance to win your pick of any book of Lori's backlist. And we’re curious what kind of romance you like? Sweet, dark, erotica, paranormal, BDSM, Ménage, forbidden, Gay for you…all of the above?

The giveaway is open to readers worldwide, and we will announce the winner on Sunday, August 21 (the release day of On The List), so be sure to leave your comment before Sunday and don’t forget to check back then or leave a way for us to contact you in your comment or profile.

Good luck to you all!

~~~~~
Linking:
Author’s website | weblog | on Twitter | on Goodreads
Read Sharon’s review of Getting of the Ground here
Read Sharon’s review of Infinity Pools here
~~~~~

Guest Review: Rearranging Stars by Diane Adams

Diane Adams
Rearranging Stars
Silver Publishing, July 23, 2011

Backblurb:
Being a guardian angel is Drake’s purpose, his destiny written irrevocably in the stars. Choice is not a part of an angel’s life and something Drake never considered before he finds himself unexpectedly thrust into watching over Grey. Drake’s new charge is just another human, except for one tiny thing, Grey can see angels. When Grey finds out that, unlike his previous angel, Drake will talk to him Grey becomes determined to pull Drake from the sidelines and into life.

The consequences of Drake being distracted from his duty result in a decision that changes everything. Despite the depth of their love, the future remains uncertain. Drake’s purpose stripped from him by a sacrifice made in love, he falls into despair. Only one thing can save him, but is their love strong enough to rearrange the stars and change Drake’s fate?

Genre & Keywords:
M/M Romance, Paranormal, Guardian Angels, Gay For You, Sacrifice

~~~~~
Rating: 5 out of 5 ‘Sweet and Spicy’ stars
Heat level: 1.5 out of 3 flames
~~~~~

Guest review by SharonS.:

Let me start off by saying no matter what the shortcomings I might mention about this book, they don’t matter. I stayed up till 4:00 AM reading this book because I was enjoying it so much. There is no way I can’t give a book that entertains me this much anything but a 5 star rating. It might not be for everyone, I’ll explain shortly, but it was for me!

Angel stories are big right now, but I haven’t seen many m/m ones. So I was delighted to find this one, and Diane Adams was kind enough to send me an ARC. I was totally in love with the two main characters. Grey is a well adjusted gay man. He has been able to see Guardian Angels his whole life, but they never interact with him. He spends his evenings patrolling the streets and keeping his neighbors safe.

Drake is a guardian angel who has always been different from his brothers. He looks different, having hair and wings a different color. He also retains the memories of his charges while the other angels quickly forget theirs and move on to the next. Guardian angels don’t have the ability to feel emotions. This makes it easier to do their job. Drake knows nothing about love, touch or choice. He is very naïve (so you know how good this could get ;). Humans can’t see Guardian Angels who aren’t corporeal, so they can’t physically interact with the human world. Drake is surprised when Grey not only sees him, but can also touch him. Much smexy goodness ensues. I don’t want to give away too much about the plot.

The story is predictable and the prose is simple, but fast moving. It reminds me of YA, but this isn’t YA. The sex scenes are sweet and spicy. It would make a wonderful Yaoi graphic novel. Drake is very much a Uke with his innocence and need to be taken care of by Grey. I asked Diane Adams if she was a fan of Yaoi and was surprised to find she hasn’t read a lot of it :). The story is so sweet it will give you cavities!! I am a big fan of this kind of m/m story. If you like the ‘Gay For You’ and ‘OMG, they are so sweet’ type of story then you will be very happy with this.

~~~~~
Check out Diane Adams’ website | Goodreads
Buy Rearranging Stars here

~~~~~

Happy Gay Friday, House troubles & Upcoming giveaway

Can’t believe it’s Friday again! So soon! I’ve been putting in some extra hours at work this week so that I can take some time off once we get the key of our new home. That probably makes that this week flew by. And aside from that, it’s even more busy at our house than usual with friends walking in and out and strangers coming by to buy some of our stuff that we can’t or don’t want to bring to Utrecht. And last night we even had a feral visitor, who slipped into our house while we were on the driveway carrying beds to a buyer’s car. The rather wild cat managed to damage our screen doors in the back pretty badly. *sigh*
Meanwhile we are still waiting for approval of the bank for our mortgage. There was some trouble with the paperwork. This is delaying the signing of the notarial act, which was already postponed once and probably will be a second time too. Everybody around us is starting to get freaked out about the short time span that’s left for us to paint and clean up the new house. I think my friend was actually more nervous than me this morning when I was waiting for a phone call about the approval, lol! I think her anxiety took away mine or something, because I found myself reassuring her instead of the other way around. *g* Too bad it was fruitless.
Ah well, I’m pretty sure everything will work out in the end. The movers will be packing up our stuff on August the 29th and I only hope that we’ll have the key of our new home by then. Preferably a few days earlier or else it will become difficult to put the plank flooring in…

Enough about the move already. :0 I guess it’s obvious what’s keeping my mind busy these days huh?

Okay, there’s actually some book stuff too. :D I’m very excited that we have an interview with author L.A. Witt coming up next week. I love her books and SharonS and I (but mainly Sharon) have done a Q&A with Lori, who you also might know as Lauren Gallagher (her M/F pseudonym).
She’ll be here on Wednesday the 17th. And even more awesome than that: she’s donating a copy of one of her ebooks (winner’s pick) for a giveaway!  
The giveaway will run from August 17 till 21, so I hope you’ll have time to drop by to leave a comment for a chance to win one of her books and to celebrate with us her upcoming release of On The List. :)

Happy Gay Friday everyone!

~

Dutch Treat

Surrounded by boxes and in between thinking about colors and shopping for floors, I try to read as much as possible. It’s not much, but it keeps me sane nevertheless. ;) And thank god for Google Reader too. I might only be lurking, but getting my fix of blog posts and book news keeps me a much nicer person these days. :)

One of the books I’ve read in the past days is Dutch Treat by Andrew Grey.
Leontine tweeted me about it because it was recently released and it’s one of the rare books that’s set in our little country. After I roped her in to write a guest review about the book for me (yay!), I couldn’t resist reading it myself right away. I’m not going to spoil the fun for Leontine by writing about the plot or the romance today, but I was wondering if I’m the only one who loves to read stories that are set in my own country (or state or city).
I bet not… ;)

And I’m not sure, but I suspect that I value these stories higher than I would have when I hadn’t lived in that geographical place. What I like about reading books set in the Netherlands is the perspective of an outsider on our culture, habits and country.

In the case of Dutch Treat I’m well provided with this outsiders perspective, as the main character, Michael, is an American who is relocated to the Netherlands for 5 months. And not only is his the only POV we get in this book, also the major part of the story takes place in the Netherlands. So, it sometimes felt as if the author took me on an excursion in my own country, which was great.

Of course, there were a few things (like spelling, use of names and illogical locations) that could’ve used some proofreading by a Dutch native (I would’ve gladly volunteered, hint, hint ;)). But overall, I can only compliment Mr Grey for the picture he has drawn of the Netherlands. I could sense that he’s actually been here himself – that is, at least in certain parts of our country (as small as our country is, we also have cultural differences between north and south and east and west).

I look forward to hear what Leontine thinks of Dutch Treat. Coincidentally, she’s at the Efteling today, an attraction park that is also described in the book.
Look out for her guest review in three to four weeks!
~

Guest Review: Infinity Pools by L.A. Witt

L.A. Witt
Infinity Pools (Changing Plans #2)
Amber Allure, 2011

Backblurb:
It started with a snowstorm and ended with a sizzling one-night-stand, but neither man is ready for it to be over.

Jilted groom Elliott Chandler doesn’t do “last minute” or “impulsive,” but at the very last minute, he impulsively changes his flight from Oahu to Maui. What was supposed to be his honeymoon turned into two weeks with a man he just met.

Derek Windsor is all about “last minute” and “impulsive,” but what he doesn’t do is fall in love. He’s a happily promiscuous bachelor and that’s final.

They thought one night together wasn’t enough. Two weeks, however, is going to be more than they bargained for.

Genre & Keywords:
M/M Romance, Contemporary, Hawaii, Gay marriage

~~~~~
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Heat level: 3 out of 3 flames
~~~~~

Guest review by SharonS.:

This is the sequel to Getting Off the Ground (Book #1 Changing Plans). It picks up right where the first one left off. Elliot is on a plane headed to Hawaii to spend two weeks with the rich and sexy playboy Derek. You don’t have to read the first story, but you would be missing out on a wonderfully emotional love scene.

I fell in love with Derek and Elliot in the first book. Witt wrote a sensual, yet tender story about a one night stand between the forever bachelor Derek, and Elliot who was left standing at the alter. Infinity Pools shows Elliot struggling and coming to terms with the ending of one relationship and what could be the beginning of a new and completely different one. Since it is written from Elliot’s POV we only get his internal thoughts as he realizes he is falling in love, but we can tell from Derek’s actions he is also surprised by the intensity of his attraction to Elliot.

Getting off the Ground moved quicker, but it was a much shorter story and focused on their instant sexual attraction. Infinity Pools moves a little slower as the two men get to know each other, but once they do give into their feelings *sigh* things heat up physically and emotionally. Once again, Witt gives a lot of attention to the kissing. I feel this adds a whole different layer of intimacy to the relationship and makes it more realistic.

I love the way Witt writes these characters. It is a happy, sappy love story that will make you feel good when you are done.

This is when Elliott realizes how he feels about Derek:

He gave a quiet, almost shy laugh. "Kind of hard to believe we didn't even know each other two weeks ago."
"Wow, no kidding." Kind of hard? Not even close. I couldn't get my head around it at all. It didn't make sense that we'd ever been strangers, never mind so recently. We were too intimate. Too close. My body reacted too strongly to him, and not just sexually.
Derek kissed me.
Then our eyes met.
And my heart stopped.
Oh, fuck.
I love you.

*swoon*

The third and final book in the Changing Plans series - On The List - will be released on August 21. Stay tuned because there is no way I’m not reading this one *g* and I can’t wait to share my thoughts with you.
We also might have an interview with L.A. Witt and a giveaway here at Rarely Dusty Books for you to look forward to. ;)

~~~~~
Check out L.A. Witt’s website
Buy Infinity Pools here

~~~~~

Happy Gay Friday

One of the best things about being back from vacation and having access to internet again is browsing for cookies. One of my fave happy gay pictures that I found on Tumblr this week is this one. It makes me happy. :) Tumblr always knows to get me back in my happy place when I've spent days on a row in crawl spaces (long story, don't ask), calling/emailing institutions and government departments and dealing with stupid people (sorry for being blunt).
But hey, it's Friday night! Hubs and I have a date and tomorrow we'll be facing the world with new energy and happiness! :)

Happy Gay Friday!

~

August m/m releases I don't want to miss

One of the first things I did when I got home from our vacation, was shopping for ebooks. A few of my auto-buy authors – like Stephani Hecht, James Buchanan, ML Rhodes, Shawn Lane, TC Blue, Anne Brooke, Mary Calmes, JL Merrow, Cameron Dane, Heidi Cullinan and LA Witt – had a book release in July when I was without internet access (how dare they huh?).
While I was shopping, I also wrote down a list of the books that are going to be released in August and that I must have. As I’m packing for the move in a few weeks, I’m bound to lose this list. So I’m being smart and I’m going to post it here, and who knows, maybe you have a few recommendations as well for upcoming releases that I can add to my list. ;)

Out Of Focus

Release Date: August 2

Three to Get Ready

Release Date: August 5

Ashton and Justice

Release Date: August 7

A Solid Core of Alpha

Release Date: August 8

Abercrombie Zombie

Release Date: August 10

Life, Love and Lemon Cookies

Release Date: August 16

After the Sunset

Release Date: August 17

Finding Eden

Release Date: August 19

On The List

Release Date: August 21

Song of Oestend

Release Date: August 22

For The Attention Of

Release Date: August 28

Fall Into the Sun

Release Date: August 29

As you can see, my list is limited to m/m releases (and one ménage) but I’d love to hear what books you’re looking forward to, regardless if they’re m/m or m/f!
~

Amazing Alaska

Hi you all, I survived my Alaska vacation, despite being disconnected from the internet most of the time, a short case of motion sickness and a (not very) close encounter with a brown bear who’d been shot at a day prior of our visit to his territory. *g*
Ah well, to be honest, we had a wonderful time! :)
Most impressive was the up close and personal with the Hubbard Glacier. Our ship navigated pretty close to the 6 miles wide cliff face and we witnessed how it calved off icebergs the size of a 10-story building (so we were told). Well, it’s a darn imposing natural phenomenon for sure, especially the sound it produces – like a stretched-out and very loud thunder.

We’ve seen some beautiful other places too, here’s just a small selection of everything we saw:

Isn't it beautiful?
~