Reviews

Review: Other Side of Night: Bastian & Riley

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Other Side of Night: Bastian & Riley
Other Side of Night: Bastian & Riley by S.L. Armstrong
My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars

I love vampire stories, they’re a first and lasting love in fiction and Other Side of Night fits in well with the genre. There is nothing especially new or fresh about the plot and concept, in fact it’s very familiar on just about all levels. The story takes all the existing vampire trends and clichés and puts them together in a decent, entertaining story that holds your attention. It’s not groundbreaking or different but it’s interesting and well written. Vampire fans especially will appreciate a nicely crafted entry in a genre stuffed with fluff. Continue reading →

Review: Finder Series, Volume 3: One Wing in the Finder

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Finder Series, Volume 3: One Wing in the Finder
Finder Series, Volume 3: One Wing in the Finder by Ayano Yamane
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Finder #3 ranks up there with the entire Finder series. One Wing in the Finder picks up with Akihito mixed up between Asami and Fei Long. We got a glimpse of Asami and Fei Long’s history in the second book but that’s put on hold here as we see Akihito getting himself in trouble with both gang lords. On the one hand the sex is pretty entertaining and the characters are wonderful but there’s definitely a suspension of disbelief needed as Akihito acts pretty stupid for most of the story. I can’t say I really minded since this is yaoi and mostly non-con so it doesn’t matter if the characters always make sense so much as they’re entertaining. Which is what works the best here. The story is fun to read with really stunning artwork and easy to recommend.

The additional stand alone stories are very good as well. There’s a short story about a drunk Akihito dialing Asami until the later man comes to get his prize as well as thorough character profiles of Akihito, Asami and Fei Long. There are interviews with each “character” as well. The unrelated short is very cute, involving some pretty adorable underwear, and makes for an easy, quick end to the book. I’m glad I bought the re-release and am looking forward to book 4.

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Review: Last Chance

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Last Chance
Last Chance by Josephine Myles
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Last Chance is the third book in the First Impressions series. The first book was the aptly titled First Impressions where Jez the artist meets loud sock loving Steve. The second entry in the series is a free story called Fuzzy. This is an adorable look at Steve getting into knitting his own socks. This third short story is a darker, more serious turn as Jez’s homophobic father is dying. Despite the darker tone and content, this delightful story is a real treat to read. It’s beautifully written with a lot of subtly and punch packed into such a short space. This may not be the last we see of this couple (and I hope not) but the series and this story in particular is worth reading. Continue reading →

Review: Gunn’s Golden Rules: Life’s Little Lessons for Making It Work

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Gunn's Golden Rules: Life's Little Lessons for Making It Work
Gunn’s Golden Rules: Life’s Little Lessons for Making It Work by Tim Gunn
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I’m a fan of Project Runway and who doesn’t adore Tim Gunn? He’s the uptight yet charming and adorable mentor who has definite rules about what he likes and doesn’t like. However he delivers those criticisms with such an engaging manner that you can’t help but love him even as he so charmingly tells the designer it’s all crap. That kind of dichotomy is on full display in his Guide to Making it Work. Continue reading →

Review: Dance With Me

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Dance With Me
Dance With Me by Heidi Cullinan
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This is a bit of a difficult review to write because while the book is decent, I didn’t particularly enjoy reading it. I’m not entirely sure why except I couldn’t connect to either character and thus never really cared about them together. Due to this the story somewhat bored me and I found myself sometimes skimming just to finish. There are a lot of great elements in the story that should work together to form a moving, memorable story. I like the individual characters but together I never really bought into their dynamic and I didn’t like some of the choices the story made. Overall this one just didn’t work for me unfortunately, but judging by the popularity of the story it might just be me. Continue reading →

Review: Modeling Death

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Modeling Death
Modeling Death by Amber Kell
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I’ve read several Amber Kell stories and I consider them to be easy to read popcorn reads. I tend to forget the stories very easily (sometimes while reading) but most of the time they are interesting enough fluff when you’re in the mood for something simple, easy, with lots of hot sex. Modeling Death is along those lines but attempts to be something more involved too. That didn’t work as well for me this time unfortunately since the story line is kind of silly and the ending utterly ridiculous. The romantic connection between the protagonists is totally rushed, zero to married in a few hours, and the characters are over the top perfect in every way so it’s hard to really connect and care about them. As an easy, forgettable read, it’s not bad. Continue reading →

Review: Moonlight Becomes You

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Moonlight Becomes You
Moonlight Becomes You by Piper Vaughn
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Like others I’m a fan of rock star angst stories so I was happy to see this offering. Unfortunately the premise was hard for me to buy into and the ending just devolves into what was for me, an eye rolling experience. It’s an easy story to read and mostly enjoyable but overall it just didn’t work that well for me. Others may not be as bothered, especially if they can buy into the concept and “twist” presented. The writing is decent and the angst and sex scenes are enough to satisfy fans of those elements so this could be more successful with another reader. Continue reading →

Review: Prove It

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Prove It
Prove It by Chris Owen
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Prove It is a sweet tale, filled with a lot of humor and background. It’s short and easy to read in one sitting, but the romantic connection never really worked for me. I like the slow build up and the extensive background information on all the characters. I like the use of the third best friend and his gf quite a bit but overall the main romantic connection felt more like an afterthought and awkward than real and important. I still enjoyed reading this story for a number of reasons but never really bought into the late added romance. Continue reading →