Review - Bruised
My rating: 
This review originally appeared in slightly different form at BDSM Book Reviews. Johnson is just closing up the garage where he works when Texas transplant Billy drives in to get his truck serviced. There’s an almost instant attraction between the two, and after a flirtatious dinner, Billy invites the big mechanic home, where the sparks really begin to fly. “Bruised” is, more than anything, pure grade A smut. Once Billy and Johnson get together, which happens within the first few pages, we’re treated to an almost continuous sequence of scenes as the two explore a rather specific kink they discover on their first night together: Johnson loves Billy’s pale skin and can’t keep his lips and teeth off of it.
Tags: Slightly Kinky BDSM
Review - Lost in the Outcome
My rating:
Tech wizard Nate wakes up in a strange hotel room, next to a cute stranger who turns out to be named Tim. With no recollection of how he got there, or what the two got up to in bed, Nate is a bit confused to say the least. He and Tim part company assuming they will never see each other. For Tim, who remembers every detail of their night together vividly, the realization that Nate remembers none of it, and doesn’t want to see him again, is crushing.
Tags: Contemporary
Review - Brimstone: Demon Owned and Operated
My rating:
Shax, the demon Prince of Thieves, had a bit of a falling out with Lucifer, so now he, along with his best friend and partner in crime Verrin, Lord of Impatience, have left earth to seek their fortunes among the stars. They’ve acquired a cargo ship, appropriately named Brimstone, which Shax captains and Verrin pilots. They’ll take almost any job, even, or perhaps especially, legally questionable ones. This omnibus edition of three stories recounts several of the pair’s escapades.
Tags: Fantasy Science Fiction
Review - Guarded
My rating:
This review originally appeared in slightly different form at BDSM Book Reviews. This is one of those rare books where the blurb is more concise and accurate than what I might have written: On the surface, rock star Jordan Kane has it all. His band No Rules is burning up the charts and headlining a world tour. His bodyguard doubles as a hot, kinky boyfriend who knows just how to push all his buttons.
Review - Ridden Hard
My rating:
Everyone lies on their resume, and aspiring actor Jamie is no different. He lists horse riding among his talents, although the last time he was on a horse was when he was a child, and it was a donkey. When he lands a prize role in a film based on Arthurian legends, he’s hoping he can just bluff his way through, but his lack of skill is instantly obvious to everyone, especially the film’s horse trainer Andrej.
Review - Dominus
My rating:
General Gaius Fabius returns to Rome in triumph from the Dacian wars, but soon finds himself restless for a new challenge. Somewhat bored with his current stable of pleasure slaves, Gaius finds his challenge in the form of Allerix, a Dacian prisoner put up for auction. Gaius decides to make Allerix his new boy toy, but taming the young man may be more of a challenge than Gaius bargained for.
Tags: Historical Ancient Rome
Review - Deep Sky
My rating:
This second book in the “Hellgate” series picks up right where the first book, The Rabelais Alliance, left off. Neil Travers and Curtis Marin are again center stage as they try to head off smugglers supplying arms to the colonies rebelling against Earth’s domination, while at the same time trying to find a peaceful solution to get those worlds out from under the central government’s thumb. As if that’s not enough, there’s still the threat from an unknown race that randomly strikes out from the other side of Hellgate, wiping out whole worlds.
Tags: novel Science Fiction
Review - The Cross and the Trinity
My rating:
This review originally appeared in slightly different form at BDSM Book Reviews. In “The Cross and the Trinity” we witness the evolution of a BDSM menage relationship. As the book opens, Tate and Sebastian’s relationship is under many of the same strains that almost any couple - gay or straight, kinky or vanilla - experiences. And like too many young couples, they don’t have the maturity or life experience to help them deal with the stresses of work and other responsibilities.
Review - The Contract
My rating:
After discovering his boyfriend in bed with another man and then finding out his employer has gone bankrupt, Jace needs to get out of his head, and for him there’s no better place to do that than the local BDSM club. While watching a public scene, he is befriended by an older man who encourages him to take a turn on the stage to be flogged by the Dominant. Although not into public scenes, something about the man, Carlo, inspires confidence, and when the Dom picks Jace out of the crowd, he agrees.
Review - Legally Bound
My rating:
Public Defender Daniel is walking on air as he enters the courtroom for another day of work. He just spent the night with a man who did things to him no other man has, and he liked it. Unfortunately, Daniel’s mood is shattered when his first client turns out to be the very same man, charged with prostitution and drug offenses. Rafael says he is innocent, the victim of a jealous ex who is also a police detective, but can Daniel believe anything Rafael says?