LGBT REVIEW: OUR LADY OF THE CROSSWORD BY RIGOBERTO GONZALEZ

Our Lady of the Crossword 
Author: Rigoberto Gonzalez
Publisher: A Midsummer Night's Press
ISBN: 13:9781938334184
Pages:42
Reviewed by: Sandra Scholes

Rigoberto Gonzalez has written such poetry books as So Often the Pitcher Goes to Water Until it Breaks and Other Fugitives and Other Strangers so this book of poetry is the sort that can be read on the go to work or play and one of the best I have so far read from A Midsummer Night's Press.

LGBT REVIEW: WHEN I WAS STRAIGHT BY JULIE MARIE WADE

When I Was Straight
Author: Julie Marie Wade
Publisher: A Midsummer Night's Press
ISBN: 13:9781938334085
Pages: 42
Reviewed by: Sandra Scholes

I adore these small paperback books of poetry from LGBT authors from around the world.I got the impression that Julie Marie Wade wrote this series of poems to fully exorcise her demons about coming out.

LGBT FLASH FICTION: HALLOWEEN SPECIAL! THE MOON'S A PUMPKIN ONE NIGHT A YEAR

The Moon's A Pumpkin One Night A Year by A J Damian.

"I wanna go trick or treating." I said.

Being a god of youth and the moon isn't all its cracked up to be, especially when you have different aspects. With or without a moon disc, was sceptre, ankh, crook and flail - I was all wrapped up like a darned mummy most of the time. As I had a day off and prefer the night, October the 31st sounded like the sort of fun I'd enjoy, and once I'd travelled to the States I could look as normal as the rest of the kids out in the streets, soaking up the bitter sting of Fall before winter had its chance to take hold.

ROMANCE REVIEW: FINDING PERFECT BY PETER STYLES

Finding Perfect
Peter Styles


Synopsis:
When a writer and artist are accidentally double-booked for a cabin residency deep in the woods, they must find a way to keep their clashing lifestyles from ruining their romance.

ROMANCE PREVIEW: LOVE ON FIRE BY ZACH JENKINS

Love on Fire
Zach Jenkins

Synopsis:
Firefighters don't date other guys.

Clay Brown has always wanted just one thing: to be a firefighter. He even has the girl of everyone else's dreams, until she dumps him to chase her own career. Newly single, Clay bumps into the only guy who ever made him feel alive - and who he almost kissed back in high school, before losing his nerve.

ROMANCE PREVIEW: CRASH BY JERRY COLE

Crash 
Jerry Cole

Synopsis:
When Liam Hasker’s car careens down the side of a mountain, the last thing he expects is to wake up facing the man who made his last days in high school the worst days of his life. As if that wasn’t traumatic enough, the hospital staff seem to be under the impression that the ex-athlete is his husband! It quickly becomes clear that the former bad-boy heartthrob has no idea who he is and has forgotten the painful past that binds them. When circumstances and a little white lie force the two to join forces, Liam decides there is no time like the present to settle old scores. All grown up and a successful novelist, Liam intends to make his days with Reid as painful for the good Samaritan as possible. The only problem is, real life never goes according to plan.

REVIEW: ASHAMET: DESERT BORN BY TERRY JACKMAN

Ashamet: Desert Born, by Terry Jackman
Publisher: Dragonwell Publishing
Format: Paperback
Genre: LGBT/Gay/Yaoi
ISBN-10: 1940076226
ISBN-13: 978-1940076225
Reviewed By: Sandra Scholes

Terry Jackman is a woman of many talents, a coordinator of the British Science Fiction Association writers' group, Orbits, a freelance editor and assistant editor for Albedo One in Ireland. She is also a tutor, professional picture framer and has seminars, articles, guest appearances, study guides and exam papers under her belt that amasses ten years worth of work.

GAY ART ARTICLE: ALL BODY, ALL SMILES - THE ART OF KINU SEKIGUCHI

All Body, All Smiles - The Art of Kinu Sekiguchi
Written by Sandra Scholes

Anime and manga art has gripped most of Europe with artists in Spain, Italy and one in particular who resides in Paris.

YAOI REVIEW: DUOCARNS - THE ARRIVAL BY PAT MC CRAW

 
Duocarns - The Arrival
Pat McCraw
Elicit Dreams Publishing
222 Pages
Reviewed by Sandra Scholes

Blurb: The story: On the hunt for their mortal enemies, the Bacanis, five attractive aliens – Duocarns warriors find themselves stranded with their space cruiser near the Canadian city of Calgary.

GAY REVIEW: THE BACK PASSAGE BY JAMES LEAR

The Back Passage
James Lear
Publisher: Cleis Press
ISBN: 10: 1-57344-243-7
Price: £8.99
Reviewed by: Sandra Scholes

In a seaside village, Edward Mitchell lives in an English country house and always comes across a sexual liaison with other willing men. A 22-year-old originally from Boston in the US he grew up with his two passions, cock and crime solving. Edward likes to think of himself as a fun-loving man, adaptable and likeable, but is one who since childhood has developed a hidden streak, that is to say he likes the thrill of investigating since reading novels on the subject in-between his studies by Agatha Christie and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. He never refuses a sexual encounter with a male and while he is busy investigating the goings on in the house, he takes time out to make love with many like-minded young men and some older men.

GAY REVIEW: THIS BOOK IS GAY BY JAMES DAWSON

 
This Book is Gay
James Dawson
Publisher: Hot Key Books
ISBN: 978-1-4714-0395-8
Price: £ 7.99
Reviewed by: Sandra Scholes

Blurb: Former PSHCE teacher and acclaimed YA author James Dawson gives an uncensored look at what it's like to grow up as LGBT*. Including testimonials from people 'across the spectrum', this inclusive book explores everything anyone who ever dared to wonder wants to know - from sex to politics, how to pull, stereotypes, how to come-out and more. Spike Gerrell's hilarious illustrations combined with funny and factual text make this a must-read.

TIME STORY

 Time by AJ Damian

The gods would know what went on. One by one the younger people turned their black dragon mounted hourglasses knowing exactly how much time they had to live.

BANISHED MICROFICTION STORY

 Banished by AJ Damian

"I should banish you for what you have done," said the prince regent, his hands gripping the throne. Flanked by his two peacocks and favourite human sized goldfish encased within its own bubble of water, he sat proud, haughty. "I should have you executed for killing my lover."

THE ROYAL TALISMAN REVIEW FOR TRACY COOPER-POSEY

 
The Royal Talisman review

I thought Tracy’s introduction of Throwing Down the Gauntlet was a fascinating insight into what kind of period she likes to write in, and some of the history behind it, but also it tells the reader of her writing history, and credentials. It was interesting to read about her collaborations with Julia Templeton, and the results of them.

MY REVIEW FOR HER TWIN BROTHER LGBT EROTIC GRAPHIC NOVEL

 
Her Twin Brother
Publisher: Yaoi Press
Author/Artist: Yamila Abraham / Himitsu Studio
Format: Japanese / BW
Rated: M
Release Date: Out now
Reviewed By: Sandra Scholes

As a cop Heath is still getting over the loss of his wife. He wakes up on a morning and in remembers his dream when he held her in his arms, and the feelings hurt deeper each time. He has her photo by his bedside, and still longs for the time when he can see her again, knowing his hopes are futile. His life isn't anything he would call decent either, due to her death he hasn't felt like cleaning up the house, litter is strewn all over the place, and he is just living his life for his job as a cop - it's tough and he doesn't see a way out of feeling helpless and unhappy.

LONG WANG AND THE YELLOW EMPEROR

Long Wang and the Yellow Emperor a story by A.J. Damian


In the court of Emperor Liu Tsu the prince had a lover called Wang, and every time he looked at him he thought these things; his eyes were like the onyx that was inlaid within his most prized sword, lips were the colour of the inside of a conch shell from the sea, teeth the whiteness of the pearls around his throat, hair that shone as blinding as the ebony his father had a plentiful supply of, and his member he called his jade stem for it was so prized by him it could have been a grand stem in the royal lake that bore a lotus flower, the largest there.

"Your highness, why the long face?"

"Wang, my love the time has come for me to wed and I feel I am not ready."

Wang smiled at him instead, trying to settle him. "I take it your father wishes you to marry a girl."

REVIEW FOR MURDER MOST FAB BY JULIAN CLARY

Murder Most Fab
by Julian Clary
ISBN: 978-0-091-91448-6
Word Count:
List Price: £6.99

Formats: Paperback

Reviewed by: Sandra Scholes

Many will remember him more for his hilarious stand-up comedy routines with Fanny the Wonderdog. This is his first novel told in the first person, it is witty, funny and deliberately over the top most of the way through.

GUEST POST ON MRS CONDIT READS BY AJ DAMIAN

Guest Post on Mrs Condit Reads by AJ Damian for "Life's A Beach."
The "Boys of Summer," anthology published by STARbooks Press was too good to pass up for me as I already had an idea of what kind of M/M romance story to write.

My guest spot on Mrs Condit Reads went really well and the reception to my work went even better.

GUEST POST FOR THE NOVEL APPROACH

Guest Post for The Novel Approach: Finding the Right Guy  - Writing and Where it Gets You by Sandra Scholes (A.J. Damian)

It was an absolute privilege to have my guest post featured on here with such a lot of interest this year about my story "The Wrong Guy" from STARbooks Press's M/M anthology "Unmasked and Undressed 3."

TITLES

Titles a saucy short by A.J. Damian.

I heard the knock, opened the door. The postman thrust a package into my hands, had me sign for it, and then quickly sped away.

Closing the door, I started to rip the parcel paper that covered it when I heard another knock, this time I tipped the package and the book fell onto the linoleum.

When I opened the door again, hoping that the book had landed face side down, I found I wasn't that lucky. My friend Carl was looking at the title and the provocative cover of a man kneeling looking up at another man's cock.