A Daring Ride (The Bullriders #2) by Andrew Grey (4 Stars)

Sep15

Being true to yourself shouldn’t be so hard and put you at risk of losing so much.

Simon “Frizz” Frizzell is a bull rider with a very religious family that doesn’t approve of his riding or his claim to being gay. Jacky Douglas loves the rodeo and the riders, and he’s really attracted to Simon. As these two start to spend more time together and care for each other, they both need to determine if they are ready for a real commitment.

Simon is such a strong risk taker in the rodeo, but outside of that, he’s very afraid to take any chances with his personal life due to the potential consequences. His parents have made it very clear that they are opposed to homosexuality. If he were to come out to them, there’s a good chance he might not see his younger brothers and sisters until they are adults. Jacky has been burned before by somebody unwilling to be openly gay, and he’s not sure he can handle it again, but his heart is willing to try again for Simon.

The story focused around the time they spent at the rodeo and on the farm together. The majority of the angst comes from Simon’s desire to be open with his parents, but his fear in doing so. There were several times in the story where we were told what was happening. Unfortunately, a few of these didn’t move the plot forward at all and almost felt like filler material. I would have liked to have seen those same pages devoted to developing Jacky’s personality more or moving Simon and Jacky’s relationship even further along.

However, I thought the author did a great job with the sex scenes by switching between extensive details and off-page scenes so it didn’t overwhelm the story. I don’t think you have to read the first story in the series to follow this one, but Wild Ride was enjoyable, and it was nice to see Dante and Ryan again.

Sweet and sexy rodeo romance with a focus on the challenges of coming out to a non-supportive family.

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Originally reviewed for The Romance Reviews. Complimentary copy provided by author/publisher for an honest review.
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Pilgrimage by Kim Fielding (3 Stars)

Sep11

He was swept away to another world where he met his soul mate. But how will he survive if he has to return home without him?

Mike Carlson becomes a pawn in the war between gods. He is sent to another world to complete a pilgrimage to help save a village of people from a fate worse than death. Goran offers to be his bodyguard and tour guide. As they slowly become both friends and lovers, they must eventually deal with Mike’s departure from Goran’s world.

Mike Carlson was an extremely self-centered individual. Although he wasn’t a bad guy, he really never went out of his way to help anybody else. Goran was just the opposite and made a point to always return the favors of the villagers that helped them. If somebody fed Goran a meal, he caught them enough meat to feed them for a week. As Goran slowly shares the details of his life, it’s even easier to adore him.

Unfortunately, Mike and Goran don’t spend much time talking to each other until halfway through the story. The beginning is focused on Mike’s thoughts, which weren’t very interesting, in part because he was such an unemotional person. Once these two started to really connect and share with each other, the story became much more intriguing. I was definitely hoping that they would find some way to be together and find happiness.

An enjoyable story for those who enjoy rich, historical details and authentic worldbuilding.

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Originally reviewed for The Romance Reviews. Complimentary copy provided by author/publisher for an honest review.
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Puzzle Me This by Eli Easton (3 Stars)

Sep8

Playing games can be fun as long as it isn’t with somebody’s heart.

Luke Schumaker is a video game designer who is fortunate enough to work at home. One day, he discovers a crossword puzzle with an extra clue and realizes somebody is interested in him. Wheelchair-bound since birth, Alex Shaw writes crossword puzzles for a living. He’s been watching Luke through his window and decides it’s time for them to meet.

Told from Luke’s point of view, the story focused on whether or not he could spend his life with somebody unable to walk. Luke was a nice guy who was constantly throwing out one-liners, but he was a bit immature in his behavior, especially as he became move involved with Alex. Unfortunately, Alex was also a bit immature. For example, he had a rating scale which he used to determine if two people were good enough for each other. It would have been fine to do that if the focus was on personality traits, like compassion, instead of physical attributes.

There is a lot of sex in this story starting from almost their first meeting. I would have liked to have seen that time spent developing the relationship and characters more. I really enjoyed the puzzle angle.

Sex-packed story with a unique use of puzzles, this nice little short was an easy read.

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Originally reviewed for The Romance Reviews. Complimentary copy provided by author/publisher for an honest review.
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Double Up (Lake Lovelace #1) by Vanessa North (4.5 Stars)

Sep8

A very enjoyable romance with physical and emotional recovery issues serving as a backdrop. The story was told from Ben’s POV, and I really liked his character. I could definitely empathize with his back pain and the medical decisions that he had to make. I thought he and Dave made a really cute older couple. The constant use of italicized thoughts was a bit distracting. I would have loved little video clips to go along with some of the wakeboarding contests. The author made them sound very exciting.

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