Fresh FIction Box Not To Miss
Cole McCade | Exclusive Excerpt: JUST LIKE THIS
Author Guest / November 24, 2020

Damon Louis couldn’t quite believe Rian Falwell had just thrown a f*cking balled-up paper towel at his head, like they were in grade school trading spitballs. But then he couldn’t believe Falwell was staring at him like he’d happily gut Damon, too, his imperious little pale mouth twisted in a knot and his previously bone-white cheeks flushed with anger that reflected in glittering hazel eyes. People didn’t glare at Damon. They didn’t even make eye contact. But Falwell didn’t have the slightest qualms about glaring at him, standing there like the lord of his five by five domain, slender presence bristling fit to fill the tiny cubicle he’d commandeered as his… Damon didn’t even know what to call it. Studio. Workroom. Junk closet. Dumpster. Especially when Falwell had cluttered it wall to wall with kitsch, this kind of…whirlwind of clay and paint and pictures and deli­cate bits of papercraft that fit together in a bizarre aesthetic chaos, where it all coalesced in an esoteric pattern like some strange art installation in and of itself. While Rian himself was part of it, lit in white and amber by the single naked bulb hanging from the ceiling and the golden sunlight falling…

Jayce Ellis | Author-Reader Match: LEARNED BEHAVIORS
Author Guest / November 13, 2020

Instead of trying to find your perfect match in a dating app, we bring you the “Author-Reader Match” where we introduce you to authors as a reader you may fall in love with. It’s our great pleasure to present Jayce Ellis! Writes: Hey y’all! I’m Jayce, and I write super sensual, contemporary Black and IR queer romance. What does that mean? All pairings, but at least one, if not both (or more. . .) MCs will be LGBTQ+. I write real people, living real lives, that don’t end just because romance is in the air. In my latest, LEARNED BEHAVIORS, JaQuan–Jaq to his friends–has just dropped his daughter off for her freshman year of college, and is ready to figure out the next stage of his life. That gets rudely interrupted when his company lands a major project, and he’s forced to work with the irritatingly sexy, hyper-business-focused Matt Donaldson, up close and in person, for the next three months to get it ready. Matt is determined to keep their relationship strictly business, but their personal lives collide, that becomes impossible, and they find that maybe, if they work at it, they can truly have it all. About: You’ve got…

Shae Connor | 20 Questions: ROUGH AND TUMBLE
Author Guest / November 10, 2020

1–What’s the name of your latest release?  Rough and Tumble 2–What is it about?  Grant and Darryn, two friends, college roommates, and gymnastics teammates who discover they’ve fallen for each other–but one of them has already moved on with someone else. What happens when that relationship turns sour? 3–What word best describes your POV hero?  Snarky! 4–What makes your love interest hero irresistible?  Sweetness. 5–Who are the people your main characters turn to when they need help?  Grant turns to his twin sister, Annie, his parents–and Darryn. Darryn turns to Grant and to his parents. 6–What do you love about the setting of your book?  It’s in my city, Atlanta! The University of Atlanta is fictional, but its location is near where another college sits, and I used to live across the street. 7–Are you a plotter (follow an outline) or a pantster (write by the seat of your pants)? I’m a plantser. I do some planning/plotting before I start writing, but then I make changes and add/remove elements while I’m writing. 8–What is an ideal writing day for you?  A quiet cabin in the woods or a beach house. 9–Do you listen to music while you write, need total…

Adriana Herrera | Exclusive Excerpt: AMERICAN CHRISTMAS
Author Guest / November 3, 2020

“Bébé, what are you doing?” I called from the bed as I looked at Yin fussing around in our little kitchen on the other side of our studio apartment. I bit back a smile when he whipped around toting two mugs in a candy cane motif. “I was trying to bring you some coffee with peppermint creamer, Mr. Sleepy Head.” The attempt at sounding stern was thwarted by the grin on his face. He closed the space between us in a few steps and handed me the steaming mug. I reached out for the drink knowing it would probably be too sweet. And that I would drink it anyway, because how could I not, when it was made for me with such love? It was still hard to believe sometimes that I had this life. I patted the spot on the bed next to me, as Yin blew on his own cup. “Come sit with me.” He held up a finger and looked down at his drink. “Let me wait until this cools down, because you know me, I’ll probably spill this all over the bed and then we’ll spend Christmas at the ER.” I had to bite back a…

Annabelle Greene | Author-Reader Match: THE VICAR AND THE RAKE
Author Guest / October 14, 2020

Instead of trying to find your perfect match in a dating app, we bring you the “Author-Reader Match” where we introduce you to authors as a reader you may fall in love with. It’s our great pleasure to present Annabelle Greene! Writes: Annabelle writes hot, heartwarming m/m romances set in the Regency period. Her debut novel, The Vicar and the Rake, is the story of the romance between Gabriel Winters and Edward Stanhope, Duke of Caddonfell. Gabriel’s a repressed vicar, Edward practically invented the word ‘scandal’, and their adolescent friendship abruptly ended when Edward abandoned him. But now Edward’s back in his childhood home, hiding from someone who wants him dead, and Gabriel needs to face his hidden feelings for his oldest friend. There’s also a secret society, a kitten named Buttons and a blackmailer brother who steals every scene he’s in. About: Annabelle has had a book in her hand ever since she learned the alphabet, and retains a special love for the Mills and Boon romances she used to sneakily read while volunteering at the local library. She lives in Italy, where she’s in a perfect relationship with pasta and an adequate relationship with a human. One day…

Rachel Reid | NHL Players over 35
Author Guest / September 22, 2020

The fourth book in my Game Changers series, COMMON GOAL, focuses on NHL goaltender Eric Bennett as he plays his final season at the age of forty-one. I turned forty myself earlier this month, so writing Eric felt personal. Even though I basically have nothing in common with Eric besides the fact that we are both extremely hot. Speaking of very hot adults, I have compiled a list of five dreamboat active NHL players who are thirty-five or over. These are the mature hunks that you need to watch now before they retire (presented in no particular order). Henrik Lundqvist – New York Rangers I like my men like I like my bookshelves: tall, dark and Swedish, and King Henry ticks every box. That trim beard, those bespoke suits, those silver blue eyes…damn. He’s two years younger than me, but I would still call him Daddy and not even feel weird about it. Does he do a little underwear modeling on the side? Of course he does. Did he openly weep when his best friend was traded last season? Yes, because he’s a confident king who isn’t afraid of his feelings. Will he ever win a Stanley Cup? Probably not,…

Blake Ferre | 20 Questions: THE REVOLUTIONARY AND THE ROGUE
Author Guest / August 19, 2020

1–What’s the name of your latest release?  THE REVOLUTIONARY AND THE ROGUE 2–What is it about?  Perrin de Vesey, an aristocrat who is grieving the unjust execution of his lover, is recruited by his friends to help save innocents from the guillotine. But handsome Committee officer, Henri Chevalier, is hot on his trail, eager to ensnare counterrevolutionary conspirators. Attraction simmers between the two, tearing down the barricades that stand between them. 3–What word best describes Perrin?  Compassionate 4–What makes Henri irresistible?  He dreams of freedom and equality for all people and believes in fair and just trials–even for his enemies. 5–Who are the people your main characters turn to when they need help?  Perrin has a strong support of friends from Crimson Rose–a club that welcomes men who prefer men. They stand together and shield one another from danger at all costs. Henri, on the other hand, finds himself unable to trust his fellow Committee officers. In a city where anyone might betray their neighbors, it isn’t easy to find good friends. 6–What do you love about the setting of your book?  I have always been fascinated with the French Revolution. Their leaders fought for many good and noble causes:…

Avon Gale & Piper Vaughn | Exclusive Excerpt: TRADE DEADLINE
Author Guest / August 18, 2020

Daniel sighed, the sound lost to the thud of their skate blades on the rubber mats lining the tunnel. He hadn’t anticipated the chilly reception when he arrived in the Thunder’s dressing room that first day of train­ing camp–and now he finally knew why his breath had practically been fogging whenever he was in the presence of his new teammates. Apparently there was some resent­ment about his win. Probably some assumptions about his reasons for being there or how he would behave. Never mind that Daniel had worked his ass off for more than a decade before he could add Stanley Cup champ to his resume. He’d fought his way there–tooth, nail, broken bones, and bloody lips. It hadn’t come easy, and he didn’t take it for granted. Nor did he think he was hot shit now that he had a championship win under his belt. He was just trying to play hockey, same as he’d done all his life. Daniel poured onto the ice with the rest of his team­mates and sucked in a breath, the cold, crisp scent as familiar and comforting as the sound of his blades cut­ting into the ice and the roar of the crowd….

Annabeth Albert | Exclusive Excerpt: HIGH HEAT
Author Guest / July 27, 2020

Hi! I am so thrilled to be here on one of my favorite blogs with an exclusive excerpt of HIGH HEAT, my new release. This is book two in my Hotshots series about smoke jumper wildfire fighters in Central Oregon, but each book is designed to stand alone as well.  HIGH HEAT centers around an injured smoke jumper, Garrick, trying to recover from serious injuries and his sexy new neighbor, Rain who barrels his way into Garrick’s life, complete with a lost dog who needs them both.  In the exclusive scene that I’ve brought Fresh Fiction today, Garrick has agreed to help Rain get in shape to meet the wildfire fighter fitness standards. They’re out for exercise in the park and just starting to dance around a mutual attraction. . . Read on to see the sparks starting to fly! *** Needing to change the subject, Garrick pointed at the paved trail that wove through the park. “If we follow this, we’ll hit various obstacles, including pull-up bars. I plan to make you do most of them.” “At your command.” Rain’s dark eyes sparkled, almost like he knew precisely the effect his flirty tone would have on Garrick. “Sit-ups.” Stopping…