Books Tagged With what - concept - resilience

Word Count: Click here to reveal60000 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealGay (Click here to hide)

Summary: Sonny Lakes is as lost as a person can be. After being discharged from the US Army following a traumatic event, he’s sent home, where unbearable nightmares and deep despair lead him to attempt to take his own life, a choice that puts him on the path to a new home in a new town where no one knows him. But as Sonny tries to settle in, mysterious vandalism and harassment begin to take over his life, destroying the anonymity he craves. Abe Ellis has lived his whole life in Sweetshade, Texas, and that kind of loyalty lends itself well to being a small-town cop. His quiet life changes when a handsome newcomer moves into town and unlikely events begin to unfold. As Abe and his partner Nate begin looking into the crimes, Nate grows increasingly suspicious of the stranger with no history, no enemies, and few friends, to whom Abe is so drawn. Can Sonny’s faith in himself be restored in time to find the love and stability he seeks? Can Abe count on his instincts and trust the young man with his safety and his heart? Sweetshade is a small town, as calm and inviting as the name suggests. But even places like that can hide sinister secrets and dangerous threats. Warning: PTSD, suicide attempt

Word Count: Click here to reveal64500 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealBisexual, Gay (Click here to hide)

Summary: The bull shifter, Ryan, and his human mate, Caleb, have made a good life together. Alongside Caleb’s mother, Mandy, they run an animal rehabilitation center on their ranch. Ryan has become the honorary uncle to two young bull shifters, and Caleb is proud at how well his mate has acclimated to the human world. For Ryan, he’s found the family and the peace he’s long craved, and he’s determined to keep it by whatever means necessary. But their quiet lives are disrupted when Caleb’s aunt—Chief Hera of the US Agency—visits. And she brings a dire warning: the Knights of the Dawn want Ryan’s blood. After losing someone precious to them during a skirmish with the knights, Caleb spirals into grief, and Ryan must work through his guilt and sorrow to care for his mate. A task made easier when Hera stays with her nephews, sharing their heartache. After they retreat to Haven, Montana, they begin the long process of healing. Unfortunately, Haven is in a state of unrest, and they are sucked into shifter politics that threaten the safety of the community as a whole. Meanwhile, the knights still need Ryan’s blood, and he can’t hide forever. Note to readers: Caleb and Ryan first show up in Love is a Whirlwind. While many of these books can be read alone, for full enjoyment please read previous books in the series, as this one does have many cameos and character resolutions.

Word Count: Click here to reveal44764 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealGay (Click here to hide)

Summary: Nothing in life comes for free....Rey had never felt as if he fit in anywhere. Even learning he had two brothers didn't really change that. However, having Dustin and Winter brought into his life helped ease his loneliness. The day Rey was told that these two men were his life mates was scary, yet amazing. Finally he would not have to go through life only able to count on himself...he would have his hippo and shark shifter mates to help him every step of the way....but it would definitely come at a cost. Dustin hurt for his mate. He knew the little red panda shifter was sad and felt like an outcast in Haven. That couldn't be further from the truth, but he didn't know how to help him through it. Going to Winter, the two men came up with a plan. However soon that plan was put on hold. They had all been warned that it was up to them to help save the paranormal/shifter world. However, being forced to go to the one Island no one ever entered, was not something any of them had planned out or thought through. It was just a fact that there was no choice if their destiny was to be fulfilled. The question was would they even make it to the Island alive and even if they did, would they live to tell about it.

Word Count: Click here to reveal60000 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealGay (Click here to hide)

Summary: Standoffish Aiden is content keeping people at a distance and ensuring his boundaries are impenetrable. There’s safety in not opening up, but there’s also a loneliness he doesn’t realise exists until he meets Riley, a new member of the LGBTQIA+ adventure group Outback Boys. Fascinated by the new guy, Aiden is quick to discover his flirtation skills are rusty and his sweet-talking is cringeworthy. But sweet and clumsy Riley doesn’t seem to mind so much. Even though Riley doesn’t quite know how to handle Aiden’s intensity, he’s willing to step out of his comfort zone and see how their tentative friendship unravels. Between a surf lesson that resembles a kangaroo on acid and paddle boarding that is trickier than walking a tightrope, Aiden and Riley discover love may be a possibility after all. Happiness relies on honesty and openness, though. And with both men holding on tightly to past struggles, their future together is at risk. Can the two Aussies bounce back and heal themselves and each other, or are some wounds too raw to recover from? Outback Boys is a sweet and sexy M/M romance series complete with bruised butts, rope burn, and overworked muscles… all in the pursuit of adventure, of course!

Trigger Warning: Contains themes (discussions) of mental illness and suicide.

Word Count: Click here to reveal102700 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealBisexual, Lesbian, Questioning, Pansexual, Polyamorous, Straight (Click here to hide)

Summary: I never wanted to be queen. But I won’t let just anyone take my place. Or my men. To defeat the Unseelie, our allies need their long-lost magic, and that means someone has to become queen. I had to leave both of my lovers behind in the human realm, and I can’t return to them until I find someone worthy of the throne. Of course, nothing is ever easy, and I embark on a desperate plan to save the Fae by helping my fellow heir. Along the way, I’m drawn to another potential lover, even though we both know he should be off-limits. To become queen, Una needs one final consort, and she chooses one of my handsome, powerful guards. Suddenly, I’m not willing to surrender him. But who am I to stand in the way of our future queen? Note: 18+ only. In the six-book Our Fae Queen series, Glori will find limitless love with multiple Fae. Steamy group scenes in later books involve MFM, FMM, and MMFMMM. All intimate encounters are consensual. Mayhem. Magic. Romance. Expect unusual shapeshifters, new love and friendships, surprising betrayal, and two uncertain heirs finding their way in Bound to the Queen, the exciting third book of this new adult Why Choose romance and a turning point for Glori.

Word Count: Click here to reveal90000 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealBisexual, Demisexual, Gay (Click here to hide)

Summary: Quarter-Finalist in the BookLife Prize Contest "Overall: 9.50 out of 10 Expertly plotted and paced, this romance builds a central relationship that is sweet, sexy, and satisfying. The love story grows through various plot points and conflicts, taking the main characters -as well as a vibrant supporting cast - on an emotionally resonant and heartwarming journey. It's exactly what a good romance book should be. Merrill’s dialogue is authentic and exhibits variances of tone and cadence when spoken by different characters; it's distinct and clear. The love scenes are explicit and passionate with an undercurrent of emotion that sets them apart from others in the genre. This swoon-worthy romance between a Marine officer and a rock star charms with a sweet and sexy story that shows how love can heal two hearts touched by tragedy." —BookLife Prize "Over the course of this novel, Merrill writes about this burgeoning connection with smooth confidence...Merrill rests a good part of the story on a realistic appraisal of his characters’ fallibility: “People want to think they can handle anything that comes their way, but everyone has a breaking point,” Brains reflects at one point. It may seem like a standard unlikely-romance plot at first, but the author offers it to readers with considerable skill and style." —Kirkus Reviews "R.L. Merrill is the reigning queen of romance and rock and roll. Brains and Brawn delivers yet another heartfelt love story with relatable characters whose trials feel steeped in the real world. Like the first book in the series, Summer of Hush, this one gives you a VIP backstage pass to life on a mega-tour. You’ll come out feeling like a member of the band.A realistic and inviting love story in the rock-music world.A rock star with a secret is injured in a freak accident. A single-dad Navy corpsman comes to his aide. Neither expected romance to bloom, but now that it has, will their secrets end it before it begins?" —Award-Winning Author Kilby Blades Billy “Brains” Brennan has achieved rock stardom in not just one, but two chart-topping bands, but events from his past have him convinced he’s living on borrowed time. Brains and his brothers-in-Hush are ready to take the last cross-country Warped Tour by storm...until the actions of two drunk dudes with bad attitudes set off a chain of events that leave him incapacitated...and face-to-face with a handsome stranger who inexplicably feels like home—and not the home Brains fled at sixteen. Chief Petty Officer Paul McNally has spent his 25-year career as a Navy Corpsman responding to emergencies and caring for wounded soldiers. When fate has him in the right place to provide aid to a fallen rock star, it sends his life spiraling on a trajectory he never planned for. Instead of concentrating on his impending retirement and a second career, he’s now playing nursemaid to a fascinating younger man…and falling in love—a fact he can’t seem to figure out how to explain to his adult son. A health scare, band drama, and pain from both their pasts threaten to end Brains and Paul’s fledgling relationship. Fate brought them together. It will take trust, honesty, and hope to keep them together.

Word Count: Click here to reveal56000 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealBisexual (Click here to hide)

Summary: In a near-future United States where slavery is alive and controlled by an organization known as the Circle, Avery Tulano is up for sale yet again—and it might very well be his last time on the auction block. As a young man, he signed his life away in a contract willingly, driven by the desire to escape his life. Now, eight years later, he's broken, battered, and sick from a life of unspeakable horrors. When the bidding starts as low as $200, it may as well be a death warrant. Enter Conrad Fisher, a corrupt ex-cop discharged from the force who runs a failing private detective business. His wife died chasing one final high and he's been in a state of isolated depression ever since. He's only at the auction to help his journalist daughter Christina get a scoop on the Circle. When he sees Avery up for bid at such a low price, however, it's an offer he can't refuse and before he knows it, he's walking out of the auction house as Avery's new owner. It's a mistake. Slavery is wrong. Conrad can't afford to keep him anyway, no matter what strange connection they find in each other. But even if a real relationship was possible, a life of drugs, alcohol, and bad decisions is rapidly catching up with both of them—if the Circle doesn't kill them first.

Word Count: Click here to reveal81000 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealGenderfluid, Lesbian, Pansexual, Straight (Click here to hide)

Summary: Alessia is an Outsider—a member of the not-quite-human community that has recently been released from their underground prison. Shortly after their liberation, Alessia is given an ultimatum: obey all the United Earth Alliance’s demands, or her mother will forever remain a hostage—a mother she’d believed dead for fifteen years. Reluctantly, she agrees, though she has no idea what those demands may be or how she will balance her obligations to the UEA with her responsibilities to her people and her family. As the UEA tightens its grip on humans and Outsiders alike, it becomes clear that meaningful social change will not be possible without a revolution. Alessia and her peers embark on a mission to discover just how far the government is willing to go to maintain their monopoly on power. What Alessia and her comrades discover, however, goes much deeper than they’d ever anticipated. Who are the Outsiders, really? What secrets of their destiny lay hidden within a top-secret space station? And why are the Outsiders linked to an emerging disease the UEA seems desperate to keep secret?  As they delve deeper, it isn’t only Alessia’s identity that will be called into question, but the fate of the entire planet.

Word Count: Click here to reveal104,000 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealBisexual, Gay (Click here to hide)

Summary:

Word Count: Click here to reveal42000 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealGay (Click here to hide)

Summary: What do you get when you mix a pro snowboarder with a music equipment salesman and his kid? --I don't know, but it's bound to be a good time. Griffin had no idea how hot Zane McDonnell was until he witnesses the famous sports stringer interview him. The snowboarder is charismatic and kind of adorable. When Griffin is encouraged to pursue the vibrant man, he decides to go for it—he needs adult fun in his life. Zane figured Griffin would be fast and fun -- exactly how he likes his lovers and his life. He was wrong. Griffin slips past his defenses faster than the downhill competition at the X-games. His friends might call him Big Mac, but inside he’s tiny and afraid. Despite that, he's tempted to stick around and see what happens, but the reality is nothing is permanent. Griffin's not about to let Zane take the easy way out. He can easily see Zane is making a rookie mistake. Will the snowboarder let himself fall for the solid father or will he blow his turn? Tags: sports romance, snowboarding & outdoor fun, music, single father, travel for work, merging lives.

Word Count: Click here to reveal74000 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealGay (Click here to hide)

Summary: In the world of covert operations, trust is paramount, yet I’ve been straying, fostering secret ties with the elusive “unicorn hacker,” challenging my loyalty to the ITU, my SICB family. No doubt about it, I’m going to be in deep shit when they find out—it’s only a matter of time. But when an investigation explodes, so does my world—and for the first time, I hear the hacker’s voice, magnetic and captivating, pulling me in deeper. I also finally get his name. Rowan Hart, a former agent and a tiger shifter with haunting scars. He becomes an unexpected hero, thrusting us into an alliance against Hornell, SICB’s prime target. Despite clashes with my team, we form an unstoppable duo, until a sudden attack fractures our team, leaving me changed beyond imagination. As I fight for survival, it takes both my unit and Rowan’s unwavering resolve to keep me alive. Amidst chaos, Rowan’s commitment becomes clear—he’ll move heaven and earth to grant me a second chance at life and, perhaps, with him. Brighter Than Fear is the third book in a gay urban fantasy romance series. Between the pages you’ll find high-octane action, snarky vampires and shifters, and scorching-hot scenes to make you swoon.

Word Count: Click here to reveal71000 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealLesbian (Click here to hide)

Summary: Vivian Chastain is an adrenaline addicted veteran, transitioning to civilian life in Sacramento, California. She settles into a new routine while she finishes up college and works as a bartender, covering up her intense anxiety with fake bravado and swagger. All Vivian wants is peace and quiet, but her whole trajectory changes when she stumbles upon a heinous crime in progress and has to fight for her life to get away. While recovering from the fight, she falls in love with someone who is tall in stature but short on emotional intelligence, and this toxic union provides Vivian the relationship that she thinks she needs. Given Vivian’s insecurities and traumatic past, she clings to the relationship even while it destroys her. Vivian’s relationships are strained to their breaking points as she continues to seek balance. She turns to her best friend for support, only to be left empty handed and alone until she finds comradery and care from the last person she would have thought.

Word Count: Click here to reveal80,000 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealGay (Click here to hide)

Summary: In 1888 Austin, Texas, a shy medium with clubfoot is visited by the horrific ghosts of murdered children and enlists the help of a rugged Texas Ranger to pursue their killer. As the two men hunt the murderer, they find themselves not only in the grip of a taboo love that could—at best—send them to prison, but also in danger of becoming the killer’s next prey. In the twenty three years of his life, Thomas Carillon has known nothing but unrequited love. People don’t notice him; they only notice his clubfoot. He has given himself up to a solitary existence with only the companionship of his cat and the ghosts who visit him. When a rare child ghost, her massive injuries evident, asks Thomas for help, the only law man that will listen is a hard-bitten Texas Ranger who reawaken’s Thomas’s secret desires. The two grow closer as they chase the killer, but can they hold onto their fragile, budding love in such hard times? Hadrian Burton thinks Thomas looks like an angel, except for whatever horror he’s hiding in that strange boot. Temporarily leaving life on the range and his complicated past to track down a killer with Thomas, Hadrian finds himself doing something he vowed never to do again—falling in love. Their “congress,” as Thomas calls it, is more intense than he has ever experienced. After a lifetime of virginity, the clubfooted man is going wild, and he doesn’t balk at Hadrian’s unconventional appetites. But they’re too different; Hadrian fears he will only hurt Thomas in the end. And yet, he has never fallen so hard for another man. How can he keep both his and Thomas’s hearts from being broken? And how can he bring the elusive Child Slayer to justice with only the help of a medium and ghosts? This erotic gay romance contains violence, period homophobia, period racism, period ableism, and graphic sex scenes.

Word Count: Click here to reveal50000 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealGay (Click here to hide)

Summary: This collection combines the complete books: Because Faery Godmonster and His Dungeon Discovery. Enter an enchanted world of gay romance and fairytale magic!   How can they get together with a monster in their way? The warrior-priest. Gossamer wants true love. But his faery godmonster, a gigantic, winged, two-headed beast named Puff-puff, is determined to keep him "safe"--even from a broken heart. The necromancer.  Pox is a sexy fugitive. An exiled aristocrat, his ego is as big as a dragon's maw. He has no time for love. Still, that brawny Gossamer might make a fine manservant....   Content warning: graphic, sexually explicit scenes—for adults only. (It also contains crude humor, a love story, and a big scary monster.)

Word Count: Click here to reveal55000 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealGay (Click here to hide)

Summary: A grumpy dragon with a backache and a hoarding problem. A chubby vampire with a sunny disposition and a secret. Housekeeping has never been more sensual. Cormac MacIver used to be a bad boy. One mistake gives him a lifetime of pain. After trying every remedy known to dragon shifters and countless doctors’ visits, he doesn’t expect to feel relief ever again. He doesn’t expect his sexy new housekeeper to be his fated mate, either. Jarrell Piernos has a secret. Each day spent in Wingspan brings him closer to discovery. When his new client turns out to be his much older mate, he knows he’ll have to face the truth and possibly rejection. Can Cormac work through the pain and be what his young mate needs? How trustworthy is a grumpy older dragon shifter, anyway?

Word Count: Information not available

Character Identities: Click here to revealGay (Click here to hide)

Summary: When your only goal is to save the world who's there when you need to be rescued? Boss Most of my life I'd been the savior and sought when anyone found themselves in trouble. It could be to atone for sins of my past or because I was a natural caregiver. Whatever it was I didn't understand how to do anything else. My Outreach Program cared for everyone in the city who needed help and I wouldn't say I hadn't made enemies, but when the protector needed protection I wasn't prepared for Dolan Sharp. Dolan No one did anything for free or out of the kindness of their hearts. That wasn't how the world worked and it was always survival of the fittest. I didn't care what anyone said about the man named Boss. When I witness Boss in action, what I thought I'd believed shattered and I didn't know how to handle that. There's always threats at every turn, it's just a matter of when they catch up with you, but when one jaded man and another with a seemingly deep death wish have to work together who's going to survive the aftermath? (TW: Mentions of childhood sexual, physical and mental abuses. Passive Suicidal Ideation, self-harm and mental illness. These are mainly off-page, but there are details flashbacks and conversations of said acts. Yet if these are triggering for you, please feel free not to read the story. Your self-care and mental health are more important. Thank you.)

Word Count: Click here to reveal106000 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealBisexual, Gay (Click here to hide)

Summary: When two broken men find redemption together, will one survive to accept it?
 Chance 
Everyone assumed I was a magnet for trouble, or maybe I searched it out on my own. By the age of forty, I almost destroyed my life. The tragic event that changed my entire perception of myself is haunting me. When a friend is in danger, I volunteer to keep them safe and momentarily distract myself from my problems. Yet my demons keep hunting me down.
 Bart
 For twenty years since my divorce, I'd completely cut myself off from all physical connection with another person. PTSD has taken everything from me, and a time bomb lives in my head—ready to go off at any moment. For the most part, I've learned to control it. When Chance needs help learning a healthier coping mechanism, I offer my assistance, but when he’s healed, will I be able to let him go like I'd promised? 
Nothing had prepared two traumatized men for each other. Can they heal and find redemption, or will the danger around them take one from the other before they realize they have more than their demons? 
(TW: Mentions of childhood sexual, physical, and mental abuses. Passive Suicidal Ideation, self-harm, eating disorders, and mental illness. These are mainly off-page, but there are detailed flashbacks and conversations of said acts. Yet if these are triggering for you, please feel free not to read the story. Your self-care and mental health are more important. Thank you.)


Word Count: Click here to reveal48,175 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealLesbian (Click here to hide)

Summary: Is any case too cold to crack? Book 8 in the Lessons in Murder series, by award-winning, best-selling author Edale Lane. Jenna’s gaze lingers over the diamond rings in the showcase. She wants to pop the question to her partner Randi if she can only arrange the perfect proposal. Per usual, her work as Roanoke PD’s leading homicide detective gets in the way, not to mention the inconveniences of an early winter storm. Randi, who knows Jenna isn’t ready for marriage, has a surprise planned for their first anniversary. She’s also crafting a strategy to visit both their families for Christmas while preparing for the end of the semester. When a dying mother asks Jenna to investigate her daughter’s unsolved murder from thirty years ago, she can’t refuse. Despite the unlikelihood of success, she digs into the past and interviews whoever is still alive. But will buried concerns unearthed by the investigation give Jenna cold feet?

Word Count: Information not available

Character Identities: Click here to revealBisexual, Gay, Questioning (Click here to hide)

Summary: Why are the hot guys always straight? EMT Gus Dawson is off men, thanks to his jerk of an ex. He’s set his sights on a promotion to paramedic and being the first amputee to hold that title for the city of Boston. Gus doesn’t care that his new rookie partner thinks he’d do the job better. Or that the straight, married dad is all wrong for him. Madoc Walters never imagined he’d have to restart his career. But he’ll do whatever it takes to make a better life for his daughter, Val. Even if it means playing rookie for a hotshot who’ll get a promotion Madoc deserves more. A guy he can’t stop thinking about no matter how hard he tries. In spite of the rivalry, the partners strike up a friendship, supporting each other after Gus is injured and Madoc’s ex-wife abandons the family. But when crushes become real emotion and Gus bonds with Val, will Madoc be ready to stop playing it straight?

Word Count: Click here to reveal32840 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealGay (Click here to hide)

Summary: Cal wanted to rescue his parents, however when he discovers everyone from the leader of his Cackle to his brother and even his own mate were plotting to leave without him he feels beyond hurt…he feels betrayed and leaving is the only answer. Jackson is devastated. He can’t eat. He can’t drink. He can’t sleep. His mate is gone and he isn’t any good to anyone. Discovering his mate is living with the Cackle next to his own sparks a life in him he had not had before. He knows he cannot go onto those lands without express permission by their leader but there is no time. He had to get to Cal and beg his mate for forgiveness. He had to put his life on the line. Cal was his and Jackson intended to bring him home or die trying.