Books Tagged With what - emotion - grief

Word Count: Click here to reveal44080 (Click here to hide)

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

Summary: Wolf shifter Xavier learns that you are often your own worst enemy. Josh McPhee always wanted to be an agent. To keep from going crazy at the Agency’s New Mexico substation, he talks to the imprisoned wolf shifter—or tries to. Their one-sided conversations only prove the shifter is not getting the help he needs. After all, he is a victim too. Wolf shifter Xavier doesn’t remember much before his time with the Knights or the time under their control, where he was brainwashed and used to kill innocent shifters. He wants to recover his memories, and yet he fears what he might find. He would escape were it not for the aide whose voice quiets Xavier’s implanted urges. Late one night the Knights attack the station to retrieve what’s theirs. Overpowered, Josh cannot stop them before they unlock Xavier’s cage. But Xavier rushes to Josh’s rescue and, sensing his opportunity, escapes, taking Josh with him. When Josh wakes up on the road, they strike a bargain: Josh offers Xavier one month of freedom before he calls in the Agency. Both doubt he can be cured, but something about Josh makes Xavier better. They just have to figure out what before the enemy catches up to them. Second Edition with updated and revised text.

Word Count: Click here to reveal25,000 (Click here to hide)

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

Summary: Jimmy McSwain is enjoying a relaxing holiday at his grandmother’s cottage, but it turns out to be a set-up. Hester Bryne has a favor to ask: to meet with her old friends, Franklin and Carolyn Hardy, who wish to hire the young private-eye-in-training to find their son. Seems he’s been gone for forty years. Jimmy, taken with the idea of reuniting a father with his son, wants to take the case. But he must get the all-clear from his new boss, Finn, the ex-cop who has taken Jimmy under his wing. A visit to Finn’s home proves to be yet another set-up, one that takes an unexpected twist in the name of a newcomer to the city, Aiden Garvey. As Jimmy immerses himself in the case of the missing son, his attention keeps getting distracted by the newfound presence of a man who makes his heart skip a beat. Juggling the promise of a new relationship with the complexities presented by this puzzling case, Jimmy realizes that he’s getting too close to one of them, and it could end with more broken hearts than lives. Can a remembrance of his father be both his motivation and the cause for the destruction lying in wait?  

Word Count: Click here to reveal110840 (Click here to hide)

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

Summary: When Robyn's father and brother are killed in the Third Crusade, she is banished from her manor home and branded a traitor by the Sheriff of Nottingham. Disguised as a boy, she joins Little John and the rest of the gang in Sherwood Forest—and soon finds herself their leader. Queen Eleanor suspects Prince John is up to no good, and colluding with Sir Guy and the Sheriff of Nottingham. To learn more, she engages Maid Marian as a spy—and unwittingly reunites Marian with her old childhood friend, Robyn. Together, the women help the queen acquire the funds needed to free King Richard and help Nottinghamshire—and perhaps fall in love along the way.

Word Count: Click here to reveal175000 (Click here to hide)

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

Summary: The Stone City and the Heart Wood: uneasy neighbors separated by the Bluebird River. In the City, Hendrik is about to lose the only life he's ever known, the only love he's ever wanted. In the Wood, corruption threatens the carefully cultivated ecosystem and Dagan's way of life. Two worlds, fated to collide at last. It could be the end. Or a new beginning.

Word Count: Information not available

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

Summary: In one tragic night Steven loses everything: his lover, his dreams, and his sight, but he gains the compassionate, caring dominant he has always longed for. He starts to rebuild with Nick, a fellow survivor of the tragedy, and together they discover new heights of love and ecstasy, and the real magic they can create together. Nick must teach Steven not only how to have a healthy and consensual BDSM relationship, but how to navigate the ways of magic. You see, Nick is secretly a mage, and the longer they're together, the more obvious it becomes that Steven is one, too. But as Steven begins to wield his new--and terrifyingly strong--powers, he draws the attention of evil beyond our world. The ancient enemies of the faerie courts have banded together under a cruel, calculating leader, and Steven is the only one standing in his way. Only Steven can defeat this threat... And he doesn't have the first clue where to start.

Word Count: Click here to reveal72000 (Click here to hide)

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

Summary: Soulmates across time. A sacrifice that could keep them apart forever. In present day, near the village of Ornes, France, Devon works on his master's thesis in history as he fantasizes about meeting a WWI American Doughboy. In 1916, during the Battle of Ornes, Stanley is a young soldier facing the horrors of the battlefield. Mourning the death of his friends from enemy fire, Stanley volunteers to bring the message for retreat so he can save everyone else in his battalion. While on his mission, mustard gas surrounds Stanley and though he thinks he is dying, he finds himself in a peaceful green meadow where he literally trips over Devon. Devon doesn't believe Stanley is who he says he is, a soldier from WWI. But a powerful attraction grows between them, and if Stanley is truly a visitor from the past, then he is Devon's dream come true. The problem is, Stanley's soul wants to finish his mission, and time keeps yanking him back to relive his fateful last morning over and over, even as his heart and body long to stay with Devon. Will Stanley have to choose between Devon and saving his battalion? Will time betray their love, leaving each alone? A male/male time travel romance, complete with hurt/comfort, French coffee, warm blankets, fireplace kisses, the angst of separation, and true love across time.

Word Count: Click here to reveal75000 (Click here to hide)

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

Summary: Can forbidden love stand the test of time? Will its strength inspire lasting love in today’s generation? There are not only heroes, but unlikely heroes, who are determined to see love win. Billy’s life changes in a single day when he meets Daniel, who becomes the love of his life. Billy’s ageing client Chuck has a dark and sad secret to reveal. As Billy and Daniel fight to help Chuck reunite with the love of his past, their own fledgling relationship is threatened. Who will remain the heroes in love?

Word Count: Click here to reveal55,000 (Click here to hide)

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

Summary: NEW REISSUED, WITH NEW COVER ART! When Jimmy McSwain is hired to find missing heir Harris Rothschild, he finds that identities can be altered and lives can be changed--or taken with the simple pull of the trigger. Jimmy McSwain is a New York City private detective, operating out of Hell's Kitchen, the rough and tumble neighborhood he grew up in. At age fourteen, he watched as his NYPD father was gunned down. Now, at age twenty-eight, gay, Jimmy has never given up pursuit of whoever killed him. But a PI must make a living, and so he's taken on the case of missing heir Harris Rothschild, whose overbearing father doesn't approve of his "alternate" lifestyle.Tracking down Harris is easier than expected, but the carnage that follows isn't. With a shocking murder on his hands, and a threat coming from some unforeseen person, Jimmy's caseload is suddenly full, and very dangerous.

Word Count: Information not available

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

Summary: In 773 AD, Roland, a young man of King Charles’ court, was gifted with the sword Durendal. That sword was one of four swords of rare power, three of which were held by Wardens, mages charged with protecting the sacred bloodline of the Merovingian kings. The last sword was held by their mentor, the mage known to history as Turpin. That same year, a Saxon priest seeking retribution against Charles enlists the aid of a mage who seeks the swords for his own purpose, setting into motion events that lead to the battle at the Pass of Roncevaux, and to Roland’s death. A thousand years later, a research group doing excavations in part of Aachen Cathedral uncovers a collection of books and scrolls, a ring, and a sword. As they uncover the sword, they are attacked. Summoned to the site by the power of the magical attack, Yael Mystere and his apprentice, Warden-in-training Doctor Douglas Keith discover the sole survivor – Margaret Prentice, the daughter of the man leading the excavation. A second attempt on her life fails, sending Yael, Douglas and Margaret on a quest for the power behind the attacks ─ a power that has been waiting a thousand years to win the swords at all costs.

Word Count: Click here to reveal54,000 (Click here to hide)

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

Summary: Noah is Griffin Colewater’s best friend and absolutely no one knows him better. Certainly not any of the parade of girlfriends he’s had over the years. Even his most recent, Lauren, whom he has been with the longest. And just broke up with. Does it make Noah a terrible friend if he’s just a little bit thrilled about that? It doesn’t really matter, though. Griffin is the oldest son of the owners of Colewater Properties, a multi-gazillion dollar hotel conglomerate. He is also next in line to take over when his father retires which makes Griffin the most sought-after bachelor in the city. So, another girl is right around the corner. The issue? Griffin’s mother claims to be desperately tired of his playboy antics. She is demanding Griffin settle down with a wife and family “or else”. Being that Griffin has never actually been able to please his mother in anything, Noah doesn’t understand Griffin’s hopeless mission to make that happen now. Which makes the huge charity bash his parents are throwing a bit problematic. His mother is insisting on meeting Lauren. Yep. Griffin has yet to tell her he’s single again. And he insists he’s not going to. Instead, Griffin does something insane. He hires a fake girlfriend. Yah. A fake Lauren. Well ― not fake. She’s a ‘Lauren’, too. But that’s not the point. Griffin asked Noah to provide the “girlfriend for months” knowledge to Lauren number two so she could pull this whole ‘girlfriend’ thing off. Honestly. What can go wrong with that? Everything. Because Griffin is not only Noah’s very best friend in all the world, Noah is also so crazy in love with the man, he hurts. A stupid stunt like this could reveal that very thing and freak Griffin’s parents out so badly, he’s sure they will gift Noah with cement boots and personally pitch him off the pier themselves. But the bigger problem in Noah’s mind? Griffin is totally not gay and if he ever found out Noah’s true feelings? Damn. Griffin would more than likely be the one mixing the cement.

Word Count: Click here to reveal50,000 (Click here to hide)

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

Summary: Two men, one with a past and one determined to give them a future. Mick Flanagan has kept himself hidden since his only lover died three years ago. He works at night, keeps to his routine, has impressive facial hair and avoids contact with other people as much as possible. Enter Ceri Llewellyn, with his constantly changing rainbow-colored hair, who, for reasons Mick doesn’t understand, seems determined to talk to him. Gradually, Mick reveals his traumatic past as he begins to trust Ceri enough to shake himself out of his entrenched routines. Ceri Llewellyn has no idea why Mick intrigues him, but he determines to bring this shy man out of his protective shell, especially when he discovers they share a mutual love of all things Doctor Who. Ceri faces his own turning point, a moment when he must decide on his future. The more time he spends with Mick, the more he realises he wants Mick to be a part of this new life. Can Ceri show Mick he’s his perfect companion, give him the new beginning he needs and, above all else, help him find his true self?

Word Count: Click here to reveal100000 (Click here to hide)

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

Summary: The ADA Chronicles: Book One A jaded man surrounded by walls thick as steel and a naïve telepath who is determined to capture his heart. Can his defenses stand strong or will the younger man find a chink in his armor?  Gabriel works to keep everyone at arm’s length, his past driving him to avoid emotional entanglements. Until he is sent on a mission to save twin brothers with abilities hauntingly familiar to his own and one of them stirs feelings inside of him he’d long since buried. He tries to distance himself at every turn only his boss orders him to train Alex on how to control his ability, putting him in close quarters with the younger man. Alex and his twin brother are held prisoner by a faction hell bent on using them for their powers until a mysterious group of strangers breaks in and rescues them. He can’t seem to ignore the intense attraction he has toward their brooding and gorgeous leader, but Gabriel freezes him out at every turn. Alex is given the chance to find a crack in Gabriel’s walls when they end up on the run together, alone. Dangers surround them from every direction and the clock is ticking. When Gabriel’s ghosts become all too real, he must decide between reliving his past or saving Alex. Failure is not an option in the world they live in and Alex refuses to give up on Gabriel, intent on showing him their pasts don’t define them.

Word Count: Information not available

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

Summary: Sometimes you need a little push to start over. Texan Jon Oliver’s need to serve comes completely naturally, it’s simply a part of who he is. But he’s been alone a long time caring for his dying mother, and now that she’s gone, he’s at loose ends. Needing a strong connection, if only for a week, he spends a chunk of his inheritance for a chance at the AirB&D. Liam Oberlin lives and works in New York City and hasn’t been anyone’s master in a very long time. He lost his lover a few years ago and doesn’t believe there’s anyone else out there who could love and serve him as completely. His week at AirB&D is a gift from an insistent friend, and although Liam is skeptical, he tries to be what Jon needs him to be. The matchmaker’s instincts are rarely off-base. But are these two men really ready for new beginnings?   

Word Count: Click here to reveal53400 (Click here to hide)

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

Summary: Connor Westin and Early Jericho have a comfortable, busy life in Denver. Connor is a lawyer who brings home the bacon and Early is a stay at home dad to their two young boys.    Sure, Early is a cowboy at heart, but he loves their kids and as far as Connor is concerned they’re happy in their suburban home.    When Early inherits a ranch on the Western Slope of Colorado, neither is sure what they should do about it. That is until they visit, and Connor sees just how much it all means to his husband.   Both men agree to uproot their family and take a shot at running the ranch together, but it takes time to shut down one life and start another. Early takes the boys to the ranch while Connor spends the summer in Denver to handle all the details of moving on.    Between the long distance, the new responsibilities, and interference from a not so well meaning employee, Connor and Early have trouble staying connected. Will the ranch become the home they need it to be, or will it tear their family apart?

Word Count: Click here to reveal94000 (Click here to hide)

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

Summary: Dare Buckley has come home—or at least, he’s come back to Palladian, the small town he left as a teenager. After a major lapse in judgment forced him to resign from the Seattle PD, Palladian is the only place that’ll hire him. There’s one benefit to hitting rock bottom, though: the chance to investigate the mystery of his father’s suicide. He also gets to reacquaint himself with Finn Fowler, whose childhood hero worship ended in uncomfortable silence when Dare moved away. But Finn isn’t the same little kid Dare once protected. He’s grown into an attractive, enigmatic stranger who neither wants nor needs what Dare has to offer. In fact, Dare soon realizes that Finn is keeping secrets—his own and the town’s. And he doesn’t seem to care that Dare needs answers. The atmosphere in Palladian, like its namesake river, appears placid, but dark currents churn underneath. When danger closes in, Dare must pit his ingenuity against his heart, and find his way home the hard way.

Word Count: Click here to reveal96800 (Click here to hide)

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

Summary: The truth hurts. But in the end, honesty wins. Or does it? Warren Prescott loves a challenge. He knows how to play the game and adapts when necessary to succeed in his cutthroat world. Tired of pining for a man he’s wanted for months, Warren intends to seal the deal. Until that man throws him an endearing curveball… Be honest. Gian Benedetti doesn't play games. Success has cost him the personal connections he craves, and he doubts he’ll take another chance on a relationship. Until the attractive, younger man with the brazen personality and confidence stirs his interest. Except…someone else is playing games. And threatening everything Gian has worked hard to achieve. Warren won’t rest until he uncovers the new player and gets his forever with Gian. But they’ll soon face a hard truth— Honesty may be what brings them together… Or it could be the one thing that tears them apart. ----- Honestly Yours is an age-gap standalone romance. It features a snarky younger man with a giant crush on a good-hearted, affectionate, bisexual older man. Expect some banter, a little mystery, a few twists, a dash of angst, curious parents, animal trivia, and a whole lot of love…and hugs (so many hugs).

Word Count: Click here to reveal46,000 (Click here to hide)

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

Summary: War made them enemies. Could they ever be anything more? The war has not been kind to Elijah Fulton, Major in the Continental army. After nearly losing his leg during the Battle of Monmouth, he returned to his home in Pennsylvania only to discover his herd of livestock severely diminished and his ability to continue his trade in textiles nearly impossible. He can only be thankful that his horse, Hercules, wasn't killed. As he works to rebuild his life in the ever-present shadow of war, he learns he is to help keep an eye on a group of prisoners captured at Yorktown and brought to town for an unspecified amount of time. Among those soldiers is an officer who is to be given a place in Elijah's home until the prisoners leave. All Colonel Benjamin Edmonds wants to do is return to England with his steadfast horse, Achilles, and what remains of his regiment. Between the battles, disease, and desertion, his force has dwindled and so has his tolerance of war. He can think of little that appeals to him less than living in the home of an American officer while his men are confined to a poorly-built prison in the middle of town. Yet, he soon learns Major Fulton isn't a spiteful man who despises Benjamin simply for being his enemy. In fact, he seems to be a good man, and a gentleman. Bound together by their desire to see the prisoners treated properly, they both begin to see each other for who they truly are. But with the war ending and Benjamin certain to be returning home before too long, do they dare look for comfort and affection in each other? REVOLUTION is a queer historical fiction series set during the American Revolution in which all protagonists find happiness at the end of their harrowing journeys, regardless of whether or not their stories include romance or of which side of the war they are on. SERIES CONTENT WARNINGS: war and violence, 18th century social norms and prejudices (including those regarding gender, race, ethnicity, and sexuality) BOOK SPECIFIC CONTENT WARNINGS: prisoners of war, disabilities from wounds received in battle, death in battle, PTSD, past death of a spouse, past death of a lover, past death in childbirth, references to death of a newborn, mentions of slavery, references to non-monogamy

Word Count: Information not available

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

Summary: In a respectable neighbourhood, on the top floor of a beautiful house, crouches the Succubus; by design, and by temperament, she is all that men crave and fear. To the wealthy and privileged men of London, the Succubus is a test they must pass to gain access to the House of Sable Locks, the most exclusive brothel in town. However, to William, a wealthy young man born and raised in India, she is the very essence of his desires. William is recovering from the loss of everything he knows and loves when he first meets the Succubus. With great care she tears him apart... and he falls in love again. But their idyll cannot last: there is a killer loose in London, and the darkness of William's past is about to collide with the terror of his present. Based on the story "The Succubus" from the acclaimed erotic steampunk anthology Like Clockwork, HOUSE OF SABLE LOCKS lets us enter the mysterious brothel readers previously only had a glimpse of.

Word Count: Click here to reveal89.600 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealAce, Gay, Transgender (Click here to hide)

Summary: Can you leave your heart on the other side of the galaxy? When Wouter, a down-to-earth dyslexic caretaker, accidentally activates a travel disc sent by his late brother, he finds himself whisked away to a distant planet. Desperate to go home and reassure his grieving mother he’s alive, he’s instead stuck struggling to fill his brother’s shoes to keep the amphibian bani from freezing to death. Nif, a bani healer, clings to human music as a lifeline to memories of joy and a world beyond grief after losing his mate. Intrigued by the culture behind the songs he cherishes, he volunteers for Wouter’s support team—even as many of his kin distrust the humans, fearing exploitation of their fuel production. Their first meeting is one of necessity—a human in need and a bani ready to mend. As they navigate mistranslations, killer plants, and space pirates, a deeper connection blossoms between them. Each shared moment and conquered challenge draws them closer to an inevitable farewell. Will Wouter leave his heart or his home? In this slow-burn ace romance, discover a low-angst intergalactic adventure where true connection transcends stars and species. ___________________________ Content notes are available in the book's front matter and on the author's website.

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

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

Summary: Khy is a prisoner and a slave. His life consists of days of drudgery and nights of agony. He has no memory of anything else, yet he knows there must be more beyond the fog that shrouds his mind. When his Master is called away on urgent business and Khy is left alone, a moment of unexpected clarity has him running for freedom. Jaedin is done running, both from war in the north and from his lover’s tragic death. He’s settled in the tiny village of Rosefire, and has finally achieved an uneasy truce with his grief. Jaedin’s hard-won peace is shattered when he places himself between Khy and the band of brigands hunting him. During the scuffle, Khy panics and works the leythe to set loose a spell. When the dust settles, Khy has fled and Jaedin finds himself haunted by something far darker than his own past. In order to regain his peace—and his sanity—Jaedin sets off in search of the young man who has cursed him. What he finds threatens not only his own personal equilibrium, but the balance of the leythe itself. To protect the leythe, Khy must face his tormentor and fight to free himself from the man who considers him both pawn and prize. To protect the man he loves, he must do it alone. (~50,000 words) Note: Human Choices is a stand-alone story that takes place in the same world as Human Frailties, Human Strengths.