JL Merrow

…over at Ethan Day’s Gay Day, where I’ll be chatting and posting excerpts from Winter Warmers, Wight Mischief and Camwolf  today – and you’ll have a chance to win a copy of each of them!

And I’m not the only one offering early Christmas pressies – here’s just a selection of the fabulous goodies on offer:

Hope to see you there!

Clare London’s Lucky Dip was fun, Chrissy Munder’s Butterscotch Kisses was sweet, Lou Harper’s Wintertide was touching, Josephine Myles’ When In Amsterdam… was daring, and J.L. Merrow’s A Pint of Beer, a Bag of Chips, and Thou was charming. I liked every single one of these novellas and I want to read more by every single one of these authors…I thoroughly recommend this book.  Rated 4.5 – Brie, at Romance Around the Corner

This collection is exactly what I wanted to get me in the mood for the upcoming Holidays and it’s short, sweet, and to the point. – Kassa, at Three a.m.

And if you’d like to read about the Winter Warmers authors’ favourite winter warmers, and be in with a chance to win a copy of the book, head straight on over to Coffee and Porn in the Morning!

…in Elisa Rolle’s Rainbow Awards (the best gay paranormal/horror category)

Loved this book. It’s the first time I’ve read this author, will have to read more. –Anne

…which is rather better than a poke in the eye with a sharp stick! 

Taken for a ride by the hook-up from hell – literally

It’s midnight in Berlin, and drifter Leon is hitchhiking home in the rain after a festival in the city park.  When he’s picked up by a good looking man in a Porsche, Leon thinks it’s his lucky night.  But Christoph is hiding a dark secret: he’s a werewolf. Not only that, he thinks Leon is one too.  By the time Christoph realizes his mistake, it’s too late for both of them.  While Leon’s life changes drastically, Christoph disappears.

As Leon struggles to cope with his new reality—and his feelings for the man who bit him—he’s desperate to discover not only what’s happened to Christoph, but the secrets their pack leader is hiding from them all.

Secrets the pack will kill to protect.

***

Due out in ebook 21st February 2012 .
Available to pre-order now from Samhain Publishing (where you can read an excerpt), on Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk.

Starting tomorrow, Speak its Name will be celebrating the run-up to Christmas with an advent calendar of posts from group members, featuring fiction and non-fiction – and FREEBIES!

Amongst the goodies will be a brand new historical short story from me, and I’ll be offering a $10 Samhain gift certificate to one lucky commenter!

As it’s an advent calendar, I can’t tell you when my entry will appear – just click on a snowflake every day to see what’s behind it!  Good luck!

Marcus and Will together are sweet, endearing, and funny…Will thinks Marcus is beautiful, Marcus loves how safe he feels with Will… if readers like mystery that’s more like suspense, actually, with a lot of Gothic thrown in, with their romance, they’ll probably jump all over this. Grade B-  Sarah F at Dear Author

And now for the bad news: Sarah doesn’t like mysteries, and had some issues with the characters:

it felt to me like the characters were being pushed to act in or even to BE certain ways in order to fulfill the Gothic conventions and requirements

If I’m totally honest, I think this credits me with more knowledge of the Gothic novel form than I in fact possess, at least consciously – although I’ve never actually studied the Gothic novel (having frittered my time at university away studying physics) I’m a huge Ann Radcliffe fan, and have read and re-read all her books. The Italian is my fave, because of its complex villain. So I guess Wight Mischief owes its Gothic tendencies to Ms Radcliffe.

Still, so far the comments to the review have been universally positive about the book!

If there’s a time of year to allow oneself to believe in the promise of love and romance, it’s the holiday season, and these five contributing authors deliver that magic beautifully in Winter Warmers, a collection of short stories that range from poignant to comical to sexy to just a little bit kinky, but will surely make you believe there’s something special about this time of year…If you’re in the mood for a yummy yuletide collection, Winter Warmers just might be the perfect holiday treat. – rated 4.5. Lisa, at Top 2 Bottom Reviews

And may I be permitted a small extra squee over what the lovely Lisa said about my story?

a wonderfully clever story told by Liam, a mohawked punk with more charm and wit than anyone has a right to have

I’m delighted to say Winter Warmers is now available to purchase from Smashwords,  Amazon.co.uk, Amazon.com and ARe (where you can read an excerpt from my story). We’ll be over at Well Read today to celebrate, but in the meantime, here’s the blurb:

Baby, it’s cold outside! Beat the chill with WINTER WARMERS – a seasonal anthology

Mulled wine. Butterscotch kisses. Hideous sweaters. Candy at the beach, or a trip to a sex shop in Amsterdam. And the man of your dreams, wrapped around you… 

Winter warmers come in many shapes and sizes, from the tongue-in-cheek to the hot-as-hell. Enjoy a quintet of heart-warming tales of men loving men from Clare London, Chrissy Munder, JL Merrow, Josephine Myles, and Lou Harper that are guaranteed to leave you with a smile on your face.

One thing’s for sure—it’s going to be a red-hot Christmas!

Lucky Dip by Clare London
Andy Jackson always knew that class 2C’s help in preparing for the annual Christmas Fair would be a mixed blessing. Then he’s paired up on the Lucky Dip with Greg, the man who dumped him but now can’t keep away, the pupils are either lecturing him on his lovelife or losing bladder control, and no one’s fixed the broken handle on the storage room. It may all be one whoopee cushion too far for him. 

Butterscotch Kisses by Chrissy Munder
Matthew Morrison is determined to conquer his fear of heights and achieve a winning outcome. At least, that’s what the best-selling, self-help book he’s listening to promises. Being stuck on a three-story tower in the middle of a snowstorm wasn’t part of the plan. With no St. Bernard in sight, it’s Cute Ticket Guy Adam to the rescue, and an outcome Matthew never anticipated.

Wintertide by Lou Harper
May meets December when Jem and Oscar chance on each other at the Santa Monica Pier, only weeks before Christmas. The two men are separated by age, social status, and their taste in candy, yet if they are both naughty and nice, they might just find holiday cheer together.

When in Amsterdam… by Josephine Myles
Brandon is on his first visit to new boyfriend Jos’s home country, just in time for their Sinterklaas celebrations. But an unexpected detour into a sex shop leads Brandon to new discoveries about himself, and a whole new dynamic to their relationship. The weather may be cold and damp, but Brandon and Jos soon heat things up!

A Pint of Beer, a Bag of Chips, and Thou by JL Merrow
What’s the best gift a young man could get for Christmas? Mohawked saxophonist Liam wouldn’t have picked the hideous collection of knitwear he’s presented with by his mum and his aunties. He’d rather have the gorgeous older man he sees every day while busking at King’s Cross. But with a little Christmas magic in the air, maybe those garish garments are just the thing for attracting a silver fox…

To celebrate, we’re planning a series of blog posts and chats – you can find out the details here.

Hope to see you along at some of them!

…is what I’m rambling on about over at Josephine Myles’ blog, here.  Why not pop on over to see my thoughts about why nasty goings-on happen in the nicest places?

And while you’re there,  be sure to check Jo’s past blog posts for contests, cocktail recipes and some good old vintage smut!  If you don’t already follow her highly entertaining blog, you’ll want to once you’ve seen it!  ;D

Yup – the Wight Mischief blog toddle is at an end, and so it’s time to announce who has Won the Wight!

(actually, it was time a while ago, but Death in Paradise was on)

And the winner is

*drumroll*

… diannakay!

She wins this shiny Isle of Wight charm:

Congrats to diannakay, and thanks to everyone who commented on my blog posts!