2 Cents Blog and Review

Saturday, February 23, 2013

Review: Claimings, Tails and Other Alien Artifacts


Claimings, Tails and Other Alien Artifacts
Claimings, Tails and Other Alien Artifacts by Lyn Gala

My rating: 3 of 5 stars



First up, I liked this story. It was a study in angst and frustration for the characters.

To be honest the author spent so much time explaining humanity to the aliens that I sometimes felt like she thought her aliens were too stupid to understand humans. I would think after watching human behavior and being exposed to humans for years as well as having a one on one friendship between the Liam and Ondry somethings could safely be understood and not need to be explained, while the author explains practically nothing about the alien's society. That is where I found this book seriously lacking. Liam is baring his soul to Ondry who throws him tidbits here and there but we get nothing about the Alien society he is becoming part of. Nothing is explained. There are no reasons behind any of it. Why do Rowndt find it necessary to leash their lovers are they considered to dim to know they are loved and stay or are they fickle and change their loyalty often. Very little is explained about the society or the world itself that the Rowndt live in.

As for the kink, I think it was handled well, even though it is ultimately a one way relationship sexually. For Liam will never satisfy his partner sexually because the aliens don't feel satisfaction or pleasure during sex.

Ultimately the story from a sci fi point of view is a good concept but not well delivered. From a Dom/sub point of view, it is a unique view of that type of relationship.



View all my reviews

Monday, February 18, 2013

Help Me Title the Chasing Seth Sequel Contest!


Greetings Loved Ones!

Today we welcome my good friend J.R. Loveless to the center stage. Give her all your attention and you never know what sweets and treats she has for you!




The response for this book blog tour has been phenomenal! Thank you to everyone who has participated thus far and to all of the wonderful hosts who have offered me a space on their blog! Spread the word to your friends, family, and even co-workers because the ride is far from over! So far we've had three winners - Deb Hansen (His Salvation paperback), Tali Spencer (His Salvation Tote Bag), and Christopher Hammel ($25 Dreamspinner Press Gift Certificate). There's a prize every week and each week you make a comment, you're entered into the Grand Prize contest to win a huge bundle including a Nook or Kindle, so be sure to follow along on my tour for more great chances to win! And of course, this week is no exception!

Today the contest is for one of each of my four handmade charms from each of my books - Touch Me Gently, White Rain, Fragments of a Unicorn's Soul, and Chasing Seth. Your choice of colors. The picture does not encompass all colors, these are just a sample. The charms are made with glass and acrylic beads, have a convenient lobster clasp to hang from your purse, cell phone, jacket, zipper, anywhere you can think! They feature a charm on the end to signify a key point in the story, (e.g. snowflake, cowboy hat, etc.) All you have to do to win is suggest a title for my currently unnamed Chasing Seth sequel featuring Nick and Thayne. Keep reading below for more information on the plot line for the book. I will pick the one I like the best which quite possibly could be the name of my upcoming novel! 

It's hard to believe how fast these last three weeks have gone by! There's been an amazing response and I hope everyone will continue to help make this book blog tour a success. His Salvation is only book one in the world of Deviants. I have two more already planned out in my head and I am certain as I write, more will come forward. I thoroughly enjoyed writing the story of Alex and Gabriel and devising the world they live in with amazing Deviants, concentration camps, war, and hope for peace. My only hope is that you enjoy their world and stories as well. :)

I hope to attend the upcoming GayRomLit con in Atlanta in October this year. Keep your fingers crossed that I can register in time! I would love to attend and meet some of my readers as well as some of my favorite authors! I also have a ton of brilliant swag ideas that I have already begun working on, things I am pretty sure will fly off the swag table in the first night. ;) I hope you'll come visit me in Atlanta at GRL 2013 and stop by to say hi!

My current works in progress include the sequel to Chasing Seth with Nick and Thayne's story. I've had quite a response to Chasing Seth and many emails requesting a sequel so I hope to deliver that to you before the end of the year! In this one Nick is having a hard time dealing with his true mate's rejection and is called to Senaka when Seth claims there's a Created One in the area that is believed to be Taggart, the Created One who'd tortured and raped Seth a few years back. Thayne, running from the biggest mistake of his life, is forced to go home and beg for help only to end up between a rock and a hard place. Either continue running for the rest of his life or submit to the one thing he'd never wanted -- a mate. The sequel is currently at a little over 16k words and I'm aiming for around 75 to 80k. You can follow my progress at my blog with my word count meter; http://jrloveless.blogspot.com . The sequel is yet untitled, so here is where I reach out to my readers and the fans of Chasing Seth for a title. :) Suggest one for this week's contest and the one I like the best will win and most likely will be used on the upcoming novel!

I also have a next installment for Touch Me Gently planned out and started which will feature Kaden and Logan ten years in the future and will focus primarily on their adopted son, Benjamin (Ben). This one I already have a title for... 'Capture Me Softly'. More to come on that later. :)

I look forward to seeing your suggestions for titles and to seeing your comments in the coming weeks! Next week I will be over at Hayley B.James's blog and the contest will be quite... interesting. LOL. Thanks for stopping by and remember comment each week to receive one entry into the Grand Prize drawing at the end of March!

Websites to follow updates on my current works in progress, blog tour posts, events, contests, and upcoming releases:

http://jrloveless.blogspot.com
https://www.facebook.com/authorjrloveless


Excerpt:
GABRIEL stormed into the mansion, his chest aching at the reminder of what he tried so hard to forget. Alex’s innocent gaze and the curious question forced him to think back to the day he wanted nothing more than to change, to rewind time and make it disappear. Only not even a Deviant had that ability. “Gabe?”

Bryan’s voice snagged him midstride, and he halted at the bottom of the steps leading upstairs. Turning, he looked at his boss, unaware of the anguish burning in his eyes. Bryan frowned and beckoned him into his office. Gabriel’s lips tightened into a flat line as he strode in. “Is
everything okay, Gabe?”

“Assign someone else to the kid, Bryan,” Gabriel ground out, pacing the office like a caged animal.

His boss and friend didn’t answer for a long stretch of silence before replying, “No.”

“Why?” Gabriel demanded in agony, swinging a beseeching gaze toward Bryan. “Why are you doing this to me?”

A sad smile drifted over Bryan’s face for a split second. “Because he’s good for you, Gabriel. I haven’t seen you look at anyone like that in the years I’ve known you. Since your brother died, you’ve been cut off, and even during our time together you never let yourself go enough to feel
things.”

“I felt things with you!” Gabriel protested.
Shaking his head, Bryan pinned him in place with his stare. “Fucking isn’t the same thing as feeling something real. Never once did it go beyond sex for you, Gabe. You always held back your heart.”

“That’s not true,” he murmured, sinking into the chair in front of Bryan’s desk. “I may not have shown it, but I did care about you, Bryan. I still do.”

“Not enough,” Bryan replied gently.

Bitterness swamped Gabriel, and the realization that he’d hurt Bryan came over him. He looked up at his ex-lover, grief stricken. “I’m sorry, Bry. So sorry.”

Bryan stood up and moved around his desk to sit in the chair beside Gabriel. He cupped Gabriel’s cheek in one hand. “Don’t apologize for not being able to love me, Gabe. I just wasn’t the person to help you find your way back to who you were meant to be. Don’t let the past control your life.”

“I can’t,” he whispered.

“Yes, you can,” Bryan insisted, stroking his thumb over Gabriel’s cheekbone. “I see that spark in your eyes when you look at him. Give it a chance, and stop fighting so hard to keep everyone away.”

Gabriel touched the back of Bryan’s hand, leaning his face further into his palm. “I miss you.”

“I miss you too,” Bryan murmured, carefully extricating himself from Gabriel’s grasp. “More than you’ll ever know.”

Bryan stood up and moved back to his desk. “I have an assignment for you. It’ll give you a chance to get away and think. Take Tank, but I doubt you’ll need him.”

Coughing to hide his emotions, Gabriel nodded and stood, taking the folder extended to him. “We received a call from one of our contacts a short while ago. Said the boy’s been living in an
abandoned building for a few weeks on his own. There’s not much to go on. Basic details are the
kid looks about fifteen or so. Blond, blue-eyed, skinny, roughly six feet. Extremely skittish. Our contact is pretty sure the kid is at least a level four.”

Gabriel looked over the brief description and a snapshot of the blond boy looking over his shoulder as he entered what appeared to be an empty warehouse. “How do we know he’ll go with us?”

“You don’t.” Bryan tipped the corner of his lip upward. “But I know you. You can be pretty persuasive when you want to be, Gabe.”

He tucked the folder under one arm and turned to head upstairs to begin preparing to leave. “Gabe?”

He stopped in the doorway, turning his head slightly. “Be safe.”

“I always am,” Gabriel replied softly and walked out of the office.

The sounds of dishes clattering in the kitchen and voices rumbling in the living room followed him upstairs. He kicked at the bedroom door to shut it behind him, failing to notice it didn’t close all the way. Picking up his cell, he punched in a quick text to Tank and pulled on his weapons vest, sliding his knives in their sleeves. The sound of the 9mm magazine sliding into place covered the footsteps on the hallway floor. Soft breathing and the sweet smell of sandalwood alerted him to the presence at his door. “You shouldn’t spy on people, kid,” he said flatly, shoving the gun into his vest.

“I wasn’t spying! I heard the sound of a gun cocking,” Alex replied as he edged further into the room.

Gabriel turned around to look at the younger Deviant, his eyebrow raised. “And you came to check it out on your own?”

Alex flushed and dropped his gaze to the floor. “I didn’t think about it to be honest.”

“Next time, don’t go toward the sound. Run away from it.” He went back to making sure he had everything, stuffing an extra change of clothing and the file on the runaway into a small black bag.

“Sorry. Are you going somewhere?”

“Had a report of a Deviant living alone in an abandoned warehouse. I’m going to get the boy and bring him back here,” he replied stoically, checking his phone to see if Tank was ready.

Alex moved closer to his side. “What do you need all the weapons for if he’s just a boy?”
Snorting, Gabriel peered at the younger man. “Haven’t you learned anything here yet? Why do you think we’re teaching you how to protect yourself? To control your abilities? We’re Deviants, and in this world that makes us freaks. If we’re caught out on the streets without some kind of
protection, active ability or no, it’s dangerous. You need to understand that and start doing what you can to protect yourself.”

He roughly unsheathed a knife and shoved it into Alex’s hand. Alex tried to jerk back from him, but he held on tightly, wrapping Alex’s fingers around the handle. “Until you learn to use your psychic ability as a weapon, which will only get you so far, you need to learn how to use this.”

Alex protested, “I don’t want to hurt anyone!”

“Even if they want to hurt you?” Gabriel challenged. “Or your brother? What then? Are you going to let them injure you or possibly kill you and your brother?”

Fear showed clearly in the younger man’s bright green eyes, but Gabriel forced down the guilt, knowing if he didn’t make the other Deviant understand, he could end up dead. “This may be the only thing that saves your life or the life of someone you love.”

Alex stared at the knife in their hands, the blade shining in the dim lamplight. Gabriel realized he still held Alex’s hand and slowly let go, carefully removing his fingers from around Alex’s. Neither of them moved for several heavy breaths. Gabriel’s eyes locked on Alex’s face as emotions flitted over his pale features. He broke the silence. “Sometimes we have to do things we don’t want to, kid. It’s a part of life. No one knows why we changed, why we have these abilities now, but we do. We have to accept it and do what we can to survive.”

Gabriel reached out and gently took the knife from Alex, slipping it into its sheath. His cell vibrated in his pocket, notifying him that Tank sat waiting for him in one of the black SUVs. “Work on it with Jackal while I’m gone, Alex. You can show me what you’ve learned when I return.” He picked up his bag, sliding it over his shoulder, and brushed past the
teenager.

“Gabe,” Alex called quietly. Stopping in the doorway, Gabriel looked back at the younger Deviant. “Be careful.”

“Thanks, Alex,” Gabriel murmured before turning and heading out of the agency.

Buy Links:



Also available at other online ebook retailers!

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I hope you've enjoyed our guest blogger today. Remember to comment as we will be watching for those brilliant ideas for her next title and don't those charms look cool! JR you have to make me one!! Thank you for stopping by! 

Wishing you Love and Butterflies!
Sui Lynn~~

Monday, February 4, 2013

New Web Page!!!

Greetings Loved Ones!!

I'm thrilled to tell you my latest project has finally gone online! SuiLynn.com is up and running. Its taken some time and a lot of concerted effort to get everything together but I've finally got a website where I hope things are laid out in a much more easily understood manner. That doesn't mean that I'm giving up my blog. Oh no. You'll still hear from me and see reviews of the books I'm reading and updates when my next book launch is ready to go. 

The site is under construction, so some pages aren't as completed as others. Come back often and check it out to see what's been updated and what's new. You'll find information on my series books, on the individual titles and on works in progress. For all the latest information and listings of whats going on, check it out and remember to sign the Guest Book, so I know you were there.

Wishing you Love and Butterflies~~

Sui Lynn

Saturday, February 2, 2013


Blue Rose - Available for Purchase


Summary:
Luck and an impromptu jam session bring college student Quinn Yamamoto to the Blue Rose, a small R&B nightclub. He meets handsome club owner Enjoji Tatankata and it’s love at first sight, but no one said love would ever be easy.

It's one thing after another: keeping his grades up and working to make ends meet, learning about a family he didn’t know he had, reliving buried memories of horrifying abuse in his nightmares, discovering that his new lover has dangerous secrets... nothing in his life could have prepared Quinn for this.

Available for purchase at Dreamspinner Press

http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com

Excerpt:
“Okay, Mom, I’ve got it all loaded,” Quinn called as he closed the trunk of the powder blue compact Prius. It was filled from floorboards to roof with the trappings of a college student: luggage, dorm fridge, microwave oven, bedding, a goldfish bowl half full of water with a Siamese fighting fish, boxes of miscellaneous pictures and books, and a stuffed pink rabbit. A futon and frame and some miscellaneous other wooden pieces were tied down to the roof of the car. The vehicle was so loaded that it would be a miracle if the shocks were not destroyed by the time the destination was reached and it was relieved of its burden. Such was the life of the college student.

“Quinn, don’t forget the goody box. I’ve included extra cookies for your roommate.” Tina Yamamoto came out of the house carrying another box full of cookies, chips, and soda. She stepped off the porch steps and followed the curving sidewalk around to the side garage where the overloaded car waited. She had been struggling all morning with varying success to keep a smile on her face and the worry hidden, but she was failing to keep the tears from her eyes. One would periodically fall despite her best efforts. The bright morning sunlight gleamed from her loosely brushed blonde locks and glinted from the diamond-like tears in the corners of her soft gray eyes.

Quinn took after his mother’s side of the family. He was nineteen, tall—six feet, and lean with the body of a runner. He was long limbed and graceful. His hair was just a couple shades darker than his mother’s, giving his hair a dark golden sheen while hers would glint white in the sun. His hair hung in a ponytail from the top of his head to half way down his back. His sister had brushed it out for him this morning and put in the ponytail. They had made a pact that he wouldn’t cut his hair while he was at school and neither would she. She enjoyed brushing his hair, and he enjoyed indulging her. Unlike his mom’s eyes, his eyes were piercing blue like the crystal clear sky on a cloudless morning. His skin was a dark golden brown from being exposed to the sun daily for most of his life. He had a permanent tan that any California beach bunny would envy. He wore what he always wore: black nylon athletic pants with the drawstring waist band and a plain white T-shirt with a cut in the neckband, as he always felt constricted by the round neckbands.

“Quinn!” hollered a young voice, and his eight-year old little sister, with her long black locks and brown-black eyes, stood in the door of the house, her arms overflowing with stuffed animals. Rayme was beautiful in Quinn’s eyes. Whenever he saw her, he was able to remember his father. She had his soft black hair but with his mother’s curls added in and the black eyes that swallowed his soul and could see through all of his lies. Lucky for him, Rayme hadn’t discovered that particular power yet. She was getting older, though, and he wouldn’t be able to hide it from her forever.

“Rayme, put your friends back in your room. I agreed to take Snuffles, but you are not going to fill my dorm room with stuffed animals. I’m a guy, for God’s sake. I would be the laughing stock of the floor.” Quinn smiled at his sister’s pout, but she turned and dumped the load of stuffed animals in the entry and came running toward him at full speed, sprinting around his mother. She would be as fast has he was soon, especially if she kept growing. She was already tall for her age. She threw herself into her brother’s outstretched arms, and he pulled her up into a warm embrace, setting her on his hip. He buried his face into her shoulder, entwining one hand in her hair, his fingers memorizing the texture and breathing deeply to remember the scent of it. “Man, you’re getting big. Stop growing or next time you are going to break my back. Take care of Mom. You know she doesn’t look after herself very well, and with me in school, she is going to need your help.” He blew raspberries into her neck, she squealed with delight, and he let her go. “Let me say bye to Mom now. Love you, Squeakers.”

“Love you, too, Quinn. I promise, I’ll be good and help Mom. Call soon, and I can email now, so don’t forget!” Rayme’s smile was pure joy even on a morning full of goodbyes. Her laughter filled the morning as she took the box of treats from her mother’s hands and ran for the car.

“Don’t snitch my cookies. You have more in the house,” he called after her giggling form.

“Okay, my love. I’m so proud of you. Don’t over-do it. Remember your focus is school, not work or me or even Rayme. I can take care of us. I am the adult, remember.” Tina wrapped her arms around her son. “You are becoming quite the grown man these days it is hard to remember you’re no longer my little boy.”

“Mom! I’m fine. I’ll be okay. You know me. I’ll do my best. You will always be able to be proud of me.”

“That’s just it, Quinn. You do too much. I know you very well. You are just like your father in that you are driven to succeed regardless of the cost. Just please take it easy. Enjoy life a bit. You aren’t young twice.” Tina mussed his hair as she looked up into his eyes. Her smile was starting to slip.

“No time to be young. Too much to do.” Quinn smiled and laughed, then squeezed his mom tight and pushed her gently away. “Speaking of time, I need to hit the open road or I won’t be able to get everything done I need to do today…. I love you, Mom!”

“Okay, my little man… who’s obviously not so little any more. Please take care of yourself. I worry, you know.” She was trembling as Quinn stepped toward the car. He impulsively grabbed his mom’s shaking shoulders and pulled her against him once more for a quick hug and kiss on the forehead. Then abruptly, he turned his back to her and headed for the car.

“No worries, Mom! ‘Life’s a banquet and most poor suckers are starving to death!’” Quinn quoted his mother’s favorite old movie, Auntie Mame, while waving one arm in farewell but never turning around. He knew that if he turned around and she saw the tears that were on the verge of falling, he would never get away.

Tina burst into a strangled laugh, and the smile on her face relaxed, becoming more natural, but her response from the movie sounded slightly rough, her voice cracking, “‘So Live! Live! Live!’” Quinn got into the car and waved without meeting her eyes again. Rayme and his mom watched and waved as he backed the car out of the driveway and headed down the road toward the highway and then the interstate. It would be several hours before he arrived at his destination—Denver, Colorado, and then Colorado State University.