Books Tagged With potential trigger - grief; past loss

Word Count: Information not available

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

Summary: ome scars can't be seen. For over a year now, it's been the same thing. At six o'clock every night Connor starts watching the door for him. Like clockwork, every night the guy with the sad eyes comes into the bar, orders a single drink, and leaves again. He never speaks. Never smiles. Just drinks and leaves. Until the night he orders a second drink and Connor finally gets him to speak. After the brief conversation, Connor is more intrigued than ever – but it's not until a chance meeting after work one evening that he even learns the guy's name. Two years ago, a fire left Lucas with extensive scarring. A year ago, his partner, unable to cope with the aftermath of the event, left him. Battling nightmares, depression, and survivor guilt, Lucas turns more and more often to vodka for company. Until he drops his pizza order and the guy who steps in to help him is the bar tender who has been serving his drinks for the past year. How can Connor understand the true horror of what happened to Lucas? How can he convince Lucas to accept his feelings and start looking to the future instead of the past? Recovery is a stand-alone contemporary gay romance.

Word Count: Click here to reveal11200 (Click here to hide)

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

Summary: At going-on-fifty, patent filing specialist Santo is the recently divorced single dad to a sixteen-year-old with Broadway ambitions. He’s thrilled to learn his new co-worker Martin is close to his age, also gay, and also a single dad. At the very least, they might turn into good work friends. Before many weeks pass, Santo and Martin are much more than work friends. Their teenagers, who go to the same high school, quickly bond. Having school and workplace in common takes a lot of the juggling out of trying to date in Los Angeles. Meanwhile, Santo’s support helps Martin cope as an adoptive father to a niece still grieving her parents. He’s creating a new version of himself for this role. Will his turbulent entry into parenthood open a door to a future full of love?

Word Count: Click here to reveal15000 (Click here to hide)

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

Summary: Can a retired assassin be the savior his people need? How does a former assassin save his fellow humans from extinction? By allying them with mrrogs of course! But that’s easier said than done as humans are understandably distrustful and suspicious of sescurei, the official species of the InterGalactic community. Leopold must convince them that Mastrodai’s offer of alliance isn’t a trick, which means diplomacy, patience, and tenacity. Times like this make him grateful that he has two strong mates to lean on. And when it comes to understanding his own people, he’d be wise to follow Alex’s lead. Alex has been too long away from her family and is thrilled to see them again. But with reunions come old pressures, old doubts, and old wounds. She must negotiate who she was with who she is, while helping her mates and her colony come together with the shared goal of freedom. Mastrodai, meanwhile, finds himself in the minority for the first time in his life, and the constant hostility has him doubting the wisdom of their choices. But he’s devoted to his human mates and determined to see things through no matter the discomfort… or danger. Not everyone wants what Leopold and his mates have to give, and he needs to break through the resistance humans have built up after generations of degradation, humiliation, and fear. He must win his people’s trust, solve the riddle of his parents’ rings, and navigate the new complexities of his love life. Being an assassin was so much easier. Reader Discretion advised: PTSD, abusive family, a cult, MMF romance, dystopian.

Word Count: Click here to reveal85000 (Click here to hide)

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

Summary: What happens when he's your Romeo, but you're no Juliet? Romeo and I were friends long before we were lovers. Best friends. Ride or die. What started as an innocent kiss slowly unraveled and shattered, giving way to years of tears and total obsession. Now I’m back in the small town I call home, staring straight into the face of the only man I’ve ever loved…or hated. To make matters worse, his wife stands at his side, smiling sweetly as my heart breaks all over again. When life throws us back together, cracks quickly start to appear in the perfect façade of their marriage, and I’m left fighting the unstoppable force that is my attraction to Romeo. My enemy. My lover. My life. Some say fate is written in the stars and once something is done, it can’t be undone. But what if that isn’t true? If you could rewrite the stars and unbreak your heart, would you? Romeo Falling is an angsty, obsessive, possessive MM romance that contains cheating (not between MC's). It is not a retelling of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet.

Word Count: Click here to reveal52000 (Click here to hide)

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

Summary: Denial helped Diego survive childhood trauma, but if he wants a future with Beck, he must embrace the heritage he left behind. Eager to escape the shadows of a tragic loss, Diego walks away from the heritage his abuela offers. Right or wrong, he gambles and fights for a new and uncomplicated life. With his best friend at his side, Diego doesn’t want to push the boundaries of their friendship. He’s lost enough and doesn’t want to lose Beck, too. When he finally admits he’s been in love with Beck for years, their relationship takes a happy turn. But peace is easily shattered, as he’s learned all too well, and this time it’s ruined by the arrival of a mysterious package and dangerous men hell bent on violence. Memories of a dead brother and an untouchable drug lord inevitably rise to the surface. Diego dreads the idea that the man he loves is mired in the world Diego tried to escape. But Beck’s secrets aren’t so simple, and neither is the world in which Diego has been living… Tags: deny-deny-deny-deny, Diego does a lot of that, sometimes posturing works and other times it doesn’t, the bat actually gets used, secret love of lacy things, Diego will do anything to protect his family, fire alarm in the bedroom, everybody has secrets, friends to lovers, hidden supernatural world, pining, a villain you want to personally topple, single POV, urban fantasy, no cliffhanger, HFN ending.

Word Count: Click here to reveal89539 (Click here to hide)

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

Summary: Parker Rice breaks into handsome attorney Anthony Swifson’s estate expecting an easy take. When he finds the attorney behind him while his fingers clutch a set of rings in a jewelry box, he fully expects to go to jail. The abusive home Parker returns to late each night to hide from his mother’s boyfriend, Earl Primack, offers no sanctuary from the train wreck of his life. At twenty, he has no future. The deal he’s been forced to accept from the attorney turns out to be the turnaround he never conceived he could hope for. Unfortunately, Earl comes calling to the Swifson home. Anthony Swifson has a mountain on his plate. His ex-wife Claire leaves for a visit to her sister and cancer testing, taking their young son Gray with her. Expecting a couple months of quiet, Anthony’s world is turned upside down with the arrival of his new project – the thief in the night, Parker Rice. Both men must confront the pain of their past and give their unexpected attraction a chance to develop.

Word Count: Click here to reveal45000 (Click here to hide)

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

Summary: Falling for your best friend’s older brother is bad enough. Being the reason his pack might fall apart? That’s so much worse. Toby Spencer has two secrets. The first isn’t so bad. A lot of warlocks can do weird things. Like shift into wolves and make a person vanish at will. Right? His second secret is far more deadly. It means he’ll have to betray his best friend and his friend’s hot older brother. It’s only a matter of time. Griffin isn’t sure how he became a member of the local wolf pack, but he does know he’s not fond of pack meetings. Warlocks don’t gather together the way wolves do, but he attends for his family’s sake. The battle between packs isn’t over. All it takes is one wolfy warlock for the pack to crumble. Secrets at Dawn is the third book in the MM Paranormal Romance Forbidden Entanglements series. It features a nerdy wolf shifter warlock college student who doesn’t know a wrench from a screwdriver and an ex-jock handyman who likes to use his hands for more than just fixing cars. If you like fated mates with a size-difference, forbidden love, knotting, and small towns with a big wolf pack problem then you’ll love this steamy romance. This is a Fortune Falls Novel. Buy Secrets at Dawn and find out what secrets come to Fortune Falls this time.

Word Count: Click here to reveal18000 (Click here to hide)

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

Summary: Dead boyfriends don't make booty calls. So why is the man Tom mourned for 20 years pouting for a kiss? Tom's never forgotten Wyte. The man he was too closeted to commit to. Too dedicated to his career as a rising hockey star. The man who never seemed to mind. Wyte kissed him under club lights and in cheap hotels. Until the day he disappeared. Dead. Tommy's sure of it. Then Wyte shows up again. Still 25, with claims of being a fae. Whatever that means. And it turns out, Tom's not sure of anything. Wyte's almost as Tom remembers. Pretty. Unpredictable. Insatiable. Only, there's a new, tempting fragility too. And Tom can't help but want to heal that hidden pain. Who could resist indulging a sweet treat with a sulky pout begging to be nipped into giggles? Or say no to a man eager to be worked over (and over and over) with rough affection? Certainly not Tom. But Wyte's already disappeared on him once. Tom knows better than to trust this. Tom tells himself it's a one night thing. Wyte's from another world. And the new intensity between them will only lead to a second heartbreak if Tom lets it. Better to keep it casual. If only he still knew how. Silver Fox, White Rabbit is a second-chance HFN romp with no cliffhangers. It features an indulgent former tough guy turned retired softie and a silly, playful rabbit fae with far more depth than he's entirely comfortable with. There's snark and dry humor out the ears, enough spice to make the eyes water, and reconciliation after too long apart. This is a standalone novella in the Fallen for a Fae series. Each book follows a different couple (though we do love cameos).

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

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

Summary: A recent graduate of the NYPD’s cadet academy, Jimmy McSwain dreams of anything except being a cop. He’s got bad history with them, and it’s not a rap sheet. Years ago, his police officer father was gunned down during an off-duty incident, leaving Jimmy bitter that his killer was never found. Now, grown-up, trained in the art of law, Jimmy decides to embark on a new career: that of private detective. But you just can’t get your own license, you need experience. What happens will lead Jimmy into a part of New York he doesn’t know, realizing he’s the stranger in a neighborhood that lives by its own rules. Skeptical about his job is his mother, Maggie McSwain, but there’s nothing she can do to stop her headstrong son from entering this shadowy new world. As a warm May settles over the city, a twist of fate has Jimmy taking on his first case, one that is a time bomb ready to explode. What he can’t leave behind is the memory of his father, and the silver shield which he earned only out of respect. Can he live with his decision?

Word Count: Click here to reveal74741 (Click here to hide)

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

Summary: Kelton ran. Ran from the father who was supposed to love him. Ran from the lover he’d been caught with. Ran from his hometown of Ellensburg and the only life he’d known. After two years on the streets of Bellingham turning tricks to survive, Kelton found trust a hard commodity to trade. A chance encounter with businessman Alex Martinson after a john left him a room for the night resulted in an offer Kelton couldn’t refuse. In his new role as houseboy and general domestic at the Martinson Estate, Kelton finds himself safe, warm, and fed. Though not understanding the motivation behind Alex’s generous offer of college and a fresh start, he embarks on rebuilding his life. When Billy Winston reappears in his life, Kelton is torn between his responsibilities to Alex and desire for his former lover. Alex Martinson also has secrets, including the business associate he’s desperate to keep Kelton away from. With the culmination of Alex’s kindness and Billy’s encouragement, Kelton must face his biggest fear.

Word Count: Click here to reveal38000 (Click here to hide)

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

Summary: Squirrels should never travel alone. Three months ago, Deneb Hartman lost his cousin. They were in a clearing, in their squirrel forms, when wolves attacked them. His cousin never made it back, and Deneb’s world shattered. He never did well on his own, and he’s been traveling aimlessly ever since. Nicodemus Zervas owns a thrift shop in Doson. He’s a vampire surrounded by humans unaware of the supernatural world, and it’s lonely. For a year, he had a squirrel shifter working for him, but now he’s moved on and left Nicodemus behind. But then one day, there is a naked man jumping out of his recycling dumpster. When Nicodemus runs after him, all he can find is a squirrel. Deneb found a nice little forest behind a thrift store to hang out in. Had he known people stayed in the building overnight, he wouldn’t have shifted where he could be seen. Nicodemus is almost sure the naked man and the squirrel are the same, but how to get him to show himself to Nicodemus? Bribe him with macadamia nuts?

Word Count: Click here to reveal45082 (Click here to hide)

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

Summary: Deep passion meets raw danger... Dirk Black, a fist-and-furious undercover cop, knows nothing about lighthouses—except, in his own words, they’re put up by angels to guide seagoing idiots. So when his Detective Inspector assigns him to a solve a murder committed at a lighthouse, the cop is forced to partner with a true expert, his lover Stephan Tavish. But his decision is one wrested from his gut-deep conviction that he—and the powers that be—are putting the man he loves in a verra dangerous position. In his beguiling way, Stephan is stronger and smarter than any man Dirk’s ever met. But he’s a recovering paraplegic. Can he help solve a mystery in the same kind of old stone-and-masonry tower that caused his crippling injury? Or is this, as the wag once said, deja vu all over again? Deep passion meets raw danger. Here’s another facet of the love story, and the surprising metamorphosis, of Dirk and Stephan. ~Gay  ~Erotic romance  ~Scotland setting  ~Mystery/suspense  ~Deep undercover ~Third novel of a trilogy

Word Count: Click here to reveal95800 (Click here to hide)

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

Summary: A year ago, Quinn Boucher was in his third year of university. He had plans. A life. And then in one night, it was all ripped away by violent werewolves who changed Quinn and held him captive for a month. Now, a year later, Quinn is healing. He has safety in the Massachusetts home of the U.S. Anax, ruler of all werewolves in the country. And he has the love and support of the older man fate brought into his life, his mate Malachi. But as the anniversary of his change passes, Quinn has no respite from his memories. If only Malachi wasn't so far away. At 130 years old, Malachi Powers never wanted a mate. Never wanted to command another. And then destiny gave him Quinn. Now, after six months, he can no longer imagine his life without the young man who obeys his word. When the U.S. Anax requests that Malachi come to spend Christmas with Quinn, Malachi accepts the offer. And when the Anax offers to allow Quinn to travel back to Nova Scotia to spend time with Malachi, both are thrilled. Staying at Malachi's winterized island cottage, Quinn and Malachi feel out how it will be when they are finally able to fully combine their lives. But the isolation, Quinn's memories and concerns about the Anax, and the impending full moon take their toll on both men. When Quinn's trauma gets the best of him and he runs, Malachi questions whether he can truly be the partner his young mate needs. Perhaps they would be better off living apart. This book includes a large age gap between main characters (over 100 years; werewolves live a long time); mention of and flashbacks to sexual trauma in a main character's past; depictions of PTSD; one main character consensually commanding the other; and mention of the off-page self-unaliving of a minor character. The book is set in the Real Werewolves Don't Eat Meat universe but is not a direct part of that series.

Word Count: Click here to reveal98000 (Click here to hide)

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

Summary: A werewolf pack reels from the loss of five members, including the Alpha and Beta, at the teeth and claws of Canadian werewolves. Summoned by a frantic call from a young werewolf who survived the massacre, Anax Tobias Rogan, the highest-ranked wolf in the United States, heads to North Dakota to stabilize the pack. But the trip takes a toll on Tobias’s relationship with his mate, vegan werewolf Kyle Slidell. Fate put them together, but Kyle has chosen to part. A request from the Canadian Anax, Silas Creighton, gives Tobias an opportunity to rebuild things with Kyle: A road trip to Nova Scotia. As eager as Tobias to restore their relationship, Kyle agrees. With an international conflict to resolve, a traumatized young werewolf in tow, and multiple threats to his life, Tobias struggles to make time for his mate. And when unexpected enemies invade Silas’s island stronghold, Tobias and Kyle’s relationship isn’t the only thing that might come to an end. This book includes discussions of past sexual assault and physical child abuse, homophobia including a French Canadian homophobic slur, a child character living with cancer, and depictions of grief and mourning.

Word Count: Click here to reveal115000 (Click here to hide)

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

Summary: When life drowns you in lemons, to hell with making lemonade. I wanted to burn the whole world. But eighteen months from the day my life was torn apart, I’m tired of the anger. Tired of the nightmares. Tired of putting one foot in front of the other just trying to survive. Three months on a high country sheep station in the middle of nowhere is exactly the reboot I need. A chance to break free. To breathe again. To find a way forward. I put my entire life on hold and head south to Mackenzie Country. But falling for the captivating young station boss was never part of the plan. Holden Miller might be smart and sexy and push all my dusty buttons, but we come from two different worlds. I’m not looking for a relationship. I’m not interested in love. I’m done with all that. But Holden doesn’t care about my rules. Nestled safely in the arms of the spectacular Southern Alps, on an isolated sheep farm at the top of the world, Holden begins knitting my battered heart together one careful stitch at a time. And with every pass of the thread, every braid of the river on our doorstep, I catch a tantalising glimpse of something I’d almost given up on. Happiness, and maybe even love. If I have the courage to reach out and grab them.

Word Count: Click here to reveal521,000 (Click here to hide)

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

Summary: Binge-read the entire acclaimed MM-MC series! 1. A Dangerous Reality 2. A Gorgeous Mess 3. A Lone Stranger 4. A Wild Wicked Weekend 5. A Cuddly Toy 6. A Mutual Friend 7. A Long Con 8. A Sexy Thing

Word Count: Click here to reveal54000 (Click here to hide)

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

Summary: Zeke Hanson hunts things in the night. He learned about hunting from his dad until his murder forced Zeke into foster care. Outgoing & with an easy charm, Zeke keeps his emotions safely hidden--especially his ever-deepening love for his foster brother/bestie, Ian. Ian Clark is a smart, intuitive young man with his own tragic past. He’s adored Zeke since their first night as roommates. Zeke's warmth and kindness made the foster home feel safe. Ian's platonic feelings for Zeke have grown into love and physical yearning. When their foster sister is murdered, Ian abandons his plans to attend community college & instead joins Zeke on his hunting travels. They can't stop human monsters, but they can fight supernatural ones. Hunting together & dealing with dangerous situations deepens their bond. Hiding their true feelings is nearly impossible, but the risk of rejection and abandonment is scarier than any monster. When Zeke’s life is at risk, Ian must make a choice. Will they admit their love or will it---and Zeke---perish?

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

Summary: Cursed with immortality, John Zebedee has resigned himself to spending the rest of eternity alone. Then he discovers an escaped captive in his barn — the immortal heir to the Elven throne. Ethriel captures John’s heart, and gives him hope for the first time in a very long time. But Ethriel’s captors are hunting for him, and the rest of eternity may be closer than it seems.

Word Count: Click here to reveal61660 (Click here to hide)

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

Summary: The Cold Fingers Collection: the complete Christopher Minnick trilogy Love. Death. And everything in between. Ten years ago, Cold Fingers introduced readers to Christopher Minnick—a reluctant hero with a sarcastic tongue, an oddly endearing circle of friends, and his fair share of hang-ups. Now, in celebration of its 10th anniversary, the complete trilogy is collected in one delightfully macabre box set. Christopher's life may not have been perfect, but his death is a pain in the ass. Cold Fingers (book 1) Christopher Minnick is at a bad place in his life. Turning thirty and newly out of the hospital, the last thing he wants to do is attend a birthday dinner, even one thrown in his honor. When he is introduced to a friend's godson, things just might be starting to look up. Or are they? Victor Polidori seems like the perfect man. He's clever, attractive and interested. But, even as Christopher finds himself falling in love, there are some things that just don't add up. And when bodies start disappearing, Christopher knows he needs to get to the bottom of it. Will Christopher find his happily ever after or is it true what they say? All the good ones are either married or straight. Or they're necrophiliacs. Body of Work (book 2) Life with Vic isn't exactly what Christopher Minnick was expecting. His boyfriend has given him a new lease on life—literally—but he doesn't have a job, Jessie thinks he's a ghost, and there are only so many closets on hand for shoving Jonathan into. Now, with Lee back in the limelight, things just might become more than Christopher can handle. Lee Hellstrom is hitting the big screen after more than three decades and, with the much younger Grant Cooper at his side on the red carpet, he plans to make a lasting impression. The only problem is that not all the attention Lee has drawn is good. When Lee goes missing, it's up to Christopher, Vic, and Grant to save the old man from a most horrible of fates. Pretty Plastic (book 3) Christopher Minnick is still not a zombie. Three months after his run-in with the vampire Marcus Gråsson, Christopher's ankle has healed but his life is anything but perfect. There are people watching the house. Flora's worried about the scarecrow. And after an unexpected tragedy strikes, Christopher will need to figure out how to deal with the loss without tearing a rift between his brother and himself. When Victor accepts a job with Pretty, a prestigious private hospital, to work alongside the handsome Austen Poole, Christopher ends up with one more thing to worry about. While it might seem like a dream job, there's something not quite right in paradise, and when Vic starts acting strangely, Christopher will stop at nothing to get his man back. When striving for perfection, you sometimes need to get your hands a little dirty.

Word Count: Click here to reveal87000 (Click here to hide)

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

Summary: Can a farmer still love the man who stole his horse, and broke his heart? What kind of relationship begins with a passive-aggressive bottle of wine? How's life treating Mac and Tony of Life Lessons, ten years later? Thirty short stories, ranging from flash fiction to 10,000 words, bring laughter and tears, triumph and heartbreak, and the quiet moments in between. And love, always love. Do you have ten minutes, or an hour, to spend with a story? Check out this collection, filled with a wide range of contemporary, paranormal, and fantasy stories to feed the gay-romance-loving soul. (Stories in this collection were originally published on Kaje's Facebook group.)