Books Tagged With what - concept - isolated

Word Count: Click here to reveal88000 (Click here to hide)

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

Summary: When a love triangle breaks, Steven Everett is left alone to grieve over a boyfriend lost to someone else. Surrounded by friends too tied to Aidan's new lover to give advice, Steven turns instead to a broken and beaten man, Aidan's other ex, Michael Rossier, who also knows the pain of having loved and lost Aidan. Steven's and Michael's confessions grow deeper, each confiding in the other until neither can deny an attraction. But being with Michael feels like cheating, and Steven isn't sure what to do. The connection get stronger every day, and Steven realizes he's facing an impossible choice. To make a relationship with Michael work, Steven needs to make peace with Michael's troubled past. Even more terrifying, he'll have to tell Michael the secret he's never told anyone, not even Aidan. With Michael recovering from yet another surgery, Steven leaves to face the ghosts of the past. He has to be certain. This time, Steven knows, the decision means revealing the secrets of his heart and hoping their fragile feelings can survive.

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

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

Summary: Returning to the frozen planet Aren died on was bound to have complications... Major Aren Dalsgaard's newest assignment is to investigate a series of murders on the frigid planet, Drass, where relations between the Treaty settlers and the indigenous inhabitants have taken a nasty turn. A linguist and trained xenologist, Major Dalsgaard should be the ideal Special Investigations Officer for this case, but Drass is where he died, over a hundred and twenty years ago. Sent by his family to the chigyel city, Nyachung finds himself confronted with a murder charge, racial prejudice, and a man who claims to be a hero from his grandmother’s generation. The man could be crazy or he could be lying to manipulate Nyachung, but the sincerity in those spring-green eyes disturbs him more than anything else he's encountered in the foreigners’ city. Evidence that makes no sense, mysterious boxes, and a suspicion that they can't trust anyone in the city drives the major and Nyachung together and out into the wilderness. No one's telling Major Dalsgaard everything, but every step leads him closer to a feeling of imminent catastrophe if he can't wrap this case up in time.

Word Count: Click here to reveal144300 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Click here to revealAce, Bisexual, Gay, Non Binary, Polyamorous (Click here to hide)

Summary: Book 1-5 in the TALES OF THE FOREST series The Forester Kelnaht, a cloud elf, is a truth seeker caught between love and faith, when a murder reveals an illicit affair between two tree elves he desires more than he can admit. Kelnaht’s former lover Ianys once betrayed him, and the shunned forester Taruif is not allowed to talk to anyone but the guide, their spiritual pathfinder. Lost and Found A stripling goes missing from the tribe, and heavy rainfall hides all traces of his whereabouts. With days creeping by without a lead, it’s hard to keep the tribe’s spirits up, more so when Kelnaht’s own future depends on the elders. Taruif has been shunned for almost twenty turns, but now that a possible forester’s apprentice is coming of age, the elders consider reducing his sentence. Taruif could be set free. Full Circle When several children fall ill with more than a summer bug, truth seeker Kelnaht is assigned to investigate. What he finds is deadly and threatens the life of every underage child in the tribe, including Ianys’ daughter Atèn. Then a wounded traveller is found in the forest, left to die after a vicious attack. Oren's Right Forester Veld loses a piece of himself to mute baker Oren when they first meet, but Oren is vowed to Haram. When Haram is killed, Veld has no intention of dishonouring his memory, but his death may not have been an accident. Only a forester can learn what the trees have seen. However, Oren's independence is threatened, and if Veld does not offer what Oren needs, Oren may never be his to claim. Twenty-Five Turns Fear of moving farther away from his family had cost Eer the love of his life. When Kat returns after twenty-five turns…with a son, any hope Eer has of rekindling their love seems doomed to fail because a murderer’s taste for revenge forces Kat to choose between endangering their family or running… and leaving Eer behind, again. ___________________________ TALES OF THE FOREST is an ongoing series of standalone stories linked by a forest world. Content warnings are available in the books' front matter and on the author's website.

Word Count: Click here to reveal90,000 (Click here to hide)

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

Summary: CASSIDY MARTIN is a country boy through and through. He loves his horses, his Lord of the Rings tourist business, and his isolated paradise at the foot of New Zealand’s Southern Alps. Not that everyone appreciates the seclusion he craves. Take his ex-wife for example. The sexy-as-hell guy on his latest tour might be whip-smart and push all of Cass’s buttons, but he’s about as country as a pair of Louboutins, and Cass has been there and done that. Broken heart with the T-shirt. STEFAN HAMILTON doesn’t do ‘outdoorsy’, he’s a city boy, born and bred. The closest Stef gets to the country is ‘Cowboy Night’ at his favourite Auckland gay bar even if the music makes Stef want to rip his hair out by the roots. But Stef is also a hardcore Lord of the Rings fanboy. So, when he gets the chance to go on a horse trek to the iconic film locations in the Southern Alps, he sucks up his fear of the gigantic animals and his allergy to camping for the chance to let his nerd flag fly. But when his mate pulls out at the last minute, Stef is left to negotiate the horses, the wrath of mother nature, and an inconvenient crush on the cowboy leading the tour. City meets country and the sparks fly.

Word Count: Click here to reveal32000 (Click here to hide)

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

Summary: Two men haunted by more than the past. Painter Stefan Cobbe was homeless and debt-ridden after the death of his wealthy partner, but the worst loss of all was his artistic inspiration. After two years of nothing, he’s offered patronage by an eccentric gallery owner and starts to produce again, canvas after canvas. The only problem? He can’t remember painting any of them—not one single brushstroke. Luke Morganstern’s reputation as an art-fraud investigator is in tatters. He can’t afford to turn down any job, even a lousy one for an anonymous client who sends him after an unidentified forger in a remote cabin in Oregon. When the alleged forger turns out to be Stefan, the man he never stopped loving, Luke’s professional ethics are stretched beyond the breaking point. As the two men take tentative steps toward reconciliation, evidence begins to mount that they’re not alone in the woods. Someone—or something—is watching. Something with sinister plans for them both. To escape, Luke must overcome his suspicions and Stefan must trust Luke with his deepest fears. Otherwise they could forfeit their relationship, their sanity—and their lives. Publisher’s note: Publisher’s note: This is a heavily revised and significantly expanded reprint of Northern Light. The second book in the Art Medium series, Tested In Fire, is a first edition. Both are sold together in both ebook and print collections.

Word Count: Click here to reveal17000 (Click here to hide)

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

Summary: Caleb McDonnell lives his life online. A thirty-year-old fast food worker, he spends his time talking in an Internet world where his job and living conditions can't dictate his friendships. He's found acceptance, friendship, and even romance. But when an online friend is revealed as a fake, Caleb loses all sense of trust. To stave off the emotional collapse of his betrayal, Caleb leaves his online life behind and retreats into the monotony of his job. Nicodemus Rokos feels like his heart has been torn out. He knew Caleb would be hurt, but he'd hoped not to be shut out of his boyfriend's life. He can only hope Caleb still feels something when he shows up in person to reclaim what he's lost.

Word Count: Click here to reveal114000 (Click here to hide)

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

Summary: A Slow Burn Meet Cute! Baker. Wizard. God of Space and Time. Cupcake enthusiast. How long will it take to fan the flames and enrage this gentle phoenix? Start counting. What's a wounded and lonely little cinnamon roll to do? Stripped of his psychic powers, Calico Winghorse flees his homeworld and travels to 19th century Earth via his inter-dimensional portal. As a mixed-blood phoenix trapped in human form, he opens a bakery in the San Francisco Bay Area and quietly nurses his wounds. But the unique method of his arrival draws the unwanted attention of Infinity Corporation. Representing this angelic-run company is Agustin Chavez de la Cruz, the Demon Lord of California. Even though Agustin is IC's heir, he finds himself demoted from his duties to concentrate on his new assignment: take absolute control of Calico's portal. But Calico refuses to sell at any price. He is also very busy ensuring that the good people of the city are getting their fill of baked goods. Before Agustin can formulate a more gracious avenue of acquiring the gateway, the demanding head of IC interferes, further complicating matters. So as negotiations stumble along, Calico and Agustin come to realize they both want more than a stuffy business arrangement. However, due to Calico's injuries, the portal remains vulnerable to the darker forces that want it at any cost. Agustin will have to push both his angelic heritage, as well as his own psychic powers to the very limits to heal this sweet baker, who is also the portal world's God of Space and Time. The Demon Lord of California is the first book of an LGBTQ+ paranormal-fantasy series. You won't want to miss a first love found, hidden worlds, and a recovering workaholic grasping at his second chance. All centered around the control of an otherworldly portal. So curl up with your favorite beverage, and hang out with Cal and Gus for a while. You'll be happy you did!

Word Count: Click here to reveal25166 (Click here to hide)

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

Summary: M/M erotica wrapped in mystery A solitary Irish detective and a reclusive Scottish academician…hardly a match made in heaven. Blond and dark, yin and yang, perhaps even angel and devil.  In fact, sometimes Thomas Fitzgerald wonders whether the mysterious Burns is a figment of his lonely nights, a creature evolved from an idealized portrait of the poet Robert Burns. Real or not, the university teacher-curator teams up with him to solve a murder involving a Celtic burial site in Dundee and a voice from Scotland’s bloody past. Join two unusual sleuths at the ancient mound called “The Dundee Law” as two men merge their talents, and more. Much more.

Word Count: Information not available

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

Summary: The truth is harder to hide when someone sharp starts poking around. Grant Eastbrook hit the ground crawling after his wife kicked him out. Six months later, in Seattle without a job or a place to live, he escapes to the woods of nearby Vashon Island to consider his options. When he’s found sleeping outdoors by a cheerful man who seems bent on irritating him to death, Grant’s plans to resuscitate his life take a peculiar turn. Oliver Rossi knows how to keep his fears at bay. He’s had years of practice. As a local eccentric and artist, he works from his funky home in the deep woods, where he thinks he has everything he needs. Then he rescues an angry man from a rainy ditch and discovers a present worth fighting the past for. Amid the buzz of high summer, unwelcome attraction blooms on a playing field of barbs, defenses, and secrets. Standalone romance novel. HEA.

Word Count: Click here to reveal45128 (Click here to hide)

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

Summary: Welcome to the Mating Games on Ice! After discovering the nefarious actions of Councilman Troy, Ricky, Ian, and Joop, along with their mates and Councilman Eagan and his mate, are on a mission to stop Troy’s plans. To do that, they must attend The Winter Mating Games in Siberia. Darby Sellers has always wanted to find his mate. Unfortunately, the summer games did not pan out for him. Overhearing the conversation about going to the winter games, Darby decides to hitch a ride, dragging his best friend, Jayden Donovan, along. Councilman Camden Krill was just learning about the abominations Troy was creating to take over as ruler of their world. While waiting to meet with Eagan and his friends he receives a call from a man with the most musical voice Krill had ever heard. While making their way to the mating game grounds, Eagan's men had been attacked, some were taken hostage, and the rest were dispersed into the Siberian lands. Being the special shifter he was, Krill had little to fear. However, this night he feared a lot. He feared that those taken would be killed, or worse. He feared those left out in the freezing lands would perish. His biggest fear was that the little lady bug shifter with the lyrical voice would die before he ever got the chance to meet him in person and discover if fate had finally shined on him and brought him his true mate.

Word Count: Click here to reveal80000 (Click here to hide)

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

Summary: It takes a brave man to climb a mountain, but it takes a braver lad to show him the way. Following the death of his lover, mountaineer John Hamilton lives an isolated existence high on wild Fellborough peak. When he rescues 19-year-old Gary Taylor from the mountain, John can't accept that the boy may be the answer to his heartache. Gary is seventeen years his junior, confused, and being pursued by criminals. As Gary helps John through his grief, the older man mentors the lad through his coming out. Both paths could lead to love, but are they both heading for the same destination? The Mentor of Barrenmoor Ridge is the second in Jackson Marsh's 'The Mentor' series of older/younger gay romance novels.

Word Count: Click here to reveal80000 (Click here to hide)

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

Summary: "A man with a future he can't accept and a lad with a past he can't escape." Two men in a storm-battered castle harbouring secrets and hopes unknowingly guide each other to an unexpected friendship that turns to passionate love. Julian Ford's life is at a crossroads. Thirty-four, disillusioned with his screenwriting career and cheated by love, he craves the chance of isolation at his rambling home in the Welsh mountains, Lostwood Hall. But when 21-year-old Lee Benson survives a car crash, Julian has no choice but to take him in. Their pasts collide, bringing a storm of doubts, fears, a jealous ex-lover and a dangerous thug seeking revenge. Is Julian and Lee's fledgeling relationship strong enough to survive? And do they trust each other enough to escape death? The Mentor of Lostwood Hall is the fourth in Jackson Marsh's 'Mentor' collection of older/younger MM romance.

Word Count: Click here to reveal80000 (Click here to hide)

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

Summary: Camden Stevens, a forty-two-year-old writer with a passion for younger men, is invited to mentor four gay youths at an isolated farmhouse. His students are budding writers in their late teens, all keen to explore their creativity — and sex. Camden must mentor them in both, and expects them to work hard. What he doesn't expect is a youth like Gabriel, and what he doesn't know is that the man who set up this fantasy-come-true has a motive of his own.

Word Count: Click here to reveal46407 (Click here to hide)

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

Summary: Ario six-four-nine-one is an obsolete synth gigolo—especially when his latest trick proves to be his last in a brutal and horrifying way. But he's only a synth, it's not like he can really think and feel. No one will notice one more out of date synth tossed in the garbage. Except for Elias, homeless and lonely because he's not what his father—or the world—wants him to be, haunted by a tragedy for which he cannot forgive himself. When he finds a battered, broken, long-discontinued synth in a dumpster, he decides to repair the poor thing despite all the reasons he shouldn't. Then all those reasons come crashing down, and in order to save each other from a world that doesn't want either of them, Elias and Ario will have to sacrifice everything they hold dear: freedom, safety, and even themselves.

Word Count: Click here to reveal66000 (Click here to hide)

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

Summary: Dragons aren’t real. Or so I used to think. Oxford isn’t exactly what I’d imagined. Sure, the colleges are romantic, and everyone is brilliant enough to trigger my impostor syndrome. I expected that. The dragon, however, was a big surprise. I saw him on my first day. The beautiful beast spoke to me, then disappeared. I’ve been looking for him ever since. When I’m not on a wild dragon chase, I spend my time in the library. I’d like to think I’m only there to study, but who am I kidding? I’m there for him. Rufus Mortimer is the world’s hottest librarian. He’s strict, enigmatic, and sexy. He makes me feel things I’ve never felt before. But he has a secret. One that could destroy everything. So now, all I have to do is find a dragon, earn my doctorate, and try to not to let my new romance burn my life to the ground. Easy, right? I wish…  The Red Dragon of Oxford, book 1 in the Wings Over Albion series, is a sweet and spicy paranormal m/m romance.

Word Count: Click here to reveal160000 (Click here to hide)

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

Summary: Levi Harris has never had a reason to stay on the straight and narrow. Nothing he does is ever good enough for his family, his teachers, his bosses, his drill instructors. He can’t do anything right, so why bother trying? Then he gets caught breaking and entering, and now he’s bound for prison. Or is he? Austin Caldwell isn’t thrilled about being burglarized, but when he finds himself face to face with the intruder, he sees himself in those terrified eyes. He knows more than most how much prison chews people up and spits them out. Maybe, just maybe, he can save Levi from that fate. It starts as an arrangement for Levi to work off his debt to Austin. As trust grows between them, so does an undeniable attraction. Especially as Austin begins to see untapped desires in Levi, and he begins to unlock a whole new world of sensuality for his submissive protégé. Levi’s in heaven. He’s finally wanted. He finally belongs. For the first time in his life, he has something to lose. All he has to do is stay out of trouble. And hope trouble doesn’t find him. The Right to Remain is a 150,000+ word standalone contemporary gay romance with a guaranteed happy ending. CW: criminal activity, brief mentions of past death of a child, brief mention of past suicide, incarceration.

Word Count: Click here to reveal56800 (Click here to hide)

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

Summary: Being in tech time-out totally sucks. Hector Gonzales knew the danger when he hacked the magic grid to marry it with human technology. He’d never imagined this system crash: A total tech suspension while the tradition-bound supe council reviews his case. He’s reduced to running errands for his friends, and seriously? How had people survived before GPS? Then several wrong turns—thank you so much, stupid paper map—lead him to a remote burger joint. And when he spots the cute guy behind the counter? His wolf wakes up and howls You have arrived at your destination. Getting fired—again—totally sucks. Rafi Abbas tries to give customers what they want, he really does. However, when he gets distracted by the lovely man with the gorgeous brown skin, he screws up another customer’s order and his boss fires him on the spot. With no money, no job, and soon nowhere to live, Rafi has no business saying yes when the lovely man asks him out. But something about Hector whispers home. Obeying the Secrecy Pact totally sucks. To keep the supe community safe, werewolves cannot partner romantically with humans. That rule has been programmed into Hector since he was a pup. But as the day slides from bad to worse to are-you-freaking-kidding-me, Hector sees the moratorium for what it is: ridiculous and outdated. For Rafi, he’s willing to challenge the status quo. After all, things can’t very well get worse than worst. Right?   The Skinny on Djinni is a M/M paranormal romance set in E.J. Russell’s popular Mythmatched story universe. While it features instinctual attraction, fated mates are not a thing. You’ll recognize some familiar faces from other Mythmatched tales, and although the romance—complete with HEA—stands alone, the story answers a couple of long-standing questions!

Word Count: Click here to reveal14500 (Click here to hide)

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

Summary: After Doomsday, there wasn’t much left—a world that had fallen apart. It hadn’t been enough to boil the oceans and raze the surface with fire. With that scorched earth had come a final solution, the contagion. In a world where every breath was ash and disease, few survived. The Imperium hunted them, extracting healthy flesh to extend the life of the powerful. All the while, soaring unseen, the tools of an old order search. Hidden far from the sight of the ruthless Imperium, deep beneath the earth, the DIRE stations offer renewal—an exit from the destruction of the world. Those ships, like a phoenix, rise with the last refugees to bring them to DIRE, hoping that a keeper yet lives to hold open the only chance of escape.

Word Count: Click here to reveal80000 (Click here to hide)

Character Identities: Information not available

Summary: It’s been months since Seth Byrne’s boyfriend ghosted him. Seth is still angry, but he’s worried too, because when Andrew Keller disappeared, he completely disappeared. Disconnected phone. Empty apartment. Abrupt departure from his job. Gone. Until tonight. Just as Seth is beginning to move on, Andrew shows up at his door with a story so wild it has to be fake… except he’s armed with a stack of evidence proving he’s telling the truth. And the truth is that everything Seth knew about Andrew is a lie. Detective Brandon Gaines was supposed to be Andrew Keller for the rest of his life. After being marked for death by the white supremacist cops he tried to bring down, he was put into witness protection. When a chain of events returns him to his old identity, Brandon doesn’t know who he is anymore. Now he’s caught between two identities that don’t fit, and nothing in his world makes sense… except the way he feels about the man he left behind. Is it even possible to rekindle their relationship when Seth knows nothing about Brandon? He understands why Brandon had to lie, but that doesn’t change the fact that the man in front of him is a stranger. Where do they even start? But as they struggle to bridge the gap between them, they may have much bigger problems. Because there are people who do know who Brandon is. And they haven’t forgotten why they drove him into witness protection in the first place. The Truth in My Lies is a standalone gay romantic suspense novel.

Word Count: Click here to reveal97000 (Click here to hide)

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

Summary: Gene Caldwell has given up on love. After two messy divorces and countless failed relationships, he’s sixty-one, he’s single, and he’s done trying. Terry Hanson still believes in love, but after burying two partners in thirty years, he’s prepared to spend the rest of his life alone. Even if the nights get cold, he refuses to go through that heartbreak a third time. At a mutual friend’s wedding reception, the two men bond over their loneliness and cynicism. They spend the evening commiserating… and the rest of the night pretending they’ll be able to walk away from each other in the morning. Neither can help coming back for more. They can't get enough of each other’s touch, the affection they’ve both been starving for, and the companionship they both crave and fear. If they lower their decades-old defenses, they’ll risk more heartbreak. If they don’t lower those defenses, though, they’ll miss out on love that was worth waiting half a century to find. This 97,000 word Las Palmas Fencing Club novel is the sequel to The Master Will Appear, and can be read as a standalone.