Ethan StoneCritiques
Auteur de In the Flesh
Critiques
Re-read rating: 3 stars
Slight spoilers ahead~
I got stuck at 54% in the re-read and I was dreading going back to the book, so I gave it up.
I'm not sure exactly why I rated it so highly the first time around. All I can say is that right now, for me, this book has nothing going on to keep my attention.
Lot's of soap opera-ish reactions form various characters in the book, lots of bad porn flick moments. And LOTS of inconsistencies.
The MC Christian Flesh is supposed to be a hot-shot detective, very young for the position, yet at every step he shows us it's a wonder he's still alive.
He's supposed to be brutally honest, but he comes off as creepy, immature, and inappropriate.
He's supposed to be badly traumatized, hurt enough that he limits himself to meaningless sexual encounters, and self-imposes rules about said encounters (no kissing, no sleepovers, no relationships etc) to guarantee he won't get anything resembling an emotional connection. Yet he breaks several of the rules after knowing the other MC for a few days and sleeping with him once.
The more I read the more I was irked by the story. So I'm just gonna quit now. I'm lowering the rating to 3 stars and not 2 because I didn't finish re-reading it, so I'm potentially missing out on some redeeming qualities I just don't have the patience to find out about.
3.5 stars. Shifter serial killer, small town cop/bear shifter, local newspaper reporter add up to an enjoyable mystery with a little romance thrown in.
Taylor, as is hinted in the blurb, is a gay transman. He has gone through part of the transition, and, to the casual observer, passes as the man he is deep inside. But any kind of physical intimacy is impossible unless his partner accepts that he is not fully a biological male (he lacks the "plumbing"). A previous lover has treated Taylor really badly, making his fears worse, and now he's pretty much limiting himself to brief, casual encounters that don’t force him to reveal the full extent of his "shortcomings", as he thinks about them. What better place to do this than a glory hole. It gives Taylor the anonymity he needs while letting him have at least part of what he craves: sucking a man.
The dilemma Taylor faces in this story is, to some extent, no different than a question most of us have faced at some time in our lives: how much to reveal on a first date when it's something we might not want everyone to know right away. Something we figure might be okay if the potential partner just gets to know us as a person first. In Taylor's case it is a pretty fundamental deal breaker for most partners: he is physically not completely the man he passes as in daily life. His feelings and fears are very real and well-described as he goes through an anonymous encounter through the glory hole with Charlie, a bear of a man and exactly Taylor's type. When he runs into Charlie again and it's clear the man is interested in him, "to tell the truth or not to tell the truth" becomes an excruciating dilemma for Taylor. The fear of rejection almost makes him not say anything, and yet Taylor knows he has to be honest if he ever wants more with Charlie.
This story may end well, since Charlie turns out to be very understanding, tolerant, and open to accepting Taylor as he is. It makes for a great love story, but real life is not always so "cooperative". This short book does a good job describing what it can be like for a transman who may be able to pass in daily life, but cannot have the physical intimacy he craves without fearing ridicule. If you want to understand what that can be like, I can recommend this story. It takes a pretty serious subject and translates it into a person, Taylor, and situations we can all relate to.
NOTE: This book was provided by the authors for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews.
The Lonely Ones by Bailey Bradford
This story starts with a bang – literally – when Marshall arrives at the ranch he unexpectedly inherited from his estranged grandfather only to find Rex, the man who has been running it for the last five years, yelling at him for trespassing. Sparks fly as the men battle it out, but there is a lot more to what has happened than a simple misunderstanding.
Marshall and Rex are opposites in many ways. Marshall is a city by, Rex is a cowboy. Marshall has an education and is a software developer; Rex has worked hard for a ranch he has been told he will inherit. Both men are stubborn and honorable, and more attracted to each other than should be legal. Their dance around each other as they begin to find out more about what makes the other man tick is very entertaining and definitely hot!
If you like city versus country stories, if you enjoy a bit of a fight before all the loving begins, and if you’re looking for a read that is as hot as it is short, then you will probably like this short story.
Racing for Home by Morticia Knight
Set on a horse-breeding farm in the early 20th century, this story is an initially heartbreaking tale of a young groom, Charlie, and the estate holder’s son, Edward. They love each other deeply, but can’t be together openly in a time when sodomy laws made same-sex love a potentially life-threatening offense. Edward left the estate to get married - as his father demanded - three years earlier, and Charlie almost didn’t survive. Taking care of Shadow, a horse he considers his since it was rejected by Edward’s father as “unsuitable to be a racehorse”, was Charlie’s only reason to stick around.
Then Edward returns, newly divorced, and is determined to win back Charlie’s heart. As sad as Charlie still is, he never stopped loving Edward and manages to forgive him. They believe they can, at least, live a life of secret meetings after dark like they did before. But everything is not as it should be at the estate, and Edward makes some shocking discoveries about his father’s management of affairs. Edward comes up with a plan to get them out of the mess his father has created, but the real challenge is Charlie’s ability to trust that this time will be different.
If you like historicals and the challenges men in love faced in the early 20th century, if you want to find out more about two men who are deeply in love but can’t live together openly, and if you’re looking for a read that is emotional, doesn’t look like it could end well for the longest time, and manages to finish in an amazing happy end, then you will probably like this short story as much as I did.
The Secret of Delville Wood by Helena Maeve
Set just after WW1 at an extravagant estate in Sweden, this is a short story about greed, envy, and the dark machinations of people unwilling to risk anyone finding out exactly how they made their money. Its opening pages very effectively pulled me into this dark little mystery – it’s not every day a man’s dead body found shocks me into awareness as to exactly what is going on in a story.
Silas is the narrator of the story, and what follows his discovery of the body is a dizzying examination of each guest at the manor. Most of them have a connection to Delville Woods, the horse belonging to three men, but the exact details remain unclear for a long time. And while Silas is not a detective, he tries to figure out what is going on and who might be the murderer– in the absence of the police who can’t be called due to the telephone not working. He uncovers several layers, suspects a few of the guests, and in the end, when he figures out what has happened, he was about as shocked as I was.
If you like historical settings, if a short murder mystery is to your liking, and if you’re looking for a read filled with interesting characters and dark secrets, then you might like this short story.
Keeping the Luck in by L.M. Somerton
Ahhh, the magic of horseshoes! And a squirrel as the harbinger of bad luck. Then you mix in a young vet and a hunky farrier/blacksmith, and by the time you stir all those ingredients and add a few quirky secondary characters, the resulting story is as entertaining as it is funny. Told in a somewhat sassy, tongue-in-cheek tone, it made me laugh out loud more than once.
Pip may be academically clever, having recently passed his exams to become a vet, but his gaydar and interpersonal skills may need some help. He has admired Rory, the farrier/blacksmith at the stable he’s working at to earn some money for the summer, for a while, but only from afar. Pip cannot believe the well-built man would be interested in him. When one thing leads to another, and both men’s luck runs out, they finally confront what turns out to be a very mutual attraction.
If you like your romance to come with a large side of humor, if you enjoy watching two men who can’t believe the man they admire might be just as interested, and if you’re looking for an entertaining read that is full of quirky characters and interesting coincidences, then you will probably like this short story.
Just my Luck by Ethan Stone
This story begins with two men meeting in a club and bonding over their heights – Kieran, as a jockey, is very short, Sam is extremely tall, and both have been made fun of in the past - before falling into bed with each other. As soon as the initial tryst is over, the tone changes, and it turns out Sam is on a mission to fight crime that has both men reconsider their priorities.
Sam is in town to check the lay of the land, possibly collect evidence for his employer, the FBI. He quickly finds out that Kieran could be an ally, but things are more complicated than that. Loyalties are challenged, principles questioned, and Kieran ends up in more danger than Sam is willing to tolerate. But one thing is certain – neither Sam nor Kieran want to give up a chance at something more.
If you like stories about crime and the people who fight it, if you want to find out how two men who meet by chance deal with the fact that they are potentially on opposite sides of an FBI investigation, and if you’re looking for an action-filled read that is as suspenseful as it is hot, then you might like this short story.
Horses and Harleys by Molly Ann Wishlade
Getting back in the saddle after a disappointment isn’t always easy. This story focuses on two men who have both dealt with loss and decided to keep their hearts under lock and key from now on. The problem is that, once they meet, that is no longer the easy option. In fact, the longer they know each other, the harder it is to resist temptation.
Henry may be a successful businessman, but he is lonely. After losing his lover, he has gone for one-night stands, and that was fine until he is tempted by his new groom, Alex. Alex has lost his mother, was deceived by a previous lover, and has decided to begin a new life – working with horses – and ignore men. Needless to say, when he meets Henry, his new boss and falls for him almost immediately, resisting becomes close to impossible. But it takes a real crisis and Henry overcoming more than one fear for both men to realize that what they have found should not be wasted.
If you like sweet romances starring reluctant heroes, if two men who have both lost lovers – in different ways – sound interesting, and if you’re looking for a read with a message of hope, then you might like this short story.
NOTE: This book was provided by Pride Publishing for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews.
Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC.
*fingers crossed* Please let someone get turned out.
My birthday month is looking fucking awesome.
I just found another great author. Wow, what a story!
Stone had me on edge with suspense the whole time I was reading Recruited. The development is surprising and intricate, making it impossible for me to guess what would happen. The complexity in the plot is a huge “wow” factor for me; there are so many twists and turns that caught me unaware. My goodness, I was left in awe of Ethan Stone’s mind and style.
The story is incredibly engaging, emotional, sensuous, and somehow is also often witty, causing another “wow” moment. There are many moments I found myself captivated with Dylan and Joey’s interactions purely because I kept discovering a much deeper level of romantic and emotional connection between these two men. The intimacy between them is more then just sex, more than physically enjoying each other, and that left me just breathless.
The end is just beautiful because each character’s story is resolved, and is rarely done so well. I was not left in frustration, wondering what would become of these lovely men who are written like real people.
Now I have to go back and start at the beginning of this series…
2.75 stars Too predictable for me. There were parts of the story I liked and some not so much. Some of the dialogue seemed forced and the story's inner voice was over analyzed.
2.75 stars Too predictable for me. There were parts of the story I liked and some not so much. Some of the dialogue seemed forced and the story's inner voice was over analyzed.
What a waste. It coulda been a contender...
What a waste. It coulda been a contender...
Like others I also enjoyed his "voice" and the balance of suspense to romance.
There were a few issues he dealt with throughout the story which lifted this above the run-of-the mill romance. Coming out, hypocrisy of some religious characters, reactions by peers. As one who has never witnessed it, his depiction of the casual hook-ups and behind closed doors in clubs scenes all rang true to me and added that layer of reality to his story.
I thought he did a good job with the side characters, Gabe, Violet, Annabeth, Hillary, Lex, and Kenny all seemed real and didn't overpower Colby and Cristian, but made it feel like his main characters were a part of the real world.
The start was good. Rules did govern Cristian's life.
The writing flowed very well craft wise. A good balance of backstory, description, inner thought, action and dialogue.
The inner thoughts matched the dialogue. (One of my pet peeves when it doesn't).
I'll definitely be looking out for other books by Ethan when when they come out.
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The Last Easy Day: 3 stars. Navy Seals in training, in service, and in love. Sweet. Much better researched than the final story, “Training Buds” (which is also about BUD/S training but very vague on the details).
Love Undercover: 3 Stars. DUC cop whose biker gang finds a patrolman snooping on their property.
Hand to Hand: 2 Stars. Not much to this readable but forgettable H/C romance between an officer and his subordinate.
One More Time: 1 Star. Gay-for-you romance, only tangentially related to law enforcement, about small-town cop who can’t possibly be gay, even though he lusts after a (barely legal) neighbor. We’re back with the bad grammar.
Training Buds: 1 Star. Two gay sailors in BUD/S training (spelled BUDs in this story). Very vague on the details of the training (compared to “The Last Easy Day”).