Men Under the Mistletoe

I really liked this year’s Christmas anthology by Carina Press. You’ve got four very different stories of gay men during the holiday season.

The first story is:

My True Love Gave to Me
By
Ava March

This is the story of Alexander and Thomas, two early 19^th century boys that are trying to have an affair and finding that convention and family obligations are quite the hurdle to overcome. If you're like me, you've probably wondered what it was truly like for gay men "back in the day" and how they carried on their love affairs. I think this story goes a long way in helping us understand more about that. I mean, what did they use for lube back then, goose fat or butter ?

Alexander’s breakdown when Thomas leaves him high-n-dry at the country house had me balling my eyes out at the sheer amount of pain poured into those passages.

The second story is:

Winter Knights

By

 Harper Fox

This is the story of a gruff, Englishman named Gavin that’s on holiday in Northumberland waiting for Piers (his lover) to show up so they can spend the Christmas holidays together. Things turn ugly when Piers calls and breaks up with Gavin because of his religious convictions. In grief, Gavin dashes out on the snowy moors for a “hike” to clear his mind and promptly falls down a deep crevice into a cave and hits his head.

What follows can only be described as haunting and miraculous.

The third story is:

Lone Star

By

 Josh Lanyon

I was really looking forward to ready this story because I really love Josh Lanyon’s characters. His men are the kind of guys that I’d personally want to date.

This is the story of Mitchell, a disenchanted ballet dancer from NYC that goes back “home” to Texas to deal with his father’s estate when he passes away and also to get away from his cheating bisexual boyfriend. When he’s almost home, a reindeer runs out in front of him and causes him to drive an embankment and crash his rental car. The Texas Ranger that comes to investigate the scene turns out to be his old boyfriend, Webb.

Webb helps Mitchell to discover that he’s not so disenchanted after all.

The forth and final story is:

The Christmas Proposition

 By

 K.A. Mitchell

I think I liked this story most of all because of the main character’s quirky, smartass attitude and witty repartee.

This is the story of Mel, a nice guy running a Christmas tree farm in rural Pennsylvania.

For the most part, Mel has put his personal life on hold and really just concentrates on his life on the farm and taking care of his sister that just got out of drug rehab. One night when Mel is at his part-time job slinging hash at a local diner, there at one of his tables is Bryce, the former love of his life (though Mel would be hard-pressed to admit it). They get back together and what follows can only be described as steamy.

Mel and Bryce have a very physical relationship and seem to fuck all the time. The author seems to take a particular joy in using the word “dick” and “cock” repeatedly. Not that I’m complaining, mind you. This story was waaaay hot and total boner city.

Rating: 8.0

Chasing Seth

I have mixed feelings about this gay shifter novel. While it’s very well written and has many extremely hot sex scenes, I found that the main character (Seth, of course) annoyed the hell out of me. I kept wanting to shake him and tell him to grow a fuckin’ pair.  Seth is a bit on the whiny side and really seems to enjoy playing the “poor me” card over and over. I wondered why Kasey (his hot Native American boyfriend) bothered to chase after him because I think I’d been glad to see the last of him really quick.

I would have really liked to seen more about Seth’s best friend, Nick and Kasey’s brother getting together because their story seems like it has the potential to be infinitely more interesting.

Can’t wait to see what J.R. Lovelace will come up with next. She writes a helluva sex scene, folks.

Total boner city !

Rating: 6.5

When Love Is Not Enough

When Love Is Not Enough

by

Wade Kelly

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this wonderful book. You’ll find yourself cheering them on at times and at other times wanting to pull them to your chest to comfort them as you would with any good friend. I say this because by the end of this book, I felt like I’d known these characters all of my life.

This book deals with the suicide of the Jamie and the effects of his sudden, unexplained death on the two men in his life, Darian and Matt. Starting with the funeral, the story then jumps to the back to the beginning and starts the telling of the events that leads to Jamie’s death. The main issues lying throughout this book are drug abuse, fear of coming out, being promiscuous, fear of commitment, being secretly in love with your best friend and dealing with familial homophobia. There’s something in here that most of us can easily identify with. So, if you want to read a deep, sexy, funny and often sad novel, go download When Love Is Not Enough from one of the usual ebook outlets or buy a physical copy at your friendly neighborhood gay bookstore.

Wade's Website

Rating: 9.0

I, Pierre Seel, Deported Homosexual: A Memoir of Nazi Terror

I, Pierre Seel, Deported Homosexual: A Memoir of Nazi Terror
By Pierre Seel

Who in the world is Pierre Seel, you ask ?

Pierre Seel (8/16/23 – 11/25/05) was a gay Holocaust survivor and the only French person to have testified openly about his experience of deportation by the Nazis during World War II due to his homosexuality.

First of all, this isn’t so much a gay story as it a human story. If you’re looking for a hopeful, enlightening story about gay pride and secret romantic interludes between the gay prisoners in the camps, you won’t get it.

This memoir is dark, brooding and a bit dry for my taste. I have to be honest and say that I found myself struggling to finish it. The first half of the book is quite interesting but the telling of his later years is yawn-inducing. In the fifties (and still very much in the closet), Pierre marries a lady and begins a family. Three children later, twenty jobs later, bouts with alcoholism and addictions to nerve pills, they divorce and go their separate ways. Pierre quickly spirals into deep depression and stumbles through life until the early eighties when he meets the proper people and begins telling his story.

This book is a must for students of gay history. It was interesting to read about the stealth that had to be employed to facilitate gay relationships during that time. Some may find that this book isn’t “gay” enough. Pierre was very closeted and for the most part, glosses over the finer details of his intimate life or thoughts. 

Perhaps the book would be more interesting if read in the language (French) it was written in.

Hmmm... 

Rating: 5.0

Stewardess Boy: A Novel

Stewardess Boy: A Novel

By

Henri Gustave

I loved this fun, beach-read type book. If you've ever wondered about the life & times of that handsome flight attendant that served you on your last flight, this is sooo the book for you. Can't wait for the sequel, Henri!

Visit: http://stewardessboy.com/ 

Rating: 8.5