Guest Post | Saved by the Bear by Holly Day

April 25, 2023April 25, 2023 ~ Ofelia Gränd ~ 1 Comment

Shut book

Hiya! I’m here as Holly today 😊 A few days ago, Saved by the Bear was released 🥳 It’s a story I wrote to celebrate Tell a Story Day which is celebrated on the 27th of April.

This is the shortest story I’ve published so far this year, and given I’m freaking out about not making my deadlines because my stories get a life of their own and get longer and longer, I fear it will be the shortest for some time. I wouldn’t have minded if it hadn’t been for the chasing-deadlines thing LOL

This story is about Frode who inherits a book with Will Tell Your Story written on the cover. It makes him uneasy, but he laughs it off, especially after seeing the pages are blank.

The problem is, they don’t remain blank.

A sentence appears, and it yanks Frode out of his body, leaving him to hover above himself while he’s watching his life from the beginning up to the present day. Since he only has a few pages left of the book when they reach the current day, he assumes the book will end with him reading the book, but it doesn’t.

The book turns a page and shows him the next day.

After freaking out about seeing the future, Frode freaks out about how few pages there are left. His life is coming to an end, and as he sees himself die, he tries to change his fate by seeking help from his neighbour who happens to be a bear shifter.

When I sent this story to my beta readers, one of them asked if it was an old story I’d rewritten because she was sure she’d read it before. It isn’t, and I don’t have any stories (on either name) that are similar to it. No magic books, no trying to outrun death, no bear living next door.

I haven’t read a similar story either, but if you know of one, let me know. Because we tried to figure out why she got the deja vu feeling. Maybe she read a book about her reading a book about a book… 😆

I really don’t think there are any new stories under the sun, everything has already been written, maybe not in the same style as I write, but I’m sure there are plenty of stories about magic books and guys trying to escape death. As an author, you just add your spin to it.

Saved by the Bear

savedbythebear

Would knowing how you die change the way you live?

Frode Hall inherits a book that promises to tell his story, and it does. It starts with a recap of his childhood, leads him through his teens and into adult life. Then it turns a page and shows how he dies in a car crash the following day. Frode panics, but can he trust the book? It’s showing a huge Grizzly sneaking around the garden, and there are no bears in the garden, only Imre, his neighbor.

By not being in his car when the predicted car crash was to take place, he survives another day. But someone has learned he has the book, and it’s showing ninjas breaking into his apartment to get it. Unsure of what to do, Frode turns to Imre. Frode doesn’t know what to believe about his growling and talk of mates, but he trusts Imre to help him. They leave the city in a hurry, but will the book give them enough warning to keep them alive or will their journey end in a gruesome prophecy?

Buy links:

Paranormal Gay Romance: 14,970 words

JMS Books :: Amazon :: books2read.com/SavedByTheBear

Excerpt:

Then the air froze in Frode’s lungs.

The book showed the morning, the coming morning. Frode slammed a hand over the open page as he took a shuddering breath. It hadn’t happened yet. Fuck.

His hand shook as he removed it and watched himself walk down the stairs. The book allowed him a glimpse of Imre waiting on the other side of his door. He wasn’t waiting, was he? When Frode was halfway down the stairs, Imre exited his apartment.

Shit. Frode’s heart was beating so fast he feared he’d have a heart attack. Maybe he was dreaming? He checked how many pages there were left of the book. Hard to say, twenty perhaps. Did he dare read them? It was a thick book, and a chill went through him as he realized there were several hundred pages of his past and only about twenty of his future. Was he dying? He was thirty-four years old. If thirty-four years took up—he looked at the thick part of the book—could it be five hundred? Or maybe the entire book was about five hundred pages and he’d read through four hundred and eighty.

He bit his lips not to make a sound and focused on the text again. It showed him in the office, throwing paper clips into the pencil holder. Charming. He winced. He had to do better at work. If they fired him, he wouldn’t be able to pay rent, but customer service was mind-numbingly boring.

Was throwing paper clips significant? The book lingered in the moment. He huffed and looked around the image shown. It looked like it always did. Hye Choi was on the other side of the cubicle divider, as he always was. Frode hated him—maybe hated was too strong a word, but he made him uncomfortable. He was too good-looking, too charming, too… Frode had learned his lesson when it came to smooth, charming men. They never were what they made themselves out to be. He didn’t think Hye would slap him around if he took him up on the invitation sparkling in his eyes, but something set off his alarm bells.

As he studied Hye, he noticed how he leaned toward the wall separating his and Ana’s booth. Frode leaned closer to the book. Ana was talking on her cell phone. They weren’t allowed to while they were working, and she seemed to be whispering. It could be because she wasn’t allowed to talk, but the way Hye stiffened had him taking slow breaths. What the hell? Was this important? It had to be since the book played it at the same pace it would have—will?—played out.

Frode swallowed. He shouldn’t watch this, and why the hell didn’t the book have sound? He wanted to know what she was saying.

The moment Ana ended the call, Hye stood and strode past the desks on his side, rounded the last one, and headed for Frode.

He missed the pencil stand, and the paper clip slid off the desk and would’ve dropped to the floor hadn’t Hye caught it. Frode groaned. Of course, he had to see him miss.

Hye’s lips moved, but Frode had no idea what he was saying. To his surprise, he got up, and together they walked toward the elevators. What the fuck? He’d never go anywhere with Hye.

He watched the color drain from his face as Hye spoke, then he dashed back into the office area and spoke to Mrs. Lewis, his boss. Hye was nowhere to be seen when Frode hurried back toward the elevators.

The book fast-forwarded as he drove through the city and back to the apartment. Imre was nowhere to be seen, and neither was the grizzly. He didn’t know what Imre’s job was, but he knew he had one.

He watched himself rush up the stairs only to come face to face with a tall, broad-shouldered, faceless ninja—why was he faceless?—who exited his apartment. Under his arm, he had the book. Frode hissed, his grip on the cover tightening.

The ninja pushed him, and he fell backward down the stairs. Frode gasped, his body jerked as if it happened to him now.

He landed in a heap at the bottom. There was a bleeding gap in his forehead, and his right leg was at an awkward angle.

Air no longer entered his lungs. Someone would break into his apartment tomorrow and steal the book.

He flew to his feet, too shaken to remain seated, and paced the living room. A glance at the clock told him he’d been reading most of the night, and it was soon time to get up.

He couldn’t go to work.

The man came while he was at work. Something Ana had said made Hye go to him, and whatever he’d told him made Frode rush home. He couldn’t leave the apartment. Or he’d have to go somewhere with the book. He had to hide it.

About Holly Day

According to Holly Day, no day should go by uncelebrated and all of them deserve a story. If she’ll have the time to write them remains to be seen. She lives in rural Sweden with a husband, four children, more pets than most, and wouldn’t last a day without coffee.

Holly gets up at the crack of dawn most days of the week to write gay romance stories. She believes in equality in fiction and in real life. Diversity matters. Representation matters. Visibility matters. We can change the world one story at the time.

Connect with Holly on social media:

Website :: Facebook :: Twitter :: Pinterest :: BookBub :: Goodreads :: Newsletter :: TikTok

Guest Post | The Misfit by Ellie Thomas

April 1, 2023March 26, 2023 ~ Ofelia Gränd ~ 2 Comments

Today, we have Ellie Thomas back on the blog! She’s here to talk about her newest release, The Misfit, so keep on reading!

The Misfit Promo 1

Thank you so much, lovely Ofelia, for having me as a guest on your blog today. I’m Ellie, and I write MM Historical Romance novellas. Today, I’m chatting about my new release, The Misfit, the fifth story in my Regency romp Twelve Letters series.

The four previous stories in the series, Twelve Letters, Queer Relations, Coming of Age and Gentlemen’s Agreement, deal with the lives and loves of my ensemble cast, Jo Everett and Daniel Walters, Captain Ben Harding and Doctor Edward Stephens and the Hon. Percy Havilland and Nathan Brooks.

Throughout the previous stories, these three couples have got together, overcome challenges and are well on their way to their happy ever after with their chosen partner. Although they have more stories to tell, the next of which is May Wedding, released on May 4th, it seemed the right time to start a spin-off story in The Misfit.

In Gentlemen’s Agreement, together with the main romantic storylines, I introduced a sub-plot involving our ensemble cast when they’re requested to foil a Napoleonic conspiracy amongst the highest echelons of society. As that develops, we come across Luc Gerrard.

A violinist from a French émigré background, Luc becomes passionately involved with older aristocrat James Beaufort, completely unaware that he is the villain of the piece and up to his neck in the Napoleonic plot.

At the end of that story, with the assistance of our ensemble cast, Luc is whisked away from England and the danger of his close association with the disgraced Beaufort. After some months away, he returns to England in early 1816, which is where The Misfit begins.

We learn more about Luc’s background, his motives and his burdens as we follow him to London to continue his profession as a musician at Covent Garden’s Drury Lane Theatre. Luc also encounters Harry, an actor at the theatre, his friend and former lover before Luc became embroiled with James Beaufort.

At first, life doesn’t necessarily run smoothly, so Luc needs a helping hand from his benefactors, our small society of gentlemen. In his absence, his casual relationship with Harry has altered, and this time around, with a little luck and some support from his new friends, the couple might find true love and their own happy ever after.

The Mistfit

themisfit At the start of 1816, Luc Gerrard is summoned home to rural Essex from his sanctuary in the West Indies due to a dangerous downturn in his mother’s health. When she recovers, Luc is determined to pick up his musical employment in London’s theatres, concert halls and ballrooms.
He receives support and even friendship from a surprising source, the circle of gentlemen who spirited him away from certain arrest due to his connection with his former lover and Napoleonic plotter, James Beaufort.
Luc juggles his pride and finances while attempting to gain an orchestral position at Drury Lane Theatre for the upcoming spring Season. Bittersweet memories are revived when he inevitably meets his longtime companion and sometime lover, Harry Kent. However, charming, easy-going casual Harry seems changed by Luc’s absence.
Can Luc re-establish his interrupted career with a little help from his new friends? And might he and Harry find a lasting connection?

Excerpt:

He embraced that unique combination of stale scent, smoking stage lights, linseed oil, and fresh-cut wood that indelibly signified the theatre, together with the continual bustle. In the daytime, the building was the domain of actors, musicians, stagehands, scenery builders, and seamstresses, amongst many other essential roles. By nightfall, the backstage workers melted into invisibility. Then the audience dominated as they spilled into the splendid auditorium by their thousands on a good night, braying from the pit or glittering with jewels from the tiered boxes surrounding the stage.

From the wings, Luc had a view of the space below the stage that housed the orchestra. A group of men assembled aimlessly, taking the opportunity to joke and banter. At their centre stood Mr. Henry Kent, an up-and-coming actor known as Harry to his many friends. At twenty-three, a few months younger than Luc, slightly broader and shorter, he was vital and magnetic, any stray beams of daylight glinting on his thick red-blond hair, the rich colour of a fox’s pelt in this darkened space.

Harry reached the punch line of his jest, causing his companions to roar with laughter. His jaunty pose showed off his high cheekbones, mobile smiling mouth, and a glint of sharp white teeth. Luc thought, as always, that Harry was the life and soul of the party, his easygoing demeanour belying the force of his theatrical ambitions. It was no secret that far from being city-born, Harry grew up on the Kent coast.

He’d exchanged the family surname of Smith for the title of his home county as a loftier stage name. But late at night, when in his cups, Harry divulged to Luc his youthful dread of being co-opted into the family oyster business back in Whitstable. This unbearable fate prompted his getaway to London and inclusion into the lowest ranks of the theatre company.

Harry was good fun, great drinking company, and an even better fuck. Luc should know from many nights spent in his bed when they both happened to be in the same part of town and at a loose end.

During Luc’s second season in the orchestra at Drury Lane, the newly inducted Harry had caught his eye. Given the return of interest and Harry’s charisma, Luc was tempted to be smitten with the dashing young actor. Harry was appreciative of Luc’s appearance in turn, undressing him like a present and savouring the secrets of Luc’s body as a rare treat. But even as they tumbled for the first time, Harry made his intentions clear.

“Let’s stay as friends who have a bit of fun together, eh, Frenchie?” He’d suggested with a confiding smile that took any sting from his words. “There’s enough dramatics and hysterics to be encountered treading the boards to wish for any more in between the sheets. If you’re content, I reckon this will suit us both.”

Luc had to admit that Harry had been proved correct. They were barely twenty and yet to establish a place in the performance pecking order. Neither of them had the leisure to embark on a romantic relationship, even if Luc felt so inclined.

Their intermittent casual liaison was frequently interrupted by Harry pursuing a promising patron or even a patroness at a pinch. He engaged all his considerable charm, transferring his sexual attentions to step up the next rung of the ladder to fame and fortune. Once that goal was achieved, and the sponsor had drifted on to fresh pastures, Harry cheerfully took up with Luc again. They both accepted the hard-fought scramble of theatre life, and Luc never doubted Harry’s genuine friendship, even when temporarily preoccupied with demanding patrons.

It wasn’t as though Luc lacked offers of consolation. Despite Luc’s opinion of himself as too gawky, intense, and beaky, it seemed that others shared Harry’s glowing opinion of Luc’s particular brand of striking dark looks.

Coming across free and easy Harry in the exuberant flesh was unexpectedly bittersweet, reminding Luc of simpler, happier times before Beaufort had swept into his life, bearing him almost to the brink of utter disaster.

The Misfit Promo 2

Book Links:

JMS Books :: Amazon :: Books2Read :: Add to Goodreads :: Add to Bookbub

About Ellie Thomas

Ellie Thomas lives by the sea. She comes from a teaching background and goes for long seaside walks where she daydreams about history. She is a voracious reader especially about anything historical. She mainly writes historical gay romance.

Ellie also writes historical erotic romance as L. E. Thomas.

Website: https://elliethomasromance.wordpress.com/

Facebook reader group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/8308047409266947

Twitter: @e_thomas_author

Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/19835510.Ellie_Thomas

Bookbub: https://www.bookbub.com/authors/ellie-thomas

Guest Post | Chaos and Conjurations by K.L. Noone and K.S. Murphy

March 31, 2023March 25, 2023 ~ Ofelia Gränd ~ Leave a comment

Today, we have K.L. Noone on a visit. They’ll be talking about their and K.S. Murphy’s story Chaos and Conjurations, so be sure to read on!

Guest Post

Hi there! K.L. Noone here – thank you to Ofelia for letting me drop in to tell you about my & K.S. Murphy’s new release – Chaos and Conjurations!

Chaos is the second in the Regency Magicians trilogy, which started with Spells and Sensibility. In the first book, Captain Henry Tourmaline of the Magicians’ Corps had just returned—wounded—from the fight against Napoleon, and in his search for a cure he found a larger conspiracy…and the Royal College of Wizardry’s new head librarian, Theo Burnett, young and powerful and complicated, someone who offers help, but also has a secret or two…and just might be the most fascinating person Henry’s ever met…

In book two, we pick up with Henry and Theo investigating—against orders—the magical conspiracy they’ve uncovered. They have no proof, other than what they’ve both seen, and the College simply wants to rebuild and pretend everything’s normal again, after the War…so Theo and Henry are on their own. Almost. With some help, or maybe interference, from friends. Including Theo’s brother. Who, as it happens, is a duke. And Henry and Theo will have to face questions of society, social class, and their future—if they have a future, with that looming threat to all of English magic…

With this one, we really wanted more action—both magical and of the enchanted bedroom toy variety!—and more drama (familial and otherwise!), but also more commitment, by the end: despite everything, Henry and Theo will choose each other. And we promise a happy ending, of course! And one more book to wrap everything up…

Here’s a bit more about Chaos and Conjurations! I hope you enjoy it, and I hope you enjoy all our Naked Gardening stories—I’m so excited to share this project with you all!

Buy Links:

JMS Books :: Amazon :: Barnes & Noble

Chaos and Conjurations

chaosandconjurations Captain Henry Tourmaline is having nightmares again. And this time he’s not even cursed.

But Henry’s worried. He might be healed — but the healing spell left his lover Theo in pain, their magic tangled together. They’ve uncovered an ominous plot — but, without evidence, the Royal College of Wizardry refuses to believe them. And Theo’s brother, the Duke of Baselton, wants to meet Henry — but also wants to introduce Theo to a wealthy baron, a more suitable match … who might possess more sinister intentions.

Theo Burnett tells himself he has no regrets. He’s in love with Henry, and a permanent magical headache isn’t too high a price to pay for Henry’s recovery. But he misses his peaceful life in the College Library, before he became entwined in cultists’ plots and perils. And now he’s got his brother to deal with, and a baron asking questions about him. And Theo’s last magical secret is about to come to light … explosively.

Together, Theo and Henry will face curses, cultists, and chaos … and their own emotions, as they fight for their magical happy ending.

Excerpt:

Henry nudged the plate of iced buns closer to Theo, as rain brushed the window-glass of the tower. “There’s more.”

“Oh … thank you, but no. Go on.” Theo had a final sip of tea, set his cup down. The rain made melancholy sounds, paper-thin patters across the College’s old stone and neat grass. “I’ve got to go and check on the Library. At last.”

Henry hesitated. Too many words, protests, pleas, snarled themselves across his tongue. Theo had slept beside him, the night before, in the familiar too-small bed in the familiar small tower. Theo had not reached out for him, but hadn’t objected when Henry put an arm around him, trying to draw him close.

Henry himself had not had a nightmare, but he thought that was probably just weariness. A long carriage journey, concern over Theo, a late-night arrival and a thunderstorm as they’d crossed the College grounds to Theo’s cozy home, where Theo’d once taken him up to the rooftop and kissed him for the first time as nighttime lights and torches and stars came out to glow …

“Don’t say it,” Theo said now. “Not again.”

“I know you’re feeling … better.” That wasn’t accurate, or not entirely. In one sense, yes. Recovered from the backlash, the physical exertion. Faithfully drinking Dom’s anti-headache tea. Nearly back to normal — as long as Henry himself refrained from putting strain on Theo’s magic.

“I am, and I can certainly manage inspecting our collections and ensuring that the Silver Scrolls are properly stored and not growing tarnished, and also examining the archival records.” Theo resettled a coat-cuff; he’d chosen pale green today, celadon under mist, with a creamy waistcoat bearing delicate pearl buttons. He looked beautiful, classical, and expensive. “I want to know who else might’ve been looking at those ledgers, and those sorts of draining-spells.”

Henry didn’t want to argue, and did it anyway. “Those texts can –”

“Hurt? Seduce? Entice? Yes, I’m aware.” An emotion flickered across Theo’s face, too fast for Henry to pin down. “I’m good at my profession. As are you.”

“I didn’t mean that,” Henry said helplessly. Once upon a time he’d known how to talk. How to charm. How to conjure up the right answers, often with a lopsided grin.

This was different. This was him and Theo.

He looked at Theo across the breakfast tray. Short, glorious, and stubborn, Theo looked right back. Unflinching.

Henry thought for a second, astonished, that he and Theo did not after all know each other well; that they’d known each other for a matter of weeks, most of which had involved heightened emotions and intense situations; that his heart was completely Theo’s, but he did not even know Theo’s favorite color or whether Theo knew how to ice-skate or might like to learn.

He knew he’d taken Theo’s life apart. And had that been a hint of relief, that Theo might reclaim some piece of that well-ordered librarian’s refuge? At last, Theo’d said. At last.

The rain grew louder, clamoring.

Henry took a breath, let it go. “Your assistants will be happy to see you, I’m sure.”

“I shudder to think of the state of my request box.” Theo got up, collected plates and his teacup, took them to the tower’s tiny kitchen. Over his shoulder, called back, “If you’ve finished, could you bring your cup? If not, I’ll get it later.”

Henry downed the rest of his tea in one gulp — hot and sweet, cinnamon and roses, it scorched his throat — and came over into the kitchen, where Theo was industriously cleaning plates. “Here.”

Theo half-turned, and smiled. His eyes were very green, and warmer than the chilly wet morning; Henry felt hope unfurl like springtime in his chest.