| I was asked recently who I’d invite to a Halloween party if I could invite anyone in the world that I wanted. I gave it a bit of thought and came up with this list. Stephen King – horror writer. I love his writing, his characters and the fact he lives in Maine. This is one place I’ve always wanted to visit in the US so if I invite him to my party, his innate politeness will dictate he feels obliged to invite me to his place. As long as he pays the bill to get me over there of course. His house looks so spooky and I’d love to sit and shoot the breeze with the man. I’d insist that Stephen brings Pennywise with him. The clown from IT has to be one of the scariest dudes ever. I have two reasons for inviting this rather malevolent entity to my party. One is that he will scare the crap out of the neighbourhood kids and I rather like that idea. As an aside, I think I have this deep rooted desire to feed on people’s fear -a little like old Penny himself. Not to mention the fact that my twenty eight year old daughter has a bit of a phobia about clowns. I once offered a birthday present to her that she almost had a heart attack over. There’s a gent that dresses like a clown and stalks the birthdayee. (It’s a great word, so stop frowning) The guy hides behind lamp posts, jumps out of dark corners, and generally makes their life miserable as they wonder where he’s going to turn up next. My daughter didn’t like that idea for some reason so letting Pennywise smile at her from across a crowded room while gently fondling a carving knife sounds like a great substitute. (Uhhmm, she doesn’t seem to like that idea either. But who cares. It amuses me.)So that’s two party goers taken care of. My next guest would be the incredibly talented chef Hannibal Lecter. The young Hannibal is pretty yummy, but Mr. Hopkins would be a delight too. Hannibal is a man of great discernment, witty conversation and he’s remarkably intelligent. He’s dapper, well spoken and honestly, any hostess should be privileged to have him. I’d sit him next to someone I really didn’t like and watch the chemistry between them ignite. I hope nothing else develops though, like a torn out liver in a state of being flambéed and served with a nice cranberry coulis.I need a lady guest or two to balance this out. So I say a warm welcome to Nurse Ratched, she from ‘One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest.’ Unfortunately she won’t be able to say anything back as her vocal cords were irreparably damaged when Randle McMurphy tried to choke her to death. But I’ll put a pen and notepad at the side of her table setting and she can at least have a conversation that way. She promised she would bring her little black bag of drugs with her in case any of the other guests got out of hand. And of course no Halloween party would be complete without the loveliness of Bellatrix Lestrade, the loveable, psychotic pure bred witch and Death Eater from the Harry Potter series. Her Gothic beauty and her sadistic and violent tendencies, coupled with her narcissistic tendencies would fit in really well with the other dinner guests. She and Hannibal could trade cooking recipes perhaps, while Pennywise could nuzzle her lovely neck with his rather large teeth. Stephen would be sitting observing the character interplay for his next book, and Nurse Ratched would probably be trying to bully and intimidate all the dinner guests. I’m guessing though that this would be quite a feat to achieve… And of course, there would be me, Hostess Extraordinaire, watching the casual interaction between my dinner guests with a fond smile and a very large gun held in my hand under the table. The weapon would be necessary in case any of the humans decided to turn on me. Of course, I’d need a couple of magic spells, an incantation or two and the Ritual of Chüd. (Google this if you’re not sure what the hell I’m on about and you’ll find out which character it can kill) I would wine and dine these guests, listen avidly to their stories, laugh at their jokes and then set them loose on an unsuspecting public. After all, it is Halloween. People expect to have the bejesus scared out of them and I think my dinner guests will do this admirably. I look forward to seeing you all at the next one on the 31st October 2014. Come along and join the fun. I think you’ll enjoy yourselves. Oh, and leave the children at home. Just in case. You know how IT loves little kiddies. |
| If you haven’t already been introduced to this series, may I do so now? These are diverse stories about men from all walks of life and you’re sure to find a character – or two – to fall in love with. |
| THE MEN OF LONDON SERIES Book 1 – Love You Senseless is Gideon and Eddie’s story. Set in a swanky restaurant called Galileos, owned by chef Gideon Kent, when the clumsy yet adorable Eddie Tripp joins Gideon’s team, he’s lost. He wants the man, and yet, Gideon’s issues stem deep and he’s such a grump that surely no one could want him. Eddie, however, has his own ideas and he’s a man who knows what he wants. And that’s Gideon. Book 2 – Sight and Sinners – Draven Samuels knows what grief is and in some ways, it formed his character to make him the suspicious, driven character he is. When he meets a psychic, sexy man called Taylor Abelard again, Draven is determined to give him a wide berth. However, falling in love might not have been on his dance card, but even he can see where things are headed… Book 3 – Suit Yourself is Leslie and Oliver’s story. Set in the fashion industry, Leslie Scott meets Oliver Brown when delivering a suit for him one day. He is thrilled to discover Oliver is actually Nicky Starr, one of Leslie’s favourite porn stars, who mysteriously disappeared from the scene a few years ago. There was a reason for that; you’ll have to read the book to find out. Think Beauty and the Beast retold…*winks* Leslie’s boss, (aka Laverne Debussy-Smith) is also introduced in this book. Book 4 – Feat of Clay – you met Draven’s boss, Clay Mortimer in Sight and Sinners. Now it’s time to tell his story. He’s been in a long term relationship with the love of life, Tate Williams. Clay doesn’t advertise his relationship with Tate; it’s secret, like the man himself. Tate was horribly traumatised in a shocking incident when he was a police detective. He’s now withdrawn, damaged and depressed. It takes all Clay’s love and patience to get his man back into the world. Check out the spin-off series, Fetish Alley, featuring Clay and Tate together solving strange mysteries Book 5 – Cross to Bare Lenny James loves his cross-dressing daytime persona as the ebullient and flamboyant Laverne Debussy-Smith. He is a talented fashion designer and this alter ego works for him at the fashion house. At home, he relaxes and enjoys being his own man. He wears sweats and tee shirts and embraces who he is. When he meets the staid and unimaginative but undeniably gorgeous and sexy Brook Martins, he thinks he’s found his dream man. The sparks fly but unfortunately, Brook doesn’t know about Laverne and Lenny isn’t really sure how to break the news…. Book 6 – Flying Solo We meet Maxwell Lewis first in Suit Yourself. Maxwell is a high flying air steward in every sense of the word. His self-titled nickname is Solo, because ‘ he flies alone and never does the same man twice’. When he meets Gibson Henry, he gets the first inkling that there is perhaps a man he can settle down with. It puts him all out of kilter and that doesn’t make a happy Maxwell. Gibson, however, has other ideas. He likes Maxwell well enough and all the overnight non-stop sex is great but he’s not ready to commit or think about any sort of relationship. It looks like Max has met his match… Book 7 – Damaged Goods – Jackson Grady may be blind but he knows a gorgeous man when he sees one. When Dare Rowan steals into Jax’s house to return something stolen by his younger brother, they meet and instantaneous sparks fly. It’ll take a long of nurturing and romancing from Dare to allow Jax to let his guard down and finally see how appealing he can be, despite his insecurities. Book 8 – Hard Climate – all Ryan Bishop wants in life is a loving man in his bed, a little future security, his life as a drag queen and a chance to have a warm and loving relationship. Mango Munro kind of wants that too, but it’s hard to do when you’re travelling around saving the world from itself. As an eco-warrior, Mango’s love of Mother Earth has claims on him and Mango’s fear of commitment isn’t helping either. It’s going to take more than an act of nature to make sure they both get their happy ever after. Book 9 – Survival Game – Kyle Tripper runs Club Delish, a nightclub sought after by nightclubbers and drag queens alike. He’s a man used to gambling on life and when he meets sexy paramedic Eric Kirby, it’s one roll of the dice he thinks may have luck in it after all. Life, however, is great at throwing curveballs and one roll of the casino wheel the wrong way leaves Ryan vulnerable and not so sure he’s going to see the game finish. Book 10- Not So Secret Santa – Leslie Scott is a man on a mission and come hell or high water, he’s going to make the best marriage proposal a man ever had. Oliver Scott, Leslie’s intended new fiancé, is used to handling and loving Leslie, but the epic proposal Leslie stages leaves him in tears – both in laughter and in love. |
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| Put your feet in the sand and jump into the fixer upper on Lovers Lane! Jade is a Los Angeles real estate agent who loves everything about her life except her small and dingy apartment. She has a wonderful writer friend Livvie who always manages to bring out the best in her even on her worst days. Jade’s life takes an interesting turn when she receives a phone call from her cousin, Olivia letting her know that her beloved aunt, Isabel passed away. Jade is now the proud new owner of the house on Lover’s Lane in Santa Cruz where she used to spend her childhood with her aunt Isabel, splashing in the ocean and reading books languidly on the front porch. Traveling to the hardware shop, Jade gets into a fender bender, bringing her face to face with her teenage crush. Will Jade find true love in the arms of Jacob, her young love interest turned sexy, confident police officer? Will she be able to restore the house on Lover’s Lane to its former glory or is it too much for even her? |
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| Xanran, a dragon shifter, works for a Black Market boss. Can he trust him enough to let himself go? A dark plot casts a shadow and Xanran needs to uncover the truth about his lover and about his own desires. This is a prequel short story for the Trial of Submission series and you can expect steamy M/M and dominance/submission. |
I hope you all have a fabulous Halloween and make the most of the trick or treating
Boo!! Are you ready for the scary season?