Tuesday, January 2, 2018

9th Day of Christmas Author Spotlight: Marie Sexton


Author Bio:
Marie Sexton lives in Colorado. She’s a fan of just about anything that involves muscular young men piling on top of each other. In particular, she loves the Denver Broncos and enjoys going to the games with her husband. Her imaginary friends often tag along. Marie has one daughter, two cats, and one dog, all of whom seem bent on destroying what remains of her sanity. She loves them anyway.


FACEBOOK  /  TWITTER  /  WEBSITE
iTUNES  /  AMAZON  /  GOODREADS
EMAIL: msexton.author@gmail.com



Winter Oranges
Summary:
A Love for the Holidays charity novel

Jason Walker is a child star turned teen heartthrob turned reluctant B-movie regular who’s sick of his failing career. So he gives up Hollywood for northern Idaho, far away from the press, the drama of LA, and the best friend he’s secretly been in love with for years.

There’s only one problem with his new life: a strange young man only he can see is haunting his guesthouse. Except Benjamin Ward isn’t a ghost. He’s a man caught out of time, trapped since the Civil War in a magical prison where he can only watch the lives of those around him. He’s also sweet, funny, and cute as hell, with an affinity for cheesy ’80s TV shows. And he’s thrilled to finally have someone to talk to.

But Jason quickly discovers that spending all his time with a man nobody else can see or hear isn’t without its problems—especially when the tabloids find him again and make him front-page news. The local sheriff thinks he’s on drugs, and his best friend thinks he’s crazy. But Jason knows he hasn’t lost his mind. Too bad he can’t say the same thing about his heart.

* * * * * * *

Twenty percent of the proceeds from this title will be donated to the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender (GLBT) National Help Center. 

Founded in 1996, the GLBT National Help Center is a non-profit organization that provides vital peer-support, community connections and resource information to people with questions regarding sexual orientation and/or gender identity. Utilizing a diverse group of GLBT volunteers, they operate two national hotlines, the GLBT National Hotline and the GLBT National Youth Talkline, as well as private, volunteer one-to-one online chat, that help both youth and adults with coming-out issues, safer-sex information, school bullying, family concerns, relationship problems and a lot more. 

To learn more about this charity or to donate directly, please visit their website.

Original Review October 2015:
Such a unique idea.  I've read stories where a building is haunted or a spirit is attached to an object and exists in the home it comes into but to live in the snowglobe and can only be so far from it was intriguing.  Jason and Ben quickly burrowed it's way into my heart and it'll definitely be in my re-reading pile.  Winter Oranges may be a Christmas story but it fits perfectly onto my paranormal shelf too.

RATING: 

Promises
Summary:
Coda Books #1
Jared Thomas has lived his whole life in the small mountain town of Coda, Colorado. He can't imagine living anywhere else. Unfortunately, the only other gay man in town is twice his age and used to be his teacher, so Jared is resigned to spending his life alone. Until Matt Richards walks into his life, that is. Matt has just been hired by the Coda Police Department, and he and Jared immediately become friends. Matt claims he is straight, but for Jared, having a sexy friend like Matt is way too tempting. Facing Matt's affair with a local woman, his disapproving family, and harassment from Matt's co-workers, Jared fears they'll never find a way to be together-if he can even convince Matt to try.

Blind Space
Summary:
Captain Tristan Kelley enjoys the luxuries of Regency service, as well as the pleasure of his Prince's bed. It's an easy life, if not a happy one. When the Prince decides to take a trip through the perilous Blind Space, Tristan must go with him, but somebody in the Prince's guard is a traitor. Blind and held prisoner, Tristan finds himself at the mercy of Valero, a pirate who bears no love for the Regency. Valero is determined to seduce Tristan, and Tristan fears his resolve won't last. His duty is clear, but so is his desire. As the days tick by with no word or ransom from the Regency, Tristan begins to question what loyalty means to his Prince, the Regency he's sworn to, and to the man who holds him captive. He begins to realize that being a prisoner may actually set him free.

The Well
Summary:
Twenty years after prom queen Cassie Kennedy is brutally murdered, six teenagers break into the house where she was killed to hold a sรฉance. Haven knows his cousin Elise only wants to scare the crap out of him and his friends, but he’s willing to put up with one of her pranks if it means a chance to spend a few hours with the new kid in town, Pierce Hunter.

But when morning comes, Elise has disappeared without a trace.

Twelve years later, Pierce and his twin brother Jordan are professional paranormal investigators, starring in their own ghost-hunting TV show. When Pierce calls Haven, insisting they return to the supposedly haunted building one last time, Haven reluctantly agrees. He’s nervous about seeing Pierce again, but he’s determined to get some answers. Did they really speak to Cassie’s ghost that night? What happened to Elise? And the biggest mystery of all – how did she know the secret of the well?

Original Review October 2017:
One night Haven, his cousins Linsey and Elsie, Linsey's boyfriend Craig, and twins Pierce and Jordan, broke into the home where twenty years earlier prom queen Cassie was murdered in the hope of contacting Cassie to learn what happened to her.  Before the night is over Elsie is gone.  Now twelve years later, Haven is contacted by Pierce who with his brother are paranormal investigators on television, about checking out the house again.  Will they find answers or will they meet the same fate as Elsie and Cassie?

To say that The Well scared the stuffing out of me might be a slight overstatement but to say I was on the edge of my seat from beginning to end is exactly right.  Is there a ghost? Is there lots of coincidences that explain what happened to Cassie and Elsie?  Will the answers come from someone they know? Or will they come from beyond the grave?  You know me, for those answers you have to read The Well for yourself but trust me when I say you will definitely want to check it out.

What I loved the most was how the author blended so many elements together to bring us this story.  The romance might be minimal, paranormal is pretty much left open to the reader's interpretation, mystery is everywhere but throughout there is plenty of heart behind the tale molding it all together.  I highly recommend giving The Well a read and its a great addition to my Halloween library.

RATING: 

One Man's Trash
Summary:
The Heretic Doms Club #1
After four tours in Afghanistan, Warren Groves couldn’t settle into civilian life. For the last twelve years, he’s survived by working odd and often illegal jobs for some of Denver’s less fortunate. His personal life is equally unsatisfactory. He can barely remember the last time he had sex, let alone the last time he got to use somebody hard and rough, the way he likes. Fate intervenes when a favor for a friend leads him to a pretty young rentboy named Taylor Reynolds.

Taylor’s spent the last few years on his own, working as a hustler, going home with anybody who’ll give him a warm meal and a place to sleep. He enjoys having a bit of force used against him, and he makes Warren an offer he can’t refuse — all the sex he wants, as rough and dirty as he likes, in exchange for room and board.

At first, Warren thinks he’s struck gold. Taylor’s the perfect roommate — he cooks, he cleans, and he’s dynamite in the sack. But Taylor has some dark demons in his head and some even darker cravings. Falling for somebody as volatile as Taylor is dangerous enough, but when Taylor’s urges turn truly self-destructive, it’ll be up to Warren to decide just how far to let things go.

Damned if You Do
Summary:
The path to temptation is paved with a hellish amount of paperwork.

Soul acquisition is a drag, but if Abaddon doesn’t catch up on his quota, he could be demoted to scooping poop for the Hounds of Hell. With a deadline hanging over him, he heads for the Bible Belt, looking for the perfect combination of sweetness and challenge.

Seth is a blind musician, part of a traveling tent revival. He’s cute, mystically talented, and quotes the Bible at every turn. His soul is pure enough to fill Abaddon’s quota for months to come, and Abaddon is determined to claim it.

The problem? There’s the revival foreman who watches Abaddon’s every move. Then there’s the mystery of Seth’s many unusual talents. Lastly, there’s Abaddon himself. He’s beginning to like Seth a bit too much. Maybe Seth deserves something better than damnation.

But Hell’s agenda isn’t negotiable, and time is running out. If Abaddon doesn’t play his cards right, he could condemn both of them to the worst fate of all—an eternity apart.

Warning: Contains a Bible-quoting twink and an irreverent devil who’ll do anything to avoid going “back to the office”. Also, snakes. Lots and lots of snakes.


Winter Oranges

Promises
AMAZON US  /  AMAZON UK  /  B&N
KOBO  /  AUDIBLE  /  iTUNES

Blind Space
AMAZON US  /  AMAZON UK  /  B&N
KOBO  /  AUDIBLE  /  iTUNES  /  iTUNES AUDIO

The Well
AMAZON US  /  AMAZON UK  /  B&N
KOBO  /  AUDIBLE  /  iTUNES  /  iTUNES AUDIO
SMASHWORDS  /  GOODREADS TBR

One Man's Trash
AMAZON US  /  AMAZON UK  /  B&N

Damned if You Do
AMAZON US  /  AMAZON UK  /  B&N
KOBO  /  AUDIBLE  /  iTUNES  /  iTUNES AUDIO