Waiting For Wentworth

Waiting on Wednesday (448) Fakers by Lucy Lennox and May Archer

Expected publication: June 30th 2020

Genre: M/M, Romance

Waiting On Wednesday is a weekly event that is hosted by Tressa at Wishful Endings
that spotlights upcoming releases that we are eagerly anticipating.
(WoW was previously hosted by Breaking The Spine.)

This my favorite day of the week because I love sharing and discovering new books.

Synopsis from Goodreads:

Brooks Johnson’s Words To Live By:

When returning to Licking Thicket, TN, for the first time in ten years to reunite with your nosy neighbors, heart-broken ex-girlfriend, and matchmaking mama who never quite believed you were gay, it’s best to bring a fake boyfriend as backup...

Just don’t be surprised when your ex-girlfriend does the same.

And when her incredibly hot fake boyfriend becomes the one island of calm in a sea of bovine-based insanity, it’s best to exercise caution… especially when he pushes you up against the rough barn wall to check you very thoroughly for splinters...

Just don’t be surprised if you fall head-over-hooves in love with him.

I've previously read long running series by both of these authors, so I'm hoping that I like this collaboration. This sounds like it possibly could be fun? Let's hope so!

What are you waiting on this week?

Secret at Skull House
(Secrets and Scrabble #2) by Josh Lanyon

Published April 28th 2020 by JustJoshin Publishing, Inc.

Genre: M/M, Mystery, Romance

Amazon

Synopsis from Goodreads:

Ellery Page is back--and in hot water again!

Unlike everyone else in Pirate's Cove, Ellery Page, aspiring screenwriter, reigning Scrabble champion, and occasionally clueless owner of the village's only mystery bookstore, is anything but thrilled when famed horror author Brandon Abbott announces he's purchased legendary Skull House and plans to live there permanently.

Ellery and Brandon have history. Their relationship ended badly and the last thing Ellery wants is a chance to patch things up--especially when his relationship with Police Chief Jack Carson is just getting interesting. But then, maybe Brandon isn't all that interested in getting back together either, because he seems a lot more interested in asking questions about the bloodstained past of his new home than discussing a possible future with Ellery. What is Brandon really up to?

Ellery will have to unscramble that particular puzzle post haste. Because after his former flame disappears following their loud and public argument, Ellery seems to be Police Chief Carson's first--and only--suspect.

***This story contains no on-screen sex or violence

An M/M Cozy Mystery.

I have a confession. I really like Ellery! More so in this book than in the first. He's settling in quite nicely with his shop, the theater, scrabble club, and the mystery book club. And he's at a happy place in his friendship with Jack. I'm still on the fence about Jack. I want to like him for Ellery's sake, so I'm willing to cut him a little slack. I could appreciate his honesty regarding a certain situation, even though it hurt Ellery. I suppose it's better to know up front rather than when you're head over heels. But, oh, the lost potential makes me so sad!

I do usually prefer one character in Lanyon's books, while the other one frustrates me beyond belief. That's what is happening again! I'm looking forward to learning more about Jack and the events in his past that make him behave this way. I can't wait to see how his and Ellery's relationship evolves.

The secondary cast of characters are, once again, a mixed bag. The gossip flies around town faster than I could keep up with. I just shake my head every time one of them encourages Ellery to investigate a murder. Enough already! I feel as though Pirate's Cove is running low on murder suspects, so I think some fresh faces need to be introduced pronto!

Lanyon’s writing talents are spot on, always providing a well paced and easy to follow mystery that holds my attention to the end. I can't wait for the next book!

My Rating: 4.5 Stars

Chasing Ghosts
(The Quentin Strange Mysteries #1)
by Dean Cole

Expected publication: June 12th 2020

Genre: LGBT, Mystery

This my favorite day of the week because I love sharing and discovering new books.

Synopsis from Goodreads:

Haunted pasts. Terrifying apparitions. Dark secrets.

Quentin Strange is … well, strange. But it isn’t just his anachronistic sayings and dress sense, the fact that he’s a socially awkward, book-loving loner who’s possibly still a virgin at nearly thirty. He’s seeing and hearing things. Odd things. Ghostly things.

Getting the gig as photographer for The Cricklewood Gazette, he travels with his new partner, journalist Katrina (make sure you call her Kat) Brannigan, to Hilderley Manor, an enormous manor house nestled in the remote countryside of Northern England that is believed to be one of Britain’s most haunted buildings. The pair join a ghost hunting team and a group of fellow guests for a long weekend of ghostly activities.

But something dark haunts the draughty corridors of the house. And it links to a decades-old mystery that is about to be uncovered.

A mystery like no other. A story of the supernatural. Of death, and what it does to the living. The first book in a new series, Chasing Ghosts is a quirky British mystery that explores the supernatural elements of our world with touches of LGBT romance, humour and horror.

This is a new to me author, but this synopsis sounds like a winner! Hopefully, this will be a great start to a new series.

What are you waiting on this week?

Say You’ll Be Nine by Lucy Lennox

Published June 2nd 2020

Genre: M/M, Romance

This my favorite day of the week because I love sharing and discovering new books.

Synopsis from Goodreads:

One dilapidated cabin in need of renovation.

Two stubborn men pretending to be a couple.

Three summer months to get the job done.

Four tangled legs in only one bed.

Five cameras catching it all for YouTube.

Six hundred thousand Instagram followers.

Seven nosy family members with Opinions.

Eight thousand reasons they should never fall in love.

Nine million reasons why they will.

This came out yesterday, so I have it waiting on my Kindle for me to read. Whoop!

What are you waiting on this week?

Doctor Heartbreaker
(Cocky Hero Club) by Kathryn M. Hearst

Expected publication: May 31st 2020

This my favorite day of the week because I love sharing and discovering new books.

Synopsis from Goodreads:

The nurses call me Dr. Heartbreaker. They say I put the hot in hot-shot cardiologist.

Not that it matters. I never stick my tongue depressor in my co-workers.

What can I say? I play by a set of personal rules.

Even if those rules eliminate 99.9% of the woman I come in contact with from my dating-pool.

Even if those rules land me on a blind date with Emily, my childhood sweetheart, a woman I hadn’t seen since I broke her heart freshmen year of college.

Let’s just say the evening was a disaster. She took one look at me, and it was…

Date over. Do not pass go. Do not collect your two-hundred dollars.

The thing is, I can’t stop thinking about her. She was my first kiss, and every other first that two people can share.

She’s the only woman I’ve ever loved.

How can I make her understand what really happened between us when she wants nothing to do with me?

How can I let her walk away again, when it could mean another ten years wondering…what if?

The answer’s simple. I can’t.

Unfortunately, the solution to my dilemma is a five-year-old Colombian girl with a deadly heart condition. The same little girl Emily’s non-profit organization brought to the United States to receive life-saving surgery.

When the chief of staff informs me, I need to improve my public image because my bedside manner sucks--not THAT bedside manner. I’m just fine between the sheets, thank you very much—I agree to perform the girl’s operation…

Because spending more time with Emily is worth the risk.
Even if it means I have to break every rule in my playbook.

Even if it means destroying myself in the process.

I may be a sap, but I’ll do anything for a second chance with the woman who’s owned my heart since the fourth-grade.

I haven't been reading much (or any) M/F romance recently because I can't find anything that I like. I grew up reading romance. I started 'stealing' my mom's contemporary Harlequins and Silhouettes in elementary school (because the school librarian wouldn't let me read beyond my grade and I read every book available in the library!) I've been around some good (and bad) romances in my time, so I know what I like. But also, I don't like magic penises or flowering vaginas. I don't like whiny females or.... men who think they have magic penises. You get my drift. I need some good romance that I can actually read and enjoy. Gimme gimme.

So this book is part of a very large series with various authors. New to me author and a new to me series.Wish me luck!

What are you waiting on this week?

Stranded (In Midsummer, #1) by Jessica Frances

Expected publication: May 29th 2020

This my favorite day of the week because I love sharing and discovering new books.

Synopsis from Goodreads:

One small town. One hot sheriff. One night of passion. One massive cold shoulder. One murder. One suspect. One chance.

I’m furious when my car breaks down in the small, quiet town of Midsummer, Arkansas. Then I meet the incredibly hot town sheriff and hope that things might be looking up. Unfortunately, that encounter sours fast, leaving me ready to put this town in my rearview mirror. That won’t be easy though, since my car has left me stranded here. Now I’m trapped in a town that has nothing to offer me.
Or does it?
When an opportunity presents itself that could see me staying longer than expected, I begin to notice Midsummer’s charm. I start to wonder if maybe staying won’t be such a bad thing. Even the sheriff is beginning to thaw toward me.
That is until someone commits murder and I become the number one suspect.
Can I convince everyone I’m not the murderer? Or will the real killer walk free?

This is a risky pick for me for 2 reasons: a new to me author, and a character with a job that I do not like. Don't get me started on "social media" and YouTube being considered jobs.

What are you waiting on this week?

Long Shadow (Hamarsson & Dempsey #2)
by Elle Keaton

Published May 7th 2020 by Dirty Dog Press

Genre: M/M, Mystery

This my favorite day of the week because I love sharing and discovering new books.

Synopsis from Goodreads:

Niall’s known nothing but betrayal. All Mat wants is Niall’s heart; what will it take for him to coax Niall in from the cold?

Mat's connection with Niall is tenuous. One step forward, two steps back. Since that night on the beach Niall's been avoiding Mat like a bad case of the flu--which, ironically, most of his deputies have come down with. What will it take for Niall to believe Mat wants him for who he is?

Mat's overworked, Niall's unnerved, and then things really go sideways.

Will a killer destroy everything before Niall realizes they are stronger together than apart?

Well, this book is already out, but I just read the first book 3 days ago and I loved it so much that I can't wait to read this one! The first book had a great murder mystery and a slow (really slow!) burn romance, almost to the point of being nonexistant. I'm hoping book 2 will be just as good as the 1st! (The cover is definitely not my taste, and I don't think it represents the story at all.)

What are you waiting on this week?

Slippery Creatures
(The Will Darling Adventures #1)
by K.J. Charles

Expected publication: May 13th 2020 by KJC Books

Genre: M/M, Historical, Romance

This my favorite day of the week because I love sharing and discovering new books.

Synopsis from Goodreads:

Will Darling came back from the Great War with a few scars, a lot of medals, and no idea what to do next. Inheriting his uncle’s chaotic second-hand bookshop is a blessing...until strange visitors start making threats. First a criminal gang, then the War Office, both telling Will to give them the information they want, or else.

Will has no idea what that information is, and nobody to turn to, until Kim Secretan—charming, cultured, oddly attractive—steps in to offer help. As Kim and Will try to find answers and outrun trouble, mutual desire grows along with the danger.

And then Will discovers the truth about Kim. His identity, his past, his real intentions. Enraged and betrayed, Will never wants to see him again.

But Will possesses knowledge that could cost thousands of lives. Enemies are closing in on him from all sides—and Kim is the only man who can help.

A 1920s m/m romance trilogy in the spirit of Golden Age pulp fiction.

This author has another historical series that I never got around to reading, so I'm starting at the beginning with this new series!

What are you waiting on this week?

Pages

Waiting on Wednesday (448) Fakers by Lucy Lennox and May Archer

Review: Secret at Skull House (Secrets and Scrabble #2) by Josh Lanyon

Waiting on Wednesday (447) Chasing Ghosts (The Quentin Strange Mysteries #1) by Dean Cole

Waiting on Wednesday (446) Say You’ll Be Nine by Lucy Lennox

Waiting on Wednesday (445) Doctor Heartbreaker (Cocky Hero Club) by Kathryn M. Hearst

Waiting on Wednesday (444) Stranded (In Midsummer, #1) by Jessica Frances

Waiting on Wednesday (443) Long Shadow (Hamarsson & Dempsey #2) by Elle Keaton

Waiting on Wednesday (442) Slippery Creatures (The Will Darling Adventures #1) by K.J. Charles