HOT TOPIC: National Coming Out Day Featured Reads with Giveaway - Part 2
Happy National Coming Out Day!
This year marks the 29th anniversary of the National March on Washington for Lesbian and Gay Rights.
Coming out and and living openly is a unique experience for each individual and is not something most do once, or even one day a year, but rather every single day.
As the HRC says, coming out STILL MATTERS and "our stories can be powerful to each other.”
We here at KEBB couldn't agree more and in celebration of that power we have partnered with some of your favorite M/M authors to showcase their titles with characters who want you to read all about their coming out journey.
So sit back, relax, peruse the blurbs, check out the authors, and pick up a book that has the power to inspire you by clicking on the book photo for the buylink.
While you’re here don't miss your chance to ENTER to WIN 1 free eBook of your choice from the 11 titles listed below!
Title: Family Man
Authors: Heidi Cullinan and Marie Sexton
Published: September 11, 2017 - 2nd Edition
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Cover Artist: Kanaxa
Genre: Contemporary Romance; Erotic Romance
Length: 206 Pages
Tags: Gay; M/M; Angst: Light; Comfort/Hurt; Coming Out; Family Drama; First Time; GFY; May/December; HEA; CW: Substance Abuse
About Family Man
Sometimes family chooses you.
At forty, Vincent “Vinnie” Fierro is still afraid to admit he might be gay—even to himself. It’ll be a problem for his big, fat Italian family. Still, after three failed marriages, it’s getting harder to ignore what he really wants.
Vinnie attempts some self-exploration in Chicago’s Boystown bars, far from anyone who knows him. Naturally, he runs smack into someone from the neighborhood.
Between working two jobs, going to school, taking care of his grandmother, and dealing with his mother’s ongoing substance abuse, Trey Giles has little time for fun, let alone dating someone who swears he’s straight. Yet after one night of dancing cheek-to-cheek, Trey agrees to let Vinnie court him and see if he truly belongs on this side of the fence—though Trey intends to keep his virginity intact.
It seems like a solid plan, but nothing is simple when family is involved. When Vinnie’s family finds out about their relationship, the situation is sticky enough, but when Trey’s mother goes critical, Vinnie and Trey must decide whose happiness is most important—their families’ or their own.
First Edition published by Samhain, 2013.
Title: Complexity
Series: The Kinky Connect Chronicles #4
Published: July 8, 2016
Publisher: Self-Published
Cover Artist: Taria Reed
Genre: Erotic Romance; Contemporary Romance
Length: 95 Pages
Tags: Gay; M/M; Bisexual; Interracial; Coming Out; Novella; Standalone; CW: Kink
About Complexity
Fairy tale endings weren’t made for people like me. Happy for now usually ain’t in the cards, either.
The dents on my wall from where my headboard kept knockin’ against the same spot was the first clue that I needed to calm my ass down. At the rate I was racking up notches and plowing through hookups, I wasn’t ever gonna find nothing real. Guess I kinda jinxed myself. I created my circumstances. You can’t get what you want if you keep falling back into the same pattern of bad habits. But then things changed. I stumbled onto somethin’ I never in a million years expected to happen. You gotta understand, I’m never the guy who wins. It was supposed to be just sex, but that shifty, rhyming and scheming bastard, Cupid, pulled a fast one.
I may have changed some stuff to protect a couple of people. But before you go believing the tabloids, make sure you understand that you’re gettin’ the lowdown straight from the source.
I needed to get this off my chest and it’s only fair that you at least get my side of it all. At some point, I might regret telling you any of this, but for now, you need to know.
Title: Wings of Love
Published: February 11, 2011
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Cover Artist: Braden Williams
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Length: 220 Pages
Tags: Gay; M/M; Coming Out
About Wings of Love
Devastated after losing his partner of fifteen years to cancer, Dr. Bradford Mitchell tries to escape the emptiness and loss by leaving his life in Seattle behind. Traveling to the Alaskan mountains where he and Jeff often vacationed, Brad reconnects with Mac Cleary, the ruggedly handsome and very straight floatplane pilot who had flown them to Hyline Lake many times in the past. Brad and Mac form an unlikely friendship and buy an old log cabin together, and as he and Mac begin to bring the old cabin back to life, Mac watches Brad come back to life as well, stirring emotions in him he’s never felt for a man before.
When fear, confusion, and a near tragedy threaten to force the two men apart, they’ll face some tough questions. Can Brad let go of Jeff and the guilt he feels about beginning to care for another man? And can Mac deal with his fears of being gay and accept the fact that he is in love with Brad? It will be a struggle for both men to keep their heads and hearts intact while exploring what life has to offer.
Title: Beautiful Thunder
Published: August 31, 2015
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Cover Artist: Maria Fanning
Genre: Contemporary Romance; New Adult
Length: 220 Pages
Tags: Gay; M/M; Coming Out
About Beautiful Thunder
Can romance and rock ‘n’ roll dreams survive with a storm raging around them?
Alex Randall has always wanted to be a rock singer. When he answers an ad from a local band, his dream finally comes true. He loves the stage, and the group’s fans love him. Things couldn’t be better, except for the attraction he develops for the band’s guitarist, Lindsey. Alex is surprised and initially worried, since he only had one brief flirtation with a boy in his teens. But even though he and Lindsey become close and start seeing each other, Alex fears commitment, and Lindsey worries that Alex might only be experimenting.
When Lindsey’s ex contacts him following a health scare, fear and anger drives a wedge between Alex and Lindsey, which causes rifts within the band. Alex and Lindsey’s relationship is still new and fragile, and with Alex unwittingly blaming Lindsey for their problems, it becomes a true challenge for them to weather the storm.
Title: Handy Harry
Published: September 30, 2016
Publisher: Evernight Publishing
Cover Artist: Jay Aheer
Genre: Contemporary Romance; Erotic
Length: 52 Pages
Tags: Gay; M/M; Humor; Coming Out; May/December; Novelette
About Handy Harry
Reclusive artist Rufus Ward’s house needs repair, but he hates demolition and dust. However, when handyman Harry Hande rings his doorbell, Rufus lets him in. He’s everything the famous painter likes in a man: young, sexy, and somewhat confused about his sexuality. Rufus thought he was done with dating, but Harry is hot enough to push him from loneliness into love. Harry’s sensible demeanor disguises desperation. His brother is a jerk and he needs to move out, but his fledgling business isn’t quite ready to support him. Rufus is supposed to be just another client, but when they meet, all of Harry’s preconceived notions of attraction are demolished. Lust launches him into the dare of a lifetime. Will letting Rufus draw him nude destroy him, or will his true nature come out?
Title: Out of Nowhere
Series: Middle of Somewhere #2
Published: February 29, 2016
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Cover Artist: AngstyG
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Length: 274 Pages
Tags: Gay; M/M; Coming Out; Angst; Opposites Attract; Self-Discover; Standalone
About Out of Nowhere
The only thing in Colin Mulligan’s life that makes sense is taking cars apart and putting them back together. In the auto shop where he works with his father and brothers, he tries to get through the day without having a panic attack or flying into a rage. Drinking helps. So does running and lifting weights until he can hardly stand. But none of it can change the fact that he’s gay, a secret he has kept from everyone.
Rafael Guerrera has found ways to live with the past he’s ashamed of. He’s dedicated his life to social justice work and to helping youth who, like him, had very little growing up. He has no time for love. Hell, he barely has time for himself. Somehow, everything about miserable, self-destructive Colin cries out to him. But down that path lie the troubles Rafe has worked so hard to leave behind. And as their relationship intensifies, Rafe and Colin are forced to dredge up secrets that both men would prefer stay buried.
Title: Ridley Uncovered
Author: Peyton Miller
Published: October 7, 2017
Publisher: Self-Published
Cover Artist: Sara York
Genre: Contemporary Romance
Length: 155 Pages
Tags: Gay; M/M; Coming Out; Family Drama
About Ridley Uncovered
I’ve hidden for long enough, but I’m not ready to come out. A masquerade ball at a gay night club is the perfect place for me to final get a kiss from a man. My father, who happens to be a pastor, won’t know, and I’ll have fun. I don’t know what happened, but suddenly I’m doing more than kissing with a stranger. The anonymous aspect is good, until that man turns out to be someone too close for comfort. All of my careful planning is washed down the drain when I find my dad having a conversion therapy meeting in the living room. I don’t come out, but I do get myself in a ton of hot water by opening my big mouth. Now I’ve been kicked out, family secrets are exposed, and I might really lose my job. What have I done? Maybe I never should have traveled to Manchester for that one night of fun, but I can’t take it back now.
Title: Becoming Kerry
Published: August 8, 2017
Publisher: ForbiddenFiction - Imprint of Fantastic Fiction Publishing Cover Artist: Siol na Tine
Genre: Contemporary Romance; Erotic Romance
Length: 456 Pages
Tags: Gay; M/M; BDSM; D/s; Bisexual; Genderqueer; Transgender; Comfort/Hurt; Coming Out; First Time; HFN; Kink: Exhibitionism, Voyeurism; CW: Violence/Gay Bashing, Off Page - Abuse and Child Abuse, Rape and Murder
About Becoming Kerry
Kerry Sanderson’s life is falling apart. He’s crushing himself to fit into the boxes others have put him in: dutiful son, good boyfriend, real man. But even the small rebellions he’s fought for himself—moving into a sketchy part of town and becoming an exotic dancer—aren’t giving him the freedom he needs. Ewyn Garrity, a security guard at the gay club where Kerry dances, has found himself in protecting others. Everyone thinks he’s straight, but Ewyn doesn’t fit into simple boxes, either. When he meets Kerry, he makes a not completely innocent offer of company after work.
Ewyn and Kerry hit it off, each finding something he desperately needs in the other. But when Kerry is forced to confront the pain and self-doubt that keep him crushed in his boxes, he’s afraid that no one, not even Ewyn, will be able to love who he is when he finally, truly becomes Kerry.
Title: The Last Nights of The Frangipani Hotel
Series: The Actor's Circle #2
Published: September 12, 2015
Publisher: Self-Published
Genre: Contemporary Romance; Erotic Romance
Length: 127 Pages
Tags: Gay; M/M; Coming Out; OFY; Standalone
About The Last Nights of The Frangipani Hotel
All James wanted was a little solitude at his favourite resort: bright sunshine overhead, soft, white sand underfoot, and a hammock to read in while the warm breeze rustles through the coconut palms and almond trees. However, when an old acquaintance shows up, and James is obliged to share “his” beach, a profound exchange over a bottle of rum leads to a lust-fuelled encounter in the dark. Reeling from the intensity of the drunken tryst, James decides to cut his vacation short rather than face what he’s kept hidden under mountains of denial. However, his escape is thwarted when Rudie, handsome and plainspoken, calls him out on his behaviour and makes him see that life needn’t be spent running away from his desires. Set at a rundown old resort on a small Caribbean island, The Last Nights of The Frangipani Hotel is a story about letting go of fear and learning that passion and love can be found in the most unexpected of places.
Title: Second Drafts
Series: Matchmakers #2
Published: July 24, 2016
Publisher: Self-Published
Cover Artist: Natalie Fawn Danelishen
Genre: Paranormal Romance; Fantasy
Length: 317 Pages
Tags: Gay; M/M; Coming Out; BDSM; Comfort/Hurt; Paranormal: Ghosts; HEA; Standalone; CW: Hate Crime; CW: Off-Page Child Abuse & Rape
About Second Drafts
Novelist Shain Ahren is committed to only one thing: himself. Living alone and having an endless string of one-night stands, Shain's carefully crafted routine ensures no one will ever control him again. But one trick he met at Matchmakers, years ago, he can't get out of his head. Painter Elliden Crawford yearns to be controlled. Born with an extreme chemical imbalance, Elliden struggles to keep the fits at bay so he won't be a danger to others. Only once in his life did Elliden ever truly feel safe, just one night when he met a stranger at Matchmakers. When Matchmakers brings them together again, Elliden finally gets what he needs, while Shain's world is thrown into complete disarray. Will Shain ever relinquish control, or will they be fated to remain a discarded first draft? (Note: This story takes place in a fictional world, the same as the Shifting Isles series. There are multiple gods, different names for the days of the week, etc. A glossary is included with the story for those interested in the little worldbuilding details.)
Title: Other Side of the Line
Published: September 18, 2015
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Cover Artist: Catt Ford
Genre: Contemporary Romance; Historical Romance
Length: 330 Pages
Tags: Gay; M/M; Coming Out
About Other Side of the Line
Caleb Hudson and Hal Zimmer became best friends the day they stood up against the schoolyard bully together. Life’s complicated enough with their friendship crossing racial lines in 1960s Charleston, South Carolina, but as time passes, they realize it’s more than their friendship that sets them apart from other kids. At first, Caleb denies his feelings for Hal could be more than companionship. He supports his friend when Hal admits he’s gay, but Caleb isn’t ready to face his own truth.
Hal becomes a staunch antiwar protester, and the divide between them widens after Caleb is drafted. But when Caleb returns from Vietnam, the time for denial is over. His homecoming sets off a series of events that force Caleb and Hal to confront their desires and what lines they’re willing to cross to get what they truly want out of life.
One winner will be selected at random from all participants entered. Giveaway ends October 18, 2017 at 12:00 a.m. CST/USA.
