Service before Self by Tegon Maus

SERVICE
Service before Self by Tegon Maus
Publisher: Tirgearr Publishing
Genre: Suspense/Mystery, Contemporary
Length: Short Story (97 pages)
Rating: 4 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

A recent transplant to Southern California, Toby Grant has landed his dream job. He’s a service tech for Handy Dandy Services—the premier handyman service in the southland.

Things don’t go well for Toby on the first day when he is teamed up with Ryan Burnell, a twenty year veteran of Handy Dandy. Toby quickly learns the hardships of being Ryan’s partner, and finds himself in one uncomfortable situation after another.

In an effort to understand his new partner, Toby accidently uncovers Ryan’s past involvement with drugs, burglary, and murder. He also learns about Ryan’s last partner of five years—Delsin Honaw—who had been murdered…stabbed twenty-seven times.

Haunted by one misunderstanding after another, Toby learns the true meaning of the company’s motto—“Service before Self.”

Everyone feels nervous on their first day at a new job, but Toby has a few extra reasons to worry.

A murder mystery generally isn’t something I’d expect to find funny, but this one provided me with a lot of opportunities to laugh. Mr. Maus has a unique sense of humor that worked really well with the tone of this story. His uncanny ability to draw out the humorous side in all kinds of unlikely scenarios is one of the biggest reasons why I get so excited when this author releases something new.

There were a few minor pacing issues in the beginning. This tale needed to introduce several important characters before the plot picked up. While all of the characters were important to what happened later on, I would have preferred to dig into the mystery sooner because it was such an interesting one. A slow introduction works well for a novel, but it felt a little out of place for something this length.

Some of my favorite scenes in this book showed how the customers that Toby and his coworker visited were actually living. How people present themselves to the outside world doesn’t always match what is really going on their lives. The gap between that image and the reality of their private lives was a fascinating place to explore.

If you haven’t had the pleasure of reading one of Mr. Maus’ books yet, Service before Self is a great place to start. If you’re already a fan of his work, I’d recommend it just as strongly. There’s something here for everyone!

One Night in Edinburgh by Charlotte Howard

Cover_OneNightInEdinburgh

One Night in Edinburgh by Charlotte Howard
Publisher: Tirgearr Publishing
Length: Short Story (75 pgs)
Genre: Contemporary
Other: M/F, toys
Rating: 3.5 Stars
Review by Poppy

Chloe Shade has traveled to Edinburgh to meet up with a potential client, and has just twenty-four hours to convince them to sign her contract. But when she meets the delicious Ethan, he proves to be so much more than an enticing distraction. It’s not long before Chloe has some life changing decisions to make, and less than a day to make them.

Definitely hot, and technically clean, One Night in Edinburgh is a perfect read to get your motor revving.

This is my first book by the author, and I was very impressed by her skill. Her prose is well-constructed, descriptive (::: fans self :::) and easy to read. We get an immediate feel for both characters and I loved that we start with Chloe’s fear of flying. It was a great way to get to know her!

Ethan is hot, hot, hot as any good hero in an erotic romance should be. He certainly knows how to satisfy his woman and takes many opportunities to do so, in many varied and titillating places. I’m surprised Chloe could walk by the next morning (and wouldn’t have minded changing places with her a time or two, or three).

The only thing that I wasn’t fond of in the story was the ending. They’ve known each other for a day…hardly time enough to make significant, life-altering decisions based on your feelings for another person. I was crazy about the plot up until then, but just couldn’t stretch my ability to believe far enough to find the ending completely credible.

That said, I have no other complaints. Writing was both technically and aesthetically pleasing, editing was solid, plot was strong, and there was no shortage of heat. So if you’re looking for a book that will make you reach for a fan, a cold glass of water or an Ethan of your own, grab a copy.

Bob by Tegon Maus

BOB
Bob by Tegon Maus
Publisher: Tirgearr Publishing
Genre: Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Contemporary
Length: Short Story (105 pages)
Rating: 4 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

After 27 years as a newspaper man, Peter Anderson’s career is slipping away, at least it was, until he stumbled upon the story of a lifetime. Sent to do a fluff piece about lights in the night sky over Arizona, he discovers far more than he ever expected when he comes upon a mysterious young woman held prisoner in a basement. After helping her to escape, she disappears before he can learn the truth about who she is or where she came from. His search for her leads him back to the lights in the sky and leaves him with more questions than answers. The only thing he knows for certain . . . the only thing he can count on are the two words offered repeatedly by his friend and guide . . . “IS BELT.”

Every journalist longs for the day when he or she stumbles across the story of the century. Has Peter found his?

The characters in this novella were well-developed and memorable. I was especially interested in seeing what was going on with Bob because Mr. Maus dropped some tantalizing clues about him early on. Bob’s tendency to understate important things and overstate the trivial stuff was as as it was descriptive of who he is as a man. He and Peter had personalities that were about as diametrically opposed to one another as you can get, so it was amusing to see how they interacted in stressful situations. Peter was a little harder to read, but I soon came to appreciate his calmer and more reserved approach to life as the plot thickened.

Extra spaces were added before and after words that otherwise should not have been strung together with more punctuation marks. I don’t know if this is what the author intended, but I assumed those spaces were supposed to represent pauses in the dialogue based on the fact that English is not the first language of certain characters. They often omitted words or rearranged the order of them while attempting to communicate in it. Everything made perfect sense once I looked at it through this perspective, although it would have been really helpful to have this theory officially confirmed. Had this occurred, this book would have easily earned a much higher rating.

One of the things I enjoy the most about Mr. Maus’ writing style is how much energy he puts into describing his settings in great detail without slowing down the plot at all. Instead he sprinkled mesmerizing imagery into everything else that was going on. Sometimes the descriptions were funny. Other times they were eerie or mind-boggling. Peter visited some truly incredible places during the course of this tale, and I felt like I experienced them alongside him.

Bob was a wild ride. This is a great choice for anyone who likes speculating about the real origins of Unidentified Flying Objects.

The Wishing Stone by Tegon Maus

WISHING
The Wishing Stone by Tegon Maus
Publisher: Tirgearr Publishing
Genre: Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Contemporary
Length: Short Story (97 pages)
Rating: 3 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

During that last summer, as if in punishment for being happy, Kate was diagnosed with cervical cancer.

The last time we used the wishing stone was at the hospital the morning she died.

On that day, all three of us made a silent wish, certain the others had wished the same. Kate died that afternoon and I never thought about it again. It was the last time I believed in magic, in love or in the existence of God.

Then, after three miserable lonely years, the unthinkable, a second chance… Warwick.

Some wishes are easier to grant than others.

By far the best passages involved descriptions of the laboratory equipment and experimental procedures that are used in this piece. This isn’t hard science fiction, but the emphasis on what could be possible with enough funding and the right equipment piqued my interest. If the author is planning to release more sequels in this series, I’d be curious to see where the technological advancements go next.

It would have been helpful to have more information about the motives of certain characters. Ben, the protagonist, has such a limited perspective of what’s going on that at times I grew a little frustrated with how much he didn’t know. Had this been a novel it would have made sense to leave him in the dark for so long, but I generally expect the main character to adjust to his or her surroundings more quickly in a short story.

The pacing was otherwise strong from beginning to end. The reader is thrown into the action right away which was a smart choice for this subject matter. Figuring out what was going on took me a little while, but once I adapted to the tone I found myself immersed in this new adventure.

I strongly recommend reading the first book in this series, Machines of the Little People, before diving into this one. While the plot can technically stand on its own, the cast of characters is large for something this length. Not all of their relationships are explained right away, so remembering their backstories is crucial in order to know what’s going on during the first few scenes.

The Wishing Stone is a good choice for anyone in the mood for a fast-paced, science fiction novella.

Machines of the Little People by Tegon Maus

MACHINES
Machines of the Little People by Tegon Maus
Publisher: Tirgearr Publishing
Genre: Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Contemporary
Length: Short Story (105 pages)
Heat Level: Sensual
Rating: 3.5 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

Ben Harris’s sister died of cervical cancer more than three years ago… his best friend and her husband, Roger Keswick, disappeared the day before the funeral. For the next six months everyone from the local police to the Department of Defense searched for him but to no avail… it was as if he had simply fallen off the face of the planet only to reappear at work as if nothing were out of the ordinary.

Then by the purest of coincidences Ben finds himself pulled back into Roger’s life only to discover he has remarried… to Jessica… a woman the looks, sounds and acts just like his dead sister. To complicate things Roger is insistent his home, his car, his life is infested with tiny elf like creatures he calls the Katoy. He claims they run massive machines under his house and watch his every move… every move that is until Jessica is found bludgeoned to death in his living room and Roger is nowhere to found . . . again.

No sooner did Ben recover from the tragic death of his sister than his wound is ripped open again. Will history repeat itself with his brother-in-law’s new wife?

As soon as I read the blurb for this novella, I couldn’t wait to find out more. The science fiction themes are strong, but the character development is even more pronounced. While it took me a little while to get to know all of the characters well, I was surprised by how much I figured out about them once the plot was given a chance to simmer. This is the kind of tale that requires some investment early on, but every ounce of effort poured into understanding what is happening was richly rewarded for this reader.

The first few scenes were somewhat confusing for me due to the number of characters who were being introduced at the same time that so many inexplicable things are happening. The pacing in the remainder of the plot was even, but I did find it a little too fast in the beginning due to how much the author expects his audience to figure out in an extremely short amount of time.

With that being said, I am a big fan of stories like this one that require you to think. Mr. Maus knows how to strike that delicate balance between explaining what on earth just happened and giving the reader a chance use his or her own mind to pull together the most subtle clues. It is this ability of his that makes me quite curious to see what he will come up with next.

Machines of the Little People is a complicated, thought-provoking, intelligent ride that I didn’t want to end. It’s long enough to cover all of the bases, but short enough to read in one sitting for dedicated science fiction fans. Either way, this is a book worth sampling.

My Grandfather’s Pants by Tegon Maus

PANTS
My Grandfather’s Pants by Tegon Maus
Publisher: Tirgearr Publishing
Genre: Contemporary, Paranormal
Length: Full Length (174 pages)
Heat Level: Sensual
Rating: 4 Stars
Reviewed by Astilbe

Jack Laskin is an ordinary man. More than ordinary according to some. Running the family hardware store and a life that would bore a snail, nothing exciting ever seems to happen to him.

Then, at his mother’s urging, he tries on a pair of his late grandfather’s old pants and everything changes — most importantly his emerging love life. It’s not long before his mother and her meddling friends get involved.

When an old friend of his grandfather’s tells Jack he has something she wants, his new-found life takes another turn. Having no idea what he is supposed to have, Jack looks to his girlfriend, Connie, and her brother, Robert, for help.

In the end, the answers will all be found in his Grandfather’s Pants.

Is history always doomed to repeat itself?

Between inheriting his father’s business and looking after his widowed mother, Jack has always been Mr. Dependability. It isn’t always the most exciting life, but Jack finds meaning in the iron-clad routine that his community has come to expect of him. Jack is effortlessly in tune with the pulse of small town life, and Mr. Maus’ attention to even the smallest details of what it feels like to live in that kind of environment instantly drew me into the plot. No sooner did I think I had everything figured out, though, than another plot twist would appear. It was as much fun to anticipate where the author was going with his story as it was to see how someone as traditional and shy as Jack reacts to all of the unexpected things that happen to him.

It would have been helpful to have the paranormal elements of this tale explained in greater detail, especially when it comes to exactly how they influence Jack’s friends and family members. There were a few occasions when certain characters rapidly change their minds about topics they previously held strong opinions about. Had their thought processes been explained more thoroughly this book would have easily earned a much higher rating as this is my only criticism of an otherwise fantastic novel.

I was definitely not expecting to laugh as often as I did while reading My Grandfather’s Pants. Mr. Maus has a fantastic sense of humour that translates extremely well to the written word. He is adept at teasing out the funny side of even the most serious or mundane parts of daily life. It was especially entertaining to see how he plays around with a wide range of assumptions most of us make about certain groups of people in order to keep his readers on their toes.

My Grandfather’s Pants is a great choice for anyone in the mood for something quirky and original. This is the kind of book that begs to be read more than once. I, for one, will be revisiting it quite soon!

Awakening by Scarlett Valentine


Awakening by Scarlett Valentine
Publisher: Tirgearr Publishing
Genre: Historical
Length: Short (53 pgs)
Other:  M/F, anal play
Rating: 4.5 Stars
Review by Poppy

Ysbail of Ellesmere is a pawn in her guardian’s war. For decades there has been unrest between the marcher lords and Owain Gwynedd ap Gruffydd, King of Gwynedd. The most recent war had been the bloodiest she could remember in her eighteen years. Madog ap Maredudd, Prince of Powys, and his allies lost untold numbers of men at the hands of Owain’s soldiers. When a settlement of truce is presented to Madog, it’s at Ysbail’s expense. She is to marry Bedwyr ap Owain, one of King Owain’s bastard sons, and his most notorious henchman. If all the rumors and stories she’s heard are true, she knows her marriage will be rife with horror and fear.

Since proving himself worthy with his sword, Bedwyr fights at his king’s side. He’s shed oceans of blood and sent untold numbers of men to their graves. He’s become what his name foretold—the grave-knower. He’s afraid of nothing, least of all death. All men fear him, including those who fight at his side, and sometimes even his own king. Terror of him lives within women’s hearts; only the bravest of whores accept him into their beds. And children weave their own tales of the monster they hear him to be, embellishing the details to their own gruesome degrees.

When King Owain informs Bedwyr that he’s to marry Ysbail of Ellesmere as part of a peace settlement with Madog, Bedwyr is furious. A man such as Bedwyr can only survive on the battlefield. For without love, hatred will send a man like him to the edge of insanity. Then push him over. But when Bedwyr sees Ysbail for the first time, blood-thirst turns to blood-lust, and he vows to show her that she should have no fear of him.

This short, sweet erotic romance isn’t short on heart, heat or plot.

We get plunged into the middle of the story, a few days after Ysbail’s wedding to the devil, Bedwyr.  He had taken her virginity with no emotion and in just a quick moment immediately following the ceremony, confirming all her fears about the marriage bed–and about him.

When Bedwyr later tries to earn his new wife’s trust, he goes all out, baring himself, his soul and even his heart.  Truly Awakening is a romance, above and beyond the plenitude of sex.  Ms. Shortland has penned a lovely story that I wished was longer, as it left me wanting more; more at the beginning and more and the end.  That’s not to say the story was lacking, just that there was so much depth to the story, this could easily have been twice as long and not been enough.

My absolute favorite part of the story had to be how Ysbail deals with the catty gossips who worked at the keep.  Clever and quite fun!  She shows her backbone here, proving she’s strong enough to govern alongside her husband.

I admit it strained the bonds of credibility a bit to believe how sexually unrestrained the previously virginal Ysbail becomes after very little time with her husband.  She goes from fearing the marriage bed to initiating sex and accepting him over and over in only a few hours.  Still, without it, this wouldn’t have been erotic romance and the sex is both sweet and hot and certainly appropriate.

All in all, I was very glad I had a chance to read this book. Set in a time I’m not familiar with, in a place I’ve seldom read about with characters who felt real and genuine, Awakening is a touching romance with plenty of sizzle and a truly satisfying ending.

No Darker Heaven by Stella Whitelaw


No Darker Heaven by Stella Whitelaw
Publisher: Tirgearr Publishing
Genre: Contemporary
Length:  Full (275 pgs)
Heat:  Sensual
Rating: 4 Stars
Review by Poppy

Lyssa Pasten is torn between loving two men — Matthew Arnold, her new fiancé, and Jethro, Matthew’s often-absent father.

Lyssa and Jeth fight against their mutual attraction for Matthew’s sake and the sake of her small daughter, Bethany, who has a very rare disorder called RAS (renal artery stenosis).

Hollow House, the Sussex family home, becomes the backdrop for drama and pain, passion and delight.

When Jeth suddenly goes missing, Lyssa knows she has to follow her heart and find him.

With twists I didn’t expect, No Darker Heaven turned out to be a very enjoyable romance!  This story takes place in London, where Lyssa lives with her young daughter. She is engaged to Matthew, a man she likes, but doesn’t really love.  He’s a good man, kind and stable and loyal and she believes they’ll be happy together.

On a visit to his home in Sussex, she meets his aunt, whom she learns to adore, and his forty-four year old father, Jeth. She has to stay there longer than she had intended when her daughter comes down with the measles. During her stay, she desperately tries to fight the attraction she feels for Jeth. She doesn’t want to be unfaithful to Matthew, or to hurt him at all.

One evening late, she responds to an kiss from Jeth. He then accuses her of being a gold digger and threatens to tell Matthew her secret:  she hadn’t been married to her daughter’s father, even though that’s the story she’s told her fiancé.

At this point, I thought this was going to be another ho-hum story, and almost put it down for a while.  If I hadn’t chosen this book to review, I might have stopped, but I pushed on through and I’m really glad I did, because things began to happen that were extremely unexpected.

There were twists and turns and unusual happenings:  adventure, a trip to Bali and more. I had to keep reading just to see what was going on. I found that I really enjoyed this story more than I had expected. It really was well written, and full of surprises.

I recommend reading No Darker Heaven… just remember to give yourself a few chapters to really get involved in the characters and story.  You won’t be sorry you did.

Rhythm of My Heart by Kemberlee Shortland


Rhythm of My Heart by Kemberlee Shortland
Irish Pride Series
Publisher: Tirgearr Publishing
Genre: Contemporary
Length: Full Length (279 pages)
Heat Level: Sensual
Rating: 4.5 stars
Reviewed by Iris

Artist Representative, Eilis Kennedy, gave up a singing career so that other women could have a fair chance at having their music heard. Having suffered rejection from callous men in the industry, she thought she would get away from ‘casting couch’ mentality. But when she finds herself in the office of Fergus Manley, all bets are off. Disgusted by his continual come-ons and lewd invitations, Eilis is looking for ‘the one’ who will take her career to the next level, getting out from under Fergus’s controlling thumb.

Aspiring blues guitarist, Kieran Vaughan, is looking for his big break. But after suffering near bankruptcy at the hands of an unscrupulous business partner, Kieran is left picking up the pieces. He’s unsure if the debts will ever be paid or if he’ll ever have a chance to do something with his music. At his whit’s end, he’s about ready to throw in the towel and find a full-time job with real hours.

When Eilis discovers Kieran playing in a seedy pub in Dublin’s Northside, she knows he’s the one rare talent she’s been searching for. With her know-how and his talent, Eilis will finally get everything she’s been waiting for. Neither of them count on the powerful attraction from first meeting. Eilis is so rocked by Keiran’s forthright words that it sends her running. Kieran risks being arrested as he chases Eilis across Ireland.

Seeing what’s happening between Eilis and Kieran, anger wells inside Fergus and he steps up his pursuit of Eilis. Refusing to let Kieran get in his way, Fergus vows to add Eilis’s notch to his bedpost, whatever it takes.

Will Kieran be able to protect her?

I apparently need a steady diet of Ms. Shortland’s books. In between reading them, I tend to forget the depth of character and insight into their personalities. I especially forget how devious and evil her villains can be. This makes their presence even more subversive and menacing. The truly ingenious aspect of her villains are the way they could be someone we, the reader, know and have experience with in our own lives. I especially enjoyed Fergus. He comes off a creepy and a little sick throughout the entire story, but the climax of the story truly reveals his personality. The potential reality of his character is what makes the story frightening.

But, I stray from the most important aspect of the novel – the romance! While perhaps “unbelievable”, the connection between Ellis and Kieran can resonate with the reader, and help them remember or imagine that grand passion one can feel when with the right person. I’m not sure I could walk up and down a street and locate my beloved based on said connection, but oh-so-many of us have felt that electric “spark across the room”.

This reader could definitely sense the love Ms. Shortland has for her main characters . . . Kieran can not possibly have been playing for that long and have achieved those chops and not have a healthy dose of self-absorption and elevated self-worth. The reader could probably blame it on his responsibilities with running his own business and caring for his sister, but truly, our author’s love of this character is shining through in his honesty, caring and generosity.

I believe most women reading this story will resonate with at least one aspect of Ellis’ personality. Whether the reader has been a victim of the “sleep with the boss to get ahead or else” situation, or on the receiving end of a careless lover who imparts the poor body image and deflated self-worth, we can all identify with part of her. This makes the eventual connection with Kieran that much sweeter! Our author’s delight in the countryside and its’ people are evident in her descriptive passages throughout the book. However, none tickled the senses quite as much as her extended description of the tea cakes and the delight both Kieran and Ellis experienced while eating them.

This book will engross the reader fully.  You will not want to put the book down. This means it will be over far too quickly! The good news is, as soon as you finish it, you get to read it again!

The Trouble with Pilots by Kristi Ahlers

The Trouble with Pilots by Kristi Ahlers
Publisher: Tirgearr Publishing
Genre: Contemporary
Length: Short Story (29 pages)
Heat Level: sensual
Rating: 3.5 stars
Review by: Fennel

Wedding dress designer Sarah Harper’s best friend is getting married and Sophie has been asked to design the dress. When she discovers it means getting on a plane for Paris, all her flying fears spring to life. But this is for her best friend, Hannah, and the notoriety of designing a dress for the bride of one of France’s nobility is an opportunity Sarah can’t pass up. Even if it means sitting beside an off-duty pilot. Sophie swore off pilots when she left her ex, but her seatmate’s touch and spicy scent makes her forget all about the flight, and her promise. She blames the medication her doctor gave her and her naughty dreams on what happens just before landing. Could she be any more mortified?

Trey Chasen is finally taking some well-deserved time off and uses his friend’s engagement as an excuse to see Paris. At first, Trey lamented the loss of another jet-setter to the arms of a good woman, but he soon feels something is missing in his own life. When he meets his seatmate on the flight to Paris, his interest is instantly sparked, yet not in a way he’s used to. Using her fear of flying as an excuse to soothe her, he discovers he wants to get to know this pixie of a woman better. He just didn’t expect it would be so soon, or during the flight.

When the two realize their destinations are the same, it’s Hannah and Damien who set Sarah and Trey straight about the important things in life. Can Sarah put aside her trouble with pilots to find love? Trey likes is a challenge, and before Sarah returns to the States, he’s going to make sure he proves to her that pilots aren’t trouble but worth loving.

I didn’t know when I chose it, The Trouble with Pilots, is Ms. Ahler’s 2nd book in the series, but that said, the story reads very well as a stand-alone novella. The author has managed to pack a well constructed and pleasant read into less than thirty pages.

I did have trouble, as the story unfolded, understanding why her heroine, Sarah, a wedding dress designer, had so much fear of flying. But perhaps that was explained in the previous book.

As for her dream during the flight? Well, *smiles* that was some dream! I have to say Trey was a real gentleman.

Ms. Ahlers offers a feisty and believable character in Sarah, and also with her hero, Trey. Sadly, as far as Sarah is concerned he has one strike against him before he starts, simply because he’s a pilot, so he’s got a lot of work to do to convince Sarah to change her mind about him. The author takes the reader into Trey’s mind and emotions with great skill, given the lack of story length she had to do it in.

Although her timeline is tight, the author manages to stretch it to acceptable and believable lengths before the end of the read, which in this reader’s view adds to the charm of the story.

This short and delightful story is enough to pick up when ‘me’ time is scarce and limited. It’s not a ‘deep’ story, none-the-less it is an ideal, ‘feel-good-tale’ to consider dipping into if you have some spare time during a stressful day.