Forbid My Heart by Kayelle Allen

  

Blurb:

Waking in the middle of the night, Izzorah begins to worry. His lover has pledged to take him back to visit his homeworld, but Izzorah knows the fact that they're gay could cause their death if the Kin Pride Council hears about it. Izzorah's heart tells him to trust Luc, but his fear is real. He snuggles up to Luc, seeking comfort.

Luc is immortal. He has the perspective to understand his lover's concerns, and not worry about them. He tries to distract Izzorah with a sexy game of dominance and submission played during their shared shower. Izzorah's unreserved trust and respect make Luc long to wipe out any shadow of trouble or sorrow. He would turn the Kin homeworld upside down to protect him, but convincing Izzorah he can do it will mean confessing a truth Luc is not yet ready to share.

Review:


Kayelle Allen is a good friend and I'm so sorry I wasn't able to give her story the rave review I would have liked to have written, but I have to be honest.

 

I enjoyed this short little waiting-room read, but was disappointed at the ending. From the title I knew it was part of a series, but I expected it to be able to stand on its own. There was enough history exposed that it should have done so, but the book ended with a promise unfulfilled.
 
This story was one of the publisher’s “Spring Fling” specials, Fling length being short-short stories, but I would have preferred a longer format in which Luc and Izzorah actually returned to Rah’s homeworld and Luc managed to eliminate the threat against them. I suppose I’ll have to wait for the next Fling story to read that installment.

Length:  Very Short, No Page Count Available

Price:  $1.99

Buy Link:  http://www.loose-id.com/authors/g-k/kayelle-allen/forbid-my-heart-a-luc-and-rah-story.html#product_tabs_description

You’ll notice I always include the publisher’s buy link.  That’s because authors usually receive 40% of the book price from the publisher.  Editors and cover artists usually receive about 5%.  When you buy a book from Amazon, Barnes & Noble or another third-party vendor, they take a hefty cut and the author, editors and cover artists receive their cuts from what is left.  So, if a book costs $5.99 at E-Book Publisher.com and you buy from there, the author will receive about $2.40.  If you buy the book at Amazon, the author will receive about $0.83.

Downloading the file from your computer to your Kindle is as easy as transferring any file from your computer to a USB flash drive.  Plug the USB end of your chord into a USB port on your computer and simply move the file from your “Downloads” box to your Kindle/Documents/Books directory.  I actually download my books using “Save As” to a “Books” file I created on my computer that’s sorted by my publisher, friends, and books “to review,” and then transfer them to my Kindle from there.  That way, if there’s a glitch with my Kindle, the books are on my computer.  Your author will be happy you did when he/she sees his/her royalty statement.

Thanks for visiting.  RIW

Kiss Shot by Collin Kelley

Award-winning author Collin Kelley ("Conquering Venus" and "Remain in Light") explores his Southern roots with this collection of four short stories set in the town of Cottonwood, Georgia. In "How Fanny Got Her House," a devoted maid recalls the hijinks surrounding her employer's death from a brain tumor, while a teenage boy comes to terms with his sexuality during an unexpected game of pool in the title story, "Kiss Shot." A woman escaping an abusive relationship arrives in New Orleans during a rain storm and wanders into the famed "Clover Grill" on Bourbon Street, and "I Got A Name" follows the trials and tribulations of an overweight woman looking for love at a community theater company.

This is the second book by Collin Kelley that I’ve reviewed.  Mr. Kelley’s characters are complex and his stories are frequently deep and thought provoking, as are a couple of the stories in this book.  “How Fannie Got Her House,” however, is fun.  Yes, it’s an indictment of the Jim Crow South, but in a delightful way.  The story I found most poignant was “I Got a Name.”  I rather resemble the woman in the story, in that I joined a community theatre group when I weighed three-hundred pounds.  Fortunately, I wasn’t looking for love.  I simply was looking for fun and an outlet for my creative energy.  However, I ran into similar weight prejudice from some of the members of the group.  At three hundred pounds, who did I think I was, thinking I could act?  The woman in Mr. Kelley’s story doesn’t even try to act.  Yet she experiences similar prejudice.  There’s no chance for the fat lady to sing in this story.  I was a caroler in Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol” thanks to my ability to harmonize by ear and to provide my own Victorian-style XXXX-L cape.

But, I digress.  Once again, Mr. Kelley has written a great book.  I read it at the mall while my granddaughter was shopping.  Yup—all four stories.

Length:  @ 57 Pages

Price:  $0.99

Buy Link:  http://www.amazon.com/Kiss-Shot-Stories-ebook/dp/B0092WI3QU/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1352149522&sr=1-1&keywords=Kiss+Shot+Collin+Kelley

NOTE UPCOMING BLOG FORMATTING CHANGE:

In the past if you clicked on the cover art in the right column, a link took you to the book’s buy page.  In 2013, I plan to change the links so they take you to the book’s review on this site.  The buy links are always included in my reviews.  That way, if you’ve missed one and the cover looks intriguing, you can see what I said about it and still follow the buy link in the review.  Thanks for visiting.  RIW.