  “Why would he have it, then? Because he’s poaching, or something else?” “Poachers are really nothing more than hunters, simply illegal ones. They still blend in. My guess is either that kid thinks his makes him look cool, or he got it on sale. His clothes in general were expensive, more like a rich kid playing at being a hunter or outdoorsman.” Mason pointed to a trail to the right. “I’m more worried about meth labs and illegal weapons than poachers.” “How come?” Riece asked. “Those people come to areas like this because it’s remote. However, oftentimes they don’t really know about the area. They don’t hunt and don’t understand the culture. They want to play the part of tough, badass guys so people are afraid of them,” Mason explained. “Like that kid?” “Exactly,” Mason said and nodded. “But we left them. What if they’re doing something illegal? How will anyone find them again?” “Uh-huh. Remember that spiffy onboard nav system? If something comes back with those plates, some federal judge issues a warrant to the park service and whatever agency is also interested, and the car can be tracked and located that way. Then I go hunting and you stay somewhere safe.” Mason grinned. “Gotta love technology.” “Do you think they’re up to no good?” Mason shrugged. “I don’t know. If that kid hadn’t been with her, I doubt I’d have given the woman a second glance. Wilderness areas like this are attractive to criminals because law enforcement is few and far between, there’s a lot of land, and it’s rugged and isolated. On the other hand, those sorts of people, for the most part, don’t want attention in the way that kid was drawing attention to himself. Yeah, I can understand them questioning why I was looking at their Jeep, but if they saw me, they saw mine, and there was no reason to think I wasn’t telling the truth about my interest.”  There are more snippets in the Rainbow Snippets Facebook group. Gone Away is available in eBook, paperback and through Kindle Unlimited. The entire series is in the Circles Box set.
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BOOK BLAST 
Book Title: Self-Care Workbook for Non-Binary Teens Author and Publisher: Michelle Mann Release Date: April 1, 2022 Genre: LGBTQ non-fiction, self-help book Themes: Non-Binary Length: 89 pages It is a standalone book. Buy Links - Hardcover and Paperback 
Blurb Looking for skills to navigate sexual orientation and gender expression?
Excerpt STORIES FROM THE CLASS As you read through the stories below, do any of them resonate with you? Maybe it’s not the whole identity, but only parts? That’s ok - that helps you to define who you are and how you want to identify. Clarence is a genderqueer young adult who loves knitting and reading mystery books. They use the terms “genderqueer” and “non-binary” interchangeably when describing themselves. They've also accepted that as time goes on, they may find another name to express their identity. Thomas is transmasculine. He is an adventurous guy who likes cooking, hiking, and movies. He is comfortable using he/him pronouns, and also uses they/them. Thomas knows that he can use either pronoun based on their preference. Brit is in their late 30s and identifies as ‘agender’. They identify as a person instead of a specific gender, or a spot on the gender binary. They have a love of fashion and excel at personal expression. Ellie identifies as ‘neutrois’ and describes themselves as being gender neutral. Ellie loves taking walks in the park with their dog and is especially fond of the spring when they can see flowers bloom everywhere. Ellie knows other neutrois individuals who describe themselves as genderless. Clair is an ‘autigender' individual who thrives in their neurodiversity and linking it to their identity experience. In conversations with their friends and family, Clair sometimes refers to themselves as “neurogender” or “xenogender”. Clair loves teaching others about neurodiversity, listening to all kinds of music and reading comic books in their free time. Clay is an ‘androgyne’ person who experiences both a masculine and feminine identity, sometimes simultaneously. Clay loves experimenting with the balance between their identities and the creativity that results from it. They are great at encouraging others to express themselves without fear or restraint. Danny is an intersex individual who also identifies as genderfluid. They enjoy explaining the intersection of their biological sex and identity to their friends. In their free time, Danny enjoys classic video games, especially the older Mario games. Ash is a ‘bigender’ person who has both a male and female identity. They’re an artist who loves using canvases to express their emotions and dreams. They choose to express each one as they please and enjoy combining both for unique expression. About the Author “If opportunity doesn’t knock, build a door…” Michelle Mann is a native of New York City and holds a degree in psychology. She is a busy but happy mother of 4 and an author of self-help and parenting books that are designed to help stressed-out parents to make the most of their child’s formative years. Her book, Parenting Pre-schoolers 2 to 5 Years Old, provides 20 tips for parents that are aimed at helping them deal with their child’s emotions and build effective lines of communication in what can often be the most challenging of times for parents, whether they are first-timers or have already experienced it and want to avoid making the same mistakes. She hopes that the future will provide her with enough spare time to write even more self-help and parenting books, so that she can reach even more parents who are struggling with busy careers and family lives, enabling them to find the solutions that will help them to thrive. Author Links 
Giveaway Enter the Rafflecopter giveaway for a chance to win your choice of ebook from author's backlist 
 My teaser today comes from Whiskey and Moonshine. They assembly lined their task. Colt pulled the steaming-hot bakeware from the ovens, and Mal transferred their contents to serving dishes. Once everything was arranged on the outside table, Mal took the baguettes down from the warming shelf on the upper grill. “Oh… ow… hot.” Mal juggled the bread as he hurried to the table. He dropped them into a waiting wicker basket. “You made all this?” Mal nodded. “Sure did. A number of the recipes in Kensington’s Place are my creations, or ones I took and tweaked. I understand the potatoes are one of your favorites.” Surprise registered all over Colt’s face. “How did you know?” Mal reached over and took Colt’s bread plate. He broke one of the baguettes and divided it between them, then passed Colt the potatoes. “I make it a point to know if people like the food my restaurant serves.” When Colt stopped eating and lifted his eyebrows, Mal confessed, “Audrey told me. I wanted to impress you.” “You wanted to impress me?” “Yes, I did. We’re going to be working together, and I’m hopeful we’ll become friends. I don’t want you to be uncomfortable.” Mal passed Colt a small bowl. “The spiced oil you liked for dipping the baguette in. There’s a domestic staff that comes in daily, and I have a driver, but no cook. I have food brought over from the restaurant if I don’t prepare my own meals.” Colt grinned. “I’ll be sure to thank Audrey.” They spent a few minutes eating. Mal poured more of the berry lemonade into each of their glasses and took a long sip of his before setting his glass down. “I was hoping we could get to know each other a bit.” “Meaning I tell you all about me,” Colt said. He didn’t sound offended, but maybe disappointed. “And if you’re interested, I’ll tell you a bit about myself.” Mal took another sip of lemonade, more to gather his thoughts than to quench his thirst. “You go first. Ask me anything you want to know.”  Whiskey and Moonshine is available in eBook, paperback
and in Kindle Unlimited. 
Other Worlds Ink has a new book out in the hopepunk cli-fi Writers Save the World anthology series: Save the World. And there's a giveaway. Climate change is no longer a vague future threat. Forests are burning, currents are shifting, and massive storms dump staggering amounts of water in less than 24 hours. Sometimes it’s hard to look ahead and see a hopeful future. We asked sci-fi writers to send us stories about ways to save the world from climate change. From the myriad of stories we received, we chose the twenty most amazing (and hopefully prescient) tales. Dive in and find out how we might mitigate climate change via solar mirrors, carbon capture, genetic manipulation, and acts of change both large and small. The future’s not going to fix itself. About the Series: “Writers Save the World” is an annual hopepunk anthology from Other Worlds Ink, featuring hopeful stories by sci-fi writers about ways to solve the world’s problems. Giveaway Other Worlds Ink is giving one lucky winner their choice of $25 Starbucks GC or a $25 donation to the Sierra Club in the winner’s name: Direct Link: http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/b60e8d47244/? Excerpt
No one ate for a full day. At night, they sat around their fires and counted the stars, their boats bobbing in the quiet, dark waters. No electricity was permitted. The drones were shelved. The holo-projectors unplugged. Even the radios were shut off. The next morning, they washed in the invigorating cold of the ocean, and beat their bodies with branches. This was what Edgard instructed. And what Edgard instructed, everyone obeyed. The waters seemed bright that morning, despite the depths below. Small dots of sea foam dotted the surface, reflecting the eager light of the new day. The weather was calm, and the ocean peaceful. It was an auspicious morning. Jason leaned against the rails, elbowing between his crew mates as everyone shuffled for the best view. There was laughter and chatter, some singing, a few rude jokes. The ocean was alive that morning, all the ships of the tribe lining up, energy buzzing across the wide decks. Then the drumming started, and silence fell. People leaned forward, craning necks. The canoe emerged from between boats, paddled by a small crew, its painted bow slicing through the water. At the front was Edgard, standing tall. Jason felt someone nudge him, and as he looked over at Amelia, she nodded at the cloak draped over Edgard’s shoulders. The Thunderbird. The canoe stopped, and Edgard placed a hand in the water. As he rose, he started to sing, lighting a bundle of dried cedar, and waving the smoke over his harpoon. He removed the muscle-shell hooks and wrapped them in cloth, tied rocks around the yew shaft, and placed it in the water. As it sank, his song ended. Edgard turned to face the ships, opened his arms wide, and smiled. The crews erupted. It was done. The harvesting was complete. —From "Thunder on the Ocean," by Christopher R. Muscato Author Bio Gustavo Bondoni is novelist and short story writer with over three hundred stories published in fifteen countries, in seven languages. He is a member of Codex and an Active Member of SFWA. His latest novel is Lost Island Rampage (2021). He has also published three other monster books: Ice Station: Death (2019), Jungle Lab Terror (2020) and Test Site Horror (2020), three science fiction novels: Incursion (2017), Outside (2017) and Siege (2016) and an ebook novella entitled Branch. His short fiction is collected in Pale Reflection (2020), Off the Beaten Path (2019) Tenth Orbit and Other Faraway Places (2010) and Virtuoso and Other Stories (2011). J. Scott Coatsworth lives with his husband Mark in a yellow bungalow in Sacramento. He was indoctrinated into fantasy and sci fi by his mother at the tender age of nine. He devoured her library, but as he grew up, he wondered where all the people like him were. He decided that if there weren’t queer characters in his favorite genres, he would remake them to his own ends. A Rainbow Award winning author, he runs Queer Sci Fi, QueeRomance Ink, and Other Worlds Ink with Mark, sites that celebrate fiction reflecting queer reality, and is a full member of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA) and the head of its self-publishers committee. Rachel Hope Crossman is an ex-fry cook, ex-substitute teacher and retired Montessori teacher. Her childhood year in Athens, Greece left indelible imprints of olive groves, pomegranates and the sparkling, turquoise blue of the Mediterranean upon her mind. She is the author of SAVING CINDERELLA: FAIRY TALES & CHILDREN IN THE 21ST CENTURY, (2014) The Apocryhile Press, which examines the world-wide Cinderella story as an archetype and explains the symbolism of rings, knives, birds, pumpkins and more. Her personal heroes are Harold (and his purple crayon), Peggy Hill and Nancy Pelosi. Jana Denardo is Queen of the Geeks (her students voted her in) and her home and office are shrines to any number of comic book and manga heroes along with SF shows and movies too numerous to count. There is no coincidence the love of all things geeky has made its way into many of her stories. To this day, she’s still disappointed she hasn’t found a wardrobe to another realm, a superhero to take her flying among the clouds or a roguish star ship captain to run off to the stars with her. Derek Des Anges is an emerging cross-genre author working in London, who consistently fails to stick to a single format or genre but does at least really consistently write about the queer experience (or some of them, anyway). He’s into fungi, industrial and experimental music, and trying to avoid the climate apocalypse actually flooding his flat too many times, because he has far too many books to consider moving out. CJ Erick’s stories have appeared in anthologies from WMG Publishing, WordFire Press, and others. He won the FenCon short story competition in 2015. He writes in multiple genres, publishes novels in a space fantasy series, and dabbles in poetry. He’s an MFA student in creative writing at Lindenwood University, and an editorial assistant for the Lindenwood Review. He lives in Dallas area with his wife and their rescue superhero dog Saber-Girl, calls his sourdough bread starter “Ursula” (K. Le Guin), and cooks crazy-good Cajun food for a Midwest Yankee. J.G. Follansbee’s short stories have appeared in several anthologies, including Others Worlds Ink’s Fix the World. Other publications include Bards and Sages Quarterly, Children, Churches and Daddies, the collection Still Life 2018, and the speculative fiction anthologies Satirica, After the Orange, Spring Into SciFi 2019, Rabbit Hole II, and Sunshine Superhighway. He is the author of the series Tales From A Warming Planet and the trilogy The Future History of the Grail. He has won several awards in the Writers of the Future contest, and he was a finalist in the inaugural Aftermath short story contest. He also has numerous non-fiction book credits. He lives in Seattle. Geoffrey Hart: Startled by an aggressive dictionary late in her pregnancy, Geoff’s mother was delivered of a child with a precocious antipathy towards users of words. Over time, he transformed this antipathy into a more functional, if equally passive-aggressive, editorial career. After nearly 35 years, the flame burns brightly as ever, leading to an errant, semi-evangelical career ranting against the evils of words from pulpits at any editing or technical writing conference that will have him, seeking new recruits for his cause. In his spare time, he roams the globe, entertaining locals with creative and unrestrained interpretations of their linguistic conventions. He also commits occasional fictions, and has sold 46 stories. M. J. Holt lives with her husband on their 60-acre family farm with many animals on a peninsula in Puget Sound. She is horrified that the entire world isn’t working to decrease pollution of all kinds. When she was a teenager, she and her mother sat under an ancient crabapple tree and read Rachel Carson’s Silent Spring. Her mother told her that future generations would pay the price for the sins of past generations. That price has increased and now several generations later, some not yet born, will pay the price. Lightning struck that crab tree decades ago. It grew on land her great grandfather bought in 1892. Her great grandmother farmed the land and had the current house, started in 1900, built. The farm passed to her grandfather, and then to her mother. She lives in that house amid the surviving bits of her ancestors’ lives. This generational continuity informs her fiction. Her crime thriller novels, The Devil’s Safe (2021) and its sequel Making Angels (2022) can be found on Amazon. Recent short stories have appeared in the anthologies Black-Eyed Peas on New Year’s Day: An Anthology of Hope, Low Down Dirty Vote Volume II, Alternate Theologies, and her poetry may be found in the poetry anthologies 300K, Timeless Love, and other periodicals. She earned separate undergraduate degrees in History and English Literature, and a Masters in English Literature. She is a member of SFWA, MWA, and other writing organizations. Jennifer Irani lives and works in southern California. Her story, “Graft,” was inspired by the recent fires in California, Greta Thunberg, and generation Z. A version of this story first appeared in Writing in Place: Stories from a Pandemic. Her work has been published in the anthology Dove Tales Empathy in Art: Embracing the Other. She has published essays in Orange Coast magazine. Her essay, Regeneration, received honorable mention in the Writers Challenge 2021 on Medium.com. Her poem, “Cool Colors Warm the Soul,” was selected for the Connecting Through Color, Art and Poetry exhibit. She is a member of Barbara Demarco’s Literary Posse. Andrew Rucker Jones was born and raised in Falls Church, Virginia. No muse heralded his birth, and he has not been writing novels since he was in diapers. He received his Bachelor’s degree from North Carolina State University in mathematics with minors in computer programming and German. He has always loved reading, so when the time came to choose a new career after twenty years in IT (programmer, system administrator, manager), he decided writing looked like fun. If only it paid. He now lives in Mannheim, Germany, with his Georgian wife, who actually earns money, and their three children, the eldest of whom also earns more than he. Micháel McCormick likes to write stories in his Batman pajamas. He and his wife also enjoy travel, hiking, Tai Chi, and perplexing cats. They split their time between Saint Paul, Minnesota and Lake Superior. Mike’s work has appeared in Arcanist, Daily SF, DreamForge, Frozen Wavelets, Grievous Angel, Metastellar, Talking Stick, and elsewhere. Christopher R. Muscato is an adjunct history instructor and writer from Colorado, as well as the former writer-in-residence for the High Plains Library District. He has published over a dozen short stories and is thrilled to be a part of this project. Masimba Musodza was born in Zimbabwe, and has lived most of his adult life in the United Kingdom. His short stories, mostly in the speculative fiction genre, have appeared in periodicals and anthologies around the world. He has written two novels and a novella in his first language, ChiShona. His collection of science-fiction stories, The Junkyard Rastaman & Other Stories, was published in 2020. Masimba also writes for stage and screen. M.D. Neu: Growing up in an accepting family. internationally award-winning author M.D. Neu always wondered why there were never stories reflecting our diverse queer society. Surrounded by characters that only reflected heterosexual society, he decided to change that and began writing, wanting to tell epic stories that reflect our varied world. When not writing, M.D. Neu works for a non-profit in Silicon Valley, and travels with his husband of twenty plus years. Jennifer R. Povey: Born in Nottingham, England, Jennifer R. Povey now lives in Northern Virginia, where she writes everything from heroic fantasy to stories for Analog. She has written a number of novels across multiple sub genres. Additionally, she is a writer, editor, and designer of tabletop RPG supplements for a number of companies. Her interests include horseback riding, Doctor Who and attempting to out-weird her various friends and professional colleagues. NRM Roshak is an award-winning Canadian author and translator. Their stories have appeared in various anthologies and magazines, including Galaxies SF, Daily Science Fiction, and Future Science Fiction Digest, and has been translated into several languages. They live in Ontario, Canada, with a small family and a loud cat. Holly Schofield travels through time at the rate of one second per second, oscillating between the alternate realities of city and country life. Her stories have appeared in Analog, Lightspeed, Escape Pod, and many other publications throughout the world. She hopes to save the world through science fiction and homegrown heritage tomatoes. Lisa Short is a Texas-born, Kansas-bred writer of fantasy, science fiction and horror. She has an honorable discharge from the United States Army, a degree in chemical engineering, and twenty years’ experience as a professional engineer. Lisa currently lives in Maryland with her husband, two youngest children, father-in-law and cats. She is a member of the Horror Writers Association and a Futurescapes 2021 alumnus. Heather Marie Spitzberg is an environmental author, scientist, and lawyer who lives in New York’s Hudson River Valley with her family. Her writing has been nominated for a Pushcart Prize. 
RELEASE BLITZ 
Book Title: Crazy Little Thing Cold Love Author and Publisher: Colette Davison Cover Artist: Colette Davison Photographer: Eric McKinney Model: Patrick H Release Date: June 24, 2022 Genre: Contemporary M/M Romance Tropes: Daddy kink, age gap (12 years), hurt/comfort, ex-military Themes: Self-care Heat Rating: 4 flames Length: 69 000 words It is a standalone story, but Jude appeared in His Boy to Cherish as a side character The book does not end on a cliffhanger. Buy Links - Available in Kindle Unlimited Universal link | Amazon US | Amazon UK 
Can two very different men turn an intense holiday romance into lasting love? Blurb Jude I shoot my mouth off and hide behind my smile as I try—and fail—to fill the void inside. Nothing has felt right since I was medically discharged from the army. Can there be more to life than a dead-end job and meaningless hook-ups? Kasper I didn’t expect to win a Cuffd Destinations holiday, let alone meet a sexy guy who’s fun to be around. Jude doesn’t think he’s a Daddy, but I’m going to prove him wrong. Who knows what we might discover along the way? Crazy Little Thing Cold Love is part of the Destination Daddies Season Two multi-author series. It features an emotionally scarred army veteran, a bubbly boy who sees the world in a unique way, summer snow, lots of steam, and a happy ending. Each book can be read as a standalone, but there are so many destinations and Daddies to discover, why not grab them all? Trigger warning for mentions of PTSD, flashbacks, and nightmares. Excerpt I found a spare stool at the bar and ordered a drink. It took me about thirty seconds to notice I was sitting next to a muscly guy with blond hair and bright blue eyes. He had his back to the wall while nursing a tumbler of scotch on the rocks as he surveyed the room. He was Hollywood’s definition of gorgeous. Not that it would matter if he didn’t have a personality to match his roguish good looks and body builder-scale muscles. I hadn’t talked to him yet, which meant another twizzle stick was about to be mine. “Hi,” I said, gesturing towards his lanyard. “I’m mint leaves, and you are…?” “Light rum.” Flashes of hot pink ignited at the edges of my vision, dominating the other colours already dancing there. The colour of his voice was beautiful, which was a good start. “Really? That means that together, we’re a mojito.” The man laughed. “I think we’re missing a few ingredients.” Vibrant pink swirled and undulated with the rhythm of his words. “Maybe a mojito in potential?” He laughed louder while I motioned to the barman. “Light rum and mint leaves,” I told him. He nodded, checked off our combination on a list, and gave us a twizzle stick. Twenty-four. I had more than hot-pink guy. “How come you’re not mixing?” I asked. “I’m talking to you, aren’t I?” It was my turn to laugh. “Now you are, but you were alone when I came over.” “I needed a breather.” “Yeah, me too.” I turned around to face away from the bar and leant against it. I’m Kasper, by the way.” I held my hand out. “Jude.” 
About the Author Colette’s personal love story began at university, where she met her future husband. An evening of flirting, in the shadow of Lancaster castle, eventually led to a fairytale wedding. She’s enjoying her own ‘happy ever after’ in the north of England with her husband, two beautiful children and her writing. Social Media Links Blog/Website | Facebook Page | Facebook Group: Colette’s Cosy Corner BookBub | Twitter | Goodreads | Instagram: @colettedavison Mailing List | Newsletter Sign-Up 
Giveaway Enter the Rafflecopter Giveaway for a chance to win a $10 Amazon Gift Card 
This week my snippet is from Tethered Pair, book 5 of Sentries.  Snow’s eyes narrowed, and he held Todd’s gaze for another few seconds before his eyes glossed over to a blood red, gaze boring into Todd. It was all Todd could do not to cringe away. Snow’s lips curled to a snarl, and he spat in a voice so low only Todd would hear him, “Revenge is sweet--sentry.”  Read more snippets in the Rainbow Snippets Facebook group.
Tethered Pair is published by JMS Books and is available in paperback and eBook. The entire Sentries series is available in an eBook box set. 
Michael G. Williams has a new gay sci-fi mystery out, Books of Autumn book 2: A New Life in Autumn. And there's a giveaway! THE HARDEST PART OF DYING IS DECIDING HOW TO PASS THE TIME Valerius Bakhoum died and kept no living. Now he can walk the streets of his city with a new face and a new name and finally feel a little bit respected. Too bad he’s still flat broke and behind on the rent. Unsure what to do with himself—and perhaps even of who he is—Valerius resumes his career as a detective by taking up the oldest case in his files: where do the children go? Throughout his own youth on the streets of Autumn, last of the Great Flying Cities, Valerius knew his fellow runaways disappear from back alleys and other hiding places more than people realize. Street kids even have a myth to explain it: the Gotchas, who steal them away in the night. With nothing but time on his hands, Valerius dives in head-first to settle the question once and for all and runs smack into a more pressing mystery: Who killed one of Valerius’ former lovers? And do they know he’s still alive? Return to the mean streets of Autumn by Valerius Bakhoum’s side as he shines a light into shadowy corners and finds secrets both sacred and profane with shockingly personal connections to who he was—and who he might become. Warnings: This book does involve mild violence, capture and impending torture by antagonists, and discussion of the murder of children. About the Series: What would you do if you found yourself free at last--and all alone--in the sin-drenched paradise you were told you'd never reach? Books of Autumn is a series telling the story of Valerius Bakhoum, a down and out private eye in Autumn, last of the great flying Cities, at various points in his life. In A Fall in Autumn (2020 Manly Wade Wellman Award), we meet Valerius as he winds down his career and his too-short life. In New Life in Autumn, Valerius navigates a surprising second chance and questions of who he is--and who he might become. Walk the mean streets of Autumn by Valerius' side in this award-winning study of the kindness and compassion found in the places where humanity's lowest ambitions lurk! Universal Buy LinkGiveaway Michael is giving away a $20 Amazon gift card with this tour: Direct Link: http://www.rafflecopter.com/rafl/display/b60e8d47243/? Excerpt
Across three quarters of the City of Autumn, street kids are an unthinkable paradox. For the most part, the Pluses and the PlusPlus and all the other manifold forms of intentional humankinds only ever run into the sorts of kids someone wanted badly enough to design. There are already a billion people in the world between the Empire, the Eastern Expanse, and the less-organized places nobody’s fought over quite yet. Having kids willy-nilly wouldn’t add up, not with so many people already in line for the breakfast bar. That’s one of the many objections the Spiralists put forward to continued cultivation of Artisanal Humans like me—well, like I was. That’s going to take some getting used to. Anyway, widespread cultural insistence on bespoke offspring leaves a lot of kids out in the cold, literally. The ones I described before, orphaned by chance or abandoned for turning out imperfect or who got tired of their old life and decided to chase a new one are, in the remaining fourth-to-fifth of the City, as common as cobblestones and just as underfoot. There are plenty of them, and the supply continually refreshes, and I went to distinctly other streets than theirs. It isn’t that I wanted to avoid them, but talking would have taken money or some sort of barter and I was too short by half on either. I suspected it would have generated too much information rather than too little. A street kid asked to tell a story for a steam bun or a little reliably spendable scrip will gin up all the story you want and then some. I didn’t need urban legends. I needed facts, and that meant a much more gruesome start than some urchin milking my wallet with tall tales of what goes bump in the night. I mentioned to Clodia one time that I had a friend who worked the Cisterns. The City of Autumn is like any town: its people have to piss like anybody else and its gutters often swell with rain. Autumn routinely flies into weather systems to gather up fresh water, and there’s a vast infrastructure to purify it for use by humankinds. I could spend ten pages telling you about the ponds in Down Preserves where rainwater burbles and bubbles under pressure, mixing in fresh air. The whole City sleeps atop a bed stuffed with pumps and gravity lines, charcoal and scrub algae, grates and artificial reefs and purpose-built shrimp—but I won’t. Instead, I’ll simply say this: by the time water gets to us, the only thing left is the scent of the air where it first fell as rain. I don’t understand how the process works. I don’t care, either. The important thing, the thing none of us think about too much in case it, too, is another pretty lie in the quilt of them we make over our lives, is it happens. Sip from Lotta’s to remember the dead, cup your hands in the fountains of Domino, turn on a tap in the average Autumn kitchen, and you’ll enjoy the aroma of a field somewhere in Afrique, or a mutant blossom somewhere on a nameless plain in the vast Recovery Zone between Big River and the Salt Flat. But on the other end of the system? Once all that delicious water has run its course through bodies and beer kegs and ice machines and steam plants? That’s called Cistern Intake. I knew a gal who worked that part of the system. You could smell it on her from ten meters away. I always felt sorry for her, because it was so baked into her skin, ground down into her pores, she didn’t even smell it anymore herself. On the plus side, she always had plenty of room in a bar. Nobody crowded her for long. Frankie was a Mannie. Generally speaking, no variety of Plus—nice, “normal” people with designer genes—would even be considered for her job. Even applying for it might result in getting a replication error assessment. Odds are good you’ve already heard the story from a few years ago about the PlusPlus whose big ideas on “lived egalitarianism” got her carted off for genotoxicity screening. What most folks don’t know, however, is it was a stunt on both sides. Sure, she only wanted to make a point by suing the City for the right to join a scrubber team, not actually take the job if they offered it. But the City went out of its way to make the counterpoint in response, escorting her kicking and screaming away from the workhouse where they keep the little gliders they use to clean the Fore Barrier’s external face. I assume she hoped to drum up publicity for her so-called perverse beliefs. I think she expected the City would do something to make an example of her, sure, but something more symbolic. You know, a big fine she could never pay, or maybe a few nights in the Palace of Imperial Justice. Something Imperial media could print without making anybody lose their lunch. Instead, they dragged her —did I mention the kicking and screaming?—straight to the Hive. No trial. No judge. No pretenses. The Hive is right there at the front of the City, and the tiny portion of it sticking out above street level is visible if you climb high enough in Down Preserves and look to the Fore. The joke goes, they put the City’s worst criminals out there so we’ll hear them screaming if we crash into anything. This lady’s worst crime, though, was trying to prove we’re not all equal, not in the lives we’re allowed to lead or the risks we’re expected to take in the course of them. It sounds like heroism to you or me, but to the powers that be, the Sinceres, the Spiralists, and all the other people who don’t care if the Empire is a heap of shit as long as they’re near enough the top to catch a breeze, she’d committed the worst kind of social treason: she’d violated the spoken and unspoken rules propping up the class system on which they relied. Author Bio
Michael G. Williams writes queer-themed science fiction, urban fantasy, and horror celebrating monsters, macabre humor, and subverted expectations. He’s the author of three series for Falstaff Books: the award-winning vampire/urban fantasy series The Withrow Chronicles; the thrilling urban fantasy series SERVANT/SOVEREIGN featuring real estate, time travel, and San Francisco’s greatest historical figures; the science fiction noir A Fall in Autumn, winner of the 2020 Manly Wade Wellman Award; and a bunch of short stories. He strives to present the humor and humanity at the heart of horror and mystery with stories of outcasts and loners finding their people. Michael will be the Guest of Honor at Ret-Con in 2023, co-hosts Arcane Carolinas, studies Appalachian history and folklore at Appalachian State University, and is a brother in St. Anthony Hall. He lives in Durham, NC, with his husband, a variety of animals, and more and better friends than he probably deserves. Author Website: https://michaelgwilliamsbooks.com Author Facebook (Personal): https://www.facebook.com/mcmanlypants Author Facebook (Author Page): https://www.facebook.com/MichaelGWilliamsAuthor Author Twitter: https://twitter.com/mcmanlypants Author Instagram: https://instagram.com/mcmanlypants Author Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/6429992.Michael_G_Williams Author Liminal Fiction (LimFic.com): https://www.limfic.com/mbm-book-author/michael-g-williams/ Author Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Michael-G-Williams/e/B001KIYBBU/
BLOG TOUR 
Book Title: Rarely Pure and Never Simple Author: Angel Martinez Publisher: Mischief Corner Books Cover Artist: Natasha Snow Release Date: June 28, 2022 Genres: Science Fiction, M/M Romance Tropes: Enhanced Humans, Slow Burn Romance, Annoyances to Lovers Themes: Minority oppression/exploitation, law vs. justice Heat Rating: 3 flames Length: 67 000 words It is the first book in a new series and does not end on a cliffhanger. Buy Links 
Variant children are vanishing at an alarming rate. It will take a uniquely mismatched pair of trackers to untangle a web of conspiracy and misdirection to find them. Blurb In his isolated cabin, variant Damien Hazelwood avoids human contact as much as possible to prevent attacks of blind berserker panic. But his rare talent as a locator makes him the go-to contractor for tricky missing person's cases and when agents bring him a troubling contract involving missing variant children, he finds it impossible to refuse. Excerpt The ice around the weed bed glowed blue as first morning rays stretched tentative fingers across the lake. Even the sun was smart enough not to rush out of bed on a cold-as-a-penguin's-pecker Vermont morning. Damien, however, apparently suffered from some intellectual deficiency since he was out on the lake already with his ice chisel, chipping away at a likely spot for a fishing hole. His breath ghosted in front of him, every gulp of air biting into his lungs. It wasn't that he liked the cold or enjoyed the self-sufficient, mountain-man lifestyle. He hated it. His hands always hurt. He was always hungry. It took him forever to warm his lonely bed at night no matter how many pairs of socks he put on, the frame rattling with his shaking for an hour or more. Chip-chip-chip. The ice chisel on six-inch lake ice echoed back to him off his cabin in a strange, one-sided conversation. The move wasn't for his health or even part of a dream of a better life. He had left Raleigh to escape. Yes, he could have taken it a step farther and vanished. Away from the coasts, out in the abandoned wilds to the west, he might have found somewhere to hole up. Much of the land surrounding the Mississippi was still poisoned, but farther out toward Kansas, the remains of chemical skirmishes diminished. The life of a wilding was dangerous for a lone person, though, and the constant need to be on high alert against scavengers who roamed the wastelands would have worn him down to nothing within a few months. Here, he was close enough to civilization for relative safety, far enough away for some peace. He'd given a promise for a promise, after all—his promise to Dr. Parma that he would still take the jobs he was uniquely suited to and her promise that he would be a last resort. Mostly, the arrangement worked. Up here, they couldn't hound him so easily with every minute need. Up here, anyone seeking him out had to go to considerable trouble to reach him. They knew where he was, of course. The inconvenient locale enforced the mandate that they think long and hard before paying a call, and now they only showed up when they had exhausted other options. So he pretended not to hear the crunch of the snow-crawler's treads as it trundled up the snow-crusted hill accompanied by the whisper-hum of its solar battery engine. Then he deluded himself a few more minutes with the fantasy of late-season sport fishermen. The voices, when they reached him, shattered his careful illusion. Chip-chip-chip. If I ignore them this time, will they give up and go away? Probably not. Please go away. "That's him? He's kinda puny," an unfamiliar voice rasped. They hadn't sent Cummings? What idiot was in charge now? They'd sent some stranger as the messenger, someone who didn't understand him? "Variants come in all the usual shapes and sizes, Wirth." There was Cummings. Thank God for small favors. "But Sledge—" "Is just one guy," Cummings snapped, obviously losing patience with what had to be a rookie. Footsteps crunched through the snow toward him. Damien tried to block them out, but his muscles tensed. The terrible sensation of having someone walking up behind him crawled up his back on millipede legs. Chip-chip-chip. "Wirth, hold up! You don't want—" Something touched Damien's elbow. The millipede crawling up his spine leaped into his brain and exploded in a thousand spiny pieces. He whirled, snarling, and swept the ice chisel at whatever had put a hand on him without permission. "Holy fuck!" A dark-haired man leaped back from the makeshift halberd. He fell on his ass and scrabbled backward on the ice, his eyes cow-patty huge in shock. "I tried to warn you," Cummings said calmly from the bank. A squared-off man with salt-and-pepper hair, he was the perfect bland-faced federal agent. He stood with his hands in his trench-coat pockets, stance relaxed and nonthreatening. There was a reason they usually sent him alone instead of sending a team or someone from the Guild, as they'd done once or twice. Cummings didn't judge. Cummings understood Damien's boundaries. "Maybe you'll learn to listen now." "He tried to fucking kill me!" The intrusive man, presumably Wirth, still scrambled backward as he failed to get his feet under him. "No. You invaded his space without warning. You don't do that. I might kill you if you don't stop acting like a jackass," Cummings grated out, shaking his head. Then he gave a nod to Damien and said more evenly, "Hazelwood. Good to see you." About the Author Angel Martinez is the pen name of a writer of several genres who writes both kinds of queer fiction – Science Fiction and Fantasy. (What? There are others?) Currently living part time in the hectic sprawl of northern Delaware, (and full time inside the author's head) Angel has one husband, one son, at least one cat at any given time, a changing variety of other furred and scaled companions, a love of all things beautiful and a terrible addiction to the consumption of both knowledge and chocolate. 
Author Links Blog/Website | Facebook | Twitter | Newsletter Sign-up Giveaway Enter the Rafflecopter Giveaway for a chance to win a $25 Mischief Corner Books gift card 
 My teaser this Tuesday is from Quarry, book 2 of The Vampire Guard. Declan opened his suitcase and selected a tie, then made quick work of pulling it on and situating it before rolling his sleeves to the middle of his forearms. “I’ll have Maisy help me with that.” Nodding at Forge he asked, “Do you have your badge?” Forge patted his back pocket. “I do.” He grinned and turned to Blair and Lucas. “The rest of us, along with Dane, Sayyna, and Palle can cover the hotel, locate the bastard, and keep an eye on whatever he’s up to. Maisy has already posed as part of the security for the band, so he’ll be avoiding her. That will actually allow her and Declan to move about more freely since our target will be dodging them.” “What’s that about your badge? You’re not a cop anymore.” Lucas said. Declan chuckled. “Once a cop, always a cop.” “Yep,” Forge said. “See, I do this.” He pulled his badge out, held it up, then squared his shoulders, put a stern look on his face, and stuffed his badge back into his pocket. “Most people see nothing but my badge. They don’t look at it closely enough to know I’m not actually local PD or FBI or Homeland Security. For most people, a badge is a badge and they’ll either run from me or cooperate. It’ll get me into places without having to break in, if needed.” Lucas held up his arm. “Gentlemen, sync your wristbands.” Forge moaned, Blair laughed, and Declan rolled his eyes, then slid one arm around Lucas’s waist and kissed his cheek. While they communicated predominantly via their earbuds, the wristbands they wore were also essential. They kept time, could administer a shot of adrenaline—allowing a vampire to be seen in a mirror or on camera quickly—and boosted their earbud range. In an emergency they became tracking and locator signaling devices. Though that last part, Blair had decided, needed upgrading. He was working on that. Quarry is available in eBook, paperback and in Kindle Unlimited.
SERIES TOUR - LOVE AT LAKE CLYDE 
BOOK DETAILS LOVE AT LAKE CLYDE, BOOK 1 
Book Title: King of the Mountain Author and Publisher: Aiden Ainslie Cover Artist: Reese Dante Length: 106 000 words/ 386 pages Release Date: July 11, 2021 Genre: Contemporary M/M Romance Tropes: Gay awakening; rich sports star meets poor student Themes: Coming out; competitive cycling; overcoming adversity; perseverance; HEA Heat Rating for the series: 3 - 4 flames It is a standalone story and does not end on a cliffhanger. The books are standalone but the reader would benefit from reading them in sequence to fully appreciate the setting and supporting characters of Clydesdale, a fictitious town in the California Sierra mountains. Buy Links - Available in Kindle Unlimited Blurb American cycling sensation and heartthrob Clifford Du Frey is riding the wave of success. Brand Du Frey is a multi-million-dollar business, and during the Tour de France, Clifford is mobbed by fans wherever he goes. The superstar must focus on winning the Tour de France and maintaining his fan base. LOVE AT LAKE CLYDE, BOOK 2 
Book Title: Master of the Wild Author and Publisher: Aiden Ainslie Cover Artist: Reese Dante Length: 88 500 words/ 364 pages Release Date: January 27, 2022 Genre: Contemporary MM Romance Tropes: Opposites attract; roommates to lovers; protect your bruised heart by never falling in love again; rich guy poor guy; proving oneself in a strange environment Themes: Fairy tales; clash of city and country; wilderness challenge; meddling townsfolk; HEA. Heat Rating for the series: 3 - 4 flames It is a standalone story and does not end on a cliffhanger. The books are standalone but the reader would benefit from reading them in sequence to fully appreciate the setting and supporting characters of Clydesdale, a fictitious town in the California Sierra mountains. Buy Links - Available in Kindle Unlimited Blurb IT whiz, Conner O’Reilly, moves from London to California to lick his wounds and recover after the break-up of a bad relationship. He is determined to find a job and start a new life. The last thing he needs is another romantic entanglement. Excerpt from “King of the Mountain” GABE Cliff stood in the shallows. His pale skin gave him the quality of a Michelangelo marble statue. His body had magnificent, classical proportions. Every muscle was clearly defined as though chiseled in stone and smoothed to perfection under the loving hand of a master sculptor. I wondered if he realized just how beautiful he was. And I still found it hard to believe that he was giving me the gift of his time. He watched me as I strode toward him and, when I shook the water out of my hair, he warned, “Don’t you dare splash me. I like to get in slowly.” “I won’t splash you,” I said as I stopped in front of him. His eyes were unbelievable. The aquamarine of the water reflected off his blue eyes. I had the sensation of looking into a kaleidoscope of colors yet to be invented. I placed my hands on his shoulders and kissed him on both cheeks. He was startled but did not back away. “What was that for?” he asked. “We have not had a chance to greet each other yet – the French way. The way you taught me. And,” I continued, “to say I’m sorry.” I gave him my sweetest smile. “Sorry for wha….” He did not get to finish the sentence because I folded one leg behind him and, in the most basic of wrestling moves, tipped him backward into the water.” The look on his face was priceless, and I burst out laughing when his head emerged, spluttering and cursing. He reached out a hand and said, “You can at least help me up.” I took hold of his hand and found myself yanked off my feet with Cliff dunking my head underwater. I shook myself free and rose from the waves to see Cliff making a run for the beach. I lurched after him, tackled him, and dragged him back into the water. He laughed and spluttered till he gained his footing and rounded on me, grabbing my waist. His hands stroked over my hip bones, and I started laughing. He had inadvertently found my weak spot, the most ticklish part of my body. Cliff was not one to let such an advantage pass him by. He held me tight with one arm curved around my chest while his free hand tickled my hip bone without mercy. I giggled and squirmed helplessly in his arms. We horsed around in the water like a couple of drunken teenagers. Drunk on sunshine, drunk on life, drunk on L… I did not dare to complete the thought. Who was I to think a man like Clifford du Frey would fall in love with me? For all I knew, he was straight as straight can be. Sports stars let off steam by horsing around with their teammates. And after the grueling days on the road, he sure needed some fun to relax and unwind. I reminded myself that a man could bathe in the warmth of the sun, but that did not mean the sun cared about the man’s existence. He was an international celebrity, a superstar. As unattainable as the sun itself. And we all knew what happened to those who flew too close to the sun. After a few more minutes of splashing and laughing, I got his glistening body in a half nelson and made him concede that I was a superior wrestler. Cliff stood bent-over, panting. I beat my chest like Tarzan and hollered at the waves, “I, Neptune, King of the Sea, have conquered the one and only King of the Mountain.” He smiled his most disdainful smile, came to stand right in front of me, and said, “Just wait till I get you up into the mountains.” “What are you going to do?” I teased, “Drag me into your castle and tie me up?” His nostrils flared, and his face showed such a mixture of emotions that I was at a loss to interpret them. “For starters,” he said, “I’ll whip your ass….” I caught my breath. He continued, “…at skiing.” He drew himself up to his full height, which meant I was looking directly at his lips and the stubble on his chin. I ached to reach out and feel that roughness. I did not just want to feel it with my hands; I wanted to feel it on my neck, my chest, on every square inch of my body. He parted his lips, and I imagined the sweet, salty taste they would leave on my tongue. My throat was suddenly dry. I licked my lips and looked up at the eyes that were waiting to bore into mine. Our chests were only separated by a minuscule air gap and two thin layers of water that were rapidly evaporating under our bodies' heat. I stood motionless; my heart was pounding so loudly that I was sure Cliff could hear it. I had the sensation of my chest hair vibrating to the rhythm of his heartbeat. About the Author Aiden Ainslie lives in the Diablo foothills, east of San Francisco. When he is not writing or listening to audiobooks, he likes to cycle and hike. During those solitary pursuits, he dreams up the characters and plots for his MM Romance novels. Aiden and his family have two dogs that keep him busy and he also enjoys zipping around town on his motor scooter, drinking coffee at the local coffee shops, and watching people to get inspiration for his writing. According to Aiden, "Setting and mood are critical parts of a romantic story, hence I am always taking pictures of romantic settings to be used in future novels". Author Links 
Giveaway Enter the Rafflecopter Giveaway for a chance to win a $10 Amazon Gift Card 
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