Pepper Espinoza

I really like gay romances where two men are forced together from circumstances beyond their control only to fall in love. This story was exactly that, but was also delivered with beauty and elegance.

The setting is never specifically revealed, but has a medieval feel to it which I liked. Jag was destined for the priesthood, but when his parents find themselves in dire financial straights, they must marry him off to save the family. Brace has always wanted a loving spouse, but despite his show more nobility, few families are willing to offer son when there is no hope of them begetting heirs. So, this opportunity with Jag is likely his only. But, Brace doesn't want the man forced into a marriage unwilling. He sends Jag a rare and enormously valuable pearl ring. Which he could sell and save his family. Brace has only one night to convince Jag that marrying him would be more worthwhile.

One feature that made this story so special was that it focuses soley on the couple. Though Jag's parents are mentioned, and a butler has a few lines, the entire story is Jag and Brace and their night together. We learn almost everything about the men directly from them (there are no flashbacks). This was quite refreshing. Their conversation is awkward at first, as the feel their way, but gets playful as they grow comfortable with one another. It was so realistic, yet never loses the element of fantasy. The sex was graphic, but also very sensual. Jag is a virgin, and Brace treats him with tenderness.

This novella has the prerequisite happy ending (for which I am profoundly grateful), but managed not to be flatly predictable. The story is part of a multi-author series called "A Calling of Souls." With this as an example of what to expect, I will definitely look for more, and also more of Espinoza's solo efforts. Highly recommended! show less

BOOK BLURB:
Johnny Leach has a good life. He’s married to Elizabeth, a woman he loves, he lives in a quiet frontier town, and he owns a successful saloon. In some ways, it’s a better life than he might deserve. Still, he keeps the past firmly behind him, not because of what he’s done, but because of who lurks there ... the man he rode with for ten years ... a man a part of him still loves.

A man who rides into town one morning without warning.

Brody James is running from his own past, and show more his ultimate goal is South America. He claims he stopped to say goodbye to Johnny, and claims he’ll catch the four o’clock train to Galveston. But where Brody James goes, trouble follows. Before four o’clock, Johnny and Elizabeth will find their secure world falling into an uncertain future.

BOOK REVIEW:
It's pretty common for shorter menage stories to use characters' histories to get us to the action faster ~ an ex-lover comes back to town, say, which is exactly what happens here, but here it works, and it works well.

Both the situation that separated Brody and Johnny, and the small-town politics Brody walks into as soon as he comes back into Johnny's life are vivid and believable. Ditto Elizabeth's ~ Johnny's wife's ~ reaction to the situation ~ she genuinely comes across as a smart, confident, independent woman. She has her worries, her moments of fear about what she's getting into, but ultimately, this is a very balanced, very equal threesome. The author's done a great job of showing the reader what each of the three of them has to offer, has to gain, and has to loose, and the net result is a set of decisions that I could really get behind, and a poly relationship I really want to see succeed.

Fitting everything into a very tight narrative, the action of the book all takes place in just a few hours. It is an impressive feat, and makes for a very taut, well-balanced story. There's a constant awareness of time passing, which gives appropriate weight to both the character's conversations and the sex scenes, and a sense of urgency and immediacy to the action.

The wild west setting may not be 100% historically accurate, but it's imaginatively very real ~ the book itself, all those movies you half remember watching growing up, all those cultural tropes, come together to create a background that shapes this story, and makes it shine. You really get a feel of the hot, dusty, Wild West from the pages and the story is well rooted in that setting, the realities of life there.

Pepper Espinoza has written a compelling menage story, and an unusual action-packed western, which was a genuine pleasure to read.
(originally reviewed for Rainbow Reviews - http://www.rainbow-reviews.com/?p=1557) show less

A Busted Afternoon by Pepper Espinoza is a 40-page contemporary gay romance set in the summer of 1972. Don’t worry about encountering any hippie clichés. This story is close enough to today to seem timeless. Even so, you’ll get a chilling hint of the Vietnam War that hangs over our 18 year-old heroes’ heads. You might also find that their straightforward naiveté reflects a more innocent time. Innocent is definitely the word for Ed and Sammy. They’ll make you swoon if you like show more old-fashioned heroes who are tough and masculine, and yet young enough to be ruled by their emotions.

The story’s realism and its clear and minimalist writing pave the way for total escapism. You’ll be transported into the backseat of one broken-down car in a desert thunderstorm. Within are two young men struggling with a secret, long-standing desire for one another. Their passion leads to a fistfight, one hot sex scene, and a chance for true love.

The story starts with Ed driving from Wyoming to California. He’s earned money for his sightseeing trip through farm work. Now, before they both get drafted into the war, he’s invited along Sammy about whom he has fantasized for years. Sammy is playful and reckless whereas Ed is sensitive and brooding.

Ed’s car breaks down, stranding them on the deserted Nevada highway during a thunderstorm. The boys retreat to the backseat to wring out their clothes, and Sammy starts flirting with Ed. However, Ed’s insecurity causes him to reject Sammy who walks away down the highway.

On page 18, Sammy thinks, ” …about the way Ed smelled after a day of hard day’s work – the strong, musty scent of his skin, and dirt, and sweat. His hair damp, hanging over his brow. His full mouth parted so he could catch his breath, his dark lashes – almost as long as a girl’s – shielding his eyes.”

A Busted Afternoon shows you that moment when the smallest decision can cause you to lose everything or to win your heart’s desire.

Val for AReCafe show less

Leopold is the prince of a fantasy medieval kingdom. He has never smiled and so people think that he is deformed or maybe cursed. Recently his mother is not well and her only wish is to see her son's smile and so the king, who is deeply in love with his wife, sends out a decree: the first person who will make his son smile will marry him.

After being subjected to all the type of 'show' from a string of wanna-to-be princess, Leopold takes a break and goes on an hunting expedition in the show more country, and here he meets Dexter, a young peasant who is going to court in search of a well-paid job to help his family. Leopold, who actually prefers the company of men, even if, till this moment, neither men were able to make him smile, as soon as he sees Dexter, can't help the smile on his face. Why is not exactly clear, if not a sudden case of love at first sight, since Dexter hasn't done anything of really funny.

This is the classic example of Cinderfella's story, with also a bit of breeches rippers: Leopold is besotted by Dexter, and he claims that he only wants to please him for once, since till this moment people only pleased him. But truth be told, Leopold bends upon a full debauching plan to strip Dexter of his virginity, and there is a bit of droit du seigneur in this story, with Dexter that feels as he can't deny anything to Leopold since he is his prince. But Dexter is not so against the idea, and once Leopold shows him what they can do together, he is more than a willing participant. He almost forgets that he has a family at home waiting for him.

The story is a quite enjoyable novella, a funny romp between the sheets with a fairy tale atmosphere (even if nothing of really 'strange' or out of ordinary happens), but all in all it's more tender and romantic that real funny, with almost a little core of sadness.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/1602728518/?tag=elimyrevandra-20 show less