K.A. Mitchell
Author of Collision Course
About the Author
Image credit: via Dreamspinner Press
Series
Works by K.A. Mitchell
Custom Christmas (Custom Ride, #1.1) 19 copies
Appetizing (Bad in Baltimore, #5.5) 4 copies
Lover's Thrall 2 copies
Associated Works
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Common Knowledge
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Reviews
A lot of reviewers have concentrated on why this book didn’t appeal to them, so I’m going to concentrate on why it did to me.
First off, the characters were different. They weren’t ones the reader might want to go to bed with or live forever after with, but they were characters in their own right. They weren’t your average Mr and Mr Romance couple.
I enjoyed the fact they had unusual occupations: one who wrote advice columns in a gay newspaper and the other who ended up doing show more occupational therapy in rehab centres. Real people having real lives, not romance fiction lives.
The exploration of being gay or in recognising one was gay or “out for you” was handled well. Their past as best friends during their early years continued to impact on the way they were today. Sometimes, knowing someone so well actually adds conflict as attitudes, fears and thoughts from the past impede the relationship in the present. It’s hard to let old attitudes go.
K.A. also consciously avoided stereotypical situations such as the way three gay men fought back against their assaulters and managed for once to come out on top.
Sure, the main protagonists avoided emotional confrontations wherever possible. Sure they were pretty matter of fact about their needs and desires. That suited them and their circumstances.
Maybe they weren’t the “nicest” characters around. Maybe at times they did things that were unethical or dubious in their motives, but that made them more “real” in my book.
You’ve got to love the originality of lines like these:
Interspersed throughout were little snatches of humour, perfect for the guys and the mood of the book.
My only beef. Cover artists must like their men smooth. What happened to Nathan’s goatee beard??? It’s “him”. They're too young, too. Never mind. It's the words that count.
If five stars means perfection, it’s possibly not the right rating. But I have yet to read a book that’s “perfect”. Any areas which weren’t “perfect” were more than made up for by the above.
I respect K.A. Mitchell for her bravery in writing out-of-the-mould characters in original hook-ups and situations. She didn’t fail. I hope she continues to trust her own judgement and continues to create “difficult” characters in situations and plots that are not cliched. I, for one, will continue to buy and read your books and wish I could write like you.
Oh, and I'm really looking forward to reading Eli's book... show less
First off, the characters were different. They weren’t ones the reader might want to go to bed with or live forever after with, but they were characters in their own right. They weren’t your average Mr and Mr Romance couple.
I enjoyed the fact they had unusual occupations: one who wrote advice columns in a gay newspaper and the other who ended up doing show more occupational therapy in rehab centres. Real people having real lives, not romance fiction lives.
The exploration of being gay or in recognising one was gay or “out for you” was handled well. Their past as best friends during their early years continued to impact on the way they were today. Sometimes, knowing someone so well actually adds conflict as attitudes, fears and thoughts from the past impede the relationship in the present. It’s hard to let old attitudes go.
K.A. also consciously avoided stereotypical situations such as the way three gay men fought back against their assaulters and managed for once to come out on top.
Sure, the main protagonists avoided emotional confrontations wherever possible. Sure they were pretty matter of fact about their needs and desires. That suited them and their circumstances.
Maybe they weren’t the “nicest” characters around. Maybe at times they did things that were unethical or dubious in their motives, but that made them more “real” in my book.
You’ve got to love the originality of lines like these:
“I told you I wanted to do this on the morphine.”
Just because Nate didn’t get mushy over a fuck didn’t mean he had some kind of hang-up about sex.
Eli sat on a pile of folders. Nate’s office was perfectly organized. He kept the folders there so no one would come in and sit down.
Interspersed throughout were little snatches of humour, perfect for the guys and the mood of the book.
My only beef. Cover artists must like their men smooth. What happened to Nathan’s goatee beard??? It’s “him”. They're too young, too. Never mind. It's the words that count.
If five stars means perfection, it’s possibly not the right rating. But I have yet to read a book that’s “perfect”. Any areas which weren’t “perfect” were more than made up for by the above.
I respect K.A. Mitchell for her bravery in writing out-of-the-mould characters in original hook-ups and situations. She didn’t fail. I hope she continues to trust her own judgement and continues to create “difficult” characters in situations and plots that are not cliched. I, for one, will continue to buy and read your books and wish I could write like you.
Oh, and I'm really looking forward to reading Eli's book... show less
Before continuing this series, I decided to revisit the first two. I read this one late in 2011, which is early in my M/M reading obsession. I thought it would be interesting to see if my tastes and opinion had changed. Lucky for me, I don't think they have as much as I might have thought.
This is an interesting book, because in general, when I'm not truly sure I actually like the MC's, I struggle to read the book through quickly. That's not happening in this case. I actually struggle to put show more the book down, even though both Nate and Kellan take turns irritating the hell out of me lol. But I suppose that's just the sign of a well written story! show less
This is an interesting book, because in general, when I'm not truly sure I actually like the MC's, I struggle to read the book through quickly. That's not happening in this case. I actually struggle to put show more the book down, even though both Nate and Kellan take turns irritating the hell out of me lol. But I suppose that's just the sign of a well written story! show less
Ethan & Wyatt: Getting Him Back / Boyfriend Material / Relationship Status (Ethan & Wyatt, #1-3) by K.A. Mitchell
Ethan and Wyatt's story was everything you'd expect from a New Adult book (with plenty of sex). All the hardships young people face in their lives, such as first love; college education and housing; losing your first love and trying to get him back; going wherever your dick leads you (and figuring out where your dick goes, and how) even if it might get you into real trouble; falling in love again and trying to arrange your life around that person and planning your FOREVER.
Book 1 was entirely show more from Ethan's POV. I liked him, he's a fun, open person, which is everything Wyatt isn't. Wyatt is quiet, he's hiding because of his past and also because he has Waardenburg syndrome, which causes hearing loss and pigmentation changes on the skin, hair and eyes.
I liked how they came together, even though it was a bit too fast for my liking, but that's young love I guess.
Ethan's ex, I'm sure the author wanted him to be the villain and lots of readers did see him as one. I didn't. I understood him... yeah, he could've handled the situation better, but you know leaving high school and your hometown behind is confusing enough even without a boyfriend to think about. Anyway. I was glad he didn't take up much space in the book.
I loved it, and wasn't sure what else was left to say in the remaining two books, but I went on. And I'm so glad I did, because book 2 was from Wyatt's POV, and I loved it more. I'm not saying that Wyatt's feelings ran deeper than Ethan's, but for some reason the author decided to lay it all out there in the narration, so the readers knew Wyatt's feelings, but of course he kept it to himself and left Ethan in the dark.
So I was gushing and swooning a lot while reading book 2. *-*
Book 3 was dual POV and all about maintaining a steady relationship. Ethan was tiptoeing around Wyatt, he thought Wyatt would bolt if he pushed too hard, too fast. They didn't want to separate for the summer so they found jobs and rented a shitty place with 2 other guys, so it wasn't a dream come true. They were playing house just for the summer. But Wyatt started to loosen up, it took him a long time, but he started to picture a future together with Ethan. I loved seeing Wyatt open up and smile.
Book 3 could've been a bit longer, there were time jumps I wanted to be filled in and I desired a more romantic ending. I also hoped we'd get to see more of Ethan's family.
I really loved the writing style and well... basically everything else. It was fun and upbeat. Reading my review it might come off as a melancholic story, I assure you it's not. :) You can read all 3 books in one go, it's like one long book.
Really enjoyed it. 4.5 stars show less
Book 1 was entirely show more from Ethan's POV. I liked him, he's a fun, open person, which is everything Wyatt isn't. Wyatt is quiet, he's hiding because of his past and also because he has Waardenburg syndrome, which causes hearing loss and pigmentation changes on the skin, hair and eyes.
I liked how they came together, even though it was a bit too fast for my liking, but that's young love I guess.
Ethan's ex, I'm sure the author wanted him to be the villain and lots of readers did see him as one. I didn't. I understood him... yeah, he could've handled the situation better, but you know leaving high school and your hometown behind is confusing enough even without a boyfriend to think about. Anyway. I was glad he didn't take up much space in the book.
I loved it, and wasn't sure what else was left to say in the remaining two books, but I went on. And I'm so glad I did, because book 2 was from Wyatt's POV, and I loved it more. I'm not saying that Wyatt's feelings ran deeper than Ethan's, but for some reason the author decided to lay it all out there in the narration, so the readers knew Wyatt's feelings, but of course he kept it to himself and left Ethan in the dark.
"His voice sounded like it had a hard time getting out of his throat. “It’s just, I can’t ever tell if you’re happy. And I want to make you happy with me. Any way I can.”
"It’s hard as hell loving someone who’s waiting—no, looking—for a reason to push you away. I don’t get why you want to be miserable when I just want you to be happy.”
So I was gushing and swooning a lot while reading book 2. *-*
Book 3 was dual POV and all about maintaining a steady relationship. Ethan was tiptoeing around Wyatt, he thought Wyatt would bolt if he pushed too hard, too fast. They didn't want to separate for the summer so they found jobs and rented a shitty place with 2 other guys, so it wasn't a dream come true. They were playing house just for the summer. But Wyatt started to loosen up, it took him a long time, but he started to picture a future together with Ethan. I loved seeing Wyatt open up and smile.
Book 3 could've been a bit longer, there were time jumps I wanted to be filled in and I desired a more romantic ending. I also hoped we'd get to see more of Ethan's family.
I really loved the writing style and well... basically everything else. It was fun and upbeat. Reading my review it might come off as a melancholic story, I assure you it's not. :) You can read all 3 books in one go, it's like one long book.
Really enjoyed it. 4.5 stars show less
Ethan has been looking forward to moving to college to be reunited with his boyfriend, Blake, for year. Blake graduated high school a year before Ethan, so they've only been able to see each other on breaks. But this is their time. Until Ethan arrives on campus and Blake informs him he doesn't want to be with him as his boyfriend anymore--but that doesn't mean he doesn't want to hook up from time to time. Ethan is initially devastated and wants nothing more to find out how he can get Blake show more back. He even goes so far as to engage with Blake's roommate, Wyatt, under false pretenses to learn more about his newly-minted ex. But Wyatt has an intrigue all his own, which leads Ethan to think it might be easier to move on from Blake than he originally thought. Could Ethan really start something with his ex-boyfriend's roommate? Is his time with Blake really in the past? And what is it that makes Wyatt keep pulling away from Ethan any time he tries to get close?
I'm not entirely sure where to start in describing this book except to say that I definitely enjoyed it. I feel like the author could have gone in so many different directions as this story played out, yet every avenue taken made for the perfect combination to bring this all together. The characters are great (even the ones hanging out in the background), and it's not too difficult to get attached to them (or want to distance yourself as far as possible in the case of Blake). The writing expertly captures the confusion, frustration, longing, and excitement that the characters feel at various points in the story. And it all can make one really reflect on the nature of relationships and sometimes not getting what we want to instead get exactly what we need.
[Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.] show less
I'm not entirely sure where to start in describing this book except to say that I definitely enjoyed it. I feel like the author could have gone in so many different directions as this story played out, yet every avenue taken made for the perfect combination to bring this all together. The characters are great (even the ones hanging out in the background), and it's not too difficult to get attached to them (or want to distance yourself as far as possible in the case of Blake). The writing expertly captures the confusion, frustration, longing, and excitement that the characters feel at various points in the story. And it all can make one really reflect on the nature of relationships and sometimes not getting what we want to instead get exactly what we need.
[Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.] show less
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