Dance on Ice by RJ Scott & V.L. Locey Release Blitz

For the figure skater and the hockey player, their sport demands total devotion, but can falling in love come first?

My name is Shaun Stanton, and I’m bisexual.

In hockey-obsessed Chesterford Academy, Shaun Stanton stands out as the star player and captain of the Chesterford Coyotes, and his exceptional skills have already attracted the attention of NHL scouts. He lives and breathes hockey, but there’s more to his story. His father wants Shaun to be the star he never was, and their relationship is a complex mix of guidance and intimidation. Worse, while hockey is Shaun’s sanctuary and a key part of who he is, he harbors a secret his dad can never discover: Shaun is gay He’s caught between the future career he’s destined for, and the truth he has to hide. There’s one bright light in his life, the vibrant figure skater who shares the early morning practice ice, a friend he worries about, but has now become something more—Kenji is everything Shaun wants and can’t have.

My name is Kenji Kelly, and I need to be perfect.

Kenji Kelly is a young man who walks two worlds: his family is a beautiful mix of American and Asian cultures. He loves both figure skating and hockey, and he’s a out and proud pansexual teen. While it seems to the world around him he has it all, deep down Kenji has a secret that’s slowly becoming harder to conceal. His life is the ice and his coach does not believe in failure. The one person who knows his hidden secret is Shaun, the captain of the Coyotes and a friend from youth hockey days. Shaun’s gaze towards Kenji, once filled with concern, now seems to hold something deeper, unsettling Kenji but also igniting similar giddy, burgeoning feelings in him. As their feelings for each other become stronger, the secrets both young men carry grow heavier and more distressing with each passing day.

Trigger Warning: mention of an eating disorder.

Don’t miss our reviews of the rest of the Chesterford Coyotes series!
For book one, Off the Ice, click HERE.
For book two, On Thin Ice, click HERE.

 

 

Book 3
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There was a heated exchange of words, Kenji skating backward and away, almost at center ice. All I needed to do was to push forward on one skate, and glide there, and we could say hello. We’d been best friends once, and if I apologized—if I was honest with him about how I’d messed up—maybe we could go back to being friends. As the argument escalated between my dad and Kenji’s coach, I felt a knot form in my stomach and I was paralyzed by my own insecurities. I watched Kenji and cursed myself for not having the courage to reach out to him.

Dad was becoming more animated, Kenji’s coach just as loud, gesticulating wildly.

I didn’t have the balls to skate to the center ice.

And Kenji didn’t turn to look at me.

Dad returned, as scarlet as me, but where my reaction was shame and confusion, his was temper and hatred.

“You’re sharing the ice,” he snapped.

He was so angry, and I didn’t know how to feel. He’d sacrificed everything for me; worked three jobs to keep me in hockey gear, drove me to every practice and game, and even volunteered as a coach for the team. The thought of letting him down filled me with guilt.

I owed him.

He’d poured his heart and soul into my hockey career, and it all centered on us practicing six days out of seven on this ice, and today we didn’t have the ice.

I should feel territorial, right? It was what Dad wanted me to feel, I was sure. Instead I felt… weird. Then something hit me. Why was I sharing the ice that was for the school? I was somewhere for the Academy teams to practice and play, and it wasn’t open to the public, courtesy of a shit ton of funding from very rich benefactors at our very wealthy campus. Why was someone from outside Chesterford Academy on our ice?

“They’ll let anyone join this damn school, freaking twirly shit getting in our way. Fucking girls out here on our ice.”

“He’s—”

“No!”

I wanted to defend Kenji, to explain that figure skaters were as valid as hockey players, same as I’d done when Kenji had left hockey for the figure skating and begged to be allowed to be friends with him still. But my dad’s hatred had spilled over and scared me.

“Shut your mouth and listen up,” Dad snapped. His reaction stung, his threats left me feeling powerless and defeated, and small.

So small.

“Figure skaters are boys as well,” I word-vomited, thankful the boards were between me and him when Dad stiffened and sent me a stare that would kill other people. Dad had never touched me, apart from fixing my hockey hold, or straightening my back, but his expression was murderous, and that meant the curses would fly and he’d take out his impotent rage on me with words. He leaned over the barrier, and my heart skipped, my chest tightened. I held my position and tilted my chin as he lowered his voice, hate dripping from every word.

 

 

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Ruthie – ☆☆☆☆
This is the third in the series, and is another great book from the talented duo of V.L. Locey and RJ Scott. This time we get an interesting pairing of two very different ice sports – the oversized, slightly brutish hockey player, Stanton, and the diminutive ice dancer, Kenji.

Both guys are now training on shared ice in the early hours of every morning, their respective coaches bullying them on the ice, using horribly negative slurs to get them to improve. I really hate this style of coaching, so was super angry at both of them and very relieved when things change.

Though they were great friends as youngsters, there was a rift, and it is really touching watching them retrieve the friendship, admit that it might well be much more than just a friendship, and navigate a possible future, all whilst dealing with their coaches hounding them to be better. For Stanton, he has to find the strength to live his own dream, rather than his father's. For Kenji, the road is much more complex as he has a coach who demands his weight stay at a set point, something he feels he can only achieve by starving himself most of the time. It is difficult to read, but the authors have done an amazing job of providing balance and insight.

I definitely recommend this book to you – and for series fans, there are plenty of links to earlier books, which are very satisfying.


Shannan – ☆☆☆☆
Dance on Ice is the third installment in the Chesterford Coyotes series. It can be read as a standalone – and the trigger warning for an eating disorder should be taken seriously. If this is a topic you yourself have struggled with or can't read this type of story, please skip this one, as it is a big topic in the plot.

Kenji and Shaun were the closest of friends when they were younger. They played hockey together until Kenji was pulled more toward the figure skating world. Shaun's dad took issue with that and refused to let Shaun remain friends with him. Shaun hated that he was no longer a part of Kenji's world, but he owed his dad for all his sacrifices. Kenji is proudly out as pansexual while Shaun is hiding deep in the bisexual closet even though there are very well known, out hockey players. His dad pushes him hard to be the best and make the NHL at any cost. And Kenji's coach bullies him for his weight – having daily weigh-ins; the stress to be perfect pushes Kenji to an eating disorder. Kenji wants to hate Shaun, but he can't. Shaun wants to protect Kenji and be the one he can lean on. They fight for a regained friendship but they both want more.

The bullying they both experienced was heartbreaking. Seeing Shaun finally stand up against his father was everything, as was Kenji's coach being exposed, unfortunately at the injury of Kenji. There friends stood behind them both and became the support they both needed.

Another great story from this duo of authors!

 

 

USA Today bestselling author RJ SCOTT has written over one hundred and fifty romance books. Emotional stories of complicated characters, cowboys, single dads, hockey players, millionaires, princes, bodyguards, Navy SEALs, soldiers, doctors, paramedics, firefighters, cops, and the men who get mixed up in their lives, always with a happy ever after.

She lives just outside London and spends every waking minute she isn’t with family either reading or writing. The last time she had a week’s break from writing, she didn’t like it one little bit, and she has yet to meet a box of chocolates she couldn’t defeat.

Connect with RJ Scott!

Facebook  ~  Instagram  ~  Twitter  ~  TikTok  ~  Website  ~  Goodreads
Facebook Group: RJ Scott – Special Secret Group
Facebook Group: MM Hockey Romance

 

V.L. LOCEY loves worn jeans, yoga, belly laughs, walking, reading and writing lusty tales, Greek mythology, the New York Rangers, comic books, and coffee. (Not necessarily in that order.)

She shares her life with her husband, her daughter, one dog, two cats, a flock of assorted fowl, and two Jersey steers.

When not writing spicy romances, she enjoys spending her day with her menagerie in the rolling hills of Pennsylvania with a cup of fresh java in hand.

Connect with V.L. Locey!

Facebook  ~  Instagram  ~  Twitter  ~  Website  ~  Goodreads
Facebook Group: V.L. Locey – Vixens Reading Group
Facebook Group: MM Hockey Romance

 

 

Hosted by

Reviewers on the Wicked Reads Review Team were provided a free copy of Dance on Ice (Chesterford Coyotes #3) by RJ Scott & V.L. Locey to read and review.

On Thin Ice by RJ Scott & V.L. Locey Release Blitz

A young adult hockey romance filled with making amends, family, friends, and discovering the real person inside while juggling the crazy, upside-down world of high school.

Jonah Robinson has really messed up. He’s spent the last year hanging out with someone who wasn’t leading him in a good direction. Now that Felix has seen the light, perhaps it’s time for Jonah to do the same. Making amends is not going to be easy when he’s not exactly been the nicest guy at Chesterford. With the help of his family and a special friend at the school, Jonah is ready to try to make things right with those he wronged. The first person on that long redemption list is Tyler, the brightest player on the Coyotes, at least in Jonah’s eyes. He’s taken a thousand pictures of Tyler for the school paper, but he’s going to have to learn how to develop more than just negatives if he wants to grow close to Tyler.

Tyler Corrigan’s dad has left, his mom is terrified he’ll come back, and it’s Tyler who’s left to keep his little family in one piece. The only respite from real life is playing hockey, and he’s an important part of the Chesterford Coyotes. Despite not being the biggest person on the ice, speed is his superpower, and the team has his back during the worst of the bullying he’s had to endure. His friends make him feel safe when his real world is full of fear, but no one can protect his heart when an awkward and messed up Jonah—one of the worst of his bullies—is suddenly around every corner, wanting to make things right.

Sorry can be a difficult word to believe, but trusting your heart is everything.

Don’t miss our reviews of the rest of the Chesterford Coyotes series!
For book one, Off the Ice, click HERE.

 

 

Book 2
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Apple Books  ~  B&N  ~  Kobo  ~  Smashwords
Paperback (US)

 

 

A shadow fell across my books, and I sighed, hoping to hell it wasn’t someone who wanted to talk to me because this essay on evolutionary principles wouldn’t write itself. I waited for the shadow to leave, or move, or something, but it seemed like I was waiting in vain, and finally, when I couldn’t ignore it any more, I glanced up.

Jonah.

My flight instinct kicked in, but eased almost immediately when I realized it was just Jonah and there was no sign of Miles. Talk about a Pavlov’s dog-type reaction.

Jonah was mostly okay when it was just him, a bit of a dick for watching things go down, but okay when he was solo. Not that we talked, because if we were on our own, he would move away to avoid me, and then scurry off in any direction he could find. Only, here he was standing in the light and staring down at me, and I could see his mouth moving.

All I could hear was the chorus of Defying Gravity, and I gestured to my ears to indicate the buds under my layered pink hair.

He nodded and indicated I take them out. Fuck. If I removed them, I’d have to talk to him, and I didn’t have it in me to have a heated chat about whatever made Jonah look so determined.

He stared at me.

I stared back.

Then, with a sigh, I pulled out the buds and the song stopped.

“Hi,” he said after a pause. I glanced past him, making sure Miles hadn’t in fact made his way into the study room and was waiting to pounce on me. He’d already threatened me with payback for turning him in and said that in the less than thirty seconds he’d had before his father pushed him out of the main door.

I’ll get you for doing this. That was what Miles had snarled at me. It didn’t help that Miles’ dad had sneered, snorted in disgust, and then, shoved his son in the back. The parting words from his dad were just as nasty as Miles were—the apple didn’t fall far from the tree.

You couldn’t take that kid out? Didn’t raise you to be a freaking loser.

I knew all about shitty fathers, and for a moment, I recognized the hate in his father that meant maybe Miles never stood a chance. I knew how hard it was to fight out from under all the hate, but I’d had Mom, and she’d been my guiding light every single day of my life.

Maybe Miles’ mom was as much of a loser as his dad?

He couldn’t be more wrong about me making the complaint—nothing good came from involving outside parties after threats of intimidation—just ask my mom. I had no idea who’d accused the two boys of bullying, given it was anonymous, but it definitely hadn’t been me. If I thought it was worth bothering with, I would have reported things long ago, but I had knowledge of bigger bullies than Miles, and had terrifying firsthand experience of what happened when an aggressor was backed into a corner.

“And?” I prompted Jonah, who was bouncing on his toes a little, as if he couldn’t stay still. I waited patiently, and when he opened his mouth a couple of times, just to shut it again, I was about done with waiting for him to talk and picked up the buds to continue my research.

“I’m sorry,” he blurted, his dark eyes shining with emotion.

I could feel the gaze of all the students in the study room focused on whatever was going on here. I should have gone to the library—no one goes there to study except the kids who actually had to try really hard to do well in subjects. Now was the perfect time for me to make a big thing of him standing there; humiliate him, shout at him, rail at him for all the times he could have done more than just watch.

Instead, because I was so torn between understanding and the hateful need for revenge, I deliberately replaced my earbuds and bent my head to the book open on the desk. He was still there. Still bouncing.

Then, he placed something on the corner of the desk and walked away. I refused to watch him leave.

He’d left me a candy bar, my favorite—Snickers—right there with a Post-it note stuck to the front. It held one word. Sorry.

Only then did I glance the way he’d gone, to find him watching me through the glass of the door, a hopeful expression demanding I acknowledge the weird-ass gift.

I nodded.

Then immediately pretended to go back to studying.

It was safer not to engage.

 

 

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Shannan – ☆☆☆☆
On Thin Ice is the second book in the Chesterford Coyotes series. It can be read as a standalone, but I think it would read better if you read in the order the authors intended. On Thin Ice is a young adult, high school hockey, teen-angst, enemies-to-friends-to-boyfriends read.

Jonah is newer to Chesterford and is there on a scholarship. He was shy and somehow got in with Felix and Miles. He hated the bullying Miles did but stood by while he did it. So he was as much to blame as Miles was. Jonah wants to be a better, kinder human and the best way to do that is to distance himself from Miles and make amends to those he hurt, starting with Tyler. Tyler happens to be best friends with Soren, who is now dating Felix, and Felix and Jonah have a lot to work out between them.

On Thin Ice is a super cute at moments very heavy read. I loved how Tyler made Jonah work for his forgiveness. I can't wait to see what's next for this series! I am not a usual young adult reader but I am so invested in these characters!

 

 

USA Today bestselling author RJ SCOTT has written over one hundred and fifty romance books. Emotional stories of complicated characters, cowboys, single dads, hockey players, millionaires, princes, bodyguards, Navy SEALs, soldiers, doctors, paramedics, firefighters, cops, and the men who get mixed up in their lives, always with a happy ever after.

She lives just outside London and spends every waking minute she isn’t with family either reading or writing. The last time she had a week’s break from writing, she didn’t like it one little bit, and she has yet to meet a box of chocolates she couldn’t defeat.

Connect with RJ Scott

Facebook  ~  Twitter  ~  Instagram  ~  TikTok  ~  Website  ~  Goodreads
Facebook Group: RJ Scott – Special Secret Group
Facebook Group: MM Hockey Romance

 

V.L. LOCEY loves worn jeans, yoga, belly laughs, walking, reading and writing lusty tales, Greek mythology, the New York Rangers, comic books, and coffee. (Not necessarily in that order.)

She shares her life with her husband, her daughter, one dog, two cats, a flock of assorted fowl, and two Jersey steers.

When not writing spicy romances, she enjoys spending her day with her menagerie in the rolling hills of Pennsylvania with a cup of fresh java in hand.

Connect with V.L. Locey

Facebook  ~  Twitter  ~  Instagram  ~  Website  ~  Goodreads
Facebook Group: V.L. Locey – Vixens Reading Group
Facebook Group: MM Hockey Romance

 

 

Hosted by

Reviewers on the Wicked Reads Review Team were provided a free copy of On Thin Ice (Chesterford Coyotes #2) by RJ Scott & V.L. Locey to read and review.

Why Can't Life Be Like Pizza? by Andy V. Roamer Blog Tour

RV is a good kid, starting his freshman year at the demanding Boston Latin School. Though his genes didn’t give him a lot of good things, they did give him a decent brain. So he’s doing his best to keep up in high school, despite all the additional pressures he’s facing: His immigrant parents, who don’t want him to forget his roots and insist on other rules. Some tough kids at school who bully teachers as well as students. His puny muscles. His mean gym teacher. The Guy Upstairs who doesn’t answer his prayers. And the most confusing fact of all—that he might be gay.

Luckily, RV develops a friendship with Mr. Aniso, his Latin teacher, who is gay and always there to talk to. RV thinks his problems are solved when he starts going out with Carole. But things only get more complicated when RV develops a crush on Bobby, the football player in his class. And to RV’s surprise, Bobby admits he may have gay feelings, too.

Warning: Homophobic bullying, homophobic slurs, physical abuse, mentions of gay bashing, racism within a character’s family.

Book 1
Buy Links

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NineStar Press

Why can’t life be like pizza?

I’ve been asking myself the question a lot lately. I love pizza. Pizza makes me feel good. Especially since I discovered Joe’s. Joe’s Pizza is quiet and out of the way and allows me to think. And Joe’s combinations are the best. Pepperoni and onions. Garlic and mushroom. Cheese and chicken. And if you really want that little kick in the old butt: the super jalapeno. Mmmm, good. Gets you going again. And lets you forget all your troubles.

What troubles can a fourteen-year-old guy have? Ha! First of all, I’m not a regular guy, as anyone can guess from my taste in pizza. My parents are immigrants who are trying to make a better life for themselves here in the United States. Besides the usual things American parents worry about, like making money and having their kids do well in school, my parents spend more time worrying about the big things: politics, communism, fascism, global warming, and the fact they and their parents survived violence and jail so I-better-be-grateful-I’m-not-miserable-like-kids-in-other-parts-of-the-world.

Grateful? Ha! As far as I’m concerned, life is pretty miserable already. Instead of thinking about the World Series or Disneyland, I worry about terrorists down the street or the dirty bombs the strange family around the corner might be building.

I don’t know why I worry about everything, but I do. It’s probably in my genes. Other guys have genes that gave them big muscles or hairy chests. I got nerves.

And then there’s my name. RV. Yeah, RV. No, I’m not a camper or anything. RV is short for Arvydas. That’s right. “Are-vee-duh-s.” Mom and Dad say it’s a common name in Lithuania, which is the country in Eastern Europe where my parents were born. A name like that might be fine for Lithuania, but what about the United States? Couldn’t Mom and Dad have named me Joe, or Mike, or even Darryl? My brother, Ray, has a normal name. Why couldn’t they have given me one?

I even look a little weird, I think. Tall and skinny with an uncoordinated walk because of my big feet that get in the way and make me feel like a clod. Oh, yeah. I’ve been getting some zits lately, and I wear glasses since I’m pretty nearsighted. Not a pretty sight, is it? At least the glasses are not too thick. Mom and Dad don’t have a lot of money to spend, but they did fork up the money to get me thin lenses, so I don’t look like a complete zomboid.

What can I do? I try my best, despite it all. I’m lucky because I’ve done well in school, so at least my genes gave me a half-decent brain. Hey, I’m not bragging. It’s just nice to feel good about something when most days I feel pretty much a loser at so many things. When I was in grammar school, there were enough days when I came home from school and cried because some big oaf threatened me, or I got hit in the stomach during my pathetic attempts to play ball during recess…

Okay, okay, I’m getting off track. I want to write about my first day of school. Mom and Dad gave me this new—well, refurbished, but new to me anyway—computer for getting into Latin school, and they keep after me to make good use of it. So, I’ve decided I’m going to write about my new life. My life away from cretins—Lith, American, or any other kind…

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Veronica – ☆☆☆
RV is 14 years old and in his first year of high school. We spend a year with him as he goes through life dealing with issues in his family life, problems with friendships, girl problems, and dealing with his sexuality. He thinks he may be gay, or bi, he isn't really sure.

Why Can't Life Be Like Pizza? was a little slow to start off but once it got going, I really enjoyed it. As someone in their 40s, you look at a 14-year-old as someone young with no worries. Really though, they are often dealing with a lot of serious problems just like us adults, they just have less life experience.

I particularly enjoyed seeing RV’s home life. He is the son of Lithuanian immigrants and I liked seeing what life was like for him as a member of that community and what being a child of an immigrant is like.

I'm looking forward to more installments of The Pizza Chronicles and seeing what happens with RV's love life, finding out what is going on with his little brother, and generally seeing what life will bring for him next. This is a good start to a new series.

Andy V. Roamer grew up in the Boston area and moved to New York City after college. He worked in book publishing for many years, starting out in the children’s and YA books division and then wearing many other hats. This is his first novel about RV, the teenage son of immigrants from Lithuania in Eastern Europe, as RV tries to negotiate his demanding high school, his budding sexuality, and new relationships. He has written an adult novel, Confessions of a Gay Curmudgeon, under the pen name Andy V. Ambrose. To relax, Andy loves to ride his bike, read, watch foreign and independent movies, and travel.

Connect with Andy

Facebook  ~  Instagram  ~  Website  ~  Goodreads
The Pizza Chronicles Blog

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Reviewers on the Wicked Reads Review Team were provided a free copy of Why Can't Life Be Like Pizza? (The Pizza Chronicles #1) by Andy V. Roamer to read and review for this tour.

From Breath and Ruin by Carrie Ann Ryan Blog Tour

In her YA debut, New York Times bestselling author Carrie Ann Ryan dives into a world with magic and sacrifice with the Elements of Five.

Five hundred years ago, the Maison Realm was shattered, divided into warring kingdoms of elemental Wielders with fate and truth shadowed and uncertain. Now, factions of both the light and dark venture into the human realm in search of the prophesied Spirit Priestess who is said to Wield the Elements of Five to bring the two fractured kingdoms together.

Lyric has no idea that there's a realm outside the human one she lives in. When fate and circumstances are pulled from her hands after an accident, she finds out that nothing is as it seems.

War is raging around her, and when Lyric realizes that they are searching for her, she must rely on those she once trusted as she trains: a boy who isn't who she thought, and a new realm of warriors who have come to protect her.

For the darkness is coming, and the Queen of Obscurité wants to ensure that the King of Lumière can't get his hands on Lyric. And the only way to ensure that is if Lyric herself is no more... no matter the cost to prophecy.

Book 1
Buy Links

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B&N  ~  Google Play  ~  iTunes  ~  Kobo

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Erica – ☆☆☆
Carrie Ann Ryan is a new-to-me author.

From Breath and Ruin is the first installment in the Elements of Five series. Even though Lyric is eighteen, on the cusp of adulthood between high school and college, it easily fits into the Young Adult genre, suitable for those 12+. Lyric is an adult, the genre is young adult, but I feel younger teens would enjoy this book the most.

Coming-of-age, Lyric doesn't know what she wants to do with the rest of her life, finding the pressure of making life-changing decisions suffocating. How at eighteen, with no experiences, is Lyric to know what major in college she should choose? She's never excelled in anything, but been good at academics, so it's not as if she can play into her strengths. I felt this would be a comfort to younger readers, as well as resonating with older readers, as most of us have been in such a state of terrifying indecision.

I did struggle at the start of the novel (the first 20% or so), as it was laden with inner monologues about the state of her life, her controlling ex now being her friend, and the dreams. Her indecision resonated with me, the fear of her dreams evoked real emotions within me, but Lyric also came off as a Suzy do-gooder, who never made mistakes, did as she was told, and that comes off as both judgmental in its goodness by comparison, as it does boring. Mousy generally doesn't lend well to a strong heroine. I couldn't wrap my mind around Lyric calling Rhodes 'dreamy,' since that's phrasing someone over 70 used in their youth.

I also never had Lyric firm in my mind. At one point, I thought Lyric was described as being shorter and overly curvy, which I took to mean a bit chubby. I was thrilled by this and being bisexual, as both aren't often used to describe teenage girls in the young adult genre. She describes herself as not being athletic, yet she runs continuously as a hobby. A large portion of the beginning quarter of the novel focused on Lyric jogging. While I knew what color and type of sports bra she had beneath her tank tops and windbreaker, I never got an accurate image of the heroine affixed in my head, as what I thought she would look like contradicted other descriptions.

Lyric has dreams, nightmares really, that show her insight into her life that has been kept from her. As usual in the young adult, fantasy genre, Lyric doesn't know she has powers, thinking herself below average, not knowing how she fits into the world, but then finds out she is rather extraordinary instead. The boy (even though Rhodes is over 21) is the one with the information Lyric needs.

Where I had issue with the magic system and world-building... it was glossed over, same as with Lyric's appearance, the characters' personalities jumping all over the place, and their motivations were muddy, yet I can remember what foods were in the burritos, washing of the sheets on a daily basis, the color and material of the sports bras, the number of tank tops beneath the highly detailed mesh windbreaker, the color of the leggings, and the type of shoes. What I needed explained never was to my satisfaction.

From a young adult's standpoint, no doubt they will be intrigued and find enjoyment in this novel and the series. I do believe the plot, the way the characters interacted with one another, this is far younger than the 18-20+ age-range of the characters, more like 12-14 in their behavior and dialogue. I did struggle with this, as it didn't read as adults in the novel – I wish their ages had been nudged to be younger.

Writing this review from my adult standpoint, I must admit I didn't enjoy this as much as I hoped I would. In a nutshell, everything felt forced. The flow, the direction the plot took, the connections the characters had with one another, all of it felt forced.

While I do recommend this novel to young adults, I'm not sure how it will be received by adults. I won't be continuing on with the series.

Carrie Ann Ryan is the New York Times and USA Today bestselling author of contemporary and paranormal romance. Her works include the Montgomery Ink, Redwood Pack, Talon Pack, and Gallagher Brothers series, which have sold over 2.0 million books worldwide. She started writing while in graduate school for her advanced degree in chemistry and hasn’t stopped since. Carrie Ann has written over fifty novels and novellas with more in the works. When she’s not writing about bearded tattooed men or alpha wolves that need to find their mates, she’s reading as much as she can and exploring the world of baking and gourmet cooking.

Connect with Carrie Ann

Facebook  ~  Twitter  ~  Instagram  ~  Website  ~  Goodreads

Hosted by

Reviewers on the Wicked Reads Review Team were provided a free copy of From Breath and Ruin (Elements of Five #1) by Carrie Ann Ryan to read and review for this tour.

That Feeling When by S.M. James Blog Tour

Dance Academy reject, Archie Corrigan, resents the stereotype guy ballet dancers are gay. Because he isn’t. At all. Forced to reassess his life goal at Camp Crystal Cove, it’s by sheer dumb luck he meets Landon Summers, who turns everything Archie was sure of into chaos.

Poor boy turned teen heartthrob, Landon Summers, is the name on everyone’s lips. With his unexpected leap to fame, his agent advises him to keep his bi status on the down low. Not a problem! Until Landon meets Archie.

Their unexpected friendship leads to an inevitable kiss, but their moment is caught in high definition and used as fuel for blackmail. If the truth gets out, Landon’s career could be over, and Archie will be forced to acknowledge the one thing he’s fought to deny.

But how do you go back to your average life once you’ve experienced That Feeling When... you’re finally happy?

Book 1
Buy Links

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~  Available with KindleUnlimited  ~

Landon Summers is into guys. I think he likes you.

And while Meredith didn’t say anything about me, there was something way too knowing in her look. Everyone else seems too into their own lives to be paying us any attention, and even when we’re announced winners of the trivia, my celebration doesn’t crack the surface chill that’s taken over me.

Meredith’s wrapped her arm through mine, and she’s cheering with the others, one hand in the air.

I’m a week in the past. Watching Landon pull on that stupid costume in the dark. The spark in his eyes as he thanked me. The brush of his skin on mine.

How was that only a week ago?

Why can’t I go back and enjoy that moment more? Savor my time with him?

Really take it all in, before he went and messed it all up.

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Sarah – ☆☆☆☆
3.5 stars

This is a cute coming of age romance. When we first meet Archie, he is a spoiled, miserable rich kid who somehow manages to resent spending his summer at a luxurious camp. Landon is a young actor filming a movie at the summer camp. He’s a long way from home and he’s lonely and homesick.

Landon is instantly likeable. Despite his film star status, his loneliness and his self-doubt make him relatable. Archie is a more difficult character to like. His entitled apathy and his caustic observations at the start of the story are irritating. However, I love the way Archie grows into himself in this book. Events and interactions prompt self-reflection and genuine growth. Much of the book focuses on Archie growing up and figuring himself out. I found myself liking Archie as a person right about the time Archie starts to like himself.

While I enjoyed Archie and Landon’s story, I felt there was something missing in the romance between them. I feel like we are told about the connection or the chemistry between Archie and Landon, but we never really see or feel it. I felt Archie’s personal growth and Landon’s newfound confidence, but I didn’t really feel any passion in the connection between them.

This story fits somewhere between young adult and new adult writing. Archie is seventeen or eighteen and Landon is probably a few years older. But because of the summer camp setting – and Archie’s complicated relationship with his parents – this feels most like a teen romance. I didn’t love the summer camp setting – the kids feel too old to be campers rather than camp staff and the camp environment lacks the sense of joy and nostalgia that I usually love in young adult summer camp stories. I found it odd that while the blurb makes Archie’s dancing seem like a huge part of the story, it is only mentioned a few times.

S.M. James in an Australian author who writes books for teens about squishy sweet characters. While not writing, S.M. is a readaholic and Netflix addict who regularly lives on a sustainable diet of chocolate and coffee. Member of SCBWI. Unapologetically dishing out HEAs for LGBT+ characters.

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Reviewers on the Wicked Reads Review Team were provided a free copy of That Feeling When (#lovehim #1) by S.M. James to read and review for this tour.

Jesse 2.0 by Annabelle Jay

What if you aren’t the only you?

Shy and studious Maddy Stone faces just that question. Months ago he lost his boyfriend, Jesse, to suicide, and now he’s volunteering at a psychiatric hospital. When he intervenes to save a man there, he’s shocked to find a face he recognizes. It’s Jesse, who explains that he’s been cloned… by Maddy’s father. And when the reproduction technology duplicated him, he was ordered to avoid Maddy at all costs. Breaking that rule puts them both in danger.

Maddy, his girlfriend, Georgia, and Jesse—who Maddy calls Jesse 2.0—are on the run. But as the secrets continue to come to light, Maddy is faced with a decision—continue with his life or be the Maddy he was before technology intervened.

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Harmony Ink Press

Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Erica – ☆☆☆☆
I'm on the fence between three and four stars.

Anabelle Jay is a new-to-me author.

Jesse 2.0 is an interesting tale, set in a fast-paced novella. Madison is working at a clinic when he sees the last person on the planet he ever expected to see. Jesse. The love of his life who committed suicide and died.

The novella is slightly difficult to follow, a bit chaotic with the influx of information being lobbed at the readers, so fast that it's hard to digest it or make sure it even makes sense before being hit with the next revelation.

Set in a futuristic world a hundred+ years from now, it's not cloning per se. I came up with a better way to describe it – the author had the main characters debate it using a painting, when I wished they would have used a book instead. Copies of the same book are still the book itself. No one will ever say you didn't read the book because it's not the writer's personal manuscript. But to describe the process of the 'cloning,' I will use a fax machine. When you fax a paper, you retain the original, and the recipient now has a copy – the information it contains no less valuable or real because it's not the original. This is Jesse 2.0...

Teleportation is the advancement that led to the discovery of cloning humans. The dead could be duplicated, alive when they are teleported to a new location. (I think that's what the idea was.) However, when a live person teleports, they don't end up with two of themselves – hundreds if they teleport all the time. While I understood the concept, and rolled with it because this is science fiction, but that was always in the back of my head. Making me think of the fax machine, or copy/pasting anything and ending up with multiples – the original doesn't go poof, you end up with two and so forth. Not in regards to one dead and one alive, but to those who teleported to have brought about this advancement. It's probably me missing it – as I said, a lot of information in this fast-paced novella was thrown at the reader before they could digest what they read on the pages before.

Nonstop action-packed, with illegal scientific experiments for altruistic reasons that turn into pure evil, because the consent of the person they are 'fixing' isn't involved. Beneath the surface are the moral ramifications of the medical advancements, left up to the reader to mull over. There's also a plethora of emotions as Madison and Jesse connect, disconnect, connect, disconnect, with an ending that may leave readers reeling if the characters resonated with them.

Near the end, with all the twists and turns and betrayals and lies, it felt as if I was reading about avatars respawning in a video game, as if you had so many lives in the game of life, and this took the emotional punch away from me.

If there’s one thing author ANNABELLE JAY believes with all her heart, it’s that there is no such thing as too many dragons in a book. As a fantasy writer with few other hobbies—does being bribed to run with her partner or dancing awkwardly in the kitchen count?—she spends every day following her imagination wherever it leads her.

A hippie born in the wrong decade, Annabelle has a peace sign tattoo and a penchant for hugging trees. Occasionally she takes breaks from her novels to play with her pets: Jon Snow, the albino rabbit who eats all of Annabelle’s bookmarks; Daisy, the Angora rabbit who constantly tries to escape her cage; and Stevie, the crested gecko who climbs glass with the hairs on her toes.

During her day job as a professor of English, Annabelle is often assumed to be a fellow student playing a prank on the class—that is, until she hands out the syllabus. When people stop mistaking her for a recent high school graduate, she will probably be very sad.

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Reviewers on the Wicked Reads Review Team were provided a free copy of Jesse 2.0 by Annabelle Jay to read and review.