I am so pleased and happy to read this amazing review by Lynn at “The Novel Approach.” As I head for the finish line writing the next book in this series, it makes me happy that people are loving and accepting the four men in this series and look forward to more.
Much Hugs and Love!
BG
To say that I was excited by Sandra’s review of my new novel “Summer Lover” is an understatement. I’m overjoyed at reader reaction. To see the original post, CLICK HERE and to visit My Fiction Nook Reviews (and you’ll want to!) then CLICK HERE. Thank you, Sandra! Thank you so much!
BG Thomas
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Having read and loved the first book in this new series by B.G. Thomas, I was salivating for this installment, to find out more about Scott (he who’s hung up on Sloan from book 1) and watch how he deals with that. The blurb promised all kinds of fun, and I wasn’t disappointed in the least by this book.
See, Scott is convinced that he’ll never find love. Nobody will ever love him – case in point, his best friend Sloan, for whom he’s carried a torch for 10 years. Initially, Scott comes across as a whiny, self-pitying kind of ass, who feels like he has to compete with his friends, but doesn’t realize that they like him for who he is. But B.G. Thomas being the fabulous writer he is, the reader is also able to feel the lack of self-confidence, the despair Scott experiences and the pitiful way he sees himself.
Then Wyatt (remember him from the first book?) convinces Scott to join him at the yearly Heartland Festival, where lots of men from all kinds of different walks of life come together to commune with each other and nature, where all judgments are left at the gate, and where Scott finally has the scales fall from his eyes.
The festival is also where we meet Cedar Carrington, the “Jockster”, who has secrets of his own and who isn’t willing to let anyone tie him down.
Things get hot and heavy quickly between Scott and Cedar, but both of them still have lessons to learn. This is also the part where the side characters play a huge role, and with the exception of one, I thought they were all wonderful. That one exception being Howard, Wyatt’s boyfriend. I haven’t had such a violent negative reaction to a single character in a while, but this man made me want to reach into the book and throttle him. He’s vile, and undeserving of a beautiful soul like Wyatt, and I can only hope that the next book in this series sees Howard out on his ass and Wyatt finding a good man who loves him as he is and doesn’t stray.
Anyhoo, I loved this. It didn’t reach 5 stars because the beginning was hard on me, what with Scott whining and feeling like a loser, and that part grated. But of course B.G. Thomas did have his reasons for this, and the rest of the book flew by. I couldn’t help but root for them, couldn’t stop smiling when they finally get it, couldn’t stop reading until it was done.
This author has a special flair for writing the grand romances, the kind that stays with you for a long time after, that leaves you breathless and longing for more. The descriptive writing style is well-suited for this type of novel, and the sexy times were well done also.
I can hardly wait for the next one.
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Buy Links:
Dreamspinner!!
Amazon
Amazon UK
B&N
So my husband and I are going camping this weekend for Labor Day Weekend. We are both quite excited because this will be our first time camping with our new (for us) pop-up camper! We bought it last year around this time but this will be our maiden voyage. We need to name it, don’t you think?
We will be at the campground that was the inspiration for Camp Sanctuary in my new novel “Summer Lover.” We have been going there for many years now, we think this is our thirteenth and it was at Laid Back Labor Day that we discovered Midwest Men’s Festival, which is the inspiration for the gay men’s spiritual retreat (in my new novel “Summer Lover!”) Hee!
We are going to have so much fun! We will head out as early as I can get R up and going. Early hopefully because it would be nice to get there early enough to be about to hook up to electricity. I don’t need it. We’ve never had it for the last 13 years–but hey! We want to see how it works!
So the theme this year is superheroes. We don’t have a damned superhero thing to wear. But that’s okay. It will still be fun!
My daughter is going to be watching the house. It gives her some away time so it’s a win-win. She doesn’t even have to watch our dog because we take her with us. She loves to go camping and she gets tones of exercise. There will be much swimming and bonfires and a talent show and Radical Faeries (hey! like in my new novel “Summer Lover.”).
One day of work and then four days of fun fun fun! I can’t wait!
I hope you all have a wonderful and fun-filled weekend. Please be safe and don’t drink and drive! And that’s the truth!
And may we all dare to walk in beauty, balance and delight!
BG Thomas
So as my blog tour for “Summer Lover: concludes, I was happy to see that it inlcuded a five star review! Needless to say I was pleased as punch! CLICK HERE to see the original post as well as the give away and more information as well! Happy reading!
Title: Summer Lover
Series: Seasons of Love 02
Author: B.G. Thomas
Genre: Contemporary
Length: Novel (350 pages)
ISBN: 978-1-63216-133-8
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press (July 25th 2014)
Heat Level: Explicit
Heart Rating: ♥♥♥♥♥ 5 Hearts
Reviewer: Cat
Blurb: Scott Aberdeen doesn’t believe in Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, or God. Or love—at least, he knows no one will ever love him. After all, he has carried a torch for his best friend Sloan for a decade, hoping his feelings will be returned one day. But when Sloan finds springtime love with another man, Scott’s fantasies are crushed and his scepticism confirmed.
Cedar Carrington, raised by rock star parents, leads a free-spirited, nomadic life, never staying in one place for long. Due to a dark past, he refuses to share or even think about, he is willing to let men into his bed for sex, but never for the night.
When Scott finds himself camping in the middle of nowhere with over a hundred men who all believe in love—and faeries and a magickal gay brotherhood—he’s pretty sure he’s in the wrong place. And when Cedar connects with cynical, critical Scott, he wonders how he could be falling in for this man of all men. But hearts and lives have been transformed at the Heartland Men’s Festival before, and it might be just the place where two very different men can release their pain and find true love at last.
Purchase Link: http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=5258
Review: This is book two in the Seasons of Love Series, but it stands alone just fine. I do suggest you read the other one since it’s fabulous, but you can read this one first and still love it.
Scott works in a law firm and likes his job, but lately his work has been suffering due to the realization he will never have the love of his life since his best friend and crush of 10 years has met and truly fell in love. Scott is a cynical, sceptical man. He doesn’t believe in Santa the tooth fairy magic has his doubts about love and definitely doesn’t believe in God or any Gods for that matter. Scott is a practical man if you can’t see it, touch it, taste it, it’s not true.
Wyatt, one of his close friends has been inviting him to the gay man’s festival but since in Scott’s opinion it’s a bunch of ‘Witchy woo-woo ‘he has no intention of going…ever. But when Peni invites him he thinks it’s more than just a trip to a queer man’s festival as he usually jumps to these conclusions with men, longing so deeply to be loved, and his boss pretty much insists he take 10 days off and comeback in a better spirit. So, he takes the leap. Then things unfold and he finds himself there alone, with just his friend Wyatt and hundreds of free-spirited gay men. Is it his bad luck or is it really a higher power at work?
Cedar, better known at the gay man’s festival as the Jockster is a free-spirited gypsy. Most men want him because of either his looks or the fact that he is the son of two famous rock stars but that’s fine with home, since he has no idea of falling in love or even spending a night in a man’s bed…ever. When he meets Scott, he finds that for some reason he is drawn to the man but why? Scott isn’t a believer in anything, he is cynical, has no self-worth and not near Cedars type if he had one.
This is yet another fabulous read from BG Thomas! I am totally smitten! Watching Scott grow and come out of himself at the Gay men’s retreat is like watching a beautiful butterfly morph from its cocoon! The retreat itself is a real hoot! I laughed more than I have laughed in ages! I think this story is a bit less sad than Spring Lover’s was though it does have its moments that you will need a tissue or two. Everything about this book is fun and fantastic. It’s truly magickal. During the retreat, there are lots of yummy sounding vegan dishes and at salon, there are fun sounding cocktails. What a treat that at the end there are some of the cocktail and dish recipes listed!! A real foodies dream!!
I highly recommend this to everyone, but especially to those of you that love a good story about finding oneself, sexy stories with a good story to them, broken men, and magick! If you like camping, retreats, cocktails, vegan dishes, recipes, faeries and fairies…( I couldn’t resist) some fun drag shows, cool songs, rituals, close friendships, and hot sensual mansex this is definitely for you.
Buy Links:
Dreamspinner!!
Amazon
Amazon UK
B&N
So here was my stop at Guys Like Romance, Too, during my blog tour for “Summer Lover.” You can find the original posting by RIGHT HERE. You should visit Guys Like Romance, Too. It is a pretty awesome blog. You can find it by clicking RIGHT HERE.
Tour stop with BG Thomas
Hello everyone!
Carson back atcha to pull the reigns on our “Out the Box” theme to make room for a tour. Dreamspinners Press’s BJ Thomas has decided to stop by and show us his latest book, Summer Lover.
So, without further delay…BG Thomas!
~*~
For as long as I can remember I’ve wanted to tell stories. Just ask my friends! They’ll tell you it’s true. Ask me a question and I take ten times as long as anyone else to answer. I make it a performance! LOL!
I don’t know what it is. I don’t seem to be able to help it. It’s the performer in me I guess. What gay man doesn’t wish he could do a big show stopping number on Broadway.
In a way, just a few years ago, that’s just what I got to do. It wasn’t on Broadway. But it was on stage and it was a big number with back up singers and costumes and set dressings and all the rest. I was dressed as a nun—one of the Sisters of Explosive Release. I was lip-syncing to the Broadway number, “I Don’t Want to Show Off No More,” and boy oh boy, did I show off! It even ended where I ran across the stage the leapt into the arms of six hunky men. Oh it was fun!
And where did I get to do this? Why on the stage and a gay men’s spiritual retreat out in the woods in the middle of nowhere. My audience was perhaps a hundred men, but they were my brothers and it might as well have been Carnigae Hall at full capacity. These were gay brothers who loved me and supported me and wanted the best for me. What’s more, it was for charity. The charity was the actual event, but listen to this.
The men’s festival doesn’t turn a man away if he can’t afford all the fees. So the money went to pay for those who showed up who couldn’t afford it. Plus that money goes other places as well. This year it went to the Quakers who are running an underground railroad to help GLBT people escape Uganda.
This festival took in a damaged man, a year or so out of a very abusive relationship, a man who believed no one could really love him and a man who thought his dream of becoming a writer was a pretty damned foolish dream.
And it was this group of men who helped turn him—me—around.
Ever see that episode of “Queer As Folk” where Emmett and Michael go to gay camp? The whole episode was about a group of men called the Radical Faeries. Harry Hay, one of the most important and famous gay rights activists, began to worry that gay people, in order to gain acceptance, were hiding their fabulousity under a skin of conformity. It was the drag queens and bull dykes and cross dressers and leather men who revolted in that bar, called the Stonewall Inn, in New York City and began the whole gay rights movement. He didn’t want the GLBT community to forget that. So he founded the Radical Faerie movement.
Now each year, there are camps like that all over the world. Groups of loving wondrous gay men who get together and hold each other, lean on each other, pour out their hearts, love each other and get in some skinny-dipping too!
It was just such a group that helped me heal and then pursue my dreams.
So it was only a matter of time before I had to write about my experiences and it was one of the inspirations for “Summer Lover.”
Over and over again through the last thirteen years I’ve seen men arrive, men who have never been there before, wounded and shell-shocked by the world and their families. And I have seen them transform! I have seen them cry and then laugh and dance and sing and get up on stage and sing their hearts out, even if a high school teacher told them they can’t carry a tune in a bucket. Who cares if they “can” sing or not? We hear their hearts! It is amazing. Festival saves lives.
So if you pick up my new novel, that’s what you will see. You will witness Scott Aberdeen, a man who doesn’t believe in anything anymore. He is the least likely type of man who would wind up at such an event. And you will see his heart melt and the walls come down as he is touch by the magic of Heartland Men’s Festival. You will see him find love, when he had come to believe it is the last thing he will find.
And you will see Cedar, a man with ghosts and demons of his own. A man who hides in sex, because that is so much easier than trusting in love.
Two men you would never expect to find love. But they do! And I hope you will check it out!
I love writing MM Romance—for two reasons really. One is that the genre encompasses so much. Not just romance, not just a gay version of the old Harlequins my mom used to read, but more. The field includes Westerns and mysteries, period pieces and adventure fiction, science fiction and fantasy…all worlds I like to read and all worlds where I like to dabble. As I like to say, the heart of every good story or epic or even motion picture has a romance! And now that I write in this genre, I get to write what I know. Men falling in love with men. That’s what I do. I write stories that celebrate men loving men—and they get to have a rollicking good time while they to it.
I hope you agree with my new novel, “Summer Lover!”
I leave you with this final thought. Never let anyone tell you what you can’t do. I used to listen to that bull. Not any more. Now I know that what the mind can conceive, it can achieve. Picture it and it can be there. Leap, and the net will appear!
BG Thomas
So Gay List Book Reviews hosted me for my blog tour for my new novel “Summer Lover.” Here it is! Hope you enjoy!
Healing With Faeries and a Magickal Gay Brotherhood
Over twenty years ago I began to hear whispers and rumors about a men’s spiritual retreat that was held out in the middle of the woods in the middle of nowhere. Words was that anywhere from a hundred to a hundred and fifty men—most of them gay—would gather for a week or so to be together, learn together, teach each other and generally just be there for one another.
I heard that most of these men followed an “nature-based religion.” That sounded mysterious, but I had several pagan friends and they were all pretty darned cool, so I had nothing to worry about there. No baby sacrifice or anything like that. Then I saw this amazing episode of “Queer As Folk” where Michael and Emmet go to “Fairy Camp,” and I was like…. WOW! That looks simply amazing! I don’t think I am going to come up with a name for myself like “Dumpling” or “Clearday,” and with my body images, I had doubts I would ever play nude volleyball, but the rest? Wow!
Problem was, try as I might, I just couldn’t find out where and when this thing was goin’ on! Meanwhile, I dumped a terribly abusive lover—and man who did tremendous damage to my self-esteem (and thus any possibilities of nude volleyball), to my spirit, to my sexuality and my emotions.
Then to my surprise, within five months, I found a new man. Friends were worried that this was rebound and I would wind up getting further damaged—and to tell the truth I was a little afraid myself—but nothing could be further from the truth.
I had somehow found on of those good men. A true man. A loving man. A real Knight in Shining Armor. He wasn’t as worldly or exciting or well-read as my ex. But hell! Where had that gotten me?
What’s more, the minute he heard about this men’s festival, he was just as excited as I had been. And if only we could find it, I knew I wouldn’t have to worry about him chasing the other attendees while my back was turned!
Then one Labor Day Weekend while we were camping at a big retreat center, we were sitting about talking and who should we find but a man who regularly attends this men’s festival we’d been hearing about! We had just missed it by a month or so, but now armed with the information we needed, we prepared for the next year.
And attend we did!
The event was nothing like we expect. However, it was just what we needed.
Festival is many things to many men but those who come back find something powerful. No one is in charge; all members share equally in decision-making, and each man is responsible for sharing in those functions necessary to the group, including cooking, cleaning, and planning.
I’ve never seen a single game of nude volleyball (although I’ve seen my share of naked men, especially at the beach). Nor have I met the ghost of gay activist Harry Hay. At least not directly. I’ve certainly met men who embodied the man and his principles.
The men who gathered at this event were and are some of the most loving, kind, spiritual and healing men I have ever met in my life. They are not perfect. Yes there are a few sour apples in the bushel. But for the most part?
Well, I would not miss the festival for anything in the world. The men there have helped me so much in my healing, have helped me to trust again, and helped me to learn to dare!
OMG! I’ve dressed up in drag and pranced around on stage lip-syncing to a song called “Everybody’s Fucking But Me,” and another year I dressed up as a nun, sang the song “” and I got to run and leap into the arms of six hunky men! Top that! Yes! I was on Broadway….well… A version of it anyway. I certainly had my fifteen minutes of fame.
I have witnessed things that defy description. I learned not to care that I don’t have the body of a god and shed my sarong and skinny-dipped with the rest of them. And I will never forget the night me and a few close friends were swimming under a full moon and a muskrat swam in the midst of our little circle! Ha! One of my friends screamed like a
-year old girl and teleported to the beach. Oh, we laughed. And the muskrat? He rolled his eyes and swam off. Just thinking about it has me laughing so hard there are tears on my face.
These are men who understand. We don’t fit in. We see the world in a different light. We love first and hate last and try not to hate at all. We hold each other when we’re crying and don’t judge each other (or try not to). We respect each other’s spiritual and religious paths—the Festival attracts pagan and witches but also Christians and Buddhists and Hindus and just about any thing you can think of.
And there are some find cocktails to be had as well. Oh my! There has certainly been more than one night through the years that I don’t remember going back to my cabin. Of course I don’t have to worry about driving and I know there was someone who volunteered to help me get there.
These men have celebrated and supported my literary career too! They are so happy for me and show up to listen to me do readings as well as make sure to review my books online. What’s more, when I asked them if I could write a novel about my experiences at Festival there was not an objection one—at least not that I’ve heard.
And festival is pretty much what my new book is all about. I’ve renamed the campground and re-dubbed the Festival. But if you read “Summer Lover” you’ll get a taste of what it’s all about.
“Summer Lover” is a novel about a young man named Scott Aberdeen who doesn’t believe in anything anymore. Not Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, or God. Or love either for that matter—at least, he knows no one will ever love him.
Cedar Carrington, raised by rock star parents, leads a free-spirited, nomadic life, never staying in one place for long. Due to a dark past he refuses to share or even think about, he is willing to let men into his bed for sex, but never for the night.
When Scott finds himself camping in the middle of nowhere with over a hundred men who all believe in love—and faeries and a magickal gay brotherhood—he’s pretty sure he’s in the wrong place. And when Cedar connects with cynical, critical Scott, he wonders how he could be falling in for this man of all men. But hearts and lives have been transformed at the Heartland Men’s Festival before, and it might be just the place where two very different men can release their pain and find true love at last.
And this is MM Romance. You know it’s going to have a happy ending, right?
This year my husband and I will be attending something like our twelfth festival. I can’t wait. As a matter of fact, there is a good chance that while you are reading this I’m laying out on raft in the middle of a lake with my faerie brothers. My friend Super Gem might be massaging my feet (he is so good at that) and I’ll be sharing the story of how my partner and I got legally married this year in Baltimore. Later we’ll fix a meal together and then break bread and then probably stay up deep into the night laughing and crying and sharing and listening.
I can’t wait. Read my book and join me! I really hope you do. I’ll be waiting for you.
And in the words of one of my faerie brothers, “May we all dare to dwell in beauty, balance and delight.
B.G. Thomas
Originally Posted Here: http://gaylistbookreviews.wordpress.com/2014/08/05/b-g-thomas-tells-how-he-found-summer-love/
So I am home from the Midwest Men’s Festival 2014.And I had an amazing time! So very wonderful and so hard to come home!
I walked and walked and walked! I can hardly believe it! There were times I was in tears with joy and gratitude knowing that I COULD WALK! And for those of you who don’t know, in the last few years I have had both my knees replaced. It used to be that every single step was agony. And now? I can walk!
So much wonderful fellowship and new friends, including the simply amazing young man named Cameron.
I had my official release party for my new book, Summer Lover, and within ten minutes sold every copy that I brought with me! I can hardly believe it! And it was my first release party! It was so exciting and everyone was so supportive. Sold a chunk of my old books as well.
See, what was so exciting for me is that this event, Midwest Men’s Festival, was the inspiration for my book Summer Lover. MMF changed my life.
Here is what MMF says about itself:
Begun in 1982 as a regional gathering for men exploring changes in their lives and roles, Midwest Mens Festival has grown in size and scope over the years to encompass men from many parts of the nation, indeed the world, who represent diverse walks of life, age, and personal experience.
Although the Midwest Men’s Festival is attended primarily by gay men, many of whom are involved in earth-centered spirituality, men of varied cultural or ethnic backgrounds, sexual orientations, or spiritual beliefs are invited and encouraged to attend.
Festival provides a place where men can come together for sharing and individual growth, and it fosters interpersonal interactions and community building, while respecting boundaries and encouraging supportive, non-competitive self-expression. Festival is a pleasant place to have fun and create friendships. Whatever your sexuality, race, or creed, Festival can provide the opportunity to explore personal and collective growth, joy, nurturing, and change.
And Festival has done all those things for me and more. Which is why I had to write about it–sort of. I took liberties. But I have also had friends who attend and who read my book say some wonderful things about Summer Lover. Including that if he were to want to help someone who had never been to Festival what it was all about, he would have them read my book.
So how wonderful and miraculous that the official release party and release date happened at Midwest Men’s Festival! It was an amazing blessing!
Happy to be home but sad it will be a year before I see my close friends again!
Love,
BG
B G Thomas - writer 