The Christmas Fling by Heidi Cullinan

4 Stars

Christmas Town Book One

The first of my Christmas books to read and ooh, it's a good one!  In The Christmas Fling, we return to Logan, Minnesota, the setting of the Minnesota Christmas quadrology.  We meet many old friends - as one does when they go home for Christmas, and we meet a pair of MCs that have issues.  Oh, they both have issues. 

The book starts of with a bang- almost literally.  Before we are many pages in, we find ourselves in the midst of a hugely satisfying, steamy, sexy scene that is really enough to curl your toes.  And a bit of a warning here, we're talking some kink, more specifically, some humiliation kink - which is not everyone's cup of tea.  It's really not mine either, in fact it usually squicks the hell out of me, but the way Heidi writes it, I found the workings of the characters' minds fascinating.  Characters are Heidi's strength and it really shows in this book. 

We have Evan, who is most likely on the spectrum, who can't really remember faces, who has a tendency to one-track-mindedness to the point of forgetting to take care of himself.  Another one who has his own neuroses, his own insecurities, his own bloody one-track-mindedness.  *LOL* 

But honestly, aside from the terrifically drawn characters, the other wonderful thing about this book, and really about all of Heidi's books, is the sense of family.  Found family and blood family.  It never fails to warm my heart and often sets me to tearing up.  And then there's Linda Kay who is right up there as fave Cullinan character of all time with Randy Jansen. 

So great start to my Christmas reading!  :)

Santa Baby by Heidi Cullinan

4 STARS

Minnesota Christmas - Book 4

The last of my Christmas reads - I saved the best 'til last.  As you might know already, Heidi is one of my favourite authors and I adored the first 3 Minnesota Christmas books, so I was very much looking forward to my read.

Santa Baby is a little more serious than the first three books and it didn't seem to me to be quite as 'Christmas Focused' as the others.  Part of that might have been that it starts one Christmas season and finishes up the next.  I also think that part of it was the lack of intimate holiday traditions/scenes between the main characters.  I get that these things weren't really part of the story Heidi had to tell, but I missed them.

As advertised, this is a the story of a budding threesome, Arthur and Gabriel, the stars of book 2 and newcomer Dale.  I really enjoyed the getting inside of Arthur's thoughts as the love of his life, Gabriel, develops a massive crush on Dale who has come to Logan to help get them on the map, so to speak.  It was fascinating to watch as he realised that his Gabriel might be polyamorous and what he, Arthur, needed to do to help and support him.  Arthur, is not poly, but he is open.  Dale is indeed poly, but desperately needs his 'alone' time.  And while Arthur isn't poly, he does, in his own way, fall for Dale and have a desire and a need to have him as 'his' (in a positive way, not a yucky overly possessive way).  For the most part, I enjoyed how all this played out, but I couldn't help but feel that somehow, Arthur was doing most of the compromising and bending to make it all work for the three of them.  I kinda felt as if he were short-changed somewhere along the line - especially at the end when they have the wedding/ceremony.  It came across, to me, that the important thing for Gabriel was the small and privateish ceremony with his shiny new lover, Dale, as opposed to his marriage to Arthur, the supposed love of his life.  And also, the giving up of their dream to have a place for foster children felt sad to me, even though there were other things that would be filling that 'hole' in their emotions.

Dale, for his part, has a dark past in which he was abused and used by a 'supposed' lover.  I thought this was pretty well done, horrific as it was and decidedly NOT Christmassy.  *LOL*  But the way that Arthur helped him get through that and come out the other side was fascinating.  The only part that bugged me was that it at times felt that Arthur was doing all this to present Gabriel with a lovely and perfect lover with a bow on his head, if you get my drift.

There was one point in the book, in the last quarter, if memory serves, where I felt like I was sitting at a lecture and it was fairly short-lived, so I can't complain.  :)  I just think there must be a more conversational or convivial or personal way to talk about the challenges facing the queer community that might resonate a little more with a reader?

All that is why this book only gets 4 stars instead of 5.  :)  It seems like I've been bitching and complaining a lot, but don't be mislead, I really did enjoy this one.  :)  And Marcus... my lovely Marcus - he and Arthur were, for me, the heroes of the book.

Enjoy the Dance by Heidi Cullinan

4 STARS

Dancing - Book 2

I was able to read this early because I am a patron of Heidi's on Paetron.com. :)

Heidi is one of my favourite authors and I was so looking forward to this book, the second book in the Dancing series. The first one, Dance With Me, was the first book of Heidi's that I ever read and I adored it, so I was very eager to read this long-awaited sequel.

The first quarter of Enjoy the Dance was disappointing. (And it kills me to say it.) I felt as if I was reading a series of articles on the GLBQT homeless youth community in Minnesota. I understand that this is a subject very dear to the author's heart and it should be important to all of us, but selfishly, I didn't want to feel lectured while reading about Spenser and Tomas' love story, and that's how I felt during the first quarter of the book while the teenager that brings them together, Duon, got settled. I learned little about any of the characters - and characters that I love are Heidi's strong suit, so this was especially disappointing. I know the author possesses the talent to make her readers aware of all this stuff through the presentation of her characters, but it didn't happen this time, I'm afraid.

But the other three-quarters of the book were WONDERFUL! The characters came to life, the relationships were created and things began to move forward. Spenser, the kindergarten teacher is a lovely character. Calm, sweet, smart, instinctively wise... I liked him an awful lot. The object of his affections, the fellow who lives across the hall, Tomas, is the dancer and some of my favourite scenes have to do with him dancing with Duon and Laurie (one of the MCs from the first book) en pointe.

Spenser and Tomas fall in love easily and quietly and simply, despite all the hurdles they have to overcome - Duon's future with them, marriage equality, immigration problems, prejudice at Spenser's job, Spenser's scars from his youth in the system... my GOD there were alot of them! And I ended up in tears more than a couple of times during the final chapters.

So, despite the near lifeless read of the first quarter of the book, the rest of it picked up most wonderfully and gave me the Heidi read I love so much.

Clockwork Heart by Heidi Cullinan

4.5 STARS

Clockwork Love - Book 1

Another winner from one of my most favourite authors!

It was over far too soon. I wanted more adventures with Conny and Johann and the crew of the Farthing. Clockwork Heart is full of love, fun, adventure, danger, hot sex and a cast of wonderful characters. I couldn't put it down. Luckily, it seems to be the first of a series - The Clockwork Love series. And I can see where it could be going and that makes me happy.

So, if you like a rollicking, wonderful, sexy, love story - dive into Heidi's first foray into steampunk. I highly and happily recommend it. :)

Sleigh Ride by Heidi Cullinan

5 STARS

Minnesota Christmas - Book 2

I finished this book a half an hour ago and I'm still smiling. I loved it. Totally and completely loved it.

Sleigh Ride is the second installment in the Minnesota Christmas series - the first one came out last Christmas season. When I began to read it, it didn't take long before I felt as if I had just curled up in front of a blazing fireplace with a blankie and a good cup of coffee, reading by the light of the Christmas tree.

This is the story of Arthur, the ginger bear who is so rough and ready and amazingly marshmallowy; and Gabriel, one of the most endearing characters that I think Heidi has ever written.

Arthur is so straighforward, it seems, and Gabriel is so tightly wound, so ... I guess the popular word is damaged?.. so very much inside his head as many smart folk are. They are such opposites and well, opposites do attract, don't they? Each has a need that the other fulfills, but above and beyond that, they LIKE each other. Even when Gabriel was freaking out about what he'd done with Arthur, I still got the feeling that he couldn't help but like him.

There are some serious things addressed in this book as well as the romance and the hot and steamy stuff. There is a scene in the library, 3/4s of the way through the book that had me dissolved in tears, having to put aside the e-reader for a little bit because I was so overwhelmed. Not in a bad way at all. In a very good way. And in the same vein, some of Gabriel's observations and reminiscences of growing up gay could very easily be thought of as lecturing or preaching, but Gabriel being Gabriel (or Gabe as Arthur calls him), you know that this is exactly how he would talk. And it's never boring or pedantic or any of those things. I'm explaining this badly, I know, but...it just works. :)

Throughout the book we meet some old friends (including a mention of the couple from the very first Heidi C. book I ever read - the book that hooked me. *LOL*) and we make some lovely new friends.

And something that was a very big deal for me... both Arthur and Gabriel are over the age of 35. Mature men! What a breath of fresh air!!

Oh, I loved this book. So much. And loved these men so much as well. And yes, I'm still smiling. A perfect book for the season... a perfect love story that I'm still thinking about and creating images of their future in my brain.

Thanks Heidi, you've done it again!

Heidi Says It Best

So... Big news in the romance publishing world today and it's been reported in fashions from the ridiculous to the well, not actually close to sublime. Heidi Cullinan posted her thoughts about it and as always, it's a terrific post.

http://heidicullinan.wordpress.com/2014/05/02/breaking-news-media-still-sexist-in-reporting-of-romance-industry/

I admire, appreciate, adore this woman.

Special Delivery by Heidi Cullinan

5 STARS

Special Delivery - Book 3

Heidi is one of my all-time favourite authors. Not only do I love her books, they tend to touch me in a deep place that not many books make it to. Tough Love is the 3rd book in the Special Delivery series and while the 2nd book, Double Blind, is still my favourite, I think this one is the most intense and the most challenging read of the trilogy.

This is BDSM like I've not seen it in the m/m romance genre. I have read more than a few BDSM genre books over the past couple of years and most of them have been interesting and enjoyable, but this one, it gets into the minds of the characters in ways that the others have not. Maybe it's as simple as me loving the way Heidi writes? At any rate, whatever it is, this book is not for someone who has a tough time with the BDSM lifestyle. Heidi goes there. Not only do we have a flogging scene that was so intense that I had to put the book away for a few hours, there is also blood play, needle play, puppy play, watersports - you don't see that stuff in m/m romances every day.

The main characters, Steve and Chenco are so beautifully created. You begin by thinking that it's Chenco who needs the most help to become the man he dreams of being; that he needs Steve far more than Steve needs him... but man, it's so not that! It's Steve that is the most damaged, the most in need of Chenco, the family and someone to give HIM the strength he needs. And the boys are back and featured prominently - Mitch and Sam, Randy and Ethan - oh, and Crabtree (who is so very fascinating. *g*). Chenco is the little half-brother that Mitch discovers when he comes home after his father's death. And Chenco is a drag queen. A glorious, wonderful, stunning drag queen. I loved the way Heidi chose to show us how Chenco and Caramela are two separate entities, yet not.

Part of the reason that Mitch's buddy, Steve, is so... knotted up inside himself, let's say, is because of Steve's childhood friend, Gordy. OMG, the character of Gordy scared the piss out of me! But I have to say... remembering things about spouse #2 (who had his problems bigtime), I can't say that this guy isn't possible. Maybe that's why he scared me so much?

The journey that Chenco takes, discovering the world of BDSM with Steve and the others was fascinating, and it sheds a lot of light, I think, on how the community and lifestyle actually is and offers insight into the mindset of those who are part of it. It's certainly not for everyone.

On a bit of lighter note, one of my favourite scenes in this book was when Ethan asked Chenco to dance and they ballroom danced and Ethan was so elegant. (Yes, Randy might be my fave of the Special Delivery boys, but Ethan is close behind.)

So I said that this was the 3rd book of the Special Delivery series and honestly? I do hope it's the last one even though I love these characters with all my heart. Leave the audience wanting more, y'know? I'm fairly sure Chenco would agree with the sentiment at least. ;)

This is a wonderful series and this book a fabulous part of it! LOVED IT!!!

Hooch & Cake by Heidi Cullinan

4.5 STARS

This is a free shorty that takes place between Special Delivery and Double Blind. It's filled with everything that's perfect about the Special Delivery series. It's fun, it's insightful, it's sexy hot, it's kinky, it's filled with affection and love. It's vintage Randy, Mitch and Sam, one of the most perfect triads ever and it has a scene with Randy and Sam's BFF Emma that was just too delightful for words. :)

This is a not-so-short story that is Heidi at her best. Thank you, thank you, thank you! :)

Let It Snow by Heidi Cullinan

4 STARS

Minnesota Christmas - Book 1

What a terrific way to start some holiday reading! Let It Snow is a sweet, quiet, heart-warming love story that just left me smiling and happy and feeling so good. :) Heidi is one of my favourite authors and she doesn't disappoint.

Outwardly Marcus is a grumpy bear living up in the North Woods of Minnesota with his two other beary buddies, Arthur and Paul. Outwardly, Frankie is a young man from the city who is so full of swish that even a blind man could tell he was gay. It's a story about opposites on the outside who are really not so opposite on the inside. It's a story of how everyone has fears and sometimes they can rule a person's life and sometimes, people you think aren't afraid, really are. It's a story about totally changing your life and taking a chance. It's a tale about doing nice things for people and how sometimes it works and sometimes it can backfire. It's about some really hot and steamy sex scenes that are really beautifully written. And it's about getting your HAE, just in time for that magical Christmas Eve snowfall. :)

I loved it! If you're looking for a good holiday romance, you can't go wrong with this one. :)

30 Day Challenge - Day 1

Day 1 - Best book you read last year.

This is the book that cemented my love of Heidi Cullinan. I tumbled for her with her A Private Gentleman in a huge crush, but when I read Special Delivery I knew my love was a true and lasting one. :)

Sam is a young man who has an adventure one afternoon and finds more than he really bargained for when he hooks up with the more experienced Mitch, a rough and ready trucker. It's romantic and it's sexy and it's real and it's hot.

The book's tagline: When your deepest, darkest fantasy shows up, get on board.

I LOVE IT!

Family Man by Heidi Cullinan and Marie Sexton

4.5 STARS

4.5 stars, guys, 4.5!! 

Okay, really? Heidi and Marie deliver a gorgeous love story with two real guys. They have faults and they have amazing qualities. They both have families that are super loving and super painful at times. 

The story of Vince and Trey is wonderful and, dare I say it again, real. Hell, I fell in love with Vince! :) There are incredible moments of sweetness and joy just as there are moments of deep pain and despair. I cried reading this. And there was something very special - dancing. :) I love the dancing. 

Read it! I loved it!! (And it's got one of the best covers EVER!)

Edit: Upon moving here to Booklikes, I am able to give this the half star! Woot!

Dirty Laundry by Heidi Cullinan

5 STARS

Tucker Springs - Book 3

I LOVED this book! One of the clichés of love stories is the "I'm a better me when I'm with you." and in so many cases we never see evidence of it other than the characters say so. In Dirty Laundry we DO see it. We see the first seeds get planted, so to speak, in the laundromat and we get to see the seedling push through the ground in the bar, the leaves unfurl and the stem grow strong in the various other places around Tucker Springs as Adam and Denver navigate the mine fields of... well... themselves. :) 

They are so perfect for each other and it's wonderful to watch them come to recognise this. I cried for Adam more than once and even Denver had me wiping away tears once - yes, it's that kind of heart-touching book.

Heidi Cullinan manages to convey to the reader what it's like to live with OCD and how it affects every aspect of a person's life. I love the solutions that Denver and Adam found to deal with the fact of the disorder and what I love most is that Denver didn't run when the going got tough and neither did Adam. And for me, the BDSM aspects of the story were perfect! The sex was hot and dirty sexy - Heidi writes GREAT sex scenes - and even the simple touch of a hand against a cheek was beautifully erotic.

So, yes, I loved this book and everyone should go out and buy it and read it again and again. I intend to!

Second Hand by Heidi Cullinan and Marie Sexton

4.5 STARS

Tucker Springs - Book 2

I love Heidi's work and I love Marie's work and I was very curious, and maybe a tad apprehensive, to see how this joint venture of theirs would turn out. I was not disappointed! It was terrific! It's one of those books that I would recommend if a friend asked me what to read to introduce them to m/m romances. 

The main characters, El and Paul, are very likable - hell, I developed a bit of a crush on El within two pages of meeting him! I thought I might not be so fond of Paul because he seemed almost wishy-washy at first, but that soon changed when I realised that he was just The Most Clueless Man EVER. Which I found endearing. :) And he's a redhead. I love redheads. 

I thought that having the mix of first person POV and 3rd person limited might be a mistake at first, but not at all. It seems counter-intuitive and ungainly, this mix, but Heidi and Marie make it work really, really well. So well that I didn't even notice it after the first chapter or two. My first thought was that this was how they shared up the writing - Heidi writing El's 3rd person POV and Marie taking care of Paul's 1st person POV, but you know what? It doesn't matter other than I'm a curious type. It works and it works well. 

And the dog. The adorable dog. I loved Mojo. So, should you read this book? If you want a well-written, fun, romantic, heart-touching read, you most certainly should!

Nowhere Ranch by Heidi Cullinan

4 STARS

Heidi always manages to surprise me. I read in a review that she'd done, that she had 'issues' with first person POV. This book is written in the first person and damned if I can see a problem with it! 

I liked Roe, the POV character. I liked his toughness which, while at times a cover for his vulnerabilities, was also an intrinsic part of him. In other words, even if/when he allowed his vulnerabilities to show, the toughness would still be there. I liked Travis, his boss and the object of his affections. :) I wanted to know more about him, but being as the POV was first person, well, it doesn't allow from that type of introspection. Fair enough. :) Seeing him through Roe's eyes was enough though - I'm just being greedy. 

What I found interesting and refreshing, was the friendship between Roe and Haley. She was as important to his character growth as Travis, and maybe at times, even more important. I'm convinced that even though we don't get to see it, that there's a HEA for her down the road. 

An integral part of this relationship, this love story, is the kink. It allows both Roe and Travis to be free and open early on in their relationship. And some of it is intense, I must say. :) And I'll say that I never thought I'd be reading about pony play - I still don't get it, but hey, whatever floats those men's boats. :) My one disappointment was the putting away of the playroom by the end of the book. It left me wondering if kink really has to be put away while the children are small. It's a small disappointment though. Heidi is a lovely writer and her characters are always real and vivid to me and that's one of the reasons she's one of my favourites!

Double Blind by Heidi Cullinan

4.5 STARS

Special Delivery - Book 2

4 and a HALF stars! 

I loved this sequel to Special Delivery. I loved that it was the story of Randy/Skeet who Heidi made me love in the previous book in spite of myself. I loved Ethan, pure and simple. And I loved that neither of the MCs were in their early 20s. I loved how Ethan and Randy just melded perfectly with Sam and Mitch - well, not without a few hitches. :) I loved how Sam grew and became what both Randy and Ethan needed. I love dark and silent Mitch as well. The Old Man. And the kitties! OMG, the kitties were the perfect cherry on the sundae!

It all worked for me, really, really well. Randy's interest piqued by Ethan in the beginning and it leading to all kinds of interesting sex and feelings. And the story is more than Randy and Ethan's love story - it's also the story of how a family got formed. Randy, Ethan, Sam and Mitch. They all compliment each other so well! I even found my heart softening towards Crabtree, for heaven's sake! Manipulative old bastard!

I only had two complaints and they are small ones. For my taste, there was too much explanation of the poker games. It seemed to take away from the story instead of adding flavour and atmosphere in certain scenes. And the other thing was that it seems that the story takes place over a month, but it seemed to unfold over a longer period of time to me. A couple of months maybe? Any references of time passing I sort of pushed aside, because they weren't working for me. That's why I can't give this super book 5 stars though. 

I would highly recommend both this book and its prequel to anyone who likes their sex a little more daring than the usual. BDSM and polyamory are at work here and nicely done! I think it's safe to say that I will go back to both Special Delivery books for a reread!

Special Delivery by Heidi Cullinan

5 STARS

Special Delivery - Book 1

I wasn't expecting to love this book as much as I do. Yes, Heidi is one of my favorites, so I knew I'd enjoy it, but not that I'd love it to freakin', teeny-tiny, little bits! 

Sam is a young man who has an adventure one afternoon and finds more than he really bargained for when he hooks up with the more experienced Mitch, a rough and ready trucker. It's the story of how Sam discovers and learns to accept his kinks and feel good about them. Another review spoke of the creation of a power dynamic and the how and why it becomes part of a relationship and I found it very well done. It's romantic and it's sexy and it's real and it's hot. And it's respectful - unlike the so-called BDSM book that's so touted these days - yes, the 50 Shades book, which I have read - Special Delivery is the real deal. I love how Heidi blends all these things together to make a thoroughly entrancing story. The whys are just as important as the hows and there are a few surprises along the way. 

Ah, I loved it and would recommend it to anyone who enjoys the genre or even anyone who is curious about it.

A Private Gentleman by Heidi Cullinan

4 STARS

I was so excited for this book that I actually bought it on pre-order, and I wasn't disappointed. It was a really good read. 

The main characters, Wes and Michael are definitely not cookie-cutter characters. They are damaged and have flaws, but they also have sweetness and courage and I was rooting for them from the very beginning. 

Wes is a stutterer and I was concerned that the way the author chose to illustrate this would grate on my nerves, but it never did. Nicely done, Heidi! I found some of the author's vocabulary choices different, but once I got into the novel, they ceased to be remarkable - the story is not set in the year 2012, after all! In retrospect, those choices work very, very well. 

Heidi does a great job of creating the atmosphere of the late 1800s, even down to the bleakness in certain corners of society - the opium dens, the poverty, the strictures of what's right and proper. 

There were many things I loved about this novel, including the secondary character of Rodger, Wes' plants - especially his orchids, Michael's love of books, Barbara's patience. I loved how the love story flourished and I loved the tenderness between Wes and Michael as much as the bursts of hot sex. The scenes in the libraries were among my favorites and I have to admit to rereading the Oxford one again... and then again. :) 

I would have rated A Private Gentleman with 5 stars except that I found the climax, the confrontations and resolution came too fast and too... easily? Yes it's a HEA but everything just fell into place so simply and perfectly that I felt it was kind of a little cheat.

To finish off, I fell in love with Wes and Michael and totally enjoyed their story. Go and read it!!

Dance With Me by Heidi Cullinan

5 STARS

Oh man, this was wonderful!! I had to read this because it spoke of ballroom dancing and, well, ballroom dancing and Dancing With The Stars is one of my most favorite things ever. So I gave it to me as a birthday present. :)

I love Laurie. To bits. What a gem of a flawed genius of a man. I love Ed only a little bit, a wee bit less. Yes, I do play favorites. *LOL* I thought their love story was full and real and true and it didn't happen overnight, they grew into it. Grew into their need for each other - and it's a perfect, healthy, lovely need. Body and mind and soul. The intimate scenes are deadly hot and steamy and even just a kiss holds the ability to sweep the reader away. And the secondary characters are fully fleshed out real people. The parents, the friends, the students and business partners. Even those who just stepped on the stage felt true to me. (I would love to know more of Duon's story. *g*)

Heidi Cullinan is a lovely writer. She drew me in, made me love and care for her chararcters - all of them, made me see the locations and feel the atmospheres. I was there. If I only have one complaint it's this - I have the epub format of the book and the one problem is that the spacing between the changes of scene within the chapters are not obvious. Where I would expect what I would call a double line skip, there is none and I found myself pulled out of the rhythm of the story at the confusing POV transition. But you know, that's a pretty small problem to have. :)

A definite recommend and a definite reread!!!