Hollywood is full of dirty secrets, but Carter refuses to be Levi’s.
Retired action star Levi Pritchard has made a quiet life for himself in the sleepy logging town of Bluewater Bay, Washington. But then Hollywood comes to film the wildly popular television series Wolf’s Landing, and Bluewater Bay isn’t so sleepy anymore. His retirement doesn’t stick, either, because he’s offered a part on the show—exactly the kind of complex role he’d always wanted, one that would prove him more than a glorified stuntman. The only catch? He has to stay in the closet—no matter how attractive he finds his co-star.
Carter Samuels is the critically-acclaimed male lead on Wolf’s Landing. And now, the man who inspired him to take up acting—and made him realize he’s gay—is joining the cast, and sparks fly between them instantly. But Carter is out and proud and determined to stay true to himself.
Remaining just friends is the only thing to do, as both the studio and Levi’s disapproving, dysfunctional family keep reminding them. Except their friendship deepens by the day, tempting them with what they can’t have but both desperately need.
Retired action star Levi Pritchard has made a quiet life for himself in the sleepy logging town of Bluewater Bay, Washington. But then Hollywood comes to film the wildly popular television series Wolf’s Landing, and Bluewater Bay isn’t so sleepy anymore. His retirement doesn’t stick, either, because he’s offered a part on the show—exactly the kind of complex role he’d always wanted, one that would prove him more than a glorified stuntman. The only catch? He has to stay in the closet—no matter how attractive he finds his co-star.
Carter Samuels is the critically-acclaimed male lead on Wolf’s Landing. And now, the man who inspired him to take up acting—and made him realize he’s gay—is joining the cast, and sparks fly between them instantly. But Carter is out and proud and determined to stay true to himself.
Remaining just friends is the only thing to do, as both the studio and Levi’s disapproving, dysfunctional family keep reminding them. Except their friendship deepens by the day, tempting them with what they can’t have but both desperately need.
This story could have fallen into
many tropes authors use to get out of a tricky situation. I’m thrilled to say
that L.A. Witt denied those and wrote a wonderful romance with much of what
comes real between two people who are kept apart by something they both think
is real – and yet is it? Levi hasn’t worked in Hollywood for a few years. Tired
of Hollywood, he moved to Washington State to get away from it all. Kind of
hard to do when a popular book series becomes a smash television show that’s
shot in his home town. Having his his bisexuality all his life and his family
trying to mend, he has no intention of outing himself now.
Isn’t a shame that suddenly he’s
offered the kind of part he has always wanted? Unfortunately, Hollywood insists
he remain closeted. While that wouldn’t normally be a problem what with his
family issues, he finds himself falling for Carter, the lead actor on the set,
who is also head over heels over him.
This is a wonderful story, giving
us both men’s point of view as they struggle with society’s views on them,
their lives, as well as overlying tones of familial disapproval and corporate
control. It gripped me from beginning to end and I will admit, the way the
author brought about the ending was a wonderful surprise.
Definitely 4 stars. Go. Read now.
I’ll wait…
L.A. Witt is an abnormal M/M romance writer
currently living in the glamorous and ultra-futuristic metropolis of Omaha,
Nebraska, with her husband, two cats, and a disembodied penguin brain that
communicates with her telepathically. In addition to writing smut and
disturbing the locals, L.A. is said to be working with the US government to
perfect a genetic modification that will allow humans to survive indefinitely
on Corn Pops and beef jerky. This is all a cover, though, as her primary
leisure activity is hunting down her arch nemesis, erotica author Lauren
Gallagher, who is also said to be lurking somewhere in Omaha.
L. A.’s backlist is available on her website, and updates (as well as random thoughts and the
odd snarky comment) can be found on her blog or on Twitter (@GallagherWitt).
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Buck
Ellis’s future seems pretty damn bright. With a full college scholarship
in hand, he’s going to ditch Bluewater Bay and pave the way for his kid
brother Charlie to do the same. The only fly in Buck’s ointment is his
ten-year addiction to his best friend since second grade, his true love,
and his Achilles heel: Ari Valentine, Mr. Least Likely to Succeed.
But then Buck’s mother dies, changing everything, and five years later, his future is still on hold. It’s a struggle to keep food on the table, a roof over their heads, and Charlie on the straight and narrow. Buck can’t afford any temptation, especially in the form of the newly returned, super hot, super confident, super successful television star Ari Valentine.
ADHD poster-child Ari Valentine left for Hollywood and lost everything, including his bad reputation. Then the breakthrough role of his skyrocketing career lands him back in Bluewater Bay, to the stunned disbelief of, well, everyone. But there’s only one person Ari longs to impress—the only person who ever really mattered to him, the person he left behind: Buck Ellis.
But then Buck’s mother dies, changing everything, and five years later, his future is still on hold. It’s a struggle to keep food on the table, a roof over their heads, and Charlie on the straight and narrow. Buck can’t afford any temptation, especially in the form of the newly returned, super hot, super confident, super successful television star Ari Valentine.
ADHD poster-child Ari Valentine left for Hollywood and lost everything, including his bad reputation. Then the breakthrough role of his skyrocketing career lands him back in Bluewater Bay, to the stunned disbelief of, well, everyone. But there’s only one person Ari longs to impress—the only person who ever really mattered to him, the person he left behind: Buck Ellis.
The second in the series, I was
so pleased with the first that I jumped into this one. This is a very different
story than the first – and let me say that is one of the BEST things about
multi-authored series. Each book is a reflection of the series and the author
who wrote it. That said, I think this book would have been better if it had
been longer.
This is the story of unrequited
love and having it land right in your lap after four years of thinking it’s
gone forever. I liked Ari – his positive look at life, even with all the crap
life’s sent him. And Buck was okay – I think he could have been better. It was
like the book would have been fantastic if it had been twice as long, so we
could have truly gotten inside both their heads. The chapters seemed disjointed
as though something should have happened between one and the next and we never
found out what. I wanted to love it, but in the end, it was just liked. It
would be fantastic to see things from Ari’s point of view, because that man’s
been through hell and yet, he seems to bounce back.
Amazon US || Barnes & Noble || ARe || Riptide
When not working from her home in the rolling hills of
Northwestern Connecticut, author L.B. Gregg can be spotted in coffee shops from
Berlin to Singapore to Panama--sipping lattes and writing sweet, hot, often
funny, stories about men who love men. www.lbgregg.com
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