Lena AustinBesprekingen

Porn porn porn.
I was hoping it wouldn't be but it is.
Do not look for logic in the plot because there is none.

The first story is about a volcanologist of Comanche descent who wanted to make a living outside the reservation, and a coyote shifter who was kicked out of his pack for sniffing around the pack leader’s mate – laughable since he is gay. Neither of the men found a home with their original packs, yet both are happy to find a new family/pack in the other.

Jeff, while living a life of science, is very much aware of his heritage. When a wounded coyote comes to the cabin he uses as a base for his observations, he picks up on the fact pretty quickly. The way he manages to gain the shifter’s trust is hilarious. Rody is very skeptical in the beginning, not sure the human can be trusted. He has heard nothing but bad things about humans from his cruel pack leader, so he approaches Jeff with utmost caution.

The whirlwind affair that follows is overtaken by a surprise event which forms the basis of Jeff’s future with the coyotes, and indeed all the shifters of Yellowstone. And Rody, cute as can be, finally has not just a lover but the acceptance of his whole pack. If you like short stories about men who are made for each other, if you enjoy reading about shifters who are closer to animals in their thinking than their more “civilized” brethren in other paranormal worlds, and if you’re looking for a read that is as cute as it is hot, then you will probably like this short story.


NOTE: The collection this book was published in has been provided by Changeling Press for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews.

The second story in this series has an entirely different slant than the first. Here, a man returns to his family homestead thinking he is sick and just needs some R&R, when actually he is suffering from quite a serious affliction. The coyote shifter who is rescued by Lee is ecstatic about his new pack mate, but has no idea what he’s really in for once they both realize what sickness Lee is suffering from.

Lee and Will are great together! Lee is finding out he isn’t only human, and has to deal with suddenly being part of a shifter world he never knew existed. Will has found a new pack mate, and I loved his attempts of explaining to the “poor human” what that actually means. His reaction to Lee’s shifting and the animal he turns into is so sweet, it made me smile. Neither of them will accept the barriers their animal forms seem to raise, and for once, being able to turn into humans becomes a life saver for both of them in terms of having a relationship.

If you like stories about men whose world turns upside down and they need to learn how to cope, if you enjoy a relationship that starts on a purely physical basis but quickly evolves into more, and if you’re looking for a fun read with a large side of emotion, then you will probably like this short story.


NOTE: The collection this story was published in has been provided by Changeling Press for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews.

This short story about an alley cat shifter and the hot firefighter he falls for is not just hilariously funny, it is also hot, and it carries a heartwarming message about true love overcoming all kinds of obstacles. The way the book is written in alternating points of view between Dustin and Tigs, each providing a piece of the story in form of a "blog", ensures the style is informal. It made me feel more as if these characters were talking to me than that I was reading a book. I really liked that!

Dustin is a firefighter who has begun to consider other options in life—he has been extinguishing fires and saving people for a while and now, in his midthirties, he is beginning to wonder what else may be out there. He has some plans, but Fate has other ideas. And for once I liked what she had in store. But there is more to Dustin than meets the eye. Yes, he is hot and physically very attractive. But he is also kind, supportive, and has a big heart. I loved him from the start.

Tigs is hilarious. He is a cat shifter, of alley cat status, and doesn’t think very highly of himself. Which is too bad, because he really is an amazing guy. It all gradually emerges as the story develops, and all I can say is don’t be fooled by his "scruffy" exterior. Dustin was able to look beyond it, and so was I. The way Tigs introduces himself sets the tone perfectly:

"My name is Tigs, and I’m a cat shifter. Don’t get smart, it’s not short for Tigger or anything stupid like that. I don’t fucking bounce or lisp my words, and I’m a gray tabby. I usually work construction and home renovation, me and my crew. We’re all shifters of one type or another, but we get along most of the time."

If you like your paranormal tales with a healthy dose of snark and humor, if "rags to riches" is a story line you favor, and if you're looking for a read that is as funny as it is hot while still managing to touch your heart, then you will probably like this short story.

This collection of three short stories takes a look at a world where shifters have lived in Yellowstone for millennia, Native Americans (especially the shamans) know all about them and even occasionally communicate, but so-called “modern man” has no idea what is going on. Except for the three men who feature alongside three very special coyote shifters in the three stories contained in this book. Each one has a slightly different focus, but I loved all of them. The way the coyote shifters think and prioritize gives them a unique voice, and makes each of them really cute in coyote form, and very hot when taking their human shape.

Coyote Non Grata
The first story is about a vulcanologist of Comanche descent who wanted to make a living outside the reservation, and a coyote shifter who was kicked out of his pack for sniffing around the pack leader’s mate – laughable since he is gay. Neither of the men found a home with their original packs, yet both are happy to find a new family/pack in the other.

Jeff, while living a life of science, is very much aware of his heritage. When a wounded coyote comes to the cabin he uses as a base for his observations, he picks up on the fact pretty quickly. The way he manages to gain the shifter’s trust is hilarious. Rody is very skeptical in the beginning, not sure the human can be trusted. He has heard nothing but bad things about humans from his cruel pack leader, so he approaches Jeff with utmost caution.

The whirlwind affair that follows is overtaken by a surprise event which forms the basis of Jeff’s future with the coyotes, and indeed all the shifters of Yellowstone. And Rody, cute as can be, finally has not just a lover but the acceptance of his whole pack. If you like short stories about men who are made for each other, if you enjoy reading about shifters who are closer to animals in their thinking than their more “civilized” brethren in other paranormal worlds, and if you’re looking for a read that is as cute as it is hot, then you will probably like this short story.

Wild Thing
The second story has an entirely different slant than the first. Here, a man returns to his family homestead thinking he is sick and just needs some R&R, when actually he is suffering from quite a serious affliction. The coyote shifter who is rescued by Lee is ecstatic about his new pack mate, but has no idea what he’s really in for once they both realize what sickness Lee is suffering from.

Lee and Will are great together! Lee is finding out he isn’t only human, and has to deal with suddenly being part of a shifter world he never knew existed. Will has found a new pack mate, and I loved his attempts of explaining to the “poor human” what that actually means. His reaction to Lee’s shifting and the animal he turns into is so sweet, it made me smile. Neither of them will accept the barriers their animal forms seem to raise, and for once, being able to turn into humans becomes a life saver for both of them in terms of having a relationship.

If you like stories about men whose world turns upside down and they need to learn how to cope, if you enjoy a relationship that starts on a purely physical basis but quickly evolves into more, and if you’re looking for a fun read with a large ide of emotion, then you will probably like this short story.

Man vs. Wild
The third story set in Yellowstone focuses on a survival show star who loves the city life, but makes a living by surviving the wilderness in front of a camera, and a coyote shifter who leaves his pack because he is desperate to find out how to be a human, and what all these creatures get up to.

Foxxe fears that his career as a “survivalist” on TV may come to an end, at the very least he feels bored. Once he runs into Reno, everything changes and he finds himself far more attracted to life “in nature” than he ever would have thought possible. Little does he know that Reno can’t wait to go live in a city, but has no idea how to accomplish this. I loved Reno’s myriad questions about human habits, and his private thought about the futility of some of the things humans do, as well as their lack of ability to perceive the truly important things in life. Too cute!

If you like stories about men who find new joys in what they do for work, if you enjoy reading about shifters who are very animal-like in their thoughts and perceptions, giving you a new perspective on how we as humans see the world, and if you’re looking for a read that is as funny as it is hot, then you will probably like this short story.


NOTE: This book was provided by Changeling Press for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews.

The third story of this series set in Yellowstone focuses on a survival show star who loves the city life, but makes a living by surviving the wilderness in front of a camera, and a coyote shifter who leaves his pack because he is desperate to find out how to be a human, and what all these creatures get up to.

Foxxe fears that his career as a “survivalist” on TV may come to an end, at the very least he feels bored. Once he runs into Reno, everything changes and he finds himself far more attracted to life “in nature” than he ever would have thought possible. Little does he know that Reno can’t wait to go live in a city, but has no idea how to accomplish this. I loved Reno’s myriad questions about human habits, and his private thought about the futility of some of the things humans do, as well as their lack of ability to perceive the truly important things in life. Too cute!

If you like stories about men who find new joys in what they do for work, if you enjoy reading about shifters who are very animal-like in their thoughts and perceptions, giving you a new perspective on how we as humans see the world, and if you’re looking for a read that is as funny as it is hot, then you will probably like this short story.


NOTE: The collection this story was published in has been provided by Changeling Press for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews.

“Ghosting”, the act of leaving and stopping all communication without warning, as a word may not have been used in that sense until recently, but the act as such is nothing new. Vanishing from people’s radar was easier before the days of cell phones, the internet, and electronic surveillance everywhere, but it was not what Andy intended when he finally got away from his abusive boyfriend in 1965. It takes fifty years for someone to come looking for the ghost Andy has been forced to become, but when a ghost hunter named Geoff makes his way to the quiet cabin that has become Andy’s home, events are set in motion that neither man expected. Events that thoroughly entertained me, and even though I feared it couldn’t end well –what with a ghost and a living human - the author managed to come up with a nice twist and gave me the happy ending I so wished for. It made me a very happy reader.

Andy may have managed to escape his abusive boyfriend, but right before he reaches his parents’ lodge and safety, he hears his ex’s cold voice on a cassette tape, the steering wheel comes off its column, and Andy’s car crashes into a tree with deadly consequences. The anger about his ex’s subterfuge keeps Andy close to the living and allows some communication with his younger sister, who is the only one aware that Andy is still around. But, it isn’t until Geoff makes his way to one of the lodge’s cabins that Andy’s hopes return for someone to discover the truth and maybe even revenge. One revelation follows another, a few twists increase the suspense, and some wonderfully creative powers make an appearance, helping Geoff and Andy get closer.

If you like creative ghost stories, if you think two men separated by death still deserve to be together, and if you’re looking for a fun read with a few twists, then you will probably like this short story.


NOTE: This book was provided by Changeling Press for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews.

review to follow

Tigs is a gray tabby shifter who works construction with his shifter friends, specializing in home renovations. Dustin is a fire fighter who has just come back from bereavement after losing his lover Casey. He misses Casey dearly and knows that he must go on but just doesn’t have the heart yet.

Tigs is cleaning up after a long day on the job site when he smells smoke. Considering that if he stays in his human form he will be burned, he transforms into his cat and leaps out the window into a tree. Dustin’s first night back on the job has him working a fire along with his crew. He finds a stray cat stuck in a tree that he decides to take home since no one claims him. Dustin finds himself telling this cat all his feelings and what he wants to eventually do with his life. Tigs is in lust or he keeps telling himself that because the feelings that Dustin is bringing out are foreign to him. Later that night Dustin passes out and wakes up to a beautiful man and he can’t help but wonder if it is a dream. What follows is even better than a dream for not just Dustin but for Tigs as well.
Flash Point by Lena Austin was a hilarious story of a stray tabby with major attitude. Either you like him or hate him, it doesn’t matter much. The story is written in first person but has both points of view since Lena writes their stories as a diary. Dustin, the easier going of the two, is actually the strongest emotionally. Tigs just needs that extra help to find what he has been looking for all along in Dustin. At first glance these two don’t seem to fit but the personalities fit to perfection.

Bitten by Books for AReCafe

2.5stars

Dates from a re-read.

Part of the Protect and Serve series from Changeling, and a follow-up to her Flash Point. Liked the leads.

I was pleasantly surprised by the first book in the Coyotes of Yellowstone series, and the second book it's up to the previous if not better. What I liked in Coyote Non Grata was the idea that coyotes shifters were mostly more animal then men, and even when they shift in human form they still hold most of their animal nature.

Have you ever wondered what happens to the clothes when shapeshifters change? I read various thesis, one even, if I remember well, was that the animal brought along with him a backpack where he stuffed the clothes and then trotted away with the backpack clutched in his snout. For her coyotes Lena Austin chooses the full "natural" way: they are naked before and after the shifting and they remain naked, at least since someone decides to borrow them a piece of clothes, maybe regretting to cover that fine body. So yes, the feral nature of these shifters, proved both by the "naked" thing, but also by their unfamiliarity with human language, is something that I liked in the first book and that I find again in this one. What probably is new, and made this second book even more interesting, is a undertone funny mood; I can't say more, to not spoil the book, but even the chosen pair is in a way, a bad but funny joke.

Will is a injured coyote; alone or with the little help from his fellow coyote, he can't heal, and so he chooses to die alone and far from the pack. During his search for the perfect spot to die, he stumbles upon Lee's cottage in the wilderness of the Yellowstone park. Lee's grandparents raised goats, but now the farm is empty and the barn is the perfect place for Will. Only that Lee is not ready to see a now human Will dying, and with the simple aid of few drugs, he saves the man to find himself a very eager lover.

Lee explains to himself Will's strange behavior with the "feral" people theory: legends say that some men chose to live in the wilderness and they lost contact with other humans. So Lee is not particularly scared by Will, and instead, being Lee lonely and gay, and not shy when dealing with sex, he is more than happy to satisfy some of the primal urges of Will.

The sex is good but it's not that makes interesting the book. I can't really say more, but I was almost laughing to tear with the scene when Will discovers Lee's true nature. And also what happens next, with Lee's quiet acceptance of that, and the family routine they build together... well, someone could have some "squeaky" feelings, but I found it tender and sweet, with again, a lingering taste of humor. True, Will doesn't come out like a very civilized man, but no one has never said otherwise: Will is more coyote than man, and I believe that he is more comfortable in his coyote form. And then, if you remember "Will E. Coyote", he was full of resources, but not particularly clever ;-)

http://elisa-rolle.livejournal.com/780598.html

Peck of Pickles is a little story of seduction. Linc is a true farm boy in deep North Dakota. Not a place to be gay like him. And so Linc mostly dreams and sometime goes to the near town to scratch an itch. His dreamlover is Pol, blond hair and blue eyes like him, but where Linc is big and clumsy, Pol is lean and handsome.

And today he has the chance to be with Pol alone, using the tools in Pol's office to turn the cucumbers in pickles. But Pol has other idea, and like him his college friend, and lover, Marc: they want to include Linc in their game, and Marc will be the middle in a sandwich of blond farm boy.

A short story in the Hot Flashes series, a serial of little erotic scene. Like this one, where all turn around the final sex scene, and the plot is only a supporting tool for it.

The most interesting thing in these 27 pages is the funny tone of all the story with the slow seduction of Pol and Marc of big Linc, like he was a virgin waiting for his beau.

Dragon's Egg: Jack, a welsh orphan that has made fortune in America, since the late teens is haunted by strange dreams: about a dragon friend who at the end became is lover. He thinks to be mad and instead doesn't know that is lover is real and he is dying to be so far away from his mate. Jack has to learn his real origin and claim his dragon's lover, Aneurin.

Dragon's Stone: Jack has to learn to live in his new world with his dragon's lover and with all a new family around him. He also has to go school, a school for magic and he will find new friend, first of all Remo, a real elf. But Jack's fate is more huge of what he thinks...

Dragon's Quest: Remo is happy with his new friend, Jack and Aneurin, but a lover from his past his near: Quenton. Both Remo and Quenton are spies, on opposite front, but love is a powerful weapon and can bond or divide forever...

The Dragon's Egg series is really funny. Jack is like "an american on the king arthur's court": he has lived in a world and in a era different from his own but he deals with the matter with good humor and positive attitude. And he is like a teenager with his first love when he is near Aneurin, his bond lover. Jack is not a macho man and so Aneurin. They are like two children who play to be adult: and like children, even the battles are game field.

If you want to spend some time without thinking, Dragon's Egg is what you can read and enjoy.

Dragon's Egg: Jack, a welsh orphan that has made fortune in America, since the late teens is haunted by strange dreams: about a dragon friend who at the end became is lover. He thinks to be mad and instead doesn't know that is lover is real and he is dying to be so far away from his mate. Jack has to learn his real origin and claim his dragon's lover, Aneurin.

Dragon's Stone: Jack has to learn to live in his new world with his dragon's lover and with all a new family around him. He also has to go school, a school for magic and he will find new friend, first of all Remo, a real elf. But Jack's fate is more huge of what he thinks...

Dragon's Quest: Remo is happy with his new friend, Jack and Aneurin, but a lover from his past his near: Quenton. Both Remo and Quenton are spies, on opposite front, but love is a powerful weapon and can bond or divide forever...

The Dragon's Egg series is really funny. Jack is like "an american on the king arthur's court": he has lived in a world and in a era different from his own but he deals with the matter with good humor and positive attitude. And he is like a teenager with his first love when he is near Aneurin, his bond lover. Jack is not a macho man and so Aneurin. They are like two children who play to be adult: and like children, even the battles are game field.

If you want to spend some time without thinking, Dragon's Egg is what you can read and enjoy.

Dragon's Egg: Jack, a welsh orphan that has made fortune in America, since the late teens is haunted by strange dreams: about a dragon friend who at the end became is lover. He thinks to be mad and instead doesn't know that is lover is real and he is dying to be so far away from his mate. Jack has to learn his real origin and claim his dragon's lover, Aneurin.

Dragon's Stone: Jack has to learn to live in his new world with his dragon's lover and with all a new family around him. He also has to go school, a school for magic and he will find new friend, first of all Remo, a real elf. But Jack's fate is more huge of what he thinks...

Dragon's Quest: Remo is happy with his new friend, Jack and Aneurin, but a lover from his past his near: Quenton. Both Remo and Quenton are spies, on opposite front, but love is a powerful weapon and can bond or divide forever...

The Dragon's Egg series is really funny. Jack is like "an american on the king arthur's court": he has lived in a world and in a era different from his own but he deals with the matter with good humor and positive attitude. And he is like a teenager with his first love when he is near Aneurin, his bond lover. Jack is not a macho man and so Aneurin. They are like two children who play to be adult: and like children, even the battles are game field.

If you want to spend some time without thinking, Dragon's Egg is what you can read and enjoy.

First of all, sorry if I seem shallow, but have you seen that cover? This is the classical example of a very simple cover that catch my eyes. It's never of exceptional, probably it's a stock photo, but guys, I like it! It's perfect for the story and it's very nice.

And now let's talk about this novella. Rody is a coyote shifter who is kicked out his pack for a very stupid reason... actually at first, the fact that he is gay, and the only gay inside the pack, is not part of that reason: the pack in which Rody lives is not a mature and progressive pack, like some unbelievable packs of other paranormal romances. The members of the pack live almost all the time in shifted form, and rarely they shift in their human form; when they do that, they are naked both literally than figuratively: they are not used to the human lifestyle, they even have problem to communicate.

So when Rody is kicked out, he directs toward a "human" cabin, knowing that there he will find easy food, since he is wounded and unable to hunt. Rody behaves mostly as a stray dog, stealing food trying to not be catch by the owner of the cabin, but Jeff is too clever to be fooled. A Native American of Comanche heritage, Jeff is aware of the existence of the shifter people, even if he believed they were extinct; so when he finds Rody, he knows who he has in front of him, and it's not "only" a scared coyote.

The relationship between Rody and Jeff start till the beginning respecting some basic rules: Rody is not a leader, he is a beta male who is not used and able to live alone, he needs an alpha male; Jeff is not used to the pack rules, but he has enough character to be that alpha male for Rody. Both Rody than Jeff are gay, so there is no much question on how their relationship will evolve, and truth be told, being both gay it's not even the main reason for that development: Rody is a pack animal, even in human form, and when he finds a man that he can consider a leader, for him it's natural to let the leader have all of him. Their relationship is based more on instinct than feeling.

This is only a novella, and I believe that, if it will have a good welcome from readers, the author is thinking to write more. I would be not against the idea to read more, Rody's character is exactly in the middle between a coyote and a human, and I wouldn't mind to read how his relationship with Jeff will evolve, if he will lean more on his human side, or if he will remain a being in the middle.

http://elisa-rolle.livejournal.com/602431.html