His Horizon (His #1) by Con Riley

 

Release Tour, Excerpt & Giveaway:

His Horizon by Con Riley

 

Temperatures rise when there are two cooks in Jude’s kitchen...

Jude’s drowning in guilt when he can’t save his family business single-handed. The last person he expects to throw a lifeline is Rob, a rival chef who once beat him to first place in a cooking contest.

Two chefs working together won’t be easy. Not when Rob is everything Jude isn’t—popular, extroverted, and a one-time hook-up. What’s worse is that Rob wears his heart on his sleeve while Jude’s still in the closet.

Jude’s dilemma doesn’t end there. Rob’s rescue package comes with conditions that mean sharing everything from the profits to Jude’s sleeping quarters. 

Sleeping with the enemy will either be a disaster or signal a much brighter future, but only if Jude can meet Rob’s final condition and love him in the open.

Featuring opposites who attract, rivals to lovers, and an out-for-you storyline dripping with hurt-comfort feelings, His Horizon is the first in a shared-world series of standalone MM romance novels from Con Riley.

CONTENT ADVISORY: Grief-related angst, Off-page peril & British-English spelling/grammar.

Amazon US  *  Universal Link

Goodreads Link

My Rating - 4.5 Stars!

His Horizon is a wonderful book by Con Riley. I was pleasantly surprised by the depth of the storyline. 

Rob and Jude are two cooks who were once competitors, yet are now business partners. Upon being reunited, they are also exploring their continued attraction to one another.

Jude's story is depressing from the start. He's back home to help his sister, having given up hope of finding his parents alive. What he finds is a struggling business and an awkward situation with Rob being in town.

Jude and Rob have a past that consists of one kiss. But the attraction is there and their connection is strong. Their slow burn romance is full of tension, need, and want. There's heat, a sprinkling of humor, and plenty of emotion. 

The whole story revolves around Jude's parents being lost at sea. It's heartbreaking throughout, including Jude's issues with being closeted and having never come out to his parents. In general, Jude is weighed down by guilt, grief, and a whole lot of frustration. He's living with expectations, fears, and confusion.

The characters fully come to life in this British romance. It's a beautiful story of regrets, secrets, and acceptance. There's a family secret that comes to light, as well as some good twists and turns. In addition, there's a good mystery. 

There's a whole lot to love about this tender, heart-felt read. The writing is beautiful, although definitely more descriptive than I normally prefer. The author excels in writing with a poetic feel, yet never overwhelming me. Written in alternating 3rd person pov, the reader is able to fully understand each man and their emotions. 

His Horizon is wonderful in the end. I adore this heart warming second chance romance. I am excited for more in this Con Riley series. 

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It was beyond dark in the boatyard, clouds covering the moon leaving the way deeply shadowed. Rob held out his phone, flashlight app a white beam that sliced through the darkness, his other hand in Jude’s, fingers laced as they walked in silence to the boatshed. It lit the ceiling when he placed it at the head of the bed, the portholes dark circles above them. He stayed quiet until Jude lay flat on his bunk. “One thing,” he then said, after kneeling over him. “Just to check.” Rob dipped down for a kiss, lips barely touching Jude’s before he pulled back a scant inch. “You didn’t help yourself to a finger or two of cognac from the bar before coming to find me, did you?” His knees were so close to the edge of Jude’s bunk that he slipped after straddling him. 

Jude grabbed him with one hand on each of his hips, raising his knees to keep Rob steady. Once he was, Jude slid both hands under Rob’s T-shirt, hands travelling up and around to appreciate where his back broadened. “You think I’d need to be drunk to want this? Why?”

Rob’s gaze skittered away. 

It wasn’t easy to switch position. “Jesus, you’re a lump.” Jude pushed up while twisting, rolling them over so Rob was beneath him. “Why, Rob? You really think my judgement needs to be impaired to want you?”

“No… I… well, yes.” Rob’s hands skimmed Jude’s hips, his waist, the curve of pectorals that were more pronounced after a year’s sailing. “To be fair, I have had months of Lou telling me about how you never do this.”

“This?”

“It’s nothing.” Rob’s touch was distracting, but Jude stayed on topic.

“Tell me. What did Lou say I never do?”

Even in the dim light, Rob’s mask slipping again was visible. “Let people get close.” He squirmed, awkward before adding, “Besides, have you seen you?” He pushed Jude’s shirt higher. “Some people might say I’m punching a teensy bit above my weight.” He glanced down at that last word to where Jude had one hand on his belly. Rob’s skin was soft and giving. “Too many second breakfasts.”

“You’re gorgeous,” Jude said, and he meant it. Had done from their first meeting. “Annoying, but gorgeous.”

Rob pulled him closer and Jude sank into it, lying instead of kneeling, kissing instead of thinking about what might come tomorrow. With his eyes closed, and Rob’s arms around him, Jude was back in London, after the contest semi-finals, only this time—now—he wasn’t about to stop at kissing. No, if he’d learned anything this year, it was to take as much as he could, because tomorrow could get washed away without any warning.

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To celebrate Con's new release, we are giving a lucky winner the chance to win a $20 Amazon Gift Card!

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Con Riley lives on the wild and rugged Devonshire coast, with her head in the clouds, and her feet in the Atlantic Ocean.

Injury curtailed her enjoyment of outdoor pursuits, so writing fiction now fills her free time instead. Love, loss, and redemption shape her romance stories, and her characters are flawed in ways that makes them live and breathe.

When not people watching, or wrangling her own boy band of teen sons, she spends time staring at the sea from her kitchen window. If you see her, don't disturb her—she's probably thinking up new plots.

Connect with Con:

FACEBOOK GROUP: facebook.com/groups/458421868222590
TWITTER: twitter.com/con_riley
INSTA: instagram.com/con_riley
BOOKBUB: bookbub.com/authors/con-riley
AMAZON: amazon.com/Con-Riley/e/B
WEBSITE: https://www.conriley.com

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Break Free (Kinley Island #2) by Raleigh Ruebins

Amazon Link

Goodreads Link

Blurb

Caleb:
Nobody’s better at being alone than me. I’ve perfected the art of isolation: I go to work at Luna’s Diner, come home, and I definitely don’t go on dates anymore.

But then Beck walked into my diner looking like the textbook definition of a hot, single dad--tall, bearded, and the kindest eyes this side of the Rockies.
And I let my guard down for the first time in years.

He’s straight, but soon he wants to keep me close. In-bed-together close. I’d forgotten just how good it could feel. But I have no room in my life for a crush, let alone a relationship. My past broke me into pieces, and I’m only now starting to pick them back up.

I’m not going to let myself fall for him.
Even though he’s the first person I’ve been comfortable with in years.
Even though he wants me, too, on lonely nights.
Even though his touch makes me ache.

Beck:
Since moving to Kinley Island, I’ve been living like a shadow. I’m divorced and single for the first time in fifteen years, and my days have been as drab and routine as the rainy weather outside.

And then one late night at my regular diner, everything changed. The mysterious, tattooed man behind the counter opened up to me--flirted with me--and I flirted back. I’ve never been into men, but I can’t keep my eyes off Caleb--he’s beautiful, intense, and broken, and now I feel a desperate urge to fix him.

But I also just got a phone call I never expected: my sixteen-year-old daughter is coming to stay with me for the summer. After living like a bachelor all year, I have no clue how to be a single parent. Caleb offers to help me, and of course I say yes.

But now I’m starting to feel addicted to him.
His body. His lips. His touch.
Is it possible to like a friend too much? 

Review 

My Rating - 4 Stars!

Raleigh Ruebins' Break Free, the second book in the Kinley Island series, is an emotional gfy romance.

Beck and Caleb are two broken, yet extremely likable men. Each with their own troubled pasts, their story is one of healing, as both men desperately need one another. Beck's alone, having recently been divorced, missing his daughter, and hoping to reunite with his ex wife. Caleb meanwhile, has returned home, is sad, and is floundering from the pain and hurt of losing his wife. Their romance is a slow burn, as Beck thinks himself straight, and is unable to even consider loving Caleb.

Their tale also includes a troubled teen and some awkward moments with her,  and too many apologies. It contains confusion, denial and lies. It also includes one very steamy moment. 

I seriously wanted to smack Beck at times, as he just couldn't admit his feelings and see what was right in front of him. Not used to being in a loving and supportive relationship, he just didn't know what love really looks like. He seriously is too nice for his own good, always trying to please everyone else. 

In classic Raleigh Ruebins fashion, this book is full of some great side characters and the small town feel is well represented. Told in dual pov, we're gifted with good insight into both men from the start.

The author definitely added some repeated "he said" at times, which is always cringe worthy to me. But I love everything else about the writing. The storyline's fantastic, as usual, and the characters take the reader on a wonderful journey. 

Break Free is a compelling story of self discovery. Raleigh Ruebins delivers a heart-warming romance between two men each getting a second chance at love. I definitely recommend it.