Book Names: Hidden Gem, Unicorns and Rainbow Poop, On The Right Track (Audio Book)
Goodreads Link:
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/18212668-on-the-right-track
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23312541-unicorns-and-rainbow-poop
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/23081118-hidden-gem
Author Name: Lissa Kasey/Sam Kadence
Author Bio:
Sam Kadence has always dreamed about being someone else, somewhere else. With very little musical talent, Sam decided the only way to make those dreams come true was to try everything from cosplay at the local anime conventions to writing novels about pretending to run away to become a musician.
Sam has a Bachelor’s degree in Creative Writing, sells textbooks for a living, enjoys taking photographs of Asian Ball Joint Dolls to tell more stories, and has eclectic taste in music from J-pop to rock and country. All of which finds its way into the books eventually.
Email: [email protected];
Lissa Kasey lives in St. Paul, MN, has a Bachelor’s Degree in Creative Writing, and collects Asian Ball Joint Dolls who look like her characters. She has three cats who enjoy waking her up an hour before her alarm every morning and sitting on her lap to help her write. She can often be found at Anime Conventions masquerading as random characters when she’s not writing about boy romance.
Author Contact:
https://www.facebook.com/lissa.kasey; https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100008292783586&fref=ts; [email protected]; [email protected]
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press & Harmony Ink Press
Cover Artist: Hidden Gem – Siobhan,
Blurb(s):
Categories: Alternate Universe, BDSM, Contemporary, Fantasy, Gay Fiction, New Adult, Paranormal (Please note: Not all books contain all elements.)
Excerpts:
HIDDEN GEM:
First Glimpse by Lissa Kasey
Aki swept up a bottle of McNaughton’s favorite scotch and headed toward the broad Irishman. The man’s shoulders were arched forward, back tense, hair a sexy mess, and face covered with a couple days’ growth. Obviously the cop was on a difficult case. The detective hadn’t yet asked for him, just for his usual meal—almost bloody steak with a baked potato.
“You look like you could use a drink,” Aki told him as he slid into the chair beside him. He turned an empty glass over and poured three fingers of the golden liquid.
McNaughton sighed, his dark eyes roaming over Aki’s small body, platinum blond hair pulled up and styled with sparkling pins, see-thru knit top, and super-short skirt, then over his bare legs down to the gleaming heels. The shoes were a silver mesh of crystals that slid up just past his ankles. A gift from McNaughton. The cop sucked in a deep breath and slid his hand over the covered part of Aki’s thigh. He knew better than to touch bare flesh to bare flesh. Aki was a cognitive psi, could see entire lives of horrors with a single touch, and he was sure McNaughton’s past was filled with a lot of nasty memories.
“Wish you had time for me tonight. But I’ve got a feeling you’re booked up tight.” He glanced back at the room bustling with companions and potential customers. Aki was the only psi in the room, his pale-pupiled blue eyes telling the world that he was different.
“I’m sure Bart can fit you in.” Aki’s eyes scanned the room until he found his boss, who was engaged with negotiations with another client. “Looks like you need some trouble eased tonight.” He leaned in close enough his breath ran across McNaughton’s cheek.
McNaughton turned his head, lips nearly close enough to touch. “Would love a bit of time with your shine.”
“Words like honey, McNaughton.”
The cop flashed him one of his rare, heart-stopping smiles then nodded as Bart appeared beside them. “Table seven is ready, Aki. Number one.” Bart told him.
Aki grabbed Bart’s wrist with a gloved hand. “The cop needs some time tonight. You can make that happen, right?”
“Of course.” Bart nodded to them and took Aki’s vacated seat and Aki made his way to his next client of the evening. There were only two services Aki performed. A hand job and a blow job, one and two. This client wanted number one—which meant he was cheap since rarely did anyone ask for a hand job from him. But his prices were astronomical anyway.
“Hello,” Aki smiled at the man as he slid into the chair opposite him. The client was dressed nice, button down shirt, pressed pants, but he was bald and a little heavier around the waist. A politician probably. “If you’re ready we can head upstairs.”
The man barely spoke, but he leered, eyes tracing over Aki’s form more like he was cattle than a night of entertainment. Even in his worst moments McNaughton had never done that. It wasn’t appreciation, but something darker. Aki sighed internally and hoped this would be fast. He knew a thousand ways to get a man off in minutes. Something about him just set off Aki’s creep radar.
“I hear some wait months for the pleasure of your time,” the man said with slightly accented speech.
Not usually. The only ones who waited weeks were because their schedule and Aki’s conflicted or because they’d done something to upset him or Bart. Most clients got in within a few days if not the same day of requesting Aki’s time. And regulars were always given precedence over someone not yet vetted like this client. “If I don’t please you I can see if Preston or Royce is available.”
“I was hoping for Candy originally.”
Was always good to be told he was second choice. Aki gritted his teeth. “Candy only serves a special kind of client. And he does have a wait list.” Mostly because he took clients who wanted a little more kink than any of the other male companions preferred. Aki was going to recommend this client be removed from the premises after the service was over.
“I guess you’ll have to do then. Won’t you?” He gave Aki a chilling smile.
Bastard. Aki got up from his seat and offered his gloved hand to the man who followed closely. They’d reached the stairs when the man grabbed him, yanked Aki against him and shoved his hand up Aki’s skirt, groping him and sending him into a spiral of nightmares.
A dark room. The metallic stink of blood. Screams. The sound of knives being sharpened. Metal bars clanking. Crying. Pain. The music of an ice cream truck. How odd. It was all ripped away a moment later, but Aki’s stomach was already heaving. The small plate of fruit and yogurt he’d had for dinner was not going to stay down.
Someone carried him unceremoniously to the private companion bathroom near the kitchen and set him in front of the toilet just as the mash of fruits and dairy came up. Aki heaved a couple of minutes, his brain swirling with the images that thankfully began to fade just as quickly as they’d come. With any luck he’d be able to brush his teeth, wash his face and go about his work day.
He glanced up to find Manny, the head of security standing at the door. McNaughton knelt beside Aki. Had held his hair back and even used his jacket to cover Aki’s bottom. The skirts really were too short.
“Bart is already having the guy removed. He should never have touched you like that. Sorry I didn’t get to you quicker,” Manny told Aki. “Grateful to you, Detective, for responding so quickly.”
McNaughton stroked Aki’s back, using the soft material of the sweater to run circles over his spine. “Want to talk about it?”
Aki sighed. “Same crap. Just weird. Darkness, crying, smelled blood. Heard knives.” He shook his head. “The guy could work at a butcher for all I know. The memories get so jumbled.” Often with his own horrific past. “Thought I heard a kid. And bars rattling like in a jail. And the music from an ice cream truck.”
McNaughton nodded like it made perfect sense to him and helped Aki get up and make his way to the sink where there were spare toothbrushes and endless varieties of paste. The cop leaned over and kissed Aki’s hair. “Gotta go. I’ll have Bart reschedule me sometime this week though. Love that you wore my shoes.” He was gone a moment later.
Aki cleaned up and made his way back to work. At least the night was almost over. He was sad that McNaughton hadn’t stayed. Would have liked to see that smile another time or two. At least the rest of the night flew by without incident, even if the detective didn’t return.
“Sleeping with me tonight?” Candy asked as he stripped out of their work clothes, leaving just a pair of bright pink underwear and crawled into bed. His purple hair was already brushed and eyes heavy with sleep.
“Please,” Aki whispered. He stripped off everything but his underwear too. After putting his shoes and pins away, he washed his face.
“Heard that guy touched you. What a jerk.”
“He wanted you to begin with.” Aki curled up beside his best friend.
Candy flicked off the light. “I would have brought him down a few pegs.”
Aki smiled, but he didn’t want to think of the horrible man at all. Those memories just needed to go away. He had enough of his own to battle with each day. He fell asleep hoping to wake up with less nasty memories each day.
The next afternoon Aki was up early and at Artie’s for breakfast—best 24/7 diner in the area—when McNaughton arrived. The man sat down at his table without asking and pushed a pair of slim, jeweled, yellow flat sandals into Aki’s hands. “What’s this for?” Aki asked.
He just shook his head. He threw a stack of cash on the table and motioned to the waitress. “Anything he wants is on me.” He then got up from the table and headed for the door.
“Well that was weird,” Aki said to LuAnn, the waitress.
She pointed at the Vid screen. “He had a rough night. Caught the guy who was killing kids.” The Vidscreen was turned to the news. Something about a man named the “Ice Cream Killer” had been captured. Apparently he used an ice cream truck to lure kids in, kidnapped them, raped them and killed them. Real monster.
A picture popped up of the guy. It was the client from the Gem. Maybe that’s why McNaughton was at the Gem. No matter what he hoped the detective visited him tonight. The new yellow shoes would need a new skirt to match…
Hidden Gem Sales Links:
http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=5376
https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-hiddengem-1633790-145.html
UNICORNS AND RAINBOW POOP EXCERPT:
“So I was thinking since you and I both care about Tommy, we have something in common. See, Tommy is stressed, and I thought we could do something nice for him.”
Dane sat but glared at the man suspiciously. “What sort of nice thing?”
Bas motioned to the bags. “We’re going to make him cookies.”
Dane gulped. “I don’t like food.”
“You won’t be eating it. Tommy will. He canceled a class to come here. Did he tell you? He was taking a theater class at the community college back in Minnesota. Had to withdraw to be here. And with college, you know that means giving up any money paid. Not that money matters much to you guys. Though as young as you all are, I hope you’re well invested.”
Bas shrugged at him and began taking things out of the bags. Flour, eggs, sugar—both white and brown—food coloring, butter, vanilla, and lemons.
“I didn’t know,” Dane said quietly. He’d thought Tommy would be the least affected by his problems. Of course he’d been wrong about that too. Couldn’t he do anything right? “I don’t know anything about cooking.”
“That’s okay. I got this recipe online. It’s pretty easy. We’re making unicorn poop cookies.”
“What?”
“They are sugar cookies with food coloring in them to make them all rainbow-like. Unicorns are good luck and all that. Supposed to be the embodiment of goodness and purity.” Bas picked up his tablet, tapped the screen, and flipped it so Dane could see. The cookies really did look like a big pile of rainbow poop.
“Looks tasty,” Dane grumbled.
“We shall see, right? Think you can measure for me?” He pulled out a couple of cookie sheets and turned on one of the many ovens. “I got permission to use the kitchen here, but we can’t get too rowdy or they’ll kick me out.” He winked at Dane. “I’m pretty sure the orderlies outside are to make sure I’m not burning the place down.”
Dane got up and moved around the counter to stare at the list of ingredients. Bas plugged in a big mixer and took the mixing bowl out of it, bringing it to the counter for them to fill.
“This is really for Tommy?”
“Sure. We can send some to Ru and Adam too if you’d like. I heard they are only an hour or so away.”
“I don’t want Ru to know I’m here,” Dane said immediately. He didn’t need to mess up anyone else’s life.
“No worries. We need tell them nothing other than that they are from you.”
Sales Links:
Unicorns and Rainbow Poop
http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=5625
https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-unicornsandrainbowpoop-1654056-149.html
Interview with Bas from Unicorns:
When I read Unicorns, I absolutely fell in love with Sebastian (I hadn’t yet read On the Right Track and hadn’t met him although he’s just as amazing in that book). From the way he helped Dane (and Tommy to an extent) to the way he was larger than life and totally embrace himself, was truly awe-inspiring. If you haven’t had a chance to read this series yet, you need to!! Here are a few questions I had a chance to ask Bas so we could get to know him better.
-Christina
Q: I absolutely fell in love with you in the scene with Dane making unicorn poop cookies. That was a brilliant idea – is that something you learned through your studies or did you come up with that idea on your own?
Bas: Actually my grandmother did the baking thing. Whenever I was depressed or upset she would take me into the kitchen and try a new recipe. She had a box full of recipe cards but I was never much of a cook. I can follow directions well enough, just not much of a flair for making anything new. But I found that when I focused on the baking I got distracted from all the madness in my head. It helps for a while at least.
Q: The My Little Pony episodes on the tablet for Dane were brilliant…and really started to expose how childlike he is, I’m guessing due to the childhood abuse. You seem to be able to deal with his innocence really well. Is that from experience with someone else with similar issues, your training or just love?
Bas: My therapist started me on MLP after my first suicide attempt. My gran loved the show a lot. Said she could recall watching it when my folks were kids but it wasn’t at all the same. I wanted to show Dane something that would get his mind off the physical image the world throws at us and on something he probably never experienced—a childhood. His homophobia came across almost forced. The sort of thing you see in little kids who’re standing beside their hateful parents holding picketing signs. It was taught hate, and I figured the only cure for that is love, right?
Q: I love the idea of turning your grandmother’s home into a house for wayward kids. I hope you get to follow through with that dream…can you talk a little about that? How do you think Dane can help with that?
Bas: I think it’s a project that will take years to become a reality. I will still invite those I find who need help to stay in the house—and Dane will cook for them to get them healthy, but it’s a long road of legal red-tape, and training I just don’t have yet. It’s intimidating, but I like the idea of giving others what my grandmother gave me.
Q: What’s your favorite thing about Dane? What about your biggest pet peeve?
His childlike innocence. Sometimes he just stuns me with the way he sees something. I could be down and just want to bang my head against the wall and he’ll say something totally off the wall like we should go to the park and just swing for a while, and it’s like oh yeah, life can be that simple. That’s his best quality. My biggest pet peeve—he’s working on it. His self perception. He can look in a mirror now but I’m not always sure he sees what’s really there. And there is still a no scale in the house policy. His illness is like mine, it’s not just going to fade in time. It will always be there lingering on the sidelines waiting for a weak moment to pounce, but now that we have each other hopefully we can jump in to save the day. Dane says we need to get sparkly unicorn shirts to change into whenever we think the other is having a bad day.
Q: What was your favorite part of prom?
Dancing with the guy I’m crazy about! Oh and watching Adam dance with Ru. That was a hoot. For a slick runner-guy, Adam can’t dance. Ru practically drags him across the floor. Adam is a bad gay. No lisp, no sense of style, and no swagger. He’s too boy-next door to be real, but I love him. Dane, however, can spin my sparkly ass all over the dance floor like a pro.
Christina’s 5 Star Review of Unicorns:
Unicorns and Rainbow Poop by Sam Kadence
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Disclaimer: I have not yet read book 1 in this series (but I will be going back to read it).
WOW! I have to be honest that I wasn’t sure if I would like this book based on the title…but this is an absolute must read!! When you read the story, the title will make perfect sense and bring a smile to your face.
Let me get the basics out of the way first – the writing in this book is really good. I am a nazi when it comes to grammatical and spelling errors and I found none in this book. I have never had a personal experience with eating disorders so I cannot speak to any of the technicalities about it. My review is based solely on entertainment value of the book.
This story touched me on several different levels…as a mom, as a friend of gay couples that has suffered bullying for their sexual orientation and as a human being that believes all people should be treated equally.
Dane suffered at hands of his parents for most of his life, being subjected to physical, sexual, verbal and emotional abuse. Even though he has lived through all this abuse and had to grow up pretty quickly because of his fame, he has an innocence and childlike essence that just makes you want to hug him. He has no filter and says whatever comes to his mind regardless of the consequences. Thankfully he has surrounded himself with friends that can support and care for him and who can help him learn how to be comfortable in social situations. I personally love his lack of filter as I lack one myself. Regrettably, those around him are easily hurt and don’t always understand his comments as ignorance instead of malice. I don’t want to give too much away but I absolutely love the way Bas, Adam and Ru help him heal from not only his eating disorder but the effects of 12 years of abuse. These guys are truly great friends to him.
Bas is just as broken as Dane. His only advocate has been his grandmother whom he just lost. His family is absolutely horrible. He has been bullied and abused. He hides behind his snarky comments and flamboyant behavior. Fortunately for him, Dane sees through that protective layer to the man Bas really is and loves him for it. The 2 of them balance each other and make a great pair – even if they were to remain just friends, forever. I’m hopeful Bas and Dane are able to follow through with the life plans that Bas has as I think that would be an inspiration for all the troubled teens they come in contact with.
Adam and Ru obviously have a history that is told in book 1 but it is not necessary to read that book before reading this book. As I stated, after falling in love with this book I will be going back to book 1 because I do think that information would help understand some of their quirks in this book.
Tommy is one of Ru and Dane’s ex-band members and plays a pretty big role in this book. He is a good friend to all these guys and wants to help all of them. Unfortunately, he is just as lost as Dane and Bas are but his unraveling takes place over the entire story and leaves us not so patiently waiting for book 3 for his story.
Another 2 characters that I’m hoping we’ll see more of are Paige and Marissa. I can’t say too much about either of them without giving too much away but they both play integral parts of the story that I would like to see more of in future books.
This book is very touching and will stay with you for a long time. It is definitely one you must read.
EXCERPT FOR ON THE RIGHT TRACK
RU’S phone pinged with a new message from Tommy.
Looks like another one, sorry.
The text was attached to a photo of the cover of a magazine featuring Ru kissing his ex-boyfriend Kris and then a smaller picture of Kris kissing another guy. Headline for that one was Vocal Growth Star Jilted! Six months and still front page news.
He sighed. Even leaving California hadn’t helped. Here he was in the cold autumn of Minnesota, alone, but still stalked by the conservative media who thought anyone under eighteen didn’t deserve to recognize their sexuality. Sure he was gay. He’d known for years. Had even made the mistake of telling his father when he was eleven. Why did that make him a bad guy?
As part of a boy band that had traveled the world a few times and won a hefty number of awards, he was required to maintain a wholesome image. At least that’s what his former recording studio had told him. And wholesome didn’t mean kissing another guy, even when he and Kris had been exclusive for almost two years. So, while it was okay for other celebrities to come out and show pride, anyone under the magical age of eighteen was ridiculed, cast out, and treated as a pariah of the community.
Do you need me to come stay with you? Tommy texted again. He was a former bandmate but still a good friend. Tommy hadn’t cared when Ru told him he was gay. He did offer to kick the crap out of Kris after the guy had set them up to be photographed together, outing Ru to the whole world, only to then cheat on him. Would Ru’s heart ever stop breaking at the memory?
Ru texted back He never really loved me, did he?
On the right Track (audio)
Amazon.com: On the Right Track (Audible Audio Edition): Sam Kadence, Michael Stellman: Books
http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=5741
On the Right Track (Book)
http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=4094
https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-ontherighttrack-1268471-149.html
On the Right Track by Sam Kadence
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
so i read this series out of order. i read this book after unicorns and rainbow poop. i loved that book so much i HAD to go back and read this one and i’m SO glad i did. i think sam kadence may be one of my new favorite authors. sam’s writing and story telling ability just works for me…a lot.
it’s hard to go back and write a review about this book having read the 2nd book already but here goes. (if i post something in this review that gives anything away about book 2 i’m sorry!)
so this book has world famous pop sensation ru meeting boy-next-door adam. their attraction is instantaneous and their chemistry is palpable. of course, because adam has a fairly strict family he doesn’t have internet access and doesn’t recognize ru so their relationship starts off normally. adam is just fully coming to terms with his sexuality and doesn’t have any experience at all. he’s seen the brutality of his fellow students against out and proud sebastian so he isn’t in a hurry to reveal his true self. as he gets closer to both ru and sebastian, he becomes more confident and isn’t satisfied just to coast any longer. even though he is young and naive about some things, he appears to have an old soul and maturity in ways that balances ru.
ru really only wants to be free to be a musician. it’s all about the music for him. he lost a bit of himself being in the boy band and becoming what his manager and other band members made him out to be. now that he’s on his own and doing things his way he’s free to be himself. when he meets adam, he realizes there is more to life than just music and when he looks around him he truly feels alone even with tommy. he is kind and patient and is looking for a lifetime with adam.
tommy is just as great in this book as he is in the 2nd book. i’d almost say he’s one of the main characters of this book because his role is so pivotal to the story. he’s strong and really just gives it straight to ru so he doesn’t lose his head. he’s truly a great friend to ru when he has no one else.
while bas has a smaller role in the book his may be the most important. he helps adam take a look in the mirror and stop just coasting through life. while he is struggling with his own issues and demons, he really helps adam through his tribulations.
adams parents are truly amazing and i wish all parents of gay kids could be that supportive and smart about raising their kids. while they are overprotective about some things, they are really open about adam coming out and having his first boyfriend.
there are several scenes in the book that are heartbreaking…this is a very emotional story, as is book 2 but they are just so amazing. since i’ve already read book 2 twice i don’t need to re-read now that i’ve read this one but i’m anxiously awaiting the next book in the series and can’t wait to see all these characters again.
Tour Dates/Tour Stops:
2-Dec
4-Dec
9-Dec
11-Dec
Scattered Thoughts & Rogue Words
16-Dec
16-Dec
Wicked Faerie’s Tales and Reviews
18-Dec
23-Dec
25-Dec
25-Dec
Rafflecopter Prize: Print copies of Hidden Gem, Unicorns and rainbow Poop, and audio book codes for On the Right Track. (two of each)