A Mary's Boys Novella
Ariel Merman is a new drag queen who’s already finding a family at Hamburger Mary’s. After a performance as Ariel, Zachary Cooper walks home in his makeup and is assaulted by homophobes. Zachary’s worry that the attack has thrown a wrench in his good fortune is eased when he looks into the eyes of his doctor.
Dr. Teegan Chau is a little lost after divorcing his wife and coming out of the closet, but he can’t deny the pull he feels toward the young man he patches up. Luckily, Zachary takes the initiative and asks Teegan out. But attraction is the easy part of their blossoming relationship—as they deal with an ex-wife and child, being a drag queen in a heteronormative culture, Zachary’s lingering trauma from his attack, and Teegan acclimating to life as part of an out-and-proud gay couple.
The challenges seem daunting at the start of a romance. Can Zachary and Teegan make it through the rough patches and take a chance on the love that’s been missing from both their lives?
Buy links: Dreamspinner | Amazon US | Amazon UK
Cat gives this one 5 Meows with a 3 Purr heat index...
Mascara and Bandages is book three in the Mary's Boys series but it can be read as a stand alone. You won't know a few characters at first but you catch on.
This story deals with a hard topic of gay bashing and is a little angsty at first. My heart went out to Zachary and I just wanted to protect him though he is stronger on the inside than he appears. I loved this character development.
I loved that Teegan too was dealing with his identity in an intirely different way.?The two men just seem to belong together. The story is sweet with some violence some heat and a lovely romance. It's my favorite in this series so far , each gets better and better.
If you like drag queens, doctors, cute kids, overcoming trials and tribulations and some hot man-sex you will love this.
Excerpt...
A LOUD cheering shout outside the door made Zachary flinch, causing the corner of the false eyelash to poke his eye instead of adhering to his eyelid. With a hiss, he pulled the lash away and slammed his eye shut.
Dammit, he hated false eyelashes. Nearly everything else about drag had become second nature. Blending the foundation and rouge. Gluing down and covering up his natural eyebrows, then drawing on new ones. Contouring to round out the already less-than-rugged jawline. Even the waxing, plucking, and tweezing didn’t cause more than a wince every now and then. But the damned false eyelashes. Things weren’t supposed to get that close to a person’s eyes. The liner was bad enough, but stiff lashes jabbed and left behind a glue residue that stung the rest of the night, no matter what he did. He couldn’t even wear contacts, which was why his father had paid for corrective eye surgery for him more than ten years ago with money they didn’t have. Or maybe that was more due to his mom dying a few months before and his father needing to feel like he could fix something.
Leaning toward the mirror, Zachary forced his eyes open. Sure enough, his right eye was already watering and bloodshot, which made the light green of his iris stand out like a beacon. If ManDonna was here, she’d tilt his head back and tend to his eye without smudging a speck of makeup. Not him; he’d have to redo the entire eye, and he still wouldn’t get it all cleaned out well enough.
There was a soft knock at the door, and it opened without a pause. Cody leaned in, swiping a lock of dark hair from his eyes. “Hey, Vahin sent me over with your nightly birthday cake shot.” He stepped all the way in, paused, then shut the door, concern growing in his voice. “Are you okay? You’re crying.”
Zachary reached for the drink. “No, I’m not. I just jabbed myself with a stupid eyelash.” After taking the shot glass from Cody, Zachary downed it in a gulp, not even savoring the sticky sweetness like he normally did. He wasn’t a big drinker, but ManDonna insisted they start each night off with a shot. She preferred Jäger or whiskey, both of which made Zachary want to throw up. By the fourth time, Vahin had come to the rescue and sent the birthday cake shot, which tasted like icing. It was heaven. He handed the glass back to Cody. “I might need a second of these tonight.”
“Oh. Okay. I’ll go get one.” Cody started to turn, angling his shoulder to avoid hitting the dresses hanging in the narrow workspace, but Zachary reached out and grabbed his arm.
“Actually, would you help me, please?” Zachary motioned to the vanity. “There’s a bottle of Visine in my makeup bag, the purple one. Would you do it for me? ManDonna normally does it. I can’t make myself put drops in.” He grimaced as some of the glue snagged his lashes again. “One second, let me try to clean this a little better first. And while I do that, would you please get another shot from Vahin? I thought I was kidding, but a second one is definitely called for.” He waved a hand at Cody while still looking in the mirror. “Oh, and would you let them know I’m going to be about fifteen minutes late but to put on some Demi, Gaga, or Britney. Something. ManDonna can go out there and work the crowd without any transition from sports to drag, but I can’t.”
Brandon Witt resides in Denver, Colorado. When not snuggled on the couch with his two Corgis, Dunkyn and Dolan, he is more than likely in front of his computer, nose inches from the screen, fingers pounding they keys. When he manages to tear himself away from his writing addiction, he passionately take on the role of a special education teacher during the daylight hours. I grew up in El Dorado Springs, Missouri for the first 18 years of my life. The day of my 18th birthday my mom, dad, brother, and I loaded up the cars and moved to Estes Park, Colorado. I now live in Denver with my two perfect corgis, Dunkyn and Dolan. Growing up in an ultraconservative, Christian environment, then moving on to get my bachelors in Youth Ministry, I struggled with being gay for most of my life. This included five years in reparative therapy (ex-gay therapy), meeting one to three times a week. At the age of twenty-six, I finally accepted who God make me to be and never looked back, and have never been happier. Each struggle, whether it be church, fearing damnation, heart shattering break-ups, and losing family to cancer and accidents, seems to make it’s way into everything I write, as well as a core of loving being alive. Life is hard, but man, is it ever wonderful! I’ve worked with children (ages 8-18) with emotional disabilities since 2000, first as a counselor in a residential treatment facility, and now as a special education teacher. During my sophomore year in high school, Ms. Hungerford introduced me to creative writing, and since that day, I’ve dreamed of being an author. Having Elizabeth North offering a publishing contract was one of the most life-changing days of my existence. I now dream of being a writer full-time. My boyfriend, Stephen, is hoping for that as well, as he wants to tag alone on a world tour. Big dreams. Big dreams. Though my writing seems polarizing to many readers, both positive and negative, regardless of which of my books you choose, I pray that in its pages you find both the struggle and immense joy of life. I am humbled and honored by each person that reads my books. Thank you so much for making my dreams come true!
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I like the review. Makes me wants to read it.
ReplyDeletedebby236 at gmail dot com
Thanks for the review & excerpt!
ReplyDeletelegacylandlisa(at)gmail(dot)com
enjoyed the blog today..congrats
ReplyDeletejmarinich33 at aol dot com