1. I find this apt.



2. On another note, I got my tree and put it up yesterday, and you guys, I am almost comically pleased with myself. First I had to put together the tree stand, according to the vague-tastic instructions on the side of the box. (It was the cheapest stand Target had; no doubt having the instructions printed on an actual piece of paper would have raised the price by two dollars.) Then I had to get the tree, haul all six feet of it by myself up the stairs to my apartment, and then figure out how in hell to get the stand on it. Which, again, not easy, and involving much hacking at lower branches with a butcher knife, because I hadn't realized a saw was something I needed in my life.

But it is up! And bedizened with lights and glass balls, and it makes me happy just to look at it. I would totally be posting a pic if I had a working digital camera.

It's a Fraser fir, by the way. According to Ellen from Slings & Arrows, they're the best. And yes, I am enough of a dork that this was actually a factor.

3. Many thanks to meresy for my other lovely snowflake.

4. Remember to give me your address if you want a Christmas card!

The second appointment in the Horsfall series, about two twin horse shapeshifters and their human lover, is less “light” then how it could seem.

Apparently Oliver is having the time of his life having a relationship with two men like Bayard and Marshall; before meeting them, Oliver was quite the nerd guy, the one that no one looks twice. And so having two handsome and strong lovers at the same time it’s at the same time inebriating but also unbalancing: why they are so attracted to him, what they find in him that makes them so caring and affectionate? Those are the questions that continuously wander in Oliver’s mind, and plus there is also the little problem of the strange nature of their relationship… no, not the paranormal nature of his lovers, that is still a secret for the outside world, but the fact that Oliver is having a ménages with two men, and as a cherry on the top, the men are twin brothers. That is not exactly something he can share with the world, above all since Oliver is an independent professional consultant who relies on the trust his clients have on him.

If Oliver’s troubling thoughts were not enough, also Bayard and Marshall are questioning the relationship; there is not space in their mind for the idea that it will not work, but both of them have different troubles about it. Marshall was the twin Oliver chose as second, in the first book, it was Bayard who made the first move on the man, and Oliver only in a second time arrived to consider the possibility to have a relationship with both of them. And so I have the feeling that Marshall is a bit unsecure, he always fears that Oliver in the end will choose Bayard, and this lead Marshall to be quite “insistent” in his affection towards Oliver, but at the same time also a bit oppressive, always searching for reassurance. Bayard on the other hand gave me the feeling that he is taking back, like he is forcing himself to give space to his “little” brother. He is way more the stronger of all of them, and I think than in the long, that attitude will lead him to be frustrated and eager to claim his right on Oliver.

So yes, for a less than 50 pages novella, Taste Test has quite a lot on the fire.

http://www.changelingpress.com/product.php?&upt=book&ubid=1204

Series: Horsfall
1) Tail of Two Brothers: http://elisa-rolle.livejournal.com/760355.html
2) Taste Test

The Rainbow Awards: Third (and last!) Phase: http://elisa-rolle.livejournal.com/850354.html

The collaboration of the four authors who write under the pen-name of Timothy James Beck built a strange “New York” series: all the spectrum of gay experiences and this time was the time of the young adult, self-discovery journey of a young gay man dealing with the traumatic experience of the after 9/11.

At the beginning of the novel, the reader, or at least me, has the impression that Nick is older than he really is. He has a job, he is no more a student, he lives alone, better he shares a two rooms apartment with other three roommates, and he seems to have a whole lot of experience behind his shoulders… but little by little we discover another reality, Nick is only 19 years old, a drop out from college, and he has just left the safe shelter of his uncle Blaine’s posh apartment in lower Manhattan (Blaine and Daniel are the main characters of other two novels by Timothy James Beck, and supporting characters of all the others too). Nick’s story is not displayed up front for the reader, but we rebuild it piece by piece during the length of the book.

When he was only 16 years old, Nick decided to leave his homeland little country town to go live in the Big City with wealth and gay Uncle Blaine. From Nick’s perspective, it was the only choice he had to escape a life of harassment, it’s was not a dream comes true, but more a punishment… for the reader’s perspective, and also for Nick’s relatives in Eau Claire, it was like winning a lottery, Nick was going to live an artsy life in one of the most challenging cities in the world. It can be sound strange, knowing how big New York City is, but Nick was searching for a safe shelter, for a place where to hide in security, a place where him being gay, and an artist, was not an oddity that made him being pointed out in the street. New York City gave him the anonymity he desired, but also a new family to look after him, Blaine and his lover Daniel as step-fathers, and Gwendy and Gretchen (his mother’s cousins) as step-mothers. Nick had to renounce to his real family, but he was happy all the same.

9/11 destroyed his security and his new-found make-up family. Two years later the New York City which was his safe shelter is now a place full of scaring things, Nick is scared by the subway, by the skyscrapers, but the fact that everyone around him was in someway affected by that tragic event. And Nick has only a solution for that: running away another time, leaving behind all the people who love him, searching another safe shelter in the anonymity.

Maybe since the previous novels I read by these authors were basically romances, I was expecting also for this one to be, and I was probably expecting that Nick’s solution to his troubles would have been to find love. And instead this is a classical self-discovery journey, and the solution is not to find the courage inside someone else, but inside you. And so yes, Nick has relationships, and some of them are also quite nice, made me wonder if it wouldn’t have been nice for them to developed in something more, but in the end, they were not the turning point of the story. Before being able to really fall in love, Nick has to learn that running away it’s not the way to resolve your trouble.

Amazon: When You Don't See Me

Amazon Kindle: When You Don't See Me

Series:
1) It Had to Be You: http://elisa-rolle.livejournal.com/744800.html
2) He's the One: http://elisa-rolle.livejournal.com/628689.html
3) I'm Your Man
4) Someone Like You
5) When You Don't See Me

The Rainbow Awards: Third (and last!) Phase: http://elisa-rolle.livejournal.com/850354.html


Cover Art by Kristine Mills-Noble

"My work and photography can be summed up in a single word, ESCAPE.

Whether it is through black and white photographs of gardens, flowers, architecture, or through an enduring passion for male nudes, or even through reworking colour photos on the computer, I am looking for Evasion.



( more pics )

In my photography I am escaping, and everybody who sees my photos can also dream and escape.

Photography allows me the time, to look, to admire, to sublimate and communicate my passion and sometimes my fantasies." Daniel Nassoy

Début: Computer training
1992/1993: Evening classes in photography EFET, Paris
1997: Training P.A.O. at CFD, Paris
1998: Multimedia training at IESA, Paris
2001: Registering as graphic designer and photographer of art at the Maison des Artistes

http://www.danielnassoy.com/

Saw this recipe, and it reminded me of l_prieto 's Cooking With Ergo. Haven't read it yet? Well, what the frick are you waiting for??! Read this one too while you're at it.

Jose Cuervo Christmas Cookies

Ingredients:
1 cup of water
1 tsp baking soda
1 cup of sugar
1 tsp salt
1 cup or brown sugar
4 large eggs
1 cup nuts
2 cups of dried fruit
1 bottle Jose Cuervo Tequila

Directions:
1) Sample the Cuervo to check quality. Take a large bowl, check the Cuervo again, to be sure it is of the highest quality, pour one level cup and drink.

2) Turn on the electric mixer. Beat one cup of butter in a large fluffy bowl. Add one peastoon of sugar. Beat again. At this point it's best to make sure the Cuervo is still ok, try another cup just in case.

3) Turn off the mixerer thingy.

7) Break 2 leggs and add to the bowl and chuck in the cup of dried fruit.

12) Pick the frigging fruit off the floor.

4) Mix on the turner. If the fried druit gets stuck in the beaters just pry it loose with a drewscriver.

1) Sample the Cuervo to check for tonsisticity.

1) Next, sift two cups of salt, or something. Who geeves a sheet. Check the Jose Cuervo. Now shift the lemon juice and strain your nuts.

1) Add one table.

5) Add a spoon of sugar, or somefink. Whatever you can find.

9) Greash the oven.

14) Turn the cake tin 360 degrees and try not to fall over.

7) Don't forget to beat off the turner.

4) Finally, throw the bowl through the window, finish the Cose Juervo and make sure to put the stove in the wishdasher.

Cherry Mistmas !

I was wrong: the edits are taking me a little longer than I thought. I'm writing a couple new scenes for the story. The first one is done and I'm almost done with the second. Three more pages and it'll be done (and the word count will go up by 5k :).

As I write, I invite you all to enjoy a nice quiz.

You Are Eggnog

Your holiday personality is indulgent. The holidays are when you enjoy your favorite treats without abandon. And while you're a bit greedy for your favorite goodies, you aren't selfish. You're the type who makes a whole bunch of holiday treats and gives them to everyone you know.

Mmm.

When the edits are out the door, I'm going to celebrate and make Alton Brown's egg nog :)

Different Suits was a bit of a surprise since I didn’t expect the evolution of Angelo’s character. From what we learned about him in the previous books, Angelo gave me the impression of a very strong and independent man, other than a successful businessman. Now in his book it’s not that he comes out as weak, but he definitely plays the role of the submissive in the relationship with Moody, the big stud of police detective who helps him with his problems with a fanatic homophobic reverend. Little by little all those hints we had of Angelo as strong man, are instead read in a different way, they become little oddities that Angelo uses to prove to himself that he is for real out of his poor childhood: he is obsessed with expensive dresses, beautiful cars, with an impeccable house, but it’s not the behaviour of a control freak, but the natural evolution of a scared little boy who now clings to material things to search for security.

On the other side there is Moody, a latino police detective that, despite being able to come out from a childhood quite similar to Angelo taking the good path, has not cancelled that past. It’s strange since Moody and Angelo are both from a breed notorious to be “bloody” feeling, but Angelo suppressed that side of his character. Instead Moody (and his nickname is a proof of it) is still driven by his gut more than by his mind. I have a feeling that, the first time he saw Angelo, he thought to have found someone like him, and he was almost expecting to be able to deal with him on the same level; and instead Moody was surprise to crash against the cool exterior of Angelo, and now he is bent upon the task to find a way to go behind that chilling shield.

The relationship between Moody and Angelo is very much physical, the romance comes after the sex, but it’s probably in line with both men’s characters: they are not innocent or naïve, and in this case, the hot bothered nature of their genes matches perfectly in bed. And in bed is also where Angelo loses all his insecurities and becomes to one in lead; now don’t get me wrong, Angelo is almost always a bottom, but he is for sure the one who is more at ease with his body and his desires.

Different Suits is probably in contest to be one of the nicer book in the Poker Night series.

http://www.total-e-bound.com/product.asp?strParents=&CAT_ID=&P_ID=599

Serie: Poker Night
1-2) Poker Night Vol 1: http://elisa-rolle.livejournal.com/627020.html
3) Poker Pair: http://elisa-rolle.livejournal.com/779960.html
4) Different Suits

The Rainbow Awards: Third (and last!) Phase: http://elisa-rolle.livejournal.com/850354.html


Cover Art by April Martinez

The Book: Bourbon Street Blues introduces Dick Dansoir, personal trainer and occasional go-go dancer at the boys' bars in the Big Easy. He is irresistible, especially for a guy whose real name is Milton "Scotty" Bradley. Of course, he keeps in shape, which helps as the book's wrong-man-in-the-wrong-place-at-the-wrong-time plot unfolds. A friend and client turns up shot, execution style, in front of his place. Add a mysterious computer disk found in his dancing boot, an attempted mugging, an eerily attractive stranger who claims to be FBI, and his home being trashed by a Molotov cocktail--and a gorgeous go-go boy just must get help. He turns to his attorney brother, Storm (his sister is Rain), for advice, then risks everything by assisting the Feds in preventing the destruction of New Orleans, a horror Scotty has foreseen in visions (forgot to tell you: he is "gifted" with sporadic psychic powers, too). Dashing Dick saves the day, natch, and who could ask for anything more? Thoroughly engaging in every way.

Amazon: Bourbon Street Blues

( Other Books in the List )

The Author: "I am the author of six mystery novels set in New Orleans: BOURBON STREET BLUES, JACKSON SQUARE JAZZ, MURDER IN THE RUE DAUPHINE, MURDER IN THE RUE ST. ANN , MARDI GRAS MAMBO and MURDER IN THE RUE CHARTRES, which was released in November 2007. I also work as senior editor for The Harrington Park Press, and have edited, to date, five anthologies currently in print. I also have a short story in the forthcoming NEW ORLEANS NOIR called "Annunciation Shotgun."" Greg Herren

Top 100 Gay Novels List (*)

External Link to the Top 100 Gay Novels List (simple - without photos)

External Link to the Top 100 Gay Novels List (wanted - with photos)

*only one title per author, only print books released after January 1, 2000.

Note: I remember to my friends that guest reviews of the above listed books (the top 100 Gay Novels) are welcome, just send them to me and I will post with full credits to the reviewer.

Other titles not in the top 100 list:

http://www.librarything.com/catalog/top50MM

The story is about young men almost out of college, so I think, 20-21 years old, maybe more, but truth be told, the feeling is more of a story of younger men, they are so innocent and scared of the big bad world outside, or at least one of them is.

Perry, Zac and Bryce were roommates and best-friends. With other two students from the same Swim College Team, they rented an house for their sophomore year and everything seemed perfect till the day Zac and Perry made coming out during an interview for the College newspaper. From that moment on Bryce changed, and Perry and Zac did common front against him. But now Perry is out of college and Bryce and Zac are again alone, and maybe Zac is missing his best friend. So he finds the courage to face Bryce and asks him reasons on his past behaviour, but instead of the angry and homophobic man, he finds a scared child. Bryce is scared since he would have liked to be with Perry and Zac on that journal, he would have liked to have the courage to face his family, his father and brothers, and tell them that he is gay. Since Bryce was only a teenager, his relatives always threatened him of cutting him off the family if he ended to be gay. In the novel it’s not said, but probably Bryce was giving out some signs of his tendencies, since I can’t believe a family can say something like that out of the blue; and if it was like that, it served them right that in the end Bryce is really gay.

Actually, for how I read him, Bryce is more bisexual than gay, he has no problem to be with girls, but he has fallen in love with a guy, Zac. His reaction to Perry and Zac’s coming out, was not only due to the fear to be “forced” to do the same, sooner or later, but also from the realization that Perry and Zac had something in common that they were hiding from him, there was a bond between Perry and Zac that was deeper than any other bonds he could have with Zac. I think that, in a way, Bryce was jealous, and also scared to remain alone in the closet, that suddenly seemed darker than before.

When I said that the story is more about boys than men, it’s since I feel that Bryce is not yet fully developed as man. He has still a lot of trouble in seeing himself as an independent man, and he is still too bonded to his father’s recognition. He is still in that phase when pleasing your parents it’s your main purpose in life, he is still more a child, a son, than a man, a lover. Zac is maybe a little more grown up, but all in all, he is not much “older” than Bryce. In the end they are lucky that they are not living in a situation that could be really troubling for both of them, they are not really putting in danger all their lives, they will have maybe to finally fully front face their parents, but they have alternatives, they can take the risk.

The story, in the end, is more sweet than angst, and it’s more about the development of the sexual relationship between Zac and Bryce, than their emotional development; at the end of the story, Bryce has maybe gathered a bit of courage, but he is far from being emotionally independent. And Zac is still in that stage when he wants to please Bryce, he wants to make things easy for him, even if it means to put aside his own desires; this is not a situation that can last forever, sooner or later Zac will have to take his life in hand, and make clear his needs, both in life than in bed. For now, both of them are still wrapped up in the pink bubble of romance: there are a lot of “I love you”s, “I want you”s and being together is important like breathing… a proof more that, all in all, Zac and Bryce are young and in love, maybe for the first time.

http://www.torquerebooks.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=2238

Amazon: Becoming Us

The Rainbow Awards: Third (and last!) Phase: http://elisa-rolle.livejournal.com/850354.html

I've got Martha Tilton singing the soundtrack to my morning. And it is a beautiful morning. The sun is shining -- which is astonishing after yesterday's downpour. The hills around us are dusted in white, but it's already melting.

The Dark Tide is finished and off to the editors. I figured you'd want to know. If the ebook makes the December 22nd release date (and it does look pretty good) it will be largely to the efforts of the folks at Loose Id -- and I'd like to thank them in advance for all they're doing to try to make this happen. They're having to stretch for this one, and I appreciate it -- I know you do too.

So how do I feel having finished the final book in a series I've been writing for over a decade? Tired, mostly. Very tired. It was exhilarating and bittersweet writing this final chapter. I'm not ready to put away the notebook of all the Adrien "stuff" I've been collecting through the years. Still too soon for that.

I think it's good -- too soon to tell. I won't let myself look at it again until the copyedits arrive, and then I'll give it a final hard polish. I usually can't tell until I have that little break and then come back to it with fresh eyes. I can tell you that this is the story it had to be. This is what was planned from the start. Granted, I didn't think we needed this final book in the arc, but maybe we did. You readers will be the best judge of that. I wanted to write it, so that's probably a good sign. I enjoyed writing it, watching it all play out, so maybe that was a little self-indulgent.

Time will tell.

Anyway, thank you very much all of you who have sent virtual gifts over the past few days. I'm not sure what the etiquette is on this? But thank you!

So I'm going to take a bit of break for a few days. I have guest blog posts coming out a few places -- Speak its Name on this Thursday, Novelspot next week (I believe I'll post on writing a successful series), and a spot at Bookwenches on Friday the 18th. Drop by if you have time and inclination.

Meanwhile I am resting the brain and the wrists -- and doing a couple of manuscript evaluations that I've been looking forward to (yes, I do enjoy these, oddly enough).

Talk to you soonish!

Morgan graduated from the Cleveland Art Institute in June of 1942. During World War II, he served in General "Hap" Arnold's Air Room in Washington D.C. He was then assigned to the Office of Flying Safety where he illustrated flying manuals and safety posters.

After the war, Morgan moved to Chicago where he worked with well-known illustrators, including Hadden Sundblum and Harry Anderson. During that time he painted many commercial pieces for companies such as Coca Cola and City Service, etc.



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In 1951, wanting to be near the magazine and publishing industry, he, his wife Kay Haefele Kane, (his art school sweetheart), and their son and daughter moved to Connecticut. There he illustrated stories for the following publications: Saturday Evening Post, Ladies Home Journal, American Magazine, Esquire Cosmopolitan, Good Housekeeping, McCall’s Magazine, American Weekly, Sports Afield

He also illustrated for Fleetway Publishing and Odham’s Press in London. Morgan's work has been included in the "Saturday Evening Post", "Ladies Home Journal" and "McCall’s" traveling exhibits. Second reproduction rights to his illustrations have been sold worldwide.

In 1963 Morgan opened a photo studio, and for the next eleven years created many photo advertisements and hundreds of book covers. Among his credits was the well publicized movie poster for the James Bond film "For Your Eyes Only".

Returning to illustration, he painted covers for hundreds of book covers and many movie posters for Paramount Pictures, Disney Productions, United Artists, Universal Studios, Warner Brothers, and Orion Pictures. Morgan has been included in all three of Walt Reed's books entitled "The Illustrator in America."

Easily bored with painting similar subjects and using similar styles, he believes that, "It's like eating the same meal at the same restaurant every day."

As a hobby, Morgan studied hypnosis and became president of the New York chapter of the National Federation of Hypnotists. For many years he has also enjoyed practicing prestidigitation. After losing his wife to cancer, he found a great escape in figure skating. Morgan continues to paint a variety of subjects in a variety of styles, ranging from contemporary to traditional to nudes.

http://www.morgankaneart.com/

Holy shit... 801 Media licensed Under Ground Grand Hotel. Only took everyone 4 years!!! Guess it was such a controversial title that none of the publishers wanted to touch it, despite droves of fans requesting it every year.

Sadahiro Mika has always been one of my favorite artists. Ever since Pathos, I can't get enough of her works. June 2010 can't come fast enough.

In 1814, after the Battle of Badajoz, Ian has one reason more to not consider himself a proper man, he lost a limb in battle and not he is not even up to the task he was destined to as second son of an Earl, to be an army officer. He is now living wandering from one relative to another, trying to choose the one who pities him less. He is probably searching to disappear from the world, and so he is not so happy when his brother, the Earl, asks him to be the chaperon to their sister to the annual Twelve Night fete at Carleigh Castle: the heir to the Marques, Nicholas, was not only Ian’s best friend at school, he was also his first love. Like so many lovers before them, when they were young and careless, they swore to be everything for each other for forever and ever, but then the war changed it all.

There is a right characterization in both men: Ian is the typical second son, the one to whom everyone, from his father to his tutors, always instilled the concept of honour. His family was not enough wealthy to provide for him, and so Ian had to find his way in the world alone; he was supposed to be an officer, he was supposed to be independent. Not yet out of school, and in love with another man, Ian was forced to enlist and leave everything he knew. He did that to honour what everyone expected from him, and even if he didn’t leave Nicky with a promise to come back, inside his heart he was bound to be an honoured man even with him: Nicky was his first man, and Ian was determined to maintain him the only one also. In every aspect of his life, with his family and with his lover, Ian was and still is a perfect romance hero. And as a perfect romance hero, when he comes back home with an heavy handicap, he can’t consider to “impose” himself upon his lover, that, on the other hand, being a first son and heir, has to marry and fathered one heir or two at least. Probably in Ian’s mind, if Nicky marries a woman, it’s not almost a betrayal; it’s another way to be an honoured man, something Ian can perfectly comprehend. So, in his “innocence”, Ian doesn’t consider Nicky totally lost, in a way he is still faithful to the memory of their past love.

It’s so with despair that Ian discovers that, not only Nicky was not faithful to them when Ian came back home as a less than full man, he wasn’t neither faithful to them when Ian was in battle. Nicky tells to himself that it was the need of companionship, maybe even the fear for what could happen to his lover, but in a way or another, Nicky didn’t respect the unsaid pact of being faithful to Ian. And, again, I think this is quite right with his character: Nicky is the first son, the heir; he has no need to be an honoured man; he will have everything thanks to his birth right. Oh yes, while Ian was away, he conspired with Ian’s sister, Charlotte, to have news on Ian himself, but this is the only hint I have that Nicky was as involved in their relationship as Ian was and still is. Now that Ian is back home, Nicky is bent upon the task to convince the man that they can be still together, that there are way for them to be couple, even if not in front of the society, at least in the intimacy of their bedroom. The solution is simple, and probably one that many before them took. But still, even if Nicky is now behaving as a man in love, I would not say that he is a perfect romance hero like Ian, I think he is a bit selfish and for sure a spoiled brat.

The setting is quite nice, the story turns mainly around Ian and Nicky, but there are some interesting supporting characters, and I liked very much as the author described the different connections inside both families, of Ian and Nicky; there are all the different possible relationships of the time, the widowed and ruined cousin, the married but without child sister who plays the role of mistress of the house ad interim, the old father, the distant brother… it’s like an handbook of a noble English family of the nineteen century.

http://samhainpublishing.com/romance/an-improper-holiday

Amazon Kindle: An Improper Holiday

The Rainbow Awards: Third (and last!) Phase: http://elisa-rolle.livejournal.com/850354.html


Cover Art by Amanda Kelsey

Oh, me.

Why must I combine the loving, innocent values of a time-honored holiday tradition with, as one of my ESL students once said, "the intercourses"?

I don't know, but I sure as hell enjoy doing it. I get concerned looks from the dogs when I maniacally giggle as I tear my characters asunder and then fling them back together so they may "proceed with caution." The cheerful clacking of my computer keys accompanies a the low mumble of me talking to myself like a madwoman, cackling demented as I dangerously combine blintzes with blizzards and jerky ex-boyfriends with icy staircases and - worse - a theatre director. I may have gone too far this time. I don't care. Hanukkah is almost here and I feel the holiday joy upon me.

So here to kick off the week in which Hanukkah will begin (this Friday at sundown), I thought I'd share my new banner for The Carol of the Bellskis, which is coming next Tuesday, December 15! And every day of Hanukkah, starting Friday night, I'll be sharing an excerpt here on the website. Another way to keep warm through the night. :) Happy near-holidays, everyone!

Claire Thompson is quite famous for her BDSM romance. She is probably one of the few authors specialized in the genre that I read with pleasure… yes, I know, it’s an old thing, but I always feel as to highlight it, the BDSM world is not exactly my thing, and so, I not always am able to fully enjoy a romance with that theme.

In Texas Surrender I think the author approaches the genre with in an even more unusual way. The role play between Avery and JD doesn’t follow a strict script, the borders are blurry. JD is a French cuisine chef in New York but he originally came from Texas. He is not a successful man like usually it’s for a dominant partner, he has no money, he lives in a crappy apartment, and the same day he loses his job he also loses his submissive, the man was cheating on him during the day while JD was working. So no, JD is not the stereotype dominant man, and in a way he is even a more original dominant like that: the power on his submissive is not conveyed since JD is the wealthier and more powerful, but since he is the strongest on an emotional level.

For this exact reason, he is the right dominant for Avery. Avery is younger than JD and he works as hired man on the horses ranch of JD’s uncle. When the old man dies for an heart attack, JD, who is between jobs, comes to the ranch to help Avery. JD is not exactly a horses rancher, he has very few experience on the job, and so he can’t be Avery’s boss on the field. And even if JD is older in age, he has not had the bad and troubled youth Avery had, and so JD is not even more experienced in life than Avery. With this basis, a D/s relationship between them, with JD as dominant, would be impossible. The only way for it to work, is for JD to be the strongest on an emotional level. JD is already at peace with his sexuality, with what he wants and likes; Avery instead has not had the chance to fully explore his desires, before JD’s arrival, he didn’t even know what a BDSM relationship was. So JD can be Avery’s dominant only playing on Avery’s “innocence” when it arrives to sex.

I don’t think that, in the end, JD and Avery’s relationship is a real D/s relationship. Between them it’s more a question of how they like to have sex more than how they want to live day-to-day. Outside the bedroom, JD and Avery are two different men with different lives and expectations; they meet and agreed on a common path only inside the bedroom. JD doesn’t really “conquers” Avery, for example, it’s JD who is the first to make clear his feelings, something I think I have never found in a D/s relationship, usually it’s not the dominant lover to speak first the three little words, I love you. I think that JD is more a supporting partner, the steadiness that Avery needs and misses, JD gives to Avery a family and a comforting embrace, and if the embrace is a little rough, a little forceful, well, it can be good, Avery doesn’t complain on that, but he is not yet ready to have a fully D/s relationship with JD.

Buy at 1 Romance Ebooks

The Rainbow Awards: Third (and last!) Phase: http://elisa-rolle.livejournal.com/850354.html

This week I would like to feature three very different models who have one thing in common: they are uncommon beauty. Maybe due to some etnic origins, or thanks to a good mix of their parents genes, Florian, Aaron and Oscar for sure are not your typical model; you can like them or you can love them, or maybe, you can also think that they are too on the edge to be considered beautiful, but I think that, in this last case, you are linking to the term "beautiful" some classical parameters that can't be used for these three boys.

Florian Pessenteiner is 20 years old, born in Austria but based in London. He is signed with Unique Models Agency (Switzerland), M & P Model (London) , SS&M ( Madrid) , Stella ( Vienna), Izaio ( Berlin ) and Elite ( Milan). Florian started modelling in 2007 when he finished and graduated from high school.


Florian Pessenteiner by Stefan Milev

( Florian Pessenteiner )

“I dont think there really exists an "it" thing for a male model. I just think it's important to stay yourself whatever other people say. Some people quickly change as well in person when they have success and that's a thing that should not happen. Have your own style , your own thoughts and the most important thing is to have your own opinion. My hair does attract special attention, sometimes a very good one , and sometimes it can be not so good as well, sometimes I just get booked because of my hair so I am very proud about the fact that I never cut it off when people in the industry said I should.”

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Aaron Wright, 23 years old, from Baltimore, is a model / actor / singer / dancer and he hopes to be someday an icon and a role model as well.


Aaron Wright by Joseph Blue

( Aaron Wright )

On his portfolio you find photographers like: Joseph Bleu, Rayzor, Ambient Eye, Ryan Montgomery, ColorExpressions, Matt Vita, Billy Monday, Isolda Couture, and many more.

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Oscar is one of the four male models represented by Jaffa Models International, based in Chicago, and he is also in a beautiful editorial, Le Fenetre, by Joseph Bleu for Homotgraphy (http://homotography.blogspot.com/2009/11/oscar-calderone-by-joseph-bleu.html)


Oscar Calderon by Joseph Blue

( Oscar Calderon )

Thanks to cs_whitewolf and accioslash for the wonderful snowflakes! Living in Los Angeles, they're about the only snow I'm going to see.

*hugs*

1. First, and most importantly, WHO WANTS A CHRISTMAS(/WINTER FESTIVAL OF YOUR CHOICE) CARD?

Because I want to give one to you! Any and all of you! Comment with name and address - I'm screening.

Seriously, guys, I would take me up on this! This year I found almost an entire box of vintage Muppet cards from the eighties. They are pretty damn awesome! Surely you don't want me to be wandering around the streets of Vegas, collaring people to say, "Hey, stranger, have a Kermit/Piggy card! I wanted to give them to my LJ friends, but none of them commented and so I have a million left over and ... and ...I feel so alone. *sob*" do you? Do you? *bounces interrogatively*

2. I have delicious candy from Israel!

3. I also have a cartoon snowflake gift from veronamay! ♥ ♥ ♥

4. It is getting cold here! Which is nifty. It is currently cold enough that I'm having to explore this whole dressing in layers concept, beyond just putting on a sweater, and also I get to use my apartment's fireplace.

(Canadian flisties, I can hear you rolling your eyes from here. Yes, I know, I'm a ridiculous cold-weather n00b.)

My enviromental conscience says I should feel bad about wishing for a reprise of last year's climate-change-tastic shenanigans, but I can't help hoping it'll snow again this year. There are dark clouds on the horizon that look promising. *crosses fingers*

The story told here is probably my secret dream: a high school reunion where the geek guy takes his vengeance on his previous schoolmates finally stealing the attention of the dream man of all of them, guys and girls alike. When Gil was in high school he had a crush on Rip Cord, the bad boy and football player star of the school; obviously Gil has never had a chance with him and he left high school with his dreams unfulfilled. Actually it’s not that Gil after high school changed so much, he didn’t suddenly become a hot shot or the most desired man, and he is now a nice guy, an accountant with a good job and some good friends. But in the end, he is still the same geeky guy, shy and with a bit of self-esteem problems. So, when he receives the invitation to his 10 years high school reunion, Gil would be not of the idea to go if not for his girl best friend that practically drags him.

Things are not going so well, Gil is trying with all his strength to be again a wallflower when he spots Rip; now a professional football player, Rip is not changed so much, he is still the same bad boy. But in one thing he is changed, he is now more than interested in Gil, and the boring night suddenly becomes an adventure with Rip and Gil revisiting their teenager places, but with a change in the script, now it’s not Gil who is secretly spying Rip, it’s Rip who is chasing Gil, in the locker room, in the shower, in the hall…

There are a lot of unanswered questions, after the first encounter with Gil who fulfils his secret dream; he actually has the courage to ask to Rip why he was so detached and uncaring during high school, a question to which Rip actually gives a not so good answer. Then there is the role Rip is playing, the forever bad boy, the strictly top macho man… something that let me think that Rip is not yet arrived to fully accept his sexuality. And then there is the future, what will be of these two when real life will make its appearance? All in all this is a short story, it lasts only a night, and we don’t know what will happen when they will test the relationship with everyday life. But probably, that was not the purpose, the real purpose was to finally give to all the geeky guys inside us a dream night to remember for life.

http://www.king-cart.com/Phaze/product=Rip+Cord/exact_match=exact

The Rainbow Awards: Third (and last!) Phase: http://elisa-rolle.livejournal.com/850354.html