Louise Blaydon

‘Love in Uniform’ is a varied selection of short stories, each starring one, sometimes two, main characters in, you guessed it, some kind of uniform. They range from the more expected firefighters’, EMTs’, and cops’ outfits to those of airline attendants, park rangers, and even chefs. While each story is super short, they all left me with a smile, a tear, or a thoughtful tilt of my head. They are a great sample of each author’s work and a good way to get to know someone whose stories you may have never read before.

The Encounter by Angora Shade
A man who is only identified as “the pilot” is waiting for his wingman, Jay, in a crowded, loud, and somewhat dirty club. Jay is late, and the pilot is getting more upset by the minute. But then he notices a stranger lounging around, seemingly also waiting for someone – and the heat is on. What follows is a very anonymous, extremely hot “encounter” in a half-dark hallway leading to the emergency exit of the club. Getting spotted by one of the employees carrying boxes back and forth isn’t a problem for the pilot, it turns him on more to know that someone is watching.

If you like adventurous, sexy encounters without the characters even knowing each other’s names, and if you’re looking for a read that is as short as it is hot, then you might like this short story.

Wishing on the Perseid by Kay C. Sulli
Zach is a graduate student heading for a PhD and decides to spend his first vacation in years in the Colorado Mountains. What he hopes for is an adventure, and what he finds is Ranger Ryan. Ryan knows a lot about the wilderness, and they end up spending considerable time together. As it turns out, they are both quite lonely, like wishing upon stars, and when the Perseid meteor shower hits, they both have the same general idea.

If you like sweet romances, if a ranger and student finding common ground sounds like fun, and if you’re looking for a read that is as short as it is cute, then you’ll probably like this short story.

Special Delivery by D.C. Juris
Thrown into a last-minute shared work shift on his day off, Camden doesn’t know whether to be happy or frustrated. He has never worked with Axel before, but he certainly knows about the well-muscled man who fills out the delivery company’s uniform like no one else and has been the object of quite a few of Camden’s, um, dreams. Actually spending the day working with him might kill Camden, but events take quite a different turn from what he expected.

If you like muscled hunks who go after what they want, and if you’re looking for a read that is as hot as it is sweet, then you will probably like this short story.

Westward Avenue Matchmaker by Jean Wolfe
As an EMT, Peter gets to meet all sorts of people, but “repeat emergencies” like Mrs. McKinney are not his favorite. He does like the view of the hot firefighters, who are probably the reason for Mrs. McKinney’s frequent kitchen disasters. One in particular has caught his attention, and when Tom finally asks him for a coffee, Peter is more than happy to meet somewhere that’s not the site of some catastrophe.

If you like slightly quirky stories with fun characters, and if you’re looking for a short, entertaining read, then you might like this short story.

On the Wing by Shannen Melone
As a travel photographer, Paolo has to fly to various destinations on a regular basis. As can happen when you fly a lot, he keeps encountering the same flight attendant, admiring his snug-fitting uniform and delightful smile. Over weeks and months of encounters, they begin to feel like acquaintances on the way to some sort of inflight friendship. As much as Paolo may want more, he never sees Alex outside an airplane. And thanks to a stupid misunderstanding, they almost miss their opportunity for more. Thank God for the coin Paolo dropped in the Trevi Fountain in Rome on Alex’s behalf…

If you like slow-burn romances, if you enjoy two men only gradually getting to know some of who they each are, and if you’re looking for a sweet romance with a touch of angst, then you may like this short story.

Let it Hurt by Kassandra Lea
Even married couples who love each other deeply have the occasional fight. Sometimes for good reasons, sometimes about things that are totally unimportant. Whatever the cause, apologies follow, and they make up again. Leo and Caleb face a different situation in this story. Leo is on his way to apologize when he has an accident. Caleb has been sorry about what he said all day, and races to the site while deadly afraid it is too late. Regrets like his “what if those were the last words I ever said to him” can drive anyone crazy. Leo and Caleb are lucky, and I bet they never again part while angry.

If you like stories with lots of fear, angst, and emotional pain, if you want to read about the effect of a stupid fight on two men who are deeply in love, and if you’re looking for a read that is as upsetting as it is sweet, then you will probably like this short story.

Loggerhead by Dale Cameron Lowry
Taking time to appreciate each other can be difficult for couples where each partner has a fulfilling career. Jake is busy being a chef in a restaurant, and Eric is a successful journalist. Time off is an almost unknown concept for both of them. But when after a usually supreme effort, they manage to get away, they enjoy reconnecting and focusing on each other. This story focuses on one particular trip to Florida, and let me tell you, things get very hot – and not just outside.

If you like stories about couples who reconnect, and if you’re looking for a read that is as hot as it is entertaining, then you might like this short story.

The Night Shift by Louise Blaydon
When two shy men meet, it can take a while for at least one of them to make a move. In this story, I’m not sure who is the more hesitant in matters of the heart, but it was a close call. Jonas, the evidence clerk, and Dan, who works in Vice, have been eyeing each other for months before Dan finally makes a move and invites Jonas over to his apartment. I guess there is no need for a date at that point since they got all the talking they require out of the way during their almost nightly encounters. And once they hit the bedroom? Hold on to your hats, these two are hot together.

If you like your romances with a touch of shyness, if you want to see two men who aren’t good with words find alternative ways of communicating, and if you’re looking for a read that is as short as it is hot, then you might like this short story.

Roadside Assistance by Aiden McKenna
Anyone looking for a “hot officer pulls over speeding offender in the middle of the night” should read this story. Robert is the perfect timid first-time offender. He wants to get home to his boyfriend at the end of his shift, it’s 2:00 a.m., and the roads are empty. Not as empty as Robert expected though, and when the blue and red lights appear in his rearview mirror, all his bravado is out the window in no time. What follows is an extremely hot case of “roadside assistance” – Robert helping the poor officer with his tight pants problem, that is. Anything so he doesn’t get a ticket… or so it seems.

If you like your cops in “fantasy mode”, if you want to read about two men getting it on right next to the road (albeit at 2:00 a.m. and in the absence of any traffic), and if you’re looking for a read that is as short as it is hot with a tiny twist at the end, then you will probably like this short story.


NOTE: This book was provided by Torqyere Press for the purpose of a review on Rainbow Book Reviews.… (altro)

I know I was expecting a lot from this novel, after all it was the Dark Horse of the Rainbow Awards, winning first place in the Coming of Age/Young Adult category when more or less no one even knew the story was out, but was I was not expecting is for it to be sweet, tender and yes, even a bit sexy.

First of all the story is pretty complex on the writing style field. The author decided to tell it from 4 different point of view, all in first person. Only that 3 of them, best friends Christopher “Kit” and Billy, and Kit’s girlfriend Caitlyn “Lyn”, tell the story like their thoughts are brainstorming in their mind, while Leonard “Lenny”, the new kid in town, is writing a journal. Plus the story starts at the beginning of the year school, with Kit wondering why Billy seems to be surprised, and even a bit scared, but the new kid in the school, Lenny, to then flashbacking three months before, in June, when Lenny is moving from Massachussetts to California to spend the summer with his maternal grandparents.

Kit is obviously jealous of the tight relationship Billy and Lenny developed during the summer, probably even more since he was not there to witness it; Kit spent the summer with his own grandparents, and he left a best friend, Billy, who was almost like a brother and who was telling him everything, to come back to an almost stranger, a Billy that is not even able to tell him that he has a new friend. Yes, Kit is jealous, but even if he wonders if this jealousy means something else, Kit is in love with Lyn, and that is not something he is questioning. What he is questioning, and what makes him angry, is that Billy is no more able to consider him a trusted friend, Billy is no more coming to him to share his soul, he is probably going to the other boy, the new kid, one that has no right over Billy since Kit was there before him.

That was how the story was developing at first, more about the friendship between Kit and Billy and how they were trying to save it; but then it suddenly moved to Billy and Lenny, and how they were instead trying to understand what was happenning between them. The time is the 1955, and it’s not that being gay is something common, let alone in a small town in California. There is no one they can talk to, and while Billy has some experiences with girls, Lenny has neither that, and so they are flumbling around, trying to understand what is good and what is right, what they like and what they don’t.

As I said I was surprised by the “light” undertone of the story; it’s not that the author forgot that being gay was illegal in 1955, it’s only that she decided to not weight it on these boys, letting them living their summer, and then year school, love affair. Truth be told, at the beginning, I had the feeling of reading a man on man version of “Grease”, with Billy in the role of a very surprised Danny Zucco who finds out that Sandy has not gone back to Australia. But Billy is more honest, and probably more in love, than the hero of Grease, and in no way he can deny Lenny’s existence or his love for him.

Summer Love is a very romantic story, and if you, like me, were worried of reading of a same sex love in the 1955, don’t worry, in this case love is stronger than anything else.

http://www.amazon.com/dp/1615814523/?tag=elimyrevandra-20… (altro)