I stumbled upon The Dragon’s Disciple by Barbara Sheridan and Anne Cain quite by accident, literally. I had chanced upon an intriguing, even tantalizing excerpt of it, and based on that excerpt, had requested the book to read. Only after receiving The Dragon’s Disciple did I realize it was of the erotica genre, gay erotica. I do not generally read such.

Still, having requested the book, I felt it only fair that I should attempt to read the tale. I am more than glad I did. Anne Cain and Barbara Sheridan turned out a pleasant surprise indeed! Perhaps, the word “pleasant “isn’t the best description, because The Dragon’s Disciple is a dark novel. Such adjectives as “engrossing,” “intriguing,” and “superb,” might better describe the book. I will stand by the descriptive word “surprise,” though, because the authors, Barbara Sheridan and Anne Cain, did surprise me, and in a very good way.

Over a hundred years have passed since the American Civil War and yet new facts are still coming to light. There are stories of female spies and women serving as male soldiers, men of color owning slaves and soldiers from both sides singing together on Christmas Eve. Perhaps, there are even more untold tales lying hidden in the killing fields, tales so strange that no one has been willing to tell them until now. J.M. Snyder reveals one such tale, not only a forbidden love story, but also one on the hairy side.

How would you feel if tragic circumstances suddenly and fatally whisked away the love of your life? Would you be tempted to bring your beloved back from the dead if the possibility were presented? What would the consequences be if you did play with fate in this manner? Author Willa Okati speculates on these very questions with A Year and A Day.

Ash and Slate had been introduced through Ash’s cousin and the love that grows between the two men gives them the strength to turn their backs on a world that rejects them both. Together they move to the Appalachian Mountains and set up housekeeping on a farm. Theirs is a life of hard work, casual routine, and overall devotion to one another. But when Ash unexpectedly dies, Slate is thrown into a deep depressive state. Life at the farm once shared with Ash goes on; but Slate is now a man dispossessed of all spirit. Only an encounter with unworldly forces holds a prospect of happiness for him: the tempting proposition to bring Ash back from the dead.

Prudes beware: Bi Sexual: Tales from the Wild Side was no light read for those with squeamish tendencies.

In a daring and rather refreshingly bold take on sex from the bisexual and homosexual perspectives, Michelle Houston made everything about lovemaking truly explicit. Gone are the euphemisms that would have left some aspects of the orgasm to the imagination-gone are the boundaries that usually would have limited the publication of such steamy material.

I investigated the first of The Syndicate books because the cover featured a tortured-looking man. I found a wickedly funny story, and have enjoyed both The Syndicate: Volume 1 and The Syndicate: Volume 2. I am delighted that the team of Jones and Woolgrave can sustain the sardonic humor of the first two books as they bring us The Syndicate: Volume 3.

The book features explicit male/male scenes.