Blog Tour: Canning the Center by Tara Lain (ARC Review + Giveaway)

Canning The Center
(Long Pass Chronicles, #2)
By Tara Lain

Blurb:

Six foot seven inch, 300 pound Jamal Jones loves football, so when he finds out the ultra-conservative owner of his new pro football team fired their current center because he’s gay, bisexual Jamal decides to stay in the closet and hang with the females. Then, at a small drag show, he comes face-to-face with his sexual fantasy in the form of Trixie LaRue, a drag queen so exquisitely convincing she scrambles Jamal’s hormones -- and his resolve to nurse his straight side.

Trevor Landry, aka Trixie LaRue, hides more than his genitals. A mathematician so brilliant he can’t be measured, Trevor disguises his astronomical IQ and his quirk for women’s clothes behind his act as a gay activist undergrad at Southern California University.

To Trevor, Jamal is the answer to a dream -- a man who can love and accept both his personas. When he discovers Jamal’s future is threatened if he’s seen with a guy, Trevor becomes Trixie to let Jamal pass as straight. But Trevor risks his position every time he puts on a dress. Is there a closet big enough to hold a football pro and a drag queen? 

https://www.goodreads.com/book/photo/23264402-canning-the-center

Available for purchase at

Amazon: http://bit.ly/CanningTheCenterAmz

ARe: https://www.allromanceebooks.com/product-canningthecenter-1686476-149.html

DreamSpinner Order Links:
eBook: http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=5751&cPath=1007 

Paperback: http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=5752&cPath=1007

Excerpt

Trevor stuck out a hand. “My name’s Trevor. Pleased to meet you.”

Jamal reached out to take the offered handshake and—whoops! In one gentle pull on Trevor’s arm that clearly required no effort on Jamal’s part, Trevor was up against that huge chest. “I’m Jamal. I don’t mean to be presumptuous. Just tell me to stop. But if I don’t kiss you again soon, I’m a dead man.”

Trevor smiled up into those dark brown eyes. “I would never want to be accused of murder.”

Such full, full lips. They moved slowly down, down to Trevor’s. The first touch sent a flash like lightning through every nerve, and he shivered.

Jamal pulled back. “Cold?”

“Quite the contrary.” He wrapped his arms tightly around the bunny’s neck.

Invitation delivered. Jamal’s mouth closed over Trevor’s. Those lips were just as soft as they looked, but not as silky as the tongue that slipped into his mouth. Oh my, a girl could get drunk on this sweetness. Trevor opened and received, allowing exploration—and sharing it. His poor abused cock, which had spent a couple of hours locked between his asscheeks, wanted to stretch in a whole new direction. Sweet God, he hadn’t throbbed like this in ages. One leg crawled up Jamal’s ass all by itself—and it was a long way up. Too far to get his bulge anywhere near its rightful companion. His eyes popped open. “Well, damn. Not much chance of sexing you up unless we’re lying down.”

Jamal chuckled. “Oh no, sweet thing, there are advantages to all these muscles.”

He picked Trevor up under the butt. Yes! Contact.

Trevor looked into those melted chocolate eyes. “I am estimating your equipment fully matches in size the other proportions of your body?” He wrapped his legs around Jamal’s surprisingly narrow waist.

Instead of getting all peacocky like he had the right to, Jamal kind of blushed. “Yeah. Sorry.”

“Surely you jest.”

He grinned, but he was breathing hard. “So you don’t mind big all over?”

“Not one little bit.”

Jamal rode Trev up and down against his cock. Oh God, that felt so good. Trevor never had decent sex because he had this reputation to uphold, and Trixie never had sex at all. Jesus, that added up to one crappy sex life. But the bunny was like a world in the middle. With Jamal, for the first time, he got to be both Trevor and Trixie and that was whole and perfect and hot! “You might want to stop unless you would enjoy watching me wash these jeans.”

“Better yet, how about I take you out and we get to know each other before I quit football and take up fucking you full time?”

Who could laugh at a time like this? But he still did. He hugged that big, muscular frame tight and rubbed his cock against Jamal’s huge bulge until they were both gasping. “No. No, I think you better write the resignation letter.”

“Deal. But I could take us out for root beer floats first.”

Trevor stopped. “I love root beer.”

Jamal held him still, their cocks still squashed in bliss. “You’re kidding. No one likes root beer but me.”

“I do. It’s my favorite.”

“There’s this diner—”

“Okay, fuck sex. I need a root beer float and a hamburger.”

About the Author

Tara Lain writes the Beautiful Boys of Romance in LGBT erotic romance novels that star her unique, charismatic heroes. Her first novel was published in January of 2011 and she’s now somewhere around book 23. Her best­selling novels have garnered awards for Best Series, Best Contemporary Romance, Best Ménage, Best LGBT Romance, Best Gay Characters, and Tara has been named Best Writer of the Year in the LRC Awards. In her other job, Tara owns an advertising and public relations firm. She often does workshops on both author promotion and writing craft. She lives with her soul­mate husband and her soul­mate dog in Laguna Beach, California, a pretty seaside town where she sets a lot of her books. Passionate about diversity, justice, and new experiences, Tara says on her tombstone it will say “Yes”!

You can find Tara at

               

Mari's Review

*ARC Copy provided to Bayou Book Junkie in exchange for a fair and honest review*

At first I wasn’t all that sure I was going to enjoy the story, it started a bit slow, with lots of football references that had me a bit lost, but by page 50 I was hooked! And let me tell you, I just couldn’t put it down after that! Damn, but it had it all, romance, sweetness, intrigue, fluff, off-the-charts chemistry between the main characters and a fast-paced tangled web that I devoured, because I just had to find out what was going to happen with Jamal and Trixie and everyone else involved.

Jamal (aka Chocolate Bunny or just plain Bunny) was sweet, huge, a pro football player for the LA Diablos, he’s bisexual and in the closet, even if he truly doesn’t want to be. Trixie (aka Trevor) was equally sweet, dainty, an advanced mathematics major, he’s gay and a drag queen, even if he had to keep both of his identities separate and completely under wraps from the people in his life.

They meet, fall hard for each other, especially because the other is exactly what they both need at that time. Jamal accepts all of Trixie and Trixie can pose as Jamal’s girlfriend with his jock teammates. Still, although Jamal knows who Trixie is, Trixie can’t be fully honest with Jamal regarding his role in the LGBT alliance at his college and he’s not sure he can trust Jamal with all that’s going on in his life with his ill mother and his brother and school and everything else.

Loved Jamal’s family, they were so supportive. Loved the intriguing side plotline with Boogaloo’s, one of Jamal’s teammates, sister, Lavinda. She was scary, quite stalkerish almost from the moment Jamal told her he couldn’t date her, and even more so when she met Trixie and it was obvious from the getgo that she was out for blood. Arondel, Jamal’s team owner was creepy, as well.

There was a lot going on plot-wise, but I adored how it all played out in the end, all questions answered, bad guys taken care of and a HEA, what more can you ask for? Other than more of Tara Lain’s stories that is, like Tackling the Tight End, the next book in The Long Pass Chronicles, which I'm so looking forward to!

Rating: 4.5 glowing stars!!! 

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