Release Day + Review Blitz: You Had Me at Hero by Michael P. Thomas (Giveaway)

Title: You Had Me at Hero

Author: Michael P. Thomas

Genre: Gay Romance, Contemporary, Interracial

Length: Novella

Publisher: JMS Books

Synopsis

When seventeen-year-old Mark Potts fell from a balcony, he lost both the use of his legs and any faith in heroes. Now twenty-nine, he’s long-since come to terms with his injury. His job provides more opportunities for eye-rolling than for riding to anybody’s rescue, but with two kids to bring up, he barely has time for his husband, much less for heroics. Besides, Starr Bradford is a policeman — how many heroes does one family need?

Mark and Starr love each other madly, but stress management is a load-bearing pillar of their happiness. When Mark’s coping skills fail him at exactly the wrong moment, he’s left hanging by a thread of words he should’ve kept in his mouth. He has the power to repair their relationship, but when Starr’s workday suddenly goes south, will he get to wield it? Keeping it together long enough to find out is a job worthy of any superhero!

Buy Links

JMS Books: http://www.jms-books.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=29_94&products_id=2008
Amazon US: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01N6XBBMF/
Amazon UK: https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01N6XBBMF/
Amazon AU: https://www.amazon.com.au/dp/B01N6XBBMF/
Amazon DE: https://www.amazon.de/dp/B01N6XBBMF/

Excerpt

The 911 call center was tucked into a park in the middle of town. Mark and Starr lived in a neighborhood of post-World War II brick ranch houses east of the park, barely a five-minute drive at three in the morning. Even after being corralled by Coretta, Mark was out of his clothes, out of his chair, and into the bed by three-thirty, with his arms around his husband at three-thirty and about two seconds. Geeze but it felt good to cuddle up next to Starr. Any trace of a world that might exist outside their bed fizzled away as soon as they were in it together. Even if he tried, which he had long given up doing, he couldn’t focus on a worry, couldn’t retain the residue from even the most stressful call. With Starr in his arms, there was no room left for fear, no way to also hold on to doubt. With Starr in a patrol car and two sons careening through life in America while being black, these things were easy enough to find during the day, but in the quiet dark, Starr’s body throwing heat like rocks in a sauna, Mark’s defenses—which Starr assured him were more finely tuned than most people’s—melted away.
When Starr rolled over with the whoosh of a contented sigh to take Mark in his own arms, Mark knew he was safe. He knew he was loved. And when his hand followed a hunch along the ridge of Starr’s muscled belly, he knew he was desired. He took a great handful of Starr’s warm, heavy balls and watched a sleepy grin spread across his face.
“Marky?”
This mumbled verification always made Mark laugh. As opposed to…? “No. It’s a jewel thief,” he said, gathering Starr’s balls and giving his sac a tug. “I just struck it rich.”
The grin grew and Starr rolled onto his back. “Take whatever you want, just please don’t hurt me.”
“We’ll see.”

3.5 Stars

Mark Potts has been paraplegic since he fell off a balcony when he was 17, cutting his dreams of being a hero in the form of a cop or a fireman short. Now, 12 years later, he’s married to Starr, who is a cop, and they’re raising two kids, while Mark works at a 911 call center. However, lack of time and stress are wearing down on their marriage and after a huge fight, Starr storms out only to stumble into one of Mark’s worst nightmares. Will they have the chance to make things right or will Mark have to become the superhero he always dreamed of being first?

I liked Mark a lot, even if he was hellbent on self-sabotaging himself and had very low self-esteem. I liked Starr, although there were some things that bothered me regarding him going out with that friend of his and not seeing Mark’s point, Mark’s trusting issues notwithstanding.

I think there was a lot of time devoted to other things, like the race issue or Mark’s work or being with their friends and not enough devoted to the couple, which made it difficult to connect with them as much, even if they did seem like a well-balanced marriage and had good chemistry.

The book was definitely more serious than what I expected from the blurb, but still entertaining. Recommendable!

*** Copy provided to Bayou Book Junkie for my reading pleasure, a review wasn’t a requirement. ***

Giveaway

Prize: $20 Amazon Gift Card
a Rafflecopter giveaway

About the author

Michael P. Thomas is a flight attendant whose writing is continually inspired by his work with the flying public, who flatly refuse to be boring. The author of three novel-length gay romances and a number of romantic and erotic shorts, he writes gay fiction because when he was coming out he sure was glad to have it to read. After misspending his youth in San Francisco, he now lives in his native Colorado with his husband.
Social Links
Website: http://misterstewardess.com/
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