The Song of Achilles


Madeline Miller - 2011
    Patroclus is an awkward young prince, exiled from his homeland after an act of shocking violence. Brought together by chance, they forge an inseparable bond, despite risking the gods' wrath.They are trained by the centaur Chiron in the arts of war and medicine, but when word comes that Helen of Sparta has been kidnapped, all the heroes of Greece are called upon to lay siege to Troy in her name. Seduced by the promise of a glorious destiny, Achilles joins their cause, and torn between love and fear for his friend, Patroclus follows. Little do they know that the cruel Fates will test them both as never before and demand a terrible sacrifice.

The God Eaters


Jesse Hajicek - 2006
    But when he meets Kieran Trevarde, a hard-hearted gunslinger with a dark magic lurking in his blood, Ash finds that necessity makes strange heroes... and love can change the world.

The Christmas Curse


Ruby Moone - 2017
    Having never owned a dog before, Jared is surprised to find himself talking to the beast. It’s wonderfully easy and lifts some of the heavy burdens he carries.Eventually Jared confides in the dog, not only secrets about his work as an agent, but also the biggest secret about himself. About his innermost desires and needs, safe in the knowledge his companion will never betray him.But at the stroke of midnight on Christmas Eve, Jared discovers things are not quite what they seem ...

To Love a Traitor


J.L. Merrow - 2015
    Yet as he gets to know Matthew—an irrepressibly cheerful ad man whose missing arm hasn’t dimmed his smile—George begins to lose sight of his mission. As Matthew’s advances become ever harder to resist, George tries to convince himself his brother’s death was just the luck of the draw, and to forget he’s hiding a secret of his own. His true identity—and an act of conscience that shamed his family. But as their mutual attraction grows, so does George’s desperation to know the truth about what happened that day in Ypres. If only to prove Matthew innocent—even if it means losing the man he’s come to love. Warning: Contains larks in the snow, stiff upper lips, shadows of the Great War, and one man working undercover while another tries to lure him under the covers.

Wildthorn


Jane Eagland - 2009
    But her dreams become a nightmare when Louisa is sent to Wildthorn Hall: labeled a lunatic, deprived of her liberty and even her real name. As she unravels the betrayals that led to her incarceration, she realizes there are many kinds of prison. She must be honest with herself - and others - in order to be set free. And love may be the key...

Closet


R.D. Zimmerman - 1995
    . . and again.

Merrick


Claire Cray - 2012
    He narrowly avoids the brutal prison system thanks to his mother, who negotiates with the judge to secure him a five year apprenticeship in lieu of a prison sentence. And so William finds himself in a carriage bound for the remote woods upstate, where he'll spend the next years of his life learning a new trade under some old master.When he first sees Merrick, William thinks he's been dropped into a medieval horror story. Tall and gruff, dressed in a hooded robe that completely conceals his features, and riding a black mare, Merrick might as well be the Grim Reaper.But appearances are deceiving. A skilled apothecary and healer, Merrick proves to be a generous host and a gentle teacher, and William soon finds himself surprisingly comfortable in his new surroundings. And yet troubling mysteries abound: Why does Merrick never show his face or hands? Why do his movements seem so young and sure beneath his robes? What lies within the cave behind the stone cottage? Something unnatural is afoot. But most alarming by far is William's own reaction to his new keeper. For Merrick's strange charms are bewitching enough by day; but by night, in the darkness of the room and the bed they share, William finds himself entirely overwhelmed by desires he never imagined...51561 words

The Man Who Loved Cole Flores


K.A. Merikan - 2021
    By a stroke of luck, he is recruited to infiltrate the Gotham Boys and bring them all to justice. Ripped out of his wholesome life on a ranch, he has to find his footing with a band of ruthless outlaws who challenge his morals every step of the wayBut the one who tests him most of all is Cole Flores. Deadly, full of himself and unpredictable, the gang leader’s adopted son should be a man easy to hate, but instead, he sparks illicit desires Ned has never felt before.Cole Flores is forbidden.Cole Flores is corruption.Cole Flores is everything Ned O’Leary craves.Torn between love and revenge, lust and loyalty, Ned has to face impossible choices that are bound to leave scars, no matter how hard he tries to do the right thing.*“I don’t know what this means, or how to do this with you,” he whispered as his heart broke into a gallop. “But I want to. I need to.” Dark, dangerous, yet desperately romantic, “The Man Who Loved Cole Flores” is a gritty western M/M romance novel. Prepare for violence, emotional turmoil, and scorching hot, explicit scenes, as well as a heart-pounding cliffhanger to book 1.The epic love story of Ned O’Leary and Cole Flores gets its HEA in book 2 - “The Man Who Hated Ned O’Leary”.POSSIBLE SPOILERS:Themes: Enemies-to-lovers, first love, revenge, undercover, friends-to-lovers, forbidden romance, outlaws and cowboys, crime, gang, secrets, loyalty, betrayal, period-typical homophobia, Old West, survival, corruption of the innocent, self-discovery, first love, opposites attractLength: ~155,000 words (Book 1 in a duology)WARNING: This story contains scenes of violence, offensive language and morally ambiguous characters as well as sensitive topics of child abuse and suicide

Like People in History


Felice Picano - 1995
    At crucial moments in their personal histories their lives intersect, and each discovers his own unique - and uniquely gay- identity. Through the lends of their complex, tumultuous, yet enduring relationship - and their involvement with the handsome model, poet and decorated Vietnam vet Matt Loguidice, whom they both love - Felice Picano chronicles and celebrates gay life and subculture over the last half of the twentieth century. From Malibu Beach in its palmist surfer days to the legendary parties at Fire Island Pines in the 1970s, from San Francisco during its gayest era to AIDS activism in Greenwich Village in the 1990s, Like People in History presents 'the heroic and funny saga of the last three decades by someone who saw everything and forgot nothing' (Edmund White).

Rainbow Boys


Alex Sanchez - 2001
    Jason Carrillo is a jock with a steady girlfriend, but he can't stop dreaming about sex...with other guys. Kyle Meeks doesn't look gay, but he is. And he hopes he never has to tell anyone—especially his parents. Nelson Glassman is "out" to the entire world, but he can't tell the boy he loves that he wants to be more than just friends...In a revealing debut novel that percolates with passion and wit, Alex Sanchez follows these very different high-school seniors as their struggles with sexuality and intolerance draw them into a triangle of love, betrayal, and ultimately, friendship.

Time and Tide


E.M. Lindsey - 2015
    If we are meant to be together, we shall be.” It's 1897, and fresh from Oxford University, William Owens returns to Maryland to find his entire life planned for him. His law practice, his home, and his wife. Unable to stand up to his mother, William resigns himself to living the life she's chosen for him, until one day the Universe chooses a different path for him. Literally stumbling into his life, the blind writer, Theodore Renard, changes everything. Confronted with a life he desires, and the love of his life, William must find the courage to stand up to his mother and take his life into his own hands. But none of that comes without a price. Facing heartache and tragedy, William must learn to navigate through the chaos of time and the tide.

Lovers in Arms


Osiris Brackhaus - 2012
    Army Captain Frank Hawthorne returns to Germany, against orders, to testify at the Nuremberg trials. He's attempting to save the life of Johann von Biehn, a former Nazi Officer. No one at the trials knows that three years ago, at the height of the war, Frank had been sent to kill the very man he is now defending - and that Johann is the love of his life. Frank must not reveal what happened between them during the war, but that leaves Frank with hardly any evidence to counter Johann's notorious career as a Nazi.

Death Trick


Richard Stevenson - 1981
    The gay son of a wealthy family has disappeared. Now it's up to private dick Don Strachey to get to the bottom of this mess--even if he has to cruise every gay bar in the city to do it Don Strachey isn't exactly the most sought-after private eye in Albany, New York. In fact, this gay P.I. has gotten to the point of having to write checks to pay his tab at the cheapest lunch counter in town. And he isn't sure that the latest one, for the grand total of two dollars and ninety-three cents, is going to clear. Then the phone rings. Billy Blount, the gay heir to one of Saratoga Springs' upper-crust families, has disappeared, and his parents want him back. On top of that, Billy, a young and outspoken gay activist, is wanted for the grisly murder of the man he slept with on his last night in Albany--a man he'd never met before that night Set in the glorious, promiscuous pre-HIV late 1970s, Death Trick: A Murder Mystery is a fast-paced excursion through the seamy underside of gay Albany. From gay discos where the hard-pumping music never stops, to the city's infamous baths, to the dark alley behind the local precinct house, this hard-bitten private dick searches for answers to the questions that plague Billy's parents and the police. With his faithful companion (and unfaithful lover) Timmy, plus a cast of characters that includes drag queens, ex-jock gay bar owners, homophobic cops, male hustlers, and wealthy suburbanites, Strachey begins a chase that leads him to seedy gay bars, posh suburban homes, and pricey mental institutions where they use electric shock to destroy "sick" gay tendencies.

Heart to Hart


Erin O'Quinn - 2013
    Michael, immediately smitten with the sulky and sexy man, lays a plan to first become his new roomer, then his business partner.But Simon, stricken by his recent loss, is having none of Michael’s undisguised interest.Not a man to be deterred easily from a goal, Michael sets about winning Simon’s affection. That particular battle is almost as difficult as tracking down the murderer of his predecessor, a nosy detective who was getting too close to the crimes of an evil person.Simon spends more time ducking Michael’s advances than actually finding clues and solving the mystery. Inquiring minds want to know—how hard is Simon really trying to avoid Michael? And Michael isn’t hiding his forthright urges, but what secret is he hiding?NOTE: This story is part of The Gaslight Mysteries series.

Summer Song


Louise Blaydon - 2010
    Then the new guy on the block, the enigmatic Leonard Nachman, turns his head, and over the summer Billy discovers a new world of romance and lovein a mans arms. But when Kit OReilly, Billys best friend and shadow, comes home after spending the summer with relatives, he finds Billy acting] differently. Soon enough, it becomes obvious that this change is related to Len, and Kit will have to decide if hell accept the relationship Billy and Len have forged, or if hell push Billy and their longtime friendship away.