Moment of Truth (Moments in Time #2) by Karen Stivali

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moment truthBlurb

Collin expected to spend another summer fixing cars and working at the college pizzeria. Instead, he’s living in a beach house on Fire Island, waiting tables at a hip seaside restaurant and, for the first time since he and Tanner got together, they can publicly be known as boyfriends. Being “out” takes some getting used to, but with the help of new and old friends, Collin is happier than he ever imagined. And more in love. But newfound freedom brings unexpected challenges, and when friends get flirty, old insecurities arise. Moments of doubt and jealousy threaten their happiness, and Collin and Tanner must confront the truth or risk losing it all.

Review
We met both Collin and Tanner at school where they went from friends to lovers and Collin faced the monumental task of coming out to his ultra conservative family. Now it’s summer and Collin and Tanner are together for the summer on Fire Island and finally enjoying being an “out and proud” couple. But…

Wendy and Maggie are two women from Tanner’s past that are currently still causing trouble for the couple. And there are yet more women Tanner meets at work that pokes every jealous bone in Collin and makes him feel insecure. Finally, there is a guy at work hitting on Collin and when he makes his move, Tanner is there to witness it.

**

I really, really like Karen Stivali’s writing. It’s engaging, erotic, and believable. I really like Collin as a character and his relationship with Tanner is both tender and erotic. I was delighted that they boys got to move their relationship further both emotionally and physically and am psyched to see Collin embracing being gay more and more fully.

What I really didn’t like was the teen-agey angst and drama being played out in the beach house. I particularly didn’t like Maggie and Wendy and their contribution to the story.

I know that when a story like this is broken down into parts rather than being served up as an entire novel each “section” has to have it’s own hurdles and problems. What I hope for is that each section will be an evolution in the relationship and not a recurring battle of “will this relationship work?”. I think that Collin’s virginity, his newness to being out, his battle with his conservative up-bringing and his newness to being a “boyfriend” could have provided enough conflict to move the story forward without throwing in a potential relationship-ending episode of almost cheating that we see with Jason.

I was grateful that the episode with Jason is brief and quickly resolved and I sincerely hope the next installment will focus more on making the relationship work rather than questioning whether it should be a relationship at all.

I will definitely read part three as I am totally captivated by their story and I do recommend this book and the series, even though it was painful to see the boys in so much pain.

Writing/Editing 5
Romance 4
Sex/Heat 5
Storyline 3
World Building/Characterizations 5

4.4 of 5 hearts

4.5

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Karen Stivali Moment of Truth Tour with Excerpt and Giveaway

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Collin expected to spend another summer fixing cars and working at the college pizzeria. Instead, he’s living in a beach house on Fire Island, waiting tables at a hip seaside restaurant and, for the first time since he and Tanner got together, they can publicly be known as boyfriends. Being “out” takes some getting used to, but with the help of new and old friends, Collin is happier than he ever imagined. And more in love. But newfound freedom brings unexpected challenges, and when friends get flirty, old insecurities arise. Moments of doubt and jealousy threaten their happiness, and Collin and Tanner must confront the truth or risk losing it all.

Excerpt:
His smile twitched as he started up the next staircase. The last one. The one that led to our room and nowhere else. My hearth hammered hard and fast, and not from stair climbing. I needed to touch Tanner, soon, or every part of my body from my brain to my balls was going to simultaneously combust.
Tanner pushed our door open with exaggerated care and stepped inside. Jesus, is he trying to make me crazy? All I want is to….
My back slammed against the wall, and before I could complete my thought, Tanner’s mouth was on mine. The kiss was savage, tongue hot and heavy against mine, cock hot and heavy against mine. Even through our shorts, I could feel how ready he was. My head swam.
Desperate for more, I grabbed on to him, rolling us toward the door and kicking it shut. Tanner let out a grunt as I pressed him against the hard wood. Could anyone hear us? I didn’t care. I just needed this. Tanner. Now.
As soon as I shoved his T-shirt up his ribs, he yanked it off and tossed it aside. Warm smooth skin greeted my fingertips, filling my nose with his scent. God, I missed this. My mouth returned to his, tongues dueling as my hands fumbled with his fly. I couldn’t stop rubbing against him enough to get the zipper down. Tanner grabbed my ass, crushing his cock alongside mine, humping against me with enough intensity I had to force myself not to come.
I didn’t want that. Not yet. Not standing against the door when that crazy big bed was only feet away. As if he read my mind, Tanner shoved me backward, taking advantage of the moment our bodies parted to strip off his shorts. I tugged off my shirt, and before I could launch it across the room, Tanner had my shorts undone and down. Kicking them away put me off-balance, and Tanner steadied me with one hand clutching the back of my neck and the other wrapped around my cock.
Whimpers echoed through the room. My whimpers. His thumb slicked over my swollen head, round and round in circles that left me dizzy and panting.
“Let’s try out the bed.” Tanner’s voice was low and thick. I’d have said yes to anything he asked with that voice.
I couldn’t actually say a word, so I nodded and pulled us down onto the mattress. Holy Jesus. Soft cool sheets, warm hard body, wet velvety tongue. Heaven. Fire Island was heaven.
Pages or Words: 150 pages

Buy:
Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Karen-Stivali/e/B005KWSFGO/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_pop_2
AmazonUK: http://www.amazon.co.uk/Karen-Stivali/e/B005KWSFGO/ref=ntt_athr_dp_pel_1
AmazonCA: http://www.amazon.ca/Moment-Impact-Moments-Time-Book-ebook/dp/B00RO1Z6ZC/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1422304920&sr=1-1
Barnes & Noble: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/s/karen-stivali?store=allproducts&keyword=karen+stivali
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Author Bio: 

Karen Stivali is a prolific writer, compulsive baker and chocoholic with a penchant for books, movies, and fictional British men. She’s also the multiple award-winning author of contemporary and erotic romances. She writes novels about love…like real life, only hotter.
Karen’s lifelong fascination with people has led her to careers ranging from hand-drawn animator, to party planner, to marriage and family counselor, but writing has always been her passion. Karen enjoys nothing more than following her characters on their journey toward love. Whether the couples are m/f or m/m, it’s guaranteed that Karen’s novels are filled with food, friendship, love, and smoking hot sex—all the best things in life.
When Karen isn’t writing (and often when she is), she can be found on Twitter attempting witty banter and detailing the antics of her fruit-loving cat, BadKitteh. She loves to hear from readers (and other writers), so don’t hesitate to contact/follow/like her at the links below.

Where to find the author:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/karenstivali
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/karenstivali
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/karenstivali/
Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5170527.Karen_Stivali
Tsu: https://www.tsu.co/KarenStivali
Blog: http://karenstivali.com

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