WELCOME TO THE BLOG, A.M.! :)
No stranger to the writing world, A.M. Arthur has been creating stories in her head since she was a child and scribbling them down nearly as long. She credits an early fascination with male friendships and "bromance" (and "The Young Riders") with her later discovery of and subsequent affair with m/m romance stories. When not writing, she can be found in her kitchen, pretending she's an amateur chef and trying to not poison herself or others with her cuisine experiments. You can contact her at AM_Arthur(at)yahoo(dot)com
TheBookQueen: In early 2014 I had my M/M cherry popped by A.M. Arthur, thanks to her NA romance, No Such Thing. She was also a bad influence in another way; we share a love of great CockyBoys scenes, and if you could see our Twitter DMs, you’d be scandalized! *wink* In fact, I can't resist sharing a few (SFW) pics of our favorite CBs below...
Since No Such Thing, I've not only been reading every book she’s released, but stalking --- er, following – her on social media. In fact, she may be tired of me by now.
J But today I have her on the blog and I’m very excited!
Can I offer you something to drink before we get started, A.M.?
A.M.: Anything with vodka in it, thank you.
TBQ: *hands over a spiked cocoa* I'll stick with plain cocoa myself; we don't want this interview getting *too* wild.
The Truth As He Knows It kicks off your newest series from Samhain. You already know I *loved* this book so hard (see review). For those not familiar with it yet, tell us the quick-pitch of the story and why readers will love it.
A.M.: Shane and his older brother Jason both work multiple jobs to keep a roof over their heads, and to try and climb out from under a pile of crippling debt, so neither man has much time for a social life. Noel is a new cop in the Stratton police department, not out to anyone except his family, and is trying to settle into his life. When Noel breaks up a loud birthday party-gone-wild, he comes faces to thonged-butt with Shane, who is a stripper in his spare time. After a second, random encounter, both men know there are real sparks there—but both men also have a mountain of secrets between them that must be conquered before they can truly be together.
I think you’ll love it because it’s angsty, emotional, has some pretty smoking hot sex (if I do say so myself), and plus Tristan. When you meet Tristan, you’ll understand.
TBQ: Gah, yes, yes, yes! And Tristan. I so want to grab him up and never let him go . . .
I loved these two men, they’re so complex. In 5 words or less, describe Noel for us. And let's not forget Shane!
A.M.: Noel: stubborn, driven, compassionate, open-minded, giving
Shane: sexy, bullheaded, guilty, guarded, unhappy
TBQ: *nods* That really does sum them up. And now I want to give Shane a hug all over again!
Do you have a favorite part from The Truth As He Knows It?
A.M.: I probably can’t say the whole book, can I? I love Shane and Noel’s “first date,” because they are so flirty and adorable together. I love the scene about midway-ish, when Jason talks to Noel about why Shane reacts so fiercely to something Noel does. I love the scene with Noel at Big Dick’s because it was so raw. Those are only a few of the scenes I love, but I could go on….
TBQ: LOL But I would understand “the whole book” because IT’S TRUE! J All great scenes, for so many reasons. Damn you, now I want to do a reread. AGAIN.
What was the most surprising thing you found out about these two while writing their story?
A.M.: That’s a tough one, because I had pretty much all aspects of their history mapped out before I wrote one word. I went in knowing Shane’s awful past, Jason’s sacrifice, Noel and Tristan’s history. More than anything between Shane and Noel, I think my biggest surprise was Tristan. I didn't expect to get so attached to him after just one scene, or how much he genuinely depended on/needed his relationship with Noel. So yeah…Tristan surprised me all over the place.
TBQ: *nods* Yes. That is all. Just yes.
I could go on, but I *guess* we should let the readers find out all of Shane and Noel’s secrets on their own, huh? Fine, fine.
I know that not everyone loves M/M romance like we do. But if you had the chance to convince a reader to try this genre, what would you say to them? And more importantly what M/M romances would you recommend to bring them over to the dark side?
A.M.: I once heard something along these lines: What’s better than a man in bed naked? Two men in bed naked with each other.
Am I right? Romance novels are about relationships, and the only difference is instead of a hero and a heroine trying to make it work, it’s two heroes. How can a lover of Alpha male heroes turn their nose up at the idea of TWO Alpha male heroes trying to make it work together? *fans self*
TBQ: HELL YES! :D
A.M.: As for recommendations, my m/m cherry was popped by K.A. Mitchell. She is an auto-buy for me, and maybe all of her books aren’t my favorites, but several of them are. If you want something with a lot of story, and not as much sex, then try Regularly Scheduled Life. It’s the story of an established couple dealing with the aftermath of a school shooting. If you want something super, melt-your-panties sexy, go all in with Collision Course. Then go back and read the first book in that series, Diving In Deep. Yes, it’s okay to go out of order with these, trust me.
For a meaty, complex, emotionally driven book, you can’t go wrong with A Red-Tainted Silence by Carolyn Gray. It is to this day my number one m/m romance. It is a book that stayed with me for days after I read it. And then I reread it. It came out in 2006 and, thankfully, is still in print with LooseID.
TBQ: *makes notes* I’ll definitely have to look into them all!
What was the last book that left you with a book hangover? The last book that made you want to shove it in everyone’s hands?
A.M.: Tough Love by Heidi Cullinan. She’s another auto-buy for me, and I’m behind on a few of her releases, but this one just knocked me on my ass. It’s a very kinky book with a muscle bear dominant and a drag queen submissive, but holy damn. Plus, tears. It’s the third book in her Special Delivery series, and you really should read all three in order, because they are all amazing. But yes, read this too!
TBQ: *makes more notes*
Alright, we've all fallen for a hero (or two, or three, or....ahem). Tell us one hero that you've fallen for—who is he and what drew you to him?
A.M.: I actually had to go do the dishes so I could think about the answer to this question. The hero I came up with is Jamie Donovan. He’s the star of the middle book in a f/m trilogy by Victoria Dahl, called Bad Boys Do. The entire trilogy is funny and sexy, but the thing I remember most and fell for the hardest about Jamie is his sensitive side. His brother and sister see him as a bad boy, party animal, who never takes anything seriously. Just when he thinks he’s able to prove to them that he’s growing up, something happens to ruin that. So he has to work even hard to prove himself, not only to his siblings, but to his heroine.
TBQ: Oh, I love Dahl’s heroes (and her heroines, for that matter) but I haven’t read Bad Boys Do. Yet. Of course I’ll have to bump it up my list, because who doesn’t love a bad boy with a sensitive side?
What's next-- Can you tell us who else is getting a story?
A.M.: Perspectives #2 is The World As He Sees It and this is going to be Tristan’s book. His was a hard point-of-view to get into, because of his disability, but once I figured it out everything went smoothly. His hero is Gabe, who you meet in book one. Oh Gabe. He is one sexy man.
And there will definitely be a third, maybe a fourth, Perspectives book.
TBQ: Gimme. NOW. Please? *begs* *bribes* *stalks*
Speed Round:
Reading a spicy romance novel OR a sweet “my-heart-skips-a-beat” one?
If I’m putting in the effort of reading, it better be spicy. LOL [I like the way you think . . . ]
Hot summer days OR cold winter nights?
Neither. Give me autumn. [Autumn is my favorite, too.]
Where would your dream vacation spot be?
A pretty tropical island where they bring your drink to you and I have a private cabana on the beach.
If you could live in any fictional world, which one would it be?
I think I’d like to live in the Star Wars universe. But not on Naboo. Their clothes are hideous.
Cover Lover OR Blurb Fan?
Cover first. Always. [*nods*]
Steamy Novella OR Sweet Novel? (aka, Quickie or Slow Build Up?)
Steamy novella.
Quick—name the one food that you cannot live without!
Grilled cheese sandwiches! [Great, now I’m hungry . . .]
And finally, tell us 3 unique/wacky/fun things about yourself:
- I collect Funko POP! Vinyl figurines, and my favorite is Groot.
- I once saw Rob Lowe in a movie theater out in California.
- I hate high heels with a passion, and I will only wear comfortable shoes. [I’m certain that a cow can walk in high heels better than I can….]
TheBookQueen: Thanks so much for stopping by, A.M., and please know that you are welcome back anytime!
A.M.: Thank you for having me!!!
TBQ: Do you have any questions for our readers—something to spark a good discussion? :)
A.M.: Well, you kind of asked this one above when you mentioned enticing readers to try m/m romance. So to the blog readers who haven’t tried it, why not? And to those of you who have, what did you like best? What did you not like?
The Truth As He Knows It by A.M. Arthur
Publisher:
Samhain Publishing, Ltd. (February 10, 2015)
Series:
Perspectives, 1
Genre:
New Adult M/M Romance
Lies are the chains that keep you weighed down at rock bottom.
Officer Noel Carlson isn’t out to anyone in small-town Stratton, Pennsylvania, only to distant friends and family, so a relationship is out of the question. That doesn’t stop him from wanting one, though.
When a night-shift call brings him face to thonged butt with a hired stripper whose girl-party gig went terribly wrong, Noel takes pity on the guy and lets him go. But he can’t get the encounter out of his mind.
Shane has big-time debts to repay, especially to the brother who sacrificed nearly everything for him. His two jobs, in a deli and as a stripper, leave him no time for a social life. But a non-date of hot sex and takeout food with Noel? He can squeeze that in.
The bond they form is stronger than either expected or wanted. Especially since the step Shane’s about to take to put his brother—and his soul—back in the black isn’t quite legal. And he never calculated just how much his determination to make things right will cost him in the end.
Warning: Following on from the Cost of Repairs series, this book contains a closeted cop who’s looking for love, an indebted stripper who doesn’t believe he’s worthy, and a tasteful abundance of dirty guy sex. Also contains references to past physical abuse some readers may find disturbing.
Reviews of Arthur's Previous Novels:
No Such Thing (#1) -- TBQ
Stand By You (#3) -- TBQ
The Truth As He Knows It (#1) -- TBQ
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Thanks so much for stopping by A.M.! :) I'm dying for Gabe and Tristan's story!
How about a few of our favorite CBs before we go. Promise, only SFW pics!
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Jake Bass (left) and Dillon Rossi (right)
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According to AM, Dillon's body is a dead ringer for Shane. :D
And I have a serious obsession with Jake . . . but that's a story for another time.
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| Jaxon Radoc (head back) and Tayte Hanson (kissing) |
We're both fans of Tayte. And really who can resist the sexy pic of these two?
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| Ricky Roman (left) and Jake Bass (right) |
And these two? *swoons* Just trust us, ladies! Or, if you dare, check out their scenes.
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| Ricky Roman (top) and Levi Michaels (bottom) |
It may look like a crappy Fifty Shades scene with Levi and Ricky, but trust me, it was most definitely NOT. :)
And one more, to show how nicely the CBs clean up . . . .
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Left to Right:
Max Carter, Lukas Grandde, Levi Karter, Jake Bass, Liam Riley, and Ricky Roman |
If you want to find out why we love CB, AM did a great post recently, specifically about the series Answered Prayers. Don't worry, the post is SFW, the only thing NSFW is if you click on the link for CockyBoys. :)
Remember A.M.'s question for you:
So to the blog readers who haven’t tried m/m romances, why not? And to those of you who have, what did you like best? What did you not like?
Enjoy!
Until Next Time,
*TBQ's Book Palace is a member of both the Amazon and Barnes and Nobles affiliates program. By using the links provided to buy products from either website, I receive a very small percentage of the order. To read my full disclosure on the matter, please see this post!
*TBQ's Book Palace does not claim any of the pictures used above. The ones of CockyBoys belong to CB, the others are all found on Google.
