Author Name: Karen Stivali
Book Name: Moment of Silence
Series: Moments In Time
This book is a 'Moments in Time Novel'. It
takes place in the same world, but can be read separately.
Release
Date: December 18, 2015
Blurb:
Growing up, Jason Stern led a
charmed life complete with devoted sisters, a father who was one of Brooklyn’s
most respected rabbis, and a mother who made the world's best babka. He headed
to NYU ready for anything—except falling for the wrong guy, coming out, and
getting disowned by his once-loving family. In spite of that, Jason managed to
graduate with honors. He's got friends who treat him like family, and he's
proudly running the largest LGBTQ teen shelter in Manhattan. Life is good, but
he's still falling for the wrong men.
When charming, sexy Quinn Fitzpatrick begins
work at the shelter, Jason falls hard and fast. Quinn is tall, blond,
funny—damn near perfect. Only if Quinn’s gay, even he doesn't seem to know it.
If he does, he's not telling anyone. And he's about one ceremony away from
becoming a Catholic priest.
Long hours of work turn to long nights of
talking and laughter, and Jason dares to hope this time he's falling for the
right guy. But Quinn's got a past to deal with and major decisions to make
about his future. When Quinn leaves for a silent retreat, Jason knows the
silence may change everything.
Pages or Words: 76,000 words
Categories: Contemporary, M/M Romance
Excerpt:
Pierogi were just what the evening required. We got
two orders, potato with fried onions, and cheese doused in butter. To round
things out, we added a gigantic link of kielbasa and finished it all off with
blueberry blintzes. By the time we were done eating, I was so full I could
barely move.
“This was awesome.” Quinn licked a purple streak of
blueberry off his fork before setting it down and pushing his plate away.
I was too mesmerized by the sight of his tongue to
speak right away.
The waitress stopped at our booth. “All set?”
“Yeah, thanks.”
She placed the paper check between us, and Quinn
reached for it, but I grabbed it first. “I’ve got this one. Make up for the
popcorn you gave away.”
“You don’t have to do that.” He pulled out his wallet
and put a twenty on the table.
“You can’t let anyone do anything for you, can you?”
Quinn’s eyes bugged, then softened. “Yeah, I guess I
do have a problem with that sometimes.”
“Sometimes?”
“Okay, most of the time.”
“You know what they say. The first step is admitting
you have a problem. And the second is letting me pay for dinner.” I stuck the
check and enough money for the meal and tip under the glass sugar shaker, then
grabbed Quinn’s twenty, folded it in half, leaned over, and tucked it into his
shirt pocket.
My fingers were in the pocket before I fully realized
what I was doing. Then the whole universe condensed into the drag of my fingers
on that two-inch-square area of his chest. His rock-solid chest that tightened
the instant I made contact. My own chest froze, devoid of air. I’d forgotten
how to breathe. All I could do was think about the fact that I had my hand on
this man who’d consumed my waking and sleeping hours for weeks. And I had to
let go. Literally.
I pulled my hand away, trying to turn the rush of
breath that returned to my lungs into something resembling a laugh. “Ready to
get out of here?”
Quinn nodded.
Shit.
He’s silent again. Did he notice that moment of fantasy lust I just played out?
What the fuck is wrong with me? Way to make him uncomfortable. Fuck—My
monologue of self-criticism was interrupted by his hand on my shoulder.
His hand was probably a normal temperature, but given
the heat it generated in my body, he might as well have been the Human Torch . Great. I’m not only in love with a straight
priest, he’s also a superhero.
Quinn chuckled, and for a second I worried I’d said my
crazy thoughts out loud. My face flushed to match the heat that coursed through
the rest of me. “What?”
He handed me my keys. “You left these on the table.”
“Oh.” I took them, heat flaring through me in another
rush when his fingers brushed mine as he placed the keyring in my hand.
“Thanks. Geez. That would have sucked if I’d left those here.”
“Yeah.”
My phone buzzed in my pocket, and I nearly tripped
over the step as we left the restaurant. It was a text from Campbell. I
laughed. “Apparently my roommate’s having an orange juice crisis, as in we’re
out of orange juice. I need to stop at the bodega on the way home. I feel like
we’re married sometimes. In a weird, sexless way.” Stop talking. Now.
“It’s good you get along so well.”
I gestured to the store on the next corner. “You need
anything?”
“Nah. I’m too full to even think about eating or
drinking anything.”
“The power of the pierogi.”
He grinned. “See you tomorrow?”
“Get some sleep. Tomorrow we’ll work on those shelves.
Unless you think we need to run the math one more time.”
“Just triple-checking your skills.” The teasing sound
in his voice made me want to stay on that corner and talk to him all night.
Anything to keep hold of the pleasant hum that was vibrating through my body.
But then he turned away, heading toward his place, hand in the air in a
backward wave of sorts. “Good night.”
It was indeed. “Night.”
This was my first book by author Karen Stivali and let me tell you it blew me away! I will definitely be back for more!See My Full review at Gay Book Reviews
“Almost-priest. He hasn’t taken his vows yet. The hopeful thoughts popped into my head” That was the sentence that had me saying, What? Yes, forbidden love has a way of making me devour a book to see will these two find a way to be together or do we have a modern day Romeo and Romeo situation going on? Let me tell you the author makes you wait until the very end to let you know if there will be a happily ever after – but the story is so worth it! I immediately fell in love with Jason as a MC and his inner thoughts, he is such as deep and emotional character the author really went above and beyond creating him and allowing the readers into his head. Quinn, he is also an amazing MC and although we are not allowed into his head he says enough out loud to let the readers know exactly where is his mind is.
I refuse to give anything away in my review because this book is so good you all must read it! I will say its full of hot as hell action, the chemistry between this “almost” priest and scorned Jewish man is off the charts! This is just the perfect story.
One of my favorite moments is this interaction between Quinn and Jason:
“Tell me exactly what you’ve thought about. Tell me what you want.” “I want to lube you up and fuck you like the world is ending.”I highly recommend this book! ~Jaime
Buy the book:
About the author:
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: [insert contact info here]
Where to find the author:
Twitter: https://twitter.com/karenstivali
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/karenstivali
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/karenstivali/
Blog: http://karenstivali.com
Facebook Author Page: https://www.facebook.com/KarenStivaliAuthor?ref=aymt_homepage_panel
Goodreads
Link: https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5170527.Karen_Stivali
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Cover
Artist: Anna Sikorska
Tour Dates & Stops:
14-Jan: Hearts on Fire
15-Jan: My Fiction Nook
21-Jan: Love Bytes, Bonkers About
Books
28-Jan: Alpha Book Club, MM Good Book
Reviews
11-Feb: KathyMac Reviews, Prism Book
Alliance
Rafflecopter
Prize: eBook copy of the Moments in Time series
