Out Now - Feral Hearts by A.J. Church

RECENT RELEASE

Book Title: Feral Hearts

Author: A.J. Church

Publisher: Nytshadow Publishing

Cover Artist: Gigi at G-Cat Designs

Release Date: July 17, 2026

Tense/POV: First person, dual POV

Genres: Contemporary MM Romance

Tropes: Enemies to lovers, slow burn, hurt/comfort, mutual obsession

Themes: Bisexual awakening, mental health

Length: 129,000 words/565 pages

It is the first book in a standalone series and does not end on a cliffhanger.

Heat Rating: 4 flames

Goodreads

Buy Links - Available in Kindle Unlimited

Amazon US  |  Amazon UK

There’s nothing closer to love than a good hatred.

Blurb

Aubie

I was born with a silver spoon in my mouth, but I’ve never let that stand in the way of my two favorite past times–breaking hearts and disappointing my family. An ardent fan of the smooth line and shallow hookup, I excel at keeping things gliding on the surface. Feelings, when I have them, are reserved for the few I call friends. Until the night I walk into Club Eros and come face to face with Cutter Knight. Tall, dark, and mouthwateringly handsome, he’s also an uptight prick. Doesn’t stop me from wanting to toss all my rules out the window for just one taste.

Cutter

Once upon a time I was the golden boy of my family. Future planned out. Ducks all in a row. Then my idiot brother threw my world into a tailspin. Now I go out of my way to avoid his type, which is why I hate Aubie Gauthier. He’s a spoiled brat with an old money trust fund and a reputation for being a shameless slut. And for some reason he’s set his sights on me. I’m not gay, and even if I was, I wouldn’t be interested in someone like Aubie. Unfortunately, that doesn’t seem to matter to him.

Excerpt from Chapter 1

“FIRST TIME?”

I glance up at the tall hunk standing next to me and shake my head.

“Don’t be nervous,” he says with a smile. “You’ll do fine.”

“Oh, I’m not nervous.” More like excited.

I’ve spent two days working on my routine. The biggest part of that was selecting my outfit. I chose a charcoal gray velvet jacket, sheer black shirt, slinky black silk pants and dance slippers. I kept my makeup to just some eyeliner and a little shadow. I’m going for a debaucherous lord of the manor aesthetic. I picked out my music–Parked Outside by the Afghan Whigs–and threw it on a thumbdrive for the DJ, then loaded everything in a suit bag.

I stand when the stage manager calls my name and head through the short hallway to the front of the house. From the moment I stroll onto the stage and my music starts to play, I know I’m home. The mechanics of taking off my clothes are secondary to having all those eyes watching me undress, knowing that I’ll soon be naked in front of them. I nearly come before the first article of clothing hits the floor.

After dancing provocatively for half a minute, I unbutton the jacket and flash my chest under the sheer black shirt while sliding the fingers of one hand into my mouth and sucking each one dry. When I’ve got their attention, I start to lose clothing. Jacket first. One shoulder at a time. Once it’s gone, I run my fingers down the front of the shirt, unbuttoning as I go. I dance like that for a chorus with my best bedroom eyes, daring the audience to look away.

You don’t want to miss this.

My hand slides down inside my waistband, making a show of cupping my stiffening cock before pulling on the drawstring to untie my pants. I bite my lip and offer a naughty grin as I let go of the string. The silky fabric slides down my legs to pool at my feet.

I step out of them and strut over to the pole, arching my back and tangling my hands above my head as I start to writhe my back against it. The shirt slides off my shoulders and I let it drop to the floor, leaving me in nothing but the sheer thong. The flimsy garment barely contains my straining cock.

I caress myself while I dance, lost in the music.

Lost in the moment.

The sexual tension in the room is exquisite. Like a bow string being pulled taut. The music vibrates against me and I grind my hips to its beat, letting my mouth drop open to rim my lips with a teasing tongue. Come taste me, my eyes say.

I can feel it. They’re hungry for me.

For me.

Let’s give them what they want. I slide my hands down my chest to fondle my nipples, causing my cock to noticeably twitch. At this rate I’ll be making a mess on this stage. I move my hands down to my hips then turn away and rotate my hips, humping the air. Wishing I had a warm body to fuck right now. I can at least make them think I do.

I slide my fingers under the thin straps of the thong and bend over to slowly roll it down my legs, baring my hole. I look over my shoulder to get their response.

Now this is addictive. All those eyes, all this bare flesh. How could they possibly not want me?

I turn to face my admirers, finally free to prowl the stage completely naked.

And prowl I do, vacillating between bold, come hither looks and coy smiles with just enough of my inner slut to make my moves seductively feline. I know I hit the sweet spot when people start squirming in their seats. One man in the front row yells, “Oh honey, let me help you with that,” when I slide my finger over the head of my cock and bring it to my nose. I take a deep whiff before plunging the finger between my lips and moaning.

Damn, I’m turning myself on.

About the Author 

Growing up a military brat meant I was always the new kid in school, so my friends were often the characters I found in the books I read and later wrote. I love dreaming up bad boys and the trouble they can get into, and lucky for them, I’m a sucker for a well-earned happily ever after. Or at least a happily for now.

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The Dark Before Dawn by Thom Collins

NEW RELEASE

Book Title: The Dark Before Dawn

Author: Thom Collins 

Publisher: Entwined Publishing

Cover Artist: Kelly Martin

Release Date: July 7, 2026

Tense/POV: Third person

Genres: Contemporary MM Romance, Mystery/suspense/thriller

Tropes: Friends to lovers, cop, stalker

Length: 68 500 words

Heat Rating: 4 flames

It is a standalone story that is part of a wider series 

(book four in the Basic Instincts series) 

and does not end on a cliffhanger.

Goodreads 

Buy Links

Universal Link   |  First For Romance 

A brutal killer. An unwitting witness. A cop caught in the middle of a deadly pursuit.

Blurb

A brutal killer. An unwitting witness. A cop caught in the middle of a deadly pursuit.

Jude Kalvert is glad to be back in his home city and playing gigs around his favourite bars. Blyham is a dangerous place, and things seem only to have got worse in the time he’s been away. It’s not safe to be out alone at night, but when Jude runs into an old school friend after one of his shows, things don’t appear so bad after all.

Danyal Nadir has changed a lot since they knew each other. He’s a cop for one thing, newly appointed to act as liaison between the police and the LGBTQ+ community. And he’s come a long way from the shy, bullied kid Jude remembers from school. The adult Danyal is strong, confident and very attractive. Both men jump at the chance to get reacquainted.

But that first night is not as safe as it appears. Jude discovers that he’s one of the last people to have seen a murder victim alive. Soon the killer has Jude and Danyal in his sights. On the run and desperate, there’s no limit to what he’ll do. As their friendship turns to passion, their new beginning could be the end of them.

Reader advisory: This book contains scenes of violence, gore and murder, as well as homophobia and racial slurs.

Excerpt 

The police officer was incredibly good looking. He appeared mixed race, maybe of South Asian heritage with a strong, stubbled jaw and cleft chin. The body beneath the dark uniform was finely shaped. He could almost be a stripper in a cop costume rather than the real thing.

But Jude knew better than to be distracted by a hot guy and maintained his guard.

The cops’ eyes narrowed as he came nearer.

“Jude?” he asked. “Jude Kalvert?” His accent was a blend of light Scottish with a strong inflection of North East England. “Jude Kalvert? It is you, right?”

There was something familiar that Jude couldn't quite place. Maybe they had met on a cruise sometime. He saw hundreds of new faces each week, and it wasn't always easy to remember them.

“Yes,” he said. The man seemed friendly enough, but he was still wary of the uniform.

The serious cop face was transformed by a beautiful smile. “I thought I recognised you. It's Danyal Nadir. I don't know if you remember me. We were at school together.”

Jude had hated school. As the only openly gay kid in his year, the school years had been a misery of bullying, slurs and abuse. He hadn't kept in touch with a single pupil from those days. Whenever anyone reached out to him on social media, he rejected the friend request. Twelve years since he last sat in a classroom, the trauma was still too raw.

Danyal Nadir. That name did ring a bell though.

He dug into his memory. Yes. A skinny kid who had transferred into his class when he had been around ten years old. They had never been friends but had bonded in a strange way because they were tormented by many of the same bullies. Jude for his odd looks, interest in theatre and later for his open sexuality. Danyal, for his mixed heritage- his mother was white-Scottish and his father Indian- and what was considered a strange accent. 

Jesus, that school was a fucking cesspit. He prickled at the memory.

“Oh my God,” Jude said. He had to work hard to see anything of that timid kid in this strapping policeman. And yet it was there. In his eyes. And in the rare time he'd seen Danyal smile at school – the smile was the same. “You've changed so much.”

And you’re gorgeous.

A shy chuckle and Danyal’s eyes looked Jude over too, taking him all in. “So have you, but somehow I recognised you. When I saw you get out of the car, I was almost certain it was you.”

Jude felt a warmth spread over his face. Danyal was making him nervous. Not in the intimidating cop way he'd initially expected, but in the hot and bothered want-to-get-into-his-pants way. But no chance. This was Danyal Nadir. The wee kid from Blyham High.

“I didn't know you became a police officer.” Stupid comment. There was no reason he would. They hadn't seen each other in years.

“It's been a decade now. How about you? What are you up to?”

“I'm a singer. Just finished a gig tonight. I'm about to get some food before heading home.” Old acquaintance or not, he was not about to admit to his plan of visiting The Viaduct.

Danyal checked his watch. “Mind if I join you for ten minutes? I'm due a break and I'm parched.”

It was Jude's turn to smile widely. “I'd love it. I'm just heading around the corner.”

About the Author 

Thom Collins is the author of the Jagged Shores series and the Anthem Trilogy as well as numerous standalone novels and novellas. 

His latest series Basic Instincts launched in spring 2025 with the novel Now Comes the Dark.

Thom has lived in the North East of England his whole life. He grew up in Northumberland and now lives in County Durham with his husband and two cats. He loves all kinds of genre fiction, especially bonk-busters, thrillers, romance and horror. He is also a cookery book addict with far too many titles cluttering his shelves. When not writing he can be found in the kitchen trying out new recipes. He’s a keen traveler but with a fear of flying that gets worse with age, but in 2013 he realized cruising is the best way to see the world.

Check out his website for news updates and a free ebook The Night.

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