Quarantine Blog Tour
13 July 2012 – Jon Michaelson

An All-Too-Possible Future
By Lisabet Sarai

I’m delighted to be here at Jon’s blog today. I’ve known him by his stellar reputation for a long time, but I’ve never had the chance to hang out in his corner of the ‘Net. I’m hoping he’ll repay the favor and come be my guest at Beyond Romance some time soon.

Anyway, I’m here to introduce – and celebrate – my new M/M science fiction novel Quarantine. Rafe and Dylan have been huddling at the back of my mind for a number of years, while I worked on other projects. As I watched the rise of religious fundamentalism in the United States and read tale after tale of harassment, bullying and gay-bashing, I thought it was important to tell their story.

Quarantine is set in the Western States of America in the near future (2043 to be exact). Seven years prior to the start of the story, a gay plague spread to heterosexuals, killing millions and sparking brutal anti-gay riots. The Guardians of American Greatness rounded up men who tested positive for the homogene and imprisoned them in remote quarantine centers like desolate Camp Malheur. Dylan Moore has been locked up at Camp Malheur for seven years, nearly a third of his life, and he’ll do anything for freedom. With a genius for electronics, Dylan has hacked the camp’s security systems, seeking some way to escape. He has concluded the human guards are the only weakness in the facility’s defenses.

Camp guard Rafe Cowell is H-negative. He figures the lust he feels watching prisoner 3218 masturbate on the surveillance cameras must be due to his loneliness and isolation. When he finally meets the young queer, he discovers that Dylan is brilliant, brave, sexy as hell – and claims to be in love with Rafe. Despite his qualms, Rafe finds he can’t resist the other man’s charm. By the time Dylan asks for his help in escaping, Rafe cares too much for Dylan to refuse.

Dylan’s plan goes awry and Rafe comes to his rescue. Soon they’re both fugitives, fleeing from militant survivalists, murderous androids, and homophobic ideologues. Hiding in the Plague-ravaged city of Sanfran, Dylan and Rafe learn of an evil plan – a “final solution” – that threatens the millions of lives, not just their own.

The thing about this scenario is – it could happen. It did happen, during World War II – and not just in Nazi Germany (where homosexuals were targeted along with Jews, gypsies and other sub-humans), but in the U.S., too, where the government imprisoned millions of Americans of Japanese descent in facilities very much like my fictional camp in bleak eastern Oregon. Quarantine is a romance, but it’s also an exploration of an all-too-possible future.

I’ve provided a brief excerpt below. This one’s PG, although the book itself is definitely X-rated.
My visit here with Jon is part of my Quarantine blog tour, which will run through the 24th of July. I’ll have a different excerpt at each stop – some of them pretty explicit! For the full schedule for the tour, see my July newsletter: http://www.lisabetsarai.com/news.html

Also, I’m be giving away an ebook to one commenter at each stop on the tour. So please leave a comment – and don’t forget to include your email address so I can contact you! I’ll also be choosing one commenter from the entire tour to win the grand prize – a $50 All Romance Ebooks gift certificate. Meanwhile, all comments at my own blog Beyond Romance (http://lisabetsarai.blogspot.com) during the tour will also go into the drawing for the gift certificate.

Check out the fantastic Quarantine trailer here! And if you’re interested in getting your own copy of Quarantine, just go to Total-E-Bound (http://www.total-e-bound.com/product.asp?P_ID=1725)!

Excerpt

He brought the cycle to a stop some thirty feet beyond the moat and let his lungs empty. He stared back at the ugly bulk of Malheur Camp. The floodlights came on, bathing the ground around the fence in a sickly yellow glare. The barren soil where he stood, outside the range of the lights, was still a featureless grey. Evening deepened as Rafe perched there on the trike, trying to figure out what to do next.

If Dylan had made it past the moat, he’d be on foot. Rafe could easily catch him on the cycle, but only if he knew which direction the boy had taken. Dylan was probably too smart to keep to the road. On the other hand, he’d said he was headed for the city. Rafe guessed he meant Sanfran. Ellay was too far away and since the eruption of 2024, nobody really considered Portland a city anymore.

Southwest, then. If he wanted to find the boy, that’s the way he should head. But maybe he should give up, go back to the camp and admit that they’d all been outsmarted. The Guardians would probably discipline both him and Turk, but what could the higher-ups do, really? Fire them for incompetence?

Rafe gave a bitter laugh. As the sound died away, he thought he heard something else—something like a moan, barely audible but definitely human.

He listened carefully to the quiet night. There it was again—a soft sound of someone in agony, coming from near the bridge.

Dylan! Rafe scrambled off the trike and headed towards the sound, holding his breath once again. He scanned the bank. There! By the edge of the moat, in the shadow of the criss-crossed girders, there was something that looked like a pile of rags. He inched closer, trying to ignore the sting as the toxic vapours attacked his skin. The bundle of cloth stirred and coughed. Rafe rushed over, crouched down and turned the body onto its back. Then he gasped and choked himself as noxious fumes rushed into his throat.

Dylan’s cheeks and brow were peppered with oozing sores. His eyes were swollen shut. His thick tongue protruded between cracked lips. His fingers twitched feebly.

Rafe half-dragged, half-carried the younger man away from the river of poison. He stretched the limp body out on the ground, shielded by the trike. “Dylan!” he cried, as the fresher air filled his chest. “It’s me, baby. Oh God, Dylan!”

Dylan coughed and sputtered. Greenish spittle trickled from his mouth.

“Breathe, kid. Breathe!”

Dylan seemed to hear. His raw lips moved, as though he wanted to say something.

Rafe needed water, to wash the man’s wounds and clean away the chemical residue. He needed anti-bacterial salve and collagen strips and enzyme patches to stimulate healing. Not to mention an oxygen tank to force the poison out of Dylan’s lungs.

That meant civilization, or what passed for it here in the wastelands of Oregon. The closest settlements, though, were at least two hundred miles away.

Rafe lifted Dylan’s body once more and settled it on the seat of the trike. Dylan slumped against the windscreen. Rafe mounted the bike behind the inmate, slipping one arm around his waist for support while steering with the other.

“Rafe?” Dylan’s voice was weak but intelligible. He raised his head then let it flop back onto Rafe’s chest.

“Yeah, it’s me. Just relax, boy. Hang on. I’m going to get you some help.” Rafe started the cycle and turned it towards the ribbon of crumbling asphalt that stretched westward.

The other man leaned against Rafe’s body. “Mmm,” he murmured. “Good.”

Strangely enough, it was good. Despite his worry about Dylan, Rafe felt a kind of contentment as they raced off into the night. The wind was fresh and cool in his face. The motor hummed between his thighs. Dylan’s weight was a welcome reminder that for once, Rafe was not alone.

The cycle ate up the miles. Dylan slept, curled against him. Inside Rafe’s chest, a quiet joy took root and grew stronger. For the first time in years, Rafe felt free.

****

Bio: More than a decade ago LISABET SARAI experienced a serendipitous fusion of her love of writing and her fascination with sex. Since then she has published four single author short story collections and seven erotic novels, including the BDSM classic Raw Silk. Dozens of her shorter works have been released as ebooks and in print anthologies. She has also edited several acclaimed anthologies and is currently responsible for the altruistic erotica series COMING TOGETHER PRESENTS.

Lisabet holds more degrees than anyone needs from prestigious universities who would no doubt be embarrassed by her chosen genre. She loves to travel and currently lives in Southeast Asia with her highly tolerant husband and two cosmopolitan felines. For more information on Lisabet and her writing visit Lisabet Sarai’s Fantasy Factory (http://www.lisabetsarai.com) or her blog Beyond Romance (http://lisabetsarai.blogspot.com).

Ink by Isabelle Rowan

Dominic is tired, old and alone; weary of his existence to the point of withdrawing from any human contact…except to feed.
It’s been a while since he’s had a lover, one that touched him as much as the one from his past. For a reason not entirely clear to the reader, Dominic finds himself watching Ink every night, a tattoo shop emanating smells of blood and sweat that draw him and where he spots Michael, a young tattoo artist that stirs something in the ancient man that he has not enjoyed in a long time – something he has attempted to avoid over the many decades.

Michael is a young tattoo artist at Ink. He’s handsome, witty and insightful, yet somewhat aloof in his youthful grace. When a mysterious and alluring man comes into the tattoo shop one evening as it’s ready to close and asks for a tattoo, Michael quickly volunteers to “ink” the man. He is intrigued by the mysterious, brooding man.

But Dominic – the customer – erases the experience from Michael’s memory. However, Dominic returns several nights later for a tattoo that disappears by the next day.

Michael feels drawn to the mysterious man for reasons he cannot explain, or understand. He stalks Dominic, spying on him, inexplicably drawn to the man – a pull beyond his understanding. But Dominic will have none of Michael. He discourages Michael, even pushes the young man away with powerful impulses of his mind.

Dominic chooses to end his “life”, not wanting to bring any harm Michael. Michael still feels compelled to look for the man he’s feels drawn to, romantically and physically – to seek the man out, to understand his feelings, determine once and for all if there is any possibly of a relationship with Dominic.

Michael locates Dominic and excitement turns to fear as he realizes Dominic is dying, possibly dead. In a desperate attempt to revive the vampire, Michael shares his blood with the man and curls beside him in bed.

Through the first half of the novel, Dominic seems to do everything
he can to push Michael away, but the pull is too strong and soon, Dominic gives into his desires, only to attract the attention of his “maker”.

And all is not well when Dominic’s maker senses a chance to reclaim
his “son”, and interfere with Michael’s newfound love affair – the man’s very existence and that of his close friends, is suddenly in danger.

Ink is a dark, at times gothic, at times mushy, romantic tale of angst, fear and discovery, of an ancient vampire’s loss of hope and desire – a m/m romance with strong characters and plot; the writing is very good, save for a few references to modern pop culture that appeared odd. The novel builds very slow and deliberate until Dominic and Michael are finally joined as lovers, only to meet a fate stronger than either of them could have imagined.

Isabelle Rowan has created a very gratifying m/m love story – and thriller (the part I loved most toward the end!); a novel between opposite men, unlikely lovers – men destined to meet in this lifetime (or perhaps the next.)

The story drags at some points in the beginning, but pushing forth to the thriller portion of the last fifty pages or so are well worth the wait.

A very enjoyable read indeed!



View all my reviews

False Evidence: Murder Most Deadly 1 – blurb

What begins as a cursory glance at the high-rise apartment opposite soon becomes something much darker and far more dangerous. For bored accountant, Kevin Mitchell, lusting after gorgeous, muscular, Tony, in the adjacent building, builds into a life changing obsession. When Tony shows up at Kevin’s apartment, bloody and bruised, Kevin offers him instant refuge…and a place in his bed. However, all is not what it seems, and the police draw a different conclusion in their hunt for a violent killer.

Except:
Kevin’s fantasy drew him in more and more. His days at the office began to drag along and often left him exhausted and miserable by the end of the workday. He stopped going out to lunch with Alice, choosing instead to pack a bite to eat in order to end his day at work earlier. His evenings alone and awake ran on to well after midnight. Sleep, when it came, became fits of restlessness until it was time to get up and head to the office. He spent any spare time he had peering out the windows hoping to catch a glimpse of the stranger across the way, always craving just one more look to satisfy his unquenchable thirst before calling it a night.

Within the week, Kevin had purchased a camera and tripod. Five days later, he added a telephoto lens and other items. Before long, he’d amassed a stellar collection of photographs capturing the imagines of an abstracted, young man in his prime and oblivious to the attention he’d reaped from a neighboring high-rise.

The quest for satisfaction consumed Kevin, he all but ignored his responsibilities at work and at home. His actions became irresponsible, even voyeuristic, and ignited desires that he didn’t know he possessed. His boss expressed dissatisfaction with his tardiness and increasing mistakes, but he made excuses for his lack of focus. Friends calling his home found nothing but an answer machine and returned calls never happened. He even gave Alice the cold shoulder when she voiced concern, but Kevin didn’t care. He slipped deeper and deeper into a compulsion he didn’t see, convinced all the while he could stop the spying on his neighbor at any time.

* * * *
By early May, Kevin had settled into a routine of spying on the man of his dreams, laying out a daily ritual of surveillance that played against a backdrop of reality. He knew when to catch the guy working out with free-weights in his bedroom, sunbathing on the terrace, or even when the dude might pass before the windows after taking a shower.

So it came as somewhat of a shock when the blinds across the street began opening and closing at irregular intervals and the lights in the apartment burned well into the evening hours two nights in a row. Mr. Adonis roamed freely throughout the penthouse, more frequently without a stitch of clothing on his body. Kevin surmised the man’s companion had gone away for a while on a business trip, or perhaps to visit relatives.

Whatever the case, the idea and new-found impudence to introduce himself to the young man prevailed and Kevin took time off work. He cleaned his home from top to bottom and stowed the camera equipment away. He spent the next few days sunning on the terrace, hoping to catch the guy’s attention, moving the floral canopy out of the way to create a clear view. Kevin’s body was lean and tight, but not as muscular as he was tall. More endowed than most, he filled the tiny swimsuit he sported in hopes of catching the stranger’s attention.

On the third day, Kevin finally received the acknowledgement from the man he’d hoped for. A subtle nod, soon led to a flirtatious smile and movement of the man’s mouth, unable to hear his words Kevin smiled and raised his hands palms skyward. The guy pointed down toward the street, an invitation that Kevin accepted with an upright thumb…

Buy now Direct from loveyoudivine:

http://www.tinyurl.com/False-Evidence

Breathless

Breathless

Portrait of an Artist

 The painting was literally like nothing painted on Earth. But can the mystery behind it really save Peter’s relationship?

Please welcome multi-published author and friend, J.M. Snyder as “guest blogger” for the week!

I’m J.M. Snyder, author of gay erotic and romantic fiction. I began in self-publishing, but am now working with e-publishers Amber Allure, Aspen Mountain, and Torquere Presses. My short stories have appeared online at Ruthie’s Club, Tit-Elation, and Amazon Shorts, and in anthologies by Alyson Books, Aspen Mountain Press, and Cleis Press.

 This month, I have four paranormal releases just in time for Halloween.  They are: 

A More Perfect Union

 * A More Perfect Union, published 10/12/08 by Amber Allure Press

http://jmsnyder.net/books/bstates/union.html

 

 Book 3 in Between States a historical paranormal series set during the American Civil War. This is novella is the last story in the series, and all three will be released in a paperback collection in January 2009.

  Once a Yankee soldier, Brance Brenneman has left behind the War Between the States and gone into hiding with his lover, former Confederate Caleb Chilson. Deserters intent on keeping to themselves, they find a nice, sparse acre of land where they can finally settle down. Life falls into domesticated routine for both the brooding Yank and the excitable Rebel. Together they struggle to create a more perfect union forged of love and their shared shapeshifting secret. 

 

But the discovery of another bobcat encroaching on their territory brings out the possessive alley cat in Caleb, eager to defend his home and his mate. Will the newcomer destroy what they’ve worked so hard to attain? Or is there room enough for the three of them deep in the wilderness of Pennsylvania? 

The Arc Position * The Positions of Love Book 11: The Arc Position, published 10/19/08 by Amber Allure Presshttp://vic-and-matt.com/positions/pol-11.html

Book 11 in The Positions of Love, a contemporary series about lovers Vic Braunson and Matt diLorenzo. Every time they make love, Matt inadvertently gives Vic superhuman powers. There are a total of 12 stories in this series, which will be released in a paperback collection in December 2008. *** It’s Halloween, and Matt’s coworker Roxie has invited him to a costume party on that spookiest of nights. He’s afraid he’ll have an uphill battle convincing Vic to tag along, but to his surprise, his lover jumps at the idea. Matt chooses a pair of police uniforms for them to wear, and looks forward to a little sexual role-playing once the party is over. Nothing like a pair of handcuffs and a game of good cop/bad cop to get the blood pumping. A Haunted Love But Roxie calls with a pool emergency an hour before the party starts. Because Vic isn’t in costume yet, Matt goes on ahead alone. When his lover shows up for the party, Matt’s surprised to find he’s not dressed as a cop. Instead, Vic’s latest superhuman power has created a costume of its own, with comic results.

* A Haunted Love, published 10/31/08 by Aspen Mountain Presshttp://jmsnyder.net/books/haunted.html

A Haunted Love

This novelette originally appeared in the e-book anthology, Cupid’s Arrow, also published by Aspen Mountain Press. Nick works as a re-enactor at a Colonial America site. One foggy night he meets David Henry, just about the sexiest man in colonial garb Nick has ever seen. Because Nick’s missed the last bus into town, David invites him to stay the night with him at the colony’s inn. Though there’s definitely a spark between them, David is gone when Nick wakes. When David’s claim of working as an apprentice at the glass shop doesn’t pan out, Nick begins to wonder about the guy he’s met and the ghost stories circulating around the colony, stories he always believed untrue …

* One of Use, published 10/31/08 by Torquere Presshttp://jmsnyder.net/stories/st_oneofus.html

The Sip...

This short story appears in my self-published collection, Shorts, and was also published online at Ruthie’s Club.

 Connor Allen is a young man who sports a nasty bite that seems to grow worse during the full moon. A former classmate, Rand, tells him it’s a werewolf bite. At first Connor thinks he’s joking, but as the moon rises, he finds himself undergoing a painful transformation. Rand knows just how bad it can be the first time a man changes, so he distracts Connor in a way that pleases them both.

For more information on these releases, please visit my website at http://jmsnyder.net or click on the links above.  I host monthly contests to five away free copies of all new releases (http://jmsnyder.net/contest.html), and I give away additional freebies through my Yahoo! group (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/jmsnyder/)

Thank you, Jon, for hosting me today!

Any time, J.M!  Keep keep us informed as the holidays approach…  Thank you for sharing your latest releases with the readers of my blog. 

If you have a question for J.M Snyder, current or past releases, please post then here for response…

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Nex week, I have a very special “treat” for you – or is that a “trick”??

Gremlins are coming…check back next week as Gremlin’s author/graphic cover artist Anastasia Rabiyah chats about her new release, appearing in the print anthology, Gremlins – from loveyoudivine.com