Review, Guest Post and Giveaway: Bad Dogs and Drag Queens by Juliey Lynn Hayes (Rose and Thorne Book 1)

Blurb:
Vinnie Delarosa and Ethan Thorne are partners—on and off the clock. Federal undercover detectives, they’re part of a covert task force designed to promote goodwill between the feds and local authorities. They lend an unobtrusive helping hand wherever it’s needed. No credit required.

Vinnie and Ethan work primarily in the Southeast region of the United States and live together in Richmond, Virginia. A mugger problem brings them to Roanoke, where Vinnie is thrown out as bait to catch the man who’s been snatching purses in a city park, but they end up with more than they bargained for. Why is Vinnie always the one who has to wear the dress? Ethan says it’s because Vinnie looks much prettier in a skirt. How can he argue with that?

Expecting to return to Richmond afterward, Vinnie and Ethan find themselves assigned a new case instead. They are to go undercover at The Stroll, one of the biggest gay nightclubs in Roanoke. Someone is terrorizing both the customers and the performers. Could they be dealing with a hate crime? Someone has to protect the drag queens of Roanoke, so it’s Vinnie and Ethan to the rescue!

The author is donating 10% of the royalties from this book to No Kid Hungry. Visit nokidhungry.org for more information about this organization.

Where To Buy:
Dreamspinner Press || ARe || Amazon

Review:
This was such a fun story. I really enjoyed the characters and the story telling. Vinnie and Ethan were wonderful together. I loved how Ms. Hayes took them as an established couple but was able to have them grow as a couple throughout the book. No matter how long you’ve been together there’s always growing to do. Plus Vinnie is so funny and a great character to have be the first person point of view from. I found myself laughing my way through the story.
I loved Ethan. The way he cares for and almost worships Vinnie is beautiful. I wanted to get to know him more and find out more of his background. However from the context and being in Vinnie’s head, it seems there are things even Vinnie doesn’t know despite their being together for five years. I liked how Ethan wasn’t ashamed of who he is and what he likes. He owns his love for Vinnie and his enjoyment of Vinnie in dresses, pantyhose and heels. Ethan also is a character that you can’t help but adore because of his confidence.
Vinnie is a total sweetie even if he’s a little over the top at times. I liked how he wasn’t ever going to take crap from anyone for any reason. Yet he loves Ethan with his whole being and would absolutely do anything for Ethan and ensures he was happy no matter what. That devotion came through clearly as I read.
These two together are amazing. I want more from these two. I loved how they support each other and have each other’s backs no matter what. I can’t wait for more in this series because these characters were so much fun.
Stars:
Four and a half

Guest Post:
I’m very excited to have Vinnie join us today. He stops by to talk about heroes. I like his basic definition of who a hero is and love that he found one of his own. Read and enjoy!
I’ve never really had heroes, not in real life. In books, I admired men like Robin Hood, who looked out for people less fortunate, and tried to help everyone he could. I guess maybe because I wanted a real Robin Hood to come along and help my mom take care of us. But then I met Ethan Thorne. And maybe I didn’t realize it at first, because I didn’t like him much to begin with, but he became my hero. For many reasons.

He’s brave and strong, and he’s honest. Like Robin Hood, he protects people, whether he knows them or not. He doesn’t tolerate injustice. And he doesn’t get angry or overly excited, but keeps his head.

I admire Ethan more than I can ever say.

Excerpt:
“Remind me again whose stupid idea this lipstick was,” I huffed under my breath. Without thinking, I licked my lips. They felt greasy, and tasted even worse. I forced myself not to grimace, afraid it might crack the foundation I’d slathered on my face.

“Mine, you sexy beast,” came the smart-ass reply in my ear. “I think you got purty lips, mmhmmm.”

“Fuck you,” I growled. “You should be doing this, not me, and you know it. I did it last time.”

And the time before that. And the time before that. Wait, did I detect a pattern here?

“What I know is you look better in a skirt than I do. And you look damn good out of it too.”

My cheeks filled with heat at Ethan’s words. Luckily the darkness hid a multitude of sins, my embarrassment being the least of them. Hopefully, no one else was listening—I knew I’d never hear the end of it. Just what I needed—to be the object of ridicule of the Roanoke PD.

About Julie:
Julie Lynn Hayes first began publishing short stories and poetry in the 1990’s, when it was a different ballgame altogether, and Ebooks hadn’t been dreamed of yet. That changed in 2010 with the acceptance of her first romance novel. She’s come a long way since that first book appeared, and is finding the journey a very educational one.

She lives in St. Louis with her daughter Sarah and her cat Ramesses. She often writes of two men finding true love and happiness in one another’s arms, and is a great believer in the happily ever after. She likes to write in different genres, to stretch herself in order to see what is possible. Her great challenge is to be told something can’t be done—she feels compelled to do it.

When she isn’t writing, she enjoys crafts, such as crocheting and cross stitch,  needlepoint and knitting, and she loves to cook, spending time watching the Food Network. Her favorite chef is Geoffrey Zakarian. Her family thinks she’s a bit off, but she doesn’t mind. Marching to the beat of one’s own drummer is a good thing, after all. Her published works can be found at Dreamspinner Press, eXtasy Books, and Wayward Ink Press.

Author Contact:
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/julie.l.hayes.7
Facebook Author Page: https://www.facebook.com/authorjulielhayes
Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/ShelleyRunyon
Blog: http://julielynnhayes.blogspot.com
Goodreads: : http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/3442231.Julie_Lynn_Hayes

Tour Stops:
23-May: Open Skye Book Reviews, My Fiction Nook, Multitasking Mommas
24-May: Velvet Panic, Nephy Hart, Louise Lyons
25-May: Happily Ever Chapter, Books A to Z, The Novel Approach
26-May: Parker Williams, Man2ManTastic, Scattered Thoughts & Rogue Words
27-May: Divine Magazine, A.M. Leibowitz
30-May: Jessie G. Books, Inked Rainbow Reads, Wake Up Your Wild Side
31-May: Outrageous Heroes, Bayou Book Junkie
1-Jun: Hearts on Fire, Nautical Star Books, Prism Book Alliance
2-Jun: Rednecks and Romance, MM Book Escape
3-Jun: Emotion In Motion, Bonkers About Books
6-Jun: Anna Butler Fiction
7-Jun: MM Good Book Reviews
8-Jun: The Fuzzy, Fluffy World of Chris T. Kat
9-Jun: Unquietly Me
10-Jun: BFD Book Blog
13-Jun: Wicked Faerie’s Tales and Reviews
14-Jun: Molly Lolly
15-Jun: Love Bytes
16-Jun: Havan Fellows
17-Jun: Alpha Book Club, Elisa – My Reviews and Ramblings

Giveaway:
a Rafflecopter giveaway

Blog Giveaway:
For the entire month of June, all comments will be one entry into a paperback giveaway. One lucky winner will receive a paperback copy of both Unstable Stud by Ariel Tachna andForgive and Forget by Charlie Cochet. Contest is open to everyone, each comment is one entry, contest ends June 30 11:59PM. Winner must provide their mailing address within one week of contest close or a new winner will be selected.

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