Etienne .'s Blog

 This has been a highly successful book, and deservedly so, but there are problems. Is there anyone who does not know that it is the story of a romance between Prince Henry of the UK and Alex Claremont-Diaz, son of the first female US President?

Let's start with the problems (cons, if you will).

The three main characters in the White House--Alex, his sister June, and Mona, the grand-daughter of the Vice-President--are all in their early twenties.  Alex is in fact, 21 when the story begins, and it is I think, 2020,   Alex listens to records.  Really?  I realize that Barnes and Noble has been plugging  a comeback of vinyl for quite some time, now, but I don't see the early twenties crowd abandoning their Walkmen and other CD devices.

Alex often refers to himself as having been a working-class kid, but that is nonsense.  No child, both of whose parents are lawyers later turned politicians, can possibly be considered as working class.

Prince Henry fights any relationship because he considers himself married to the monarchy.  He says "My brother Philip is the heir and I'm the spare."   That, too, is nonsense.  Henry's widowed mother, the queen's daughter, would be the heir; his older brother second in line; his older sister third in line; and he, Henry, fourth in line for the throne and therefore hardly indispensable.

Those objections aside, the story proceeds very well from their first public appearance to their outing, to their final reconciliation with reality.

 

 I'll give this charming little film 8 out of 10 stars.

Redwoods (2009)

An unfulfilled gay man in a stagnant relationship finds his life changed forever when he meets a struggling writer visiting the Redwoods Country.

Matthew Montgomery is in his usual good form as the struggling writer.

Click on this for a link to IMDB 

Redwoods

 

 

 I have entered into a partnership publishing agreement with JMS Books, LLC, and my books will begin to become available on their site.
The First release is  Bottoms Up, and is now available from:

https://www.jms-books.com/

SURVEY How Do You DecideWhat Book to Purchase

A:  Do you search particular categories on Amazon and other sites?
B:  Rely on recommendations from friends and colleagues?
C:  See advertisements?
D:  Other___________________________________________

You may answer by commenting on the blog, or by sending an e-mail to:

etienne.reynard@comcast.net

Thank you.

 

  

 My first novel  The Path to Forever  was published in November 2010

To celebrate its 10th Anniversary, I am offering a 50% off sale of all my books.  Use the coupon code XN53W at Smashwords.Com through the end of 2020 and received a 50% discount on all books.

Inspector Vivaldi Mysteries is a short series with only six episodes, but they are both well written and well presented. Inspector Vivaldi is with the Triest police department.  Triest is a city on the northeast coast ot Italy. Inspector Vivaldi is estranged from his wife ( they live apart, but are not divorced).  He has a son, Stefano Vivaldi, who is also a policeman on the force.   Inspector Vivaldi is having a hard time coming to terms with the fact that his son is gay.  Stefano Vivaldi has a putative girlfriend/fianee, and a boyfriend who is a doctor at a local hospital.  Stefano is having difficulty dealing with the fact that he is gay. All in all, a series that is well worth your time.   

If you're staying at home a lot during the current crisis, you're probably spending more time in front of the television screen.

My partner and I sit down every evening around nine or so, and watch a movie or an episode from a series.

If you like mysteries, don’t overlook the British series “Vera.”  It is well written, well acted, and is now in its 10th season.  That sounds bigger than it is, because there are only four episodes per season.

Vera Stanhope is short, plump, and fiftysomething.  She cares nothing about fashion, and usually wears a trench coat over a shapeless dress.  She is also a DCI (Detective Chief Inspector) with the Northumbria and City Police.  Northumbria is a county in the extreme northeast corner of England.  It butts up against Scotland on the north, and the North Sea on the east.  It’s not a place that I would care to live, as all the scenes of the countryside and seacoast look rather bleak and foreboding.  Not to mention the fact that the average high temperatures in Jul and August are only in the mid-sixties.  Her force serves the county, and the nearby city of Newcastle.

She has a staff of half a dozen or so officers, and is always accompanied by her right-hand-man, DS (Detective Sergeant) Healy, a young man probably half her age.  She regularly calls people “pet” or “love” (as in, “we’re here to help you, pet”).  She treats her staff like family, and has regular flashes of intuition that help her solve cases.

The only problem we can find with the program is the fault of the BBC, who a few years ago began to require that all British programs emphasize diversity at the expense of reality.  Thus, you find an unusually large number of mixed-race couples in some remote corners of England.  It doesn’t work, because it defies logic.

In any case, if you like the mystery genre, you will like Vera.

Masters of Time and Space(Dawn of Adventure)
Thomas Hadley’s life is changed forever in this campy, fun, and sexy sci-fi fantasy.
When handsome man from the future Captain Reginald P. Barrington lands his spaceship in back of a farmhouse he meets the love of his life—Thomas. And Reginald doesn’t think twice about whisking the handsome Thomas away for an exciting adventure through time and space. But danger awaits the new twosome in corners of the universe Thomas never even knew existed.Now available on Amazon.Com and Smashwords.Comhttps://www.amazon.com/dp/B0871M9P94/

https://www.smashwords.com/books/view...

Just Friends is a sweet story about two young men in Holland.  They have different backgrounds, but they also have overbearing mothers in common.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt7901640/

Joris, the principal character, is played by Josha Stradowski, a 6'2" actor from the Netherlands.  His only defect, as far as I can see, is that he doesn't have much of a butt.   His love interest, Yad, is played by Majd Mardo.

When looking for gay films on streaming services, it is difficult to find really well done films, but this one wins the prize, and I give it four out of five stars.












Stradowski has been case as  the lead character in the upcoming tv series, Wheel of Time, which is based on the best-selling fantasy series by Robert Jordan.

This film from 2013 is most unusual.

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt2852458/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1

The main character (Franck) spends a lot of time driving to a remote lake that is also a gay cruising spot.  Lots of nudity and sex going on.  He meets and falls in love with Michel, who he soon learns is not quite a law-abiding citizen.  In spite of what he knows, he keeps coming back for more.

This film is not for everyone, but is interesting, and not just for the eye candy.  Unfortunately, if you are (like myself) an ass man, none of the characters have interesting butts. The ending is more than a bit ambiguous.

I'll give it 8 out of ten stars.