Love in Unexpected Place

by R.S. McKenzie

Get swept away in the magic of finding love in unexpected places. Whether it's dinosaur shifters, omegaverse, mafia or fake dating, this stories take you on a wild ride that leads to scorching hot and sweet happily-ever-afters. Find heat, swoon, and steam between these book pages.

Genres: Anthologies, M M Romance

352 pages, Kindle Edition

Published April 18, 2025

Reviews

[Brooke · Rating 3 out of 5]

⭐️ 3 stars ⭐️

A collection of short stories. From demons to dinosaur shifters, your best friend’s dad and some fake dating, love can find you in the most unexpected places.

I have a problem with anthologies. I actually hate them. All the stories are way too short to be anything more than fine, and mostly they are completely forgettable.

So yes, these stories were cute and sexy and could very well turn into an awesome full-length novel, but they were unmemorable. By the time I got to the last story I’ve already forgotten what the first one was about.

I liked Caught In The Rain the most, even though it was more of an erotica short, and I liked the idea of Hear My Plea , but the rest were pretty meh.
I need to stop trying out anthologies, they are clearly not for me.

I received a copy of this book from Gay Romance Reviews, and this is my honest review.

[Dani (Daniiireads) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love in Unexpected Places was a super cute anthology by RS McKenzie, which featured a few stories I’d read in other anthos and a couple I hadn’t!

These were my favorites:
𝑩𝒂𝒏𝒈𝒆𝒓𝒔
Tropes: age gap, best friend’s dad, secret relationship
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice: 🌶️🌶️

A game of truth or dare has Derek hooking up with a hot older man at a club, only to find out the guy he blew is his best friend’s dad!

𝑹𝒖𝒏 𝑨𝒏𝒈𝒆𝒍 𝑴𝒊𝒏𝒆
Tropes: ABO, kidnapping, primal play, biting, non/dubcon
Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Spice: 🌶️🌶️🌶️

On Game Night, Alphas can do as they please with no repercussions, and Aldric has his sights set on Jude, his omega assistant.

[Kate · Rating 4 out of 5]

**********Contains Spoilers**********

I’ve been a fan of RS McKenzie’s for awhile now and have really enjoyed everything of theirs that I’ve read and this anthology of six steamy MM short stories of finding love in unexpected places is no different. All these stories were featured in different anthologies but are now available for purchase in this collection. If I had to pick a favourite it would be Getting It Right as I thought Cal & Hud were adorably perfect for each other. I’m looking forward to reading more books by RS McKenzie in the future. I’d definitely recommend this anthology and author to others.

******I received a complimentary copy of this book through GRR. I would still happily review this book even if I purchased it myself. My thoughts and feelings about this book are completely unbiased******

[Denise GremoryKohta · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was amazing!

I love anthologies and this one is by the same author. Having all the stories be by one author is so cool. I’m excited to see the different types of stories.
Grow A Spinosaurus was awesome. I love the Dino shifter idea. I enjoyed August and Dante getting to know each other. They are both so sweet.
Getting It Right is the next story we get. Callum and Hudson are so adorable. I love how they got together. Rachel is a blast. In fact I liked all the characters except for Henry.
I do love a one word title. Bangers is next and now I want to know the reason for that title. Normally this isn’t one of my favorite tropes but this one hit perfectly. I loved it from start to finish.
I love this one’s title. Caught In the Rain sounds like fun. This one is super steamy. I like how the mafia part was mentioned but didn’t overshadow the story.
Now we come to Hear My Plea. This one is darker but has an HEA. We even find out about Tara who I was really concerned about.
Run Angel, Mine has me wondering just by the title. WOW now that’s an ABO story. It was exciting and dangerous with a lot of heat and just the right amount of sweetness.
There was a great mix in these six stories. I really enjoyed it and would like to see this author and others offer up something like this again.

[read•me•romance · Rating 5 out of 5]

🔥🌧️Caught in the Rain🌧️🔥
Love in Unexpected Places Anthology by RS McKenzie

I said it once and I’ll say it again! I love an anthology! Pro tip- pick up an anthology and come back to it every time you want a short and steamy novella!!

The short story, Caught in the Rain, in the Love in Unexpected Places Anthology by RS McKenzie is about 40 pages of steamy, insta love, Daddy goodness!! It’s a high heat night between a Mafia boss and the go-go dancer he auditions! It’s everything you want in a short, steamy, Daddy story! Enjoy!

🌧️ MM Daddy Short and Steamy Romance
🔥 Mafia Boss, Go go Dancer
🌧️ Boy in Need, Daddy to the Rescue
🔥 Age Gap, fast burn, high heat
🌧️ A Collection of Six Short Stories

🔥 tags:
Strict Top/ Bottom
Dominant Daddy
Bratty boy
Sp 🍑 nk
Cry, tears
O control
B• nd•ge
Sensory ply, gloves
Beg, needy
Edg ng
Daddy dirty talk
Size Queen
Objectification
Br 33 d
Hands free o
C-m play
🍑 worship


Official Description:
Get swept away in the magic of finding love in unexpected places. Whether it's dinosaur shifters, omegaverse, mafia or fake dating, these stories take you on a wild ride that leads to scorching hot and sweet happily-ever-afters. Find heat, swoon, and steam between these book pages.

Link: https://a.co/d/gIqSvSR

💋 @read.me.romance

#bookstagram #mmbookstagram #mmromance

[DeniReadsMostlyMM · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5 stars

***ARC Review***

This is my honest and voluntary review for the ARC I received.

I love a good anthology and this is definitely up there. RS McKenzie weaves tales that are varied and compelling. Ranging from genres such as mafia (Caught in the Rain) to omegaverse (Run Angel Mine), fake dating (Getting it Right) to dinosaur shifters (Grow a Spinosaurus), best friend’s dad (Bangers) to fated mates (Hear My Plea), each of McKenzie’s stories significantly highlight her versatile writing style. These six stories feature spice, sweetness, twists, and kinks that will keep you captivated as you turn each page. Each pairing has tremendous chemistry and they work really well together.

While I enjoyed each story, respectively, “Run Angel Mine” is one of my favorites from this anthology. This is the first omegaverse story that I have read. Aldric and Jude are an alpha and omega that work in the same office. The boss/employee trope also comes into play here, since Jude works for Aldric. Aldric is obsessed with Jude’s scent and when the implants turn off for Game Night, all bets are off. This story features delicious primal play and some other things that you might want to check the trigger warnings on. I was captivated from start to finish and I would definitely read a full length novel of this genre - if RS McKenzie wrote it.

[... · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked this up excited for some bite-sized stories by an author who... sometimes works for me, LOL. It turned out not really to be my thing (as shown below) but I still collections of shorts like this for those times I just want a quickie 🤣

--------------------------

👍 Grow a Spinosaurus ---
I started reading this one and realized I'd read it before in another anthology. I actually remember enjoying it there. Just not enough to make it past the first chapter for this re-read 🤷‍♀️

⭕ Getting It Right ---
No rating/didn't read. The blurb frankly sounded boring to me.

⭕ Bangers ---
No rating/didn't read. I do appreciate the blurbs before each story, if only to save me, LOL. This one simply didn't sound like my jam.

⭕ Caught in the Rain ---
No rating/didn't read. I vaguely remember skipping this one once before, when it was published in a previous multi-author anthology, and skipped again because the blurb definitely didn't sound like my jam.

👍 Hear My Plea ⭐⭐⭐⭐
3.5 stars. The one and only that I actually read! 🤣🤣🤣 And it was fun, so I'm not mad at all about picking up the whole thing (especially since I read through KU).

⭕ Run, Angel Mine ---
No rating/didn't read. Again, I super appreciate the author including blurbs. This one didn't interest me, so it saved me some time! 😊

[Anne Harris · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great collection of short stories
First let me say I got this book from gay romance reviews and this is me leaving my honest review.
This is a great collection of short stories, but for me, I got this book to leave a review for RS McKenzie.
I’ve gotta say, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It’s about an alpha called Aldric who has wanted a certain Omega for a long time. But alpha’s are only allowed to go in their natural urges when the game is on and this time he is determined to get his omega Jude. He smells amazing. And Aldric has a plan.
Jude knew it was a bad idea to be out the night before the games begin but he wanted to see his best friend. he wasn’t ready to be kidnapped he thought he would be home locked behind a door before the games even began. And when awakes he finds himself in strange clothes in the middle of a maze and the sound that begins the games. And he is surprised to find the alpha that is after him none other than Aldric. So what will happen now?
This book is intense. It’s a short story but he is super intense and it doesn’t matter what Jude wants because he’s at a loss he can’t fight off the alpha. But what happens between them next changes everything. Super exciting super steamy a great Read.

[Jeanette Waters · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love in Unexpected Places is a collection of six short stories by R S McKenzie written for various mm anthologies. There was the dino shifter and his human songwriter, my favorite. There was a fake boyfriends, best friend's dad, a demon finding his human mate, a rather kinky one night with a Mafioso, and an Alpha/ omega tale. Not all of them worked for me. The kink was interesting, very over the top daddy/boy play. The fake boyfriends story had a twist; the two lovers were in the early stages of a relationship before they went to the wedding where one MC needed a boyfriend. The alpha/omega was not quite to my taste.
Quick and the majority of stories fun to read. Each story had its own voice, really showing off the author's talent.
I received an advance copy of this book and this is my review.

[Cindy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This steamy anthology written by R.S. is a mix of different genres and situations but all have two guys who are perfect for each other. Though I enjoyed all of them, I loved "Run Angel Mine" when the Alphas for one night get to claim their Omegas. Alderic and Jude have that primal thing going on and they are not playing. "Caught in the Rain" explains how Rocco, head of the Bianchi family, and Sage got together. " Getting it Right" proves sometimes a fake boyfriend turns out to be the real thing. And "Bangers" has a guy falling for his bf's Dad and vice-versa. There's even one with a Dino Shifter and one with a Demon. There is something for everyone in these m/m novellas, real love connections.

[Justine · Rating 5 out of 5]

I definitely read most of these stories before, in other anthologies, which shows how obsessed I am with this author. I enjoy everything she writes! Run, Angel Mine was new to me, and whew. The heat level is high! The concept of the implants was great, and the whole story gave me purge vibes. I’m happy to have all of these stories in one place now, so I dont have to search through those thick anthologies. Not complaining tho, I love anthologies sooo much! I recommend this book to anybody wanting to read these stories for the first time; or to anyone wanting to reread these fun little stories. I tried to pick a favorite, but each story is so fun and different that I couldn’t! There’s a variety of content, and none of them are lacking!

[Fanykuroi (Sapphire Book Lover9095) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Anthology and RS McKenzie?! SIGN ME UP!!!

I enjoy a good anthology book as much as the next gal, but an MM anthology by the Queen herself?! SIGN ME UP ASAP!

This is a collection of 6 delicious, steamy, yet adorable short stories; each with their own flair and full of Unexpected encounters that just hits right in the feels. Also don't ask me to choose a fave. It's not happening. I'm a libra (hahaha). But in all seriousness, each story has their own unique thing that just makes you fall in love with it and the characters, so choosing is impossible for me.

If you're just looking for a quick read, yet full of smutty feelings, this is the anthology for you!!!

Overview:
Overall: 5/5
Storyline: 4.5/5
Smut: 1000/5
The feels it made me feel: infinite/5

[Emily Hernandez · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed the diversity of stories in this anthology. From shifters to fake boyfriends to mafia romance, there were plenty of themes and tropes to experience. I have a special soft spot for dinos, so Dante and August's insta-love shifter romance was a personal favorite. I thought it was sweet to see August go from being a nomad to being settled with Dante, and Dante finally found someone he could entrust with his secret without fear of being exposed. Appreciation for dad bods was strong throughout all of these shorts, and each couple ended up with sweet love confessions and happy send offs to warm my heart.

**I voluntarily read an ARC of this book. This review expresses my honest thoughts and opinions.

[Guardian.angel54 · Rating 5 out of 5]

Any time you see something written by RS McKenzie you know it's going to be great! This anthology brings together a collection of shorts that first appeared in various other groupings and gives you a wonderful taste for how the author can literally tackle any subject and make it work. I think my favorite was Caught in the Rain because I utterly adore Mafia stories and this one just ticked all my boxes. I can definitely recommend that you snatch this up and then go jump into some of her other books! You won't be disappointed! 5/5*

[C.B. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely, HOT! Anthologies, are the best because there are so many stories and so many new characters to meet. RS, builds totally likeable hot characters you would like to spend time with. Our guys are fun and funny with a good bit of spunk. It's a great mix of environments and men. All stories were fun and delicious but Dante and August are delightful, they are my favorite couple! A spinosaurus, is a treat. Good stories, great flow, nicely done! I received an ARC and am voluntariy leaving a review.

[Alix · Rating 4 out of 5]

I always enjoy a bundle of short stories to read in between longer books, so this is a nice treat since I love this author's work. There's a great mix of stories here - PNR/shifter, PNR/demon, a wedding date setup, and a couple of more unhinged/dark ones. All of them were steamy with cute/sweets moments, too. I'm glad to have been able to read all these stories by RS in this one collection, rather than having to try to track them down in the anthologies they were in.

I received a complimentary copy and am leaving this review voluntarily

[Nina Diab · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. It was a fantastic anthology. I loved (and was impressed) by how different each of the stories were from each other. The blurb didn't detail much, but dinosaur shifters are fascinating to me since I've only read of them twice, and I adore omegaverse. The stories included are-

Grow a Spinosaurus
Getting It Right
Bangers
Caught in the Rain
Hear My Plea
Run, Angel Mine

Great world building and wonderful characters. I could have read full length novels of each of these short stories and definitely recommend grabbing this collection! 5 stars.

[Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a collection of short stories that originally appeared in various anthologies. Because of that, the stories run the gamut from paranormal to contemporary, and light fun to very dark. It's a great sampling of the author's different writing styles. I like all genres and enjoyed each story. My favorites were Grow a Spinosaurus, Getting It Right, and Run, Angel Mine. Whether the author is new to you or you're already a fan, I definitely recommend checking this out.

[Kassandra Knight · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this collection. I know I’ve read at least one of the stories before from whichever anthology it was in and some seemed familiar but I still enjoyed reading the whole thing.

Highly recommend as there is probably something for everyone.

I received a free copy of this book from Gay Romance Reviews and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Julia Toth · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this collection of short stories. They were fun and great little palate cleansers between novels. I really enjoyed the fact that they were different, and we got a good mix of tropes. All of the novellas were steamy and sweet and I really enjoyed them. And while these were only novellas, all of them had a good amount of plot next to the steam.

[Sam Vautier · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was such a fun collection of short stories! From a dinosaur shifter, to a best friends dad situation, mafia daddy, fated mates and an alpha/omega hunt it really covered all the bases in one place!

[Ashley · Rating 4 out of 5]

AN ANTHOLOGY THAT HAS SO MANY FANTASTIC STORIES!

I love this author's stories so very much, and I was so stoked that these novellas are here. Just had a blast reading, and it was great!

[Lizzy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great collection of dirty short stories. With all the different dynamics and kinks there’s bound to be something for everyone.

[Virginia Lee · Rating 5 out of 5]

"This was a wonderful mix of short stories that pulls you in, page by page. Each one is captivating in its own way, making it hard to put the book down."

[Diane Dannenfeldt · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Dino shifter and demon stories were my favorite. RTC

[Mayra Young · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love in Unexpected Places: A MM Anthology by RS McKenzie
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5
Like always RS McKenzie knocks it out of the park with this enjoyable read. I truly enjoyed reading these short stories. I was left wanting more, I was completely mesmerized from the first page to the last. The variety of stories in this anthology was such a welcome change, this was definitely a must read story.

[MsGarviel · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book pulled together six short stories which had been published previously in different anthologies. Obviously they are only short but RS McKenzie writes amazing spicy scenes and despite their length, they packed plenty of steam. All of the stories are about finding love in unexpected places/situations.

I read this whilst in a bit of a reading slump and the stories were perfect as they were on the shorter side. Howrvet, like with novellas, I can't help but wish that some of them were expanded into longer stories.

It contains loads of different genres.

Caught in the Rain (mafia) - this was my fave
Run Angel Mine (ABO)
Getting it right (Fake dating)
Grow a Spinosaurus (dino shifters)
Bangers (best friends dad)
Hear my Plea (fated mates)

Hear my Plea and Run Angel Mine are tired for my second fave.

[Bianca · Rating 5 out of 5]

GROW A SPINOSAURUS

August and Dante were sweet together, and I liked the mystery and the secret that brought them together. I liked their chemistry and the trust they had, and also their way to achieve happiness.

GETTING IT RIGHT

Hudson and Callum are two wounded souls that are united by a meddling well intentioned friend and co-worker that wants them to be happy. Their chemistry is off the charts, and they realise how well they complete each other. The encounter with an ex only solidify their feelings. They were cute and endearing, and I liked their way to see things and how they achieved their happiness

BANGERS

Derek and Keith story starts with a dare that leads to happy and unexpected things as their identity is revealed. I liked their moments together and how they deepen their feelings, as well as how they get over their obstacles. It was a sweet adventure with a second chance at love.

CAUGHT IN THE RAIN

Sage and Rocco were fire together, and the way their desires mesh so beautifully was a nice touch. Their moments together are hot and intense, and what starts as a play ends up in forever.

HEAR MY PLEA

Vernimer and Lucas were united by a plea of help that changes both their lives. Lucas is rescued by Vernimer from his dire situation and from the one that was responsible for all his suffering. I liked their connection and how reacted to the truth about them, as well as the care and love Vernimer has for him. I liked the retribution and the lives that were saved because of it.

RUN, ANGEL MINE

Aldric and Jude story is intense and primal as the timeline is set in a world with a different set of rules. They are attracted to each other but not acknowledged until the event that brings them together and unleashed their primal selves. They are hot together, and the protectiveness is of the charts when a threat is revealed.

[L H · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed reading these short stories about love that comes to a pair who was not expecting it in places they were not expecting to find it. This drew me in with the first story "Grow a Spinosaurus" and I could not put it down until I was done with the whole book. There was a good variety and that made me want to continue on to see how the unexpected was going to occur.
I received an ARC from GRR and am voluntarily leaving a review.

[Syd Springer · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a fantastic Anthology! I really hope that these will be expanded in the future. I really enjoyed each couple were great and I loved the steam, drama, love, darkness, connection, chemistry, and intrigue that they offered. This Anthology offers a little bit of everything and it was really hard to put down. I can’t wait for more from RS soon.

I received an e-book copy of this book and am voluntarily leaving an honest review.