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Heart's Compass
Down South
Where do you want to be when the world ends?
An apocalyptic M/M Romance. Electricity is gone. Society is on its knees. The heart’s compass becomes the light in the darkness.
Gabe’s a Texas rancher who’s always kept part of himself on a separate paddock from his ranch hands and the small town of Post. When your hometown’s population is barely over five-thousand, chances are high you’re the only gay man for miles, and that coming out would do more harm than good. When the power goes out, a very lost and very far from home man named Liam stumbles onto his land. Stuck on the wrong side of the pond with no way home, Liam, a writer for a British travel magazine, struggles with culture shock. Gabe struggles to save his cattle from the apocalypse, and to ignore the attractive Liam’s obvious interest in more than friendship.
About the Heart's Compass series:
Our heart has its own compass. It knows where we should be heading, even if the rest of us doesn't. Through loss and love, our heart’s compass guides us through life, often to somewhere completely unexpected. When the world ends, the heart’s compass of several people has them headed in directions they may have never traveled otherwise.
Each book in the series is a stand-alone, novella-length story, but is written within the same fictional setting in which the Earth has just been struck with several massive solar flares. All modern technology has been rendered inoperable. Cars, computers, city infrastructure, phones – all gone in an instant and without warning. In the days directly following the end of the modern world, people must learn to depend on each other, and on their heart’s compass, if they hope to survive.
An apocalyptic M/M Romance. Electricity is gone. Society is on its knees. The heart’s compass becomes the light in the darkness.
Gabe’s a Texas rancher who’s always kept part of himself on a separate paddock from his ranch hands and the small town of Post. When your hometown’s population is barely over five-thousand, chances are high you’re the only gay man for miles, and that coming out would do more harm than good. When the power goes out, a very lost and very far from home man named Liam stumbles onto his land. Stuck on the wrong side of the pond with no way home, Liam, a writer for a British travel magazine, struggles with culture shock. Gabe struggles to save his cattle from the apocalypse, and to ignore the attractive Liam’s obvious interest in more than friendship.
About the Heart's Compass series:
Our heart has its own compass. It knows where we should be heading, even if the rest of us doesn't. Through loss and love, our heart’s compass guides us through life, often to somewhere completely unexpected. When the world ends, the heart’s compass of several people has them headed in directions they may have never traveled otherwise.
Each book in the series is a stand-alone, novella-length story, but is written within the same fictional setting in which the Earth has just been struck with several massive solar flares. All modern technology has been rendered inoperable. Cars, computers, city infrastructure, phones – all gone in an instant and without warning. In the days directly following the end of the modern world, people must learn to depend on each other, and on their heart’s compass, if they hope to survive.
90 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 15, 2015
About the author
C.E. Kilgore
51 books187 followersC.E. Kilgore (1981 - ) is an author without genre, who likes to dabble in several genres from romance to science fiction. She also enjoys pushing the boundaries of those genres, trying new things, venturing outside formulas and turning tropes on their heads. Admittedly a control freak, she is currently a self-published author under the name Tracing The Stars, and hasn't quite found the publisher who fits all her quirks. Be sure to check out her website, cekilgore.com
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
July 23, 2015
When I envision a cowboy, I see a rugged man who is more comfortable with animals than people. I imagine a take-charge guy that would demand respect, yet there’s no need for it is easily given. He would be confident, loving and dependable. Ohh, and usually sexy in leather and a hat. Gabe is all of the above. He is your tried and true cowboy and he’s also tightly bound in the closet. His small town doesn’t have an abundance of potential suitors and he’s never had a reason to consider coming out…until now.
A stranger appears on his doorstep after the power goes out. They chat without words, their eyes do all the talking and Gabe’s solid footing suddenly appears to be slipping. This British photographer rattles the door on his secure closet and with the looming future Gabe is actually considering opening the door. The thing is, he’s happy to have Liam join him but he’s not prepared to come out. A moment in time during his childhood left a deep scar on his head and his heart. He has good reasons for debating if the risk is worth the prize.
I adored Gabe, Liam and the rest of the gang. I ached for Liam forced to begin anew thousands of miles from home with no hope of ever returning. I yearned for Gabe to bust the doors on his way out and sweep Liam off his feet.
My favorite parts of this arrow in the Heart's Compass tales would involve a Guzzler, a puppy, and a few cans of peaches.
I noticed a few wonky sentences that a firm polish during an extra round of editing could resolve, but other than that it was another great installment in this series.
I think I'll head East next. Yep, I'm on the road again.....
*3.5 lonely-lonestar-loving stars
A stranger appears on his doorstep after the power goes out. They chat without words, their eyes do all the talking and Gabe’s solid footing suddenly appears to be slipping. This British photographer rattles the door on his secure closet and with the looming future Gabe is actually considering opening the door. The thing is, he’s happy to have Liam join him but he’s not prepared to come out. A moment in time during his childhood left a deep scar on his head and his heart. He has good reasons for debating if the risk is worth the prize.
I adored Gabe, Liam and the rest of the gang. I ached for Liam forced to begin anew thousands of miles from home with no hope of ever returning. I yearned for Gabe to bust the doors on his way out and sweep Liam off his feet.
My favorite parts of this arrow in the Heart's Compass tales would involve a Guzzler, a puppy, and a few cans of peaches.
I noticed a few wonky sentences that a firm polish during an extra round of editing could resolve, but other than that it was another great installment in this series.
I think I'll head East next. Yep, I'm on the road again.....
*3.5 lonely-lonestar-loving stars
December 12, 2019
Interesting and different. A cowboy dystopian novel.
July 7, 2019
I know these are novellas, but this one could have used a few hundred extra pages. The leads were awesome, but the development of their relationship no more than a two sentence footnote. They deserved better.
September 26, 2017
I just wanted more of Gabriel and Liam...who wouldn't love a closeted cowboy virgin and a confidant Brit photographer?
In this installment of Heart's Compass, we meet Gabriel on his Texas ranch and Liam who just happens to be driving by when all the lights go out. Gabe has been in the closet his whole life and is wary of coming out to his employees and small community. In the apocalypse, survival is key but Liam makes Gabe realize that happiness can also be its own reward.
In this installment of Heart's Compass, we meet Gabriel on his Texas ranch and Liam who just happens to be driving by when all the lights go out. Gabe has been in the closet his whole life and is wary of coming out to his employees and small community. In the apocalypse, survival is key but Liam makes Gabe realize that happiness can also be its own reward.
May 10, 2015
I binge read the entire series. They were all great. I'll definitely be looking for more MM from this author.
4.5 stars...
4.5 stars...
October 2, 2017
This was short and sweet. I didn’t want it to end (it ends at 70%). It’s not one of the short stories were it feels like you get a full novel. It does feel rushed. I mean how can anyone write about characters dealing with the beginning of post apocalyptic days and an MC coming out of the closet in a short story and not have it feel rushed? Regardless, I found it to be an enjoyable read.
Liam is British and Gabe is a Texas cowboy/rancher. The dialogue between those two...yeah..Love it!
Liam is British and Gabe is a Texas cowboy/rancher. The dialogue between those two...yeah..Love it!
November 26, 2025
Review of Down South by C.E. Kilgore
C.E. Kilgore’s Down South continues the Compass series with the same light, fast-reading style that makes each entry feel like a breeze through a different direction of the heart. Where True North carried the resonance of vulnerability and discovery, and Back East and Out West offered their own tonal shifts, Down South leans into warmth, charm, and a touch of playfulness.
• Tone & Style: The prose is accessible and quick, yet it leaves behind a lingering emotional aftertaste. Kilgore’s gift is in crafting characters whose interactions feel both casual and mythic—small gestures that ripple outward into lineage.
• Characters: The central figures embody a southern hospitality that is more than setting—it becomes a relational ethic. Their dialogue and choices echo themes of care, belonging, and the subtle courage of authenticity.
• Resonance: Like the other compass points, Down South is not heavy or sprawling, but it resonates. It’s the kind of story you can finish in a sitting, yet it leaves you with a sense of direction, as if you’ve inscribed another bearing into your own archive.
• Place in the Compass: Taken together, the four books form a ritual circle—North, East, West, South—each a light but lasting offering. Down South completes the set with a warmth that feels like hearth-fire, balancing the compass with a grounded glow.
✨ Verdict: Down South is a quick, heartfelt read that completes the compass with southern warmth and relational charm. It may be light in length, but its resonance endures—another directional marker in Kilgore’s lineage of stories.
C.E. Kilgore’s Down South continues the Compass series with the same light, fast-reading style that makes each entry feel like a breeze through a different direction of the heart. Where True North carried the resonance of vulnerability and discovery, and Back East and Out West offered their own tonal shifts, Down South leans into warmth, charm, and a touch of playfulness.
• Tone & Style: The prose is accessible and quick, yet it leaves behind a lingering emotional aftertaste. Kilgore’s gift is in crafting characters whose interactions feel both casual and mythic—small gestures that ripple outward into lineage.
• Characters: The central figures embody a southern hospitality that is more than setting—it becomes a relational ethic. Their dialogue and choices echo themes of care, belonging, and the subtle courage of authenticity.
• Resonance: Like the other compass points, Down South is not heavy or sprawling, but it resonates. It’s the kind of story you can finish in a sitting, yet it leaves you with a sense of direction, as if you’ve inscribed another bearing into your own archive.
• Place in the Compass: Taken together, the four books form a ritual circle—North, East, West, South—each a light but lasting offering. Down South completes the set with a warmth that feels like hearth-fire, balancing the compass with a grounded glow.
✨ Verdict: Down South is a quick, heartfelt read that completes the compass with southern warmth and relational charm. It may be light in length, but its resonance endures—another directional marker in Kilgore’s lineage of stories.
September 8, 2017
What girl doesn't want to read about a post-apocalyptic cowboy??
I really liked the first half of the story. We got to see the apocalypse happen, and maybe I read the wrong kinds of books, but most often we are thrown into a world where the apocalypse already has taken place. I liked that we got to be there, I liked the characters and the way the story built, but then when the end came I felt a little cheated. There are more books in this series but they're all stand-alones so it won't be of Gabe and Liam and the others.
I, on the other hand, was hoping for the neighbours to attack...
Now don't get me wrong, I really liked this story, and I might pick up another book or two in the series. If you like a cowboy getting his boy despite being out of electricity and working cars, this is the story for you!
I really liked the first half of the story. We got to see the apocalypse happen, and maybe I read the wrong kinds of books, but most often we are thrown into a world where the apocalypse already has taken place. I liked that we got to be there, I liked the characters and the way the story built, but then when the end came I felt a little cheated. There are more books in this series but they're all stand-alones so it won't be of Gabe and Liam and the others.
I, on the other hand, was hoping for the neighbours to attack...
Now don't get me wrong, I really liked this story, and I might pick up another book or two in the series. If you like a cowboy getting his boy despite being out of electricity and working cars, this is the story for you!
November 27, 2016
3.5 stars
This is a nice series although it's annoying when I'm only at 70% or so reading and the story ends and the rest is promo about other books.
This is a nice series although it's annoying when I'm only at 70% or so reading and the story ends and the rest is promo about other books.
March 24, 2018
Great read--though the ending was a little too abrupt.
February 2, 2023
KSKS
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 28, 2016
3.8 Stars
I liked the take charge attitude and planning in this one. The realism of making a technologically dependent farm sustainable without that set of tools was interesting as well. It was exactly the kind of thing I was looking for when it came to how people would need to conserve resources and temporarily rig up solutions for problems.
Too often there were large gaps in time, and even a page or two describing the struggles & accomplishments of that stretch would have been better than the info dump 5 months later. Also, this one had the least heat between the MCs but I liked the dynamics of the rest of their group best so far.
I liked the take charge attitude and planning in this one. The realism of making a technologically dependent farm sustainable without that set of tools was interesting as well. It was exactly the kind of thing I was looking for when it came to how people would need to conserve resources and temporarily rig up solutions for problems.
Too often there were large gaps in time, and even a page or two describing the struggles & accomplishments of that stretch would have been better than the info dump 5 months later. Also, this one had the least heat between the MCs but I liked the dynamics of the rest of their group best so far.
February 21, 2016
2.5 stars
February 13, 2017
Also part of the Heart's Compass Anthology.
August 1, 2016
Not only did this book end rather abruptly but it seemed to be missing a lot of details. It should definitely be fleshed out.
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews