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Blue Boy #1
Bullet
Levi Ramone entered the gay porn market for one reason, and one reason only–he needed the cash to pay his momma's spiraling gambling debts.
Seven years later, he's a veteran with a reputation as one of Blue Boy Studio's most ruthless tops, and when his boss suggests it's time for a change, he finds himself staring down the barrel of a gun. Figuratively speaking, at least.
Enter Sonny Valentine, a go-go dancer at Blue's sister club, Silver's. Levi has secretly admired Sonny from afar for years, but there's one problem–he can't stand Sonny and the feeling is entirely mutual. When Levi learns Sonny is to play the third part in a scene he considers his worst nightmare, he figures things can't get any worse.
But when preparations for the scene from hell collide with tragic events in his personal life, he finds his fast growing, red hot attraction to Sonny the one thing left between him and a bullet.
Seven years later, he's a veteran with a reputation as one of Blue Boy Studio's most ruthless tops, and when his boss suggests it's time for a change, he finds himself staring down the barrel of a gun. Figuratively speaking, at least.
Enter Sonny Valentine, a go-go dancer at Blue's sister club, Silver's. Levi has secretly admired Sonny from afar for years, but there's one problem–he can't stand Sonny and the feeling is entirely mutual. When Levi learns Sonny is to play the third part in a scene he considers his worst nightmare, he figures things can't get any worse.
But when preparations for the scene from hell collide with tragic events in his personal life, he finds his fast growing, red hot attraction to Sonny the one thing left between him and a bullet.
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First published November 1, 2013
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About the author
Garrett Leigh
94 books2,399 followersShe/Her
Bonus Material available for all books on Garrett's Patreon account. Includes short stories from Misfits, Slide, Strays, What Remains, Dream, and much more. Sign up here: https://www.patreon.com/garrettleigh
Facebook Fan Group, Garrett's Den... https://www.facebook.com/groups/garre...
Garrett Leigh is an award-winning British romance author and artist. Her debut novel, Slide, won Best Bisexual Debut at the 2014 Rainbow Book Awards, and she is a 4 time LAMBDA finalist.
In 2017, she won the EPIC award in contemporary romance with her military novel, Between Ghosts, and the contemporary romance category in the Bisexual Book Awards with her novel What Remains.
Garrett is also an award winning cover designer, taking the silver medal at the Benjamin Franklin Book Awards in 2016. She designs for various publishing houses and independent authors at blackjazzdesign.com
Bonus Material available for all books on Garrett's Patreon account. Includes short stories from Misfits, Slide, Strays, What Remains, Dream, and much more. Sign up here: https://www.patreon.com/garrettleigh
Facebook Fan Group, Garrett's Den... https://www.facebook.com/groups/garre...
Garrett Leigh is an award-winning British romance author and artist. Her debut novel, Slide, won Best Bisexual Debut at the 2014 Rainbow Book Awards, and she is a 4 time LAMBDA finalist.
In 2017, she won the EPIC award in contemporary romance with her military novel, Between Ghosts, and the contemporary romance category in the Bisexual Book Awards with her novel What Remains.
Garrett is also an award winning cover designer, taking the silver medal at the Benjamin Franklin Book Awards in 2016. She designs for various publishing houses and independent authors at blackjazzdesign.com
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January 2, 2016me: it's been three years this book's languished on my TBR. i'm giving up
her: i don't like pornstar books
me: i am indifferent, but i read the reviews and it sounds amply appointed with Annoying White Boys Fucking
her: and that cover is bad
me: bad.
her: real bad.
me: Emma says in thumbnail it always makes her think it's a photo of a Virgin Mary statuette in a cowl
her: trilobite abs
me: #SadAbercrombie
her: hood up, but zipper open. weather is hard, yo
me: Care Bears let the feelz out the front
her: i don't like pornstar books
me: i am indifferent, but i read the reviews and it sounds amply appointed with Annoying White Boys Fucking
her: and that cover is bad
me: bad.
her: real bad.
me: Emma says in thumbnail it always makes her think it's a photo of a Virgin Mary statuette in a cowl
her: trilobite abs
me: #SadAbercrombie
her: hood up, but zipper open. weather is hard, yo
me: Care Bears let the feelz out the front
November 5, 2013
4.5 STARS... I Loved it!!!
This book only emphasises what a great new author Garrett Leigh is turning out to be… and, this is the only book I have read where the much anticipated sex scene literally brought me to tears. I loved Slide… and Bullet even at a novella length is just as powerful, her writing style is easy and flows… the characterisations of both Sonny and Levi, excellent! The seduction of not only Levi but me as a reader was potent… What a fabulous novella and one I highly recommend!
Levi Ramone is a top… a very gorgeous, dark haired, twenty six year old, hot, brooding and detached top at Blue Boy Studios with a reputation for giving it hard and fast and hung like a horse with a southern drawl to die for… you get the image… right!
Levi leads a miserable existence but it is his inner strength and sense of responsibility that carries him through life, caring for a mother that quite frankly doesn’t deserve it. Levi works hard and is focused on establishing his business, the porn is what keeps his head above water, trying to clear the excessive debts incurred by his mother through her gambling and alcoholism. But all this comes at a cost, it’s draining and somewhere along the line, he lost sight of himself, his needs and happiness. He’s lonely and life for Levi is a numb commute between home, Blue Boy Studios and the Garage he runs with his friend AJ, his only sanctuary in the madness of his life, where he can indulge in his passion and love for restoring and maintaining vintage motorbikes.
“Why are you even here?”
“Because my daddy shot himself, and my momma’s a gambling drunk with more debts than I’ll ever be able to pay.”
A chance for a massive payday and his popularity demanding some variation to his normal hard fucks, he agrees to bottom in a threesome, now, as I have already explained Levi is a top and never bottoms, but with his debts spiralling and the short shelf life of a porn star, the money is tempting, what isn’t tempting is the giant of a man to take his virginity and the annoying twink Sonny who rubs him up the wrong way, who have been chosen to star with him in the scene.
Sonny Valentine is a go-go dancer, beautiful and graceful, but to pay for college he needs to subsidise his income with porn, and he is just as unhappy as Levi about being paired together, there is no love lost between these two and Sonny certainly doesn’t hold back the punches when telling Levi exactly what an arse he thinks he is and why! That speech has a profound effect on Levi, something he doesn’t quite understand, and Sonny becomes the voice of his conscience, whispering in his ear and he finds himself soul searching and re-evaluating his life… even more of a shocker was Sonny pushing to help Levi prepare for the scene!
He didn’t believe in any of those things—faith, love, trust. He must’ve once, but where had it got him? Naked in his bathroom taking lessons from a guy he couldn’t stand on how to fuck himself in the ass.
Yeah, life was good.
I loved the animosity fuelled banter and interactions between these two… it was like foreplay and the sexual tension between them was palpable. Sonny was teaching him… not only how to be a bottom, but how to feel, to let go of the oppressive burden that suppresses his emotion, he helps him discover the delights and intimacy of sex rather than just the perfunctory release… it felt like a gift, and for Levi an enlightenment, and that connection between them without even a sexual touch from Sonny was intense, intimate and so personal I felt like a voyeur. Levi had been liberated, not from his inhibitions but from the shackles that had weighed him down, it was though Sonny were there to guide him, a powerful seduction in learning how to feel, all so carefully orchestrated by Sonny through gentle encouragement, it was so sensual and erotically charged I was left breathless.
Not having Sonny’s POV we are at a disadvantage as to exactly what is going on in his head and with only having conversation clues, the scene in the storeroom being the most enlightening and heartfelt and I feel Garret Leigh gave us enough to work with fill in the gaps as to why Sonny was so persistent in helping Levi… personally, I think he liked him, but didn’t want to be another fuck, I feel he saw something in Levi, that Levi himself had been lost to and that was what he wanted, not only to help Levi see himself and be in touch with his emotions, but also for Levi to see him… keeping him at arm’s length in a beautiful seduction until his objective had been achieved…. And that moment… that fucking moment after all the anticipation and tension that had built was stunning… and that is why I cried…. Levi had had so much shit in his life and Sonny was just that, Sunny… the light to his darkness and he could actually see and feel everything that had for so long been lost to him.
Sonny the one thing left between him and a bullet.
Even though this is a novella… don’t let that fool you, Garrett Leigh’s sense of humour is abound as we have some great camaraderie, I loved the sarcastic wit and humour with plenty of tension and emotion to keep you totally engaged. Levi’s relationship with his mother runs in the background giving us an insight into how tragic his life has been and also the characters from Blue Boy Studios, plus AJ… Levi’s best friend and business partner, I loved him.
“How did this happen?”
“What?”
“This—you, me,” Levi said. “I don’t even like you.”
Sonny shrugged. “Yeah, well. The feeling’s mutual. The way you make me feel pisses me off.”
We are left with a happy for now and I want to see the other side of this… what of their future and will they continue to do porn? So I had to ask the question, because it was bugging me, and the answer was YES!!! The next book is about Cam who we meet in this book and Levi and Sonny will be making appearances… so I am a very happy girl!
This is excellent… read it!!!
This book only emphasises what a great new author Garrett Leigh is turning out to be… and, this is the only book I have read where the much anticipated sex scene literally brought me to tears. I loved Slide… and Bullet even at a novella length is just as powerful, her writing style is easy and flows… the characterisations of both Sonny and Levi, excellent! The seduction of not only Levi but me as a reader was potent… What a fabulous novella and one I highly recommend!
Levi Ramone is a top… a very gorgeous, dark haired, twenty six year old, hot, brooding and detached top at Blue Boy Studios with a reputation for giving it hard and fast and hung like a horse with a southern drawl to die for… you get the image… right!
Levi leads a miserable existence but it is his inner strength and sense of responsibility that carries him through life, caring for a mother that quite frankly doesn’t deserve it. Levi works hard and is focused on establishing his business, the porn is what keeps his head above water, trying to clear the excessive debts incurred by his mother through her gambling and alcoholism. But all this comes at a cost, it’s draining and somewhere along the line, he lost sight of himself, his needs and happiness. He’s lonely and life for Levi is a numb commute between home, Blue Boy Studios and the Garage he runs with his friend AJ, his only sanctuary in the madness of his life, where he can indulge in his passion and love for restoring and maintaining vintage motorbikes.
“Why are you even here?”
“Because my daddy shot himself, and my momma’s a gambling drunk with more debts than I’ll ever be able to pay.”
A chance for a massive payday and his popularity demanding some variation to his normal hard fucks, he agrees to bottom in a threesome, now, as I have already explained Levi is a top and never bottoms, but with his debts spiralling and the short shelf life of a porn star, the money is tempting, what isn’t tempting is the giant of a man to take his virginity and the annoying twink Sonny who rubs him up the wrong way, who have been chosen to star with him in the scene.
Sonny Valentine is a go-go dancer, beautiful and graceful, but to pay for college he needs to subsidise his income with porn, and he is just as unhappy as Levi about being paired together, there is no love lost between these two and Sonny certainly doesn’t hold back the punches when telling Levi exactly what an arse he thinks he is and why! That speech has a profound effect on Levi, something he doesn’t quite understand, and Sonny becomes the voice of his conscience, whispering in his ear and he finds himself soul searching and re-evaluating his life… even more of a shocker was Sonny pushing to help Levi prepare for the scene!
He didn’t believe in any of those things—faith, love, trust. He must’ve once, but where had it got him? Naked in his bathroom taking lessons from a guy he couldn’t stand on how to fuck himself in the ass.
Yeah, life was good.
I loved the animosity fuelled banter and interactions between these two… it was like foreplay and the sexual tension between them was palpable. Sonny was teaching him… not only how to be a bottom, but how to feel, to let go of the oppressive burden that suppresses his emotion, he helps him discover the delights and intimacy of sex rather than just the perfunctory release… it felt like a gift, and for Levi an enlightenment, and that connection between them without even a sexual touch from Sonny was intense, intimate and so personal I felt like a voyeur. Levi had been liberated, not from his inhibitions but from the shackles that had weighed him down, it was though Sonny were there to guide him, a powerful seduction in learning how to feel, all so carefully orchestrated by Sonny through gentle encouragement, it was so sensual and erotically charged I was left breathless.
Not having Sonny’s POV we are at a disadvantage as to exactly what is going on in his head and with only having conversation clues, the scene in the storeroom being the most enlightening and heartfelt and I feel Garret Leigh gave us enough to work with fill in the gaps as to why Sonny was so persistent in helping Levi… personally, I think he liked him, but didn’t want to be another fuck, I feel he saw something in Levi, that Levi himself had been lost to and that was what he wanted, not only to help Levi see himself and be in touch with his emotions, but also for Levi to see him… keeping him at arm’s length in a beautiful seduction until his objective had been achieved…. And that moment… that fucking moment after all the anticipation and tension that had built was stunning… and that is why I cried…. Levi had had so much shit in his life and Sonny was just that, Sunny… the light to his darkness and he could actually see and feel everything that had for so long been lost to him.
Sonny the one thing left between him and a bullet.
Even though this is a novella… don’t let that fool you, Garrett Leigh’s sense of humour is abound as we have some great camaraderie, I loved the sarcastic wit and humour with plenty of tension and emotion to keep you totally engaged. Levi’s relationship with his mother runs in the background giving us an insight into how tragic his life has been and also the characters from Blue Boy Studios, plus AJ… Levi’s best friend and business partner, I loved him.
“How did this happen?”
“What?”
“This—you, me,” Levi said. “I don’t even like you.”
Sonny shrugged. “Yeah, well. The feeling’s mutual. The way you make me feel pisses me off.”
We are left with a happy for now and I want to see the other side of this… what of their future and will they continue to do porn? So I had to ask the question, because it was bugging me, and the answer was YES!!! The next book is about Cam who we meet in this book and Levi and Sonny will be making appearances… so I am a very happy girl!
This is excellent… read it!!!
November 3, 2013
3.5 stars
Ok, so there was some minor (major) confusion about this book. Loose-ID doesn’t have a blurb, but has it categorized under “cowboys”. So, with that cover and cowboys, it’s kind of a ‘no-brainer’ for me. But then, GR reader, Isaac, directed me to Garrett Leigh’s website and a trailer for the book. And this trailer said this book was about pornstars, which I just don’t do. Argh. Frustration.
But alas, I had the book, it’s only a novella length, so why not give it a go?
Yay! I really enjoyed it! I’m reading more and more shorter-length books that have bite to ‘em…that do more in telling a story with real emotions and progression than many of their longer counterparts out there. This is such a book.
The main characters, Levi and Sonny, are both closed off and have some serious intimacy issues which makes for a fun enemies-to-lovers scenario. The porn angle wasn’t awful and actually was more in the background other than the one situation (duh duh duh…) that brings Levi and Sonny together in the first place.
I liked both characters a lot. With stories this short, I’m left wondering about a lot of things…. But what I really enjoyed was when they finally allowed themselves to feel for each other and let it be known (especially the night at Silver). The tenderness and emotions they had towards one another were powerful and beautiful and made for their physical interactions to be felt even deeper.
This was my first Garrett Leigh book and I have to say I’m a fan of the writing. Looking forward to more!
*one minor irritation: I don’t see any correlation between the title and the book…I’m racking my brain trying to figure out why it’s called “Bullet” and can’t think of any. I find this slightly annoying. Unless I missed something? And alas, no cowboys. :(
May 23, 2017
3.75 HEARTS--
Always fashionably late to the party...
Look at the table setting at the Blue Boy party!
I think I might one of the few stragglers who hasn't read Bullet. This is also my second Garrett Leigh. Can I still visit the party with my low Leigh credentials? I promise after reading the re-release version of Bullet...I'll make more an effort to read her work.
The novella stars seasoned porn actor Levi Ramone is a well known top in the industry. Ripped, bearded and rough, Levi is a lumbersexual wet dream. (Oh the new cover fits him, does it not?)Does he enjoy his job? In a way, yes. He gets all the ass he wants and doesn't have to worry about commitments. But...he's virtually alone. His father committed suicide and his mother is an alcoholic with a grudge against her son, Levi doesn't have really close connections. The majority of his money is pay for his mother's bills despite her animosity towards him. He's desperate for cash to help.
It's a sad existence.
Enter the "bitchy twink" (in Levi's eyes) Sonny, a fellow Blue Boy porn actor who also works at the pron studio's go-go club as a dancer/stripper. Sonny sees there is more than meets the eye to Levi. He calls Levi out for not being into his porn scenes, being too aggressive and not considerate. When Sonny and Levi's boss offers more money to star in a threesome, Levi accepts. Even though Sonny gets under his skin and the fact that he'll have to lost his butt cherry.
That setup though...
Sonny picks through the wall Levi builds around himself. He also helps Levi discover the untapped pleasures...below. As the upcoming bottoming scene looms as the novella progresses, there is also Levi's broken home/ dealing with a harridan of an alcoholic mother.
Now I thought it might've went one way with the mother, I was not expecting some of the resulting blows from that front. Or bottom assistance/prep/seduction
Though Sonny is helping his future scene actor out, there seems to be an underlying current of care...along with the obvious attraction between both men. Also for a book about porn, it's not as sex filled as you might think. I'm still new to Leigh's writing style, but methinks angst is her forte, yes? There was definitely a decent amount of emotions from Sonny to help carry this novella along, along with the obvious courting via anal play.
When Sonny and Levi finally culminate the obvious courting...the book ends!
Where is the rest of the story? I had to stop myself from shaking my Kindle upside down. There is no way Levi and Sonny just ends the relationship like that.
Right?
*listens to the squawking from the party*
There's follow up in the rest of the series? Is that so?
Well, hell looks like I need to rest of this series! I'm so curious to see what happens with the other characters. And Sonny and Levi of course...there's a hint of unresolved drug abuse somewhere along the line.
I'm invested.
Gonna see if I can get my Garrett Leigh dance card filled out now that I've joined the party:
I enjoy what I've read so far.
Recommended for readers who like some angst, some sexy and characters that have some baggage too.
A copy provided for an honest review.
Look at the table setting at the Blue Boy party!
I think I might one of the few stragglers who hasn't read Bullet. This is also my second Garrett Leigh. Can I still visit the party with my low Leigh credentials? I promise after reading the re-release version of Bullet...I'll make more an effort to read her work.
The novella stars seasoned porn actor Levi Ramone is a well known top in the industry. Ripped, bearded and rough, Levi is a lumbersexual wet dream. (Oh the new cover fits him, does it not?)Does he enjoy his job? In a way, yes. He gets all the ass he wants and doesn't have to worry about commitments. But...he's virtually alone. His father committed suicide and his mother is an alcoholic with a grudge against her son, Levi doesn't have really close connections. The majority of his money is pay for his mother's bills despite her animosity towards him. He's desperate for cash to help.
It's a sad existence.
Enter the "bitchy twink" (in Levi's eyes) Sonny, a fellow Blue Boy porn actor who also works at the pron studio's go-go club as a dancer/stripper. Sonny sees there is more than meets the eye to Levi. He calls Levi out for not being into his porn scenes, being too aggressive and not considerate. When Sonny and Levi's boss offers more money to star in a threesome, Levi accepts. Even though Sonny gets under his skin and the fact that he'll have to lost his butt cherry.
That setup though...
"Dude, you don't want to go there for the first time without a good lead off. Do you want me to suck you off?"
"What? No!"
"You're kinda coy for a hard-core porn star. It's cute."
Sonny picks through the wall Levi builds around himself. He also helps Levi discover the untapped pleasures...below. As the upcoming bottoming scene looms as the novella progresses, there is also Levi's broken home/ dealing with a harridan of an alcoholic mother.
Now I thought it might've went one way with the mother, I was not expecting some of the resulting blows from that front. Or bottom assistance/prep/seduction
Though Sonny is helping his future scene actor out, there seems to be an underlying current of care...along with the obvious attraction between both men. Also for a book about porn, it's not as sex filled as you might think. I'm still new to Leigh's writing style, but methinks angst is her forte, yes? There was definitely a decent amount of emotions from Sonny to help carry this novella along, along with the obvious courting via anal play.
When Sonny and Levi finally culminate the obvious courting...the book ends!
Where is the rest of the story? I had to stop myself from shaking my Kindle upside down. There is no way Levi and Sonny just ends the relationship like that.
Right?
*listens to the squawking from the party*
There's follow up in the rest of the series? Is that so?
Well, hell looks like I need to rest of this series! I'm so curious to see what happens with the other characters. And Sonny and Levi of course...there's a hint of unresolved drug abuse somewhere along the line.
I'm invested.
Gonna see if I can get my Garrett Leigh dance card filled out now that I've joined the party:
I enjoy what I've read so far.
Recommended for readers who like some angst, some sexy and characters that have some baggage too.
A copy provided for an honest review.
May 4, 2014
Not long ago I read Slide by Garret and whereas everyone else was blown away by it I was one of the few who wasn't and I was really disappointed because I could see that she is a really unique writer, with a style that should have pushed all my buttons and for the most part it did but something in the story just didn't match my anticipation and that was that, I liked parts of it but I didn't love it the way I hoped to.
But I picked up this novella because I really liked the sound of the blurb and again the reviews were excellent and I was hoping this would be the one to show me that my reaction to Slide was only a one off.
Oh boy am I glad I did. This story grabbed me from the moment Levi started to tell his story, and when Sonny entered that was it, I was hooked to the point where I just sat and read it through, entranced while everything that going on around me just faded into the background.
Levi hasn't got it easy, he's just about hanging on by a thread. His garage that he owns is fairly successful but he can't reap the benefits because of the hold his mother has over him with her drinking, gambling debts and health problems so he's still having to supplement those debts by working the gay porn scene and on the surface he's successful in that side too but its all taking its toll on him and now he just coasts, letting all around him think that he's coping as ' one of the guys' when in fact he's pretty much disconnected from it all. He tops and his reputation is one of being dismissive of the twinks who bottom for him... No kissing, hard sex and never bottoming for anyone.
Then he's asked by his boss to change it up and bottom in a three way for an exorbitant amount of money that would go towards clearing his moms debts and that's when Sonny, a beautiful go go dancer and tattooed twink enters the scene. He would be part of the threeway along with Rex, a guy who has a rep for being huge in the downstairs department!
Sonny and Levi do not like each other and Garret does a fantastic job of portraying that in the scene when they talk for the first time and Sonny tells Levi exactly why he can't stand Levi and what he really thinks of the way he treats the bottoms he plays with on camera. What happens next turns out to be one of the best love/hate romances I've ever read. I loved watching the sexual tension build up between these two fascinating characters and I fell for them both big time!
Watching the two together had my emotions up and down like a yoyo. It was poignant, tender, sensual, amusing, at times heartbreaking and totally delightful ... I didn't want it to finish. There's some awesome reviews out there and I agree with everyone of them. I can't reccomend this enough.
I wanted to be blown away and this time I was! Worth every star and more its definitely one of my favourite reads of the year.
edit: 3/5/14 ~ re-read as catch up for Bones (Blue Boy#2) . 5 stars . Still a favourite read second time around.
But I picked up this novella because I really liked the sound of the blurb and again the reviews were excellent and I was hoping this would be the one to show me that my reaction to Slide was only a one off.
Oh boy am I glad I did. This story grabbed me from the moment Levi started to tell his story, and when Sonny entered that was it, I was hooked to the point where I just sat and read it through, entranced while everything that going on around me just faded into the background.
Levi hasn't got it easy, he's just about hanging on by a thread. His garage that he owns is fairly successful but he can't reap the benefits because of the hold his mother has over him with her drinking, gambling debts and health problems so he's still having to supplement those debts by working the gay porn scene and on the surface he's successful in that side too but its all taking its toll on him and now he just coasts, letting all around him think that he's coping as ' one of the guys' when in fact he's pretty much disconnected from it all. He tops and his reputation is one of being dismissive of the twinks who bottom for him... No kissing, hard sex and never bottoming for anyone.
Then he's asked by his boss to change it up and bottom in a three way for an exorbitant amount of money that would go towards clearing his moms debts and that's when Sonny, a beautiful go go dancer and tattooed twink enters the scene. He would be part of the threeway along with Rex, a guy who has a rep for being huge in the downstairs department!
Sonny and Levi do not like each other and Garret does a fantastic job of portraying that in the scene when they talk for the first time and Sonny tells Levi exactly why he can't stand Levi and what he really thinks of the way he treats the bottoms he plays with on camera. What happens next turns out to be one of the best love/hate romances I've ever read. I loved watching the sexual tension build up between these two fascinating characters and I fell for them both big time!
Watching the two together had my emotions up and down like a yoyo. It was poignant, tender, sensual, amusing, at times heartbreaking and totally delightful ... I didn't want it to finish. There's some awesome reviews out there and I agree with everyone of them. I can't reccomend this enough.
I wanted to be blown away and this time I was! Worth every star and more its definitely one of my favourite reads of the year.
edit: 3/5/14 ~ re-read as catch up for Bones (Blue Boy#2) . 5 stars . Still a favourite read second time around.
December 4, 2013
I read the blurb and thought wow, this is a book for me.
Porn industry -check
Hot sexy guy -check
Hot sexy cover -check
Outwardly tough and detached top -check
But inwardly alone and lost and so sad -check
Guilt and feelings of responsibility are more important than his own well being -check
A big payday that comes with a big price -check
Another hot go-go dancer guy -check
An attraction that is as mutual as their animosity -check
Lots of foreplay without any actual mutual gratification -check
So lots of hot goodness checked off my list.
Levi is a just- going-through-the-motions-pornstar-top, he's not happy, I think he's just resigned.
This is his life now and he'll get through it. Then his boss offers him a big paycheck. But to get it he has to go outside his comfort zone and not only that, he has to film with Sonny.
Sonny can't stand Levi and makes no secret of it, the feeling is mutual, but maybe just maybe there is more to the infuriating man than meets the eye.
An interesting dynamic starts, Sonny gets under Levi's skin, changes him. The story is told from Levi's POV and what I wouldn't give for some of Sonny's thoughts when he was with Levi. And of course me being me, means I want more, I'm greedy and wanted more of Levi and Sonny. Wanted to see them now that the antagonism and sarcasm has turned to something much gentler and meaningful.
I really enjoyed this novella. I was left wanting more of these two, where do they go from here. What will their future hold? What's Sonny's story, I found out about Levi's issues, but what about his?
I can't wait for the next book in the series.
November 15, 2019
** 2 Stars **
Ok read.
Ok read.
November 25, 2013
I first discovered Garrett Leigh’s work from a review I read on GR from the always awesome Isaac. He had reviewed Gypsy Rain and I bought and read it right away. I fell in love with the story and the writing style immediately. Since then I’ve been reading anything that Garrett publishes as soon as it comes out and this was no exception.
This was a great novella that I would have loved to have been twice as long. It’s the story of Levi, Sonny and the working boys over at Blue Boy Productions. It focuses mostly on Levi and the epic cluster his life has become. Levi is a very popular top in Blue Boys videos and he keeps busy. He also has a full time business of his own, but his life is not an easy one and he spends an enormous amount of energy caring for his self-destructive mother. He works his day job, works the porn job and takes care of his mom. Who, by the way, is a bitter angry bitch who doesn’t deserve Levi and all the sacrifices he makes.
So, I may have accidentally stumbled upon some porn once so I recognize the type of porn top Levi is. He’s the stereotypical alpha male, rough around the edges and definitely aloof. Not cruel, but not engaged at all, just disconnected. He was there to do a job. Nail a twink rough and hard, give the people what they want and be done. There was no kissing, no cuddling, no afterglow. Get the job done and move on to the next. That worked for Levi, he didn’t have the time or energy for complications. He even says he had, “been stuck in limbo for most of his adult life.”
Queue Sonny’s entrance into Levi’s life. Sonny is a go-go boy, sometime porn actor and the two of them don’t even give each other the time of day. They’ve never worked together and don’t have a desire to. Jon, the owner of the bar where Sonny dances and Blue Boy Productions makes Levi an offer he can’t afford to refuse. A three way shoot with Sonny and Rex, the most hung and rough top in the Blue Boy stable. The kicker is, Levi would have to bottom for Rex. Levi doesn’t bottom, ever! Frankly he’s completely freaked about the whole thing, but he needs the money for his worthless mother. The sum offered would take a huge amount of pressure off of Levi and his mountain of responsibilities.
While this could follow what you think is a formula of alpha porn star and twink go-go boy, this is where you’d be wrong. It does start that way, but then the wrench of the 3 way bottoming scene gets thrown in and is when the story gets completely unique. Turns out, Levi has more friends than he thought who are concerned about him and one of them just may be Sonny Valentine.
Sonny approaches Levi and offers to help him ‘train’ to be a bottom. Sonny explains there is no way Levi will make it through this unless he’s prepared and learns how to control the scene from the bottom. Sonny is speaking from experience and he calls Levi on his disconnected ways and makes him start to realize that there is an actual person in the scene with him, not just another twink to top.
So, these training sessions start and may I just say, WOW and DAMN, just WOW and DAMN! Levi is pretty surprised and totally unprepared for the feelings he starts to have for Sonny. Actually connecting with another person, much less Sonny Valentine was not in his plans. Throw in all the drama with his mother and poor Levi is overwhelmed with emotion and responsibility. The responsibility he’s used to, it’s the emotion he has trouble dealing with.
When the day of the big scene arrives, Levi has pretty much had the worst couple of days in his life. He is a man of his word though and is determined to follow through, even if he isn’t exactly sure why at this point. There is no way to go on with a review of that scene without going all kinds of spoilery, but suffice it to say, all manner of crazy went down and Sonny emerges the hero. Sonny was willing to take a figurative bullet for Levi and that means the world to him. No one has ever protected Levi before, ever. It changes everything.
You know what broke my heart about Levi? This,
“Though he’d had more sexual encounters this year alone than he could remember, he couldn’t remember the last time he’d kissed a man. It had been years.”
That’s just too sad, seriously sad. The author is good at putting those little thoughts and moments in there that convey a lot without having to tell me in a ton of words about Levi’s loneliness. It kept him from seeming too angsty, that would have felt out of character for him.
Being that this is the start of a series, I’m kind of overlooking what seemingly might be missing. Because it might not actually be missing, just not told yet. I want to know more about Sonny, a lot more. He’s pretty amazing from what I know so far. But ultimately, this was Levi’s story and that was consistent throughout. He taught Levi so much, and not just the sweet heat of the training sessions, but how to actual feel something, a connection to another person.
“Feel that Levi? Feel it all. This is what it’s supposed to be. This is what’s real.”
Who doesn’t want more of that?
I’ll be anxiously awaiting the next installment of the Blue Boys and thoroughly enjoyed this one.
This was a great novella that I would have loved to have been twice as long. It’s the story of Levi, Sonny and the working boys over at Blue Boy Productions. It focuses mostly on Levi and the epic cluster his life has become. Levi is a very popular top in Blue Boys videos and he keeps busy. He also has a full time business of his own, but his life is not an easy one and he spends an enormous amount of energy caring for his self-destructive mother. He works his day job, works the porn job and takes care of his mom. Who, by the way, is a bitter angry bitch who doesn’t deserve Levi and all the sacrifices he makes.
So, I may have accidentally stumbled upon some porn once so I recognize the type of porn top Levi is. He’s the stereotypical alpha male, rough around the edges and definitely aloof. Not cruel, but not engaged at all, just disconnected. He was there to do a job. Nail a twink rough and hard, give the people what they want and be done. There was no kissing, no cuddling, no afterglow. Get the job done and move on to the next. That worked for Levi, he didn’t have the time or energy for complications. He even says he had, “been stuck in limbo for most of his adult life.”
Queue Sonny’s entrance into Levi’s life. Sonny is a go-go boy, sometime porn actor and the two of them don’t even give each other the time of day. They’ve never worked together and don’t have a desire to. Jon, the owner of the bar where Sonny dances and Blue Boy Productions makes Levi an offer he can’t afford to refuse. A three way shoot with Sonny and Rex, the most hung and rough top in the Blue Boy stable. The kicker is, Levi would have to bottom for Rex. Levi doesn’t bottom, ever! Frankly he’s completely freaked about the whole thing, but he needs the money for his worthless mother. The sum offered would take a huge amount of pressure off of Levi and his mountain of responsibilities.
While this could follow what you think is a formula of alpha porn star and twink go-go boy, this is where you’d be wrong. It does start that way, but then the wrench of the 3 way bottoming scene gets thrown in and is when the story gets completely unique. Turns out, Levi has more friends than he thought who are concerned about him and one of them just may be Sonny Valentine.
Sonny approaches Levi and offers to help him ‘train’ to be a bottom. Sonny explains there is no way Levi will make it through this unless he’s prepared and learns how to control the scene from the bottom. Sonny is speaking from experience and he calls Levi on his disconnected ways and makes him start to realize that there is an actual person in the scene with him, not just another twink to top.
So, these training sessions start and may I just say, WOW and DAMN, just WOW and DAMN! Levi is pretty surprised and totally unprepared for the feelings he starts to have for Sonny. Actually connecting with another person, much less Sonny Valentine was not in his plans. Throw in all the drama with his mother and poor Levi is overwhelmed with emotion and responsibility. The responsibility he’s used to, it’s the emotion he has trouble dealing with.
When the day of the big scene arrives, Levi has pretty much had the worst couple of days in his life. He is a man of his word though and is determined to follow through, even if he isn’t exactly sure why at this point. There is no way to go on with a review of that scene without going all kinds of spoilery, but suffice it to say, all manner of crazy went down and Sonny emerges the hero. Sonny was willing to take a figurative bullet for Levi and that means the world to him. No one has ever protected Levi before, ever. It changes everything.
You know what broke my heart about Levi? This,
“Though he’d had more sexual encounters this year alone than he could remember, he couldn’t remember the last time he’d kissed a man. It had been years.”
That’s just too sad, seriously sad. The author is good at putting those little thoughts and moments in there that convey a lot without having to tell me in a ton of words about Levi’s loneliness. It kept him from seeming too angsty, that would have felt out of character for him.
Being that this is the start of a series, I’m kind of overlooking what seemingly might be missing. Because it might not actually be missing, just not told yet. I want to know more about Sonny, a lot more. He’s pretty amazing from what I know so far. But ultimately, this was Levi’s story and that was consistent throughout. He taught Levi so much, and not just the sweet heat of the training sessions, but how to actual feel something, a connection to another person.
“Feel that Levi? Feel it all. This is what it’s supposed to be. This is what’s real.”
Who doesn’t want more of that?
I’ll be anxiously awaiting the next installment of the Blue Boys and thoroughly enjoyed this one.
November 15, 2013
Although I was slightly worried than porn stars theme would equal lots of sex, I was intrigued with this book because it gather positive reviews. Plus some reviews I read did say that the porn industry was acting more like a background and the strength would be in the characterization.
Alas, when I finished, this was just an "okay" read. Why?
What Worked For Me
Levi's characterization was the best thing from this book. It was EXCELLENT. I loved that Levi was more than meets the eye. He might came as stoic and cold for the "bottom" actors. He might seemed to look at his 'job' as something of a means to get money and he didn't find it personally satisfying. But there was SO MUCH more to him if people cared to look closer. The bitter relationship with his mother was one of the things that made me feel so much for Levi.
What Didn't Work For Me
Unfortunately, this novella was only presenting Levi's point of view and I truly couldn't get why Sonny would have a change of heart. He clearly despised Levi -- but then he was ready to teach him about being a bottom? That Sonny cared enough about Levi and willing to take a bullet (from Rex) for him? WHY? Was it only because Levi's last movie-shoot, where he cared enough for the bottom? I needed some sort of 'event' that could convince me about Sonny's sudden interest to Levi. And I didn't get it from the novella.
On top of that, I found the tutoring session to be mechanical and lack of heart. I know that other reviewers found it hot -- but for me, it didn't. Maybe because I didn't think that either Levi or Sonny as at least being emotionally involved with it. So I felt distant and detached from the characters during those sessions.
And the ending? It was too abrupt. It felt HFN -- and because I already didn't understand Sonny's interest to Levi in the first place, it was hard to believe that they would work out. Maybe if I get more scenes of their interaction outside the sex session, it would work better.
So all in all, the lacking evidence in which I could believe the romance made the book fell into my "okay" category. Having said that -- I might still continue with the next book. I heard it was about Cam? And if it was indeed his story with Jon, it might be intriguing.
Alas, when I finished, this was just an "okay" read. Why?
What Worked For Me
Levi's characterization was the best thing from this book. It was EXCELLENT. I loved that Levi was more than meets the eye. He might came as stoic and cold for the "bottom" actors. He might seemed to look at his 'job' as something of a means to get money and he didn't find it personally satisfying. But there was SO MUCH more to him if people cared to look closer. The bitter relationship with his mother was one of the things that made me feel so much for Levi.
What Didn't Work For Me
Unfortunately, this novella was only presenting Levi's point of view and I truly couldn't get why Sonny would have a change of heart. He clearly despised Levi -- but then he was ready to teach him about being a bottom? That Sonny cared enough about Levi and willing to take a bullet (from Rex) for him? WHY? Was it only because Levi's last movie-shoot, where he cared enough for the bottom? I needed some sort of 'event' that could convince me about Sonny's sudden interest to Levi. And I didn't get it from the novella.
On top of that, I found the tutoring session to be mechanical and lack of heart. I know that other reviewers found it hot -- but for me, it didn't. Maybe because I didn't think that either Levi or Sonny as at least being emotionally involved with it. So I felt distant and detached from the characters during those sessions.
And the ending? It was too abrupt. It felt HFN -- and because I already didn't understand Sonny's interest to Levi in the first place, it was hard to believe that they would work out. Maybe if I get more scenes of their interaction outside the sex session, it would work better.
So all in all, the lacking evidence in which I could believe the romance made the book fell into my "okay" category. Having said that -- I might still continue with the next book. I heard it was about Cam? And if it was indeed his story with Jon, it might be intriguing.
July 27, 2016
I’m in love with a woman. Yes, I know, that’s quite a way to break the news. But seriously, I’m in love with a woman. Her name is Garrett Leigh and, if you have not read any of her books, I recommend you to do it the sooner, the better. She is EXACTLY my cup of tea.
I feel she writes only for me, she hit every (good) nerve and every (correct) button with Slide and Rare. But seeing this one that short I thought it would be a superficial thing, above all due to the topic: porn.
Because, really, try to understand me, what could I expect with only 100 pages and films for adults? Only sex, sex and sex, right? Well, that’s a lie. I was really shocked to find the opposite of what I was looking for. There is an actual story here, and it amazes me how she achieved it.
Garrett Leigh writes to kill. She is unstoppable. She’s not afraid of writing anything challenging and different from each other of her books, that kind of plots who makes me wonder “WTF? Is she really going to make it work? Is she nuts?”. But believe me, she ends up making it all perfect. I don’t know her secret, maybe it’s hidden between the Coca-Cola recipe and Freddie Mercury’s voice, she is that UNIQUE.
If you are her fan, you will love this one. The MC are typical GL: they are more than they seem at the beginning. Categorizing them is useless, there is no predetermined type. When we meet someone for the first time, without us realizing it, we classify them: the physical appearance, the words, the gestures, the way of walking or the accent, everything. We are copies of somebody, in parts if not in the whole. We recognize parts of someone from our past experiences and then we form an opinion, and that’s called prejudice. I did that here, I classified the MC instantly and I could consider myself lucky if I hit the mark at half of it. I’m knocked out. K.O.
The only constant in her characters is that they are tortured souls. Maybe they lived throughout a traumatic past, maybe they suffered important injures, maybe they can’t go on in life due to apparently superfluous reasons. But they never turn out as I expect them to do, but still, in a way, it fits their nature and I don’t feel cheated like I do in some movies when they don’t give enough clues and invent the ending out of the blue. She manages to give enough clues and still be surprising.
Levi is a veteran in the porn world, to the point to consider it all routine, and Sonny’s taking his first steps in the industry. Levi is a top and has never bottomed. Sonny is a bottom and despises Levi’s way of treating the guys he fucks. But Levi is positioned in a hard place and is forced to make a scene that changes everything he ever experienced, so Sonny takes pity on him and decides to help him to prepare for what’s to come.
So, everything is very crude and sexual, with no place for feelings, and the MC are determined to make it business and duty. But God laughs at people’s plans.
I didn’t get on with Levi at first. He was quite cold and arrogant for me. A big dick, in every sense of the word. I thought it would remain like that the whole book, but he got under my skin with his cynical way of moving behind the cameras. Sonny is also cautious with him, even crude and rough when they interact. Levi is selfish, he looks only for himself and doesn’t waste time in looking for others. But Sonny’s words give him food for thought and he begins to question some of his actions and, reluctantly, he changes after a fashion.
Sonny is more hermetic because we don’t have his POV. He enters the scene like a tornado, turning Levi’s world upside down. He is defiant and takes no shit from Levi. I still wanted to know something more about him after finishing the book, he is much more than a smart-ass go-go dancer. And that’s what Levi is going to discover.
An unexpected marvelous surprise, this one. Porn movie turned into a love story. I’m beginning to think GL has the Midas touch, there is no other explanation. I even have a shelf only for her, that's my thing with GL.
August 8, 2014
I've been pondering how to rate this.
Lookit, I knew what I was getting into when I picked this up. It's a series about porn stars, so it's not like I'm expecting Dostoevsky or anything. Temper your expectations and all that, I get it. It's not as though I hated it or anything. I'm more…
Maybe that's the problem. I didn't feel these two as a couple.
Levi's a top who's know as sort of a douche. He treats the bottoms like hamburger meat, gets paid and goes home. He got into porn for reasons, some of which are compelling actually. He works for a studio called *cough* *cough* Blue Boy. Jon, head of Blue Boy knows of Levi's situation and makes him an offer he can't refuse. BUT, it requires Levi to bottom.
Jon did cushion the blow by adding Sonny, an up and coming go go dancer, to the equation; however, the other half of the equation contains Rex, an even douchier top with a monster cock. Levi's NEVER bottomed. Ever.
The plot thickens…
Levi doesn't like Sonny for reasons and Sonny, as you can imagine, doesn't like Levi. So, it's Enemies to Lovers. I can dig it. Except I missed the "to" part. I think. Sonny offers to help Levi "prep" for the scene. There is some verbal fisticuffs, a blow job, some lube, enchiladas and they weren't enemies anymore. It was just all a little too…
It is all told through Levi and Levi's not the sharpest knife in the drawer, so maybe he doesn't understand his own feels?
I think if this had been just porn it would've worked out better, but there is an attempt at a plot/relationship development that fell down and skinned its knees. Even the stuff with Levi's mom lacked emotionality, but you wanna know the saddest part? The sex wasn't that hot.
Porn stars + mediocre sex = sad Cupcake
So, I guess I'll go with 2.5 Stars and round up for reasons.
Lookit, I knew what I was getting into when I picked this up. It's a series about porn stars, so it's not like I'm expecting Dostoevsky or anything. Temper your expectations and all that, I get it. It's not as though I hated it or anything. I'm more…
Maybe that's the problem. I didn't feel these two as a couple.
Levi's a top who's know as sort of a douche. He treats the bottoms like hamburger meat, gets paid and goes home. He got into porn for reasons, some of which are compelling actually. He works for a studio called *cough* *cough* Blue Boy. Jon, head of Blue Boy knows of Levi's situation and makes him an offer he can't refuse. BUT, it requires Levi to bottom.
Jon did cushion the blow by adding Sonny, an up and coming go go dancer, to the equation; however, the other half of the equation contains Rex, an even douchier top with a monster cock. Levi's NEVER bottomed. Ever.
The plot thickens…
Levi doesn't like Sonny for reasons and Sonny, as you can imagine, doesn't like Levi. So, it's Enemies to Lovers. I can dig it. Except I missed the "to" part. I think. Sonny offers to help Levi "prep" for the scene. There is some verbal fisticuffs, a blow job, some lube, enchiladas and they weren't enemies anymore. It was just all a little too…
It is all told through Levi and Levi's not the sharpest knife in the drawer, so maybe he doesn't understand his own feels?
I think if this had been just porn it would've worked out better, but there is an attempt at a plot/relationship development that fell down and skinned its knees. Even the stuff with Levi's mom lacked emotionality, but you wanna know the saddest part? The sex wasn't that hot.
Porn stars + mediocre sex = sad Cupcake
So, I guess I'll go with 2.5 Stars and round up for reasons.
August 5, 2015
4.5 stars and ♥♥♥♥♥ from me. A great start to another new series, even if it's only novella. This is a shortie review, not a lot more is needed. I loved the characters of Levi and Sonny, that they started out as people who disliked each other intensely but only because they didn't know each other properly...Sonny didn't think that Levi treated the guys who bottomed for him very well at all, and Levi was totally unimpressed by the twink that was Sonny. Levi had a lot in his plate as far as his family life was concerned, a mother who'd decided to drink herself to death because of the guilt she felt at having driven her husband to his suicide, and it's only after his mum's death that Levi discovers that his dad was gay too!! Levi's in the porn business purely for the money, most of which was used to pay off his mum's debts, and Sonny's putting himself through college with the money he earns, but enjoys his go-go dancing at the 'Silver' club and bottoming when needed at the 'Blue Boy' porn studio.
This book could obviously be compared to Amy Lane's 'Johnnies' series with Chase, Dex and Ethan, BUT I didn't get the same sense of despair and level of angst from this book as I did from 'Chase in Shadow' in particular, I could have cut my own throat with a blunt knife after reading that one...a great read but much too intense. This was a really good first book in the Blue Boy series, and I'm already looking foward to Cam's story.
Must just say that I liked the cover as well, so a winner all round for me, woot!! Oh, and just a little aside, someone has mentioned that they didn't understand why the book was called 'Bullet'...that was because Levi felt that meeting Sonny was the only thing that stopped him from biting the bullet himself..in other words, his own suicide.
This book could obviously be compared to Amy Lane's 'Johnnies' series with Chase, Dex and Ethan, BUT I didn't get the same sense of despair and level of angst from this book as I did from 'Chase in Shadow' in particular, I could have cut my own throat with a blunt knife after reading that one...a great read but much too intense. This was a really good first book in the Blue Boy series, and I'm already looking foward to Cam's story.
Must just say that I liked the cover as well, so a winner all round for me, woot!! Oh, and just a little aside, someone has mentioned that they didn't understand why the book was called 'Bullet'...that was because Levi felt that meeting Sonny was the only thing that stopped him from biting the bullet himself..in other words, his own suicide.
November 21, 2013
After Slide I couldn't wait reading this novella and it was just awesome!!!
The cover is an eye catcher par excellence. It intrigued me from the start.
------
Levi Ramone is a gay porn veteran with a reputation as a ruthless top. Needing more and more money to pay this mother's gambling debts he agrees to do a scene he considers his worst nightmare.
Sonny Valentine is a beautiful and graceful go-go dancer and a fellow porn star. Levi has secretly admired Sonny from afar for years. His only problem is that he can't stand Sonny and the feeling is mutual. Of all people Sonny is supposed to play the third part in the upcoming scene...
At the beginning Levi seems to be a brooding, emotionless guy but after reading a few pages it's clear that there is more about him than his outward appearance. A heartbroken and lonely guy, a tortured soul without any hope in life.
Sonny - I was drawn to him from the start. He's beautiful and clever and a sweet and caring guy. He starts to take care of Levi, gets under his skin and begins to change him. Their physical interactions are powerful and hot. I loved watching the sexual tension build up between them and fell so hard for them both.
Bullet grabbed me from the moment Levi started to tell his story. It isn't as heartbreaking as Slide but it shows so much emotions, I didn't stand a chance. Levi and Sonny crawled under my skin and made themself at home there. :)
Garrett Leigh is definitely a must-read author for me, and I'm looking forward to more in the Blue Boy series.. I hope Cam and Jon's story is the next one due. :)
October 24, 2017
*3,5 stars*
This was short and hot and sweet.
Hmm. How can the story about a porn star be sweet?
It is. And for the length of it, it captivated me, drew me in and made me root for the MC.
Levi (and we only get his POV) is a beautiful guy with body hair in all the right places (oops, excuse me for getting SLIGHTY off the track here, but I mean, body hair .... and gorgeous, and ... *sigh*)
This novella has enough depth and feels to really get to you. And come on, a porn star falling in love - with a nimble dancer?
Smiles all the way!
This was short and hot and sweet.
Hmm. How can the story about a porn star be sweet?
It is. And for the length of it, it captivated me, drew me in and made me root for the MC.
Levi (and we only get his POV) is a beautiful guy with body hair in all the right places (oops, excuse me for getting SLIGHTY off the track here, but I mean, body hair .... and gorgeous, and ... *sigh*)
This novella has enough depth and feels to really get to you. And come on, a porn star falling in love - with a nimble dancer?
Smiles all the way!
December 4, 2014
4,4/5 Stars..
Ever happens to you?!, when you read a book that your're really not that eager to read it!, But once you've done with it. You question yourself and say Huh!! Go figure?!!.. Will chicas that's what i felt!
Any who..back to the story.
it is based on a porn market industry. Blue Boy Studio. The models who work there, were genuine gay men, who lovedfucking or/and really needed the cash.
Levi Ramone- reckoned most fell into both categories. he's one of the most popular models: the dark hair, and brooding brown eyes. The one reason he needed the cash to pay his momma's gambling debts.
After seven-years, with his momma's bills still stacking up,and being alcoholic that just put the cherry on top for levi. When his boss (Jon) suggests changing up a little with his rules in making videos. jon consider a Three-way scenes. which of course pays much more than levi earns. and That's were Sonny Valentine comes in to the picture!.
Sonny is a dancer at the Blue boy's Club.
when there is a person who you can't simply stand him: for being annoying, and gets under your skin in unbearable way. Yet you can't stop thinking about him?!!. this feeling is mutual between Levi and Sonny. on top of that they must work with each other and with (Rexi) their third partner to create a three-way scene.
Things got peachy for me! But not for them!!
I loved Sonny's character. how he teases levi with his words and hints!! it made me Giggle!!
" I don't need to touch you to make you hard"
" I think I've proved you wrong enough for one night"
Now preparations for the scene.with levi's tragic events in his personal life. he feels like everything falling apart. but with
sonny's helping him with some "positions". Levi's loathing toward sonny turns to a HOT Attraction. which he never experienced it with anyone.
I enjoyed how they cared for each other. still they didn't show it directly. My first read for Garrett Leigh, and won't be my last! :D.
Ever happens to you?!, when you read a book that your're really not that eager to read it!, But once you've done with it. You question yourself and say Huh!! Go figure?!!.. Will chicas that's what i felt!
Any who..back to the story.
it is based on a porn market industry. Blue Boy Studio. The models who work there, were genuine gay men, who loved
Levi Ramone- reckoned most fell into both categories. he's one of the most popular models: the dark hair, and brooding brown eyes. The one reason he needed the cash to pay his momma's gambling debts.
After seven-years, with his momma's bills still stacking up,and being alcoholic that just put the cherry on top for levi. When his boss (Jon) suggests changing up a little with his rules in making videos. jon consider a Three-way scenes. which of course pays much more than levi earns. and That's were Sonny Valentine comes in to the picture!.
Sonny is a dancer at the Blue boy's Club.
when there is a person who you can't simply stand him: for being annoying, and gets under your skin in unbearable way. Yet you can't stop thinking about him?!!. this feeling is mutual between Levi and Sonny. on top of that they must work with each other and with (Rexi) their third partner to create a three-way scene.
Things got peachy for me! But not for them!!
I loved Sonny's character. how he teases levi with his words and hints!! it made me Giggle!!
" I don't need to touch you to make you hard"
" I think I've proved you wrong enough for one night"
Now preparations for the scene.with levi's tragic events in his personal life. he feels like everything falling apart. but with
sonny's helping him with some "positions". Levi's loathing toward sonny turns to a HOT Attraction. which he never experienced it with anyone.
I enjoyed how they cared for each other. still they didn't show it directly. My first read for Garrett Leigh, and won't be my last! :D.
May 8, 2014
There are a lot of M/M pornstar books out there, but this is one of the better ones. Levi was very believable as a guy in it for the money and the physical relief, but holding himself aloof from the scenes. The emptiness of his life, and the way it changed, felt real and had emotional resonance. The resolution of the plot climax was not any of the scenarios I expected, and yet fit well. I love being surprised in a real, believable way.
If I had any issues, or reasons to drop a fraction of a star off this, it would be the length. The story has a nice arc, and ends at a good resting point. At the same time, a lot of the hard stuff (in both emotional and practical terms) was going to happen the next morning, once real life rears its head again. This is a series, but as far as I can see, the next one features a different couple, so I won't get to see Levi reacting to his epiphanies and the consequences of his actions, except maybe at a distance. And I'm greedy that way.
But over all this is a fast, smooth and engrossing look at a man changing his life (helped by one serendipitous moment of fate) that is well worth the read.
If I had any issues, or reasons to drop a fraction of a star off this, it would be the length. The story has a nice arc, and ends at a good resting point. At the same time, a lot of the hard stuff (in both emotional and practical terms) was going to happen the next morning, once real life rears its head again. This is a series, but as far as I can see, the next one features a different couple, so I won't get to see Levi reacting to his epiphanies and the consequences of his actions, except maybe at a distance. And I'm greedy that way.
But over all this is a fast, smooth and engrossing look at a man changing his life (helped by one serendipitous moment of fate) that is well worth the read.
January 13, 2014
I look at this book as the beginning of a budding romance between Levi and Sonny, this caught me by surprise. Didn't expect it to be this good.
The story revolves around the gay porn industry. Levi and Sonny prove that you are never too jaded to learn and love.
I wished this book were longer. I really wanted it to keep going.
I wanted to see where Sonny and Levi were headed and how they got their HEA!!
The story revolves around the gay porn industry. Levi and Sonny prove that you are never too jaded to learn and love.
I wished this book were longer. I really wanted it to keep going.
I wanted to see where Sonny and Levi were headed and how they got their HEA!!
May 22, 2015
This is first installment in the Blue Boy series. Was a good story but I just wish it was longer.There is love hate in the beginning,I like stories of this type.The writing makes this a fast and easy read but the ending was a little abrupt for me.However I loved Levi and Sonny...so I liked the story.
November 10, 2017
Si me vas a contar una historia sobre el mundo del porno que, por cierto, debe ser apasionante xD dame algo un poco más...profundo xD ¡Meh!.
Esto va así: topper estrella de Blue Boys no quiere ser bottomiado, pero le ofrecen una linda platita para que haga LA escena. El twink quiere ¨prepararlo¨para LA escena con el muchacho Rex. Rex tiene una monster c***. Fin.
Esto va así: topper estrella de Blue Boys no quiere ser bottomiado, pero le ofrecen una linda platita para que haga LA escena. El twink quiere ¨prepararlo¨para LA escena con el muchacho Rex. Rex tiene una monster c***. Fin.
Want to read
May 21, 2017Kindle freebie 5/21/17!
December 4, 2013
Oh my eyes! Why did I put myself through that? Thank God it was a short story.
Yes, I'm the odd ball here. I simply HATED this story!
Let me count the ways:
1. For unfathomable reasons, Levi agrees to a three-way with himself bottoming (he's never bottomed before). And somehow turns it into a dare to have Sonny teach him to prepare himself. What? O_O
2. In one of their...'practice' sessions, Levi is hurting from fingering himself, while Sonny observes from nearby. Dude, here's a thought: either let Sonny continue prepping you then proceed to fuck you or stop. It's a no brainer.
3. During one of his fights with Bella, Levi gets a message from Sonny. And immediately switches gears and starts getting aroused by the thought of Sonny and plugs. Yup, normal behaviour right there.
4. Cheesy lines that almost made me puke. One that stuck: "Sonny stepped out of the darkness, opened his arms, and let the rhythm of the music seep under his skin, the distance was nothing… as though Sonny was dancing only for him".
5. Levi alternates between thinking he could have snapped his mother in two in any of their fights, to feeling sorry for her (and him by association), to taking crap from her, to thinking a three-way is the next step after watching his mother die.
6. My favorite: "His daddy’s death had left him with an ingrained sense of responsibility, a need to honor every promise he’d ever made" meaning going through with the threesome, obviously.
Maybe I should give it 5 stars for the intense compulsion it gave me to bang my head against the wall... repeatedly. Luckily, it didn't drive me that crazy.
Yes, I'm the odd ball here. I simply HATED this story!
Let me count the ways:
1. For unfathomable reasons, Levi agrees to a three-way with himself bottoming (he's never bottomed before). And somehow turns it into a dare to have Sonny teach him to prepare himself. What? O_O
2. In one of their...'practice' sessions, Levi is hurting from fingering himself, while Sonny observes from nearby. Dude, here's a thought: either let Sonny continue prepping you then proceed to fuck you or stop. It's a no brainer.
3. During one of his fights with Bella, Levi gets a message from Sonny. And immediately switches gears and starts getting aroused by the thought of Sonny and plugs. Yup, normal behaviour right there.
4. Cheesy lines that almost made me puke. One that stuck: "Sonny stepped out of the darkness, opened his arms, and let the rhythm of the music seep under his skin, the distance was nothing… as though Sonny was dancing only for him".
5. Levi alternates between thinking he could have snapped his mother in two in any of their fights, to feeling sorry for her (and him by association), to taking crap from her, to thinking a three-way is the next step after watching his mother die.
6. My favorite: "His daddy’s death had left him with an ingrained sense of responsibility, a need to honor every promise he’d ever made" meaning going through with the threesome, obviously.
Maybe I should give it 5 stars for the intense compulsion it gave me to bang my head against the wall... repeatedly. Luckily, it didn't drive me that crazy.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 6, 2013
Hey, the moment pretty man and hardened porn stud got to the lovey-dovey stuff I got thrown out of the story...The End!
First part of a series? I`ll let it slide...
First part of a series? I`ll let it slide...
February 18, 2018
Loved it! Get it! Read it!
This was so hot, sexy, gritty, and raw! It amazing how much Garrett Leigh can pack into 105 pages. Like the tip of an iceberg, you can’t see it all, but you can feel it’s size and depth.
This is Garrett Leigh, so you know you’re getting some angst. Although the backdrop for this story is a porn studio, the real story is about a son, his mother, and a tattooed dancer.
I adored it! I loved the sex scenes, both on and off camera. And I especially loved Sonny’s no nonsense approach to preparing to bottom for a 9 inch giant.
This was so hot, sexy, gritty, and raw! It amazing how much Garrett Leigh can pack into 105 pages. Like the tip of an iceberg, you can’t see it all, but you can feel it’s size and depth.
This is Garrett Leigh, so you know you’re getting some angst. Although the backdrop for this story is a porn studio, the real story is about a son, his mother, and a tattooed dancer.
I adored it! I loved the sex scenes, both on and off camera. And I especially loved Sonny’s no nonsense approach to preparing to bottom for a 9 inch giant.
November 7, 2013
I really like this short story. So much more to Levi than what you first get to see.
I loved interactions between Sonny and Levi. There isn't much more to write that others haven't put in their reviews. My first book from this author and I will definitely read more!
I loved interactions between Sonny and Levi. There isn't much more to write that others haven't put in their reviews. My first book from this author and I will definitely read more!
probably-not
November 11, 2013Whenever the cover thumbnail pops up in my feed I read it as a statuette of the Virgin Mary in a dove-grey mantle.
July 9, 2015
Not nearly as good as the Johnnies series, but still good if reading about porn stars is your thang (hint: it's mine). Also, yes, I said "thang" - deal with it.
November 15, 2013
3.5 stars
Bullet starts off with a bang, literally…
“A trickle of sweat ran down the center of Levi Ramone’s chest. Hot lube-slick fingers dug into his hips… He looked down at the boy writhing beneath him… it wasn’t like he was fucking Zeb for fun… this was his job.”
Levi is a member of the Blue Boy gay porn stable, in fact, one of their best models. He’s known for his dark good looks, his umm, endowment, and his rough love ’em and leave ’em attitude, it rakes in lots of money for him and the studio.
Levi is also a skilled mechanic, co-owns his own business; we find out later in the story why he has to depend on the extra porn cash. That, and the fact that he loves to fuck. Levi is shut down, though, between the bike shop and porn making he has little time for a serious relationship. And seven years of selling himself to the camera is wearing very thin.
There is someone on his radar, though. Sonny Valentine, talented go-go dancer and professional bottom is gorgeous and has his own prickly attitude. Sonny is one of those characters whose backstory you’d really like to know more of (we don’t get it here, this is all about Levi’s POV). He’s younger, newer to the business, but under the toughness he shows real insight and caring, he has an unexpected maturity when it comes to dealing with Levi. He seems to get Levi’s skittishness. When they’re together the tension mounts and sparks fly.
Sonny uses an opportunity to act in a porn scene with Levi to get closer to the standoffish top. He somehow convinces Levi that he could use some special tutoring for the scene which Levi is feeling unsure about… a scene that will push him way out of his comfort zone. Their ‘tutoring’ is smoking hot, the guys are definitely not inhibited about getting down and dirty. I think they kind of get mesmerized by each other. Sonny doesn’t let Levi push him away, and they both get caught in the head lights of an attraction they don’t quite know what to do with. In the end, it’s Sonny’s willingness to ‘take a bullet’ for Levi that shows his depth.
On top of this, Sonny teaches Levi something about how he treats others, that his roughness is a way of keeping distance. I like these guys but I really like Sonny.
Bullet reminded me a little of Amy Lane’s Chase in Shadow... the stable of porn actors who are also friends, the sympathetic studio boss, how the sex industry gives an outlet to exhibitionists. Here though, Levi and Sonny are not angst-filled victims, they are secure in their sexuality, know just why they’re in the business.
This is my first time reading this author and it’s a good start. This is a hot little story with characters you want to care about.
And homie can write intimacy with an edge.
Bullet didn’t get full marks because I’m not completely convinced why Sonny should care about Levi at all. They work in the same studio, have known each other for quite some time before the catalyst-- that mutual sex scene. But they know nothing about each other and never interacted or acted upon any kind of attraction. And then… they’re all about the sex, it’s how they relate. The story ending threw me too, while there is some resolution of conflict, it’s rather abrupt and it drifts into HFN territory, setting up for the sequel.
Bullet works well enough as a stand-alone but I won’t be averse to continuing on with these two, to see how well they do with the discoveries they’ve made.
For this review, give-aways, author interviews, and much more:
May 6, 2017
After reading the blurb, and knowing this was a short story, I figured this novella was gonna be one big pornfest, without any real plot. I was wrong....
Levi has been working as a pornstar for "Blue Boys" for some time now. He became a pornstar, because he needed the money. His father commited suicide and his mother is an awful drunk with plenty of debts, that needed to be paid off.
Getting to have sex for money, seems like and easy and enjoyable way to make your money...right.
Levi has always been a top, and not a very gentle one either. He has never given his actions much thought though. That is until Sonny, a fellow porn star and dancer, comments on Levi's skills as a top.
These two don't start out o the right foot, but when Levi is scheduled to have his first time bottoming filmed, Sonny is the one who steps up and tries to help the man out.
Of course there is sex in this book, I mean it's about the pornindustry, but that wasn't all that this book was about. Levi had plenty of issues outside of his work, that needed his attention, but still with everything going on in his head...he managed to really listen to Sonny.
This is a short book though, so don't expect anything deep character wise. To be honest, I would have liked to know more about Sonny. Everything is in Levi's pov and I didn't really understand why Sonny did the things he did and how he was actually feeling.
I absolutely loved Amy Lane's "Johnnies" series, which this can be compared to a little bit. Though this series, is way less angsty and not as deep. I think it would be perfect for those who have avoided the "Johnnies" series, because of the angst.
I am very much looking forward to reading book 2 :)
This review has been posted on Dirty Books Obsession
June 14, 2017
This book wasn't exactly what I was expecting. Being a huge fane of Garrett Leigh's, I have read several of her books, and this one is nothing like anything else I've read by her before. The writing style seems different and it wasn't as angsty as I thought it could be, but there was indeed some drama and angst. What really bothered me was that this ended with a more HFN, than HEA. They didn't even say "I love you," or "I care about you," or "I like you." Nothing. The story just kind of ends with promises of "more" between them.
It took me a while to get into the story and this is going to sound weird but I was maybe 20% in when I was like, oh, wait, this is a Garrett Leigh story - I need to pay better attention here. And, well, as I said before, the writing style is different. I will look into/read the other stories in this series, but they won't be a high priority for me right now.
This was well written in the basic sense, don't get me wrong, it was just a surprise - and short (which wasn't a surprise. :) It does end abruptly IMO.) I am left with wanting more. I didn't feel that I got enough of a look into the characters history, and I seriously know nothing about Sonny except he is a student and does dancing/porn too. And he seems to have a soft spot for Levi. I don't really know these characters and so I rate this 3 stars.
5-20-17: Currently Free on Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Bullet-Blue-Bo...
It took me a while to get into the story and this is going to sound weird but I was maybe 20% in when I was like, oh, wait, this is a Garrett Leigh story - I need to pay better attention here. And, well, as I said before, the writing style is different. I will look into/read the other stories in this series, but they won't be a high priority for me right now.
This was well written in the basic sense, don't get me wrong, it was just a surprise - and short (which wasn't a surprise. :) It does end abruptly IMO.) I am left with wanting more. I didn't feel that I got enough of a look into the characters history, and I seriously know nothing about Sonny except he is a student and does dancing/porn too. And he seems to have a soft spot for Levi. I don't really know these characters and so I rate this 3 stars.
5-20-17: Currently Free on Amazon
https://www.amazon.com/Bullet-Blue-Bo...
May 11, 2016
Levi
Sonny
Oh yeah
Oh hell yeah
I've never been into rentboy or porn character books. Just seemed like cheating to me, no matter how it played out. But this book...and this series is EVERYTHING. This series is straight up the line up from CockyBoys. Ty Roderick's intensity and Jake Bass' energy is most definitely Levi and Sonny.
This is a great series with a really solid plot, likable and intriguing characters, super HOT fucking and interesting dialogue.
Next up is Cam and Sasha. Hmmm, hmmm.
Sonny
Oh yeah
Oh hell yeah
I've never been into rentboy or porn character books. Just seemed like cheating to me, no matter how it played out. But this book...and this series is EVERYTHING. This series is straight up the line up from CockyBoys. Ty Roderick's intensity and Jake Bass' energy is most definitely Levi and Sonny.
This is a great series with a really solid plot, likable and intriguing characters, super HOT fucking and interesting dialogue.
Next up is Cam and Sasha. Hmmm, hmmm.
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