(The Pennymaker Tales, #2)
by Tara Lain
Blurb:
Young Snowden “Snow” Reynaldi is brilliant, beautiful, and alone. Though he’s shy, weird, and tolerated by the NorCal University students because he’s a renowned whiz at chess and helps put the school on the map, that doesn’t keep him from dreaming of the object of his desires, Riley Prince, championship quarterback.
When Riley needs a physics’ tutor, Snow jumps at the chance, and their relationship heats up—but Riley has to come out of the jock closet to get anywhere. Meanwhile, Snow’s one true friend and mentor, Professor Kingsley, marries a woman who secretly wants the chess tournament glory and money for herself. Soon after, the professor collapses and Snow finds himself underwater—literally. In a car!
Seven frat brothers from Grimm College rescue Snow just in time for his life to get even worse, and Snow discovers the one relationship he always wanted slipping away. With evil looming at every turn, Snow must survive if only to prove he’s the fairest of them all and regain the trust of his handsome prince.
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Excerpt
“There are
rumors here and there, but I’m a big guy, and nobody says it to my face.”
Snow shrugged.
“So why change now? You’re a senior. You can do what you want next year.”
Riley leaned
his head back against the couch. “Because it’s chickenshit, like I said. People
are always going to give gay guys crap when they don’t know anyone who’s gay. I
can change that. A lot of people think they know me. I mean, look at you. Chess
champion. Much bigger than I’ll ever be. But you never claim to be anything but
gay.”
“I’m so weird,
nobody’s surprised.”
“No, you’re
not. You show the world that gay guys can be brilliant geniuses and beautiful.
I can show them that gay guys can be big and strong and well coordinated. We
all have a part to play.” He chuckled. “I have to confess, I practiced that
speech, but I’m hoping it’s true.”
Snow’s heart
beat so loud he could barely hear. Could this really be happening? “Umm, so you
said you have enough experience to teach me.” He stared at his moo shu.
Riley sat up
and got a very serious expression. “You see, Mr. Reynaldi, it’s all a matter of
physics. Your quantum physics says that electrons can be in two places at the
same time.” He leaned forward and pulled Snow across his lap, somehow managing
to not spill any Chinese food in the process. “It’s like my tongue can be in my
mouth—” He ran his soft tongue across Snow’s barely parted lips. “—and inside
your mouth at the same time.” He insinuated inside and kissed Snow slowly and
thoroughly. So that’s how it feels.
Invasive and completing at once.
Riley pulled
his lips back from the kiss but kept them close to Snow’s so his breath warmed
Snow’s wet mouth. “And just as particles can be waves and waves particles, so I
can feel completely relaxed and completely excited simultaneously.”
Snow grinned.
“I knew physics could be fun, but this is far beyond my expectations.”
“You didn’t
have enough faith in your subject matter.”
“Clearly.” He
smiled and whispered, “What happens now?”
“First, I want
to know if you’re interested in me, or am I just living in fantasyland?”
Snow’s eyes
widened. “Oh, did I not show enough interest?”
Riley laughed.
“Yes, but I don’t want to take anything for granted. You’re too special.”
My, that moo shu is interesting. “I’ve been dreaming about you ever since the
first time I saw you. I didn’t think you were gay, so I never even hoped it
could be more than a dream.”
Riley caressed
Snow’s hair. “Think of all the time we wasted dreaming about each other.”
“In quantum
physics, particles in contact become quantumly entangled. Perhaps we simply
needed more time for the entangling to occur.” Snow smiled softly. This had to
be a dream.
4.5 out of 5 stars
Now I know what you're thinking as you look at the cover..."OMG! He looks SO YOUNG!" Snow is 20, so he's very legal, and very adorable and awkward, and all sorts of things that you'd expect in a New Adult story where the main character is discovering themselves. Now that we have that out of the way... onto the real reason we're here, the story!
Driven Snow is the second in Tara Lain's Pennymaker Tales series and can be read as a standalone.
As you can guess from the title, Driven Snow, is Ms. Lane's very modern twist on the classic tale of Snow White and the Seven Dwarves. In this version of the story, Snow White is a young man, Snowden Reynaldi, who finds his unexpected Prince Charming, in Riley Prince.
These two can't be more different either. Snow is a brilliant, but awkward chess prodigy, and Riley is Mr. All-American football player who needs help with physics. Which is where Snow's brilliant mind comes in.. he ends up tutoring Riley in physics. What Snow doesn't realize is that Riley is also gay, and has been secretly attracted to Snow for a while.
The dynamics between Riley and Snow are well played out, and the two are about as perfect as can be together. They're sweet and yet hot and sexy at the same time, and like typical of their age they allow outside influences to impact their relationship. I also really enjoyed the interaction between Snow and Professor Kingsley, it gave Snow the family connection that he lacked in a way that he needed. It also helped provide the conflict in the storyline. The addition of the Seven Brothers Grim was the icing on the story. Especially Romeo, who you'll swoon over just a bit.
Overall this was another very enjoyable, fairy-tale twist of a story brought to you in typical Tara Lain writing style. A good dose of humor, a little touch of angst, solid well written characters in a story that you'll want to re-read almost immediately. I look forward to many more stories in The Pennymaker Tales.
Driven Snow is the second in Tara Lain's Pennymaker Tales series and can be read as a standalone.
As you can guess from the title, Driven Snow, is Ms. Lane's very modern twist on the classic tale of Snow White and the Seven Dwarves. In this version of the story, Snow White is a young man, Snowden Reynaldi, who finds his unexpected Prince Charming, in Riley Prince.
These two can't be more different either. Snow is a brilliant, but awkward chess prodigy, and Riley is Mr. All-American football player who needs help with physics. Which is where Snow's brilliant mind comes in.. he ends up tutoring Riley in physics. What Snow doesn't realize is that Riley is also gay, and has been secretly attracted to Snow for a while.
The dynamics between Riley and Snow are well played out, and the two are about as perfect as can be together. They're sweet and yet hot and sexy at the same time, and like typical of their age they allow outside influences to impact their relationship. I also really enjoyed the interaction between Snow and Professor Kingsley, it gave Snow the family connection that he lacked in a way that he needed. It also helped provide the conflict in the storyline. The addition of the Seven Brothers Grim was the icing on the story. Especially Romeo, who you'll swoon over just a bit.
Overall this was another very enjoyable, fairy-tale twist of a story brought to you in typical Tara Lain writing style. A good dose of humor, a little touch of angst, solid well written characters in a story that you'll want to re-read almost immediately. I look forward to many more stories in The Pennymaker Tales.
About the Author
Tara Lain writes the Beautiful Boys of Romance in LGBT erotic romance novels that star her unique, charismatic heroes. Her first novel was published in January of 2011 and she’s now somewhere around book 23. Her bestselling novels have garnered awards for Best Series, Best Contemporary Romance, Best Ménage, Best LGBT Romance, Best Gay Characters, and Tara has been named Best Writer of the Year in the LRC Awards. In her other job, Tara owns an advertising and public relations firm. She often does workshops on both author promotion and writing craft.
She lives with her soulmate husband and her soulmate dog in Laguna Beach, California, a pretty seaside town where she sets a lot of her books. Passionate about diversity, justice, and new experiences, Tara says on her tombstone it will say “Yes”!
You can find Tara at
Giveaway
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Thank you so much for reading DRIVEN SNOW! I'm so happy you enjoyed it. *hugs from the beautiful boys* : )
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