De-blog

Title:  Minuet Series:  Notes from Boston Author:  A.M. Leibowitz Publisher: Supposed Crimes Release Date: 1st September 2019 Full disclosure: I beta-read Minuet (along with books 2 and 3 - Nightsong and Drumbeat ), which doesn't make any difference to what I will say - I'd love this series just as much had I read it in the usual way. But it has given me an insight beyond each novel, as I've kept in mind how the various arcs fit together and developed strong feelings towards certain characters. Those feelings don't always run in line with 'heroes' and 'villains', although...the one uber villain, well, let's say he gets his comeuppance quite satisfactorily in  Minuet . Central to this instalment are the characters Mack, Amelia and Jomari, and I must admit that I still don't feel I know Jomari as well as the other two, purely because I've known him for a shorter period of time. In some ways, he's more closed off than Mack, altho...

Every now and then, I remember I'm supposed to let my readers old and new know what I've been up to, what's on the horizon and all that jazz. Well, this is going to be a short (but hopefully informative) post. :D (OK, not that  short. I don't really do short.) We're midway through 2019 - the first year in many (since 2013) when I haven't already written at least one novel, and I'm OK with that. I realised a couple of years back that I'd somehow ended up on the book factory line, which isn't a bad thing, as it comes from readers actively asking for more. For instance, I wrote Checking Him Out in 2014, and enough people wanted Noah and Matty's story, so I published  Taking Him On in 2015 (and Checking In because people wanted more of Sol and Adam too), and then there was Jesse and Leigh's story, The Making of Us , which I released in 2017. During those three years, I also co-wrote the Seeds of Tyrone series with Raine O'T...

I realised today that I still haven't reviewed Drumbeat , which is shocking. It's been out for... [goes to look...cough] a while. OK, September 1st, it was released, and it was a while before that when I read it, because I struck lucky and got to beta-read. I honestly don't know what the process is like for other beta-readers, but for me it's like getting books on super early pre-release AND getting the chance to talk about the characters and events with the author. A private fan convention, essentially. I love it! Drumbeat  is the third book in A.M. Leibowitz 's Notes from Boston series , and I've got to say before I get into talking about the story itself, I love these covers so much. How much? I've got them up onscreen as I type. They're exactly right for the series and for each story. The observant will notice the series title and the book titles are music-themed, and the characters are all somehow connected to the performing arts (as well as t...

We - A.M. Leibowitz, Emily Alter and me (Debbie McGowan) - got together and interviewed each other today. Here's the result! ~ QUESTION 1 ~ Amy Okay, so how's the weather? Emily Cold. I’m freezing and I don’t like it. Amy Cold and gloomy here. Debbie It's a typical mid-autumn day - sunny, not quite warm enough to go out without a cardy. Amy Sun would be nice! It's supposed to warm up a few degrees later...and then rain. Blah. ~ QUESTION 2 ~ Debbie OK. So, can I ask 'where in the world are you?' Amy Gah! Now I have the Carmen Sandiego theme song stuck in my head. I'm in western NY. I usually say I'm near Buffalo because people have heard of that city but not mine. I'm really in Rochester. Debbie gone to look up Carmen Sandiego theme That's so great! Emily Spain, a city (cough cough town) in the north (you know, the part of Spain which is always completely ignored). Debbie The top comment on the Carmen Sa...

Title:   Keeping the Faith  (Faithfully Yours #3) Author:  A. M. Leibowitz Publisher: Supposed Crimes Publication Date: November 1, 2017 Length: 238 pages (~84k words) Genre: Literary fiction/romance Categories/Tags: Bisexual, transgender, grief and loss, spirituality, Christianity ISBN: 1944591273 (ISBN13: 9781944591274) ASIN: B0764ZQMJP Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/36086132-keeping-the-faith Purchase Links: Amazon  |  Amazon UK  |  Smashwords  |  Kobo Synopsis: It’s been three years since Micah’s spouse, Cat, passed away at the age of thirty-six. In the process of cleaning his house, Micah discovers a series of letters Cat hid before he died, in which he made one request: that Micah empty his life of Cat as a way of moving on. Micah has been able to work through his sorrow, but he’s unable to fulfill Cat’s last wish. He can’t see a way past his loneliness despite all the caring people aroun...

Pyjamas. Pajamas. Does Cat even wear pyjamas? More likely a silk chemise. Hmm... OK, so here's the thing. Or half the thing, because I don't want to go off on a Josh tangent (but figured I'd get away with mentioning him). I write a series, and I've been writing it for a long time. In fact, next week marks the ten-year anniversary of when I began writing the first novel, and that date coincides (almost - one day difference) with the release of what is nominally the last story in A.M. Leibowitz's 'Faithfully Yours' series. Which is a pretty cool coincidence. Except for the 'nominally the last story' part. *sniffle* There's a lot more to that coincidence - how I got lucky enough to read A.M. Leibowitz's books...before release mwahahaha, and the parallels between Josh and Cat, who are not at all similar in personality, beliefs etc. but what each means to his author...and so on. I should probably mention for anyone who doesn't k...

Title: Leaps of Faith Author: A.M. Leibowitz Published: July 12, 2017 Categories/tags: LGBT literature, Christian fiction, bisexual, genderqueer, romance, contemporary, disability Synopsis: From Christmas to Easter and from childhood through the end of life, here are ten interconnected stories revolving around one couple and the people who love them. These are tales of friendship, family, sensuality, and all the intimate moments that make them who they are, together and apart. The stories, while standalone, also fill in the gaps before and around the events in the novels in the Passing on Fatih series. Included: a youth embraces his identity; two women build a life together; a former rebellious teen finds her way; a pair of lovers explore each other's minds and bodies; a man copes with loss and grief. Review: It's no secret that I love character-driven fiction, which is also why I love book series. Whilst a skilled author can realistically depict characters withi...

Title: Nightsong (Notes from Boston #2) Author: A.M. Leibowitz Publisher: Supposed Crimes Published: 1st May, 2017 ISBN: eBook: 978-1-944591-24-3/print: 978-1-944591-25-0 Link: https://supposedcrimes.com/products/nightsong-notes-from-boston-2 Goodreads : https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/33974194-nightsong Blurb: Nate Kingsley is a master at messing up. Out of jealousy, he outed his best friend in a public and embarrassing way. Now he’s doing his best to make up for his crimes, but it’s left him empty and frustrated, unfulfilled even by his career as an opera singer and creative director. He enters an unsatisfying relationship he keeps hidden from his closest friends. When that ends on a disappointing note, he seeks solace in his crush on one of the drag queens performing at his favorite club. Izzy Kaplan is an EMT by day, a drag queen named TaTa Latke by night. He hasn’t been in a relationship since his divorce from his wife, despite the best efforts of his mothers and...

Title: Walking by Faith Author: A.M. Leibowitz Publisher: Supposed Crimes, LLC Publication Date: November 1, 2016 Length: 261 pages Goodreads Categories/tags: LGBT literature, Christian fiction, bisexual, genderqueer, romance, contemporary, disability Purchase Links: Amazon | Amazon UK | Smashwords | Barnes & Noble | Kobo | iTunes | Publisher Synopsis: For Becket “Cat” Rowland, falling in love has never been easy. The summer he meets Micah Forbes, the intensity of his feelings brings back all the memories of eight years earlier. Following a brutal attack that left him nearly dead, Cat is a mess inside and out. To cope with the trauma and with his view of himself that he’s nothing but an empty shell, he’s taken three vows: simplicity, chastity, and silence. His once colorful, trendy, and often feminine wardrobe has been replaced with jeans and t-shirts, and he’s sworn off men. He locks himself away from the world, using the memorized prayers of his childhood ...