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Tour – Priest and Pariahs by Mann Ramblings
Title: Priest and Pariahs
Author: Mann Ramblings
Series: Ship Logs of the Santa Claus, Book Three
Genre: Gay Romance, Science Fiction
Publisher:
Wayward Ink Publishing
Synopsis
– Priest and Pariahs
Ship Logs of the Santa Claus, Book Three
Costa McQuillen is a Pariah, a para-human with tech empathic
abilities who has escaped from Earth, where being para-human is illegal—and
marks him for extermination. Arrogant and standoffish, Costa is unable to trust
anyone, but is willing to risk everyone's safety to reach the planet Omoikane. His best solution: gaining passage on board the Santa Claus.
Arbor Kittering, the crew's newest coding tech, is a medical oddity.
With the technologies available to prevent birth defects, Arbor's status as a
dwarf brings the kind of attention he could happily do without. Having spent a
short time in prison for data hacking and
falsifying government files doesn't help. The Santa Claus is his last chance at a new
start, if he can decipher the strange malfunctions plaguing the ship.
Priest, the Santa Claus’
Head Pilot, is a bit of a scoundrel. Perpetually single, Priest is attracted to
Costa for his exotic looks, and to Arbor for his unique qualities. In truth,
he'd like to have both, but it's clear such a thing isn't in the cards. Now
Priest needs to make a choice, before it's too late.
Excerpt
BLOWING OUT THROUGH his pursed lips, Arbor Kittering scrubbed his
small hands on his pant legs. His palms refused to stay dry; he was so nervous.
This job interview was too important. No other employer had been willing to
return his application requests and his currency was dwindling. Despite his
exceptional tech-coding skills, the mistakes he’d made in the recent past had
smeared his reputation. All he needed was a fresh opportunity to undo the
damage.
Reaching into his shoulder bag—that always appeared too large for his
size—he pulled out a small metal rectangle. With a flick of his wrist, it
snapped out, expanding into a small step stool. Climbing on top of it in the
middle of the men’s restroom gave him a better vantage point in the mirror. If
he stretched out to the tips of his toes, his chin would barely reach the
standard counter height, and he had no intention of doing anything of the sort.
He had some small amount of pride left.
Such was the life of a dwarf in a universe full of normals.
Arbor was accustomed to the odd stares of folks trying not to be
obvious. Some were fine, but others treated his condition as something
communicable. As if achondroplasia was catching. If it were, he would run
rampant through crowds in public transports, touching everyone he could reach,
in a millisecond.
He was fortunate not to be more disfigured. A disheveled thatch of
mud-brown hair helped reduce the appearance of his pronounced forehead.
Thankfully, his head was not grotesquely large. His limbs were short in proportion
to his torso, but the possible spinal curvature was minimal. Growing up, his
research brought him medical images of conditions beyond his ability to
stomach.
It made him thank whatever gods he didn’t believe in.
Occasionally, he would meet a person who was fascinated by his
unnatural stature. It was often exhausting, but he couldn’t blame their morbid
curiosity at times. How could you not gawk at something so abnormal, which
barely existed beyond obscure medical histories in the last few centuries? From
his Subspace Link research, only four cases of dwarfism were catalogued in the
last fifty years. It wasn’t surprising. Medical technologies were more than
capable of detecting and correcting the birth defect well before a child was
born.
After checking the time on his handheld pad, he smoothed down his
clothing with his stubby fingers as best he could, trying not to grimace at the
juvenile style. With his funds so low, he was forced to shop at secondhand
stores in the husky children’s departments. There was no currency to spare for
custom-altered garments anymore. The fact did nothing to reinforce his
self-confidence.
Damn, he really needed this job.
Hopping down, Arbor collapsed and collected his step stool, stowing it
in his bag. He shook himself to bolster his courage before heading for the
door.
Review
So many twists and turns, and the character growth shown by
Priest over the course of the book was phenomenal. When you step into Mann’s
universe, you know you’re in for some steamy thrills, but the thing that always
keeps me hooked and eager to come back for more, is the depth to each story and
the layers to each of the characters. Priest and Pariah is the third story set
on the Santa Claus, and one of the biggest treats of each story is having a
chance to see where characters like Erron and Danverse are and what is going on
with them.
Priest really caught my attention in A Cook’s Tale, so it
was with great joy that I sat down to read Priest and Pariah. There’s just
something about Priest that’s endearing even when he’s cheating at cards, putting
his foot in his mouth, overstepping boundaries, and getting into shit. I wanted
to see him find happiness, experience self-discovery, open himself up to a
relationship and not just a one night stand and generally express feelings
rather than being a little overbearing and lecherous and Mann certainly did not
disappoint.
In both Arbor and Costa Priest finds something that attracts
and hold his attention, makes him think about why he does the things he does,
makes him want to try to do better. They peel back the shell of Priest to
reveal the man underneath, instincts and emotions typically kept hidden, that
allow the reader to understand what kind of man he truly is. His interactions
with them are one part slow burn and one part sizzling heat, with an amazing
mix of storyline to pull it all together.
The only question I was left with was what’s next for the
Santa Claus and her crew. This was a five star read for me.
Buy Links
Don’t miss the discounted release prices on all retailer sites!
Book Trailer
Start with Books One and Two of Ship Logs
of the Santa Claus!
Sergeant Liam Jacks is the security chief
of transport vessel, The Santa Claus. He travels the planetary cluster with
Marc Danverse, his best friend and captain, seeking to escape his tortured past
and find some peace of mind.
Having been through a civil war together,
Danverse and Liam are close. Maybe too close....
All that changes when mysterious stranger,
Hadrian Jamison, an escaped Adonirati, books passage to Alpha Centauri. Can he
be trusted? Can the stories of his past be believed?
As Liam’s fascination with Hadrian grows,
jealousy threatens to tear apart his friendship with Danverse.
When Hadrian’s owner shows up, Liam is
forced to go against orders in order to launch a rescue mission to save him.
The ensuing conflict may be more than any
of them expected.
Buy
Links
B&N: http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-luxorian-fugitive-mann-ramblings/1121637747?ean=9781925222388
A
Cook’s Tale
The
trials and tribulations of the crew and passengers of interplanetary transport
vessel, The Santa Claus continues in A Cook’s Tale.
After a
horrific breakup, Erron Murfin is bitter, homeless, and friendless. When the
cook’s position on the Santa Claus presents itself, Erron decides to escape his
current circumstances and join the crew. On board he reconnects with family
friend Gamin Wells, whose own secrets and issues begin to surface upon Erron’s
arrival. The least of which is the reason the pair haven’t laid eyes on one
another in over twelve years.
As Erron
settles into his new duties, the men on board take an interest in their newest
crew member. Among those intrigued by Erron are polyamorous couple, Barrus and
James. Despite Erron’s cautious nature, he’s drawn into a triad relationship
with the pair.
But
there’s something about Gamin…
Is Erron
too damaged to confront his own feelings?
Will his
past prevent him from finding what he needs?
Buy
Links
Amazon US: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B017I26RXG/
Amazon UK: http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B017I26RXG/
Amazon AU: http://www.amazon.com.au/dp/B017I26RXG/
Amazon DE: http://www.amazon.de/dp/B017I26RXG/
About the Author
Like many gay men, when Mann Ramblings grew
up, there weren’t any heroes he could relate to. The world held him back while
he tried futilely to hide the real person inside. So much has changed since
those hollow days. He finally found his voice, the voice that says it’s all
right to revel in the so-called inappropriate joys, laughs, and loves that
storm inside a man’s head. It took a long time to find that courage and now
that it’s here, he plans to use it well.
While spending years more focused on visual
arts, he never let go of his innate passion for storytelling—he wanted to write
and draw comic books when he grew up. Once he discovered M/M fiction, a whole
new world opened with new possibilities. Why couldn’t you have fantastic and
dynamic tales with an M/M cast?
He started reading the online tales of authors
like, Night Tempest, Rob Colton, and Alicia Nordwell, which only fueled within
him the need to create. Eventually he found GayAuthors.org, and with a little
coercive nudge from Night Tempest, started sharing his tales with an unexpected
level of positive response. That experience and support gave him the courage to
cross his fingers and aim for the world of M/M publishing.
Born and raised in Michigan, Mann Ramblings
continues to type away, wishing it was practical to use a noisy, old fashioned
keyboard that clacks with each strike, if only to annoy his loving partner and
spoiled miniature dachshund.
Email: mannramblings@gmail.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mannramblings
Twitter: @mannramblings
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