| Title | : | Uniform Appeal |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | 1615814701 |
| ISBN-10 | : | 9781615814701 |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | ebook |
| Number of Pages | : | 308 |
| Publication | : | First published April 11, 2011 |
Chasing Jamie by Eric Arvin
Famished by Lou Harper
Delayed in San Diego by Pepper Espinoza
Hot Stuff by Maria Albert
Duty by Emily Moreton
Discovering Columbus by Shae Connor
Fire House Flame by Paul Taylor
Sold! By K.R. Foster
Heat of the Moment by Dawn Douglas
Double Cross by Lesley Hastings
The Night Shift by Louise Blaydon
Jean-Paul by Ryan Loveless
Walk a Mile by G.R. Richards
Secrets and Lies by Jay Starre
The US Male by Lisa Worrall
Good Things Come… by Rowan McAllister
Uniform Appeal Reviews
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Chasing Jamie by Eric Arvin:
I hate to say it, but this story read like a hick's stream of consciousness exercise. The author provided too many extraneous details about the couple's life and history together for a story of this length. Though I'm sure this was intended as a way to give his characters more depth, I found that it only served to pull focus from the central action of the story, leaving it feeling chaotic and melodramatic. I also wasn't a huge fan of the titular character; Jamie came across more as a petulant child than a grown man in a serious, committed relationship. I found myself completely apathetic to him and his pink tights. Okay, maybe that's not entirely true - I did want to put him in a time out. (Does that count as caring?!)
The one thing that I will say for this story is that Arvin did a good job of creating a distinct voice for Wade's character using a drawl and regional expressions. When combined with the carnival atmosphere of the setting, these details helped to give the story a strong sense of place and time. [1.5 Stars]
Famished by Lou Harper:
Well, I have no idea what the title had to do with the story, but I liked what I read. Neither of the main characters were terribly original, but the story was well-written, well-paced, a little bit funny, and a lot a bit sexy. The tone was perfectly flirtatious, and Sean's character was just awkward enough to be endearing. In short, it was everything that I was looking for in a story about a man in uniform (a motorcycle cop, no less!). After this, I'm definitely looking forward to getting my hands on a full-length novel by this author. [3.5 stars]
Delayed in San Diego by Pepper Espinoza:
Chandler's in a bit of a jam; his restaurant has failed, he's flat broke, and he's headed home to Utah so that he can be with family while he licks his wounds and tries to get back on his feet. Cody is a U.S. Marine returning from a harrowing tour of duty in Afghanistan. After years of bravely serving his country while denying who he is and who he loves, he's ready to come home and move on. The only problem is, he doesn't have a home to go to. When a winter blizzard grounds all flights to Salt Lake City, Cody and Chandler find the perfect way to kill time between flights -- together.
I LOVED THIS STORY! Espinoza may have only been working with a handful of pages, but she managed to push every one of my humina humina buttons and still tug my heart strings. I found myself caught up in the action, entranced by the characters' chance meeting, their first shy, clumsy overtures, and their downright combustible chemistry in the bedroom. These men were sexy as fuck together, but it was the hints of vulnerability and their willingness to take a chance on more than a one night stand that ultimately won me over. [4 stars]
Hot Stuff by Maria Albert:
This story had such promise! It started out with a sexy, but exhausted man running a stop sign and being pulled over by a cop. Bow-chicka-bow-wow! The exhausted man is Drake, a firefighter and all around do-gooder. The patrol cop, Perrin, is a cute blonde twink and a rookie. I can hear the porn soundtrack revving up in the background, can't you? But before Perrin can even issue Drake a ticket, there's a shooting, and a car accident, and Perrin ends up injured and in the hospital with Drake at his bedside.
By this point, I am enjoying the story - the characters are likable, the action's good, there's two men in uniform for the price of one, and we're about to get some sexy time... aren't we?! Nope. We're about to get a whole lot of extraneous I-don't-give-a-fuck-about-this details. I didn't need a sub-plot about an arsonist. Nor did I need one about a gay-bashing. Oh, and I especially didn't need to be introduced to 15 secondary characters by name, get a run-down of Perrin's entire family tree in excruciating detail, and listen to a back-story for each of them. I just want witty banter, smiles, sex, and a couple of feels, thank you very much. But I didn't get that. Instead, I got our main characters' first - and only - sex scene given to us as a DREAM SEQUENCE. [2 stars]
Duty by Emily Moreton:
Discovering Columbus by Shae Connor:
Fire House Flame by Paul Taylor:
Sold! By K.R. Foster:
Heat of the Moment by Dawn Douglas:
Double Cross by Lesley Hastings:
The Night Shift by Louise Blaydon:
Jean-Paul by Ryan Loveless:
Walk a Mile by G.R. Richards:
Secrets and Lies by Jay Starre:
US Male by Lisa Worrall:
This porny short story took an unexpectedly creepy turn (and no, I'm not (only) talking about the adult male that bought a Victorian-era doll). I'm not quite sure what I'm supposed to do with it. Am I supposed to believe Nathan is who the author's implying he is? And if so, am I still supposed to like him and root for him and Rick? Or, is the author merely misleading readers and we'll find out in Part II that he's just a player, not a ? *scratches head*
Whatever I'm supposed to make of this story, it felt entirely out of place in this anthology. [2 stars]
Good Things Come… by Rowan McAllister:
*My overall rating will be the average rating of all stories in the anthology. -
Like all anthologies, some will tickle your fancy and some less so. A couple of the ones that really caught my attention were: Famished, about a young man who purposely gets himself pulled over so that he can meet the hot motorcycle cop who pulled him over a few days ago, only he doesn't get a date, he gets a $175 ticket. Delayed in San Diego, about a young man going home to Utah after losing his savings in a bad investment, stuck at the airport due to weather, who meets a marine returning to Utah from Afghanistan. Heat of the Moment, about a doctor doing a 30 hour shift because of a bad building explosion, and the fire fighter brother of a badly injured fire fighter whose family shuts him out. The Night Shift, about a property clerk at the police station and the cop he strikes up a friendship with, and they dance around their attraction for months until an injury finally kick-starts them into a relationship. Jean-Paul, set in WWI Paris, a young man heading into battle questions his abilities and finds a young man in Paris to spend his last day with. (non-graphic m/f in this one but it fit). Good Things Come ..., about a fire fighter who wakes up very hungover, unsure what he did with a young art student who is NOT his type. His only thought is getting out of there fast, until he gets to know him, and maybe he might be his type if he opens his heart and mind. This last one was longer, a few chapters so you got to see the relationship develop more, even if it took place over about 24 hours.
So I'm sure there is something for everyone. A few historicals, all types of men in uniform and I have to confess, fire fighters are my fave, with police officers close behind. :-) -
I am not going to comment on the individual stories, but the anthology as a whole is worth a read. The stories are fairly diverse. You have cops, firemen, marines, doctors, spies, and historicals. The historicals were my least favourite, but still pretty good. And as for Lisa Worrall's story... Wow. That one definitely took me by surprise, but I guess I shouldn't be surprised.
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As with most anthologies, there are some stories on here that were great and fun, quick reads, and then there were some others that I did not really enjoy that much. But if men in uniform are your thing, this is an anthology for you!
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Reviewing as I go:
Chasing Jamie - The running theme confused me. He literally ran from everything, making his cop BF chase him around. That's childish and immature, and not suited for a guy who claims he was misbehaving because his BF doesn't want kids. Sounds like he's already got one.
Famished - The story was good, but the name "Hunter" kept knocking me out of the story. I know this is totally on me: the name brings up images of cute puppies and not muscular, tough cops.
Delayed in San Diego - Cody and Chandler. Two C names. Just another personal pet peeve since I couldn't keep them straight for most of the story. The ending was cute, even though during the smut Chandler had both of his hands on Cody's ass and was jerking him off too...
Hot Stuff - I started off hating this one because the first two pages had a LOT of POV changes. Ping Pong! That settled down and the story was very good. My only complaint was all the names. We didn't meet most of them. The story was cute and hot and sexy. Plus it was all that despite the insta-love that I usually can't stand. I'd love to see more. Fav so far.
Duty - First, I struggled with the writing style some because the sentences were so very long and full of commas. I felt breathless reading them and occassionally had to re-read to figure out their meaning. Other than that, it was a hot sexy, smutty story. Mostly just sex, but enjoyable nonetheless.
Firehouse Flame - Not bad for a historical. I'm not a fan of historical settings.
Sold! - Didn't like the way the woman in charge of the auction was portrayed, and she used exclamation points too much when she spoke. Otherwise, the concept was cute, though the story was over just as it was getting started.
Heat of the Moment - My favorite so far. Despite being a short story, I got character development, some pain and doubt, hot sex, and a potential for HEA. Well written, interesting characters/setting. 5 stars.
Double Cross - Can't quite put my finger on why, but didn't quite get into this one. The concept was interesting enough, so I guess there wasn't enough for me to bond with the characters.
The Night Shift - Interesting MC - evidence clerk. If other stories/shows are to be believed Vice doesn't wear a uniform, but whatever, it's still a rare gem in the short story world because they don't fall right into bed.
Jean-Paul - Standing ovation. This was beautiful. From the fumbling of figuring out the physical to the emotional side of both the love/lust and communicating without spoken language, this was poetry in open verse. Recommended. I must check out more by this author, and soon.
Walk a Mile - Good premise, and I enjoyed it right up to the sex scene. It wasn't that the smut was bad, but it didn't keep my interest. I prefer the character development continue right through the naughties, instead of an abrupts switch to dirty talk and slamming bodies. Otherwise, cute story.
Secrets and Lies - This was just porn. It was rough, nasty language barely veiled as a couple's first meeting. I don't get into the raunchy talk in dialogue, so when it shows up in the narrative too, I'm rarely going to respond favorably to the scene.
The US Male - Two long sex scenes with next to no character development during or between. Though the last two paragraphs were very good because the author bucked the traditional romance ending.
Good Things Come… - Excellent anchor story. Cute and sweet tale of a young artist who helps out a stranger and discovers life really doesn't always dump on Mr. Nice Guy.
Overall, this anthology was tough for me because it was sex scene after sex scene without a lot of room for character development. Also, I am not one of those readers who goes gaga over a uniform, so maybe if that's you, you'll enjoy this collection more. My favorite story was definitely Jean-Paul and I don't even like historicals most of the time. -
Best story of the bunch...Good Things Come by Rowan McAllister.
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Uniform Appeal is a sometimes humorous, sometimes serious collection of stories that are written by various talented authors. They show the attraction and appeal that a uniform-be it police, fire fighter, doctor, armed forces, even a mailmen-can have for many people and make a hot man even hotter.
Chasing Jamie
Wade is a deputy in a small Indiana town, and it seems like he's been chasing his boyfriend Jamie for one reason or another for years. Will he ever catch him?
Famished
Sean has been hungering after Officer Jones ever since he pulled him over. He'll do anything to get his attention-even get a ticket to the tune of 175 dollars. He finally gets his hunger satisfied.
Delayed in San Diego
Chandler Dawson is going home to Utah, after his job in San Diego fell through. Thanks to it snowing in Salt Lake, his flight is delayed and he meets First Lieutenant Cody Atkinson waiting for the same flight. Sharing a room leads to them sharing so much more.
Hot Stuff
Officer Perrin Davis has just pulled over firefighter Drake Drummond for running a stop sign. Before he can give Drake a ticket, Perrin receives a radio call for an officer needing assistance. Perrin is broadsided by a distracted driver and Drake treats him until help can arrive. After Perrin is released, they start to talk. Who knew a ticket could lead to such hot stuff?
Duty
Army major Alex Sheppard has been ordered by his base commander Colonel Wilcox to escort Brigadier General Oscar Hendrickson to a cocktail party, then return him to his hotel. Who knew escort duty would turn out to be so much fun?
Discovering Columbus
Thad has been assigned to escort fellow cop Frank from Cleveland to Columbus so that Frank can testifyas the star witness for the prosecution in a guns-for-drugs trial. Thanks to trial delays and a common interest, spending the night in a motel turns out better than Thad hoped for.
Firehouse Flame
It's 1910 and McKinney has been hired as a hoseman at the Engine Company No. 1 firehouse. As the newest man there, he gets to do all of the menial chores no one else wants to do. He gets sent to the Colored firehouse to check on how things are going, and to get a left-handed nozzle. He hits it off with the captain of the company and finds himself with something a lot more.
Sold!
Detective David Price is dressed in a tuxedo and cussing out his chief for volunteering him for a bachelor charity auction. The tux reminds him of the wealthy, rigid background he came from and he hates it. He's auctioned off for 50 thousand dollars and the bidder gives David a very good reason to be happy for it.
Heat of the Moment
Dr Jake Matthews has been on dutyfor almost twelve hours when a massive rush of injured people from an explosion at a high rise flood the ER. After thirty hours of work, Jake is waiting for an elevator when firefighter Sam Roberts comes in to check on his younger brother Rick, who was in ICU with life-threatening injuries. Both men are exhausted, but a spark of attraction leads them to have passionate sex to reassure themselves that they're still alive.
Double Cross
William Ford is a spy-his mission, get in, befriend the mark, smile, get the info, then get out. His cover-being a rent boy in a high gentlemen's club in London. His mark-a Russian going by the name of Yulian Kozlow. They meet at the bar, go to a private room, and William gets his information in a way he definitely didn't expect to.
The Night Shift
Jonas Kelshiker- a night shift clerk working in the Property Department at the main police station downtown-meets Vice cop Daniel Harris for the first time when he sees him covered in blood through the Property room window. The two men are attracted to each other from the start but neither one is brave enough to make the first move, so they circle each other for months. The stalemate is finally broken when Dan shows up covered in blood for the second time, Joshua treats him, and Dan invites him to his apartment.
Jean-Paul
It's 1918, and Lieutenant Joshua Pascal is in Paris on an eighteen hour pass before he leads a squad of men into battle. He wants to lose his virginity before he leaves, but he's not interested in women. He catches the eye of a French baker's son named Jean-Paul. Despite the language barrier-Joshua doesn't speak French and Jean-Paul can't speak English-the two men have no problem communicating through the language og love.
Walk a Mile
Shen and his fellow off-duty police buddies are in a shoe store buying high heels for the Walk-a-Mile-a charityevent to raise money to build more shelters for abused women. Giorgiouses the event as a cover to invite Shen back to his condo for sex and so much more.
Secrets and Lies
Dean is in London waiting to meet up with his boyfriend Brian-a spy that he had met a year before near his home in West Vancouver, Canada. At the time, Brian had introduced himself as Brent, a tourist in the area. Dean loves the way Brent looks and invites him in for sex. Dean discovers that Brent is using him to spy on his tenants, who turn out to be terrorists. Dean doesn't expect to ever hear from Brian/Brent again, but he shows up a month later and tells Dean the truth-that he loves him, and wants a relationship with him. Dean accepts that Brian will have his secrets and doesn't push him on them.
The US Male
Richard "Rick" Beaumont answers a knock on his door and opens it to find the most gorgeous mailman he had ever seen. The mailman introduces himself as Nathan and asks to use the bathroom. Rick says yes, and when Nathan comes back, he makes a move on Rick, proceeding to give him the best sex of his life. Later that evening, Nathan returns, and they go back to the bedroom. Little does Rick know that there is more to Nathan than meets the eye.
Good Things Come......
Fireman Greg Sawyer wakes up with a pounding headache, not knowing where he is. He heads to the bathroom, then goes to the kitchen to talk to the young man making coffee. The man introduces himself as Andy Mercer, and explains that Greg had been blitzed the night before and had asked Andy to share a cab with him. Greg wouldn't tell the cabbie where he lived, so Andy brought him home to prevent the cabbie from taking advantage of him. Andy expects Greg to hightail out of there as soon as possible and is shocked when Greg invites him to breakfast, then dinner. Greg had realized that Andy was a sweet guy and that good things come in small packages.
The authors have written a fascinating collection of stories that revolve around love and a uniform in one form or another. Each offers an unique and original glimpse into different times, places, and lives, revealing love can come in a very attractive package. I thoroughly enjoyed this anthology and would recommend it to everyone. -
The three star rating is the average between some four star ratings and the stories I did not really liked enough. It was all low angst stories with happy endings, perfect to read between more emotional books.
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Most of the short stories were very good. My favorite two were:
Duty by Emily Moreton. Very hot story about a Major who becomes the visiting older General's driver while he is in town to attend a function. This story has a little D/S which is one of my favorite kinks AND a May/December relationship.
And
The US Male by Lisa Worrall. This story left me speechless! You can't do what this author did to a reader. It's just not right! Do not read this if you plan on reading this anthology: -
I loved some, like Famished by Lou Harper and Delayed in San Diego by Pepper Espinoza,
Good Things Come.... by Rowan McAllister, they were well written and I liked the plot along with the characters, them I'd give 4 stars.
Sold! By K.R. Foster had potential but was over too soon.
Double Cross by Lesley Hastings and The Night Shift by Louise Blaydon were aroung 3,5 stars.
I had expected better from the one story everyone seem to have loved US-Male.
The rest of the stories were ok but not awe inspiring. I think less stories and more pagecount for the individual ones would have worked out better, so there would not just be a lot of PWPs stories. -
Anthologies can be pretty hit or miss in terms of the quality of the stories which makes them difficult to rate.
There were 3 stories I really liked and I would say are 4 stars:
Famished by Lou Harper
The Night Shift by Louise Blaydon
Good Things Come... by Rowan McAllister
One that was pretty good:
Discovering Columbus by Shae Connor
I am willing to try another of this author's stories.
The rest were meh or on the painful side. -
Really liked Famished by Lou Harper, Delayed in San Diego by Pepper Espinoza, Discovering Columbus by Shae Connor, The Night Shift by Louise Blaydon and Good Things Come by Rowan McAllister...
The US Male by Lisa Worrall was a really hot story that had an ending that was just craazzzyyyy!! -
read
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Except for that one story that left me wanting to punch something, this was actually pretty good!
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Overall 3.75"
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Good for all fetishes. However there is one story that really stood out for me as there was a brillant twist to the story.
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3.5-4 stars. Alot of good stories here (along with some not-so-good ones), but I had to rate it up for the story 'The US Male' by Lisa Worrall. Sexy and creepy at the same time! (love it!)
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Really enjoyed this. Found a few authors I need to go lookup.
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I'm doing a review on The US Male story by Lisa Worrall. This is a very hot, very sexy short read with an ending that will absolutely blow you away!
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Nothing terrible, a lot of meh, good ones by Harper, Espinoza, Moreton, and McAllister.
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Overall: 2.25 stars
Chasing Jamie by Eric Arvin - 2 stars
Famished by Lou Harper - 3.5 stars
Delayed in San Diego by Pepper Espinoza - 3 stars
Hot Stuff by Maria Albert - 2.5 stars
Duty by Emily Moreton - 1.5 stars
Discovering Columbus by Shae Connor - 3.5 stars
Fire House Flame by Paul Taylor - 2 stars
This seemed unfinished to me
Sold! By K.R. Foster - DNF
unsold
Heat of the Moment by Dawn Douglas - 3.stars
Double Cross by Lesley Hastings - 2.5 stars
The Night Shift by Louise Blaydon - 3 stars
Jean-Paul by Ryan Loveless - DNF
Walk a Mile by G.R. Richards - 1.5 stars
Secrets and Lies by Jay Starre - 1.5 stars
The US Male by Lisa Worrall - 2 stars
Good Things Come… by Rowan McAllister - 2 stars
It was going OK till sex, there it became trite and unlikely
