Prism Book Alliance® would like to thank Rhys Ford for stopping by today. Please give them a warm welcome.
Title: Absinthe of Malice
Author: Rhys Ford
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Cover Artist: Reece Notley
Genre: Gay Fiction, Gay Romance, Mystery/Thriller
Release Date: 06/22/2016
Blurb:
We’re getting the band back together.
Those five words send a chill down Miki St. John’s spine, especially when they’re spoken with a nearly religious fervor by his brother-in-all-but-blood, Damien Mitchell. However, those words were nothing compared to what Damien says next.
And we’re going on tour.When Crossroads Gin hits the road, Damien hopes it will draw them closer together. There’s something magical about being on tour, especially when traveling in a van with no roadies, managers, or lovers to act as a buffer. The band is already close, but Damien knows they can be more—brothers of sorts, bound not only by familial ties but by their intense love for music.
As they travel from gig to gig, the band is haunted by past mistakes and personal demons, but they forge on. For Miki, Damie, Forest, and Rafe, the stage is where they all truly come alive, and the music they play is as important to them as the air they breathe.
But those demons and troubles won’t leave them alone, and with every mile under their belts, the band faces its greatest challenge—overcoming their deepest flaws and not killing one another along the way.
Rhys Ford’s Absinthe of Malice Blog Tour #3
Thank you all for following the Absinthe of Malice blog tour! This is the fifth novel in the series and well, is a different kind of book. This is a beginning of sorts, a resurrection for most of the band members and the first step in a journey they will take together. Miki, Damie, Forest and Rafe in a van. Together. Cross-country and playing their hearts and souls out.
With a bit of trouble and love along the way.
I hope you enjoy it and like Applejack Shots and Beer, the story I’ll be telling across the blog tour.
OH! And the giveaway! Because we always need a giveaway. And there will be ONE winner for EVERY blog tour stop!
Enter by (Blog’s choice on what they do) and win:
A $20 gift certificate to the online store of your choice
AND an audiobook code from Audible
(which you can use on any audiobook or save for Tristan’s voicing of Absinthe)
See you on the Other Side.
Applejack Shots and Beer Part 3
Picked up a piece of silver from the ground,
Used it to end a bit of my strife.
If I’d known I’d need it to get into Heaven,
I’d have carried it with me all of my life.
— Going Over The River
It wasn’t easy being a father.
It certainly wasn’t any easier having to father eight souls and the world got a little heavier when one of those souls cracked a bit under the pressure of life’s troubles.
Since the time he’d first laid his hand on his pregnant wife’s belly and felt the kick of his first born beneath her taut skin, Donal swore his own would never know the crush of the world for as long as he had breath in his body and a fire in his heart.
It’d taken him a few months after he’d held his squirming, wet, and squalling son to realize he couldn’t protect his children from the world but he’d sure as hell could prepare them for the journeys they would go on.
Never once had he faltered. He’d done his best, apologized to his wide-eyed offspring when he’d gotten it wrong and never once rubbed salt into their emotional wounds when they’d cut themselves on their mistakes. Just when he thought he’d gotten the hang of things, his steady-as-a-rock second son brought home the most fractured of men with the intent of loving him whole.
“Ah, our Miki,” Donal mused. “Ye think he’ll come to harm out there? Left to his own devices with the rest of the Lost Boys?”
Kane’s look was priceless, a hint of withering mingled in with a strong dose of smirking disgust at Donal’s obtuse innocence. It was the same look his bride gave him when he suggested something as ridiculous as their spawn couldn’t possibly have been involved in the sudden appearance of a golf cart in their pool.
“This is Miki. If someone comes after him, he’ll rip them to shreds,” Kane clarified. “But you and I both know, he can’t cross the street without an elephant landing on him. And Damien…”
Kane trailing off was as heavily weighted with unspoken tension as the line he made with his lips.
“Fucking Damie.” Kane smothered his snort with a sip of whiskey then Donal waited him out, knowing his son would fill the silence. “The two of them can’t remember to eat if they’ve got a guitar in their hands and I’m supposed to let them go wandering off?”
“The boys aren’t that bad.” Donal bit back a smile. “And well, they’re artists now, aren’t they? Ye’d be expecting them to be a little…distracted.”
“D’s… hell, he needs a keeper as much as Miki.” Kane rattled his glass, swirling the remains of his ice into the whiskey. “Da, look at the four of them. Not a lick of common sense among them. Forest… maybe… but between them, you’ve got maybe three-quarters of an adult. If that. And Damie’s wanting to be doing this with just the four of them. No road manager. No roadies. Just the four biggest idiots I’ve ever known. Probably get lost on their way out of the city and end up in Canada because they took the wrong fucking left turn.”
“Miki’s not leaving ye or getting lost, Kane. If anything, he’s needing to find himself again.” Donal prodded delicately at Kane’s hurt, scraping back a bit of his simmering grumbles to find the wound hidden by Kane’s flippancy. “What are ye really worried about, son? Because Ah’m thinking this isn’t about the band so much as it is about ye.”
“They’re like golden retriever puppies chasing a butterfly and …fucking hell,” his son shot back. “I can’t… I can’t lose him to the world, Da. Miki’s—shite and hell—I just got used to being here, in my heart. I’m not ready to let him wander off. I’m just not.”
Links
Absinthe of Malice on Goodreads
Amazon US
Amazon UK
Amazon CA
Local Giveaway
A $20 gift certificate to the online store of your choice
AND an audiobook code from Audible
(which you can use on any audiobook or save for Tristan’s voicing of Absinthe)
Leave a comment below to enter to win!
About the Author
Rhys Ford was born and raised in Hawai’i then wandered off to see the world. After chewing through a pile of books, a lot of odd food, and a stray boyfriend or two, Rhys eventually landed in San Diego, which is a very nice place but seriously needs more rain.
Rhys admits to sharing the house with three cats of varying degrees of black fur and a ginger cairn terrorist. Rhys is also enslaved to the upkeep a 1979 Pontiac Firebird, a Toshiba laptop, and an overworked red coffee maker.
Follow the Absinthe of Malice Tour and Enter to Win on Each Blog!
13 June: Sinfully Gay Romance Book Reviews (http://sinfullymmbookreviews.blogspot.com/)
14 June: MM Good Book Reviews (https://mmgoodbookreviews.wordpress.com/
15 June: Prism Alliance (http://www.prismbookalliance.com/)
16 June: It’s About the Book (http://itsaboutthebook.com/)
17 June: Under the Covers Book Blog (http://www.underthecoversbookblog.com/ )
18 June: The Blogger Girls (http://thebloggergirls.com/)
19 June: Rainbow Gold Reviews (https://rainbowgoldreviews.wordpress.com/)
20 June: Boy Meets Boy (www.boymeetsboyreviews.com)
21 June: Joyfully Jay (http://joyfullyjay.com/)
22 June: The Novel Approach (http://thenovelapproachreviews.com/)
| Farewell Giveaway I have a number of paperbacks, most of which are signed, to giveaway. Over the between now (11 Mar 2017) and 31 Mar 2017, every comment on the blog (this post and all other new posts), will be entered to win 1 of these paperbacks. There are also some misc swag items, so there will be a few packs of these to give away as well. |
Thank you so much for your support over the last 4 years. Prism will be closing its doors on 1 April 2017. All content will remain available, but no new content will appear after 31 Mar 2017. As such all request forms have been turned off. Again Thank you, Brandilyn |
| This post may contain affiliate links. |
| Prism Book Alliance® assumes no liability for the ownership of photos or content used in guest posts and interviews. The post author assumes all responsibility and liability for this content. |
Donal – I just want to curl up in his lap and tell him all my woes. I think he must give the best hugs.
Excellent post. I loved having Donal’s point of view. I really want the golf cart in the pool story 🙂
Kane… He really needs to see the ‘Lost Boys’ as adults capable of taking care of themselves. He can’t hover and be there all the time. He has also known Rafe for years and to think so little of him is sad and undermining their friendship. Well, as Donal points out, Kane is transferring his issues and worries.
Can’t wait for tomorrow’s post and the new book.
Heh. To be fair, Rafe’s got no common sense. That’s a well known fact. He WAS voted most likely to have his willy cut out from a pipe in the wall.
lol true but he has changed. Sloe Ride is a great example of how he has changed. 🙂 I still want Rafe to meet his ex band members and come out on top. It will be fun to read how all four members deal with being on the road. I know sometimes it is hard to acknowledge that people have changed, you still want to see them how they were.
Trust me. Rafe’s changed a lot… but he and common sense aren’t always on speaking terms. *grins*
But he’s getting better. 😀
Oh dear, what does he get into? Now I’m worried 😉
Need a short story with just Donal and Brigid someday:)
Love this short blip about Kane and Donal!
Wahoo! I love this series! Congratulations on the new release! Exciting! I loved the short bit with Donal!
Congrats again! 😀
This is great love it thanks
I love these interactions between Kane and Donal – so sweet and honest, they bring tears to my eyes, but in a good way! Thank you!!
Seven days to release. The countdown has begun.
Boy do I feel for Kane. Thank goodness he has Donal – Super Dad. And the 3/4 adult among them comment made me chuckle.
Thanks!
jen(dot)f(at)mac(dot)com
Love Kane and Donal! Such a great teaser.
waxapplelover (at) gmail (dot) com
Loving the changing point of views in the blog posts.
JengardenATgmailDOTcom
awww Donal and Kane. i love when we see these little talks between father and son.
Oh, I love Donal! I’d be happy if you wrote a book from his point of view. Or at least an epilogue novelette, or something. 🙂
I want in that family so bad… <3 Thank you for hosting this stop on the blog tour, and much love to Rhys for continuing this story 😀
Kane has nothing to worry about as far as the love him and Miki share, he’s doing this tour for Damie, he didn’t wanna go out on tour. Kane is his home, which he would rather be at with him then anywhere else. He does have to worry about the fact that he and the band are a magnet for trouble. Miki can take care of himself, but Kane will worry. There’s no getting around that. Hopefully his Da will help him through it. I can’t wait till the 22nd, to see what they get up to out on tour. This has to be my favorite, all time, hands down series. Thank you for sharing it with us Rhys
The Morgan family is so wonderful. Donal is the epitome of intelligent, unconditional fatherhood. *sigh*
Love this series and anything Rhys writes!!! Can’t wait!!!
kathleenpower@comcast.net
Rhys’ books are amazing. And her short stories just as great. I cannot get enough of them!
susanaperez7140(at)gmail(dot)com
I just LOVE Donal, though all the books he’s been a big draw to me. The support and honesty of him.
‘most fractured man, intent on loving him whole’ lovely line.
I think all the band are a combination of vulnerability and fierce strength. I’d think Rafe would find the touring the biggest problem, Miki would be both loving (music) and hating (people) it and craving Kane. Damie is the rock-star who needs to be himself again not sure how that’ll work, and Forest whose building these guys into a family the most stable but missing Con.
Lovely moment. I’m so excited over the book.
LOVE Donal 😀
sxswann(at)gmail(dot)com
Great Books. I can’t wait ti see what happens.
It’s great to hear a bit of Donal’s interior life.
Loved the snippet and I wanna dad like Donal! The Sinners series is my favorite and counting the days until Absinthe of Malice goes live. Thank you for hosting this blog stop. jDOTstonewrightATgmailDOTcom
I’m loving this story so much.
Love’n the story
I can hardly wait to read this book!
It’s great to see these guys. Congratulations on conceiving such wonderful characters.
Donal is Epic! I look forward to the band’s journey on the road. I can’t decide if it will be an absolute cluster or a new sort of connection for the guys, like when all the puzzle pieces just fit. Hoping for a mesh of both!
Since I haven’t read the previous books yet, it seems I need to do some catch up before reading this. Happy that there’s still time to do that! 😀
Sounds like fun tour (the boys) and blog hopping (for the books). Thank you for the post!
puspitorinid AT yahoo DOT com
Love Donal so much. Every character in the series is fun to read, but Donal makes my heart a little happier. Can’t wait to read this and it comes out in time for a mini vacation from work. Lucky me.
I love my dad, but could I maybe trade him for Donal (just for a little time)??
legacylandlisa(at)gmail(dot)com
I need to read this series!!
Donal, sigh, much love.
And this is why you have to love Donal, he loves all of his kids without fail. Even the adopted sort, sometimes maybe more than the natural ones because he knows they need him more. He’s a rock, a fast thinker and a true father, who wouldn’t love him as their own?
With the oh-so-sensible Kane panicking at the thought of the boys away on their own, I can’t wait to read what the other three Morgans think about it.
I love this ongoing story, and i love Donal. I can barely handle my own two, cannot imagine trying to be ringmaster/wrangler for eight with such strong wills! Can’t wait for the book to release!
It’s so wonderful to read about such an honest and loving exchange between father and son (child). I wish everyone could have had such a relationship.
I can’t wait to begin reading it!
ree.dee.2014 (at) gmail (dot) com
I always love these side stories and seeing more of Donal is touching me deeply.
I know this will be as good as any, and I am also looking forward to Listening to it too.
Aw, poor Kane, not willing to let Miki wander off without him. He’s just going to have to let go, though. Looking forward to this book so much!
Zunnix at gmail dot com
Love seeing the interaction between Donal and Kane. Looking forward to reading more =)
humhumbum AT yahoo DOT com
Donal and Kane are too good. I love the “withering look.”
Waiting and waiting for the 22nd.
dejamew@centurylink.net
Everyone needs a Donal in their life. 🙂
lkbherring64(at)gmail(dot)com
I love Donal can’t wait for the book.
love Donal!
Donal is such an anchor. So good for all the kids
Donal is such a great father.
Just in case – strive4bst(AT) yahoo (dot) com
Such a great character in Donal. Love him at all times.
I agree, we need a short about the golf cart.
jenndease at Verizon dot net
I have read the first couple in this series and loved them, can’t wait to finish!
annmarief115 at gmail dot com
Great series and loveable characters.
serena91291@gmail.com
Oh no, Kane has a dilemma! Maybe he should just go with them as chaperone ^_^
Donal is the dad I wish I could have had!
I love these guys. I can’t wait!
Love that this is keeping me busy until the book is released. 🙂
Ahh I really love Donal. It’s so nice getting to read him pov.
lirasylira(at)gmail(dot)com
Poor Kane. I feel for him.
I love these books and this short story. Donal is a great dad
Donal’s a good dad and I really wouldn’t mind if they took a wrong turn and went to Canada – Edmonton’s a good place. We like music!
Rhys Ford is a great author. Can’t wait to see how much trouble the band gets into and which couple hooks up first during the tour. 😀 kjpattersonrn@yahoo.com