Win Free Books!

I'm taking part in TRR’s Fall into Romance Hop! The hop runs through this Friday, September 21, so you have a few more days to hop around for book recs and tons of chances to win terrific prizes.

Check out my post to win a free copy of Love's Nest -- and a chance to win two more just by liking my new author page on Facebook. 

And here, have a pretty boy. :D 

Boys of Summer

I can't believe it's September already! I'm definitely not ready for summer to end. Here are some hot (and sweet) summer guys to enjoy before the fall comes.

Get Your Hot Gay Fairy Sex! :D

Check out an excerpt from my new release with Leta Blake -- the third in our erotic m/m fairy tale series, Tempting Tales.

One boat remained.

The man in this boat was as startling to look upon as the rest. He was smaller than the rest of the creatures, his hair short and quite pink, sticking up in all directions as though he’d just woken from sleep, or perhaps never used a comb. He wore a riot of colored feathers woven into a shirt and breeches made of the softest brown leather Mateo had ever seen. Mateo’s own fine woolen trousers and exquisite silk-trimmed tunic seemed almost shabby in comparison to the wild wonder before him.

The man’s lips were the same pink as his hair, and his eyes were blue, fierce—as though they contained a soul stronger than his form. Mateo’s blood coursed. He was as captured by the look of this man as he’d been captivated by the sensual lure of the water. Mateo swallowed hard, hesitating. Did he dare get in? He must to follow his sisters.

Mateo stepped forward and the creature smiled. Frozen in place, Mateo checked that he still wore the cloak. Lámina’s voice echoed in his mind. The one who sees you despite the cloak’s magic is a friend.
“Ópalo!” the man rowing Luz called as distance grew between his boat and the shore. “Next time, perhaps.”

Ópalo, for that must be his name, did not look away, keeping his eyes on Mateo’s own. “One moment more.” He quirked his lips into a small, amused smile and rested his oar against the side of the boat.

Mateo took a step forward and Ópalo’s eyes lit up. He lifted his chin slightly, almost imperceptibly, with a motion that indicated Mateo should come. Mateo lifted his hand in a small wave, and Ópalo nodded his head and smiled. It was a toothy, pretty thing that made Mateo catch his breath and take a step back.

Surely not.

“Come!” Luz’s man called again.

“Patience, Azulejo!” Ópalo answered.

“We must not be late to the dancing.”

“You must not. I can be as late as I wish.”

“Stay then, and yearn for your bride to come. It changes nothing,” Azulejo said before bending himself to the oars, speeding Luz away at an alarming rate.

Seeing Luz’s white nightgown and dark, shining head disappear across the lake broke Mateo from his shocked state, and he quickly clambered into the boat with Ópalo. He ignored the offered hand as he stepped aboard, causing the boat to rock dangerously, nearly toppling them both out. Mateo’s stomach lurched, and there was a spray of cold water against his face as Ópalo steadied the boat with his oar, digging it into the bottom of the lake. Mateo sat down quickly.

“Pardon me!”

Ópalo grinned, his blue eyes—blue as a summer sky—twinkling, and his lips spread again into that beautiful smile. “No need to be so formal.”

Mateo wasn’t sure what to make of the casual tone, but there was nothing customary about the situation. He’d traveled with his sisters into a magical realm while hidden beneath a cloak that rendered him invisible, and which had apparently determined in some unfathomable way that this man, of all men, was to be Mateo’s friend. He knew he should find more comfort in that, but he felt quite the opposite. It was hard to concentrate over the ceaseless thrumming in his veins.

Ópalo went on. “I’m so glad you came. I’ve waited for you. You have no idea how long.”

Up close, Mateo could see that Ópalo seemed made of the shifting light from the diamond forest, his skin a mottle of beautiful colors that glowed breathtakingly in the moonlight. His eyebrows and eyelashes were pink, like the hair on his head, except that none of it was hair. Instead he had feathers, longer and thicker on his head, but short and fine around his eyes. His eyelashes appeared to be the daintiest feathers that Mateo had ever seen. And Mateo, out of either the arrogance of royalty or the shock of the moment, reached out a hand to feel them, only pulling back from touching the beautiful oddness at the last moment.

“I apologize.”

Ópalo shook his head, and then reached out to grab Mateo’s hand with a strong grip. He leaned forward, offering his eyebrows and hair up to Mateo’s touch.

Mateo pulled back without making contact, a belated terror pumping through him. “Who? What?”

“Shh,” Ópalo said softly. “They can hear. Sound carries over the water. You’re hiding for a reason?”

Mateo swallowed, nodded his head, and realized he was shaking.

~
 
Buy Love's Nest today from:

Ellora's Cave   Amazon   All Romance Ebooks

I got nothing...

...but it looks like the hottie below's got something. My scheduled blog day sort of snuck up on me. A picture is worth a thousand words, so consider this my thousand-word contribution to Slash & Burn for the day:



Here's hoping everyone has a Happy New Year!

Cheers,
Katrina Strauss
Romance, erotica, and a little yaoi, too.
http://www.katrinastrauss.com/

Happy Cinco de Mayo!

For Cinco de Mayo, I found this delicious video montage of sizzlin' hot Mexican men:



I don't know about you, but my Fifth of May just got a little spicier. The above featured hotties include the following male celebrities, all proudly hailing from Mexico:

Gabriel Soto
Jaime Camil
Aaron Diaz
Kuno Becker
Alfonso de Nigris aka Poncho
Gael Garcia B.
Valentino Lanus
Alfonso Herrera
Eduardo Verastegui

Hmmm, I think I know where I'm going for my next vacation!

Hot enough for ya?

It's cold here in St. Louis, as it is in much of the northern hemisphere today. Here's a little eye candy to warm everyone up:



See more of model Austin Victoria by photographer Rick Day at Homotography.

Built like a truck, I'd bump for a buck...

Anyone else remember 80s underground club hit "Male Stripper" by Man 2 Man? For some of us, it was our first taste of what was then the gay subculture. I owned an extended remix on 12-inch vinyl, even. (Yes, I've just sorely dated myself!)



Thanks to the wonder that is YouTube, I found this Top of the Pops appearance I hadn't seen before. The guys had to keep things tame for the BBC, but the audience still seemed to enjoy it:



Love it. Look for Man 2 Man on Amazon or iTunes.

Seasons change, but beauty remains

With autumn around the corner, I find myself pondering the change of seasons and the passage of time. Before you think I'm getting all deep and meaningful, my thoughts are centered around men -- specifically, hot men. Some look best in their baby-faced younger years. Others hit their prime around middle age. And of course, we have silver foxes as testament to the beauty of winter.

I suppose that's one reason I like writing May/December relationships between two sexy men. Whether it's 11 years difference between Derek and Blue of Blue Ruin, or 24 years between Tony and Josh in my upcoming novel Sonoran Heat, my readers and I get to enjoy both ends of the spectrum with all varieties in between!

A few rare men manage to look good at any given age. In some cases, they only get better with a dash of seasoning. In my opinion, Johnny Depp, Robert Downey Jr, Viggo Mortensen, David Bowie, Mark Harmon, and Sean Connery are shining examples of men who've aged like fine wine.

A picture is worth a thousand words, so here's a 2,000 word post dedicated to Leonardo DiCaprio, who transitioned from pretty twink to hot man without batting an eye. He was beautiful then:



He's gorgeous now:



Leo, baby, your Japanese fans don't call you Leo-sama for nothing. So, anyone I should add to my running list of men who just get better with time? Please add your own in comments!

Dreams and hotties

Life has been really hectic in my neck of the woods. Besides the usual family obligations and those surprise 'uh, mom' moments, I've been really trying to get the final draft of a story I titled Beautiful Lies (m/f) completed (going thru the edits on the first draft) so I can get it shot off to my editor. However, I've started a sexy little m/m story that has yet to be titled. :) So my muse has been running, now if only my life would allow me time to actually write. *sigh* Not to mention I think I'm finally coming down with that cold that is going around. *ugh*

So, here's some hotties to start your week off right...I know I need them. ;)

I had a dream this past weekend about this hottie. He was running around with lollipops (those old fashioned spiral ones) on his chest and a huge one covering his front. I think I was chasing him wanting to lick the lollipops. LOL

I think flights would be much more pleasant if all pilots looked like this. :P

Couldn't you just drown in these eyes?

Naughty thoughts come to mind with this picture...too bad there's no lollipops on him. LOL

Inspiration

It's been a crazy, hectic weekend - traveling in and out of town - and today was just as bad with doctor appointments, "must-do shopping", and then taking care of the family. Do you think this left me any work/writing time? *pfft* I wish. I guess I'll just have to wait until after everyone goes to bed...if I'm not too tired. *sigh*

Needless to say, I didn't get much of a chance to figure out what I was going to blog about today, however I was sitting here looking through some my folders for some inspiration. You know...those pictures that get your muse going. ^-^

When it's a bit dull, I personally wander through my pictures and other files, letting my gaze blurr and my mind wander as I take in each of those pictures.

So my question to the readers...what do you do for inspiration? Listen to music? Look at pictures? Read a book? Share.

I'll also leave a couple that caught my attention today. :) Enjoy!

Hotties for a cold night

Only days away from Christmas. Amazing how fast the year has gone by. So, as a little gift to you, I thought I'd give you some eye-candy this week. :P Something to warm up those cold nights.

Everyone have a wonderful and safe holiday season.