Shining in the Sun ★★★★✩

Title: Shining in the Sun

Author: Alex Beecroft

Genre: m/m romance

Print length: 248 pages

Publication date: April 21, 2010

Rating: Four Stars

Blurb: Damn it, a man shouldn’t always have to be afraid…
Alec Goodchilde has everything a man could want—except the freedom to be himself. Once a year, he motors down to an exclusive yacht club on the Cornish coast and takes the summer off from the trap that is his life.
When his car breaks down, leaving him stranded on the beach, he’s transfixed by the sight of a surfer dancing on the waves. The man is summer made flesh. Freedom wrapped up in one lithe package, dripping wet from the sea.
Once a year, Darren Stokes takes a break from his life of grinding overwork and appalling relatives, financing his holiday by picking up the first rich man to show an interest. This year, though, he’s cautious—last summer’s meal ticket turned out to be more pain than pleasure.
Even though Alec is so deep in the closet he doesn’t even admit he’s gay, Darren finds himself falling hard—until their idyllic night together is shattered by the blinding light of reality…

Review:
The ending is just too neat. Everyone is happy and content; even the villain turns out to be a good guy. Not so keen on that, since things are never so tidy or spotless in real life. There are happy endings and happy endings; this one was sweet enough to make your teeth hurt.
That said, the writer's power of description is quite remarkable, almost intoxicating. The characters are well presented, the dialogue fluid, the plot firm. If you are fond of romance with a fairy tale ending, I would recommend this book without hesitation.

Buy it on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Shining-in-the-Sun-ebook/dp/B003IGDDFM/ref=cm_cr-mr-img

More titles by Alex Beecroft:

Title: Captain's Surrender

Author: Alex Beecroft

Genre: m/m historical

Print length: 224 pages

Publication date: October 1, 2009

Overall reviewer rating: Three Stars

Blurb: Love? Might as well ask for the moon. But a man can dream…
Despite his looks and ambition, Midshipman Joshua Andrews hides urges that, in his world, make him an abomination. Living in fear of exposure, unnecessary risk is something he studiously avoids. Once he sets eyes on the elegant picture of perfection that is Peter Kenyon, though, temptation lures him like the siren call of the sea.
Soon to be promoted to captain, Peter is the darling of the Bermuda garrison, with a string of successes behind him and a suitable bride lined up to share his future. He seems completely out of Joshua’s reach.
Then the two men are forced to serve on a long voyage under a sadistic commander with a mutinous crew. As the tension aboard the vessel heats up, their unexpected friendship intensifies into a passion neither man can rein in.
Intimacy like theirs can only exist in the shadow of the gallows. Both men are determined their “youthful curiosity” must die before it brings disaster down on them. Yet neither man can root it from his heart. Warriors both, they think nothing of risking their lives for their country. In the end they must decide whether love, too, is worth dying for.

Review by Aree:
3 stars was quite a hard decision to make for me because I came here with the intent to give the book just one lonely star and rant about how much I disliked certain aspects.
But in all fairness - I did read it till the very end in about two days and gained a fair share of entertainment (and an equal amount of eye rolling) from the experience, so 3 stars seems more appropriate.

Think a mix of the movies 'Mutiny on the Bounty' and 'Master and Commander' - add some vanilla m/m sex and a good amount of cliché angst and soulsearching about the usual 'religion' and 'society taboos' vs 'human nature' conflict and there you go.
Nothing new or particularly exciting, but if either of those things is something you enjoyed reading in other books (and don't mind reading all over again)- this book might be the thing for you.

That being said - the story was (while neither innovative nor surprising)easy to read, a nice romance, it had likeable characters and I don't necessarily feel like demanding my money and a few hours of my life back.

"Great historical literature"? No.
"Easy entertainment for a few hours"? Yes.

Buy it from Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Captains-Surrender-ebook/dp/B002R2OF4Q/ref=la_B002BMGNTC_1_12_title_0_main?ie=UTF8&qid=1368070246&sr=1-12