The highly anticipated second installment in the Plummet to Soar Series is now available!
(Plummet to Soar Series Bk #2)
by Z.A. Maxfield
is an ADULT title
Blurb:
Sarcastic cop Theo Hsu returns home to Hawai‘i after realizing he wants more from his life, and also, less. He hopes to reconnect with his past and make amends with his mother, who remarried a cool, distant man, leaving Theo unsure where he stands.
It doesn’t take him long to figure out where he wants to stand, though: right next to his childhood best friend, tattooed detective Koa Palapiti. Theo would like to upgrade their relationship, but Koa is putting out some seriously mixed signals. It’s a mystery Theo can’t let go, but just as they start to connect, kidnapping, murder, and a deadly game with international stakes get in the way. Koa wants to keep Theo out of it, and if it comes to a choice between him and Koa’s partner, Freddie Ortiz, Theo doesn’t like his chances.
But even if Koa wants to push him out of the investigation, and his life, Theo still has a few tricks up his sleeve. It’ll take all his special gifts, ingenuity, risk-taking, family ties—and even some kinky undercover work—to save the day… and the man he never should’ve let get away.
Available for purchase at
Excerpt
“Come
with me?” Theo mouthed. He let his body language indicate the back door, miming
the sign for smoke. He tilted his head and walked toward the back of the bar.
Koa
caught up to him before he got very far. “You mom’s gonna fuck your shit up if
she finds out you smoke.”
Theo
didn’t smoke habitually, but sometimes he dug a Djarum Black cigarillo because
they reminded him of his dad. The bar had filled up, and a smoke was an excuse
for some air. An ironic excuse.
He
pushed through the door behind the restrooms, jabbed a rolled-up newspaper in
the jamb to keep it slightly ajar despite the Keep Locked sign, and lit one up.
First
smoke in a while. He took a deep breath and let the unaccustomed rush hit him.
It tingled in the tips of his fingers and toes.
“That’s your blood circulation being cut
off, Dad.”
“I know it, but it feels good. And
cloves. They smell like Christmas. Tell me you don’t love the smell of cloves.”
“They’re gonna kill you.”
“They’re not gonna kill me.”
Theo’d
always hated it when his dad was right.
“Oh,
Theo.” As if he’d heard Theo’s thoughts, Koa closed his eyes and inhaled
deeply. “That smell brings back so many memories.”
Theo
offered Koa one, but he shook his head. “Can’t do that shit. Don’t want to lose
my edge.”
“You
have an edge?”
Theo
wasn’t hooked like his old man. He could take the smokes or leave them. He
couldn’t afford to lose his wind either, especially now that he was chasing
people on foot a lot more often, so maybe he did it once or twice a month.
Usually like this, outside bars, when he was hooking up. It was the perfect
crutch. Something to do with his hands, something to keep him from grabbing Koa
Palapiti around his neck and dragging him in for a kiss so filthy he’d never
forget it.
“Te?”
Soft and provocative, Koa’s voice sweetened the air. How he wished he could
tell Koa the whole truth. Taste those words on his and Koa’s tongues together.
Above their heads, a security light seemed to spit and flicker. Koa grinned and
stepped forward. “You haven’t called. How come?”
“You
haven’t called me either.” Oh yeah.
Now Theo smelled not only Koa’s cologne but the slightly aroused sweat beneath
it. His scent was sharp. Pungent. Theo, who liked men and liked fighting and
fucking and sweat, got a fizzy, almost electric charge out of it.
He
said, “You smell fucking good, Woodie.”
Koa,
whose once racy nickname came from Koa wood—that specialty lumber from the
Acacia tree found all over the Hawai‘ian Islands—whispered, “Subtle.”
“Not
known for it,” Theo admitted.
When
the door burst open behind him, he had to leap out of the way.
“Special
K.” Freddie dislodged his makeshift doorstop when he emerged from the wedge of
inside light. When he then let the door go, it pistoned closed behind him with
a sigh, and probably locked. Great.
Theo’d
encountered Freddie a few times at the gym, and so far he wasn’t impressed.
Freddie was one of those guys who didn’t like hearing that anyone else might
have some skill, or probably he didn’t even like puppies, because he was just that guy.
So
when Theo’s old coach praised Theo, welcome
back, hometown boy makes good,
and all that, of course Freddie Ortiz had to try to take him down a notch. He’d
gotten in a lucky—some would say dirty—punch the last time they’d sparred.
“You
ready?” he asked Koa. “We gotta bounce.”
“No.”
The two of them stared at each other for a few seconds during which Ortiz made
a long, thorough perusal of Theo’s body. Koa sighed. “Wait for me inside, O.”
“But
you said we were going an hour ago.”
“That’s
one, Fred.” Koa narrowed his eyes at his partner. Friend? Lover? Hard to tell.
“Do as I say.”
Theo
did a double take. “Didn’t know you had kids, Palapiti. Past his bedtime?”
Ortiz
leaned against the jamb. “I ain’t sleeping tonight, brah. Maybe you will, huh?
Tucked away in your bedroom in your mommy’s nice little—”
“Shut
up, O.” The muscles in Koa’s neck strained visibly. “You’re on two.”
Fascinated,
Theo watched them. He’d never seen them interact up close, but obviously they
had a thing. Disappointment probably sketched flags of hot color on his cheeks
when he met Koa’s gaze again. Something flickered there, some apology or
protest, but then it died.
“I’ll
be there in a sec,” Koa reiterated.
“Why
bother with Hsu, man?” Ortiz seemed to resent this more, because he wasn’t done
mouthing off. “You know you ain’t getting what you pay for there.”
Theo’d had enough. He went for Ortiz. “That’s the third—”
“Nope.”
Koa’s arm came out to clothesline him. It was like steel; he couldn’t budge it.
“Stand down, Theo. Freddie’s an asshole, but he’s mine, and I’ll deal with him.
He owes me five now. Good ones.”
“Five?”
Freddie let out a snort of disbelief.
“With
a cane.” The words drew serious energy from the lack of emotion with which Koa
said them. “Every violation comes with a price, O.”
Theo
shivered. His dick—which had shriveled with outrage at Freddie’s arrival—now
grew like the Grinch’s heart. Was Koa serious? Was he actually interested in
caning people? Theo would’ve asked right goddamn then and there, but Koa had
already dismissed him. The expression on his face, while mild, boded ill for
whatever part of Freddie the cane was gonna land on.
“Kekoa
Palapiti’s a kinkhound.” Theo waited for Koa to turn to him before adding
sweetly, “You think you know a guy.”
Koa
only smiled, but oh, a smile like that was probably against the law in all
fifty states and the territories. A smile like that could get a guy in deep,
deep trouble.
Too
bad Theo welcomed trouble these days. He invited it in.
Plummet To Soar Series
Plummet To Soar
Bk1
Available for purchase at
Kindle | Amazon Paperback | iTunes | Kobo | Nook | Dreamspinner Press
About The Author
Z. A. Maxfield started writing in 2007 on a dare from her children and never looked back. Pathologically disorganized, and perennially optimistic, she writes as much as she can, reads as much as she dares, and enjoys her time with family and friends. Three things reverberate throughout all her stories: Unconditional love, redemption, and the belief that miracles happen when we least expect them.
If anyone asks her how a wife and mother of four can find time for a writing career, she’ll answer, “It’s amazing what you can accomplish if you give up housework.”
Readers can visit ZAM at her
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Giveaway
Presented by
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My review:
3.25 out of 5 stars
Hawaii Five Uh-oh by Z.A. Maxfield is the second book in
the ‘Plummet to Soar’ series and centers around Theophilus (Theo) Hsu, who has
returned to Oahu, Hawaii from Wisconsin and is ready (somewhat) to reconnect
with his estranged mom, meet his stepfather and step-siblings, and, most of
all, have a relationship with the next-door neighbor who has always had a
special place in his heart, Kekoa (Koa) Palapiti. The biggest problem? Koa
seems to have moved on and gives off conflicting signals. Maybe Theo isn’t back
to stay after all.
This contemporary adult gay romance is set in one of my
favorite places and evokes the combination of beauty and pragmatism inherent in
the Hawaiian Islands. Although I enjoyed the chance to armchair travel, I had trouble
getting into the story itself. There is so much going on, with secrets and
hurtful behavior and hostility and attempts at reconciliation, that it was hard
to follow. Some of the events that help resolve the major conflict are a little
hard to believe, and the foray into BDSM seemed abrupt and forced.
I don’t know if some of the threads are laid down in the
first book in the series and I am lost because I haven’t read that one, but
this almost seemed like a collection of vignettes that were strung together. I
liked the main characters individually, but their connection was awkward and
for much of the book it was difficult to see the bone-deep relationship they
had forged as youngsters. The case that is gradually unveiled gets more
exciting as the story progresses, but it is also awkward and makes some
startling leaps. For me, there are good segments of this story and a delicious
Island flair, but I think the story needs to be much longer so that some of the
threads can be better tied off. I also hope that some of the secondary
characters get a chance in the spotlight as well, because I would love to learn
more about their stories.
A copy of this title was provided to me for review
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