Monday, December 7, 2015

Status Update by Annabeth Albert Blog Tour


Adrian Gottlieb is winning at life. He's a successful video game designer with everything a man could ask for, including a warm comfy ride to Denver and a date for his sister's wedding. But he finds himself in need of a total reboot when he's left stranded at a snowy campground in Utah. Holiday plans? Epic fail.

That is until Noah Walters offers him shelter for the night and a reluctant cross-country ride. Nothing about the ultraconservative geoarchaeologist should attract Adrian, but once he discovers Noah's hidden love for video games, the two connect on a new level. Soon, a quiet but undeniable chemistry sparks.

Something doesn't add up, though. As the miles accumulate and time runs out, Noah must face the most difficult choice of his life. Meanwhile, Adrian must decide whether he's ready to level up. Is their relationship status worth fighting for, or has this game ended before it's even begun?

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Book 1
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Noah knew the dog was trouble as soon as he and Ulysses entered the campground’s off-leash dog area. The little guy—some sort of Chihuahua/mini-pin mix in a yellow-and-green checked coat—stood in the center of the scrubby grass, barking his fool head off. The only human in the dog area sat at the picnic table on the far side, completely absorbed in his shiny phone, oblivious to his dog strutting around like all eight pounds of him would be enough to keep potential threats out.

Ulysses gave Noah a look, like “you really expect me to ignore that?” Noah tightened his hold on the tennis ball chucker. Ulysses never did well competing with smaller dogs for his toys. He unclipped Ulysses with a stern look.

“Be good.”

Still yapping, the little dog rushed over to inspect his new enemy. Predictably, Ulysses wandered away to do his business. He was too old for these sorts of games.

Noah gave a halfhearted wave in the direction of the owner, but the guy didn’t look up from his phone. The young guy was a typical hipster tourist—thick tortoise-framed glasses, artfully messed-up dark hair, with a thick purple streak, falling over his forehead. Slim build, but his wide shoulders stretched his too-thin jacket, making the shiny fabric ripple with his motions. He wasn’t any more prepared for November in Utah than his designer dog. Still, he was a cute guy, if one was the type to notice things like that, which Noah was not.

Noah looked away, studying the sheer cliffs that surrounded the Capitol Reef National Park. Didn’t matter how much time he spent in Southern Utah, he never got tired of the view. Phone guy was missing the light shifting into one of those perfect late fall sunsets that made the early dusk worth the loss of daylight. Pink streaks mingled with gray sky to cast a rosy glow over the scrubby grass and low fence of the dog area.

Rowwwr. Ulysses flopped at Noah’s feet, a deep beseeching whine rattling out of his barrel chest. He was eighty pounds of unhappy. He’d waited patiently all afternoon while Noah worked, and now he was missing out on his ball time thanks to the teacup gatekeeper.

“Okay, but play nice.” Noah threw the ball hard with the chucker toy, going for enough distance to outstrip the tiny dog’s ability to keep up with Ulysses. Not surprisingly, the little guy was tenacious, cutting off Ulysses’s path to the ball. Ulysses gave a warning woof, and Noah broke into a run, heading after the dogs.

“Down,” he called out. Ulysses wouldn’t attack the smaller dog, but he wasn’t above a major tantrum. And despite the smaller dog acting as instigator, people would see the huge black dog and toss out the “aggressor” label. Noah preferred to exercise him late in the day—Ulysses simply didn’t enjoy playing with other dogs, and Noah wasn’t one to force his dog into uncomfortable situations.

The little dog stood over the ball, yapping up a storm while Ulysses barked and growled, ignoring Noah’s command to sit.

Finally, the owner hefted himself off the picnic bench.

“Pixel, baby, what are you doing?” the owner called in a melodic voice that didn’t inspire Noah’s confidence in the man’s ability to control his dog. “Did the big doggie scare you?”

Hah. Typical. Noah snorted. “Can you grab the ball?” He didn’t trust those little dog breeds—too quick to snap. He’d nearly been bitten trying to retrieve a ball more than once.

“Oh sure.” The guy reached under Pixel—typical cutesy name for an annoying dog—and delicately plucked the ball free, but instead of handing it to Noah, he gave it a toss, sending both dogs running.

Oh great. Noah let out a slow breath, little puffs of vapor in the crisp evening air that did nothing to defuse his tension.

“It’ll be okay.” The way-too-handsy guy patted the sleeve of Noah’s parka. “They just need to work it out. Pixel loves to play.”

Noah took a step to the side. Who did that? Touched complete strangers? But the guy kept up his friendly grin, not unlike his dog, who kept gamely chasing Ulysses. Ulysses won the race to the ball this time and hightailed it back to Noah. Not releasing his prize, he whined softly.

“Hey, boy. You got a toy?” The guy knelt to dog level and extended a hand, but instead of sniffing, Ulysses shook his head.

“Sorry. He’s not much on new people.” Neither am I. Noah’s voice sounded rough to his own ears—too many days with only Ulysses to talk to.

“It’s okay.” The guy straightened, then extended a hand to Noah. “I’m Adrian Gottlieb. You been at Capitol Reef long?”

“Couple of weeks.” He returned Adrian’s handshake, hating it when a little buzz shot up his arm. Unlike his own gloved hand, Adrian’s hand was bare, a hint of a tattoo playing peekaboo with his cuff, his grip strong and firm. And Noah had absolutely no business noticing anything more than the guy’s relentless friendliness.

Adrian smiled expectantly as he released Noah’s hand.

“Oh, I’m Noah. And that’s Ulysses,” he added, because dog people always wanted to know all about the dog. No doubt the guy was bursting to tell Pixel’s life story.

“Add-dreeee-an,” a heavily accented voice called from the gate. A beefy guy close to Noah’s age leaned on the fence, bald head gleaming in the setting sun. “I’m lonely. When are you coming back?”

“Coming,” Adrian shouted, then gave Noah a shrug with a “what can you do?” expression on his face. He grabbed Pixel and jogged across the field.

Noah nodded like he knew anything about handling demanding friends. Adrian greeted the mammoth dude with a quick peck. Okay then. Not a friend. He should have guessed, but he was a bit slow about relationship stuff. The country was changing, even way out here, but no one would dare try even that much PDA in his tiny West Texas college town. His stomach gave a weird flip—not quite discomfort, but something else he refused to name. Time to return his attention to Ulysses. He hurled the tennis ball as hard as he could.




Reviews by the Wicked Reads Review Team

Erica☆☆☆☆
4.5 Stars
Status Update was just what the doctor ordered to pull me out of my bad mood. Light and warm-hearted, Status Update was a nice and cozy afternoon read without any nail-biting stress. Noah was a very interesting character, written with realistic human emotion. Adrian brought humor and an easy-going attitude to the novel. Together, as a couple, they were the perfect balance.

A bit about my reading tastes: I'm not one who loves the warm and fuzzy, especially when it's over-the-top. I'm a bit like Noah, annoyed with excess anything: humor, sex, in-your-face insta-love. For me, this warm, emotional book was the antidote to the darkness I've been experiencing. It's the perfect balance for a serious reader while giving the romancy fluffy readers exactly what they need, want, and expect. Status Update had a bit of something to hook most readers with its engaging storyline. Funny. Sweet. Emotional. HOT.

I'm a sucker for pets in a story, as well as geek characters, especially video game fanatics, and Status Update had all three. Doggies, geeks, and video games.

I've read other books by Annabeth Albert, and this just spurred me into looking into her backlist of titles to read what I've missed. I'm looking forward to the next book in the series.

Genre: M/M Romance | Holiday novel | Warm & Fluffy |


Veronica☆☆☆☆☆
Noah rescues Adrian and his dog Pixel, when Adrian's boyfriend leaves him stranded at a campground. This couple in some ways are opposites. Adrian is openly gay while Noah is firmly in the closest, barley able to admit to himself that he is gay. Adrian is friendly and social while Noah hates crowds, parties and socialising. But they have things in common. The both love gaming, dogs and sci-fi.

This is a beautiful romance. A story where the connection of the mind and spirit is more important that the connection of their bodies (although the connecting bodies is hot). I fell completely in love with Adrian and Noah. The nerd and the romantic in me couldn't get enough of this story. I can't wait for the next book in the series.


Ruthie☆☆☆☆
I really enjoyed this sweet, romantic and cheering story. It has some wonderful moments of humour, some serious issues to resolve and a lot of affection between two gorgeous geeky guys. One has chosen to embrace the way he is, and even through heart ache has stayed strong. One has tried for approval and in so doing is destroying his soul. The unfolding of their relationship and their quirks and desires is beautifully written, and as they explore each other the chemistry is delicious.

Lovely heartwarming story; thank you Ms. Albert.


Shannan☆☆☆☆
Status Update is a sweet little read. It's predicable but I really enjoyed the ride getting to the end. It's a book that gives you the warm fuzzy feeling and after some of the darker things I read, warm fuzzies are a good thing!

Noah is a huge introvert. He is living out of an RV, working on a book. When he unexpectedly becomes a rescuer to the guy and his dog, staying next to him, he never imagines what would happen. I really enjoyed the easy banter between Noah and Adrian. Noah was so stand-offish in the beginning, I loved watching him loosen up and open himself. The dogs, Pixel and Ulysses, were characters themselves. I love when an author gives a pet a personality in a book.

Good read, but I don't think I've read anything from Ms. Albert that I haven't enjoyed.




Annabeth Albert grew up sneaking romance novels under the bed covers. Now, she devours all subgenres of romance out in the open—no flashlights required! When she’s not adding to her keeper shelf, she’s a multi-published Pacific Northwest romance writer.

Emotionally complex, sexy, and funny stories are her favorites both to read and to write. Annabeth loves finding happy endings for a variety of pairings and is a passionate gay rights supporter.  In between searching out dark heroes to redeem, she works a rewarding day job and wrangles two toddlers.

Represented by Saritza Hernandez of the Corvisiero Literary Agency

Connect with Annabeth

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Reviewers on the Wicked Reads Review Team were provided a free copy of Status Update (#gaymers #1) by Annabeth Albert to read and review for this tour.

1 comment:

  1. Great reviews! Thank you for hosting!

    Crystal, Tasty Book Tours

    ReplyDelete

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