Good Morning My Confidants!
I am so excited that today, Rhys Ford's Blog Tour for her new book Port in a Storm, is stopping by here at "Good Morning My Confidants." I'm kinda dizzy I am so excited.
I had the privilege of meeting Rhys several years ago at a writer's conference, and that first day she treated me like we'd been friends for years. She is always laughing, always smiling, and always kind. I don't know of anyone who would say any different.
And can this lady write! OMG! If you haven't read her books, where have you been?
The first book I ever looked at of hers, Sinners Gin, started off with this description.... There’s a dead man in Miki St. John’s vintage Pontiac GTO, and he has no idea how it got there.
Holy crap, did I sit up and take notice! I bought it of course.
And once I started reading, I couldn't put it down. I also discovered it was a mistake to read just a little bit of the next chapter, because she grabs you and won't let go and then suddenly it's past midnight, and in those days, I had to get up at five in the morning and work a 12-hour day. I didn't regret it though.
But this isn't about Sinners Gin, is it? This is about her newest book, Port in a Storm. And it's going to be a book I cannot miss.
So, without any further ado....check below!
(And until next time!)
Namaste,
BG "Gentle Ben" Thomas
Jan 18, 2024, Entry #018
Book Title: Port in a Storm (Sinners Series)
Author: Rhys Ford
Publisher: Dreamspinner
Cover Artist: Rhys Ford
Release Date: January 23, 2024
Genre: Contemporary M/M Romance
Tropes: Married M/M Couple foster / adopt child
Themes: Dealing with childhood trauma, questioning whether the past makes a bad father, found family
Heat Rating: 3 flames
Length: 59 000 words/ 200 pages
It is book 8 in the Sinner’s Gin Series and does not end on a cliffhanger.
Buy Links
Blurb
San Francisco SWAT Lieutenant Connor Morgan and Crossroads Gin drummer Forest Ackerman make an odd couple. Connor, an Irish-born cop from a tight-knit family, never imagined he’d find his happily-ever-after with a raised-on-the-streets musician, but Forest had the gentlest soul he’d ever met. After a long, hard road of heartbreak, murder, and trouble, they fell hard in love and married.
Then Fate intervenes and throws their lives into a chaos neither one of them is prepared for.
During a brutal SWAT raid, Connor stumbles on Tate, an abused, vulnerable little boy caught in a shoot-out with his father’s drug-running gang. As heavy fire riddles the walls, an injured Connor rescues Tate from the fray… only to be struck numb when a caseworker pries a sobbing Tate from his arms.
Scarred from his own childhood experiences, Forest doubts he can be a good enough father, but Connor assures him they can give Tate what he needs and more. Soon they are on an insane ride where trust and affection are hard-earned, especially when coming from a little boy raised in society’s filthiest gutters. Facing down every challenge thrown their way, they battle to give Tate what Connor treasures and Forest never had—a family to call his own.
Excerpt
“Got a little boy—I think—here. Anywhere clear to get him out?” Pain flared in Connor’s shoulder when he moved. The child’s weight pulled down on his muscles, straining the tender spots blooming on his back. He’d either landed in something wet or the hits he’d taken were more serious than he thought.
“Negative, but I can give you cover,” Yamamoto said over the comm. “Working back down the hall. Can you hold?”
“Holding.” Connor wrapped his arms around the boy’s torso, trying to cover as much as possible. “Get your arms down, kiddo, and grab anything you can on my vest.”
The child was rigid, legs stick straight and stiff. His tiny hands were dotted with bruises and dried blood, his knuckles bleached white when his fingers tightened around the straps on Connor’s armor. He buried his face into Connor’s chest, breathing hard and heavy when another round of gunfire opened up in the hall.
A pair of large dark shadows fell across the opening in the wall, and then Yamamoto angled his back against one side of the broken drywall. He gave Connor a hand signal, then counted down from three to a closed fist and began a heavy barrage of sprayed shots. Gun drawn, Connor ducked out to the right, keeping the boy against his chest. He moved quickly, pausing at openings and long stretches of the hallway, alert to any movement.
When his boots hit the living room floor, Yamamoto gave the all-clear to move the fight to the back of the house again, leaving Connor with an easier egress. The young man they’d left for the other team was gone, hopefully safe and sound away from the raid. The pain along Connor’s shoulders was turning from a dull throb to a raging fire, and as he tried to clear the mound of debris, he stumbled and caught the tip of his boot on something hard. The kid let out a short yelp of terror when Connor’s grasp loosened. Then he sobbed brokenly as Connor tightened his grip.
“I’m not going to drop you,” he reassured the little boy. “I’ve got you. You’re safe.”
About the Author
Rhys Ford is an award-winning author with several long-running LGBT+ mystery, thriller, paranormal, and urban fantasy series and is a two-time LAMBDA finalist with their Murder and Mayhem novels. She is published by Dreamspinner Press and Rogue Firebird Press.
They’re also quite skeptical about bios without a dash of something personal and really, who doesn’t mention their cats, dog and cars in a bio? They share the house with Harley, a grey tuxedo with a flower on her face, Badger, a disgruntled alley cat who isn’t sure living inside is a step up the social ladder as well as Gojira who is a chaos goblin masquerading as a tabico. Rhys is also enslaved to the upkeep of a 1979 Pontiac Firebird and enjoys murdering make-believe people.
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I have read several of her books. I expect this one will be as terrific as the others!
Sounds like a great read! Will have to check it out!
I love the Sinner's series and have preordered this one. Can't wait!
Marge C.
This is my first introduction to Rhys, and I think I'll be thanking you for that, Ben! The excerpt had me twitchy to read more.
I love it when a good friend introduces me to a new author. I look forward to reading more of this beautiful woman's fascinating writing.