THIS #INDIEPRIDE SPOTLIGHT POST FOCUSES ON HALLI STARLING’S WILDERWOOD, TWELFTH MOON & ASK ME FOR FIRE

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“I grew up on stories of far away lands and heroic deeds. But the older I got, the more I realized those stories – as glorious as they were – were largely through a heteronormative lens. So when I started writing – seriously writing – I wanted characters like me. Maybe a little confused, maybe questioning or worried about who they were. Sometimes they could be charming and flirty, or the epitome of Damocles with a sword over his head. I wanted characters who felt real. So I read outside the lines and the margins and that damnable lens and found entirely new ways of seeing and thinking and being. It transformed me. So if one person – just one – finds my books and connects with them, I’m over the moon. Because in some ways I still question and wonder, and I want my books to reflect that. I want them to also reflect joy and sorrow and desire and drama. I want my characters to feel real. It’s why I write queer characters – from the confident ones to those who get stuck on every detail. They should feel as real to the reader as they do to me.”

– Halli Starling, 2022

ASK ME FOR FIRE IS AVAILABLE FOR PRE-ORDER NOW

Blurb for Ask Me For Fire:
The tall pines, the thick mist, the birdsong above his head…Barrett loves everything about living outside the remote mountain town of Lake Honor, but especially the peace and quiet. His days as a forest ranger are filled with unpredictable adventure, so home is the one place he knows he can count on. But even home has been a surprise of late, as his next door neighbor and good friend has suddenly passed away, and the house has been sold to someone new. He’s not sure this change will be good. When the new neighbor, Ambrose, arrives, Barrett realizes that the man is a loner, like himself, and clearly not looking for a friend. Which is a pity, because Barrett finds him fascinating and incredibly good looking.

Ambrose didn’t move to the outskirts of nowhere to make a friend. But Barrett, his new neighbor, is kind and generous, and has soft brown eyes he can’t stop thinking about. As he slowly warms up to Barrett, fate finds a way to push them together when danger and sabotage strike. Barrett saves Ambrose’s life, and their bond is cemented. Ambrose isn’t sure about letting in someone new, but Barrett hasn’t proven to be anything but a good person. And a handsome one at that.

As their lives entangle, and their relationship grows, neither man can ignore the attraction between them. But their pasts are complicated; an ex-boyfriend reappears, an estranged parent tries to get in contact, and Barrett’s nephew falls ill. On top of that, the sabotage of forest ranger equipment grows more dangerous and Barrett is pulled into the investigation. Both men want to take their relationship slow, even with all the drama swirling around them.

Ask Me For Fire is a love story drenched in atmosphere, suspense, and heartfelt connections.

Tropes: forced proximity, slow burn, grouchy loners

Content warnings: explicit sex; some violence and danger (mostly minimal and/or off-screen); mental health issues including anxiety and depression; abusive and manipulative family; neglectful family and past relationships

Check out the rest of the books and authors being spotlighted for #IndiePride, go here. For the book reviews of the ones I’ve already read and reviewed, go here. For the Goodreads list of the books, go here.