About Someplace in this World
edited by Lee Benoit
275 pages / 66500 words
ISBN: 978-1-61040-057-2
Ebook zipped file contains -
html, lit, Adobe and Sony optimized pdf, prc, epub
“Is there a place for me in this world? Someplace I can call home?” Home
isn’t always the place we start from. Sometimes we have to search long and
hard to discover our true home. Other times we leave home, only to discover
that our home place calls us back. We may seek far and wide for a home, only
to find we’ve been there all along. And sometimes, we have to stand and
fight for home.
In this full-length anthology featuring contemporary, historical, fantasy,
and steampunk stories, some of Torquere's favorite authors bring us stories
of gay men seeking, finding, rediscovering, or struggling to find that one
place in the world where they truly belong.
Each of these nine stories treads a unique pathway, but at the end of the
journey, these talented authors bring their characters home.
With stories by:
Lee Benoit
Kiernan Kelly
Syd McGinley
J.L. Merrow
G.R. Richards
J. Rocci
P.D. Singer
G.S. Wiley
Eden Winters
Review
Jane Davitt, author of Wild Raspberries, writes: 'Someplace in this
World' gives the reader an array of nine wonderful stories with a common
theme: finding somewhere to call home. Whether it's embodied in a place
once loved or newly discovered or centred around a loved one wherever
they are, that feeling of security and happiness is the same.
Finding a safe haven isn't always an easy journey, though, and many of
these stories explore the cold loneliness of being adrift, homeless,
without hope before a glimpse of light appears and a path opens up.
I loved reading these stories. There's something so intriguing about the
way a group of writers can take a common theme and spin it off in so
many different directions. The stories here are set in the present, the
future, and the past. Some involve magic, some are firmly rooted in the
often all-too real world. The variety and imagination displayed is truly
enjoyable to the reader looking for an entertaining read.
The anthology opens with 'The Black Times' by Kiernan Kelly. Loss and
guilt can be powerful stumbling blocks, but this story offers a way
around them. Poignant, with the details of the past unfolding slowly,
beat by beat, I was left aching for Michael's sorrow and hoping that
he'd find a way to move past it. The resolution was satisfying and
believable, leaving me smiling.
Next is 'The Prodigal' by Eden Winters. Harrowing and only too realistic
a story, The Prodigal takes us through Mark's ordeal as a rent boy in
the city. I was caught up in the tension of the story and involved from
the first words.
The mood lightens in the next story, 'The Magic of Moving Houses' by G.
R. Richards, a delightfully quirky fantasy ostensibly set in our own
world that had me wanting to know more about the differences because
this is surely the way I'd like to relocate!
'Comeback' by G. S. Wiley is all about the power of a second chance and
how once you hit rock bottom, there really is nowhere to go but up.
Felix's story was believable and I was crossing my fingers for him as he
tried to recapture what was good in his old life without scooping up the
bad as well.
In 'Return to the Mountain' by P. D. Singer we meet Gary, initially an
unsympathetic character, but one who quickly grew on me. The ending of
the story had me smiling with relief and the secondary characters were
well-drawn.
'Oilsmouth' by J Rocci takes us into the future with the story of Edge,
a mercenary, and his team, including the out of place, mysterious Kit.
The world built here was beautifully portyayed and I felt caught up in
the story and the fate of the characters and wanted to know more about
them.
'Light the Fire' by J L Merrow was intensely romantic and I adored the
way that Kurt dealt with Matt's flirting and the outcome. This story
left me feeling deeply moved and satisfied. Hot, poignant, romantic, it
hit all the right notes.
Lee Benoit takes us back to 1938 in 'Pack Horse' a dryly humorous tale
about Wendall, a Congressman's son sent to repent his attraction to men
in a remote mountain location. The relationship that grows between him
and the 'bear' he meets in the woods, the lonely Henry, is touching and
sweet.
The anthology wraps with 'Home is the Hunter' by Sid McGinley and this
story of a soldier coming home from the wars is at times bittersweet
because home and the people there can change -- but the ending is pure
sweetness and left me smiling for Topher and Kynan.
Definitely a great collection of stories and there's something here for
everyone.
Sample
From "The Prodigal" by Eden Winters:
“Oh, yeah, feels so good,” Mark moaned, giving the day’s best performance.
In his mind’s eye it was a slim young man with a swimmer’s toned build so
fiercely grasping his hips, and instead of a bulging belly, it was long,
blue-black hair swishing over his ass in time with the frantic thrusts.
Eyelids fluttering closed, Mark imagined dark brown eyes filling with
passion as his lover took him. His cock, flaccid until now, valiantly
responded to the fantasy image.
The puffing in his ear ruined the illusion; Eric was nineteen and in perfect
physical condition. He wouldn’t pant like a marathon runner during sex.
Still, with his back turned it was easier for Mark to picture a partner
forty pounds thinner and twenty years younger.
The man known only as “George,” despite the EW monogram on a casually
discarded shirt, groaned and grunted, pushing into an already sore hole. He
was Mark’s fourth and, hopefully, last trick of the day. Any semblance of an
erection disappeared with the return to reality. Mark gritted his teeth and
silently chanted, “Come, come, come,” willing the ordeal to be over and done
with it so he could find dinner.
A small eternity later George bellowed, sounding like a wounded bull. Back
on the farm, Mark would be rushing to his four-wheeler to locate the injured
animal before the coyotes did. Here and now, however, he merely watched the
balding, overweight john struggling back into too-tight clothes. He
dutifully held out a hand for payment and carefully counted the money. There
would be hell to pay from Willie, his pimp, if it were short.
Assured it was all there, plus a generous tip, Mark slipped the bills into
his pocket and turned back to his customer. He didn’t come, and never had in
their lengthy association, but George still asked the same question as
always, “Was it good for you?”
Mark’s answer was also part of their usual script. “Yeah, baby, you know
you’re the best.” He brushed his lips across a stubbled cheek, thankful that
George didn’t kiss on the mouth. Though Mark would if the client insisted,
he didn’t like kissing, not paying customers anyway. Again the specter from
the past manifested; Eric, in dark jeans and shirt that accentuated pale
skin; long black hair falling loose around slender shoulders. As much as
Mark loved the image, he forced it away. Now was not the time or the place.
The memory was useful for getting him through the day, but Eric wasn’t his
and never would be again. All Mark had to look forward to were men like
George, until he grew too old and used up to make money selling his body
anymore. What would happen after that was anybody’s guess.
After George slipped quietly from the room Mark fled to the bathroom shower
and futilely attempted to scrub his life from his skin. Alone now, he
released the memory he’d held back earlier. The hands soaping his body
became paler, the fingers longer -- musician’s fingers. When he wrapped a
hand around his cock, it wasn’t George or any other client that came to
mind. Mark had sold his body to many, but only given his love to one.
Unfortunately, when he’d run away and left everything behind that included
his heart. Eric still had it. Faster and faster Mark stroked, imagining
chocolate brown eyes and thin lips stretched wide, a studded tongue
skillfully working his flesh. Breath harsh and erratic, he finally came, the
shower washing away the evidence along with his tears.
“I still love you, Eric,” he whispered into the steam. “And I always will.”