LOVE UNLOCKED ANTHOLOGY BOOK BY BOOK REVIEW


HELLO FRIENDS, I AM HERE TODAY WITH THE BEATEN TRACK ANTHOLOGY: LOVE UNLOCKED, BOOK BY BOOK REVIEW! THERE IS A BOOK FOR EVERYONE IN THIS ANTHOLOGY! I WILL BE POSTING THE COVERS, BLURBS, AND ON MOST OF THE BOOKS, MY REVIEW! LET'S GET TO IT!



I LOVE THIS QUOTE FOR THIS ANTHOLOGY! HERE IS THE ANTHOLOGY COVER & BOOK LIST IN ORDER:

Love Unlocked is a collection of seven short stories and novellas - unique LGBTQ romances inspired by the Love Lock Bridge.


THE STORIES:
The Trap by Claire Davis and Al Stewart
Writer’s Lock by Victoria Milne
Locked in the Moment by Dawn Sister
The Weekend by J P Walker
The Scarlet Lock by Caraway Carter
He Melted Us by Ofelia Gränd
Chain of Secrets by Debbie McGowan



 NOW HERE ARE MY REVIEWS: (note: I will put the anthology Beaten Track link that will have all the links you need after my reviews)


THE TRAP by CLAIRE DAVIS AND AL STEWART

New job – sexy boss – fate – Art…

When Sal attends an open exam for an apprentice artist to work alongside the infamous Matthew Picard, the last thing he expects is to be the winner. But then his role is revealed and nothing is ever the same again. As he toils day and night on the unique sculpture, strange sensations begin to affect both him and the watching master artist.

Matthew Picard thought he was through with men and love. What he wanted was for Sal to help him create one final monstrous masterpiece – The Trap.

But as he observes his young apprentice, his focus shifts, and so do the very walls of the gallery.

Is it the beauty of art, or something more magical at work?

As the sculpture is created, a power is unlocked.


Can love save them, or will they be trapped forever?






This book was exciting and very different, but in such a great way! Matthew is broken artist, he is sure of it after his love betrayed him, but what if he isn't? What if the one he brought in to bring his brokenness to life cures it instead?

Sal wants Matthew, has always known he could help him, but can he really? Can anyone? If he can will it come to late? 

Yep you have to read this one friends, it is a great story!

                                                          the 4 heart padlock rating :)

WRITER’S LOCK by VICTORIA MILNE

Spending a month in Paris to write his romance novel had seemed like the perfect plan, but one week in, Phil Pearson is suffering from a severe case of writer’s block. With barely a word written, he’s fed up and ready to cut his trip short.

When Laurent Marceau sees Phil in his café, it sends him hurtling into the past, opening old wounds and reminding him of the love he lost. But, after watching the aspiring writer struggle for inspiration, he surprises himself by offering to show him Paris through the eyes of a true Parisian.


Finally bursting with ideas, Phil is delighted to put pen to paper, albeit badly at first. As the writer finds himself falling in love for the first time, Laurent knows he needs to decide quickly if he’s strong enough to return his affections, or whether it would be better for them both if he walked away. He knows he may not have a choice, once Phil finds out the truth.




I love this book and the main question it represents, 'can you start over with a reminder of the past?'

Laurent is through with love since he lost his, then he sees a man who reminds him of his lost love, offering to show him the sights of Paris to cure writers block and allow himself to live in the past a bit isn't hurting anyone right? What will happen when he starts enjoying the present and quits thinking so much about the past?

Phil wanted to cure writers block, what he got was a man to open his heart, but will he let Laurent in all the way when he finds out why he sought him out? 

                                                    the 5 A Moveable Feast rating


LOCKED IN THE MOMENT by DAWN SISTER

Due to a misunderstanding, the troll that lives underneath one of the most romantic bridges in Paris inadvertently unlocks every single padlock lovers have left there over the years. L’Authoritié de Fée Folklorique are up in arms. He has no idea what all the fuss is about. The noise was driving him mad. He just wanted a bit of peace and quiet.

A spell is cast, leaving the troll in a bit of a predicament. He is charged with the seemingly impossible task of fixing the locks before the spell can be reversed and he is allowed to return to his home. There are other complications, the least of which is the insistence and persistence of a fairy who is determined to help him against the wishes of his own people.

Now the troll has a dilemma. What is more important to him? The only home he has known for two thousand years, or a fairy he has just met?




Sol is a troll who just wants to sleep in peace, but when he unlocks all the locks on the bridge without meaning to, boy does he set off a fire storm, and possibly the path to his happy ever after! 

Lucien is an Fairy, a very delightful very endearing fairy, and he sees what other don't in Sol, he sees past the grumpy troll to the heart of gold beneath, can a Fairy and a Troll live happily ever after? Especially when someone very powerful doesn't seem to want them to? 

                                                         the 5 pink ice cream rating :)

THE WEEKEND by J P WALKER

Nat’s been through a rough breakup and trust does not come easily. When she accompanies a group of friends to Paris for a hen weekend, she finds a connection she wasn’t looking for, in the form of beautiful, passionate Morgan. They quickly fall into a wonderful weekend fling and even engrave their initials into a lock and attach it to the most romantic bridge in the world, Love Lock Bridge. 

But was that weekend fling all there was, or will news of the bridge being taken down lead to something more?



*NOTE: The Weekend is a FF story written by the very talented JP Walker, if FF is a genre that you read, I know this book will be one you will really enjoy :)


THE SCARLET LOCK by CARAWAY CARTER

Brandon Marshall, in Paris for his twin sister’s wedding, has a fling before the big day. At the end of a whirlwind week of discovering each other, Brandon and his lover place a scarlet lock on the Love Lock Bridge. 

Follow Brandon through six years of letters – to the citizens of Paris, on everything from how to make love, to eating passionate fruit – and to the lover, who is now his brother-in-law.


The locks are being removed, the bridge refitted… What will be the fate of The Scarlet Lock?


This story is one of my favorites in this Anthology, the sheer genius of the plot is astounding! 

The week of his twins wedding Brandon meets a man who will be a fling, but will also come to mean much more than that to Brandon! Brandon is crushed to discover his fling and the man who holds his heart will also be family, but not the way Brandon wants.

Follow this heartbreaking love story through the years, and you will see the power of love and one mans journey through pain and purpose and you will be rooting for him to come out on top just like I did! You will simply love this story!

                                                           the 5 scarlet lock rating :)


HE MELTED US by OFELIA GRÄND

All Delron wants is to live his life with Phillipe, but when their love lock is stolen from Pont des Art, their relationship is in jeopardy. Without the lock holding them together, Delron is convinced they’ll crash and burn. The only way he can save their relationship is to find the stolen lock, and that is just what he plans to do, no matter what. 

Phillipe loves Delron, he really does, but it’s driving him insane that Delron can’t see that a padlock is simply a piece of metal. The lock has nothing to do with them, not really. Up until the night the lock was stolen, their life was great, but Del’s crazy behaviour has Phillipe wondering if he has ever really known his boyfriend. 

Delron’s search leads him through art-filled Paris, but will a symbol of love ever be enough to soothe the mistrust his quest has planted in Phillipe? Phillipe always thought he’d spend the rest of his life with Del, but who can live with anyone willing to break the law just to find a padlock when they can buy a new one in just about any shop?


Delron is destroyed when he finds out that his and Phillipe's padlock, the one they locked on the bridge to intertwine their hearts forever, is gone. To what lengths will he go to get it back? Will he even be able to? If so will he lose something even more important than the lock? 

Phillipe is distraught that Delron is putting so much focus on the lock and not the fact that what it represents is still alive and well within them both, or is it? Will Delron lose the only thing he has cherished? If so will it be forever?

                                                  the 4 brass padlock key rating


CHAIN OF SECRETS by DEBBIE MCGOWAN

Josh and George have always shared the special bond of friendship. From days in primary school, to holidays spent riding their bikes along the canal, theirs is a promise to remain best friends forever.

But can that promise withstand the trials of adolescence, and the changes in their feelings towards each other?

NOTE: this is a fully stand-alone story, but it contains significant spoilers for anyone reading the Hiding Behind The Couch series, and should be read after The Harder They Fall (season three).



This is another one of my faves of the Anthology, if you love the Hiding Behind The Couch series or even if you don't follow it, George and Josh's story is sure to touch your heart! 

Josh and George are best friends, partners in crime, the closest of confidants, but will their relationship last when they decide to try being more? 

Follow these two lovely men as they navigate a relationship that may not be the norm for most people, but that might turn out to be just right for them, if negative thoughts and emotions don't ruin it!

                                               the 5 penny sweets and lollies rating :)

ARE YOU GUYS READY TO SNAP UP THIS ANTHOLOGY? I KNOW YOU ARE!! HERE IS THE LINK: (THIS LINK WILL HAVE ALL THE BUYING OPTIONS YOU WILL NEED)


TO CLOSE OUT THIS POST, I FIGURED I WOULD GIVE YOU A PIC AND SOME INFO ABOUT THE LOVE LOCK BRIDGE THAT FEATURES HEAVILY IN ALL THESE STORIES! HERE WE GO:

Since late 2008, tourists have taken to attaching padlocks (love locks) with their first names written or engraved on them to the railing or the grate on the side of the bridge, then throwing the key into the Seine river below, as a romantic gesture.

From 1 June 2015, city council workmen from Paris started to cut down all the locks after years of complaints from locals. Health and Safety officials said "the romantic gestures cause long term Heritage degradation and danger to visitors". As of 2015, over a million locks were placed, weighing approximately 45 tons! ( taken from Pont Des Arts Bridge Wiki)

                      THE LOVE LOCK BRIDGE BEFORE LOCKS WERE REMOVED!

THANKS FOR JOINING ME FOR THIS ANTHOLOGY REVIEW GUYS, I KNOW YOU WILL LOVE THIS COLLECTION OF STORIES AS MUCH AS I DO! 


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