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How I Met My Man
How a guy meets his man can happen in a dozen different ways: online, at a bar, through friends, at a masquerade party...or even at the scene of a murder...
The road to love is seldom straight, and for Stephen Embert, that road couldn’t possibly be more crooked. First, he arrives home to find an anonymous card in his mailbox that says, “I’ve been inside your house,” then comes the midnight home invasion. But Stephen forgets these disturbing occurrences a month later when he attends a masquerade party and hopes to finally meet Mr. Right.
But who is the stranger in black with the disturbing emotionless mask following him? And why does the stranger always get in the way of Stephen hooking up with Jeffrey, the angelic and nearly naked leather hunk, who wants nothing more than to get Stephen alone for some romance?
Appearances are not always what they seem, and discovering true love can sometimes be a matter of life and death...
The road to love is seldom straight, and for Stephen Embert, that road couldn’t possibly be more crooked. First, he arrives home to find an anonymous card in his mailbox that says, “I’ve been inside your house,” then comes the midnight home invasion. But Stephen forgets these disturbing occurrences a month later when he attends a masquerade party and hopes to finally meet Mr. Right.
But who is the stranger in black with the disturbing emotionless mask following him? And why does the stranger always get in the way of Stephen hooking up with Jeffrey, the angelic and nearly naked leather hunk, who wants nothing more than to get Stephen alone for some romance?
Appearances are not always what they seem, and discovering true love can sometimes be a matter of life and death...
- GenresM M RomanceContemporary
75 pages, Kindle Edition
First published February 25, 2011
83 people want to read
About the author
Rick R. Reed
118 books1,047 followersReal Men. True Love.
Rick R. Reed is an award-winning and bestselling author of more than sixty works of published fiction, spanning genres such as horror, psychological suspense and love stories. He is a Lambda Literary Award finalist and a multiple Rainbow Award winner.
Entertainment Weekly has described his work as “heartrending and sensitive.” Lambda Literary has called him: “A writer that doesn’t disappoint…”
Find him at www.rickrreedreality.blogspot.com. Rick lives in Palm Springs, CA, with his two rescue dogs, Kodi and Joaquin.
Rick R. Reed is an award-winning and bestselling author of more than sixty works of published fiction, spanning genres such as horror, psychological suspense and love stories. He is a Lambda Literary Award finalist and a multiple Rainbow Award winner.
Entertainment Weekly has described his work as “heartrending and sensitive.” Lambda Literary has called him: “A writer that doesn’t disappoint…”
Find him at www.rickrreedreality.blogspot.com. Rick lives in Palm Springs, CA, with his two rescue dogs, Kodi and Joaquin.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
February 19, 2012
I wouldn’t call this a mystery novel, though, for there wasn’t much of a mystery; the villain is pretty obvious early on. This was more like one of those horror movies where you can’t help calling out to the clueless hero, “Look closer, idiot! He’s got a KNIFE!” Apparently Rick R Reed can’t help writing horror even though it’s supposed to be “just” suspense – don’t get me wrong, I don’t think this is a bad thing at all. It was one of the things that kept me on the edge of my seat while reading this.
This book had some seriously nightmarish moments, at least for me — among them the last picture of the drag queen, stripped of his glamour. The business with the black plumes wasn’t really unveiled, the resolve only hinted at. Who was the one who wrote the cards? Who was the intruder, now? The insecurity adds another, slightly disturbing tone to the picture, and thus the sweet domesticity of the ending felt a bit askew for me. What I dreaded didn’t happen, but I couldn’t help waiting for the other shoe to drop.
All in all, this was a solid, skillfully written piece of entertainment of the darker, eerier sort which I really enjoyed.
Review originally written for reviewsbyjessewave.com
This book had some seriously nightmarish moments, at least for me — among them the last picture of the drag queen, stripped of his glamour. The business with the black plumes wasn’t really unveiled, the resolve only hinted at. Who was the one who wrote the cards? Who was the intruder, now? The insecurity adds another, slightly disturbing tone to the picture, and thus the sweet domesticity of the ending felt a bit askew for me. What I dreaded didn’t happen, but I couldn’t help waiting for the other shoe to drop.
All in all, this was a solid, skillfully written piece of entertainment of the darker, eerier sort which I really enjoyed.
Review originally written for reviewsbyjessewave.com
May 17, 2011
Rick Reed is called “the Stephen King of gay horror”, but I don’t know where THAT title came from. Because Stephen King’s brand of horror isn’t nearly as deliciously sensual and sexy as Mr. Reed’s. Never, before reading my first Rick Reed horror story (“IM”), had I experienced fear and tension—the kind that makes your heart pound hard—sweetened with a heaping helping of titillating sensuality.
How I Met My Man is my second horror/thriller book from Reed, and the chilling cover was the ONLY thing that hinted a much darker mood than what the Donna Reed (no relation to author…lol) cozy-romance title suggests. The title, I might add, is a luscious trick that simply adds to the story’s wonderful balance of normalcy and fright.
The hero of the story is Stephen Embert, and we meet him as his area of Chicago has just had its third killing of a gay man.
As usual, I’m not telling plot, just juicy tidbits to tempt you.
The fear factor begins when Stephen returns to his one-room apartment in a Frank Lloyd Wright landmark building (lucky guy), and receives an unsigned card in the mail—an elegant card with a black and white photo of a black ostrich plume. As if the picture alone wasn’t alarming, the words I’ve been inside your house are written on the card.
When Stephen enters his apartment, the goose bumps started again—for ME. He tells us, Someone had been here. There was a strange feeling—things were unsettled where usually they were settled. It was as if the very particles of dust in the apartment had been re-arranged. More obviously and chillingly, his collection of signed David Sedaris books had been rearranged, and someone had been in his bed, leaving a condom filled with hand lotion on the sheets.
After going to bed, he experiences something that almost everyone can relate to, that scary experience when our pets wake us up, when THEY are afraid. What woke me was a sudden presence weighing down the opposite side of the bed. It was Cora (his Boston Terrier). Amazingly spry for an eight-year-old girl, she had hopped up on my bed and was now sitting at the edge of it, ears at the alert, a low growl humming in her throat. Her little, smashed-in face was pointed toward the living room.
Okay, okay, that’s it for the plot, except to say our girl, the spoiled Boston Terrier, was NOT imagining things. Someone indeed had been in Stephen’s apartment while he slept.
This story would not let me stop reading once I started, and I’m not just saying this. Once THIS eerie character showed up on the scene, there was no closing the book: Instead, he held both arms rigidly at his sides. His hands were sheathed in a criminal’s black leather gloves. But the most alarming thing about him was his mask. It almost looked like one of those Jason, Friday the 13th affairs—you know, a hockey mask. But this one was more elaborate, almost elegant. It appeared to have been crafted from porcelain and it nearly glowed in its paleness and pure, pure white. There were only three openings in its smooth, emotionless surface: two round holes for the eyes, a slim straight line for the mouth and two tiny nose holes. It was the kind of face you would not want to see looming over you should you awaken suddenly in the middle of the night.
But—in his lovely distinction from the same ol’ horror that King renders, THIS creature appears on the scene as well, and…well…his description speaks for itself: He was glorious. Perfect. An unrivaled specimen of masculinity almost too beautiful to live. He stood about six two and his body was lean, tightly defined, and covered with satiny olive flesh that begged to be touched, if only you could find yourself worthy. His muscles spoke of quiet strength; they were there, visible, but had none of the pumped-up overkill of a gym rat who spent far too much time working on his body (and perhaps far too much money on steroids). He had a thick shock of black hair sticking up from the top of his head, while the sides and back of his head were shaved close. A silver hoop dangled from one ear. Surveying the party, he revealed eyes so dark the pupils were lost within the irises. I felt as though if I were to tumble into those eyes, I could die happy. His lashes—the only feminine thing about him—were long and thick. His lips full and kissable. His face was chiseled, with a very fetching cleft in the middle of his chin. That touchable skin? It was almost hairless, save for thick, coarse dark hair on his forearms and calves. And, of course, there was a lovely treasure trail leading down, across his flat stomach, and into the black leather briefs he wore as part of his costume.
There you have it.
One question, though. Don’t you want to know how the frightening—and believe me, it IS chilling—story even remotely ties in with the sweet title? I’d love to tell you, but it’s one of the most delicious, unexpected twists to the story.
Now my favorite part, the most important part of ANY book. The character. The more I read of Mr. Reed’s work, the more I see that he surely incorporates much of himself and his very keen perception of human nature into his writing. Stephen is, as most of Reed’s creations, a living, breathing, down-to-earth, gold mine of emotion. His sense of humor adds the most delicious airiness to this story which, somehow by contrast to the extremely sinister plot, makes him irresistible and sexy as hell.
Stephen is all of us. We get so blindsided by our wants and needs, often to the point of being obsessed with them. We wear blinders which might be useful for horses but can be deadly for people and their emotions—and their libidos.
Reed’s character portraits are vivid, especially Tabby Tyler, probably the most flamboyant queen on the north side of the city. Stephen’s neighbor Tom Horton is everybody’s neighbor, and—just because he’s such a true-to-life portrait—you’ll know him intimately before his first scene is over.
There are so many carefully crafted hints in this story that darling Stephen—simply because he’s just too damn horny to pay attention—misses; and, when I got to the end and the secret was revealed, I wanted to knock myself over the head. I’d been as engrossed in goings on as much as Stephen and I, too, overlooked what was staring us in the face.
I love that! Only magnificent story-telling can mesmerize a reader to the point they’re being hit on the head with a hint-laden sledge hammer and they STILL don’t see it until it’s too late.
But that’s the way life really is, and that’s one thing Rick Reed is a master at: the human factor. He’s got that aced.
Oh, and to Stephen King: Eat your heart out, bubba, and grab a copy of How I Met My Man. You might learn a thing or two.
How I Met My Man is my second horror/thriller book from Reed, and the chilling cover was the ONLY thing that hinted a much darker mood than what the Donna Reed (no relation to author…lol) cozy-romance title suggests. The title, I might add, is a luscious trick that simply adds to the story’s wonderful balance of normalcy and fright.
The hero of the story is Stephen Embert, and we meet him as his area of Chicago has just had its third killing of a gay man.
As usual, I’m not telling plot, just juicy tidbits to tempt you.
The fear factor begins when Stephen returns to his one-room apartment in a Frank Lloyd Wright landmark building (lucky guy), and receives an unsigned card in the mail—an elegant card with a black and white photo of a black ostrich plume. As if the picture alone wasn’t alarming, the words I’ve been inside your house are written on the card.
When Stephen enters his apartment, the goose bumps started again—for ME. He tells us, Someone had been here. There was a strange feeling—things were unsettled where usually they were settled. It was as if the very particles of dust in the apartment had been re-arranged. More obviously and chillingly, his collection of signed David Sedaris books had been rearranged, and someone had been in his bed, leaving a condom filled with hand lotion on the sheets.
After going to bed, he experiences something that almost everyone can relate to, that scary experience when our pets wake us up, when THEY are afraid. What woke me was a sudden presence weighing down the opposite side of the bed. It was Cora (his Boston Terrier). Amazingly spry for an eight-year-old girl, she had hopped up on my bed and was now sitting at the edge of it, ears at the alert, a low growl humming in her throat. Her little, smashed-in face was pointed toward the living room.
Okay, okay, that’s it for the plot, except to say our girl, the spoiled Boston Terrier, was NOT imagining things. Someone indeed had been in Stephen’s apartment while he slept.
This story would not let me stop reading once I started, and I’m not just saying this. Once THIS eerie character showed up on the scene, there was no closing the book: Instead, he held both arms rigidly at his sides. His hands were sheathed in a criminal’s black leather gloves. But the most alarming thing about him was his mask. It almost looked like one of those Jason, Friday the 13th affairs—you know, a hockey mask. But this one was more elaborate, almost elegant. It appeared to have been crafted from porcelain and it nearly glowed in its paleness and pure, pure white. There were only three openings in its smooth, emotionless surface: two round holes for the eyes, a slim straight line for the mouth and two tiny nose holes. It was the kind of face you would not want to see looming over you should you awaken suddenly in the middle of the night.
But—in his lovely distinction from the same ol’ horror that King renders, THIS creature appears on the scene as well, and…well…his description speaks for itself: He was glorious. Perfect. An unrivaled specimen of masculinity almost too beautiful to live. He stood about six two and his body was lean, tightly defined, and covered with satiny olive flesh that begged to be touched, if only you could find yourself worthy. His muscles spoke of quiet strength; they were there, visible, but had none of the pumped-up overkill of a gym rat who spent far too much time working on his body (and perhaps far too much money on steroids). He had a thick shock of black hair sticking up from the top of his head, while the sides and back of his head were shaved close. A silver hoop dangled from one ear. Surveying the party, he revealed eyes so dark the pupils were lost within the irises. I felt as though if I were to tumble into those eyes, I could die happy. His lashes—the only feminine thing about him—were long and thick. His lips full and kissable. His face was chiseled, with a very fetching cleft in the middle of his chin. That touchable skin? It was almost hairless, save for thick, coarse dark hair on his forearms and calves. And, of course, there was a lovely treasure trail leading down, across his flat stomach, and into the black leather briefs he wore as part of his costume.
There you have it.
One question, though. Don’t you want to know how the frightening—and believe me, it IS chilling—story even remotely ties in with the sweet title? I’d love to tell you, but it’s one of the most delicious, unexpected twists to the story.
Now my favorite part, the most important part of ANY book. The character. The more I read of Mr. Reed’s work, the more I see that he surely incorporates much of himself and his very keen perception of human nature into his writing. Stephen is, as most of Reed’s creations, a living, breathing, down-to-earth, gold mine of emotion. His sense of humor adds the most delicious airiness to this story which, somehow by contrast to the extremely sinister plot, makes him irresistible and sexy as hell.
Stephen is all of us. We get so blindsided by our wants and needs, often to the point of being obsessed with them. We wear blinders which might be useful for horses but can be deadly for people and their emotions—and their libidos.
Reed’s character portraits are vivid, especially Tabby Tyler, probably the most flamboyant queen on the north side of the city. Stephen’s neighbor Tom Horton is everybody’s neighbor, and—just because he’s such a true-to-life portrait—you’ll know him intimately before his first scene is over.
There are so many carefully crafted hints in this story that darling Stephen—simply because he’s just too damn horny to pay attention—misses; and, when I got to the end and the secret was revealed, I wanted to knock myself over the head. I’d been as engrossed in goings on as much as Stephen and I, too, overlooked what was staring us in the face.
I love that! Only magnificent story-telling can mesmerize a reader to the point they’re being hit on the head with a hint-laden sledge hammer and they STILL don’t see it until it’s too late.
But that’s the way life really is, and that’s one thing Rick Reed is a master at: the human factor. He’s got that aced.
Oh, and to Stephen King: Eat your heart out, bubba, and grab a copy of How I Met My Man. You might learn a thing or two.
October 1, 2017
While trying to come up with books or short stories to read for an October/Halloween challenge for a group I'm in on here, I had a problem. While I love horror, my current genre of choice is M/M. So on a whim, I started checking out horror/thriller type Listopia lists on here and every list (pertaining to m/m) said Rick R. Reed over and over. Of course I had to check him out and what do you know? He writes exactly the type of stories I need for the challenge and they are M/M. Perfect! I get my challenge stories in and they are the genre that I read in.
This story reminded me of all those horror movies that I watched growing up. You know the type... the kind you yell at because the characters can't see what is directly in front of them? And they make really, really stupid choices? Yes, those.
This has everything I was looking for: The creep factor, the character you simply must yell at because how can he not see what is directly in front of him? There is the twist that you don't really see coming and on top of that? There is a love story thrown in.
I admit to figuring out the who and why very early on. Did that take away from my enjoyment of the story at all? Absolutely not.
A very enjoyable read. I'd like to say that I just discovered this author but apparently I would be wrong. While checking my TBR shelf before typing this review, I found a couple of his others on there that I didn't remember adding. I will now move those up higher on my list.
This story reminded me of all those horror movies that I watched growing up. You know the type... the kind you yell at because the characters can't see what is directly in front of them? And they make really, really stupid choices? Yes, those.
This has everything I was looking for: The creep factor, the character you simply must yell at because how can he not see what is directly in front of him? There is the twist that you don't really see coming and on top of that? There is a love story thrown in.
I admit to figuring out the who and why very early on. Did that take away from my enjoyment of the story at all? Absolutely not.
A very enjoyable read. I'd like to say that I just discovered this author but apparently I would be wrong. While checking my TBR shelf before typing this review, I found a couple of his others on there that I didn't remember adding. I will now move those up higher on my list.
January 18, 2015
Usually I am not fond of Short Stories and the cover was weird. I can say it was not an appealing book..., but as it was choosen for me in a challenge, so I thought I have to play the game. Right !
What a good surprise! Sure there is not hot scene (in fact no sex), we can easily find out how the story'll end. But what a pleasant reading, short, easy and interesting.
A very good choice from my partner for this challenge. Thanks!
What a good surprise! Sure there is not hot scene (in fact no sex), we can easily find out how the story'll end. But what a pleasant reading, short, easy and interesting.
A very good choice from my partner for this challenge. Thanks!
April 17, 2011
A Recommended Read. Rick Reed brings us a wonderful, suspense-filled, thrill ride in How I Met My Man. to read the rest of this review, please visit http://thereadersroundtable.com/myste...
May 6, 2011
Actually for a short story, the plot is nicely executed in Rick style of writing. An extra 1/2 star to learn not to judge the book by its cover.
December 18, 2011
Cannot say it any better than Feliz:)
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews