KAREN STIVALI
Novels about love...like real life, only hotter.
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THE BOOKS
Below please scroll through my collection of contemporary straight (m/f) and LGBTQ (m/m) romance titles.
Contemporary LGBTQ romances...
MOMENT OF IMPACT
Book One of the Moments In Time series
Outside Collin Fitzpatrick’s dorm room is a dangerous place. Beyond his door the students of his small, conservative college think he’s straight, as does his Catholic family who'd disown him if they learned the truth. Inside, he’s safe with his incredibly sexy roommate Tanner D’Amico. Their room makes a perfect place to hide away and fall in love.
The moment they cross the line from roommates to lovers, Collin becomes caught between their heavenly passionate encounters and the hellish reality that someone might find out and destroy everything. Tanner's not used to being so confined, and wants to show the world how much he loves Collin. But Collin’s not sure he’s ready for the impact stepping outside will make.
MOMENT OF TRUTH
Book Two of the Moments In Time series
Collin expected to spend another summer fixing cars and working at the college pizzeria. Instead, he's living in a beach house on Fire Island, waiting tables at a hip seaside restaurant and, for the first time since he and Tanner got together, they can publicly be known as boyfriends. Being "out" takes some getting used to, but with the help of new and old friends, Collin is happier than he ever imagined. And more in love. But newfound freedom brings unexpected challenges, and when friends get flirty, old insecurities arise. Moments of doubt and jealousy threaten their happiness, and Collin and Tanner must confront the truth or risk losing it all.
MOMENT OF CLARITY
Book Three of the Moments In Time Series
Spending the summer together on Fire Island brought Collin and Tanner closer than ever, but back in their conservative college town, challenges confront them at every turn.
As they search for their new normal in their old environment, Collin's brother Sean surprises them with help when they need it most. But when word about their relationship gets out, trouble erupts with friends and family. When Collin's relationship with Tanner becomes an issue in his brother's custody battle and Tanner struggles with his feelings for a heartbroken Wendy, Collin wonders if everyone he cares about would be better off without him in the picture.
In order to save them both, Tanner must make it clear to Collin that their love for each other is all that matters.
MOMENTS IN TIME
The compilation of Books 1-3 in the Moments In Time series:
Moment Of Impact, Moment Of Truth and Moment Of Clarity
Available in both ebook and paperback
MOMENT OF SILENCE
A standalone novel from the Moments In Time series
Growing up, Jason Stern led a charmed life complete with devoted sisters, a father who was one of Brooklyn’s most respected rabbis, and a mother who made the world's best babka. He headed to NYU ready for anything—except falling for the wrong guy, coming out, and getting disowned by his once-loving family. In spite of that, Jason managed to graduate with honors. He's got friends who treat him like family, and he's proudly running the largest LGBTQ teen shelter in Manhattan.
Life is good, but he's still falling for the wrong men.
When charming, sexy Quinn Fitzpatrick begins work at the shelter, Jason falls hard and fast. Quinn is tall, blond, funny—damn near perfect. Only if Quinn’s gay, even he doesn't seem to know it. If he does, he's not telling anyone. And he's about one ceremony away from becoming a Catholic priest.
Long hours of work turn to long nights of talking and laughter, and Jason dares to hope this time he's falling for the right guy. But Quinn's got a past to deal with and major decisions to make about his future. When Quinn leaves for a silent retreat, Jason knows the silence may change everything.
TONIGHT
(a FREE read from the Don't Read In The Closet program)
David has loved his older brother Derek's BFF, Wiley, since the first day he met him, five long lust-filled years ago. But, as Derek never hesitates to point out, Wiley is straight.
When Wiley has a falling out with his roommate and winds up crashing on David and Derek's couch for a month, he's a 24/7 reminder of what David wants but fears he'll never have. Until one afternoon when David has a major art project to finish and a model who's a no-show. Wiley offers to pose for him---and it sure feels like the heat between them is mutual.
Could Derek have been wrong about his best friend for all these years? Would David's dreams about Wiley finally come true? The only thing David knows is that one way or another he'll find out for sure...tonight.
MOMENT OF FATE
A Standalone novel from the Moments In Time Series
Bryan Dane’s been living the dream—photography student by day, up-and-coming rocker by night. His summer goals are to earn his last few credits, graduate from NYU, spend as much time in the recording studio as possible, and survive the next few months without sex so he can complete his yearlong goal of self-imposed celibacy. Everything is on track until he meets Oliver Newcastle.
For years Oliver planned a marriage of convenience with his high school BFF, but now that she’s fallen in love for real with someone else, it’s no longer convenient. So Oliver came out to his family, quit his job, and left small-town New England for NYC, an intensive summer study program, and a chance to find his own happiness.
From the moment they meet, the sexual tension between Bryan and Oliver sizzles. But Bryan wants no part of a relationship, and Oliver wants to sow his wild oats—he just isn’t sure how. Oliver seeks Bryan’s help navigating the NYC gay scene, which throws them together in increasingly more sexual situations until they can no longer deny they’re hot for each other. Bryan is desperate to keep things simple, but fate may have other plans.
MOMENT OF DOUBT
After three years of relative bliss, Tanner is stunned when Collin announces they should take a break. Tanner assumes this is just stress talking. They've been living in separate states for work and school and have both been super busy. Thinking Collin will chill when they spend some quality time together, Tanner tries to stay calm, but when messages go unanswered he realizes the break is for real.
Heartbroken, he tries to move on. When Collin gets in touch to ask a favor for his family, Tanner is tempted to say no. But Collin's brothers mean too much to Tanner, so he reluctantly agrees to pretend they're together, just for the weekend, with a promise from Collin that he'll tell them the truth when it's over.
Will their weekend together bring the closure Tanner needs? Or was the entire breakup just a moment of doubt?
This is a standalone novella but it's best enjoyed after reading books 1-3 of the Moments In Time series. HEA guaranteed.
Contemporary straight romances...
LONDON CALLING
(co-written with Karen Booth)
British musician Tim Wentworth trades his London flat for an apartment in NYC so he can record with a promising American band, but he arrives in Manhattan to learn the gig has been canceled. With no job and a two-month stay in the States, he wonders if the trip has been a waste of time, until he meets charming and talented jewelry designer Jenna Bradford.
Unlike the groupies who throw themselves at Tim after shows, Jenna couldn't be less impressed by his music credentials. Bad experiences have led her to have a strict "no musicians" policy. But when Tim rescues Jenna from an obnoxious drunk, she bends her rules and they embark on a sensuous courtship filled with steamy, passionate nights and intense, unexpected emotions. While they try to find a way to prolong their time together, a family tragedy forces Tim to return to England. Jenna and Tim must each decide how far they're willing to go to see if their whirlwind romance can lead to a lifetime of love.
"London Calling" is a super-steamy, stand-alone New Adult Romance with an HEA, intended for audiences 18+. It was previously published under the title "Long-Distance Lovers". The 2015 re-release has an all new epilogue.
MEANT TO BE (The Destiny Series, Book One)
Sometimes you're already committed to the wrong person when fate finally brings you the right one.
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When British NYU professor Daniel Gardner's career-obsessed wife convinces him to move to the suburbs, he hopes it's a first step toward starting the family he longs to have. Instead of domestic bliss he finds himself eating cold pizza alone most nights, until he meets his neighbors.
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Marienne Valeti loves her freelance design job, but she's lonely and her husband's indifference seems to grow on a daily basis. When new neighbors move in and the two couples start sharing weekly meals together, everything changes.
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A penchant for good books, bad movies, and Marienne's to-die-for brownies sparks a powerful bond between Daniel and Marienne. As their marriages unravel and their lives take unimaginable turns, their friendship helps them weather every hardship, leaving them both single and wondering. Were they destined to meet? And are they meant to be friends or much, much more?
HOLDING ON (The Destiny Series, Book Two)
When you have everything you’ve ever dreamed of, the hard part is Holding On.
British NYU professor Daniel Gardner thinks life can’t get better than the day his three-year-old stepdaughter, Ella, calls him Daddy for the first time. Then his wife Marienne tells him she’s pregnant. Daniel is thrilled, but worried about Marienne’s health. Not wanting to cause her stress he turns to writing to calm his nerves. He pens a screenplay, thinking it’s nothing more than a mental health exercise, but when a colleague reads it and hands it to a producer, it turns into a production contract. Daniel accepts the offer and transfers to a teaching position at Dartmouth, hoping that small town living and a shorter commute will simplify his life.
As he attempts to juggle his new responsibilities he gets an unexpected letter from Roger, the father he never knew. For the first time since they met, Daniel and Marienne are at odds; she wants him to give Roger a chance but Daniel wants nothing to do with the man he thinks abandoned his mother. As Daniel and Marienne struggle they must contend with interference from Daniel’s sexy ex-wife, who appears to want him back, and a handsome, all-too-helpful single dad who desires Marienne as more than a play-date pal. They must both confront deep-seated issues with trust and acceptance if they’re going to find a way to make their marriage work and hold on to the love they share.
LEAVE THE LIGHTS ON
When a devastating car crash dashes Parker Wood’s dreams of being a pro baseball player, he returns to his childhood home to take over the family landscaping company. His dad may be gone now, but some things haven’t changed. Like the crush Parker’s always had on the girl next door.
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Sophie Vaughn’s two month marriage and hellishly public divorce didn’t help her wedding and party planning business. She’s determined not to let personal drama get in the way again, no matter how big the temptation, or how long she’s lusted after her old best friend.
When Parker and Sophie discover they are neighbors once again, it’s as if time has stood still. Their friendship is as strong as ever, as is the crush neither of them ever admitted having. They have a second chance at making their dreams come true, unless their secrets tear it apart.
THEN, AGAIN
Reeling from personal tragedies, travel photographer Kay Turner retreats to her newly inherited beach house to clear her mind. Everything is exactly as she remembers it---the sound of the waves, the scent of her grandmother’s perfume, and the irresistibly sexy James Margolis, the man she pined for every summer of her youth.
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James always thought of Kay as a “nice kid”, but she’s all grown up now. When Kay agrees to divulge her grandmother’s family recipes for him to use in his new restaurant, they find themselves sharing more than culinary secrets.
Fate has brought them together again, but James’s restaurant means his feet are firmly planted in their sandy beach town, and Kay’s job sends her all over the world… Can they turn their steamy summer reunion into a lifetime of happiness?
Always You
When Shari discovers that her fiancé has been cheating on her, she books a plane ticket out of town with her best friend, Jon.
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Jon has always been in love with Shari and he's thrilled by the prospect of time alone with her in a tropical paradise. When a steamy, romantic night on the beach turns into a whirlwind of desire, their friendship reaches new levels of passion.
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But then, Shari's apologetic ex tries to win her back and she must choose between the life she thought she always wanted and taking a chance on romance with Jon.
MARRY ME
When British drummer Ben Davis lost his childhood sweetheart, he vowed to never love again. He immerses himself in his music, which propels him to international stardom and a lavish lifestyle, but has left his heart cold—until he meets creative and sexy clothing designer Julia Jones.
Julia’s career may be skyrocketing, but her personal life tanked when her last boyfriend crossed the line from controlling to violent. Certain that romance is not in the cards for her, she focuses on her career. Then devastatingly sexy Ben strolls into her life and his intoxicating charisma is impossible to resist.
Once Julia allows Ben into her bed and her heart, they fall hard and fast. But when Julia’s life is endangered, Ben’s reaction terrifies her. They both must confront their past demons if they want a chance at a future together.