Jay at World of Diversity Fiction has given Wrestling Demons 4-and-a-half stars, noting in particular the balance in the book between the maturing relationship of Brandt and Donnelly and the new relationship between Jonah and Casey.

I loved this story, the development and discovery that Jonah and Casey went through was beautiful. Their story provoked tears, joy and anger in me so in my book that is a great story. … The mix on Brandt and Donnelly with Jonah and Casey was good giving them all their time on the page.

I have found that keeping this balance is a challenge as I’ve been writing the next capers in the series. I love Brandt and Donnelly so much that I have a hard time keeping the new characters who show up in check. I guess it’s a lucky author who has too many stories to tell!

Thanks, Jay, for the great review. I appreciate it so much!

Read the entire review here.

Wrestling Demons is available in paperback and e-book.

Thanks to Wendy for the great review at Hearts on Fire Reviews. Her take on Wrestling Demons is one I really like, because she gets at something I think is important—and that a lot of people miss. Here’s what I’m talking about:

While I loved getting an update on Brandt and Donnelly, Jonah and Casey really made this book special for me. … Casey had a little more distance to travel to reach the point of thinking of his best friend in a sexual light, but it seemed so natural when it came. They were both more than a little in love with each other already, so rather than feel like a shocking GFY romance, this felt more like a story where two people acknowledged the love of their life and grabbed hold of that feeling with both hands. The fact that they both happened to be the same sex was almost secondary.

If you’ve read any of my work, you know that gay-for-you (GFY) is pretty much at the heart of M/M romance for me—it involves challenging not only the characters’ sense of themselves, but our overall sense of how sexuality works. Wendy gets that, and I hope other people do as well. Thanks, Hearts on Fire!

Read the entire review here.

Wrestling Demons is available in paperback and e-book.

Jackie, writing at The Novel Approach, has given Wrestling Demons 4 stars. I will admit to being nervous about writing a sequel to Frat House Troopers, which many people loved. That’s why Jackie’s summary made me so happy:

There are many subplots in this book, but I believe they all worked well together, and I believe that comes directly from the wonderful writing style of the author. Xavier Mayne has an unquestionable talent for making me fall in love with all of the characters in a book. I think this was a very entertaining and heart wrenching addition to the series, and I can’t wait for the next book so I can check back in with the troopers and their large group of friends.

I’m happy to report that the next installment in the “Brandt & Donnelly Capers” series is in the hands of Dreamspinner Press as we speak, and I hope that a contract for its publication will be forthcoming soon. I have many more Brandt & Donnelly capers in development!

Read the full review here.

Wrestling Demons is available in paperback and e-book.

The delightful Caroline at Prism Book Alliance has posted a 4.25 star review of Wrestling Demons. I was particularly thrilled that she begins the review with this:

This book is so much more than an MM romance novel and it deals with some very serious issues. The story highlights how much damage can be done by ‘small town’ bigotry, by misuse of religion and by closed minds following the crowd.

I am always so happy when reviewers pick up on the larger themes. I’m always worried that I’m lecturing at people in my writing (an effect of having a day job in which I lecture at people), so it’s particularly gratifying to have Caroline note the themes but also say that the love story–and the goodness of the characters–still come through.

Read the entire review here.