Hey, Audiobook-loving readers!
I had so much fun indie-producing the audiobook edition of JULES CASSIDY, P.I. that I’m doing it again, this time for the final (stand-alone!!) book in my Tall, Dark & Dangerous/Navy SEAL Team Ten series, BLAME IT ON RIO.
Yep, I’m holding another Kickstarter campaign in order to get this audiobook into the ears of as many of you as possible, as directly as possible, at the lowest possible price.
I’ve been loving using Kickstarter and BookFunnel to connect directly with readers and audio listeners, so here we go again!
Blame It on Rio, in Audio
Why I Love This Book
(And want to have it in audio.)
If you've been a Brockmann reader for any length of time, you've probably heard a version of the story in which the gay sheriff had to be edited out of my very first published book because the publisher didn't want "angry letters" from readers who didn't want to see any LGBTQ+ people in their romance novels.
You may not know that I had a similar situation arise with PRINCE JOE, the very first book in my Tall, Dark & Dangerous series--my very first book with a Navy SEAL hero, in fact, written back in 1995. In my original draft of that book, the heroine, Veronica, had a brother who was gay. My editor at this publishing house gave me a similar "No gay people, we'll get letters" speech, which was disappointing but not unexpected at that point.
I didn't have much power back then and I made the changes, but I was determined to keep pushing with every book. They were going to have to force me to remove the gay people who lived in my fictional worlds—at the very least—and hear my voiced disapproval and disappointment. (I was not shy about sharing my opinion!!)
The next book in the TDD series (which exploded in popularity after PRINCE JOE's release) was called FOREVER BLUE. And in that book, I gave the heroine a good friend who was gay. I also made him a dead friend, so he's not an on-page character--just mentioned as the heroine continues to grieve his loss. Could I, I wondered, include a dead gay character in my romance novels?
Apparently, yes, I could.
Slowly and surely I included gay characters who were clearly and openly and proudly loved by their families, often just in mentions in my books. And eventually I moved to a different publisher, thank god--one that great as opposed to problematic in nearly every way.
Which brings us to 2023, when I wrote and self-published BLAME IT ON RIO, which is the final installment in this nearly thirty-year-old, long-running, still regularly reissued series. One major reason why I wanted to write this story (even though I'd intended for the book before it, KING'S RANSOM, to officially end the series) was because this book builds on the deep friendship between the hero, Rio, a straight, cis alpha Navy SEAL, and his teammate Dave, a gay, cis alpha Navy SEAL.
In Blame It on Rio, the hero willingly and cheerfully suggests that he stand in for his cousin Luc and pretend to be Dave's boyfriend at a wedding where Dave will absolutely run into his toxic ex. Highjinks and comedy and even a little danger ensue. And gay characters are EVERYwhere, getting their gay all over everything!!
The OG publisher of PRINCE JOE could never have imagined that such a book would ever, ever exist. And if they'd had their way, constantly erasing the presence of gay characters in our romance novels, it might not have.
So I love RIO extra-hard because it's a very, very clear time-traveling message to those past publishers and editors and gate-keepers, and even to young, newbie, romance author past-me, saying: LOOK WHAT WE'VE DONE!!
And I say WE because you're part of this, reader who's reading this right now. You helped--through your buying power and your enthusiastic outpouring of love and support--to create this world where gay characters are not only welcomed in the pages of our favorite romance novels, but they often take center stage. (Hello, Heated Rivalry!! I love you madly!! I am one of your many, many grandparents!!)
Here’s the book’s blurb:
When Navy SEAL Rio Rosetti is approached by Casey Esparza in a grocery store parking lot, he realizes two things: the famous actress has mistaken Rio for his gay cousin Luc; and Rio’s got to keep up the pretense to protect his teammate Dave from getting his heart re-broken by Casey’s hot mess of a brother, Jon.
As a SEAL, Rio’s days are filled with adventure and risk, but now, as Dave’s fake boyfriend, he’s facing a different challenge. His life is suddenly a rom-com movie with an added twist as Rio finds himself falling hard for Casey.
Casey Esparza’s acting career has been like a fairytale. Her iconic role in a cult science fiction TV show brought her fame, fortune, and millions of social media followers. Her personal life, however, is a different story—her brother Jon is a dumpster fire and her romantic life is grim. Her instant connection with her friend Dave’s easy-going new boyfriend Luc is a breath of fresh air.
Rio knows honesty means everything to Casey, and that for him to stay in her life—as Rio—he needs to end his masquerade very carefully. But when Jon’s unsavory past catches up to them and Casey’s in danger, Rio is ready to risk everything—even his future with her—to keep her safe.
This book is a rom-com romp (other tropes besides “fake-boyfriend” include “oh no, just one bed!” and “identical cousins”) with romantic suspense elements.
It’s a super-fun book, perfect for longtime Brockmann-book narrator Patrick Lawlor’s comic chops, as well as that of new-to-my-books narrator Ruby Corazon. (Ruby is a young audiobook narrator that I know you’re gonna love. She’s got just the right fire and attitude to bring Casey to life! This audiobook is gonna rock!)
So yeah, ending my Tall, Dark & Dangerous series with a book that not only embraces a gay Navy SEAL character, but includes two other gay characters in rather large roles…?
It seemed like the right thing to do.
So hop on over and check out the Kickstarter campaign for RIO-in-Audio at https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/suzannebrockmann/audiobook-blame-it-on-rio
In addition to a $15 audiobook edition of BLAME IT ON RIO (estimated runtime 9 hours, available via the incredibly reader-friendly BookFunnel app and website), I’m offering my entire self-published backlist—including the ebook of RIO—at $3 a pop.
My current latest release, JULES CASSIDY, P.I. is available in ebook at a discounted price, plus you can get JCPI in audio via this Kickstarter, too, in advance of its general public release this winter. (In fact, right now this Kickstarter campaign is the only place where you can get an audiobook of JULES CASSIDY, P.I. before its late 2026 release.)
There are other fun add-on rewards including several zoom chats with me, and one with longtime voice of my Troubleshooters series, audiobook narrator Patrick Lawlor and me. Chatting with Patrick is always fun!
Oh, and you can also get a “special thanks” mention read by Patrick in the end credits of the audiobook. (Hear your name, read aloud!)
Last but not least, there’re a very limited number (5) of ebook ARCs of my next book featuring Jules Cassidy for readers who want more JULES ASAP.
Okay, here’s the link to the Kickstarter again: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/suzannebrockmann/audiobook-blame-it-on-rio
Go on over and check it out, now through September 3rd, noon ET.
And! If you’re over on BlueSky (or any other social media) and want to help by giving a shout-out to this crowdfunding audiobook project, I would appreciate that very much! (Thank you!)
Here’s a link to a thread about RIO-in-Audio over on BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/suzbrockmann.bsky.social/post/3ms3zkne5c22e
Okay, that’s all the news for right now, thank you so much for your time and attention!
Wishing you peace, light, and joyful inspiration during these dark, uncertain times—with the hope that there’ll be much to be grateful for in the coming days of community, activism, and resistance, brought about by our deep love of freedom and democracy, and our commitment to spreading LOVE,
Suz
