Permanent Ink

3.5 Stars
Jamie Samm's Permanent Ink is an interesting opposites attract romance which delves into some tough topics.

It definitely explores the idea of first opinions, race, bigotry, and more. Eric found Dwayne attractive, but was also very scared of him. The beauty of the story is that the Dwayne the world sees is nothing like the true Dwayne.

As the world sees an ex-con, and the bad boy with the dark skin, tattoos and piercings, that is not at all who Dwayne is. As we learn more about Dwayne and his background, my heart broke for the gentle man. A man who's loyal and generous, a man who's kind and will sacrifice for others, this is not who the world sees.

Eric, meanwhile, is a man who always lusts after unavailable men. I love his relationship and easy banter with his roommate. And with Dwayne, I really enjoy them as a couple.

The author excels in her illustration of assumptions and misconceptions;
bigotry and judging one based on your impressions. She perfectly paints this world where color and class dictate everything, while also showing that under the armor Dwayne is a man full of loyalty and sacrifice.


An interesting look into race, oppression, and misconceptions, Permanent Ink is definitely a short and worthwhile read.

3.5 Stars

I'm going to be brutally honest here, I'm not really a huge fan of this particular story and I'm pretty disappointed by that. As much as I tried to like the MC's, I just couldn't connect with them enough. It also did not help that the story was only from Eric's POV so it made it even more difficult to get a true understanding of Dwayne.

I found Eric to be extremely judgmental and slightly self-righteous and although he changed his tune, I just didn't get enough page time (this is a short book) to feel like he redeemed himself. As for Dwayne, while I might feel sorry for his past, I really didn't care about him. He was like a side character to me even though he was half of the main couple. I felt like I knew Angel more.

Overall, I gave the story 3.5 Stars for the writing. As for the rest, it just didn't work for me.

*Copy provided to Bayou Book Junkie by Dreamspinner Press for my reading pleasure in hopes of an unbiased opinion, a review was not a requirement.*

Reviewed by Erin for Diverse Reader

Jaime Samms is one of my auto-buy authors. She writes her stories in such a way that I am ALWAYS captivated and thoroughly invested in her characters. From rock stars to ballet dancers to troubled boys, Jamie hasn't let me down yet. I read Permanent Ink ages ago, and loved it, but when I saw it was being re-released--with a GORGEOUS new cover--I knew I wanted to read it again. And boy am I glad I did. I forgot how utterly fantastic Eric and Dwayne are and how much I enjoyed their story.

As a novella--only 68 pages--you might think that there isn't much depth to this story. You'd be wrong though. Way wrong. How Jaime Samms manages to pack so much into so few pages just goes to show how talented she is. Eric is a very privileged guy ...comes from a wealthy family, is expected to follow in his father's footsteps into being a doctor (never mind that he's a basketball player), and really doesn't want for much in the way of material things. He's a blond-haired, blue-eyed boy who is bisexual, though his parents like to ignore this fact, and his best friend is fellow teammate, Angel, who he happened to grow up with. Angel is black, but he's smart, athletic, and driven (more so than Eric actually) and has his head on straight. Angel is also where he is today thanks to his cousin, Dwayne. You see, Angel was involved in a fatality and when the police showed up it was Dwayne who took the blame, and the one who spent six years in prison. When he emerges, he's tatted up, pierced, has cornrows and an attitude that is all bark. But beneath lays a good man with a big heart and is endearingly vulnerable.

The shortness of the book dictates that things move fast, and they do, but there is enough so that you get a true sense of who these two guys are. Eric is quick to judge everyone and everything. Being an upper class privileged white boy will do that to a person I guess but between Angel and Dwayne, Eric learns that everything is not what it appears. There isn't just black or white, right or wrong, but variations in between. And in the case of Dwayne, who was the quiet, good boy to Angel's rebelliousness and compunction to find trouble, Eric sees first hand that first impressions are not always correct.

Like most people, I would have loved this book to have been longer, but I can certainly appreciate what Samms was trying ... and succeeded in doing which is to show a world that we don't see enough of, especially in M/M. A racially diverse cast of characters and a glimpse, albeit a brief one, of people and circumstances that aren't so cookie-cutter. This is a book about race and family and sacrifice and love. It's about expectations, both real and imagined, and how sometimes there is more to what you can see. I really enjoyed Permanent Ink and can't wait to see what Jaime writes next!