Praise for A Tiny Piece of Something Greater:
“A realistic look at living and loving in the context of mental illness by an #ownvoices author that doesn’t lose sight of the romance.” Kirkus Reviews
“Five Stars…The novel subtly and convincingly portrays the difficulties of openness and trust in the context of mental illness. …A Tiny Piece of Something Greater is a tender, compassionate look at learning to love another person and oneself at the same time.” Foreword Reviews
“ (A) tender, touching romance…Sierra never plays up the idea of love as a magical cure.” Publishers Weekly
Praise for Idlewild:
“Sierra (What It Takes, 2016, etc.) has created a very natural and psychologically astute portrayal of a romantic relationship, by turns funny, delightful, and painful….A lovely, finely wrought romance that reminds us that to truly love another, we must know our own hearts.”- Kirkus Reviews
“Sierra (What It Takes) combines food, business, and love in this tender contemporary set in Detroit.” – Publishers Weekly
“At no point in Idlewild does one get the sense that Ms. Sierra’s attention while writing ever wavered from the trenches of this beautiful, painful story. The narrative is detailed so delicately and with such purposefulness that I found my chest literally hurting from reading certain passages.”- Prism Book Alliance
“This book is wildly romantic while being sweet and seductive. Sierra’s prose is art-like as she paints the picture of the intense desire between Asher and Tyler and her words become the lyrics to the music of their story… It’s a slow build of a story between the city, the restaurant, and the men…The men tread lightly through hope as well as deeply shuttered grief breaking through to an intense, overwhelming intimacy”- Joyfully Jay
Reader Reviews:
“This is also a massive love letter to both Detroits, which is really the one Detroit. This is a quiet introspection into a young widower’s grief and how he allows himself to love again. This is a powerful look at a young gay black man who believes his family’s future rests on his shoulders, but doesn’t know how to please them.
But most of all, this is a deeply romantic story of two men who can see the other’s potential. Who love their city fiercely. Who want to love someone passionately and learn how to do so without reservation.” Laura Stone, Author of The Bones of You and Bitter Springs
“Watching these two move from boss/employee to best friends to lovers was truly a beautiful thing. Sierra’s prose is gorgeous and full of emotion that is so palpable it jumps off the page.” Les Joseph
“Sierra’s characters spring from the page to ordinary beautiful life. These are not cookie cutter people, they’re the layered, ridiculous, extraordinary people that surround us in real life.” Pene Henson, author of Into the Blue and Storm Season
Praise for What it Takes:
“
… Sierra (Hush) uses rich characterization and lyrical writing to infuse this slow-building romance with depth, humor, and pathos. Readers will savor every dip and peak of Milo and Andrew’s relationship as they balance the need for safety with the necessary risk of pursuing happiness.” — Publishers Weekly
“4.75 Stars… Lovely and lyrical, this relationship-driven novel takes the reader along the paths of the characters’ childhood and adolescence, their teenage years, and into adulthood; paths that intersect and remain solid, then separate and run parallel and distant for a time, and join again in tenuous inevitability.” — Prism Book Alliance
“FIVE STARS…This story was an emotional rollercoaster. Even the happy moments were laced with fear, sadness and anxiety. But Jude kept me hanging onto every word.” -Bayou Book Junkie
Reader Reviews
“Ms. Sierra has a gorgeous turn of phrase that just draws you in, and it’s a gentle sort of gorgeousness — the lyrical prose never overwhelms you or pulls you out of the story. Instead it carries you along like the tide as you journey with Milo and Andrew through their story…It’s about the history they share, the love, and how that history and love is powerful enough to forgive.” — Avon Gale, author of the Scoring Chances Series
“If the type of reading you enjoy is deeply romantic, quietly emotional and lyrical in form, you would be doing yourself a huge disservice in not giving this beautiful book a chance.” –Laura Stone, author of The Bones of You and Bitter Springs
“This is a love story, yes, but one that is so intimately webbed to context: this particular story could not happen anywhere or anytime else. It is as much about reconciling with family (their cruelty, illness, love) as it is about lovers finding each other. The relationships with mother, father, others, are as important in who these characters are, what they become and what they need, as is the best-friend-turned-lover. Life here is about moving away and returning in rhythm, a little different each time. It’s a novel about what gets lost, what we grow out of, yes, but also what we gain, what we can grow into. People aren’t just the product of erosion; people are accretions, too.” –Alysia Constantine, author of Sweet
Praise for Hush
“In her debut novel, Sierra explores Cam’s emotional confinement and burgeoning self-discovery with poetic delicacy, as she does with Wren’s guilt and complete fear of relinquishing himself to the vulnerability of a relationship. Through a great deal of character exposition, Sierra skillfully captures the frustration of navigating identity and interpersonal relationships for those to whom it doesn’t come easy. The subtle twist of fantasy enhances the narrative while also complicating the notion of consent…it is a worthy read and a valuable addition to the genre.”- Library Journal
“4.5 Stars. The writing itself is full of flowing words and beautiful prose with precisely chosen phrases. The entire book has a specific cadence and tone that indeed compels you to read on. The initial rough edges of Wren and Cam’s relationship become polished and tender as they find their way toward each other. The emotional journey they take separately and then together is poignant as they break each other down to ultimately build each other back up. – Joyfully Jay
“4.5 Stars… As tender as it is intense, this new adult m/m romance blends the intoxication of sexual discovery, a captivating touch of the paranormal, and the acute pain and euphoria of newly blossoming relationships into a unique, fascinating gem of a story. It is one that I will definitely be re-visiting and highly recommend.” — Prism Book Alliance
“Cam and Wren had a chemistry that was out of this world. The sexual tension was palpable… I loved Cam. Jude told a beautiful coming of age story for him. It was powerful to watch him discover who he really is and what/who he wants.”- Bayou Book Junkie
Reader Reviews
“This isn’t a book to be devoured. This is high quality — and very satisfying — chocolate. A chapter before bed, read as leisurely as the narrative and prose deserve is the right way to go here… this is a book that should be allowed to linger.”~ Racheline Maltese co-author of the Love in Los Angeles and Love’s Labors series
“The book captures the early, dizzying moments of new love. It’s undeniably, achingly hot. It’s about desire, about choice, about learning what you want and being better for it. But more than that it’s about how love is more magic than the supernatural is, and about how brave you have to be to pursue that love.”~ Penelope Henson author of Into the Blue
“At its core, Hush is a story about two young men coming of age and finding themselves….If you are someone who loves sex that complicates the idea of consent, supernatural elements and power play…Hush is definitely for you…But growing up and figuring out how to be vulnerable is at the core of the story.”~Ella J. Ash, author of Surface Tension from the Summer Love anthology.
“I was immediately at home in the world she created. Relaxing into her words was like having a loved and trusted friend whisper poetry into my ear…the characters Jude created were luminous and distinct, interesting, flawed, relatable, and I cared what happened to them. Jude sinks deep into character and invites the reader along, and for me it was an intense and deeply enjoyable immersion…Power dynamics combined with emotional and sexual intimacy issues (and the resolution thereof) is basically a bulletproof kink for me. Hot and deeply emotionally satisfying.” ~M. Dase
Jude Sierra 