Summer Cruising

by Dave Benbow

Book Overview

Sweeping romance and steamy sex are the daily activities for the hunky passengers of the RMS Princess Diana, as they set sail on a rollicking all-gay cruise through the sun-drenched Mediterranean and... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0739470426
• ISBN13: 9780739470428
• Release Date: January 2006
• Publisher: Palari Publishing
• Length: 310 Pages
• Weight: 0.90 lbs.

Customer Reviews

A PLEASURE CRUISE FOR THIS OR ANY SUMMER

As a teenager, I loved reading Jacqueline Susann novels. They were always delightfully detailed, deliciously naughty, and dynamically entertaining. I'm way past my teens now, but it sure is nice to know I can count on Dave Benbow to provide me with the same kind of wonderful reading experience. SUMMER CRUISING is Benbow's latest offering, and just like his last two novels, DAYTIME DRAMA and MALE MODEL, it never disappointed me and left me with a satisfied tear in my eye, and a huge smile on my middle-aged mug. This novel is exactly what a beach or summer read should be. It's sexy and exciting, heartwarmingly romantic, and impossible to put down. I can't recommend it strongly enough. This time around, Benbow's cast has gathered in Barcelona Spain to take part in a gay cruise of the Mediterranean. Many of these guys have appeared, albeit briefly, in Benbow's previous work. There's extremely wealthy, body building Kurt, and his equally gorgeous Asian American newscaster partner, Rick. Also along is young and hunky Zack a budding photographer, and tri-athlete Hayden, an American living in Spain who is the fraternal twin brother of celebrity Clay Beasley, the star of DAYTIME DRAMA. Thrown into the mix are several new characters. To name a few, there's spunky, but vertically challenged Kirby, a physical trainer from Dallas, Geoff, a cute but obnoxious reality show winner, Garrett Gardner, a rotund and incredibly successful comedian, Jebb Miller, the hot owner of Titan Tours, Dan Smith a dark masculine mystery man, and Rex Lassister, the gorgeous but hatefully homophobic owner of the Princess Diana, the ship chartered for the cruise. Needless to say, it's going to be anything but smooth sailing on this cruise. Benbow packs the plot with mouthwatering goodies. There's new and betrayed love, career making or breaking secrets, murder and mayhem including a plan to blow up the ship, and enough hot sex to please even the most demanding reader. Who could ask for more? All of Dave Benbow's novels take place in an interconnected world. While they are not a series, in the classic sense, they never the less go together, and it really adds to one's reading pleasure. I love my visits into this glamorous world. I always feel swept away and totally engrossed. Jackie Susann, bless her heart, is long gone, but her spirit lives on in SUMMER CRUISING, and the best thing about it, at least for me, is this time around it's a totally gay story being told. If you loved VALLEY OF THE DOLLS, or THE LOVE MACHINE, (and let's face it, you KNOW you did) pick up a copy of this novel, you'll be thrilled you did.

Great for Romance Lovers

I really enjoyed this tale of action and romance at sea. A fresh and new story about a gay cruise that is full of romance,mystery and erotica. There are several main characters in the story and I thought this worked well since the story was about a gay cruise. It was nice to focus on several different characters in one story. It reminded me of the old TV series "The Love Boat" with a little more action when you add a bad guy and a sinking ship. Fast paced and full of romance, I really liked this story. After reading this book I went back and brought Mr. Benbow's other books, Male Model and Daytime Drama. I like that he has characters from his other books in his new stories. His writing style and sense of romance is just what I need when I want to read an entertaining tale of romance and adventure. I look forward to his next book.

Good job to the author!

Really enjoyed this book, an easy read and highly entertaining. Didn't notice any editing issues, just a good story. Looking forward to the next one! :)

Ready for a gay "Titanic"?

In what is definitely his best work to date, Dave Benbow explores the world of all-gay cruises, through the eyes of a varied group of single and coupled gay men sailing the Mediterranean on the state-of-the-art cruise ship, the RMS Princess Diana. The central characters include Zach (a Los Angeles waiter/amateur photographer who is on the cruise alone, thanks to his rich boyfriend's last-minute revelation that he's leaving him), Kurt (a trust-fund hunk, who started his own publishing company) and Rick (Kurt's lover, and a local Los Angeles television news reporter, trying to get up the nerve to tell Kurt he wants them to move to NYC for a network job), and Hayden (a single investment banker living in Barcelona, whom Rick and Kurt introduce to Zach.) But there is also Rick, the homophobic president of the cruise line, who tries to cancel the trip, claiming he received faxes threatening to blow up the ships for its catering to "fags." In between dealing with that bigot, Jebb, the CEO of Titan Tours running the cruise, finds himself attracted to Dan, an older hunk who seems to be harboring a dark secret of some kind. There's romance, humor, partying, and lots of steamy sex, with a developing mystery as several guests are found dead and one wonders what ulterior motives will surface as the cruise continues. This one is a real page-turner, and seemed much shorter than its 320 pages. I give it five stars out of five, and recommend it as the ideal beach or summer read.

A novel of gay romance and steamy sex

Dave Benbow's Summer Cruising is a novel of gay romance and steamy sex aboard the cruise ship RMS Princess Diana as it and her passengers sail through the waters of a sun-drenched Mediterranean, stopping off at picturesque ports of call along the way. Then this idyllic holiday is assaulted by a psychopath whose plan is to send the luxury liner and all aboard her to the bottom of the sea. What follows are daring escapes, personal sacrifices, and heart-pounding rescues as the crew and passengers of the RMS Princess Diana struggle to survive not only the sinking ship, but each other! Summer Cruising documents Benbow as a master storytelling whose finely honed art draws the reader in from the very first page and holds both interest and attention all the way through to a climactic and memorable end.