Margins
The Collective book cover 1
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The Collective
Series · 4 books · 2023-2024

Books in series

The Wonder Within book cover
#0.5

The Wonder Within

2023

Honoring their friend brought them back together. Will love and a common goal keep them there? Four years ago, Leon fled Knoxville with a broken heart and swore he’d never come back. But when his best friend dies tragically, he finds himself face to face with a place he’d just as soon forget, and the man he left behind. As a teacher, Toryn knows how much the community needs a facility like The Collective. But bringing his dead best friend’s legacy to life is complicated. Working with Leon makes it even harder. Toryn never thought he’d see the man who walked away from him again. Together, Leon and Toryn have just three weeks to get The Collective ready to welcome the community. Building something from a clean slate should be easy. But rebuilding what is broken between them will be the hardest thing they’ve ever done. Trigger Warning: This novella contains grief from a friend who died by suicide. While the event is not on screen, there are some parts where the heroes grieve about loss. Please proceed with caution 🖤
The Wild Within book cover
#1

The Wild Within

2023

I know you've been living in survival mode, but maybe it's time to accept that you deserve to be loved. Duncan Maxwell’s days revolve around helping others, so when his best friend needs Duncan to drive his younger brother around, he doesn’t hesitate to say yes. A little less sleep is an easy price to pay to improve someone else’s life, and many of Chance’s appointments are at The Collective, where he volunteers. It also doesn’t hurt that Chance is charming, funny, and . . . attractive. Chance’s world spirals into a blur of adjusted medications and support groups and therapy appointments after his recent bipolar diagnosis. He can’t complain, though, because most people don’t have the support that his brother affords him. Instead of wallowing in self-pity, he focuses on not being a burden and searches for life beyond his diagnosis—maybe even a life with Duncan. But while Chance struggles to tame the wildness within himself, he watches Duncan silently push himself past the brink of exhaustion. In his desperate attempts to help find balance, has Chance caused Duncan to destroy his own? Trigger Warning: The Wild Within explores the aftermath of a suicide attempt and life after a bipolar diagnosis. There are also discussions of grief, and mild suicidal ideation, of a side character's drug abuse. Please proceed with caution.
The Weight Within book cover
#2

The Weight Within

2024

They must learn to accept that carrying the weight within doesn’t have to be done alone. Tristan Edwards is clean cut, determined, and organized on the outside, but on the inside he’s falling apart. After years of nonstop travel for work, he’s assigned to open a new branch that could keep him close to home with more job security. But when he learns this coveted position is also up for grabs by another eligible candidate and if Tristan can’t prove his executive position, his dream job may fall into the hands of his dream man. Kurt Holden is newly divorced, without a home, and in need of a change. When a new position springs up, Kurt jumps at the chance to start over in a new city as a new person. What he isn’t interested in is falling into another relationship, but the more time he spends with Tristan, it becomes impossible to ignore his attraction. As both men face the decision to choose professional gain or personal desire, Tristan and Kurt must learn to accept that carrying the weight within doesn’t have to be done alone. The only question is if they’re willing to take the risk or stay alone. Trigger Warning: While the event is not on screen, this book contains conversations about late-term miscarriage and the dissolution of a marriage. There is also on screen panic attacks, and talks about past characters who’ve dealt with suicidal ideation and drug abuse. Please proceed with caution. The Weight Within is the second novel in The Collective Series. It is an enemies-to-lovers bisexual office romance, that is full of hurt and leans in on the comfort. This slow burn, opposites attract story can be read as a standalone.
The Wisdom Within book cover
#3

The Wisdom Within

2024

To have a future they must trust the wisdom of their past At five years sober, Nik Ward is the picture-perfect recovering addict. With a carefully curated schedule that includes a job, volunteer hours, and hobbies, his routine shields him from the claws of addiction. All good, steady, healthy . . . and boring. Until he meets Micah Dixon. Micah just wants everything to go back to the way it was before his twin sister became an addict. He’d give anything to free her from the depths of her addiction, but if she doesn’t try to get sober by their mother’s vow renewals, he’ll have to cut her out of his life for good—no matter how much it hurts. Micah needs a distraction, and instead of dwelling on his ultimatum, he finds the perfect distraction in Nik. When the two men meeting turns into a series of hot and heavy hookups, both of their plans go out the window. Unless Nik can find the wisdom within to live off-balance and Micah can learn meet his loved ones where they’re at, their budding romance may thrust them both into the depths of the world they’re desperately trying to escape. Trigger Warnings Include: Drug abuse of a secondary character, deep discussions of drug recovery and drug abuse. The Wisdom Within is a hookup-to-lovers, angsty, bisexual romance, that's heavy on the hurt with a whole lot of comfort, and a hard-won happily ever after. This book can be read as a standalone.

Author

Gwen Martin
Gwen Martin
Author · 12 books

Gwen Martin grew up in Florida where the sun was always shining, the humidity was high, and Disney was just a hop skip away. She currently lives in Knoxville, Tennessee to experience seasons and be closer to the mountains. When she’s not trying to write one of her million story ideas, she’s usually hanging out with her husband and four cats. ​ Gwen first started writing at a young age, coming up with stories in class instead of paying attention to the math lesson. Since then she has been exploring her love of writing in various fan communities where she has learned how to cultivate character development and romantic interactions. ​ She has a strong love affair with cold brew coffee, black cats, and nerding out in various fandoms. When she’s not writing, she’s reading everything she can get her hands on, listening to a lot of lo-fi and making playlists, chilling with her four gatos and obsessing about Pusheen. Because it’s always about Pusheen.

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