2/5 Stars: Have my Baby, by Taryn Quinn

Another book I read while we had no power during hurricane Fiona.

Well. What can I say. This book was built around the theory of ‘best friends forever’ (until he suddenly notices his best friend and BAM, instant love), and the sex scenes were intense, but I felt zero connection between Ally and Seth (besides the physical). The book was sweet, predictable, had drama just for the sake of having drama, angst because of course a book needs angst, and I wanted to roll my eyes on more than one occasion. If it wasn’t for the writing style I wouldn’t have even been able to make it through the entire thing, but that was done very well, despite the fact that the story itself was fairly cringe worthy. I can make it through a bad story so long as the writing is on par.

There are MANY books to this series, so it obviously has an audience that it appeals to out there, it just wasn’t for me.

2/5 Stars

Graphic Novel Review: Sunstone, Vol.1

I’m not really a huge fan of graphic novels, to be honest, but every once in a while I attempt to give them another go and see if they’ll stick. This one was recommended to me by a friend, and then I noticed that a bunch of other friends on GoodReads had also read it. It happened that the author was releasing the series for free since it started out as a web comic and that’s how I found myself picking up the first seven volumes. Purchasing the physical copies came next, because the artwork and the story is just that great.

The author is Stjepan Šejić, who is known for all sorts of things that I had never heard of (thank you GoodReads author blip). The novel is about Lisa and Ally, and their less-than-vanilla relationship. If you’ve ever read 50 shades of Grey and thought that was what actual BDSM was about, I implore you to give this novel a read instead. It’s about how their relationship developed, what insecurities they each had, and how they ultimately were able to be themselves very naturally thanks to open communication. That, folks, is the key to a good relationship, whether it is vanilla or otherwise.

The book is steamy, let’s not try to cover that up – but it presents the reader with a realistic view into a BDSM relationship and I absolutely love that. If you’re uncomfortable with nudity, or BDSM just isn’t your thing (it’s not for everyone, no shame in that) you may want to give it a pass. However, if you’re hoping to read about two people who might potentially be falling in love with each other, because of the intense and often times overwhelming sensations that are experienced while exploring BDSM – then give it a read. I was pleasantly surprised.

5/5 Stars

The Chalet – By Tara Sue Me

I received this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I didn’t read the other novels involving Abby and Nathaniel, and I probably should have. When I saw this book advertised on twitter I actually knew very little about what I was getting into. Not that I’m adverse to reading erotica, I love reading and I think it’s important to branch out no matter what the genre.

That being said, I didn’t enjoy The Chalet as much as I have other books of the same genre. The beginning of the novella started out well enough, Abby and Nathaniel are getting married. The wedding is lovely, they have a few bumps, and they head off to Switzerland for their honeymoon. Then the story turned predictable and unrealistic. The story followed a “too good to be true” setting, which irked me. The ending seemed rushed, though it did a good job of leading up to the next book in the series.

Nathaniel is a Dominate, and Abby his submissive. Their relationship is vanilla outside of the bedroom, though they spend a lot of time exploring whether or not they want it to be more D/s in their day to day activities. Abby appears baffled by the fact that she enjoys Nathaniel taking a bit more ‘control’ in their day to day lives. The majority of the story involved her figuring out these feelings while they live a glamorous life that reality doesn’t seem to be a part of. Honeymoon or not, this was the part of the story that just didn’t jive with me. Real people have real obligations with trials and tribulations that make us human. Abby and Nathaniel seemed removed from this whole aspect of life. Especially at the end.

While the story was well written, it just didn’t appeal to me.

2 / 5 stars