Sunday, October 25, 2009

Review- Meghan's Playhouse Book 1: Seducing Cat by Adriana Kraft

Meghan’s Playhouse Book 1: Seducing Cat
by Adriana Kraft
2009
Contemporary/ erotica/ f/f-bisexual/ f/f/m-menage
28K+ $5.49
Ebook

Buy it Whiskey Creek Press, Omni Lit, Fictionwise

Level headed English Professor Caitlin Shanahan has finally earned tenure and purchased the century-old house of her dreams—at thirty-four, she'd better face facts: her future is teaching college and writing plays, not falling in love. So why is she so drawn to foxy little hometown actress Meghan Keenan, who's rented her upstairs apartment, or worse, to the girl's gorgeous hunk of a lover Kurt Davis, a brash carpenter who's never even been to college?

Twenty year old Meg has a plan. First she'll seduce the reluctant professor; then she'll share her sexual delights with both Cat and her brawny carpenter, and when she's successfully brought them together, she can make her escape and explore what's beyond the only town she's ever lived in.

Kurt can't stand the up-tight professor who's hired him to build a gazebo and refurbish her old house—the house he wanted for himself. Even if Meg succeeds, he knows Caitlin would never look at him twice. No need to go there in his fantasies…

This is the second book of Adriana Kraft’s that I’ve read and to be honest, since the first book left me a bit cold, I was a bit leery of reading another. Adriana Kraft, a husband and wife team of writers, like to specifically write bisexual female characters, which anyone who reads this blog will know puts Kirsten and I in seventh heaven. So I really wanted to try another hoping it’d be good. That said, this story was so different in its feel and style than Writing Skin was and I thoroughly enjoyed it!

Meghan is a young 20 year old who’s very comfortable in her own skin and sexually open. She’s been friends with 24 year old Kurt since they were children and have a nice, easy going, commitment free friends with benefits type of relationship in which there are no expectations of it going any deeper or becoming something permanent.

As the blurb says, Caitlin is an older, up-tight, spinsterish professor who runs a local playhouse and is restoring an old house she bought. Caitlin feels that she’s over the hill at 34 and has basically given up on sex and love thinking no one would find her desirable.

Kurt, a local carpenter, was hired by Caitlin to restore her house. They have an uneasy, antagonistic relationship in which they put up with each other because Kurt is the best at what he does, and Caitlin has the money to keep him working for a long time. They seem to barely tolerate each other until Meg decides to play cupid and get them together. But first she must seduce the cool and distant Caitlin.

First I’ll talk about what bugged me in this book, although it wasn’t anything that had an impact on my opinion. Is 34 really that old? The way this is written, Caitlin sounds like a 40+ year old woman. Since when is 34 over the hill and too old to give up on having a sexual/love relationship? I kept thinking she must be 40+ to be feeling like she did or worrying that she’s not appealing anymore.

Second, why Meghan wants to get Caitlin with Kurt is a huge mystery that was never really explained. I mean she just decides to get them together? Kind of odd. She knows that Kurt and Caitlin dislike each other, so why it would occur to Meghan to shove them together was a point missing for me. But, you know, the story itself and how it was written kept me from thinking about that too much.

What I loved about this story was that in the end, the authors made me believe that Caitlin and Kurt will have a good go at it.

It starts out with Meghan seducing Caitlin who’s never been with a woman before. I really enjoyed that part as Meg is very open and it’s like Cat is discovering sex for the first time. Cat’s kind of shy and hesitant along with being uptight, so it was sweet. Once Cat and Meg are fully into a sexual relationship, Meghan then follows through on her original plan to bring in Kurt for a threesome. Kurt, however, has warned Cat that this might come up and both insist to each other that they would do that over each other’s dead bodies.

I though it very believable that both Kurt and Cat would be at odds, but then come around after a while. Their differences are quite real, even if a bit contrived for a good story. He’s the hunky, uneducated wrong side of the tracks dude with the intellectual, right side of the tracks older woman. Both find though that those issues are minor to the actual attraction that they find they have for each other.

My issue with Writing Skin that the characters and sex came across as too calculated and clinical, was not present in this book at all. All the characters are very warm and real and the sex in this book was very hot. More so because they feel something for each other.

For those who want to know, this is strictly an f/f of a bisexual nature. It’s classified as lesbian on several sites, but Meg is, has always been, bi. And Caitlin was never with a woman before, so the feel of this is very much bi. I’d say this is more a m/f relationship story with some f/f bi and ménage in it.

I definitely recommend this book for those who like a bi slant to f/f relationships and who like characters to feel something with each other outside the sex. It’s a very satisfying story all around and I’m looking forward to reading the next few books in the Meghan’s Playhouse series.

Sex rating: Orgasmic- f/f, f/f/m, lots of minor anal play, vibrator use, and some voyeurism. Mostly it’s vanilla sex though.

Grade: B+

6 comments:

Cathy in AK said...

Twenty year old Meg has a plan. First she'll seduce the reluctant professor; then she'll share her sexual delights with both Cat and her brawny carpenter, and when she's successfully brought them together, she can make her escape and explore what's beyond the only town she's ever lived in.

Um, what's with Meg wanting to leave town after starting a relationship with Cat? Also, I'm wondering if how Cat felt about being seduced by Meg then shared with Kurt (and I'm assuming Cat was eventually fine with this) is realistic. I don't think I'd be.

I also agree that "at 34 she feels old and will never find love/have sex again" seems off. Maybe it's because she's an uptight 34 year old? I knew a few "old" young people.

LVLM(Leah) said...

Um, what's with Meg wanting to leave town after starting a relationship with Cat?

Yeah, there were a few holes in this story. Apparently, Meg is not the type to settle down. But at the same time, Cat asks her why she feels like she can't go out on her own and leave town. Meg tells her that she doesn't really feel like she has the guts.

I didn't get that whole part as well, why she wants to seduce Cat to get her with Kurt.

Also, I'm wondering if how Cat felt about being seduced by Meg then shared with Kurt (and I'm assuming Cat was eventually fine with this) is realistic

This is one of those things in which somehow the authors pulled it off for me even if it's rather improbable.

Cat is predominantly straight. She's rather shocked that she finds herself attracted to Meg. She also hears and catches Meg and Kurt getting it on a few times, which amps up her dead libido. So she starts thinking about Kurt and Meg and it just happens to be that Meg goes for it with her.

About them all being open, that's what you get with erotica vs romance. In this case all parties are just open to whatever. But Cat and Kurt do have that attraction being expressed as fighting tension. All along Cat does fantasize about Kurt even if she rejects it. She rejects it for several reasons though. One is that she thinks she's too old and second, she does have this fighting energy with him and thinks he'd never give her a second thought.

Where Cat does start getting attached is to Kurt after they have sex, but it's mutual.

I did believe that it was ok with all the way it all unfolded. The only part that was odd to me was why Meg found Cat hot to begin with and why she didn't want to stay with her since they got on great.

And 34 old? Heh, I had a 3 year relationship with a 20 year old when I was 34 and frankly, I was still pretty hot and in great shape. Which is why I couldn't believe that she was only 34 and not like 45 or something.

Cathy in AK said...

And 34 old? Heh, I had a 3 year relationship with a 20 year old when I was 34 and frankly, I was still pretty hot and in great shape. Which is why I couldn't believe that she was only 34 and not like 45 or something.

Good on you for your May-
December romance. But having recently turned 44, I'm not sure how I should feel about that last bit. I've got maybe a year, eh? ; )

So if weren't for Meg's seduction of Cat and bringing in Kurt, there'd be no story because Cat and Kurt would never have gotten together on their own? Does that make Meg some sort of matchmaker? Are the other stories in the series along that line?

LVLM(Leah) said...

Good on you for your May-
December romance. But having recently turned 44, I'm not sure how I should feel about that last bit. I've got maybe a year, eh? ; )


Well, I had to balance out the fact that the three big relationships before him was with men 15 to 20 years older than me. :D Now I'm married to something around my own age.

Well, yeah, 45 is not old either but I think from mid 40's on it could be a reasonable assumption that if you haven't had any action for a long time that maybe you'd feel a bit too old. Not that it'd be true. But 34 still feel so young. But maybe that's cause I'm 51. LOL Anything younger than 49, is still YOUNG.

Yep, I guess Meg is some sort of matchmaker because no way would Kurt and Cat get together otherwise.

I think there are several books in this series and I'm not sure if Meg does some more matchmaking in the others, but I liked this one enough that I'd try them.

Athena 101 said...

There are 2 other books in this series already, all with this girl Meg playing cupid...

Cathy in AK said...

Thanks, Athena 101. I was on the Whiskey Creek site and saw the blurb for #2. That Meg sure gets busy : ) Makes me wonder why she's doing the matchmaker bit though.