Review- Criminal Gold by Ann Aptaker

Criminal Gold
By Ann Aptaker
Nov 2014
Mystery/Era historical 1940’s/ Lesbian/ Crime/ Noir
264 pgs
Publisher: Bold Strokes Books
Kindle Edition

Midnight, New York Harbor, 1949. Cantor Gold, dapper dyke-about-town, smuggler of fine art, waits in her boat under the Brooklyn Bridge for racketeer Gregory Ortine. In the shadow of the bridge, he’ll toss Cantor a satchel of cash, and she’ll toss him a pouch containing a priceless jewel. But the plan, and the jewel, sink when a woman in a red sequined dress drops from the bridge and slams onto Cantor’s boat. She is Opal Shaw, Society Page darling and fiancée of murder-for-hire kingpin Sig Loreale. Through a night of danger, desire, and double-cross, Cantor must satisfy Loreale’s vengeance, stay ahead of an angry Ortine, and untangle the knots of murder tightening around Opal’s best friend and keeper of her dirty secrets, Celeste Copley, a seductress who excites Cantor’s passion but snares her in a labyrinth of lies. The lies explode in a collision of love, loyalty, lust…and death.

I became aware of this book before it came out and it’s one of those rare books with an unknown author to me that I know I want to read before it comes out. So I was quite excited to read it and it definitely hit the spot for me.

Basically the blurb gives a great idea of what this story is about and the all the main characters involved, so I’ll go more into what I enjoyed about it.

Mostly what I loved about this book was Cantor Gold as a character. She’s not that typical female protagonist/ heroine who does bad things for the greater good. No. She really is a badass, tough woman who makes no excuses for how she lives, what she’s done, and that she lives on the wrong side of the law. I liked this. I’m always fond of characters who don’t fit society’s expectations of what their role should be. Particularly I enjoy female characters that buck the Donna Reed ideal for women of this time period.

She’s also an out lesbian, which for the time period was very dangerous. And as the first scene in the book shows, could get you hurt, badly. But I loved that she dresses like a man and walks through her criminal world unabashedly lesbian and butch. While she is accepted as such in that world in the surface, of course, when push comes to shove she’s once again shown that she will never be accepted in any world due to that. And while it hurts her at times, she ultimately doesn’t care; it’s more important for her to be who she is.

She’s also ruled by her passions. Damn but I loved the scenes with her and Celeste. Even though Celeste is no one to be trusted---she’s definitely a femme fatale type with no loyalty to anyone--- Cantor finds herself fantasizing about all the delicious things she’d do with her. Cantor struggles internally with wanting to save Celeste, mainly because she feels attracted to her, but knowing what ultimately might/probably will happen.

But what’s also appealing about Cantor is that while she’s tough and is mostly out for herself and is portrayed as a player, she does find in the course of events she’s been thrust into that she cares more for Rosie, her current friend with benefits, than she thought. And there’s also a hint that she loved someone once very deeply, showing a more vulnerable side of her.

The language author Ann Aptaker uses is very colorful and evocative throughout, which added a lot to my enjoyment of this book. Particularly, even though not a romance or descriptive in terms of common erotic language, I found the dance between Cantor and Celeste to be somewhat erotic and, well, very entertaining:

“I hope you like Chivas,” I say, handing her a glass. “What’s not to like?” There’s nothing not to like. The whiskey is smooth, the woman sharing it with me is gorgeous, and the way the light from the desk lamp slides along her leg is picturesque. I wouldn’t mind taking my own ride along Celeste’s shapely calves.
…after I take the scenic route along her leg and continue up the rest of her, I finally arrive at her face, where on the other side of that hat veil her eyes accuse me of doing exactly what I am doing: undressing her mentally and having my way with her.”

Outside of some of the focus being on what’s going on through Cantor’s head about Celeste, this is a fast paced crime drama. As Cantor tries to figure how who actually killed Opal, while thinking it’s Celeste and trying to save her life, she falls into all kinds of situations that both luck and smarts get her out of. This story if rife with constant alliance shifts and betrayals in this underworld of criminals and I never really knew how it all might pan out. All of the characters are well-rounded, interesting and solid in who they are.

Almost as important as the language, characters, story, pacing, etc, Criminal Gold definitely had the feel of the time period. I could really imagine being in 1949 in NYC with those characters. The ambiance of it was perfect. Loved it.

Will definitely pick up the next book by this author.

Heat level: 0 – no sex, but a lot of linguistic foreplay.

Grade: 5 Stars

Review- Ghost Trio by Lillian Q. Irwin

Ghost Trio 
By Lillian Q. Irwin  
April 16, 2013

Contemporary Gothic/ Lesbian/ Interracial/ mystery
264 pgs
Pub: Bold Strokes Books

Lee Howe, a professional pianist, comes to Southern California from New York on a mournful mission: She believes that if she can see the site where her beloved Devorah met her death, she will begin to accept that she must move on with her own life. Devorah Manikian had been rehearsing for a starring role in Carmen and was living in Eggerscliffe, a 1920s-style pseudo-castle belonging to wealthy and eccentric impresario, Annajean Eggers. Devorah was gone only a few weeks before Lee was notified that she was dead—killed in a tower fire at Eggerscliffe. But as Lee stands alone on a deserted patch of beach just below the castle, she hears Devorah singing. Is it the cocktail of tranquilizers, sleeping pills, anti-depressants, and anti-anxiety drugs Lee has been taking since the announcement of Devorah’s death that makes her hallucinate her beloved’s voice—or is Devorah being kept a prisoner somewhere in Eggerscliffe?

Wow, I really enjoyed this book. There are so many elements to it that intrigued me and satisfied my love of a good mystery. There’s also a romantic angle although it’s not a romance in the traditional sense.  

It’s definitely gothic in feel even though a contemporary. In fact, one of the pleasures about reading this book was not being too sure what time period this is set in. My mind kept latching on to contradictions : mentions of modern technology vs mentions of 1930’s Marlene Dietrich and clothing styles, places. Even the way the characters spoke, language used without modern colloquialisms, made me question the time period. Maybe it was also because this story is set in the timeless world of classical music and musicians, which has a cultured elegance of its own. It was like a mystery within a mystery.

Lee is the main character and it’s her passionate nature that drives this story. This book starts out with Lee going to San Diego where Devorah, her partner of 15 years has died, trying to get some closure.  Maybe being in the physical place will help her. At the bottom of the cliff below the castle where Devorah has died, she hears her lover singing a favorite piece that they considered personal to them as a couple and this starts her on the path of insisting that Devorah must be alive. She’s so internally passionate about it that she’s willing to risk her friends thinking she’s crazy, even thinking she’s crazy herself at times, never being sure if it’s true.

What I liked about Lee is that she’s so determined. Her love of Devorah after all those years together is still so intense that she will do anything, even risking some possible danger to herself from Annajean, whom she thinks has Devorah locked up somewhere in her home. Her intensity is such that because it’s unknown if Devaroh is actually alive or not I wondered if really she is the one losing it.

Annajean is clearly odd and a character that I wish the authors had given more depth to. She’s the catalyst for all that is going on and yet there’s not much about her background or what makes her tick. This is the only negative thing I can say about this book. I was craving to know more about her. The authors do give her a history, which sheds some light, but it’s vague at the very most and I think she is such a delicious character that I felt she warranted more depth. She’s also the main essence of this story being a classic gothic story.

Since Devorah is also a huge part of the story but is not present, I thought the authors did a great job with flashbacks to give the reader a good feel for who Devorah is as well. Soon after Lee hears Devorah, there’s a flashback to Lee and Devorah’s life together, who they are as people and how it came about that Devorah left Lee to pursue a last chance at fulfilling a dream. We get to see how vulnerable Devorah is to a predator assuring her of fame, which shows Devorah to be more passionate and maybe a bit selfish about her career than Lee is, who is satisfied with where she’s at. But it also shows how much Lee loves Devorah in that she’s willing to let her go to explore and have her dreams.  There are also flashbacks later on in the book in that goes more into depth, which I appreciated.

The pacing of this story is just right. There was just enough tension and slow reveals that kept me turning the pages. The authors also went into territory that would normally bother me, but which didn’t. 

Spoiler:

While Lee is so sure that Devorah is still alive and desperate to save her, to the point of disregarding all common sense, she has an affair with an old classmate from Julliard who shows up at Annajean’s memorial concert for Devaroh. What Lee has felt for Devorah, that intense love that she’s her soul mate and her life, is what Lily confesses she’s felt for Lee all these years.

What I loved about this part of the story was how human it was written. For most people, even the hint of infidelity is a put off to read. However, in this instance, and between Lily and Lee, it was something that happened and was a beautiful experience for both of them. It wasn’t thrown in there for tension or angst or to add some sexual content. Nor was it excused by the characters as something that happened out of emotional pain Lee was feeling. It’s really about two people who connect just because they have a connection despite external circumstances. It’s an experience that has Lee questioning how things might pan out if they find Devaroh alive, and also if Lily will respond to Han, her former partner, trying to win her back. It also causes Lee to contemplate issues that both she and Devaroh have ignored over the years and sort of gives her a fresh new and realistic outlook on her relationship with her if it will continue.  

Some of the lighter moments and times when this felt more contemporary came through the secondary characters. Lily’s brother Tom is the type up for anything, and Lee’s friends who try to support Lee in her quest to save Devorah, are more down to earth, keeping Lee from going off the deep end. They added quite a lot to the story.

This is just a good book all around. I liked everything about it. Would definitely read more by these authors.

Heat Level: 2-  several sensually- not graphically- written sex scenes.

Grade: Loved it!  

Review- His and Hers and Hers by Nona Raines

His and Hers and Hers

By Nona Raines

Nov 20, 2102

Contemporary/ Erotica/f-f-m/ romance/ménage/polyamore

38K words

Pub: Loose Id

Kyla Denster and Jordan Brougham are passionately in love. Kyla knows she's lucky to have a guy who uses all his tricks to keep her happy in and out of bed. Jordan knows he's lucky to have such a hot, adventurous girlfriend.
But neither of them knows that their best friend, Cassie DeSantis, wants them both. Cassie's painful past has taught her not to wear her heart on her sleeve. She keeps quiet, afraid that revealing her feelings would mean losing the two people she cares for most. Things change one night when an impulsive kiss leads to the three of them spending an incredibly hot night together.
When the couple wants more of Cassie, she leaps at the chance to be with them. But problems arise at her insistence that no one mention the L word and when Jordan and Kyla clash over how to deal with disapproving family. Their triad relationship will only survive if they all stand together to prove that three is the perfect number—when all three are in love.

It’s been a long time since I’ve read an f/f/m romance/erotica. They aren’t that common, although there are lots more than when I first started reading them. So when some twitter friends linked it I thought it would be fun to read it.

Generally, I would say this is a decent read. However, it didn’t really spark anything in me that made it stand out; I’ve read better and worse. The issue for me in this story is what I’d say are poorly written sex scenes and a sense that while the characters get a happy ending, I wasn’t feeling it as deeply as I think I should have for an HEA/HFN.

Actually, if I start breaking it down, there are many things. One is that I felt there was a lot of tell instead of show in what’s going on with both Cassie and Kyla as far as being attracted to women goes. In the beginning, we get glimpses into Cassie noticing things about Kyla from a sexual standpoint, but not from Kyla’s. They have been friends for a long time already and this hasn’t come up before? Kyla seems to be open to the idea of being with Cassie only as an afterthought from her and Jordan talking about some sexual fantasies, not because she already had an inherent sexual attraction to Cassie on her own. Or that wasn’t really expressed. Maybe if there was more about Cassie being attracted to Kyla all that time and vice versa, it would have come off as more believable to me.

Also, even though they’ve been good friends for a long time, Kyla, unlike Jordan, seems so out of touch with who Cassie is, setting her up on a date with a total loser and not even once picking up the signals that Cassie is bored out of her skull with this guy. Whereas Jordan is just jealous and gets right away what a douche that guy is.

Then there was Kyla’s easily getting it on with Cassie as if they were doing that all along, which came across more as “whatever, I’m game” and  not, “I totally want you.” At some point though, it almost seems like she and Cassie become more connected than Kyla is to Jordan due to Jordan being a dick. But at the same time we are constantly reminded of the fact that Jordan is the love of Kyla’s life and she would do nothing to jeopardize her relationship with him. That puts Cassie on the outside because right there in the interim of them coming together, one person is more important if push comes to shove.

I didn’t like Jordan. He’s cowers to his family who get on his case for being the only blue collar, unmarried kid. He doesn’t really stand up for Kyla even though clearly his parents don’t like her and never have. Forget about that he hides their threesome as well. And I felt he was a bit sleazy by the way the sex scenes were written.  

For instance, in some scenes he almost seems to ignore Kyla as he gets it on with Cassie. It felt like Kyla was excluded although not specifically written as such. I didn’t get that she wasn’t bothered on some level. It would be a normal reaction even if she was into the three of them being together.  Here they have a really tight relationship and she agrees to bring Cassie into it but Jordan seems to be more about “oh yeah who wouldn’t want two women” even though the author tries hard to make them all inclusive. I don’t know, he rubbed me the wrong way.

The relationship issues. I would think that a solid couple bringing in third person would create some issues no matter how close they all are. However, the issues these three face are all about Jordan’s family and their influence on him and ultimately Kyla and Cassie as well. Only Cassie has some issues because she is coming into a solid relationship and there is some fear of being a third wheel. Therefore, even though they all end up together, I didn’t feel them to be a gelled unit since there wasn’t much about them together other than having sex and having been friends all along.

The best part of this book was the transient character Walter whom Cassie helps often. I got more of a feel for him than the others and wanted to know where that went. There was also a lot more warmth and emotion injected into those interactions between Cassie and Walter than what I felt for Cassie, Jordan and Kyla’s interactions.

Still though, I would recommend this book only because it is the rare HFN f/f/m ménage and it did have lighter, fun moments to it that kept me reading. And some of the sex, even if kind of funky, was pretty hot.

Heat Level: 4-5- fairly graphically written f/f/m sex scenes.

Grade: It was OK

Review- Follow the Sun by Sophia Rhodes

Follow the Sun\

By Sophia Rhodes

Dec 27, 2011

Lesbian/Era Historical 1950’s/Erotic romance

241 pgs

Pub: Incognito Press

Los Angeles, 1957.

Dragged by her mother to California, seventeen-year old Diana Morris is miserable and would give anything to be back on the East Coast. She hates Elvis, thinks poodle skirts are overrated, and couldn’t jitterbug her way out of a paper bag.

All this changes when she lays eyes on Rosario Vargas, a young Chicano farm laborer who dresses like a man and sings rock’n’roll in a lesbian nightclub. The proud owner of a cherry-red Studebaker truck, Rosario is tough, stubborn, and isn’t going to let anybody get in the way of her dreams.

Can Diana overcome her fears and let Rosario know her secret before it’s too late? Can she leave behind everything she’s ever known and fight for the love of a woman who shows no interest in reciprocating her feelings?

Find out the answer in this scorching tale of love, courage and transformation that sweeps from the foothills of Southern California’s San Fernando Valley to the sultry cabarets of New York City’s sizzling underground scene.

Publisher's Note: This book contains explicit sexual content, graphic language and female/female sexual practices.

This is going to be a hard review to write. I have so many mixed feelings about this book from many angles. Also, there’s going to probably be lots of spoilers, so fair warning. 

My overall impression after reading this book is that what failed for me was inconsistent characterization of Diana, the constant use of extreme bigotry as conflict and detraction from the love story, and that it lacked a specific direction for me. Ultimately it’s a romance, but most of the focus is on Diana, who she is and her growth; it’s told in first person from Diana’s POV. But it’s also about the social issues pertaining to homosexuals and Mexican Americans at the time and goes off on what seemed like unnecessary tangents at times. Unfortunately, due to this I wasn’t feeling any emotional heat between Diana and Rosario for most of the story.

The beginning of this story is good. It grabbed me and I got interested in both Diana and Rosario as characters and felt intrigued by where the story would go, but it slowly went downhill from there. 

Rosario is both a Chicano and a butch lesbian so she’s fairly guarded due to the fact that on both counts she can attract lots of unwanted negative energy just for existing. She’s strong, mature, realistic about life, and is proud of her heritage and the nomadic, hardworking way of life that her people live.

Diana is young, idealistic, naïve, and her immaturity is what causes her the most problems. I could forgive some really TSTL things she does because she’s only 17, however, after hanging out with Rosario for a while and hearing of Rosario’s struggles as both a Chicano and lesbian, and having an inner dialogue in which she gets her privilege compared to Rosario’s, what she does is too stupid for me to get past. 

*********************  SPOILER  *********************

Diana moves in with Rosario and her grandmother after running away due to a severe beating. After a while, Diana decides to call her “mommy dearest” (her mother makes Joan Crawford look like a saint) and basically tells her everything, including where she is and who she’s with, not thinking how dangerous that is. She knew how extremely bigoted and racist her mother and step-father are and how they had seen Rosario and dissed on her ethnicity and looks forbidding her to see her again in the past. Also, she had been treated so badly by her mother and step-father for disobeying them. What happens after she calls them is horrific on many levels. I just didn’t get why she’d do that after knowing and experiencing all she had until at point.

*******************  END SPOILER ********************

The romance: How it came across to me, and YMMV, is that there wasn’t enough build-up or time with the two women getting to know each other. They meet and move in together within days mainly due to the fact that Diana has run away and has nowhere to go. It felt more like friends with benefits. While the sex scenes between them are fairly intense, I didn’t feel the emotional passion or heat that was portrayed at the end of book between them before their big separation. And I can’t put my finger on why. Maybe because this was more about Diana, her life and relationship with her mother and father, and less about her life with Rosario in the first half of the book.

WTF issues. Several times during the reading of this book I had “what?!” moments. I have to do these under spoilers. Don’t read if you don’t want to know. 

******************  SPOILERS  *********************

1. Diana is so pouty and not forthcoming with Rosario about things, which I felt was done mainly to ratchet up some conflict. It was more frustrating due to causing unnecessary conflict. Especially the end when Diana, after going through a horrific event that kept her separated from Rosario for months, sees her for the first time and refuses to talk about it. Instead, she accuses Rosario of having fucked other women while separated. What?!

2. Extreme homophobia. OK, yes, this kind of thing actually happened back in the 1950’s when homosexuality was considered a mental disorder subject to horrific therapies at that time. But Diana’s mother and step father being cast as one dimensional villains who do incredibly nasty things to her over and over went way over the top I felt. And ultimately, Diana doesn’t learn much from it. She still stays idealistic and naïve about being an out lesbian and the real dangers of it, swearing to fight for future generations of lesbians’ rights even if it might bring on violence to her and Rosario. 

3. A magical Native American shows up to teach her something important about life out of nowhere. Diana is taking a bus cross country to see Rosario and is musing to herself how she hopes she’s not sitting next to a talker or weirdo, creepy dude. Who shows up is weirdo creepy dude who talks too much. But wait, on closer inspection, he’s really a wise, old Native American dressed in stereotypical Native American regalia who is passing on a message about life that she needs to hear. He’s there just for her.

I will interject here that part of my issue with Diana’s characterization is inconsistency. Sometimes she really acts TSTL not learning from experience, and other times she’s off on lofty philosophical and poetic inner musings about life that make her seem wiser than her years and how she acts. 

So here she meets, by cosmic design apparently, the man she is supposed to meet at that time in her life to teach her a lesson.Here’s what got me, this lesson is about her relationship with her father. There was not much about her father until that point other than he came across as weak-willed and absent really,  willing to let her go with her mother and trying to convince her it’s better she’s with her mom. She really didn’t have a bad relationship with her dad, just he didn’t push to keep her and she couldn’t understand why. So this life lesson about making amends with her father before it’s too late felt from left field all the sudden.

5.  Her father and what happens when she goes to meet him. Wow really? Maybe the author gave her a hellish life to balance the privilege, whereas non-privileged Rosario has family acceptance, love, and they totally support her.

*******************  END SPOILER ****************

This book wasn’t completely a negative experience or I wouldn’t have kept reading. The author gets the time period correct. Cultural references and attitudes from the 1950’s felt authentic. And I liked Rosario as a character and that she is accepted in her community for who she is. Like it’s a common thing to be a lesbian.

The ending is what eventually saved this book for me in my mind. After all the ups and downs and crazy stuff that happens to Diana, and her almost effing it up with Rosario, things are set right and it’s left on a positive note. I just wish that there was more about Rosario and Diana and their connection throughout the whole book.

Heat level: 4- a few, graphically written scenes, strap-on use.

Grade: It was OK

Review- After the Night by Rachel Dax

After The Night

By Rachel Dax

Sept. 11, 2010

Lesbian/Period Historical 1960’s/Romance

Pgs 251

Publisher- Self?

After The Night' is a lesbian love story set in a British Prison in 1960. When young nurse, Leah Webster, starts work in a prison hospital, little does she know that her entire world will be turned upside down by falling in love with a female officer Jean MacFarlane. But the course of lesbian love does not always run smoothly and together they have to fight homophobia both within and without the prison walls

What an excellent read this was! I couldn’t put this book down. This book was another pleasant surprise for me. Reading the blurb I wasn’t too sure about a story set in a prison because I couldn’t imagine it as a romantic setting. But I started reading it and got immediately immersed into these characters’ lives, including the secondary characters. The author managed to use the context of prison life for both prisoners and employees in a far more interesting way than I could have imagined.

Firstly, I have a penchant for the cool on the outside, passionate on the inside character. Right away Jean, a guard at the prison, is rather cool and distant to Leah, a new nurse in the prison whom she’s taking around to meet everyone on Leah’s first day at work. That immediately got me going because it already made me curious about her as a character. Leah also notices this and is put off, setting up the initial emotional tension between the women since they have to work together.

Quickly though, Leah sees that both employees and prisoners have a lot of love and respect for Jean. Curious about the contradictions in her personality at times, Leah starts looking at Jean in a different light.

During the course of interacting and Leah watching how Jean acts with the prisoners, Leah finds herself uncomfortably and shockingly falling in love with her. Shocking because she’s engaged to be married and well, lesbians are perverted and disgusting, and it can’t be possible!

What I loved most about this story is how the author captured the realness of what the characters are feeling. How the characters react to what they’re feeling is vividly nuanced and expressed. Leah becomes shy and unable to look directly at Jean once she’s realized that her feelings for Jean are more than just as a coworker and friend and I acutely felt  her discomfort mixed with inner excitement at falling in love.

While not getting right away what Leah feels mainly due to being wrapped up in work issues and still carrying pain and regret of a past event that keeps her emotionally locked up, Jean does notice that Leah yields and melts into her when they hug, making her feel rather shy and uncomfortable as well. She’s already  somewhat at ease with the fact that she might be a lesbian, but she’s still rather reserved due to several reasons, partly her own personal emotional state, and partly the anti-lesbian atmosphere going on in the prison. The constant subtle little signals between both women ratcheted up the tension because both are not sure about the other and they cannot openly flirt.  

The build up to both expressing what they feel and the pacing of it was perfectly executed, I felt. I was aching for them to finally get together. And by the way, for those who are wondering, there are a few sex scenes. Not written graphically, but which felt highly erotic due to the emotional and sexual heat reaching breaking point before they can finally express their love for each other in a physical way.

While this story is largely a romance, there’s an overall arc of all the characters, including the well-defined secondary characters, dealing with homophobia for that time period. Jean has no family, but Leah does and she has to deal with painful consequences of being in love with a woman. Homophobia also affected all the women in the prison, those who were accused of being perverted as well as the accusers and the actions they take against those women.  

Kudos to the author though because it wasn’t all doom and gloom. Leah and Jean, as well as the prisoners accused of having homosexual affairs, true or not, have many non-bigoted allies on their side who keep working to help them out and fight any retribution or negative actions against them. Jean and Leah also get support so they can just be together as a couple.

The one thing that I would say negatively about this book is that in a lot of places the characters get melodramatic and emotionally sticky. At first I was a bit eye rolly at it, but then I realized that in a lot of ways that’s how people from that time period talked or have been portrayed in books and movies from that time. Also, this is just an extremely passionate story: the romance, the characters, the social issues, all of it. So a little melodrama was not a distracter really.  

If you’re looking for a well written, impassioned and warm love story this is it. Also, the ending includes something I rarely read in a lesbian love stories. I won’t say yay or nay to it because it’s a matter of personal preference. But in this case, with these two women, it worked for me.

Heat level: 2-3 Few sex scenes not graphically written

Grade: Loved it!!!