Review- Kissing Jessica Stein- movie

Kissing Jessica Stein
2002 DVD
Contemporary/Bisexual/Comedy?

Jessica (Jennifer Westfeldt) is a single, straight, successful New York journalist who, like most of her female friends, has had a history of dating (male) creeps. But when she answers an intriguing personal ad from Helen (Heather Juergensen), Jessica finds herself intensely drawn to her. As Jessica explores this new side of her sexuality, the two begin a friendship that ultimately leads to romance.

Ok, I’m going to review this movie although I’m sure everyone’s seen it already, it being a so-called cult classic and all. I know I’ve seen bits and pieces of it on cable, but as the Mr. is not too keen on chick flicks and the clicker has become a permanent appendage to his hand, heh, I haven’t seen the whole movie. There are also a jabillion reviews for it at Amazon, so if you really have a burning desire to know all about it, you can glean through them.

I’m just going to talk about it from my perspective as a lover of bisexual and lesbian stories as a straight curious woman.

Jessica is fed up with the loser men she keeps getting set up with. The truth is, although they showed really loser guys to make a point in this film about how losery they are, she really is neurotic and picky. On a lark, she answers a personal ad in the paper from a woman who quoted something from a book she had just read that she took note of.

Helen, the one who put up the ad, is truly a bisexual woman. She has male lovers for each of her moods and she has experimented with women before, but has decided that she wants a meaningful relationship with a woman. A full on deal that doesn’t include the men anymore.

Helen and Jessica meet and it’s major awkward, especially for Jessica. In fact, she tries to leave before meeting. I can imagine how weird it is to meet someone from an ad for the first time, but add in the same sex factor when both aren’t lesbians and it would be even more awkward, I’d think.

Helen sticks it out with Jessica even though Jessica is taking the sexual aspect very sloooooowly. They start dating for real (having a full on sexual life) after a loooong while, but Jessica is keeping it all hidden, lying to her friends and family, embarrassed that she’s with a woman.

Things come to a head when Helen finds out that Jessica has not even shared the most basic of things about her life with her and she walks out. Jessica is devastated but comes around, deciding to work it out with Helen. However, she only does this after her meddling Jewish mom shows that she knows and accepts that Jess is with a woman. Personally, I don’t think she would have done that without the support of her mom or friends since she was so uptight about the whole gay thing for herself.

All the while, Josh, Jessica’s old friend, family friend and co-worker for years, has been pining over her while getting on her case and pointing out how messed up she is.

So…what I liked was how the women started to begin with. I could relate to both women. Answering an ad, experimenting with someone who is willing and open without expectations seems like an easy way to ease into something with a woman when you’ve never done that before. I mean if you put up and ad and someone answers, then there’s a high probability that the other is interested in being with a woman at any rate. Although Jessica started it on a whim, not really wanting to be with a woman, she does go through with it because she's had it with meeting men she can't get on board with.

With Helen, she finally meets someone who gets her and whom she can not be picky about.

Unfortunately, this story went the way of how I think it would go with a straight woman who is experimenting with a bi, lesbian or another curious straight woman. Their sexual and co-habitational relationship easily slipped into being “close” roommates with a lack of sex stemming from Jessica not being totally gung ho about it, but still wanting that close friendship.

This movie was light and funny and I think it approached the whole bisexual/curious thing in a good way, even if a bit stereotypical of a comedy. How nice that Jessica’s conventional Jewish family and best friend at work all think it’s kind of cool that she’s suddenly a lesbian. Reality? Not. But that’s part of the charm of this movie; it’s unrealistic, but possible.

While it stays in the realm of whatever floats your boat is OK, one gay friend of Helen gets pissed at her for co-opting gay sexuality just for experimentation when she has a choice to be straight. I can imagine that lesbians would get pissed as well with this movie. Although, it doesn’t get into any of the actual scocio/political aspects of being gay outside of Jessica's paranoia and denial.

This was the only part in which things got a bit serious because Helen feels she has to defend her desire to explore without being judged with her gay buds. And although Jessica’s friend thinks it’s so cool that she’s having an affair with a woman, she tells Jess that it would be better to end it since it will never work, because she actually gets along with this woman. Haha?

Another thing that also might piss off lesbians, which I can totally see, is that in the end, this is about Jessica taking a detour into bi-curious land on her way to finding her true love, a man. I would have been pissed myself at the usual “it’s OK to get with a chick for fun, but only until you meet the man who shows what it’s really all about.” However, Jessica was never portrayed as really being enthusiastic about her relationship with Helen. There was always a feeling that she would bolt at the slightest conflict. Yes, she loves Helen, but it’s clear there are hesitations all the time. So, it’s no big shock that she can’t handle the full on reality of it.

But ultimately, this is a cute, non-judgmental film about female (bi) sexuality that let’s face it, is pretty rare even with current trends of chicks with chicks being cool. It is kind of funny and Jessica and Helen are quirky enough characters to keep this rather non-serious. It is what it is I guess, an easy way to pass a couple of hours being entertained.

Heat level- 2- minor kissing.

Grade: B

Review- Portrait of a Marriage- BBC Movie version

Portrait of a Marriage
1990 BBC (DVD)
Historical/ Biographical/Lesbian/bisexual
Based on the book Portrait of a Marriage by Nigel Nicolson, Vita Sackville-West’s son.

From the BBC, Janet McTeer stars as Vita Sackville-West in the classic Masterpiece Theatre drama British aristocrat and writer Vita Sackville-West and diplomat Harold Nicolson married in 1913, and their love endured and deepened over the course of their 50 years together. Each, however, was knowingly and repeatedly unfaithful to the other, Vita most famously with fellow writer Virginia Woolf. But only one affair threatened their union: Vita’s tempestuous liaison with her childhood friend Violet Keppel. This BBC drama is the story of that affair based on the extraordinary literary biography by Nigel Nicolson, Vita and Harold’s son.

Award-winning actress Janet McTeer (Tumbleweeds, Carrington) stars as Vita with David Haig (Two Weeks Notice) as Harold, and Cathryn Harrison (Clarissa) as Violet.

First I’d like to say that I had never heard of Vita Sackville-West, although I’ve read many authors of her era. I have some time to watch some films on my break, so I looked up “lesbian” in my library catalog and this movie came up. So I got it just by chance.

Vita Sackville-West was a complex woman in her time and lived a life full of passion. Since watching the film, which affected me on many visceral levels, I’ve looked her up and her story is fascinating. She was a famous author in her own right and was also a lover of Virginia Woolf briefly after her affair with Violet.

For the purposes of this review, I’m sticking to the movie representation. There are some interesting reviews of the book on Goodreads that go into actual history. There are also accounts by Vita herself and Virginia Woolf of Vita’s affair with Violet, but since I haven’t read those, I can only speak to the movie representation. From what I’ve gleaned though, this movie is a fairly accurate portrayal of her relationship with both Violet and Harold.

The most immediate, visceral reaction I had to this film was--- intense. This story was extremely passionate as portrayed in the film. Vita took me on an emotional roller-coaster that took me to some interesting places and I really didn’t want this story to end. To hang out with a person so consumed by their passion for a few hours is a ride I didn’t want to get off of.

The movie starts out with Vita and Harold in middle age, living what seems a typical upper middle class quiet life in the country. Vita receives a letter from Violet and this affects her to the point of tears, downing several glasses of booze and chain smoking after she runs and locks herself in her room. It’s very clear that this letter has had a painful effect on Vita. The scene then goes back in time with Vita remembering her past starting with her earliest memories of Violet as a child and then on to her marriage to Harold.

The movie then continues on in the past from that point until the end when it comes back to present time.

She’s had two sons and all seems to be the perfect marriage and life, even if Vita wasn’t happy with Harold’s career as a foreign ambassador. It’s very clear though that both she and Harold love each other deeply. The poo hits the fan though when Harold confesses that he’s contracted venereal disease from sex with men. Vita is upset but loves Harold, and doesn’t really freak at this. This though seems to be the impetus to the beginning of her love affair with Violet. But I suspect it’s in the movie only since she did have a love affair with a classmate when she was a teen, which was mentioned later in the film. She did mention Violet though when she and Harold discussed getting married, hinting already at Harold’s dislike of Violet and Vita’s unusual closeness to her.

The story carries on for the next years as Vita and Violet become more and more involved and bold; Vita dressing as a man as they cavort around Paris in alternative clubs and in English bed and breakfasts. During this whole time, Harold still loves her and fights for their marriage and it is clear that Vita and Harold have a bond that cannot be broken even though she’s obsessed with Violet. She won’t leave Harold, really.

The relationship that Vita and Violet have borders on co-dependent at times, to the point where they lose all perspective of their responsibilities. Especially Vita lives a fun life with Violet for months in Paris, missing Christmas at home and selfishly ignoring the fact that she has a husband and children. I think a lot of mothers would have a hard time with this aspect, although I don’t know if IRL she was as cold to her sons as portrayed. Her youngest son wrote her biography and although shocked at a life he never knew about, he held her in the highest regard. So who knows really? But it will be hard for a mother to not hate her for that.

Violet, in this portrayal, cannot live without Vita and seems to have been the one dominated by Vita. Although, she constantly gets on Vita’s case for succumbing to what she thinks is a boring bourgeois life of a middle class housewife with kids, which conflicts Vita internally. Violet marries at the insistence of her mother, but makes a deal with her betrothed that she will only do so if he will not touch her. She comes across as rather selfish as well, callously living as she pleases at the expense of others. But her passion for Vita is unparalleled. It’s the only thing she cares about in life and she would die without her.

What was really fascinating is that both the husbands, at times, go after the two women who try to run away to live together outside of their marriages and lives. There are lots of confrontations and both men seem to be at a loss of how to deal with Vita and Violet. And yet, somehow both men cannot walk away from the women. Particularly Harold. He really does love Vita more than anything and he sticks with her no matter how many women Vita has affairs with. This was something really interesting to me. But then again, Harold was having many affairs with men that both he and Vita accepted while they stayed married.

On many levels, Vita comes across as a really selfish person, which she herself acknowledges. She knows she’s acting selfishly, and yet, she has a fiery nature that she cannot contain. Especially when it comes to Violet, who apparently affected her the most and was the love of her life. However, it was easy to sympathize with her because you can see the internal struggle she goes through. She loves Violet in an obsessive way, and yet, she loves Harold as well. Trying to give reign to both of those conflicting passions drives her insane almost. Harold is the safe harbor for her internal chaos, while Violet is her need to feel alive at all costs.

The acting by Janet McTeer in this film was amazing. She brought Vita to life vividly in all her pain, agony, passion, and love as a woman driven by her emotions. David Haig also did a great job at representing Harold. He easily could have come across as pathetic, but it’s clear that he wasn’t dominated by Vita. Vita’s mother in this movie came across as a tyrant. I don’t know how she was written in the book, but again, from what I’ve gleaned, she had a hold on Vita that Vita couldn’t shake. At any rate, the movie was rich and lush and didn’t hold back or try to romanticize Vita’s life, but portrayed her in a very real and human light.

For those who might be wondering, there are a few sex scenes that were tastefully done and not too graphic. But there is quite a lot of kissing between the characters Vita and Violet. And there was one very intense scene in which Vita, in a rage because Violet has married, rapes Violet. I know that will bother some people, but Janet McTeer did a great job of expressing the all consuming pain Vita is feeling that she would do that. These two women had an extremely tempestuous relationship and that came through in the actor portrayals.

I highly recommend this film. Not only for the realistic portrayal of a famous person, but for the impassioned expression of a woman who openly loved women in a time when it just wasn’t that acceptable.

Heat level- 3- some sexual scenes, but not too graphic.

Grade- A+

Review- All The Wrong Places by Karin Kallmaker

All The Wrong Places
by Karin Kallmaker
2004
Contemporary/ Lesbian/Romance
264 pgs.

Buy it Amazon, B&N

Brandy Monsoon is looking for love. Since there's never a shortage of casual playmates at the tropical resort where she works as a fitness trainer, most of the time she gets it, too.

If Brandy tires of the perpetually curious but primarily straight women, there's her best friend Tess for a friendly encounter – safe, with no strings. After all, they're just buddies.

When an all-lesbian tour group arrives for a week, Brandy is sure she'll be in paradise on earth. The guests include lesbian celebrity comic Celine Griffin, who has an obvious interest in an after-dinner Brandy. Celine and Brandy do find explosive pleasure together -- so why does Brandy feel as if that's no longer enough for happiness?

What comes to mind when I think about how this book read for me is, beach read. All The Wrong Places is light, fun erotic romance with easy going characters and a summery, recreational backdrop in which they get to play. This is also a friends to lovers story, which I’ve come to really enjoy.

Brandy is one of those characters who I’d love to be friends with. She’s a light, easy going but inherently grounded person. Although a full on confirmed lesbian who has no issues about it within herself, she seems to be constantly getting involved in non-committal flings with straight girls who want to experiment. Brandy knows this not a good thing for her ultimately, but she hasn’t met a lesbian who rocks her world. She’s also a person who has had to deal with major crap from her family who’ve disowned her for being gay and it still affects her psyche.

Although this story is told from Brandy’s POV in first person, I will talk about Tess as well. Tess is working with Brandy in the same resort. The resort they work at has an unwritten policy of don’t ask don’t tell about sleeping with the clientele. Both Brandy and Tess enjoy mingling with the guests on a sexual level; Brandy with straight women and Tess with men. Tess is the type of woman who goes with men to scratch an itch. She loves sex and especially when she’s premenstrual, she seems to need non-stop sex. Unfortunately, she hasn’t met a man who can satisfy her when she’s hormonal and then have a normal sex life the rest of the month.

Tess and Brandy are friends and after one night of desperation and lack of satisfaction with the man she was with, Tess heads over to Brandy’s for some girlfriend comfort, and bitch about men and sex, time. This innocently leads to a hot night of unbridled sex in which Brandy satisfies Tess’ hormonal/sexual needs without a break and Tess finds out how juicy it is to be with a woman. In the following weeks, they have several friends-with-benefits encounters but stay just friends.

The rest of the story is Brandy’s musing and obsessing over her growing feelings for Tess as she realizes that Tess has maybe switched sides for good and that makes her a bit jealous. They have an easy going relationship, sexually and otherwise, until a group of lesbians show up at the resort giving Brandy some options with real lesbians. It also gives Tess a chance to explore to Brandy’s chagrin.

What I really enjoyed about All The Wrong Places is that it was a nice slow build to a sweet love story between Brandy and Tess. I love it when I’m reading and half way through I’m really dying for two people to get together, wondering and hoping that it can work out. I love it when I can feel the ache of the characters and ache myself for them to get what they want. Ms. Kallmaker created that longing and tension in this story, but not in an angsty, heavy way.

Ms. Kallmaker’s style of writing is fun and very erotic, meaning, there’s a lot of sex in this book, written fairly graphically. However, it all had its place and nothing felt gratuitous. Nor did it really feel over the top erotic, but more playfully sexy.

All The Wrong Places was basically a few weeks in the life of Brandy and what she feels about them. It’s a rather intimate viewpoint and I liked that; it had the feel of chatting with a girlfriend and her sharing everything that happened, which kept this entertaining.

I definitely recommend this book if you’re looking for a light lesbian love story with a satisfying ending.

Heat level 5- graphically written sex scenes. Strap-on, dildo.

Grade: B+

Review- The Song of the Sirens by Monica Conti

The Song of the Sirens
By Monica Conti
Jan. 27, 2010
Contemporary/ Lesbian erotica
4.1K- FREE!!!!
Ebook- Smashwords

Get it at Smashwords

This is the torrid tale of a lesbian writer who discovers the hidden world of the taboo in a New Orleans dance club. Intensely erotic, the story intercuts sexual episodes with observations about the nature of desire.

I’ve heard of Smashwords and thought it to be a site much like Lulu where authors self publish and I guess I’ve worried that I’d have to slog through tons of crap to find a gem. I became curious and typed in “lesbian” and a lot of books came up, some by authors I’ve reviewed and know and others that looked rather interesting. I noticed that some are free so I read this book since there were a few stars along with it with nice comments.

Just a brief synopsis- I won’t give names because they only get mentioned right at the end of the story. Monica Conti actually refers to her main character as “the writer.” The writer works at a normal job as a writer for a magazine. She has to be fairly straight laced during the day but wishes to let loose her more darker, sexual side at night. She ends up in a strip club and has women dance for her. She goes there almost every night and all the girls come to know her and like to dance for her. She doesn’t care that she’s the only female customer. Since this is a short story, it’s mostly about this short period in the writer’s life and what goes on in her head and sexually about it.

To say that this short little story was a delicious find is to put it very mildly. I was immediately sucked in by the clean, elegant and poetic writing style of Ms Conti. Not only did the writing style grab me, the little details that were picked up on in how the characters see things and think, quietly stand out in crisp, expressive ways. Reading this reminded me of those moments when we are totally present and the minutest of details become the focal points. In short, Song of the Sirens read like looking at picture or movie in which I was drawn in and made part of.

I’ve read a lot of erotica. There’s a lot of really bad erotica out there, which I paid for unfortunately, that is labeled erotica due to the graphic nature of how the sex is written, or by the fact of lots of different sexual scenarios, with the focus purely on the sex. Much of it is coarse and written in a more pornish way with no regard for the sensuality around sex.

Then there is high brow erotica. This type of erotica is my favorite. It’s classy and turns sex and eroticism into an art. It’s usually beautifully written and inspires not only sexual titillation, but something more sublime and sensual. This is the type of erotica I prefer to read, but it’s hard to find and it’s a matter of taste.

Song of the Sirens is just that type of erotica for me. I was taken into a dark, seedy, sexual world but didn’t feel icky or like I needed a shower afterward. I felt, wow, this is something I’d totally want to experience. Monica Conti has a beautiful way with words and storytelling, really getting into the head of her characters.

Since this is a free read, it’s a nice glimpse into what kind of stories Ms. Conti writes. I’m definitely going to buy another of her books to see if the same writing quality is there.

Heat level- 5- erotically written with graphic terminology. Strap-on.

Grade: B+

Reviews- "Share" & "Share Some More" by Leigh Ellwood

Share
by Leigh Ellwood
Nov 17, 2009
Contemporary/ Bisexual/ f/f
4.5K- $.99
Ebook

Buy it ARe, Amazon (Kindle), Smashwords, DLP books ($.79)

Desperate to achieve release with a little help from her trusty toy, Marissa tries to be discreet and not disturb her roommate. Nell, however, is quick to convince Marissa to change her plans...and to share more than her battery-operated pet.

I’ve decided to review both Share and Share Some More at the same time because both books were short—readable in one sitting together—and they’re connected.

First I’d like to say that I’ve read a few of Leigh Ellwood’s books and have never been disappointed. They’ve all been rather cute and full of heart and warmth. And in the f/f genre, often they are stories of friends who become lovers in uncomplicated and natural ways, which I rather like.

In Share, it’s the same situation between friends. Nell and Marissa are roommates who have a normal platonic roommate relationship. While Marissa is focused on getting through school, not having a sex or romantic life, Nell seems to have a revolving door of men. Nell’s not too interested in settling down with anyone and likes to keep things on a purely superficial, sexual level with the men she's with.

The story basically starts with Marissa coming home and hearing sounds of sex from Nell’s room, assumes there’s a guy there. Marissa feels a bit lonely and fed up with her lack of a sex life, so she decides to take care of business on her own with her trusty dolphin vibrator. Right in the middle of her excursion into self pleasuring, Nell walks in. Of course Marissa is humiliated, but Nell hops into bed with her and things go in a whole new direction, one that Marissa finds herself turned on by and shocked at the same time.

Since Share is such a short book, it’s mostly the story of Nell and Marissa’s first night together with a leave off of an HFN. They both easily slip into a comfortable sexual relationship, although they both agree that it’s just a friends with benefits situation. Nell finally shares with Marissa that she’s really bisexual and doesn’t want to let go of having cock once in a while. And Marissa identifies as straight but is just enjoying what's going on with Nell for the moment.

I like the easy going dynamics of these two. There’s no big drama and they’ve worked things out for now.

The sex is graphic but not hard core and a sweetness--- although not too sugary-- comes through in how they interact. It’s kind of my perfect scenario between two women, although I do prefer it when they form a more permanent bond. For what it is, it's a hot little quickie.

Heat level- 4 – graphic but not over the top sexual scenario. f/f. Masturbation, toys.

Grade: B

____________________________________________________________________

Share Some More
by Leigh Ellwood
April 7, 2010
Contemporary/ Bi/ f/f
10.2K- $.99
Ebook

Buy it ARe, Amazon (Kindle), Smashwords, DLP books ($.79)

The sequel to Share. Marissa enjoys her friends with benefits arrangement with roommate Nell, but lately the twinge of jealousy makes it difficult to have fun. Between a professor persistent on employing her for dubious acts and her jealousy toward the latest object of Nell's affection, Marissa wonders how much longer she can share herself. Will she stop?

The blurb is pretty much what this story is about, so I’ll just comment about it.

The main thing about this story was that I went from being leery about the direction the book seemed to be going, to being very satisfied. Leigh Ellwood threw in a few curves and changed direction a few times, hinting at other scenarios. But luckily it all came together in a good way in the end.

The book starts out with Marissa walking in on her professor humping a fellow student and her uncomfortable feelings about it. The prof then asks Marissa if she would secretly watch while he’s having sex and he will pay her. The prof is married to a very sick wife with whom he says he has an agreement to screw around, which he takes full advantage of. Marissa has a visceral reaction against all this, but she could really use the money, which would be substantial. I have to admit that I was a bit worried about where the book was heading right off due to this. It turns out this isn’t the only story line that had me wondering if I will dislike this book or love it.

The story then shifts to Nell and Marissa. They’ve been having a nice light sexual thing going, while staying commitment free friends. They have an unwritten agreement that bringing over men is fine, but if one would want another woman, it might be uncomfortable. They've been carrying on like this for a few months and it's all been good. That is, until Nell mentions that she’s met someone she’s interested in, someone who’s not a man. Suddenly Marissa realizes that what she feels for Nell might be more than friends with bennys, which she’s surprised at.

There are lots of implications of several scenarios going on, two of which I didn’t feel I wanted to read and which would have been against my current experience with the type of stories that I like from Ms. Ellwood. But she created an ending that I could get on board with and which left things off on a much stronger HEA for both Nell and Marissa.

All along, in both Share and this book, the POV is mostly Marissa’s. I liked Marissa as a character and was glad that she stuck to her guns even though she’s tempted on several levels to go against her nature. She’s a quality person who catalyzes Nell’s superficial nature to something more likable for me in the end.

Share Some More is a bit longer than Share, however, there’s not as much sex in the book, it’s more plot and story, which actually fit perfectly. And once again, Ms Ellwood delivered the warmth mixed with sexual hotness typical to her characters and scenarios.

Heat level- 4- there was one or two graphic scenes. Masturbation, voyeurism.

Grade: B

Review- All For Shayla by Ava McKnight

All For Shayla
By Ava McKnight
July 22, 2010
Contemporary/ Erotica/ ménage- f/f/m
Quickie- (have no idea word count on that) Jasmine Jade

Who says you can’t always get what you want? Shayla is a Savannah socialite with a secret fetish for bad boys. When the younger, mysterious Keith pulls up in a hot muscle car, she knows he’s exactly what she wants. Even if it’s only for one night.

Back at Keith’s apartment, there are no strings attached and no holds barred, especially when Keith’s pretty roommate Carla joins the action. Shayla checks her inhibitions at the door and enjoys an erotic ride that’s double the fun, with Keith and Carla focused solely on her pleasure!

Publisher’s Note: This story was previously published elsewhere under the title Wet & Wild and has been revised for Ellora’s Cave.

There’s really not too much to say about All For Shayla. It’s a cute, quickie that’s pure erotica and for what it is, it’s pretty good. I mean, except for the first few pages in which Shayla’s internal dialogue goes on and on about how she’s a good girl who has a thing for baaaad boys, it’s pretty much non-stop, very graphic sex.

Shayla is bored at the bar she’s in. She’s an upper class girl, dressed in designer clothes and is sick of all the preppy rich, but boring guys her parents hope she’ll end up with. Not seeing any bad boy prospects for a hot one-nighter, she heads out only to come across the sound of GTO engine. What’s this? A potential bad boy? Things are looking up. She stands around letting him know that she’s up for some action without even caring what he looks like.

He bites and brings her home. After a round of getting each other off, he introduces her to his roommate Carla. Carla comes across as a bit of a shark, ready to eat Shayla up. She’s a lesbian, but loves doing threeways with Keith and other women. Since Shayla is up for being a bad girl, which includes kink, she goes right along with it.

Seriously, that’s pretty much the plot. What I liked about it was that it was no holds barred sex without big discussions around it or judgments. All parties are just out for a commitment free good time and that’s fine for what it is. I knew that going in to the story.

The threesome sex was really hot although I’m not so sure that a lesbian would be into threesomes with a man. However, Carla really didn’t have sex with Keith, she had sex with Shayla while Shayla had sex with Keith, so I didn’t get too uptight about it. There might be some lesbians out there who are into this kind of thing and there might be some lesbians who’d read this and get miffed maybe. Fair warning.

For erotica it’s a fun read. For readers who like f/f/m erotica, this is a juicy little story.

Heat level: 5- m/f sex, f/f/m, graphically written sex with hard core language.

Grade: C+-- I would have given a higher grade if the author wouldn’t have spent so much time telling the reader how Shayla likes bad boys.

Review- The Devil Inside by Ali Vali

The Devil Inside
by Ali Vali
Jan 1, 2006
Contemporary/ Suspense/Lesbian
304 pgs. – Bold Strokes Books

Buy it Amazon, Bold Strokes Books

Brains, guts, and ruthless ambition should be enough to come out on top in any fight. Except when the battle is over love, all bets are off. Derby Cain Casey was groomed from birth to take the reins of the Casey family enterprises, which just happens to be one of the major crime organizations in New Orleans.

Surviving by never turning away from a fight and knowing how to win at all costs, Cain is as careful with her heart as she is with her business - until she meets Emma Verde. The farm girl from Wisconsin puts a hit out on Cain’s heart and leads her down a dangerous road filled with great joy and devastating sorrow.

The Devil Inside is the story of unexpected passion, a shattering betrayal, and the challenge of love put to the test.

The Devil inside is one of the best books I’ve read recently. It’s a well written suspense story with characters that totally pop. Cain Casey is one of the most provocative and unique characters I’ve read in a long while. The Devil Inside is also pretty heavy on parent/child relationship dynamics, which was different as well.

Cain and Emma come from completely different worlds. Emma is a farm girl from Wisconsin with a strict, closed minded, religiously conservative mother who condemns her for being a lesbian, although her father is a lot more open.

Cain is from a tight knit Irish crime family. She’s been brought up in an atmosphere in which loyalty and family are number one. When her father died, he left the family business to her and she’s become one of the most powerful crime bosses in New Orleans.

Cain and Emma fell in love, set up house together and had a child; the sperm donation from Cain’s brother. One day, something bad happens to Emma and Cain takes care of, um, punishing the person, which freaks Emma. Emma decides she can’t stand being part of whatever Cain does for the family business and leaves, never contacting them again.

The story starts to really kick in when Emma suddenly shows up after 4 years wanting to be back in their son Hayden’s life, but with an ulterior motive and a few secrets she’s hiding. At the same time, Cain is in a constant mouse and cat game with the FBI, while she seeks revenge on the person who killed and tortured her developmentally challenged sister.

The suspense part of this story is full of intrigue and realistically written. Cain is brilliant, but has vulnerabilities and is always one step ahead of the FBI, although the FBI head who’s been on Cain’s tail for years has become obsessed with bringing her down at any cost. Ali Vali constantly switched things up so I never really knew what was going on with Cain, Emma, the FBI and other intrigue and this kept the suspense and tension very high.

The relationships in this story are real and complexly developed as well. Cain herself is such a delicious character. One would think that what she does and who she is would be a turn off and cause the reader to chose Emma to root for, however, Ali Vali walked a really tight line with her. She’s not as cut and dry as one would think. Things that both Cain and Emma do ask the reader to question actions that aren’t usually considered kosher or agreeable to most.

Even though she does what she does, Cain has a strong code of ethics, honor and loyalty with all the people she loves and she will do whatever it takes to protect them. The way she deals with Hayden as a parent is so clean cut and mature, while she acknowledges that Emma is his mother and she deserves some respect for that even if she herself is angry and unforgiving of Emma for leaving. She's definitely a character that leaves you thinking a lot.

Emma in this story is not as developed as Cain. It’s clear that she’s got the best intentions but she’s done several things against Cain and her son that say “I’m not with you through thick and thin.” She also goes back home to her parents after leaving, which I just didn’t get. Her mother really is one of those nasty people who think their piousness makes them better than everyone else while they condemn everyone who don’t think like them. Particularly she treats Emma like crap. I just couldn’t get why Emma would go back to that or even listen to her mom, whom she still lets influence her.

The contrast between Cain and Emma though is what makes part of this story good. It’s clear that they do have strong feelings for each other, feelings that might still have to be dealt with. But trying to work it out is part of this story, so it’s not really a love story, but more a love story of two people who are trying to heal on some level with a bumpy road ahead. And for those who like family dynamics with kids and all, this story has a lot of that.

The only thing that bugged me in how this book was written was the use of flashbacks. I found that they were awkward at times and I felt they were inserted too often to let us know some of the back story. Sometimes flashbacks work really well on the level of keeping a story on a current pace while giving more background, but in this case sometimes it was too much information or went overboard. But this was Ali Vali's first book, so one might expect a few funky things. Mostly though, I really enjoyed Ali Vali’s style of writing and it came across as very polished and well done.

One thing I did really like about the fact that this story is about two lesbians basically, is that it was written as if being a lesbian was normal and accepted in society. Not one person questions it for either women outside of Emma’s mother. Not anyone in the FBI, nor the crime families, nor anyone else in the story. It was treated as if being a lesbian were a common, everyday thing in society. I loved this because wouldn’t it be so cool if that were the case?

One thing I do have to warn people about, I didn’t realize this was the first book of a series and I was very disappointed in the end. It was left off rather abruptly and with no resolution to Cain, Emma and Hayden’s working things out, or Cain’s war with a rival crime boss. But knowing there are 3 more books that continue on with the story made me feel better.

All in all The Devil Inside is an excellent read and a definite recommend to anyone who likes suspense.

Heat level: 3 There are some sex scenes but they aren’t too graphic and are only a small part of the story.

Grade: A-

I've been busy- my new baby

Yes, I got a kitten. She only 2 months old, but actually kind of looks like a grumpy old man here. LOL We got her on Sunday and she's a brave and curious thing and very affectionate. We introduced her to our two older cats who, contrary to the norm, were soft and curious around her. She on the other hand, sits there like David with Goliath and hisses at them.

Unfortunately though, she developed a kitty cold or upper respiratory infection and I've had to keep her separate from the other cats. I took her to the vet, and of course, like a gazillion dollars later, we came home with all kinds of kitty goodies-- along with some antibiotics and L-lysine. She was very listless yesterday and today she hasn't eaten. And, she's still sneezing non-stop. I did manage to get the antibiotic pill down her this morning since she wouldn't eat her food that I had mixed it up in.

Yes, I know all the tricks. I went and got her some baby food that apparently has a stronger smell, plus some sardines and tuna in oil. I will mix the oil in with her food to give a strong smell. Her nose is all plugged and if she can't smell the food, she won't eat. I hope she will get better soon. Sitting in the guest room all day to baby sit and care for her is not that easy. If I leave her alone, she starts crying, so it's a full on job these days. But she's a sweet little thing and I'm actually enjoying being mommy for a bit.

So.... I did finish The Devil Inside- it's a really good book and I hope to get a review out soon. Still have so much school work to do since I've been very distracted with gardeners cleaning out our yard and little miss Shakti needing constant attention. I downloaded a short yesterday. I have it on good word that it's a decent little erotic story. Menage with f/f/m. So I might read it tonight if I get my text book read.


All For Shayla by Ava McKnight Jasmine Jade (Ellora's Cave)

Who says you can’t always get what you want? Shayla is a Savannah socialite with a secret fetish for bad boys. When the younger, mysterious Keith pulls up in a hot muscle car, she knows he’s exactly what she wants. Even if it’s only for one night.

Back at Keith’s apartment, there are no strings attached and no holds barred, especially when Keith’s pretty roommate Carla joins the action. Shayla checks her inhibitions at the door and enjoys an erotic ride that’s double the fun, with Keith and Carla focused solely on her pleasure!

Review- Lessons Learned: Eldritch Legacy II by Katrina Strauss

Lessons Learned: Eldritch Legacy 2
by Katrina Strauss
Sept. 2009
Historical/ Fantasy/ Paranormal/ BDSM/ erotica/m/f, f/f, m/f/f/m
62K
Ebook- Loose Id

Buy it Loose-Id, Fictionwise, ARe, Amazon (Kindle)

An enlightened woman of her times, Camille Rocheford stirs up controversy with a novel published under her true name rather than a male pseudonym. Yet despite her modern views, Camille is at odds with the carefree morals of her more open peers. Lured into summering at the home of an undisclosed host, she is shocked to meet the infamous Stefan Eldritch, the greatest scandal being her instant attraction to him.

Stefan Eldritch is known for his provocative verse, more so for his wild soirees. Born into wealth, the poet enjoys a life of excess even as he holds the aristocracy in contempt. But one luxury eludes him—the woman who can match him in both wits and in bed. Until he meets Camille.

An unlikely pair, Stefan and Camille fall into creative collaboration—and unbridled romance. When the lovers stumble upon the lost path of the Magi, the power they unleash plunges them deeper into a world of reckless abandon. Yet sinister forces lurk in wait, putting the power of the pen and a pledge of love to the ultimate test.

Publisher's Note: This book contains explicit sexual content, graphic language, and situations that some readers may find objectionable: Anal play/intercourse, BDSM theme and content, ménage and moresome (m/f/m, m/f/f/m, partner swapping), same-sex interaction (f/f), voyeurism.

First, it’s hard for me not to compare this story to the first Eldritch Legacy book of the series, which I found to be exceptionally good. Secrets Revealed rocked as far as I’m concerned and even now the two main characters sit in my head as characters to set the bar by in their depth, intensity and overall characterization.

Lessons Learned carries on with the colorful and creative mix of having the feel of an historical with a bit of the paranormal and fantasy elements intertwined that Secrets Revealed had. It takes place few centuries later with Stefan Eldritch being a direct descendant of Lord Eldritch and Inga. Unlike Lord Eldritch though Stefan doesn’t quite have the intensity, purpose and darkness about him. He’s a lot more pampered and although he does have that dominant vibe about him, I felt overall he was a bit too soft and placating. This is one part where I think had I not read the first book, I might feel differently. The bar was set rather high already.

Stefan is basically living off of his family’s money in their ancestral home. He’s known to be a playboy and partier, the black sheep of his family and not really caring much about anything except is life of debauchery. When he meets Camille, it’s instant love and attraction. He introduces her into the world of BDSM, which she readily goes along with even though she initially comes across as spinsterish and shy. However, when Camille takes off, leaving him, he turns into a mush ball. Or if she decides to not be submissive, he doesn’t push it. I personally felt that he would be the type to be p-whipped in the long run. So while I rather liked Stefan as a character in general, he didn’t quite jump out at me like Lord Eldritch did as someone memorable.

Camille starts out rather innocent and prudish. I liked this. I love a female character who’s a bit uptight and cool and all proper at first and on the surface. So I got off on Camille in the beginning. She quickly though, and I mean almost right from the beginning, finds herself attracted to Stefan being dominant and being OK with him treating her submissively. I felt that happened a bit too quickly and easily. It’s not that I felt a disconnect in her personality, it’s just she went from 0-60 within a short period of time. I guess I would have, or I actually did wish there was more seduction involved that would have been drawn her out to show that she really wasn’t such a wanton woman in heat without needing more coaxing. But that’s strictly my preference.

As female characters go, I love me female who is or can be submissive and yet dominant and strong in other ways and Camille shows that she can be. She literally walks away from Stefan and she literally saves his life. On this level I quite enjoyed Camille. However, again, she was not as crisp and intense a character for me like Inga was. Maybe it was that Stefan being a bit washed out didn’t give enough contrast to make Camille really shine for me.

Even with my criticisms, I’m certainly not saying this is not a worthy book, it is. I loved the continuation of the generations theme. Camille finds Lord Eldritch’s mask in the river and it becomes an important magical item that connects the generations. The use of paranormal concepts as a connection to the characters in the former book, and which I think will be in the next book set in current times, is very nicely and uniquely done. Camille in particular finds her psychic abilities, which she never acknowledged and which has made her fearful at times, connects her and Stefan to the past.

The secondary characters Nicolette and Klauss, to be honest, felt placed in there specifically to turn this into a foursome. Their characterizations stayed mostly on the surface giving Camille and Stefan others to interact with and have contrast with.

On the level of how hot this book was, well, Katrina Strauss certainly delivered on that account. Maybe for me there was a bit too much sex in the beginning, but it’s very well written and erotically charged. And for the purposes of LVLM blog interest, there was quite a bit f/f mixed with m/f in it. Some of the best scenes are with all four and although the men are never with each other. All four do have strong feelings for each other and the f/f was written very honestly, Nicolette being Camille’s best friend. It came off as loving and natural and no big deal that they took it a step further.

This is exactly the type of book I love to read. As far as the BDSM aspect, I felt it a bit more subdued than in Secrets Revealed. Although all the elements are there and Stefan is very commanding at times, maybe again it was due to my feeling that Stefan didn’t quite step up to the plate or that he wasn’t as dramatic in his characterization. Or maybe I’m so used to well written BDSM now from Katrina Strauss that I don’t bat an eye at it. Heh.

The story on the whole, is rather fast paced and full of adventure and crisis, especially mid way on. Stefan and Camille have collaborated on some salacious and politically charged pamphlets that they’ve had published anonymously. His family, who feel he is a traitor anyway, cause a lot of trouble for him and this part of the story, along with the erotic adventures, are what made this book a good book for me ultimately.

I definitely recommend it for those who enjoy the particular elements to this book. Well written BDSM, historical fantasy, and most importantly for this blog, the f/f or m/f/f/m interactions. I look forward to reading the next installment of this series if only to see where Katrina Strauss takes it.

Heat level: 5 – BDSM, Anal, F/F, M/F/FM, D/s dynamics. Frequent, graphically written sexual scenarios.

Grade- B+

Review- The Secret Diaries of Miss Anne Lister (DVD)

The Secret Diaries of Miss Anne Lister
June 7, 2010
Historical/ Lesbian/ Biographical
DVD- BBC UK

Maxine Peake stars in a profoundly moving drama based on the real diaries of Anne Lister: a landowning woman who defied the conventions of her 19th century life to great scandal...for Anne was a lesbian. Her affair with 'soul mate' Marianna Belcombe keeps society guessing but when it is announced that Marianna is to be married to the older, corpulent and wealthy Charles Lawton, Anne is distraught.

Set in the small, elite world of high society, The Secret Diaries of Miss Anne Lister is an inspiring story of 'the first modern lesbian' - a woman who challenged convention and was determined to simply be herself.

For Americans, this DVD is unavailable in region 1 currently. I bought it from Amazon UK for a grand total of $15 including shipping. It’s in PAL and region 2 format. I hacked my cheap CyberHome DVD player to play all regions so I knew I could watch it. I just got the DVD after 3 weeks of waiting, yes, it takes more than 3 weeks for a DVD to come from England. I guess that’s the free shipping version, it came over on a boat. Snort. Anyway, I was worried about the PAL part, but I popped it into the DVD and both my much older 27 inch analogue TV plus my new HD LCD TV played it no problema. I also tried it on my computer and all I had to do was change the region settings in my computer DVD program. So…that out of the way, I sat down to finally enjoy this film, which I’ve been salivating over.

OK, the first thing I have to say is that if I or anyone else was expecting a romanticized version of Anne Lister’s life and love story a la Jane Austin because this is from the same time period, this isn’t it. Apparently, Miss Anne Lister wasn’t all that as far as being a well disposed human goes and it does show in this story. She comes through as rather ruthless, sometimes cold and cruel, and passionate but in an aggressive, masculine way often and I didn’t feel much vulnerability that would have made her a more sympathetic person. Although I think the film was trying for a more human and romantic portrayal than was actually the case.

After watching the even more interesting special section wherein actress/writer Sue Perkins talks to historians and scholars who’ve studied and decoded the diaries and talked in depth about how Anne Lister managed her lifestyle and her sexuality within the social constructs of Regency era times, I got a better picture of the real Anne Lister and where she was coming from. And while my opinion didn’t change, it was far more interesting than the movie version. I also learned a lot more about Anne’s earlier life before the time the movie picked up on her life as well as the historical ramifications of her being a lesbian who definitely took on a male persona in her social circles.

Just a brief synopsis, the movie starts with Ann already having an affair and deeply in love with Marianna Belcombe, the woman who probably most affected Anne and who was the only one to seduce the usually sexually aggressive Anne. Marianna decides to marry a much older, but very rich man and this throws Ann into a tailspin of despair.

Anne tries to deal by trying seduce another woman, but is bored with her and when things finally come to a head between Anne and Marianna, who do steal moments for brief trysts, Anne finally decides to let go of that story. She then befriends a neighbor heiress Ann Walker and seduces her much in the way a man of status would seduce a wealthy heiress for the financial gain. She takes her as her wife and this cements her position in her business endeavors and her person as an out lesbian.

Outside of the romantic angles, of course suspicions of Anne’s sexuality within her social circle and her astute business acumen, along with her willingness to go head to toe with powerful male counterparts is shown in full light and her enemies use it against her to no avail. She fights the male dominated coal mining world to stand her ground and keep her own land as well as marrying and openly living with Ann Walker, acting as Ann's husband, something unprecedented at the time.

All of this was rather fascinating. At times I was unsure of the historical accuracies of things only because Anne Lister is a formidable woman who did unbelievable things for her time and social position as a woman, however, after watching the special section, which explains a lot of how it was all possible, it became a lot more interesting for me in the historical context.

About the movie itself, I do admit that it was lacking the sweetness, passion and heart that I felt with Tipping the Velvet. This movie came across as rather dry and I really didn’t feel the emotional connections between the characters except for maybe Tibbs, Anne's friend from early childhood who was always pining after Anne but was treated like crap by her.

This lack of connectedness might have had to do with who Anne Lister was herself, her inability to empathize with people and women whom she was connected to. Or maybe it was about the lack of background of Anne’s life to give some understanding as to what shaped her that left me feeling that something was lacking in this portrayal. I didn’t really get hooked into this story, nor was I deeply affected.

It’s not a bad movie and is still worth watching. But to be honest, I found the special section with Sue Perkins to be far more interesting and for that alone it’s worth it to get this DVD.

Just on the level of the historical value of a woman having the chutzpa to do what she did and live her sexuality at that time, it’s good that this movie was done. It brings attention to a whole other world that was going on during the Regency era, which I think is valuable since it comes from her actual diaries written during that time. I guess in order to stay true and portray Anne as she was really, the movie did have to show her negative traits, which I guess is preferable to romanticizing her life. I’d still recommend this movie just because it does bring to life a woman who was quite extraordinary for her times.

Heat level: 3- there is a rating for strong sexuality. However, there was really only one semi nude scene and it was quite short. The rest is mostly kisses.

Grade: For the movie itself C, for the mini documentary by Sue Perkins, A

Review- Angel's Wish- by Kissa Starling

Angel’s Wish
by Kissa Starling
2009
Lesbian/ erotica/ time travel/ bondage/ M/s BDSM
24.5K words
Ebook- Renaissance eBooks Inc.

Buy at Fictionwise, Renaissance Books

Angel is nothing more than a two-bit mechanic. She dreams of vintage pin-up girls and old cars. Nothing else excites her. She takes a cat nap one day at work and wakes up in the 1950’s. Old cars are now new and classy women are abundant and sweet. Can she find hers before she’s yanked back to her own time? Lust, love, or luck- she’s bound to find one of the three when she wishes upon the star on a tree!

I love it when I read a book that normally I’d never choose and totally enjoy it. I got this book when there was a sale because I’ve seen the author around blog land and decided to try one of her books even though I’m not so hot on the master/slave or bondage thing. I’m glad I did though. This story is such a bizarre mix of all kinds of interesting elements but it totally worked for me.

Angel is running on empty. She’s broke, just been evicted, using a car on its last legs and has no where to turn. Her parents have disowned her due to an unsavory (to her parents) incident with a teacher while she was in high school and has no other family ties. She still shows up for work and to the only person who does support her, her boss Mel. She’s a mechanic and loves cars, especially classic cars. While taking a break, she focuses on an old pin-up calendar, daydreaming about how beautiful the women were in the 50’s—it’s now 2056, and she’s suddenly transported back to the 1955.

Back in the 50’s she ends up with a life she could only dream about. By a series of events, a wealthy family takes her in and really accepts her, comes to love her, and she meets her soul mate, the house maid Mary. Unfortunately, she knows that this can’t last so she makes the best of it.

What I enjoyed most about this story was the heart in it. Angel is a person that is totally into the master/ slave dynamics as a lesbian but she does so in a deeply loving way. She oozes a warm vulnerability and sensitivity with a cocky independent strength that people are attracted to. In her own time, she’s a broken person who’s just scraping by. But being in the 50’s, in an atmosphere of simpler times where life was more like a Rockwell painting, she’s shown love and respect and blossoms in that.

Particularly what was interesting for me in this book was the juxtaposition of Angel’s dominance and crudity in seducing women and her big, warm heart. One minute she’s thinking about how she’d love to melt hot wax on Mary’s private bits and the next she’s trying to make sure an elderly women in a nursing home is loved and cared for by just going to hang out with her. For me it made Angel an interesting complex character that I could relate too and totally worked for me on accepting the master/slave hard core BDSM in this story.

And there is some really hard core BDSM in this story. Angel does some heavy duty things to Mary, some things that shocked even me in the area of pain and she talks to Mary in a very sexually blunt way. But at her core, Angel is soft, loving woman and she treats Mary with deep respect and love.

Mary was also written in such a way that I never once felt that she is a slave in any other way except that she’s really loves it. She enjoys being a sub and serving Angel and I felt how Mary feels she’s found her love in Angel. Mary is also a witch and I liked this aspect of it because it intertwined a hint of a timeless love along with a time travel story.

About the time travel and soul mate for eternity aspect of this story, I thought everything was integrated in a natural and fun way. The way it reads, I could actually almost believe that this is possible. I will admit though, that I love the concept of eternal soul mates and that we can meet up with people we love again in alternate or future lifetimes, so yeah, I enjoyed this part of it.

I don’t think there is really anything negative that came up for me about the story. The writing was kind of funky in bits, although nothing that threw me out of the story. And there was an odd bit when Angel first meets Mary and Mary calls her “mum” all the time, while Angel orders Mary around calling her “wench”. I think there were few other British words in there and that kind of confused me because I thought they were in Missouri. This kind of thing though is part of what turned me on. Contrasting elements thrown together.

I’m sure if you like BDSM on any level this story will definitely hit the spot. But I think if you’re not into BDSM at all, this story could work for you because it’s not just about the sex or lifestyle it’s more universal in its appeal as a love story. It did for me anyway.

Heat level: 5- hard core BDSM, M/s relationship. Graphically and bluntly written sexual scenarios, some minor anal, bondage.

Grade: B+

Review- A Curious Wine by Katherine V. Forrest

Curious Wine: A Novel
by Katherine V. Forrest
Original publication- 1983
Lesbian/ bi
200 pgs.
Alyson Books (2002)

Buy it Amazon, B&N

The intimacy of a cabin at Lake Tahoe provides the combustible setting that brings Diana Holland and Lane Christianson together in this passionate novel of first discovery. Candid in its eroticism, intensely romantic, and remarkably beautiful, Curious Wine is a love story that will remain in your memory.

Along the way in my meanderings around blog land or Amazon or somewhere, I came across this book and had to read it. I read many reviews but many said something like this; “it’s one of iconic lesbian love stories that was a precursor to today’s more erotic romances.”

Published in ’83 and taking place in 1978, yes, it is one of those books that had I come across it back in the 80’s, it would have probably turned me inside out just on the depth of this erotically charged love story alone. Today, of course, it’s more tame compared to the current trend of graphic eroticism in romance, however, the love story in this book is nicely written and timeless.

A Curious Wine is a passionate love story of two women who find themselves caught up in an intense attraction for each other that for them is illicit and shocking since they’ve only been with men. This is my favorite kind of lesbian/bi love story. Both women fall in love out of the blue and it’s each woman’s first experience with a woman bringing with it all that innocence and angst around it.

I admit, this book started out really slow for me. A bunch of women, some who don’t know each other, spend a week in a cabin in Lake Tahoe together for a ski/gambling vacation. Diana and Lane have never met each other, but they have an instant rapport with each other. Diana is the friendly, nice, girl-next-door type and Lane is an emotionally cool and distant lawyer. Both Diana and Lane end up sharing the top part of the cabin, which no one wants usually and they decide to share the bed in the room with a view even though there are two beds and two rooms up there.

It’s all innocent until the next night when the women decide to do some spur of the moment 60’s encounter group therapy and shit hits the fan with some bitch slapping and female cattiness as things go on and they express their impressions of each other. This was one of things that was hard for me to follow; I don’t do well with books that start out with the introduction of many characters. I can’t keep them straight and it’s hard for me to care who they are. Plus, it was getting a bit tedious with the constant back biting. But fortunately, the focus moves towards Diana and Lane.

After this little therapy session and everyone turns in for the night, Diana, who got upset at things that happened, falls into tears and Lane comforts her. This leads to some cuddling and then a little petting, which veers into something a bit more.

Diana freaks because she’s “not a lesbian,” and pushes Lane away. But after almost getting raped by hooking up with some strange guy to prove to herself that she’s fully het, she comes to terms that her attraction to Lane is too intense to deny and decides to open up to Lane to see what’s there.

The rest is of the story is the development of Diana and Lane’s love story. It’s very clear by how it’s it written that these two have some major hots for each other since they can’t keep their hands off each other. And it does get a wee bit like “get a room already.” Oh wait, they did and we got ring side seats! But really, this felt almost like viewing a couple’s personal, intimate moments and so there was a slightly different feel to it than reading most erotic romances.

Katherine Forrest wrote those scenes in realistic, nice way though. Without using really graphic language, she managed to capture the essence of how deeply Diana and Lane need and desire each other and I found them highly sensual and full of heart, even if they did go over the top at times. It read more like a deep let go into something overwhelming for the characters than the usual frustrations of fits and starts that go on in romance often. This made this book a bit more gratifying.

For the record, this story is basically the beginnings of their love story and there’s not too much character background or development. Nor is there much interaction outside of the bedroom for the last half of the book. It focuses mainly on the first few days of their getting together.

There were some tedious bits though where I felt that when Diana and Lane did talk it was constant expressions of feelings…nothing more than feelings, which did get on my nerves sometimes. I’ve come to accept though that many f/f or lesbian romances are going to have a fair amount of what women like to do with each other, talk about what they feel. IRL it’s fine, in books, it’s glaringly annoying at times.

This book is dated to some degree due to when it was written and the attitudes around being gay was somewhat of an issue, amongst other dated ideas in this book. On the plus side it’s kind of interesting to see how things have changed. But maybe because it’s set in California it wasn’t made to be a big deal where people and attitudes were more liberal even in the 70’s. And my usual negative feelings around characters who angst about suddenly discovering or fearing they are a lesbian didn’t come up for me with this story because it was a time when realizing you’re in love with someone of your own sex was illicit and scary and carried ramifications way harder to deal with than today.

I think if you’re into reading any kind of lesbian romance, A Curious Wine is a must read, especially for those, I think, who like a more bi or first experience feeling in their story preferences. Or if you like reading historicals (the 70’s). Heh.

Heat level: 4- Sensually written in language sexual scenarios. But there’s lots of them.

Grade: B

Review- Clicking Stones by Nancy Tyler Glenn

Clicking Stones
by Nancy Tyler Glenn
Original pub- 1989
Fantasy/ New age/ Lesbian- 1930’s- 2023
76K words
Ebook version- Artemis Press

Buy it Amazon (paper,Kindle), Fictionwise, Artemis Press

Seven-year-old Erica stumbles into a mystical place where a mysterious old woman gives her a stone. A very special stone. A Clicking Stone. Striking it against any other stone causes both to flare into incredible brilliance. Except, not everyone can see the brilliance. And Erica does not yet know the power of her Stone...

Morgan moves in next door. The girls grow up together and one day, the two click stones...

Knowledge of Erica-s gift spreads, creating a worldwide movement of adherents to the illumination power of Clicking Stones. Still, the question remains: why do some people see the brilliance and gain energy from it, and some do not? There is no discernible pattern or reason...

Throughout all these evolutionary events there is the love between Erica and Morgan -- a love that survives separation, and their loving of other women. A love of extraordinary intensity and eroticism... a love that transcends the passing years... and, finally, astonishingly, time itself.

I bought this book because I’m kind of tired of lesbian contemporary and this book seemed like it would be a good fantasy story. It is…kind of… a fantasy. What this book really is, is the chronological biography of a woman’s life from when she is 7 years old in 1945 until the year 2033. Yes, that is part of where the fantasy comes in, that she can live so long.

I can’t classify this is as a romance, although it has romantic elements to it. And there are some sexual bits that are written erotically, but again, this is more or less a biographical type story.

If you read the blurb, that pretty much tells the whole story. Most of this story revolves around Erica being able to see light when clicking stones. Only some people can see the light when they click stones although others pretend to. For some reason this ability becomes a major spiritual or new age organized movement in which centers spring up all over in which people gather to click stones. Not only that, but they also become centers for all kinds of groups to meet based on ethnicity, sexual identity, feminism, etc.

Frankly, I didn’t get it. Or the final reason why some can click and others was not a big deal to me. The only ability of clickers was maybe to see light if they clicked their stones, but this didn’t translate into any kind of special spiritual experience. Like no one became enlightened or turned into Yoda, Miyagi or Gandalf. They are all still their regular old selves with no special understanding of the cosmos. So I couldn’t get why a whole new age movement would spring up around this.

Moreover, Erica, after a while, would only click with her lovers, as if denying clicking with anyone else gave some specialness to her lovers. It’s not like clicking gave them some deep spiritual connection over and above just being in love. So really that whole aspect of the book was rather lame to me.

To be honest, because of it, I kept trying to read it as some metaphor for things like that; movements or organizations that spring up around spirituality and or special abilities like that, just to make some sense of why it was a big deal. I'm an old new age hippy chick myself and I guess I was trying to read into it some Jonathan Livingston Seagull type thing, which I didn't find.

Other than the clicking, there are a hodgepodge of other new age ideas involved like: communicating telepathically, passing through worlds, meeting another who has passed on, reincarnation, seeing dead beings, Indian swami's, meditation, etc. It was kind of all over the place on that level.

The main story though was basically Erica being in love with Morgan. They met as children and Erica had special feelings for Morgan. Morgan though, kind of blew off Erica for another, more aggressive girl, whom Erica stayed jealous of most of her life.

Erica moves on with her life and has a few affairs, but is mainly involved with running her Clicking Stones movement. And Morgan goes off to Europe to become a sculptress. They really don’t have much contact at all for like 20 years, at which point, Morgan comes back and decides to be with Erica.

Ok, this I didn’t get either. Morgan seemed to not be too interested in Erica the few times they met after growing up, so why she suddenly decided it’s time to be with Erica, I don’t know. At least there is a HEA in this.

Then there’s the whole fantasy element outside of the clicking stones and other sundry new age concepts, which kind of didn’t work for me because it was too close to reality and contemporary times. And also, it wasn’t a pure fantasy, but was reality with added fantasy elements.

For example, this book was written in the late 80’s. There were computers then, but not really personal computers. Erica gets a computer to help run her business, which talks to her and can interact with her and she can interact with her center leaders from all over through this computer. In the book, she got it during the 80’s.

Back in the 80’s our ideas of computers were that you could interact and talk with them based on movies. But the internet was already happening in the early 90’s. So not that futuristic of an idea. But how it was written in this book, the technology was still 70’s sci-fi. Also, Erica is still using the same computer well into 2009 and up until 2023 recognizing that most likely the interface would not be supported anymore. Umm… yeah.

It’s just too close to home to accept such a thing as fantasy. If the book had been written in the 50’s or 60’s I wouldn’t have bothered about it. But it would have gone over a lot better if the concept was vastly different from reality or if this was a pure fantasy and the world Erica is in is something completely different from current reality.

Thy main reason I did like the book and kept reading was that since it was a chronological story of a Erica’s life, we get to see the social and political changes and issues from the 40’s and on. I rather liked this part because Erica being a lesbian through that time period gave insight into that world through the 50’s, 60’s, 70's +.

Erica writes to her friend through the whole book with the date on it, so we get to see what she was doing at different time periods. A kind of open minded hippy way of thinking does permeate the story, which I thought was interesting since I think as a lesbian, she would have had to be part of that world to fit in on any level or be accepted. And frankly, it was kind of like reminiscing about my teen years as she got into the 60’s- 70’s, which was fun.

This is definitely a different kind of book. I read it more as a biography of a lesbian during times when it wasn’t OK to be out and found it interesting on that level alone.

Heat level: 4 – There are some pretty graphically written sexual scenarios, but only a few scenes for the length of the book, which is long.

Grade: B-