Psssssst.............wanna read a dirty book? That's probably how it was just a few years ago when discussing erotica, but slowly, with commercial success, erotica is becoming accepted as part of the mainstream literary world and for this reason, I am happy to include an erotica section in this year's awards.
I have read some wonderful erotica this year and what I have realised is that writing GOOD erotica is just the same as writing in any other genre. You gotta have the good story to start with. SEX on its own will not sell your erotica!
So, on with today's awards:
I have read some wonderful erotica this year and what I have realised is that writing GOOD erotica is just the same as writing in any other genre. You gotta have the good story to start with. SEX on its own will not sell your erotica!
So, on with today's awards:
Our first nomination in the erotica category is GOLDILOCKS (Flirtatious Fairytales Book 5) by Jess James.
Who in their right mind would take a beautiful children's fairy tale, like Goldilocks and the Three Bears and turn it into a sexy, flirtatious, adult fairy tale? Sacrilege, you say! Well, there's a British author by the name of Jess James who's done exactly that and what's more, she's done it to a number of our favorite fairy tales from when we were children. Guess what? IT WORKS!
My initial thoughts on picking up this book were a hark back top my childhood - Goldilocks and the three bears! Ooops, I thought, what might we have here? Readers can rest assured, though, the three bears do not make an appearance in James' version of the classic.
Putting aside the clever construct of using our childhood memories as the basis for her books, this is a very readable, very enjoyable book. It follows the original story to some extent, but it also gives Goldilocks a real, damaged and fragile persona. It's not a long book, by any stretch of the imagination, but it would be a great read before bedtime, to get one or other of you into the mood. It is well written and the erotic scenes are just that, erotic, steamy and exciting, not pornographic.
I really enjoyed this book and can recommend it to anyone who wants an adult trip down memory lane. I can assure you, I'll be brushing up on a few of my old memories before this series is done with.
A great idea, sensitively and beautifully handled by a skilled author.
Who in their right mind would take a beautiful children's fairy tale, like Goldilocks and the Three Bears and turn it into a sexy, flirtatious, adult fairy tale? Sacrilege, you say! Well, there's a British author by the name of Jess James who's done exactly that and what's more, she's done it to a number of our favorite fairy tales from when we were children. Guess what? IT WORKS!
My initial thoughts on picking up this book were a hark back top my childhood - Goldilocks and the three bears! Ooops, I thought, what might we have here? Readers can rest assured, though, the three bears do not make an appearance in James' version of the classic.
Putting aside the clever construct of using our childhood memories as the basis for her books, this is a very readable, very enjoyable book. It follows the original story to some extent, but it also gives Goldilocks a real, damaged and fragile persona. It's not a long book, by any stretch of the imagination, but it would be a great read before bedtime, to get one or other of you into the mood. It is well written and the erotic scenes are just that, erotic, steamy and exciting, not pornographic.
I really enjoyed this book and can recommend it to anyone who wants an adult trip down memory lane. I can assure you, I'll be brushing up on a few of my old memories before this series is done with.
A great idea, sensitively and beautifully handled by a skilled author.
The second nominee in this year's erotica category is WATER INTO WHINE by Michael H Kelly.
Water Into Whine, I guess is a marked departure for Kelly, from his usual genres, which tends toward comedic slapdash, as evidenced by his Damsels' series, with a bit of horror and mysticism thrown in for good measure, in some of his other offerings.
Kelly made it clear in his introduction that the motivation for writing Water into Whine, was a challenge from a couple of his friends to write something "smutty". Well, Mr. Kelly, you answered that challenge in "spades"! Water into Whine, if nothing else, is a definitely one enormous pile of smut. Unlike the Damsels' series where the smut is implied through the use of ribald and euphemistic jokes, the grubbiness is laid out for all to see (and read) in Water into Whine. The concentration on the erotica (although pleasant to read) didn't take away from the quirky story being told, however.
We are introduced to the Reverend Redders who, along with his wife Miriam has a very interesting philosophy on life, especially as it applies to sin. In a nutshell, the good Reverend believes we are all sinners and we are all forgiven our sins by Jesus' death at Calvary. It is, therefore, our bounden duty, as Christians, to sin well and to sin often, something they are quick to do.
This is a funny, quirky, little story, with a whole heap of sex scenes. Do not read this book if you are of the prudish mold, however, it is a fun story. If I had a couple of riders to my review, they would be as follows: The sex scenes did at times tend to become repetitive, although kudos to the author for varying the ways and means of the participants to reach their climaxes. I do realize, as an author, how hard it is to write fresh and inspiring erotica. I think Kelly did a pretty good job of handling all of this "smut". The second thing that disappointed me a little was the focus on the Reverend's sexual impropriety, to the detriment of his financial improprieties, which I felt could have been explored a little more.
The good thing is, it appears the Reverend Redders and his seductive wife Miriam have been reassigned to a remote Scottish Isle and reappear in the next installment of this tale from Kelly, titled Vicars and Tarts.
A good, satisfying and slightly heated Sunday afternoon read. If you like a bit of slap and tickle, a bit of a quirky little story, then Water into Whine is a definite yes, but only if you are broad-minded.
Water Into Whine, I guess is a marked departure for Kelly, from his usual genres, which tends toward comedic slapdash, as evidenced by his Damsels' series, with a bit of horror and mysticism thrown in for good measure, in some of his other offerings.
Kelly made it clear in his introduction that the motivation for writing Water into Whine, was a challenge from a couple of his friends to write something "smutty". Well, Mr. Kelly, you answered that challenge in "spades"! Water into Whine, if nothing else, is a definitely one enormous pile of smut. Unlike the Damsels' series where the smut is implied through the use of ribald and euphemistic jokes, the grubbiness is laid out for all to see (and read) in Water into Whine. The concentration on the erotica (although pleasant to read) didn't take away from the quirky story being told, however.
We are introduced to the Reverend Redders who, along with his wife Miriam has a very interesting philosophy on life, especially as it applies to sin. In a nutshell, the good Reverend believes we are all sinners and we are all forgiven our sins by Jesus' death at Calvary. It is, therefore, our bounden duty, as Christians, to sin well and to sin often, something they are quick to do.
This is a funny, quirky, little story, with a whole heap of sex scenes. Do not read this book if you are of the prudish mold, however, it is a fun story. If I had a couple of riders to my review, they would be as follows: The sex scenes did at times tend to become repetitive, although kudos to the author for varying the ways and means of the participants to reach their climaxes. I do realize, as an author, how hard it is to write fresh and inspiring erotica. I think Kelly did a pretty good job of handling all of this "smut". The second thing that disappointed me a little was the focus on the Reverend's sexual impropriety, to the detriment of his financial improprieties, which I felt could have been explored a little more.
The good thing is, it appears the Reverend Redders and his seductive wife Miriam have been reassigned to a remote Scottish Isle and reappear in the next installment of this tale from Kelly, titled Vicars and Tarts.
A good, satisfying and slightly heated Sunday afternoon read. If you like a bit of slap and tickle, a bit of a quirky little story, then Water into Whine is a definite yes, but only if you are broad-minded.
The final nomination in this year's erotica category is BIG FLIPPING DEAL by Ian Saul Whitcomb:
I have to admit that when I picked up Ian Saul Whitcomb's, Big Flipping Deal, I had no real idea of the subject matter of the story, beyond knowing that it was a Whitcomb, so it would probably be erotica of some description. I'm not a big reader of erotica, as I find it a little same old... same old, if you know what I mean, but I had enjoyed Whitcomb's books in the past, so was excited to see what this one focused on.
The subject matter was a surprise - a relationship between a Transgender woman and a straight man. The two main characters, Lindsey and Nick are initially thrown together, after Lindsey's Aunt and Nick's neighbour leaves them half her house each after she dies. The question is, do they want to sell it now and split the small profits, or do they want to do it up, together and make significantly more when they sell.
Nick is instantly drawn to the drop-dead gorgeous Lindsey and the idea of working side by side with her on this "fixer-upper" for a few months holds immense appeal. The excitement starts when Lindsey reveals to Nick that she was originally a he and still is in some vital respects, having not gone the whole gender reassignment route. For Nick, who has always thought of himself as "totally straight", this revelation opens up a new avenue of thought.
The idea of T-Girls, Ladyboys, whatever you choose to call them, has long fuelled many a male fantasy and I was interested to see how Whitcomb would handle the sexual tension and dynamic in this story.
I found the story real, believable and full of honest and raw emotion. The self-discovery that Nick went through on this journey was handled beautifully by the author. The actual erotica was well written and superbly realistic.
I have to say, I enjoyed this erotica book more than most I have read in the past. It asked some serious questions about our perceptions and to a large part answered them extraordinarily well. If erotica is your thing, or indeed if you fancy trying something a little different and broadening your horizons, then Big Flipping Deal is the book for you. Unlike some erotica, it is a good, solid, 140 pages, with an enjoyable backstory and non-erotic scenes also.
I have to admit that when I picked up Ian Saul Whitcomb's, Big Flipping Deal, I had no real idea of the subject matter of the story, beyond knowing that it was a Whitcomb, so it would probably be erotica of some description. I'm not a big reader of erotica, as I find it a little same old... same old, if you know what I mean, but I had enjoyed Whitcomb's books in the past, so was excited to see what this one focused on.
The subject matter was a surprise - a relationship between a Transgender woman and a straight man. The two main characters, Lindsey and Nick are initially thrown together, after Lindsey's Aunt and Nick's neighbour leaves them half her house each after she dies. The question is, do they want to sell it now and split the small profits, or do they want to do it up, together and make significantly more when they sell.
Nick is instantly drawn to the drop-dead gorgeous Lindsey and the idea of working side by side with her on this "fixer-upper" for a few months holds immense appeal. The excitement starts when Lindsey reveals to Nick that she was originally a he and still is in some vital respects, having not gone the whole gender reassignment route. For Nick, who has always thought of himself as "totally straight", this revelation opens up a new avenue of thought.
The idea of T-Girls, Ladyboys, whatever you choose to call them, has long fuelled many a male fantasy and I was interested to see how Whitcomb would handle the sexual tension and dynamic in this story.
I found the story real, believable and full of honest and raw emotion. The self-discovery that Nick went through on this journey was handled beautifully by the author. The actual erotica was well written and superbly realistic.
I have to say, I enjoyed this erotica book more than most I have read in the past. It asked some serious questions about our perceptions and to a large part answered them extraordinarily well. If erotica is your thing, or indeed if you fancy trying something a little different and broadening your horizons, then Big Flipping Deal is the book for you. Unlike some erotica, it is a good, solid, 140 pages, with an enjoyable backstory and non-erotic scenes also.
So, there we have it folks, three very different and wonderful stories, lumped together by their central erotic theme. Choosing a winner in this category was not easy, but it had to be done. So, the winner of the Erotica Category in the 2016 Grunter Awards for Indie Author Excellence is: (Drum Roll Please!)
BIG FLIPPING DEAL BY IAN SAUL WHITCOMB!
Congratulations Ian!
We shift our focus tomorrow to a category that resonates with me, as some of my own novels sort of fit into this category: FANTASY! So, do be sure to come back and check that one out.
Till next time, have a wonderful, peace-filled day!
CHOOSE TO BE HAPPY!
EMBRACE THE OPPORTUNITIES LIFE PRESENTS TO YOU AND ALWAYS, ALWAYS FOLLOW YOUR DREAMS!
HAVE A GREAT LIFE AND SPREAD THE LOVE!
CHANGING THE WORLD – ONE READER AT A TIME
EMBRACE THE OPPORTUNITIES LIFE PRESENTS TO YOU AND ALWAYS, ALWAYS FOLLOW YOUR DREAMS!
HAVE A GREAT LIFE AND SPREAD THE LOVE!
CHANGING THE WORLD – ONE READER AT A TIME
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