Book Review - The English Professor by Rachel de Vine

 

 
 

Five Stars!

You know that feeling when you finish a book and then you're a bit sad because it means you can't read that book any more? There's probably a term for it - Reader Drop, or something. Anyway, that's exactly how I felt when I finished Rachel de Vine's The English Professor.

This is a wonderful book. The story spans twenty years and envelops the reader so completely that by the time you reach the last page, you don't want to leave.

Eleanor is in her final year of university when she meets English professor, Dan Jamieson. His admiration for her as a talented English student develops into something more and their feelings for one another develop over a mutual love of literature, classic erotica and, eventually, kinky sex.

This book has a lot to answer for.

Their brief love affair is beautifully described and scorchingly hot. Unfortunately, it is also inevitably doomed. Because he is her professor after all, and recreating scenes from The Story of O with one of the students in your class is generally frowned upon by University authorities.

The book begins with Eleanor expressing regret for the mistakes of the last twenty years and tells the reader that 'having met up with Dan again', she wanted the opportunity to tell both their stories. This serves as warning from the very first page that the paths of these two protagonists isn't going to be a straightforward journey to sexy, kinky true love.

And, my god, it really isn't. This book will tie your heart up in knots, then break it and then put it all back together again. In a good way.

Alongside Eleanor and Dan, there are a host of wonderfully realised supporting characters. The best of which is literary agent, Betty Conway, a no-nonsense lesbian with a fantastic line in dry humour and caustic comments who is nevertheless an understated champion of Eleanor and Dan's love.

The cover of this book - although very pretty - almost does it a disservice. This isn't a "Seduced by my Sexy Professor" XXXX bit of porny fluff (although to be fair, I do like a bit of porny fluff too sometimes).

This is a story of love, of life, of missed opportunities and a message to the reader that something that has been lost does not have to stay lost forever.

Rachel de Vine's The English Professor is available on Amazon.com and Amazon.co.uk.

Book Review - Alpha by Sara Fields

Alpha

Four Stars

When Doctor Dawn Lowe is forcibly removed from her laboratory by high ranking government officials to work on top secret project, she has no idea what is in store for her. She certainly couldn't have expected to discover that she was the chosen Omega for a shape-shifting wolf Alpha. Because, who would? That's not the sort of stuff that you schedule into your five-year career plan.

We readers know that something like that was bound to happen because this is a sexy spanking shape-shifter romance with a half-naked man on the cover. And luckily, Dawn is brought up to speed with everything pretty quickly when she meets a Beta wolf, Rebecca, who she has been assigned to study. Rebecca tells her that she is the Chosen One and that the Alpha is on his way to free the shifters and to claim her as his own. So at least she gets a bit of warning before it all kicks off.

Kiba, the Alpha, formed apparently from the very earth itself, is a marvellously sexy example of leadership and pure unadulterated Domminess all wrapped up in a body that is sometimes human and sometimes a bloody great wolf.

Bloody great wolf.

When he comes to claim Dawn, he claims her very hard indeed. After some initial reluctance on her side (because of course she runs and of course she is unsuccessful), he beats her for her insubordination and then fucks her very thoroughly into submission.

The scene is brutal. If you like your spanking scenes soft and fluffy, this is not the book for you. I am not one of those people. I loved the overwhelming relentlessness of the initial punishment and sex scenes. There is a lot of great sex and spanking in this book but the first scene between Kiba and Dawn is, without a doubt, the best. You may need a cold shower afterwards. I sure did.

Dawn responds quickly and enthusiastically to Kiba's domination. It is after all - according to the mythology of the story - the role she was born to. And, happily, this whip-smart scientist doesn't become a doormatty drudge just because she's pledged her complete subservience to the sexy magic wolf-guy. With her brains and his, well, everything, Kiba and Dawn make a great team.

The fast-moving plot manages to cover evil scientists, shape-shifter emancipation and secret government skulduggery and still manages to find plenty of time for hot as hell sexy stuff. I've never before considered that my dream lifestyle might involve running around naked with a shape-shifting wolf pack but Sara Fields' The Alpha has made the idea seem quite appealing.

Book Review - Cowboys for a Cause: A Western Romance Anthology

  

 
 

Five Stars!

Is there anything better than a book chock full twenty seven (27!) sexy spanky Cowboy stories? Well, yes there is, as it turns out. It's a book full of sexy spanky Cowboy stories which is raising money for two amazing charities - Direct Relief Coronavirus Response and Feeding America Covid 19 Response Fund.

Dozens of fantastic authors, including Vanessa Brooks, Alta Hensley, Piper Stone, Stevie MacFarlane, Maggie Ryan and Alyssa Bailey, have contributed this anthology collection and really is a lot of fun indeed.

I couldn't possibly review all of the books in this collection - I haven't actually finished them all yet. But I couldn't resist giving you a quick rundown of my three favourite stories so far.

Marrying the Murderer by Vanessa Brooks

Schoolteacher Verity Lasse is new to her job and new to the town of Elmo, Colorado in this delightful historical romance. When she meets the recently widowed father of two of her students, there is an instant attraction to the (frankly delicious) rugged rancher, Jake Calhoun. There's just one problem: she thinks that he's the man she saw committing a murder a few days earlier. There is enough doubt over the identity of the killer and enough chemistry between the pair of them that a friendship grows between the two of them that builds into something more despite the small minded gossip of the townsfolk. 

She must decide whether she wants to commit to spending the rest of the life with the man she loves, knowing that he might well be the person she saw taking another man's life. This is a wonderfully engaging story with plenty of sex and spanks nicely woven into a fully fleshed out storyline which builds towards a satisfying denouement.

Verity is my absolute favourite kind of historical heroine. She's intelligent, independent and a pioneer of rights for women. She also gets regularly upended and spanked by her dominant cowboy. As a well-spanked feminist myself, I heartily approve.

Mountain Blue by Alta Hensley

The hero of this beautiful and emotional historical story, Rem Langston, isn't actually a cowboy. He's an Ice Harvester so I'm not quite sure how he snuck into this story collection but I'm very glad that he did. He's a tough, rugged, powerful man who, when he finds a woman attempting to sleep rough in the freezing snow and winds, brings her home with him in an act of gentlemanly compassion.

Birdie Bluebell is a woman without a lot of options in life. She has a violent drunken father whose behaviour makes it necessary for her to risk camping out in sub-zero conditions rather than return home. She accepts Rem's offer out of necessity but it turns out that it was the very best decision she could make.

The romance that inevitably blossoms between Rem and Birdie is artfully and sensitively written. There are some wonderful supporting characters in this book, most notably Rem's widowed mother who provides some stable maternal support that Birdie has been lacking in her life for so long.

The road to the couple's happy ending is a difficult one as the dangerous and dark machinations of the Bluebell family threaten to take everything that Rem and Birdie have managed to build together. Birdie is a resilient woman who deserves a Happily Ever After. And happily, Rem is the very man to give it to her.

Dangerous Ride by Piper Stone

Set in the present day, Dangerous Ride is a wonderfully hot and sexy story. Right from the very start of the story - astonishingly soon after they have met - the two protagonists, Butch and Falcon indulge in the steamiest sex possible with a wonderfully generous amount of BSDM-y punishment. And while they carry on this fashion for the whole of the story, it's the first sex scene which is undoubtedly the best. There is just enough dubious consent in the initial set up to make it as breathtakingly hot as hell while still keeping it very firmly on the side of being something that both parties are very happy to participate in.

There's a tightly plotted story about horse thievery to keep the whole book ticking along nicely. After an initial misunderstanding, our two heroes find that they are very much on the same side which is good because Falcon and Butch are falling for one another hard. There is some wonderful dialogue, a nail-biting climax and did I mention that this book is HOT? Because it is. It's very hot indeed. Absolutely scorching. 

Cowboys for a Cause is a wonderful collection of different and diverse stories. I cannot recommend it highly enough. It will only be on sale for a limited time so ensure that you snap up your copy as soon as possible. Sex, spanks, romance and the chance to help two amazing charities, what's not to love?

Buy it at:

Amazon US

Amazon UK

You can find out more about the charities they are supporting and the work they do here:

Direct Relief

Feeding America

Book Review - Claimed by Daddy by Vanessa Brooks

 

Five Stars!

What would you do if you suddenly found yourself transported to a parallel universe where everything was different? You have a different home, different job and instead of being single, you discover you are actually married to a sexy tall American guy who shares all your kinky preferences?

To be honest I would probably behave exactly the same as Penny West, the heroine of Vanessa Brooks' Claimed by Daddy when this happens to her: whirling through a merry-go-round of emotions including incredulity, fear, panic and - what with the sexy 'new' husband - lustful abandonment.

Given such an outlandish premise, it's really rather relatable.

The book starts with Penny flying back from New York to London. The plane is caught in turbulence, she blacks out and then suddenly everything has changed. Well, not everything. She is still herself. Her face is the same, her family history is (almost) the same but suddenly she is in the middle of a life that she has no memory of.

Time slips are a tricky business. To everyone around her, Penny's story seems wildly implausible. To everyone else, including her husband, she looks like the same person doing the same thing as she always done. But to Penny, it must feel like starting a movie halfway though with no memory of how the first half went.

I found this diagram relating to multiverse time slips. Hope that explains everything.

Finding yourself a sexy husband who likes to practise Domestic Discipline and calls himself Daddy has its benefits, that's for sure. David, the books hero, is pretty damned perfect, make no mistake about it. But it's hard for Penny to get onboard with the situation when she not only has no memories of meeting and marrying him but also has her own perfectly clear memories of living a completely different life during that time period.

Luckily Penny has the support and acceptance of not only David, but also her sister, her sister's partner and her Dad (who is actually dead in her own timeline). Once they are onboard, it becomes possible for Penny to accept her situation and focus on adjusting to her new reality.

Parallel universes explained in Superman.
Note, in neither of the universes in Claimed by Daddy, are any of the characters "ape-like beings".

And it's a pretty amazing alternative reality that she finds herself in. She and David are clearly not short of a few quid, they run a successful business together and own a fancy house in an expensive part of London. Alternative-Reality Penny has the Submissive/Little lifestyle that Protagonist Penny had only ever dreamed of. She has her own special playspace and everything that a Little could wish for. And she has a husband who absolutely adores her.

Except there's the problem. David adores his Penny. The one he married, the one with whom he has five years of shared history. Can he accept this interloper who doesn't know anything about it, has no recollection of their wedding day, their favourite restaurants, their shared experiences and their in-jokes?

Can Penny allow herself to love David knowing that simultaneously she both is and isn't the woman he loves?

Well, happily, they have a jolly lovely time of it finding out. The sex and spanking scenes in this book are absolutely delicious. Poor David has to adjust to a role which is outside any expectations that he might have had when he signed up for life as a Daddy Dom. That of negotiating a relationship with a woman who is both the person he knows both inside and out and who is also, in every meaningful way, a complete stranger that he needs to woo all over again. Given that Penny is physically exactly the same as his Penny, it does make it a lot more straightforward for him to give her the most earth shatteringly amazing orgasm that she has ever experienced. He literally knows which buttons to press.

Kind of like this.

They don't just stop at the one earth shattering orgasm obviously. There's lots of that sort of thing.  Penny gets a very thorough lesson in everything that she has been hitherto missing out on.

There is a strong age-play element to this story. But there is also a lot of grown-up Dom/sub stuff as well. David and Penny draw a distinction between their age-play and their grown-up time. David actually tells Penny off at one point for using her "little voice" in the bedroom.

I wouldn't describe myself as a Little (although there is definitely a Daddy Dom dynamic in my relationship with Gentleman Friend even though we would never use the actual 'D word'.) I quite like Penny's little lifestyle though. I'm quite jealous of all the Disney stuff she has, for one thing.

I would be quite happy with a bedroom like this.

Claimed by Daddy is a highly original take on the Daddy/little genre. Cuddles, spanking, sex and the multiverse Many-Worlds Interpretation of Quantum Mechanics. It's got it all!

I really, really hope that Vanessa Brooks writes a companion book to this one telling the story of the Other Penny who switches lives with our Penny at the start of the book. What does she do when she suddenly finds herself in a universe where she never met David? As Penny says to David, "I honestly believe that she would try to find you." I think so too. How do you persuade a man who has never met you that he's actually your tried-and-tested perfect Daddy Dom? Sneaky seduction or just fling yourself over his lap and be done with it? It would be great fun finding out.

Want to know more about the book review star rating system? Or find out what other books I've reviewed? Check out this page here.

Book Review - Sextoynado by CJ Douglass

Four Stars

I bought CJ Douglass's Sextoynado because, well, it's called Sextoynado and if that isn't sufficient reason to buy and read a book then I don't know what is.

And, happily, Sex Toynado delivers exactly what you want it to. A strangely sentient, kinky-as-fuck tornado which deposits dildos, vibrators and butt plugs all over the hitherto quiet town of Layton, Pennsylvania.

It's up to Catholic priest, Father O'Malley - with the help of spunky science reporter June Roarke - to find a way of stopping the advancing menace of the stormy sex frenzy that is taking over his flock. The answer, it turns out, isn't what he expected although it is exactly what this reader wanted. Because, let's face it, the only decent way to wrap this story up is with a massive great orgy.

That's a bit of a spoiler right there, but, honestly, it's not going to diminish anyone's enjoyment of the book knowing that the whole thing culminates in an enthusiastic shag-a-thon. In fact, I think it provides a bit of reassurance to the reader that it's all heading that way. You're welcome.

Are the sex toys a tool of Satan? Well, they don't look like this, so maybe not.

Prior to reading it, I thought that if I was going to enjoy this book at all it would be in a "so bad it's funny" way. But, actually, I genuinely liked it. It's engaging, well-written and entertaining and rather fun to submerse yourself in for a while. Sure, the premise is utterly absurd. No explanation is given for the existence of the sex toys or why they have started raining down on the town. Where did they come from? Who made them? How the devil are they able to insert themselves into people autonomously, often circumnavigating articles of clothing in the process?

No matter. Having set up a scenario where this craziness does happen, Douglass meticulously sticks to the rules of the pervy sci-fi universe they have created. The scenario is played straight even if the deliciously perverted shenanigans of the town's occupants aren't.

So there you go. If you've been thinking "I really need a book about natural disasters, sentient sex toys, every permeation of human copulation and a hefty dose of religious philosophy", then it turns out that this is exactly the book you've been looking for.

Although, if you have been thinking that, quite frankly reader, you're a lot weirder than I initially took you for.

Rejected PG version of the book. Possibly.

Want to know more about the book review star rating system? Or find out what other books I've reviewed? Check out this page here.

Book Review - The Artist by Juliette Banks

 

 

Five Stars!

The Artist is the story of a nineteenth century painter, Theo and his model, Lizzie. This is the perfect setup for a romance novel because, as we all know, artists are always shagging their models. I have known this to be true since I read Judith Kranz's Mistral's Daughter when I was about twelve.  (There's quite a bit of rumpy pumpy in that book. It's possibly, on reflection, not really suitable reading for a child.) The fact that I have been to life drawing classes myself and never shagged any of the models I've painted does not in any way diminish my strongly held Artist/Model shag-based belief system.

More Artist/Model shag shenanigans

There's a lot more to Juliette Banks' story than just shagging, of course, but it's a damn good starting point. What begins, for Theo, as merely lustful urges to be slaked, soon develops into something rather more wonderful. And far more complicated.

Lizzie seems at the beginning of the book to be rather more timid and downtrodden than is ideal for a literary heroine. She isn't weak in the slightest but she is carrying a lot of very heavy emotional baggage. She has been forced to flee her abusive husband and then endure the rejection of a society which does not tolerate a married woman who has chosen to leave her husband.

Taking a job as an model for an eccentric artist is very much an act of desperation on her part. However, as the story develops, the reader discovers that the she is an exceptionally strong woman with a mind of her own.

Theo is an interesting character. Equal parts creative bohemian, trustafarian rich boy, rake and caring, conscientious employer. From the very beginning, he ensures that the destitute woman who appears on his doorstep is given a good meal and treated with dignity and respect.

We don't have to wait long for the shagging though and when it comes it is hot, spanky and well outside the acceptable norms of Victorian etiquette.

When things take a turn for the dramatic, Theo and Lizzie end up in exile in Florence, amongst a non-conformist artist community. There is a surprising bit of polyamory introduced to the story here. It's is all done so cheerfully and with everyone having such a delightful time that it's rather lovely.

Bohemian Artist types

However, their happiness is short-lived when Theo and Lizzie are both arrested as the suspected murderers of Lizzie's husband. It's a desperate situation and one which, if both parties were not in a romance novel and therefore guaranteed a Happy Ever After, would almost certainly result in a death sentence for both of them.

I don't think I am spoiling anything by saying that there is a Happy Ever After though. It's reassuring to know that these two lovely characters who have experienced more than their fair share of drama, heartbreak and misery, will finally be able to relax and enjoy their spanky sexy happy ending. They really deserve it.


Want to know more about the book review star rating system? Or find out what other books I've reviewed? Check out this page here.