erastes

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via leatherdykeuk one of them

Two Dissapointing reads Not reviews as such, just general thoughts, as I didn't finish either of them.

Hot Valley - James Lear. Those of you who follow my blog know that I Adored James' last book "the Back Passage" and I was consequently looking forward to Hot Valley very much. I don't know what I expected, really - I only know that TBP was witty, pretty unique, sexy as hell and had a good premise, a decent plot, and the sex fitted in beautifully with the interrogation technique and sexiness of his protag (and if you haven't bought it yet, then DO) The "sex within every scene" worked in that book, but with this, an allegedly more serious historical piece, it got so ridiculous with the protag having sex with every single man he meets in 1861 that I just ended up wanting him NOT to have sex with the next one. In the end I skimmed every sex scene, leaving me very few pages to actually read - to end it. Porn, yes. Lots. If you want a "one-handed read" and don't give a flying fortress about plot or realism or the American Civil War, then you'll love it.

Phyllida and the Brotherhood of Philander - Sorry, sorry sorry to those of you who loved this and stuff, and AGAIN I was looking forward to this one too - but I couldn't get beyond chapter four. I should have realised that The Het would squick me but it wasn't just that that stopped me reading, sex scenes are easily skipped in preference to plot and characterisation after all. It was partly the OKHOMO theme that put me off; the mother didn't think twice about encouraging her daughter to marry a known sodomite and daughter was also happy about it "I have no problem with men like that" and promptly falls IN LURVE with him in about half an hour because 1. He's as handsome as the heroes in the novel she writes (hmmm....) and 2) she sits on his lap and he gropes her tits. He also was miraculously cured of his gayness by her sitting on his lap and became "harder than he'd ever been in his life" - and thus was Bi-sexually converted.

Look. I'm more than happy about bi-sexuality. I'm as bi-sexual as they come. Gender has never entered into my choice of life or bed partner, but this... No. sorry. It wasn't even that that made it unreadable as realising one is attracted to both males and females can be a thunderbolt I guess, wasn't for me, I just always knew, but it could be a shock I guess. But Phyllida herself put me off - she vacillated from feisty and independent (battling the lawyer for her rights in the marriage settlement) - to psycho (physically attacking her husband over a quip that she looked too young in her nightgown) - to just plain stupid -whining about how she'd had a major orgasm and feeling bad that it happened when her husband had "raped her". He hadn't really, and anyway, there was no concept of rape within marriage - No might mean no NOW, but not then, it's the leaking of modern sensibilities again.. Sorry. I'm very pleased that the author has sold this to a mainstream publisher, and I can see why it happened because her heroine is probably very much a "romance heroine", but as I've read almost no romance I didn't like her at all.

Anyway. Disappointing.