Carol Queen
Losing yourself in a good book is one of life’s lovely pleasures, and when it’s an erotic book, you get all that and more: frisky feelings, new fantasies to enjoy––and maybe even a few to try out sometime. Plenty of sexy stories and novels have been penned by women with an eye to representing women’s sexuality, too, in all kinds of ways.
I’ve edited erotica collections and written this genre myself, and I love the way it sets the mind free and allows us to dwell one (and savor) the “good parts” so often left out of other stories, which close the bedroom door and impel the reader to imagine what must be going on inside. That can be great, but even better, sometimes, is having it spelled out––sometimes.
Joan Price writes and edits books about post-midlife sex, and her anthology Ageless Erotica introduces stories of lovers whose erotic appetites are undimmed and whose sexual savvy is enhanced by their years. It’s fabulous to be able to lose yourself in a story with protagonists much like yourself, and it’s about time we had a book featuring silver-haired foxes and femmes. Never Say Never and Only You, two new collections by the reigning queen of the sexy anthology, Allison Tyler, feature hot stories set into partnered romance: no strangers in the night here, just loving couples and their lovemaking. (The former book includes tips and info for “non monotony,” as well as erotic inspiration.)
But another great pleasure of erotica is peeking into the sexual lives of characters who aren’t a perfect match for you. And anthologies are the perfect read when you want to voyeurize a little. That was part of the pleasure of the Fifty Shades of Grey phenomenon, after all––metaphorically looking throughout he shades of that kinky billionaire and his wide-eyed partner in play, Anastasia. This may have made many readers want to explore a little power play, but many others were happily titillated without wanting to act out any of that kink.
For readers who found this erotic romance compelling, visit the original tale of an adventurous college girl and her older, dominant paramour, Carrie’s Story and its sequel Safeword; Molly Weatherfield’s smart, sexy, and emotionally complex story of kink are satisfying page-turners.
Twice The Pleasure is one of Allison Tyler’s new collections, this one exploring bisexual protagonists and their love lives. It’s not all threesomes, but what bi book would be complete without at least a few of these? We’re told it’s America’s number one fantasy! And I edited 5 Minute Erotica for lovers of flash fiction: the collection is diverse and no story clocks in at much more than 1000 words. But if you cut to the chase, you can inspire a lot of erotic reveries!
No matter what your literary taste, you can find writers who want to appeal to your love of a more carnal plot line, and summer’s always been a fabulous time to take to the books!
In case you want to link to any of these, GV carries:
Never Say Never http://www.goodvibes.com/display_product.jhtml?id=6-1-TB-1403&lref=Cat_catalog70002_cat38012__4
Twice The Pleasure http://www.goodvibes.com/display_product.jhtml?id=6-1-DD-1301&lref=Cat_catalog70002_cat38012__14
Only You http://www.goodvibes.com/display_product.jhtml?id=6-1-TB-1301&lref=Cat_catalog70002_cat38012__27
5 Minute Erotica http://www.goodvibes.com/display_product.jhtml?id=6-1-TB-0312&lref=Srch_Sex+Books+%26+Erotica_Products_15
Fifty Shades of Grey http://www.goodvibes.com/display_product.jhtml?id=6-1-TF-1203&lref=Srch_fifty_Products_1