In one week, I heard two divergent opinions about women and erotica, and concluded that us gals might really stink at making up our minds.
One well known sex-educator and trend spotter insisted that today’s women want to read fantasies that are edgy, kinky and like “ice cream at its best moment: melting in the heat.”
A few days later, an editor with her pulse on desire – – stints at an adult magazine, the New York publishing scene and as Senior Editor for a widely read online sex-positive magazine – hailed a more restrained approach. The average reader prefers tiny nibbles of love and desire that are easier to swallow compared to esoteric doses of wantonness, she explained.
Enough’s been written about the fickle female; on the difference between lust and desire, on what we find irresistible sexy in men, or what we want to read when our bodies yearn. A desire for passion and romance may be universal. Whether we want vanilla, take the rocky road, dive into a deep dish of chocolate, or find love with a chunky monkey is what makes relationships unpredictable joy rides.
Rachel Kramer Bussel’s erotic anthology, Passion: Erotic Romance for Women, is like a good old-fashioned banana split sundae; a scoop of this, a scoop of that, topped off just right with whipped cream and fudge. And since it’d been a while that I’d read romance, I found I liked it very much.
With it’s emphasis on exciting encounters with long-time couples, Passion brings together 20 stories that will appeal to duos who know that sex is guaranteed. The surprise in many of these vignettes is how the lovers will connect. This mixture of committed love and sexuality set against juicy backgrounds – big beds in swanky hotels and outdoors against car hoods – also includes fantasies of first time encounters.
One story of satisfaction on the subway with a sexy stranger reminded me of a train ride in Northern Italy, when a handsome dark haired medical school student struck my fancy…but that’s something to share another time, perhaps in erotic essay form, with a little embellishment on the side.
Rachel is superb at selecting stories with a theme. Passion is at times touching and tender, naughty and hot, and completely true to its title: erotic, romantic and universally appealing to newbies and connoisseurs of lusty language, the sort of anthology that encourages sensual living.
Disclaimer: I received a copy of Passion by Cleis Press with the expressed expectation that I offer a fair review for my readers. If I don’t like something, I don’t make my opinions know publicly.
Tinamarie is an acclaimed writer for several websites. You can find her at twitter and Facebook, or send her a private message at modernlovemuse @ yahoo dot com. ©2010-2011 Tinamarie Bernard; PARTIAL reposts only permitted with link back to original article.
