Helpful Score: 5
Contemporary erotic romance by Opal Carew. Summer is a candy maker, who attends an erotic convention, to sell erotic candy with her friend, who is an erotica author. Summer is mousy, and conservative. There she meets a gorgeous, commanding Dom, Max. Before you know it, Summer is submitting to Max, and on her way to recognizing her deepest desires. Now, back home, the two men that Summer has been torn between, are waiting for her, Kyle and Shane. Can either one of them give Summer what she needs? This book has alot to offer, romance, torrid sex scenes, D/s, and menage. Its fairly well written, but I found it a little....tepid. Its a sweet, yet twisted and kinky romance, with very little conflict. Everybody is just so nice and reasonable. No villians here. The book is better than fair.
Helpful Score: 3
OK, boys and girls. This book is interesting in that it has some good sex scenes - all kinds - a good intro to BDSM. Unfortunately, the writing style leaves A LOT to be desired. There is no character development, no descriptives whatsoever of any sort, no motivational theories, and the writing style is simplistic and elementary (but typical of this author) The storyline shows so much promise, but the actual sex scenes are over with in just a couple of paragraphs. I've read better written sex scenes in historical regency romances! There is no hint of WHY the 'heroine' does what she does, or what she's thinking, so that leaves me wanting more from this story. If you want simply written sex scenes, this is your author.
Helpful Score: 2
I know it's crazy to expect good writing in books that are essentially "chick porn" but I can't help myself. I always hope and I'm always disappointed.
I think these menage fantasy books work best when there is more to the plot than just sex (a la Lora Leigh books). In this particular case, Carew just takes Summer from sex scene to sex scene. There's no real plot and honestly nothing really happens except sex. This book is just a touch above the kind of cliche porn movie where the UPS driver rings the doorbell and lingerie-clad bimbo opens the door and drags him in, commence humping.
Also while I realize this book is just a fantasy, somehow the fact that Summer has sex with so many partners, one of whom is a guy she met hours before, and nobody mentions condoms, birth control, or safe sex, makes all of them seem unbelievably stupid. And one chapter where she has vaginal sex with one guy, no condom, in her office, then goes to another guy's office and he performs oral sex on her minutes later - eeeeew.
All my complaints aside, and thinking this would be my last Opal Carew book, she actually writes a HEA that I really liked and the hero is the one I was rooting for. Maybe I will try another of her books - mainly b/c love won in the end.
I think these menage fantasy books work best when there is more to the plot than just sex (a la Lora Leigh books). In this particular case, Carew just takes Summer from sex scene to sex scene. There's no real plot and honestly nothing really happens except sex. This book is just a touch above the kind of cliche porn movie where the UPS driver rings the doorbell and lingerie-clad bimbo opens the door and drags him in, commence humping.
Also while I realize this book is just a fantasy, somehow the fact that Summer has sex with so many partners, one of whom is a guy she met hours before, and nobody mentions condoms, birth control, or safe sex, makes all of them seem unbelievably stupid. And one chapter where she has vaginal sex with one guy, no condom, in her office, then goes to another guy's office and he performs oral sex on her minutes later - eeeeew.
All my complaints aside, and thinking this would be my last Opal Carew book, she actually writes a HEA that I really liked and the hero is the one I was rooting for. Maybe I will try another of her books - mainly b/c love won in the end.
Helpful Score: 1
It's too bad that this one was so unexceptional because Opal Carew usually puts out better stories than this. The relationship between Max and Summer was okay--the Dom stuff can be quite stimulating, and there was lots of it--but her wanna-be relationship with Kyle and Shane was weak at best. And to top it off, the Dom/sub role reversals towards the ending were not only unconvincing--it all sounded staged--but rather ridiculous. I give it a lame 3 stars.
Helpful Score: 1
Won't go over the plot again but will remove all books by this author from my WL and RL. As stated before, good premise but very poor writing. Almost "Dick and Jane" style IMO. I have tried several times with her and am not going to try any longer.
