Piers Anthony, Relationships 4 (Single-Author Anthology)

Title: Relationships 4

Author: Piers Anthony

Rating: Five Siren Stones

Genre: Erotic Romance (Single-Author Anthology)

Keywords: Ménage, F/M/F, Group Sex, Multiple Partners, Spanking

Page Count: 194

ISBN E-Book: 978-1-60659-577-0

Price: $5.99

Publisher: Phaze Books

Buy-Link: http://www.king-cart.com/Phaze/product=Relationships+4/exact_match=exact

Reviewer: Rhonda Callum-King

Blurb/Summary:

Get ready for another collection of stories on relationships from master storyteller, Piers Anthony.

From one of the best known names in fiction comes this fourth unique collection of stories about relationships--some intense, some sexual, some mild, some shockers.

This collection is intended for mature, thoughtful readers who care more about character and idea than adventure. A must for Anthony fans.

Warning: This work contains one scene of non-consensual sex.

Review:

Relationships 4 by Piers Anthony is a must read for anyone tired of the same perfect boy meets beautiful girl and they live happily ever after style romance tale. In Relationships 4, Piers explores the grittier side of sexual relations with couples who are not even close to perfect. Many of the tales are rather short and can be read easily in a sitting. While this collection is not for those looking for fairy tale romance, if what you’ve been missing is something grittier and perhaps truer to life, Piers’ stories may be just what you’ve been looking for.

Here you will find tales of an unattractive larger sized female prisoner and her unusually endowed prison guard. A young, untried male and four forty- something female friends on a week’s vacation tell their story. An unlikely pair with years between them, who share an unusual phobia, find ways to re-enter the world. Writers block is attacked from a new perspective and conception prevented in a novel manner. The stories are well written and sometimes thought provoking. Many of the characters allow the reader a glimpse inside of their heads.

This trip to the other side, as it were, is worth taking. While some of the tales are almost shocking, they throw a light into otherwise darkened corridors. Piers Anthony’s Relationships 4 is a wonderful read for anyone looking for something a bit “bad side of town.” If Cinderella is what is on your mind, this is the wrong place to be. However, if what you want is a bit nastier, something truly original, this might just be your perfect read.

Joey W. Hill, Afterlife

Title: Afterlife

Author: Joey W. Hill

Rating: Siren's Best Book Stone

Genre: BDSM

Keywords: F/F, Group Sex, D/s

Length: Super Plus Novel

ISBN E-Book: 9781419930959

Price: $7.99

Publisher: Ellora’s Cave

Buy-Link: http://www.jasminejade.com/p-8851-afterlife.aspx

Reviewer: Cia

Blurb/Summary:

Part of the Knights of the Board Room series.

Rachel gave up seeking a Master years ago. After a failed marriage and terrible tragedy, she’s walled her soul against going down that dangerous path again. Then Jon joins her yoga class. He’s thirteen years younger than she, but his Dominant nature threatens her shields from the moment she recognizes it. Not only does he understand what her body wants—he knows what her soul craves.

Part of the five-man executive team of Kensington & Associates, Jon uses his calm, philosophical nature to defuse volatile acquisition negotiations. He can compel opponents to willingly surrender when he draws the sword that closes the deal. As a sexual Dominant, he employs that same expertise. A spiritually driven Master who enjoys connecting with a woman’s soul, he wins her utter submission with his skills. But with Rachel, it goes beyond that. She’s the submissive his own soul has always hungered to have, and he won’t hesitate to use his talents, as well as that of the other four K&A men, to claim her.

Publisher’s Note: Rachel’s sensual journey to healing contains light female/female exploration and group sex.

Review:

Afterlife by Joey W. Hill is a heart-wrenching story of learning to return to the land of the living, not simply existing. And that is just what Yoga instructor Rachel’s pattern consists of after losing a son, and a marriage that she shouldn’t have shouldered the guilt for the break up. Instead of picking up and moving on, she locks herself away in solitude only letting people see what she wants them to see while hiding away privately, wearing a false token to keep her distance. Petrified of hurting again she finds it’s the only way she can survive. Instead of embracing her needs she ignores what her soul cries for, the divinity of being owned.

Jon joins a yoga class and finds himself drawn to the older woman teaching. Her only saving grace in him not approaching her is the token she wears, until he finds it’s a ruse and sets about changing the direction of their lives the way he knows best. A Master in the fine art of strategy his craft works for him in the beginning. Until an act of ill fate shreds the progress he’s made in getting Rachel to tear down her walls. He must find a different avenue to win her heart and surrender to his will. The passion that exploded between these two vibrant and sexy characters added a new level of intimacy that reminded me of Kismet.

I found myself experiencing the highs and lows of their lives both singularly and together as a couple. The pain Rachel experienced from past tragedies, the insecurities she exhibited were easy to relate to. The horror of having history repeat itself made me cringe inwardly only this time she wasn’t alone she had a wall of strength not by just one person, her Master but by a wall of Masters and others in the lifestyle to draw strength from. My heart went out to Jon for his journey with her wasn’t going to be an easy one, though his character and his unwavering love made me hope they’d have a fabulous journey.

I can’t wait to read this again.