Satyr's Myst by Marie Harte

TITLE: Satyr’s Myst
AUTHOR: Marie Harte
PUBLISHER: Loose Id
LENGTH: Novella (roughly 33k)
GENRE: Contemporary ménage erotic romance
COST: $4.99

When the owner of the private resort Satyr’s Myst is threatened, security experts are assigned to keep him safe while the search goes on for his enemies. Trevor Reaper and Lilah Tanner don’t want Rick Hastings to know they’ve been brought in by his ex-lover, but once they come into the man’s orbit, it’s impossible to think of anything but their physical desires…

Somewhere in all the myriad sex scenes in this book, there’s a plot. Unfortunately, I never got to really experience it. See, that whole reason for Rick needing to be protected? The reader learns about all of it secondhand. In conversations, in a little bit of backstory. That’s it. It’s really just an excuse to put two gorgeous men and one plain jane with a Barbie doll body together so that they can have sex. It even gets resolved halfway through the story, and Rick opts not to tell his two bodyguards in favor of getting more time with them.

Maybe if there was some genuine characterization going on in the story, I wouldn’t have minded so much. Trevor fares the best in this, with his tough-as-nails exterior, but his continued protestations about not wanting to have sex with men feels like lipservice all the way from the beginning. When he had sex with Lilah, it felt way too much like he needed to prove his heterosexuality to himself and to Rick, which weakened both his character and any sense of romance the story might have instilled. Lilah’s characterization suffers from indecision. She’s introduced as a free spirit of sorts, and while she is quick to respond to sexual advances, she’s just as quick to run off and insist that she’s not there except to keep Rick company. Again, lipservice. Because Lilah keeps insisting all the way throughout that she’s never done much, it’s hard to resolve that against the wild child introduction she got.

Then there’s Rick. Rick is the one character that comes from the second book, so if you’ve read the others in this series, you’ve been introduced to him already. This story is said to be a standalone, but honestly, I think a new reader coming into this series would be hard-pressed to find any real depth to Rick. He’s portrayed as a sex god/fiend in this, with no long-lasting relationships except for the woman who got away because she couldn’t accept his alternative lifestyle. Even having read the previous book, I absolutely did not believe for a second that he was going to settle down with Lilah and Trevor. There was never any real reason for these three to fall in love at all. Rick pretty much decides that first night Lilah shows up that there’s something different there – without even really having a conversation with her yet – and all they do for the rest of the book is have sex. But because they kept saying they were in love – without having the reasons I could buy into – I ended up disconnected from all the sex scenes. Without having emotion I believed in to enrich those scenes, then, it just felt like one big long sex romp. And I got bored.

While I’m incredibly disappointed by this, I think I’ve figured out why it didn’t work for me like the previous two books. All three of these people are strangers at the top of the story, with no opportunity to do much of anything but have sex. Ethan and Jewel in the previous book had a lot more story to build their romance and make it believable, and the sex in the first story was enhanced by the animosity between the two principles. The trio in this never got any of that, which is a real shame. Maybe if the plot hadn’t happened offscreen, they would have had reason to have their romance be based on something more real than physical attraction. As it stands, it’s just sex in an erotic romance wrapper.

Readability	7/10 – The prose is fluid enough, but without characters to care about or scenes to suck me in, I ended up skimming.
Menage	3/10 – Boring and unbelievable
Characterization	4/10 – Sex is a shorthand for character development in this.
Entertainment value	3/10 – Surprisingly bored by the entire thing.
World building	5/10 – The author relies too heavily on readers knowing the previous books to build on the world of the resort and island.
TOTAL:	22/50

Favorite Erotic Romances for 2007

Oddly enough, I think my list of favorite erotic stories that I reviewed this year has little to do with how erotic they are. At least two of them are for reasons completely unrelated to the sexual content, while the other two…well, you’ll see.

3^rd Runner Up
Reaper’s Reward by Marie Harte

This is the one story I selected purely based on how well it succeeded as an erotic romance for me. The hero pushed a lot of my buttons, the heroine sparkled without being perfect, and the sex was hot. There was just enough kink in it not to be overwhelming, and the overlaying plot – while not perfect – was enough to sustain its novel-length without having to rely too heavily upon just the smut. This story cemented my appreciation of this author’s contemporary work. I always read her blurbs and excerpts far more closely, in search of another of her stories I’ll like just as much as this one.

2^nd Runner Up
Sex Between Strangers by Gabrina Garza

I was a little surprised to end up with a short story on my favorites list, but this story deserves a spot for a couple of reasons. First of all, it’s absolutely lovely. It’s simply told, sweet and romantic, with a melancholy air that helps promote the poignancy of the plot. Secondly, it introduced me to this particular author; I think I reviewed more of her titles than anybody else last year. Ultimately, though, this remains my favorite of everything I’ve read by her. So far.

1^st Runner Up
Hold by Zannie Adams

Out of all the erotic romances I reviewed this year, I’ll confess this is my guiltiest pleasure. When I say this hits a kink, I mean this wallops that kink until it’s black and blue and wet all over. The story’s not perfect. I hate that last chapter with a passion and refuse to read it on re-reads. But the rest of the story vibrates with emotion and atmosphere, passionate and needy all at the same time. It’s got a hero as alpha and closed-off as they come, and if I could have a Cain all for myself, I’d sit on Santa’s lap every damn day of the year to get one. Just don’t tell my husband. ;)

And my favorite erotic romance I reviewed this year is:

Paul’s Dream
by Rowan McBride

This one was actually quite an easy one to call. Just like Paul lingered for me long after I’d set the book aside, the entire story stood up and demanded to be counted when I compiled this list. This succeeds on many of the levels I demand to put a book on keeper status. It has a hero I adore; the damaged Paul almost made me cry in this. It’s got a visually vibrant last act, tightly written and an absolute joy to read. It’s an intelligent, haunting story, and I eagerly await future installments in this particular series.

Though this is probably one of the most subjective categories around, I’m interested in hearing about your favorites of the year. There’s always stuff out there that doesn’t catch my eye for one reason or another, and probably should. What erotic romance would you want everybody to read?

Reaper's Reward by Marie Harte

TITLE: Reaper’s Reward
AUTHOR: Marie Harte
PUBLISHER: Loose Id
LENGTH: Novel (roughly 42k)
GENRE: BDSM erotic romance
COST: $5.99

Satyr’s Mist is an exclusive resort that caters to the sexually adventurous. Investigator Jewel is sent on assignment to retrieve a damaging blackmail video, and one of the first people she meets is the stalwart Ethan Reaper. Ethan is there for a job as well. Half-owner of a successful security company in Seattle, he’s been brought to the private Caribbean island to find out who has been stealing artifacts from the resort’s owner. Neither expects the volatile chemistry between them, but neither denies it. Ethan has finally found the woman strong enough to submit to him, but can he protect her when their cases collide?

When I saw there was a longer companion story to Tied and True, I knew I couldn’t resist. The author decided to give Jared’s business partner his own story, and wow, what a story it is. Ethan is a giant of a man, with a giant sexual appetite, and the chemistry between him and Jewel leaps off the page almost from the moment they meet. Jewel has just enough spark to keep her from being a total doormat – which is exactly what Ethan is looking for – and while I don’t know if I’d cave as quickly as she did, I certainly believed her eventual submission.

Oh, who am I kidding? I would have totally caved. Ethan was hot. Definitely one of the hottest heroes I’ve read in awhile.

Most of the middle of the book focuses on Ethan “training” Jewel, and when it’s doing this, it works. It works well. There's light bondage, some spanking, and anal play, and the author does a good job in keeping the primary plot – that of the thefts and blackmail – a part of the story as she’s paying the proper attention to her lovers. The eventual action sequence that serves as the climax is tightly choreographed and strong, too, but I have to admit to being a little disappointed on who the bad guy was and why. It felt a little out of left field for me. Maybe a little more detail or build-up in the beginning would have made it more believable, because as it stood, I felt like there was something I was missing.

Do I think the story could have been better? Yes. But if I look at this book strictly from an erotic romance perspective – ignoring the overlaying plot – it completely worked for me. It was hot, the build-up of the relationship between the characters solid enough to be believable, and did I mention hot? I’m as satisfied finishing this as Jewel was with Ethan. Trust me. That’s a lot.

Readability	8/10 – Easy and engaging, as I’ve come to hope for from this author
Heroine	8/10 – Spunky and smart without being perfect
Hero	8/10 – In a single word, HOT.
Entertainment value	9/10 – Taken for an erotic romp, absolutely satisfying
World building	7/10 – The backstory with the Roman artifacts left a little to be desired, but otherwise fairly solid
TOTAL:	40/50

The Thief of Mardu by Marie Harte

TITLE: The Thief of Mardu
AUTHOR: Marie Harte
PUBLISHER: New Concepts Publishing
LENGTH: Novella (roughly 40k)
GENRE: Sci-fi erotic romance
COST: $4.50

When a statesman is murdered, bounty hunter Catam of Mardu gets sucked into helping his peacemaker brother track down the thief who did it. What he doesn’t expect is the almost violent sexual attraction to thief Isa Araye, or her vehement protestations about her innocence. Her story sounds all too plausible, so together, they work to prove she was set up to take the fall. And have a little bit of fun while they do it.

Marie Harte is one of the handful of authors I’ve reviewed so far on this blog that interested me enough to go look at her other published works. When I couldn’t find a third new release that interested me enough to buy this week, I picked one of her older titles that sounded like I might enjoy it. The result was very interesting.

According to the copyright, the book’s two years old, and trust me, it shows. Where Tied and True was easy to read with few errors, The Thief of Mardu has distinct head-hopping throughout the book – almost always the mark of a beginner – and florid prose when writing sex scenes that make it look like the author’s trying too hard. Referring to a pussy as “woman’s fruit” is just too purple for me, though thankfully, she only used that one once or twice. On top of that, because the story is sci-fi/fantasy/futuristic-based, almost everybody has an unusual name. Catam. Nu Fas. Rantak. Then there’s all the place names she makes up. Ragga. Mardu. Nebe6. And yes, that’s a 6 in that name. Normally, this wouldn’t be a bad thing, but she throws all of them out there – without explanation most of the time – almost all at the same time. There’s little time to adjust, and for somebody coming into this universe she’s created for the first time, it’s too much. She has other stories set in this same milieu, but she doesn’t do herself any favors of coaxing new readers if she can’t make each one as easy as possible to understand.

When the sex isn’t weighed down with heavy-handed words, there are glimmers of the hot eroticism that her later work carries. Her heroine in this is just as likable as Lindsay in Tied and True, too. I do have to give Ms. Harte credit for learning as much as she has in the past two years. That’s the sign of an author who’s interested in a real career. It also means that the books I want to keep an eye on are the ones she’s got coming out in the future, not the ones she’s already written.

Readability	4/10 – Head-hopping, unclear terminology, and florid prose doesn’t make it the best read.
Heroine	7/10 – Spunky and likable.
Hero	6/10 – Heroes with enhanced sexual abilities have a tendency to turn me off. Catam was no exception.
Entertainment value	5/10 – I’m left with a feeling “meh” when I’m done
World building	4/10 – I’m sure this is a rich world she’s building, but there’s too much information in too short a book to make it work as a standalone.
TOTAL:	26/50

Tied and True by Marie Harte

TITLE: Tied and True
AUTHOR: Marie Harte
PUBLISHER: Loose Id
LENGTH: Novella (roughly 23k)
GENRE: Contemporary erotic romance
COST: $4.99

Lindsay Riordan is appalled to overhear sexy salesman Jared Hunt brag about getting her into bed. When she sets out to find whatever proof he claims to have, she is surprised with the opportunity to get more than some answers. And all it takes is tying him to the bed…

This short erotic romance is billed as BDSM, but that’s true in only the loosest sense. Well, the B sense, at least. Hero and Heroine are both tied to the bed and then lavished with attention, but that’s as far as the kink in this story goes. But guess what? This story doesn’t need any more. It’s hot enough without it, and that’s due primarily to having two charismatic leads and a reading style that sucks you in without being heavy-handed.

Heroine Lindsay borders on being one of those women you want to hate, which is exactly the stereotype she’s fighting within the story. She’s blonde, beautiful, and smart enough to almost be annoying. If she didn’t rebel against her image, I think I would’ve. Jared’s pretty much the same, except he’s a guy. These two are so perfect, in fact, that there’s nobody else for them except for each other. It’s a good thing the author’s voice is solid enough to sell this combo. Under less competent hands and I’d be gagging – and not in a good way – before the end of the first sex scene.

My only quibble really lies with the subplot that gets introduced. While it adds a necessary dimension to the story to lift it away from straight porn, it’s not as smart as its leads and a couple of so-called facts detract from the story. Someone as smart and anal as Lindsay doesn’t know how much money is in her savings account? I don’t think so. Still, for what it was, it worked well enough to separate this from other short erotic romances.

Don’t buy this story hoping for a BDSM read. Buy this story because you’re looking for a sexy short that’s competently written. You won’t be disappointed.

Readability	8/10 – Easy to read and engaging with few editing issues
Hero	8/10 – Sexy, intelligent, and believable
Heroine	8/10 – Likable even if she’s close to perfect
Entertainment value	8/10 – Hot sex and a subplot that actually works
World building	8/10 – The only part of this that faltered for me was the corporate world she tried to build with Tron Corp
TOTAL:	40/50