“I’m done playing games.” I turn to face her. “I’m done making the moves in a relationship. I want a guy who knows what he wants. I want a guy who is willing to chase after me for once.”

Life wasn't fair of unfair; it was simply unexpected. Sometimes life's surprises were breathtakingly beautiful. Sometimes they were breathtakingly cruel. But surprises were always the raw material of life.

My name is Tyler Anselm Bell. I'm twenty-nine years old. Six months ago, I broke my vow of celibacy on the altar of my own church, and God help me, I would do it again.

I am a priest and this is my confession.

The idea of the alpha wolf in animal behavior studies turned out to be a fantasy: it happens in an artificial environment, something deliberately walled off from the larger, wilder world wolves usually inhabit. People have created the space in which the alpha wolf appears (or appears to appear, but let’s not get ourselves more tangled than we have to). But like wild wolves, captive wolves still need to eat — and that food comes from the real world. The real world feeds the fantasy.

A book or trope or genre like romance is also an artificial environment, and like wolf sanctuaries or zoos it is an environment created by people. Though we call it a fantasy, we can’t simply declare it walled it off from real life: we have to feed the fantasy with real stuff. Sexism, gendered social roles, abuse dynamics, personal politics, religious beliefs, axes of oppression and resistance — these things and others have a way of sneaking in. You may disagree, but you must first explain why else none of Charles Dickens’ characters ever uses a telephone or sends an email. Our real world is inevitably tied up with our fiction.

Review: The Alphabet Game Part 1: A to E by Andie M. Long

I'd like to thank the author for the Advanced Reading Copy she was kind enough to let me have.

It is clear from the outset that this novella definitely fits with the erotica genre, which I'll admit I'm usually not a great fan of. However, lead character Stella is immediately likeable and I felt I could somewhat identify with her. She is warm and funny, her close friendship with neighbour Ronnie at times comedic as the two women lead each other astray.

Stella attends a job interview as personal assistant to Gabe Gregory, a job she is desperate to have. Her interview is fraught with sexual tension, the enigmatic Gabe never missing an opportunity for innuendo...or is Stella misinterpreting the signals?

As the only shortlisted candidate, Stella inevitably gets the job, it quickly becoming clear that the kind of assistance she will be giving Gabe, and indeed receiving from him in return, will be very very personal indeed! Stella reacts positively to this news and is eager to impress her new boss as they work through the sexual alphabet from A to E.

The characters and sex scenes are very well written, with none of the vulgarity that so put me off Fifty Shades. The writing flows smoothly, with just about the right amount of sex to other content. I would go so far as to say move over Christian and Anastasia, you've been usurped by Gabe and Stella!
I'm so looking forward to their alphabet game being continued with the letter F...