Foreign Affairs - book by Cleis Press Inc. - review by Airen Wolf

Mitzi Szereto is the editor of the Erotic Travel Tales series and a fairly prolific writer in her own right. She has written books of her own and has been featured in many anthologies in a wide range topics and styles.

Ms. Szereto pioneered the Erotic Writing Workshop in the UK and Europe. She is also an active lecturer and interviewee!

Winner of the American Society of Authors and Writers' Meritorious Achievement Award, Ms Szereto is a talented and amazing editor and writer.

Foreign Affairs is an anthology of 21 erotic travel tales. The authors: Christine Bellerose, Cheyene Blue, Helena Settimana, CaroleRosenthal, Opal Palmer Adisa, Des Ariel, Linda Jaivin, Rachelle Claret, Gwen Masters, Gerard Wosek, Diane LeBow, Tabitha Flyte, Grevel Lindop, A.F.Waddell, Jai Clare, Lisabet Sarai, Sage Vivant, Donna Sage Storey, Debra Hyde, Holly Farris and Mitzi Szereto all weave tales of sex in foreign countries exposing some social taboos and revealing that under it all we are not nearly so different!


In Vietnamese Art by Christine Bellerose we hear a sex tale of a woman who knows she loves the look of a tight tummy on a man. She allows us to glimpse the exotic streets of Vietnam while she describes how she met and had sex with the father of her child.


From Vietnam you can whisk away to St. Lucia in Opal Palmer Adisa's At The Falls. In this story Evelyn, who is an attractive 40 year old woman decides that her mediocre relationship is not satisfying her. She is enraged when, after asking her insulting lover to leave her house he calls her mother to complain! She decides to take a co-worker's offer of a cottage retreat on lovely St. Lucia. The adventure she has is as breath taking as the descriptions of the tropical island!


Linda Jaivin leads us on a whirlwind tour of remembrance through Beijing, China in her story Peking Duck. Our heroine, Julia, visits China and samples a bit of the wild side. All the way home Julia relives her adventure in her mind and worries that no one will be there at the airport to greet her.


It's All In A Day's Work when Kim decides to impulsively fly to Tenerife instead of keeping to her plans to spend time in Mykonos. She meets Fidel and they spend a torrid time together before she meets Charlie and has an amazing encounter with him. As she finishes with Charlie she skillfully evades Fidel as she gets ready to don her uniform and get back to work. Rachelle Claret will keep you wondering through the whole story until she skillfully reveals the truth about the title of her tale.


Gerard Wozer treats his readers to a dreamy tale of an encounter with a Dutch fisherman in a steam room in Brussels. In Mer Boy our hero remembers and pines for the Captain who showed him such tenderness.


Three Days On Santorini by Sage Vivant takes us to Greece where Ingrid is to meet her boyfriend Mike for a short visit before they go back to their lives in the US. The three days she spends waiting for Mike to arrive are interminable as the beauty of the Caldera works its way into her heart, and loins.


Beautiful far off Romania is described in exquisite detail in the story, Remembering Andrei by Debra Hyde. The Romania we are treated to is mid-1970's and our tour guide is a violinist in a college orchestra. She shares a sweet, short affair with a young Romanian before she returns home.


The writing styles are different and yet the book seems to flow from one story to another seamlessly. There isn't an jarring interruptions to the hazy, dreamlike quality of the entire book. This book will suit the truly romantic reader who loves to dream about far off places and the things that might be going on there.

The book is a slightly oversized paperback and has one of the most benign photo cover art of any book on my special bookcase! It is a lovely tropical ocean view and a slightly blurry woman in a green sarong is wading through the water. Definitely work friendly so long as the words "Erotic Travel Tales" won't offend anyone's tender sensibilities.


The stories seem to flow from the first to the last leaving the reader feeling as though he or she has had a wonderful dream making this book perfect for reading just before bed.


As always Cleis Press brings us a great quality book that, with proper care, will last quite a while.