Fairy Tale Lust - erotic book by Cleis Press Inc. - review by Liz

I love to read, and I love sex, so it follows that I love erotic writing. I also love erotic twists on the familiar, which explains my fondness for sexy spoofs, which in turn explains my affection for the "Jersey Shore" porn parody. I hope.

The point I'm trying to make here is that I took one look at "Fairy Tale Lust" and felt sure it would be exactly my kind of book. Beloved fairytales with a sexy spin for my reading pleasure? Yes, please.

"Fairy Tale Lust" is a collection of eighteen erotic stories, some of which are based on a familiar fairy tale. Others are simply reminiscent of the fairy tale genre in form and content. The stories vary dramatically in length, tone, chronological setting, and language. (I expected them all to be set in the original time periods --with the accompanying language-- and so I was disappointed on that front). The stories also vary wildly in quality-- some are extraordinarily written; some are flat-out awful; some are unintentionally hilarious; some try to be funny and fail miserably.

First, the low points--

"Sleep Tight" is a retelling of "Sleeping Beauty." Halfway through this story (which is about six pages too long), I experienced the strange sensation of being extremely bored while reading something blatantly sexual. The last few lines of the story sealed its grave, and inspired the title of this review.

"The Kiss" is written almost entirely in metaphor and simile, and comes off as trying just a bit too hard to be "artistic." The dialogue, on the other hand, is bewilderingly simplistic. The characters say things like "I want your body," and not much else.

Of "Mind Your Peas and Qs", the hands-down worst story in the book, I will say only this: it's like a bad limerick that goes on for eight pages. Skip them.

And, a few highlights--

The first story, "The Obedient Wife," is a sexualized retelling of "Beauty and the Beast." It's written in Old English-style prose, which is mostly carried off very well. This is a fun, sexy take on a familiar story.

"Her Hair is a Net, Woven" is probably the most artistic effort in this collection. It reads like poetry, and the language truly evokes the feel of "once upon a time in a land far, far away." It's easily one of the best of the tales in this book.

Having said that "In the Dark Woods" is inarguably the best of this collection. Intelligent, well-written, erotic... I didn't want it to end.

This is just a sampling, and it should be noted that the unique, the lovely, and the simply interesting tales in this book far outweigh the poison apples. "Fairy Tale Lust" contains quite a few treasures: Beautiful and sexy stories I can see myself reading again and again. This book is something quite different-- it wasn't at all what I expected, but I'm happy to have it in my collection.

I've noticed a trend in erotica which is marketed specifically "for women." More often than not, this brand of literature reads like a poorly-crafted short story, followed by a few paragraphs of seriously average sex. So... what's the message here? Because I have girl parts, I'm supposed to be turned on by any sort of story development, even if it's badly done? Several of the stories in "Fairy Tale Lust" fall prey to exactly this problem.

In my mind, nothing about sex writing is gender-specific. Great erotica is imaginative, evocative, and descriptive. Its tone may be literary, raw, or humorous. It may or may not have a compelling narrative. Happily, there are also quite a few stories in "Fairy Tale Lust" which fit this description. I would venture to say it's worth skimming over the fluff to reach these gems-- which those of every gender will find appealing.