Foreign Affairs - erotic fiction by Cleis Press Inc. - review by sexyintexas

This book from Cleis Press is edited by Mitzi Szereto. She also shares one of her own stories in it as well. In the "About the editor" section in the back we learn a little about her, including other books that she has collaborated on and written in.

There are 21 stories from different authors. In the back of the book is a short paragraph about each one of them. They include:Christine Bellerose, Cheyenne Blue, Helena Settimana, Carole Rosenthal, Opal Palmer Adisa, Des Ariel, Linda Jaivin, Mitzi Szereto, Rachelle Claret, Gwen Masters, Gerard Wozek, Diane LeBow, Tabitha Flyte, Grevel Lindop, A.F. Waddell, Jai Clare, Lisabet Sarai, Sage Vivant, Donna George Storey, Debra Hyde and Holly Farris.

This book offers stories that transport you to far away lands as well as some not so far away. The authors put you in the dry, hot desert, sandy beaches and your own personal gardens of Eden. It gives you an insight to the personal cultures, taboos and plights of lovers trying to connect in these settings. This is more detailed as far as locations than most of the anthologies that I've read, the authors taking particular care to make it seem as real as possible.

It includes hetero, lesbian, gay and bi-sexual liaisons. While I liked some of the stories, they were some that I just could not get into very easily. I don't know if it was just a personal preference or not, but there were just some that I was not impressed with. Luckily the ones that were good were written well enough to keep my attention.

The book is slightly larger than most pocket books, making it a little more difficult to fit in a purse and take with you. Good thing the cover is pretty much unassuming. It simply depicts the title and a woman in a sarong on a tropical beach, allowing you to take it with you and read, not having people look at you like you are a perv.

It is 260 pages dedicating approximately 10 pages to each story. It starts with your list of contents, an introduction to the book, the stories, about the authors, finishing with about the editor.

It is a basic paperback binding and I haven't had any issues with it coming apart. I had it in a bag bouncing around in the truck on vacation for 8 days so I am assuming that it will hold up quite well.

While there were a few stories that just didn't do it for me, there were a couple that really got my imagination soaring. Odalisque A womans trip to Dubai in the hot desert, having even hotter sex with a man intent on breaking the rules, as well as At The Falls A womans ghostlike lover in her own St. Lucian Garden of Eden.

Out of the 21 stories, 12 had me reading intently, a couple more interested to some extent and a few that I could hardly trudge through. This is all a matter of opinion though as all readers like things a little differently. There are enough good stories in this book to make it worth getting, but wouldn't be one that I would rush out to buy again.