Boundless by Annie Dean, Bonnie Dee and Dionne Galace
Seven Days by Annie Dean
I didn’t think I was going to like this one because Teresa, a young woman on the verge of taking vows to tie her forever to the Lord, didn’t seem like a character I could sympathize with. But Dean captures the beauty or faith without the proselytizing of religion. Teresa is targeted by Dev, a demon sent to tempt her for seven days, to steal her soul from the path of service to the lord. Dean perhaps didn’t give the ending that I’m used to, being drawn to darker works, but this is no fluffy, air headed romance. The need and beauty of the characters’ emotions float off the page (screen technically) and it’s that very sweetness and purity that makes the story work so well.
The Straw Man by Bonnie Dee
A travel through Halloween-themed fantasy, this story stretched believability, going from more of a porn feel. Marie wishes for a perfect lover, gets it in the form of a scarecrow brought to life. With very little to no reservations she hops into a night of “a little bit of everything” with her mystery man and of course, gets very attached. I had hoped the steamy night of carnal pleasures would be enough, or that in the end there would be mundane reason for Sam’s appearance. But Marie’s ability to demand what she wants from the world and get it, no matter how unfeasible, disconnected me from the story. Though by far not a horrible tale this ones uses a few too many of the things I personally find dissatisfying about romance. While there’s nothing wrong with fantasy (and let’s face it, you’d be hard pressed to find a plot in romance as thin as porn “plots”) this story just didn’t ring with me through the end.
Waking Kitty by Dionne Galace
Bizarre an silly at times this story is an example of hit and miss. There are moments of near perfection like : “She smiled as her fingers unbuttoned and unzipped his pants. ‘I don’t kiss on the first
date, Jack. I’m not that kind of girl.’” but there are also awkward moments that left me making a face and saying “Okay then, let’s move on.” Jack is a down beat, self abusive hopeless man who in his job debunking miracles and psychic phenomena runs across Kitty, who might very well be unraveling the reality of the world. This one is heavier on story than sex, and despite hiccups (which could have very well been smoothed out by a cynical edit of the storyline itself) comes to a satisfying, whimsical conclusion.
Boundless is available from Liquid Silver Books.
You can read an excerpt here.