Posts Tagged ‘Venus in Furs’

I love Stephanie Bond. I’ve read most of her books and enjoy her sense of humor. Until I got to this one. It stopped me cold.

The premise is a group of ladies who start a book club with a little added spice. The librarian, Gabrielle Pope, is nearing 40 and challenges the other women of the group to take their favorite erotic book and make it real. Find themselves a man to practice it on, so they don’t end up like her. She’s not even 40 for pete’s sakes! Sorry, for me the premise just doesn’t make sense. As a matter of fact, I moaned and groaned throughout the book, not in suppressed lust, but in agony. Several times I even tossed it off to one side, then started reading again, owing it to myself to wring my full $4.99 out of the book.

Granted, it’s four short stories all crammed into 209 pages. That makes it tough for anyone, even Stephanie Bond to write a good story. And the one, I didn’t mind so much. Cassie, an architect, tries to win back her ex-boyfriend, using Lady Chatterly’s Lover as an example. After that, it goes downhill.

Shy retiring Page seduces her boss, with a dominatrix overtone. Yes, including a black leather bustier. Party girl Wendy seduces her best friend via Fanny Hill and icy Jacqueline goes for The Slave.

Maybe I’m a prude, and that’s why I didn’t like the book, or maybe not. There’s some terrifying writing reminding me of the 70’s romances I used to read (yes, I am that old) but the plots themselves are just truly unbelievable.

Buy it if you’re a fan of any of the above mentioned books, otherwise save your $4.99 for something more exciting like a bag of Hershey chocolates.

carrie