Endorsements

Malin James (http://malinjames.com/2014/08/20/interview-review-primula-bond-on-drenched/) Interview and Review of Drenched Water is an undeniably sexy element, but it would be easy to stick with the obvious where sex and water are concerned–tropical waterfalls and bikini tops flung aside, etc., etc., etc. But there is nothing pat or cliched in the stories featured in Drenched, edited by Kojo Black, the newest anthology from Sweetmeats Press. “Melusine,” Janine Ashbless’s incredible adaptation of the traditional Breton fairy tale, sinks the reader into an older accountant’s sexual fascination with his much younger wife–the beautiful, mysterious Lucy, whose only unbreakable rule is that she must be alone on Friday nights through noon the next day. But this is no idyllic, innocent fairy tale. Ms. Ashbless weaves brutal longing into the fabric of the story, so that it’s literally drenched with tension, sex and misunderstanding. On the other side of the spectrum is Justine Elyot’s lovely tale, “Naiad,” a tale about a girl on vacation who allows herself to be “captured” by a mysterious stranger for an afternoon. The give and take between fantasy and reality is lovely as the protagonist “indulges her kinky side” by willfully disobeying her captor’s instructions to his, (and her own), delight. And I can’t review this collection without mentioning Vina Green’s haunting fable, “A Divine Solution,” a poignant, literary and achingly hot account of one woman’s lush sexuality amid a literal and spiritual drought. And then, of course, there was Primula Bond’s gorgeous contribution, the sexy, cinematic romp of a story called “The Pool Party.” As I was reading it, I kept envisioning French and Italian films staring Sophia Loren and Brigitte Bardot, with exotic beauties and temperamental men in steeped in decadence…but more on that lovely piece in one moment. Drenched contains some of the highest quality literary pornography that I’ve read in a very long time. And I do mean “literary pornography,” for as beautifully written and literate as these stories are, they are gorgeously and unapologetically pornographic, depicting the joys and complications of sex, dominance and submission in ways that are everything from fleetingly incidental to fraught with consequence. It was an absolute pleasure to read and I cannot recommend it highly enough. Tamsin Flowers (http://tamsinflowers.com/2014/08/21/drenched-itll-make-you-wet/) Extract and Review of Drenched I love my job for so many reasons – but one of the really great ones is that I get to sit and read erotica all day long and it’s work. I’m not slacking, I’m actually working hard. Turning the pages as fast as I can to reach the really dirty bits… After all, somebody’s got to do it. And this week, I’ve had the exquisite pleasure of reading Drenched, a new anthology of wild and wet erotica from Sweetmeats Press, compiled by Kojo Black. I’d heard of Sweetmeats Press quite some time ago and I knew that they produced illustrated erotica, but this was the first time I’d actually read any of their output. And, boy, will I be reading some more! Drenched isn’t illustrated but the five water-themed stories are completely capable of conjuring up a series of delectable images in your mind – from Janine Ashbless’s seductive “Melusine” to Justine Elyot’s adventurous “Naiad”, from Primula Bond’s riotous “Pool Party” to Lisette Ashton’s wicked executive in “Hard to Swallow” and Vina Green’s vicar’s-wife-with-a-secret in “A Divine Solution”. The quality of the writing is excellent throughout and, although sticking to the central theme, there is plenty of variety in the stories Black presents. Droughts are foiled, office politics are played and parties explode with a bang and all through it, the erotic power of water runs with an insistent throbbing that sweeps you from one story to the next. But be careful of the undercurrent – you could be in danger of being sucked under! I have to say that my favorite story was Justine Elyot’s “Naiad”