First validating review!
Hi all,
Last night I got a review on my first romance novel from someone I really respect, an Ivy League college blogger involved with the kink world. The review to me in a personal email touched my core by validating my efforts and passion for writing my first lesbian romance novel.
Once she gives me permission, I will release her name and link. But for now, here's what she wrote me:
"I was blown away by your book. It may be because I've never read anything quite like it before or because it's been a long time since I've read erotic literature in general, but I was hooked from the first page (to be quite honest, maybe from the 20th page) and read the whole thing in three hours, in one go.
I was pleasantly surprised by the depiction of kink you show in your book--I was expecting the sort of "Fifty Shades"-style of mostly nonconsent, but the level of consent made explicit was impressive and most importantly, really organic. My interaction with kink is more formal than what your book talked about--I go to play parties, have fun, and come back to vanilla life, despite being out. What you depict in your book is something that I've always wanted, and it hit me hard.
It felt genuine--the conflict and the developing relationships and the changing boundaries. Most importantly, it felt like the interaction between your characters was healthy, real, and consensual.
I'm beyond impressed with your book, and want to thank you for sharing it with me! "
Needless to say, I'm over the moon at this reaction - Lorelei
Last night I got a review on my first romance novel from someone I really respect, an Ivy League college blogger involved with the kink world. The review to me in a personal email touched my core by validating my efforts and passion for writing my first lesbian romance novel.Once she gives me permission, I will release her name and link. But for now, here's what she wrote me:
"I was blown away by your book. It may be because I've never read anything quite like it before or because it's been a long time since I've read erotic literature in general, but I was hooked from the first page (to be quite honest, maybe from the 20th page) and read the whole thing in three hours, in one go.
I was pleasantly surprised by the depiction of kink you show in your book--I was expecting the sort of "Fifty Shades"-style of mostly nonconsent, but the level of consent made explicit was impressive and most importantly, really organic. My interaction with kink is more formal than what your book talked about--I go to play parties, have fun, and come back to vanilla life, despite being out. What you depict in your book is something that I've always wanted, and it hit me hard.
It felt genuine--the conflict and the developing relationships and the changing boundaries. Most importantly, it felt like the interaction between your characters was healthy, real, and consensual.
I'm beyond impressed with your book, and want to thank you for sharing it with me! "
Needless to say, I'm over the moon at this reaction - Lorelei
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The goodness I see: The blog of Lorelei Elstrom
A blog with updates, thoughts, and observations as I enter into the world of romance fiction writing.
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She then when on to formalize her thoughts in an Amazon review: ----
I completed this book over the course of one morning, and I could not be more impressed with it. Ms. Elstrom takes us under the wing of Meg Curtis to depict a stunningly honest and organic relationship between two women, two uncertain people coming to terms with kink as something more nuanced and intricate than a simple set of actions. Over the course of this book, we are privy to the thoughts and feelings of Meg as she grows and changes as a woman--we see her feelings change from muddled to exuberant, and her actions change from hesitant to purposeful as she and Regina discover each other's lives, bodies, and identities.
Owning Regina is not a book about fantasy kink. There is no magic telepathy between people, no porno-levels of endurance, no "perfect" interactions or scenes. Rather, this book displays kink as it is in real life: consensual, communicative, and imperfect, a dance between people.
To be honest, I'm impressed at the realism portrayed in this book. The conflict feels real and pressing; the characters are deep, well-developed, and likeable, and most importantly, the writing touches me on an emotional level. I found myself feeling what the characters felt, and (though maybe this is just from too much time in the scene myself) feeling every sensation described in vivid detail. This is a diary--it's not hardcore erotica, but it's not a documentary either. It's gritty, dirty, raw, and satisfying in a way that neither of the two are on their own.
The inevitable comparison will come to Fifty Shades of Grey--this is nothing like it. The portrayal of kink shown in Fifty Shades is like buying a bucket of sand and a plastic palm tree and calling it Hawaii. It's fake, fantastical, and indicative not of kink but of all the popular misconceptions surrounding it that are embedded in our mass media. The author even clarified (quite proudly, even) that she had never done any of the things she wrote about. Owning Regina, in those respects, is completely different--and that's why it's so good.
I would recommend this book to anyone who wants more than a cheap thrill out of their reading, to anyone who enjoys seeing positive, realistic, and consensual depictions of kink in writing, and to anyone who wants to understand what kink is--what kink really is.
Five stars for an amazing read, and hats off to Ms. Elstrom for writing such an exquisite book!