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Goddess of Ivy #1
Serena's Plight
Serena’s Plight is rich with passionate, detailed sex interspersed throughout an equally detailed drama of a young woman’s determination to survive all adversities and never give up her search for love.
Serena Loomis grew up poor, with an alcoholic mother and no father, but with Sam Everhart as her best friend. All she ever wanted was to become Serena Everhart, but Sam inexplicably began to push her away, and finally broke up with her. Abandoned by the only male she’d ever loved or felt loved by, they rarely spoke as Serena started going through boyfriends as fast as her mother, until she confronted a painful Giving them everything wasn't enough.
Now when Sam figures he can’t afford an Ivy League degree, he contacts Serena again with a plan to close his tuition gap by selling her considerable sexual favors to a few rich, trust-funded fraternity brothers, but when he starts to tell her about it, he changes his mind before he gets it out. Serena coerces him into divulging it after all, breaking her heart again.
After a sleepless night, Serena considers her lack of plans or hope for her life, and the prospect that Sam’s elaborate scheme would give her a small fortune at the end of four years. She reluctantly decides she has no better option, and will pursue Sam’s idea as a necessary, but temporary compromise to secure her future. Serena has to pressure Sam into following through with it, but he does. Unfortunately for Sam’s renewed interest, she seems to thrive under the new circumstances. Unfortunately for Serena, although her work provides numerous pleasures, it’s a lot more difficult than she ever imagined, and getting worse, not better.
If you love erotic romance, don’t miss this epic tale!
Serena Loomis grew up poor, with an alcoholic mother and no father, but with Sam Everhart as her best friend. All she ever wanted was to become Serena Everhart, but Sam inexplicably began to push her away, and finally broke up with her. Abandoned by the only male she’d ever loved or felt loved by, they rarely spoke as Serena started going through boyfriends as fast as her mother, until she confronted a painful Giving them everything wasn't enough.
Now when Sam figures he can’t afford an Ivy League degree, he contacts Serena again with a plan to close his tuition gap by selling her considerable sexual favors to a few rich, trust-funded fraternity brothers, but when he starts to tell her about it, he changes his mind before he gets it out. Serena coerces him into divulging it after all, breaking her heart again.
After a sleepless night, Serena considers her lack of plans or hope for her life, and the prospect that Sam’s elaborate scheme would give her a small fortune at the end of four years. She reluctantly decides she has no better option, and will pursue Sam’s idea as a necessary, but temporary compromise to secure her future. Serena has to pressure Sam into following through with it, but he does. Unfortunately for Sam’s renewed interest, she seems to thrive under the new circumstances. Unfortunately for Serena, although her work provides numerous pleasures, it’s a lot more difficult than she ever imagined, and getting worse, not better.
If you love erotic romance, don’t miss this epic tale!
256 pages, Kindle Edition
First published June 17, 2016
1 person is currently reading
235 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 67 reviews
June 22, 2016
You should know from the start I was given this book from Net Galley to review. I always read reviews from reviewers gifted with books with a grain of salt and would expect the same for this review.
I have mixed emotions over Serena’s Plight. While I liked the premise of the story, that her ex-boyfriend pimps her out to his wealthy college school mates so he may supplement his college scholarship and help her save money, it’s a poorly executed book. The dialogue is so contrived and painful not even the sex scenes could save it because they were just as boring and even more painful to read.
Serena’s Plight ends on a cliffhanger to keep us on the edge of our seats until Book 2. This has me shaking my head. Seriously, Serena and Sam’s story is not worthy of a trilogy. It's barely worthy of a book. I don’t know what makes authors think their characters and stories are that riveting I’m going to hang on for three books. No. Tell your story in one book and move the fuck on.
I stuck it through to the bitter end and for that I feel like I deserve a reward.
I have mixed emotions over Serena’s Plight. While I liked the premise of the story, that her ex-boyfriend pimps her out to his wealthy college school mates so he may supplement his college scholarship and help her save money, it’s a poorly executed book. The dialogue is so contrived and painful not even the sex scenes could save it because they were just as boring and even more painful to read.
Serena’s Plight ends on a cliffhanger to keep us on the edge of our seats until Book 2. This has me shaking my head. Seriously, Serena and Sam’s story is not worthy of a trilogy. It's barely worthy of a book. I don’t know what makes authors think their characters and stories are that riveting I’m going to hang on for three books. No. Tell your story in one book and move the fuck on.
I stuck it through to the bitter end and for that I feel like I deserve a reward.
July 8, 2016
This book was a little bit more than what I was expecting, just from reading the synopsis. This is one book that I'm not sure how I feel about.
Definitely a young adult focused book, this story details a young girl and her ex-boyfriend as they go off to college and need a way to earn money. Serena, having no real options for work, decides she's going to get paid for sex at her ex-boyfriend's recommendation. The book details each encounter with her said "boyfriends". And while I was looking for a little more in depth storyline, what you basically get is literally the detail of each encounter and her life as a paid professional.
For the most part, the writing skills were Okay. It seemed a little monotonous only because of the fact that the author had to describe sexual acts over and over and keep them interesting. That is a feat in itself. There were a few parts that felt like it dragged along and lost the flow of the story.
Although this book is mainly is about sex and having sex and teaching sex, it wasn't difficult to read and I really didn't lose interest at all. It was just missing some fire and passion. However, perhaps that's coming up in one of the next two installments that follows the story.
Definitely a young adult focused book, this story details a young girl and her ex-boyfriend as they go off to college and need a way to earn money. Serena, having no real options for work, decides she's going to get paid for sex at her ex-boyfriend's recommendation. The book details each encounter with her said "boyfriends". And while I was looking for a little more in depth storyline, what you basically get is literally the detail of each encounter and her life as a paid professional.
For the most part, the writing skills were Okay. It seemed a little monotonous only because of the fact that the author had to describe sexual acts over and over and keep them interesting. That is a feat in itself. There were a few parts that felt like it dragged along and lost the flow of the story.
Although this book is mainly is about sex and having sex and teaching sex, it wasn't difficult to read and I really didn't lose interest at all. It was just missing some fire and passion. However, perhaps that's coming up in one of the next two installments that follows the story.
October 4, 2016
I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
This is one of those books that I'm not really sure what to say. There is a part of me that wished Serena had punched Sam's lights out for even suggesting such a harebrained scheme after the way he treated her. Instead, she goes along with it feeling like she has no other recourse. As much as I enjoy good erotica, sadly, this was not it. There was too much going on with the author trying to put a positive spin on what Serena was doing by having her find creative ways to help these college boys in their daily life. I'm sorry that I would not recommend this. It just wasn't for me.
This is one of those books that I'm not really sure what to say. There is a part of me that wished Serena had punched Sam's lights out for even suggesting such a harebrained scheme after the way he treated her. Instead, she goes along with it feeling like she has no other recourse. As much as I enjoy good erotica, sadly, this was not it. There was too much going on with the author trying to put a positive spin on what Serena was doing by having her find creative ways to help these college boys in their daily life. I'm sorry that I would not recommend this. It just wasn't for me.
July 12, 2016
The book begins without particularly grabbing my attention. The writing style seemed more high-school and a bit hackish than a fully formed adult mature style. The main character's name is misspelled at one point. There's "weight" insyead of "weigh". I wasn't finding it particularly erotic, as it was pretty dry descriptions that had more of a recitation of the acts feel to me. There was one section passage about how a girl might feel after a sexual encounter that had the most passion and depth in the book, as well as a few other sections that were nicely more " show" than "tell", so I believe the author is capable of more than what she gave us in this book. The whole premise of this story wasn't handled well enough for me to believe it and buy into it. I know that a person's own sexual history might cloud how they view the story, and I'm not going into mine here, but the main character didn't connect well with me as she seemed more of a thought experiment than a real person.
I'm not sure if I'll read the next book in the series. There wasn't enough character development or story arc to force me to leap into tbe next book. I received this at a free or discounted rate in exchange for my honest review.
I'm not sure if I'll read the next book in the series. There wasn't enough character development or story arc to force me to leap into tbe next book. I received this at a free or discounted rate in exchange for my honest review.
July 20, 2016
I am thinking that I am with some of the other reviewer's and maybe this book dues seem high school ish'. I feel for Serina and her take on guys in general. She based love on sex and giving the guys what they wanted. I think there it's something Sam isn't saying. I gave it a three star because it really didn't get redundant and you understood why she did things. Yes, there could have been better things and better writing, but the author got her point across. let's see where she takes us.
I received this ARC grin the publisher via Net Galley for my honest review.
I received this ARC grin the publisher via Net Galley for my honest review.
September 19, 2016
The author gave me for warning about the first book so i was not surprised. This first book leaves you on a cliff hanger. Sorry there is no easier way for me to say it. The book was good it was just the ending that put me in between. The second story picks it up. A must read if you like lots of erotica.
May 23, 2017
Rating: 1 star
(I was given a free copy of this book from the publisher, eXcessica publishing, via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.)
***Minor spoilers***
Serena has never been very well off. She lives in a trailer with her alcoholic mother, and isn't doing well enough in school to be able to go to post-secondary with a scholarship. All she can hope for is a minimum-wage job until she can one day move up to something else. However, her ex-boyfriend Sam has another idea. He wants to go to an Ivy League school, but would be unable to afford it without a little bit of extra help. His idea is that since Serena has no hope of doing anything else, she can sell herself to the rich boys at his university. For $1000 per month every month for four years with five guys, she can have sex with them a few times a week each to make money before going off to work. After weighing the pros and cons, she decides to go ahead with it.
Okay, so you can probably gather from the summary that this isn't your normal erotic romance. Serena basically becomes a prostitute, except she has a nice little cottage house to do it in. I was willing to read that, aside from the fact that she never punched Sam in the face for suggesting this. While the unbelievable plot was a downside (I mean, this girl is literally the same age as me), there were bigger downsides to worry about. Two major things, in fact.
The first thing is that it was unbelievably repetitive. While it was a bit impressive that the author was able to keep all the guys separate in my mind for the most part (I got mixed up sometimes), it felt like the same thing over and over. The chapters were so similar, and after a while it felt like a bit of a "here we go again" sort of feeling. The other thing that I found a lot worse was the dialogue. It was awful, unnatural, and cringy. Sometimes I thought the dialogue was normal, and then whenever it got to the sex, it was strange and awkward, with much more telling than showing. It felt like it was supposed to be an inspirational speech - "You're doing great! Thank you so much!"
Overall, this book kept getting worse as it went on for me. The longer it went, the more repetitive it felt, which took away from my enjoyment. The biggest thing for me, though, was the dialogue. I feel like it would've been better if nobody spoke at all just because of how unnatural and strange the dialogue sounded to me. For those two things, I rated the book one star. If those things were improved, I feel like it would've been at least a star higher. I would not recommend it to anyone.
(I was given a free copy of this book from the publisher, eXcessica publishing, via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.)
***Minor spoilers***
Serena has never been very well off. She lives in a trailer with her alcoholic mother, and isn't doing well enough in school to be able to go to post-secondary with a scholarship. All she can hope for is a minimum-wage job until she can one day move up to something else. However, her ex-boyfriend Sam has another idea. He wants to go to an Ivy League school, but would be unable to afford it without a little bit of extra help. His idea is that since Serena has no hope of doing anything else, she can sell herself to the rich boys at his university. For $1000 per month every month for four years with five guys, she can have sex with them a few times a week each to make money before going off to work. After weighing the pros and cons, she decides to go ahead with it.
Okay, so you can probably gather from the summary that this isn't your normal erotic romance. Serena basically becomes a prostitute, except she has a nice little cottage house to do it in. I was willing to read that, aside from the fact that she never punched Sam in the face for suggesting this. While the unbelievable plot was a downside (I mean, this girl is literally the same age as me), there were bigger downsides to worry about. Two major things, in fact.
The first thing is that it was unbelievably repetitive. While it was a bit impressive that the author was able to keep all the guys separate in my mind for the most part (I got mixed up sometimes), it felt like the same thing over and over. The chapters were so similar, and after a while it felt like a bit of a "here we go again" sort of feeling. The other thing that I found a lot worse was the dialogue. It was awful, unnatural, and cringy. Sometimes I thought the dialogue was normal, and then whenever it got to the sex, it was strange and awkward, with much more telling than showing. It felt like it was supposed to be an inspirational speech - "You're doing great! Thank you so much!"
Overall, this book kept getting worse as it went on for me. The longer it went, the more repetitive it felt, which took away from my enjoyment. The biggest thing for me, though, was the dialogue. I feel like it would've been better if nobody spoke at all just because of how unnatural and strange the dialogue sounded to me. For those two things, I rated the book one star. If those things were improved, I feel like it would've been at least a star higher. I would not recommend it to anyone.
October 13, 2018
Thanks to NetGalley for a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
#1 in the Goddess of Ivy erotica series
I didn't love it, but I also didn't hate it. The original premise was a little weird, but once I accepted it, the story moved along quickly. Serena's high-school boyfriend proposes that she would make a lot of money as a call girl at Cornell where he'll be attending. He wants to make 20% as her "manager." So they set up an arrangement where she has 6 guys in her "harem." Too much, I thought, although props to the author because each was easily distinguishable from the others, and there was certainly plenty of variety to keep things interesting. The sex scenes were fine, although they did become tedious after a while. It was practically a how-to guide on being a call girl. And Serena spent an awful lot of time trying to justify her actions to herself, thinking of herself as dumb and someone who wouldn't amount to anything. However, I ended up liking her in spite of myself. She was kind-hearted and spent a lot of time thinking about "her guys" and helping them build their self-esteem and finding out more about them as people. All in all, this book was a quick and pleasant read. Oh, and it sort of ended in the middle. Not exactly a cliffhanger, but it was clearly left with a lot more of the story to be told. Not sure if I'll continue.
#1 in the Goddess of Ivy erotica series
I didn't love it, but I also didn't hate it. The original premise was a little weird, but once I accepted it, the story moved along quickly. Serena's high-school boyfriend proposes that she would make a lot of money as a call girl at Cornell where he'll be attending. He wants to make 20% as her "manager." So they set up an arrangement where she has 6 guys in her "harem." Too much, I thought, although props to the author because each was easily distinguishable from the others, and there was certainly plenty of variety to keep things interesting. The sex scenes were fine, although they did become tedious after a while. It was practically a how-to guide on being a call girl. And Serena spent an awful lot of time trying to justify her actions to herself, thinking of herself as dumb and someone who wouldn't amount to anything. However, I ended up liking her in spite of myself. She was kind-hearted and spent a lot of time thinking about "her guys" and helping them build their self-esteem and finding out more about them as people. All in all, this book was a quick and pleasant read. Oh, and it sort of ended in the middle. Not exactly a cliffhanger, but it was clearly left with a lot more of the story to be told. Not sure if I'll continue.
July 8, 2016
Serena has grown up poor, unambitious, and unmotivated since she knows her life will never be more than she has now. She'll become her minimum wage earning alcoholic mother struggling to get by on her meager paychecks if her dreams don't come true...Serena envies her childhood best friend, Sam Everhart, for having a normal family, but she also thinks he started her downfall into being used by her string of boyfriends when they had sex and then she was unceremoniously dumped. By the end of high school Serena has given up hope of being with Sam, but when he approaches her with a proposal to help him afford the Ivy Leagues and get her out of backwoods Kentucky she finds herself giving in...even if it means letting the young man she thought she loved turn her into a high priced whore.
I have absolutely no problem with erotica, and I've read a variety of novels with explicit sexual content. However, my initial reaction to the blurb for Serena's Plight was "How is this romantic? She loves him, but she lets him pimp her out? We're supposed to want these people to get together at the end of the trilogy?" (Yes, there are three volumes to Serena's degradation). I decided to give it a chance to prove that the topic could be handled in a compelling, engaging manner. Unfortunately, Serena's Plight was worse than I could have imagined.
First, I envisioned Sam and Serena have a sweet but platonic relationship that bordered on the line between friendship and love, which is why Sam felt that he could beg Serena to sleep with Ivy League men to help him pay his way through college. It still feels pretty icky, but at least there's a bond that helps explain why a young desperate woman would sacrifice herself. The author of Serena's Plight told me that Serena and Sam shared a strong bond, but they'd barely spoken after he dumped her right before high school (oh, and right after they'd had sex a few times). Sam even tells his childhood friend that the "only thing she's good at is sex," which is why he thinks this might be an opportunity for her. Nothing convinced me that Serena cared enough for her first boyfriend to let him pimp her out. Actually, neither of the two primary characters felt well-developed enough to read as more than a bad porno (seriously, at one point Serena goes over her looks and her cup size as she gets older, which feels like male gaze more than female in a book allegedly marketed to women).
The other characters don't have much more in the way of development. Serena's johns mostly exist in terms of their penis size, physique, and how comfortable they are with sex. Other than a few brief exceptions they treat the main character well, but it doesn't change the fact that they are paying for sexual access and companionship. Mrs. Nobels, Serena's elderly landlady, seems too good to be true given that she never questions the rotating stream of young men to the cottage's door and even gives her tenant the head's up that the pool isn't visible from the house and that it's okay to have sex in the hot tub (although I did love her encouraging Serena to read by having her start books by reading them outloud until it was obvious the young woman was hooked). Everyone seems to love Serena, which almost makes her a self-insert except that she's not bright and has a horrible background.
Aside from the abysmal character development the entire book suffers from various typos. The most egregious caused me to snicker wildly because it could have been fixed with a good editor. Authors, there is a distinct difference between "striping" and "stripping;" only one is considered erotic. Once would have been forgivable, but when the wrong word is used nearly twenty times in a long scene I couldn't unsee it.None of the other errors were quite as bad, but repeated words and phrases or bad spacing did not improve the reading experience.
For many readers the characters in an erotic novel don't matter, and they can forgive a multitude of writing sins if the sex is steamy and exciting. Unfortunately, for me Serena's sex scenes with her various johns just got, well, dull. I liked the non-bedroom interaction between the lead and the various young men who had purchased time with her, but it wasn't enough to make me care about the drawn out, mostly vanilla sex scenes between two people in a business transaction. For me part of the thrill of erotica is when there's an element of a chase between two or more people who are drawn together by various forces. Because Serena is an exclusive prostitute there is no chase, no will they-won't they. The sex is a foregone conclusion, which just contributed to my lack of interest in the story. The fact Sam develops jealousy toward Serena's sex partners as the story progresses is supposed to add an element of excitement, but their bond was so poorly developed that I just didn't care. Besides becoming a high class call girl wasn't Serena's idea, so Sam needs to own up to his role in advertising and soliciting her exclusive lovers for pay and accept that he created the situation.
Overall, I started outup hating the concept of Serena's Plight but I ultimately found the presentation even worse. It wasn't well-written enough to be edgy and help me look at things from Serena's perspective (if it had made me understand her struggle with loving her pimp but supporting him by selling herself, etc, I might have been more sympathetic), and the characters all felt like tropes i.e. the incredibly beautiful but poverty stricken girl, the boy next door, the shy guy who can't talk to women, the artist, the intellectual, etc. If you can get past all this and enjoy porn without pictures, this book is for you. However, I cannot, in good conscious, recommend this book to anyone. It's so flat that I would have stopped reading it if I hadn't committed to providing an honest review.
1 Penis Measurement at a Glance out of 5
I have absolutely no problem with erotica, and I've read a variety of novels with explicit sexual content. However, my initial reaction to the blurb for Serena's Plight was "How is this romantic? She loves him, but she lets him pimp her out? We're supposed to want these people to get together at the end of the trilogy?" (Yes, there are three volumes to Serena's degradation). I decided to give it a chance to prove that the topic could be handled in a compelling, engaging manner. Unfortunately, Serena's Plight was worse than I could have imagined.
First, I envisioned Sam and Serena have a sweet but platonic relationship that bordered on the line between friendship and love, which is why Sam felt that he could beg Serena to sleep with Ivy League men to help him pay his way through college. It still feels pretty icky, but at least there's a bond that helps explain why a young desperate woman would sacrifice herself. The author of Serena's Plight told me that Serena and Sam shared a strong bond, but they'd barely spoken after he dumped her right before high school (oh, and right after they'd had sex a few times). Sam even tells his childhood friend that the "only thing she's good at is sex," which is why he thinks this might be an opportunity for her. Nothing convinced me that Serena cared enough for her first boyfriend to let him pimp her out. Actually, neither of the two primary characters felt well-developed enough to read as more than a bad porno (seriously, at one point Serena goes over her looks and her cup size as she gets older, which feels like male gaze more than female in a book allegedly marketed to women).
The other characters don't have much more in the way of development. Serena's johns mostly exist in terms of their penis size, physique, and how comfortable they are with sex. Other than a few brief exceptions they treat the main character well, but it doesn't change the fact that they are paying for sexual access and companionship. Mrs. Nobels, Serena's elderly landlady, seems too good to be true given that she never questions the rotating stream of young men to the cottage's door and even gives her tenant the head's up that the pool isn't visible from the house and that it's okay to have sex in the hot tub (although I did love her encouraging Serena to read by having her start books by reading them outloud until it was obvious the young woman was hooked). Everyone seems to love Serena, which almost makes her a self-insert except that she's not bright and has a horrible background.
Aside from the abysmal character development the entire book suffers from various typos. The most egregious caused me to snicker wildly because it could have been fixed with a good editor. Authors, there is a distinct difference between "striping" and "stripping;" only one is considered erotic. Once would have been forgivable, but when the wrong word is used nearly twenty times in a long scene I couldn't unsee it.None of the other errors were quite as bad, but repeated words and phrases or bad spacing did not improve the reading experience.
For many readers the characters in an erotic novel don't matter, and they can forgive a multitude of writing sins if the sex is steamy and exciting. Unfortunately, for me Serena's sex scenes with her various johns just got, well, dull. I liked the non-bedroom interaction between the lead and the various young men who had purchased time with her, but it wasn't enough to make me care about the drawn out, mostly vanilla sex scenes between two people in a business transaction. For me part of the thrill of erotica is when there's an element of a chase between two or more people who are drawn together by various forces. Because Serena is an exclusive prostitute there is no chase, no will they-won't they. The sex is a foregone conclusion, which just contributed to my lack of interest in the story. The fact Sam develops jealousy toward Serena's sex partners as the story progresses is supposed to add an element of excitement, but their bond was so poorly developed that I just didn't care. Besides becoming a high class call girl wasn't Serena's idea, so Sam needs to own up to his role in advertising and soliciting her exclusive lovers for pay and accept that he created the situation.
Overall, I started outup hating the concept of Serena's Plight but I ultimately found the presentation even worse. It wasn't well-written enough to be edgy and help me look at things from Serena's perspective (if it had made me understand her struggle with loving her pimp but supporting him by selling herself, etc, I might have been more sympathetic), and the characters all felt like tropes i.e. the incredibly beautiful but poverty stricken girl, the boy next door, the shy guy who can't talk to women, the artist, the intellectual, etc. If you can get past all this and enjoy porn without pictures, this book is for you. However, I cannot, in good conscious, recommend this book to anyone. It's so flat that I would have stopped reading it if I hadn't committed to providing an honest review.
1 Penis Measurement at a Glance out of 5
September 18, 2020
ARC provided by Netgalley *Review is mine and unbiased*
I don’t even know what I just read. Is this heroine for real? How in the hell did she just agree to this asinine plan her ex boyfriend hatched? She blamed herself and just came off super unlikable and weak. I hated that it ended on a cliffhanger because as much as I hate them I also just don’t care what happens after this.
I don’t even know what I just read. Is this heroine for real? How in the hell did she just agree to this asinine plan her ex boyfriend hatched? She blamed herself and just came off super unlikable and weak. I hated that it ended on a cliffhanger because as much as I hate them I also just don’t care what happens after this.
March 26, 2017
Holy Cow this was a good book. Tons of sex with willing and paying college guys! Can't wait to read the next book in this trilogy.
I received this book from Netgally for free. This was my honest review.
I received this book from Netgally for free. This was my honest review.
May 30, 2017
The description was good. The book on the other hand was just not good or interesting. Serena is just a sad character with sad circumstances and a sad future. The book really goes nowhere. There is no building of momentum and I just felt disconnected from Serena. I didn’t like it at all.
June 23, 2016
I received this for Netgalley for a honest review. As I am writing this review I have so many mixed emotion. Let me say starting off the book as more then one main character. Most of the main characters I loved and made the book enjoyable but one of the male character I truly hated. Which gives me a love hate relationship with the book. As far as the female character in the book I actually like her. I am sure some that read the book will not have the same feeling that I have when it comes to her.
To be honest I thought I would have a hard time writing the review due to my deep hatred for Sam. Yes I said deep hatred. I found that my love for Serena made it review easy to do though. I would of got into detail with all 6 men but I was scared to give to much away. I will say that I loved each one of the 6 men that actually became her customers.
Serena Loomis had use to have it bad for Sam Everhart but Sam ended up crushing her heart. They were from Eastern Kentucky. Now I know a little about Eastern Kentucky. It is actually an area that I hold dear to my heart. I can honestly say that most people there are dirt poor and can be uneducated, well actually the areas I am familiar with that is. So to say that Serena fits the description of a girl from Easter Kentucky is right on the money.
Sam Everhart was Serena’s ex-boyfriend. I truly hated his character. He might of acted like he had feelings for her but in my eyes there is no way he did. He was scum. Not only did he ask Serena to whore herself out to help pay for the college that he wanted to go to but he also torn her down. I wanted to reach in the book and punch him when he told her the only thing she was good at was sex. He made her feel worthless. I think the way he treated her was one thing that added to tearing down her self-esteem. To be honest I am not certain the author can do anything to redeem him in my eyes. He was not good enough for Serena. He was not even worthy to be in her presence, I do not care if Serena did give in to whoring herself out to help her get out of the poverty she was in.
I have to say that the 6 guys that Sam had introduced into her life after she moved to New York was good for her. Even thought these guys were paying her to have sex with them they done what they could to build up her self-esteem. Being around these 6 men helped her lift her head a little higher. Not only were they good for her but she was good for them. I truly wish she would fall for one of the 6 men. Though she feels like she would never be worthy to have one of them as he real boyfriend, everyone of the these 6 men are worthy enough to have her.
I loved Mrs. Nobels. She was the old woman that Sam rented the cottage from for Serena to live in. I truly believe that Mrs. Nobel knew more then she let on. I think she truly wanted to help Serena build up her self confidence. She was like the mother that Serena never had. I say that because Serena’s mother was not much a mother to her. Serena truly had a sad past.
Due to my hatred toward Sam I am going to give this book a 4 star. Serena was actually a character I like and truly wanted her to see her self worth. I am not certain she really got to that place in this story but this is the 1st book in the series so hopefully in up coming books she will see that.
To be honest I thought I would have a hard time writing the review due to my deep hatred for Sam. Yes I said deep hatred. I found that my love for Serena made it review easy to do though. I would of got into detail with all 6 men but I was scared to give to much away. I will say that I loved each one of the 6 men that actually became her customers.
Serena Loomis had use to have it bad for Sam Everhart but Sam ended up crushing her heart. They were from Eastern Kentucky. Now I know a little about Eastern Kentucky. It is actually an area that I hold dear to my heart. I can honestly say that most people there are dirt poor and can be uneducated, well actually the areas I am familiar with that is. So to say that Serena fits the description of a girl from Easter Kentucky is right on the money.
Sam Everhart was Serena’s ex-boyfriend. I truly hated his character. He might of acted like he had feelings for her but in my eyes there is no way he did. He was scum. Not only did he ask Serena to whore herself out to help pay for the college that he wanted to go to but he also torn her down. I wanted to reach in the book and punch him when he told her the only thing she was good at was sex. He made her feel worthless. I think the way he treated her was one thing that added to tearing down her self-esteem. To be honest I am not certain the author can do anything to redeem him in my eyes. He was not good enough for Serena. He was not even worthy to be in her presence, I do not care if Serena did give in to whoring herself out to help her get out of the poverty she was in.
I have to say that the 6 guys that Sam had introduced into her life after she moved to New York was good for her. Even thought these guys were paying her to have sex with them they done what they could to build up her self-esteem. Being around these 6 men helped her lift her head a little higher. Not only were they good for her but she was good for them. I truly wish she would fall for one of the 6 men. Though she feels like she would never be worthy to have one of them as he real boyfriend, everyone of the these 6 men are worthy enough to have her.
I loved Mrs. Nobels. She was the old woman that Sam rented the cottage from for Serena to live in. I truly believe that Mrs. Nobel knew more then she let on. I think she truly wanted to help Serena build up her self confidence. She was like the mother that Serena never had. I say that because Serena’s mother was not much a mother to her. Serena truly had a sad past.
Due to my hatred toward Sam I am going to give this book a 4 star. Serena was actually a character I like and truly wanted her to see her self worth. I am not certain she really got to that place in this story but this is the 1st book in the series so hopefully in up coming books she will see that.
July 8, 2016
I think this book was miscategorized, instead of erotica as it was advertised it should be listed as a dark comedy. I might have finished it were that the case, but probably not. Serena is a high school student when this book starts and her sexy ex boyfriend has convinced her that she will never amount to anything and unless she agrees to prostitute herself to his few hand picked college buddies for a small fortune for which he will only graciously take as a loan 20%.
Of course she accepts and it goes forth from there into a horribly raunchy overly described bad porno, for which the author desperately wants us to buy into her story that she's actually saving these boys from their pathetic sexless lives. To make matters worse, Carol Madison believes we need three entire books to truly convey this story. I can't imagine reading Serena's Plight in its entirety, let alone two more books. I actually laughed so hard I cried and I've not even been able to do that with true comedic books.
Having said that, Carol Madison isn't a horrible writer, she just needs to not try too hard next time, and try to stay true with the description to give readers what they thought they would get.
Here's the description I thought I was getting: Description
Serena’s Plight is rich with passionate, detailed sex interspersed throughout an equally detailed drama of a young woman’s determination to survive all adversities and never give up her search for love.
Serena Loomis grew up poor, with an alcoholic mother and no father, but with Sam Everhart as her best friend. All she ever wanted was to become Serena Everhart, but Sam inexplicably began to push her away, and finally broke up with her. Abandoned by the only male she’d ever loved or felt loved by, they rarely spoke as Serena started going through boyfriends as fast as her mother, until she confronted a painful truth: Giving them everything wasn't enough.
Now when Sam figures he can’t afford an Ivy League degree, he contacts Serena again with a plan to close his tuition gap by selling her considerable sexual favors to a few rich, trust-funded fraternity brothers, but when he starts to tell her about it, he changes his mind before he gets it out. Serena coerces him into divulging it after all, breaking her heart again.
After a sleepless night, Serena considers her lack of plans or hope for her life, and the prospect that Sam’s elaborate scheme would give her a small fortune at the end of four years. She reluctantly decides she has no better option, and will pursue Sam’s idea as a necessary, but temporary compromise to secure her future. Serena has to pressure Sam into following through with it, but he does. Unfortunately for Sam’s renewed interest, she seems to thrive under the new circumstances. Unfortunately for Serena, although her work provides numerous pleasures, it’s a lot more difficult than she ever imagined, and getting worse, not better.
Serena's Plight is the first book in the Goddess of Ivy trilogy, a contemporary, erotic, and psychological romance.
Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for a honest review.
Of course she accepts and it goes forth from there into a horribly raunchy overly described bad porno, for which the author desperately wants us to buy into her story that she's actually saving these boys from their pathetic sexless lives. To make matters worse, Carol Madison believes we need three entire books to truly convey this story. I can't imagine reading Serena's Plight in its entirety, let alone two more books. I actually laughed so hard I cried and I've not even been able to do that with true comedic books.
Having said that, Carol Madison isn't a horrible writer, she just needs to not try too hard next time, and try to stay true with the description to give readers what they thought they would get.
Here's the description I thought I was getting: Description
Serena’s Plight is rich with passionate, detailed sex interspersed throughout an equally detailed drama of a young woman’s determination to survive all adversities and never give up her search for love.
Serena Loomis grew up poor, with an alcoholic mother and no father, but with Sam Everhart as her best friend. All she ever wanted was to become Serena Everhart, but Sam inexplicably began to push her away, and finally broke up with her. Abandoned by the only male she’d ever loved or felt loved by, they rarely spoke as Serena started going through boyfriends as fast as her mother, until she confronted a painful truth: Giving them everything wasn't enough.
Now when Sam figures he can’t afford an Ivy League degree, he contacts Serena again with a plan to close his tuition gap by selling her considerable sexual favors to a few rich, trust-funded fraternity brothers, but when he starts to tell her about it, he changes his mind before he gets it out. Serena coerces him into divulging it after all, breaking her heart again.
After a sleepless night, Serena considers her lack of plans or hope for her life, and the prospect that Sam’s elaborate scheme would give her a small fortune at the end of four years. She reluctantly decides she has no better option, and will pursue Sam’s idea as a necessary, but temporary compromise to secure her future. Serena has to pressure Sam into following through with it, but he does. Unfortunately for Sam’s renewed interest, she seems to thrive under the new circumstances. Unfortunately for Serena, although her work provides numerous pleasures, it’s a lot more difficult than she ever imagined, and getting worse, not better.
Serena's Plight is the first book in the Goddess of Ivy trilogy, a contemporary, erotic, and psychological romance.
Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for a honest review.
November 26, 2016
A three-star review means that I liked this story. In the beginning, I was not certain that I would. Serena Educates the Ivy League Men would be a good title/tag line.
Serena's best friend throughout childhood is Sam. Serena's first boyfriend is Sam and yet Sam broke up with her during her freshman year. She had sex with six other boys during high school and there was always something missing so during her senior year she didn't have sex at all and she really missed Sam. Serena is not a good student and has a less than stellar home life with alcoholic mom and mom's revolving door boyfriends. When Sam asked Serena about her after school plans, she realizes that she sees nothing in her future but living in the trailer park, working a minimum wage job. She sees a rather joyless future. Sam presents an opportunity that seems rather strange. He is going to Ithaca College, an ivy school and he would like her to accompany him. Since she is so 'good' at sex, he suggests that he arrange for her to have a few select paid sexual partners at a monthly rate at his ivy league college. He desperately needs money as he doesn't have enough for college and he proposes that he 'borrow' 20% of her income until he finishes college. Rather strangely, even though Sam proposes this arrangement and has no reason for having broken up with Serena earlier, he is very jealous of the fraternity boys he has arranged to be her benefactors.
Here is where the psychology comes in. Sam arranges for Serena to rent a guesthouse attached to a larger home, near the college. Although Serena was a poor student at best, her elderly landlady manipulates her to read some of the many books in the library at the main house. As she reads, Serena begins to write her story. Each of the college students in Serena's schedule has a need that she identifies and while she does enjoy her sexual relationships, she also meets a need of each. One of the young men was alcoholic and Serena helps to convince him to seek treatment. Another is extremely shy and a virgin and Serena helps him to engage emotionally and physically. One is hypersensitive to sound and very poor at public speaking so Serena encourages him to practice with ear plugs. Another young man is a very poor student and Serena adds praise and sexual incentives tied to his academic success. In each case, the relationship is much more than paid sexual encounters. The remaining question - since Sam suggested all this and even scheduled the 'benefactors' and set the rules, why is he so jealous?
I think that this story can best be appreciated by reading between the lines.
Serena's best friend throughout childhood is Sam. Serena's first boyfriend is Sam and yet Sam broke up with her during her freshman year. She had sex with six other boys during high school and there was always something missing so during her senior year she didn't have sex at all and she really missed Sam. Serena is not a good student and has a less than stellar home life with alcoholic mom and mom's revolving door boyfriends. When Sam asked Serena about her after school plans, she realizes that she sees nothing in her future but living in the trailer park, working a minimum wage job. She sees a rather joyless future. Sam presents an opportunity that seems rather strange. He is going to Ithaca College, an ivy school and he would like her to accompany him. Since she is so 'good' at sex, he suggests that he arrange for her to have a few select paid sexual partners at a monthly rate at his ivy league college. He desperately needs money as he doesn't have enough for college and he proposes that he 'borrow' 20% of her income until he finishes college. Rather strangely, even though Sam proposes this arrangement and has no reason for having broken up with Serena earlier, he is very jealous of the fraternity boys he has arranged to be her benefactors.
Here is where the psychology comes in. Sam arranges for Serena to rent a guesthouse attached to a larger home, near the college. Although Serena was a poor student at best, her elderly landlady manipulates her to read some of the many books in the library at the main house. As she reads, Serena begins to write her story. Each of the college students in Serena's schedule has a need that she identifies and while she does enjoy her sexual relationships, she also meets a need of each. One of the young men was alcoholic and Serena helps to convince him to seek treatment. Another is extremely shy and a virgin and Serena helps him to engage emotionally and physically. One is hypersensitive to sound and very poor at public speaking so Serena encourages him to practice with ear plugs. Another young man is a very poor student and Serena adds praise and sexual incentives tied to his academic success. In each case, the relationship is much more than paid sexual encounters. The remaining question - since Sam suggested all this and even scheduled the 'benefactors' and set the rules, why is he so jealous?
I think that this story can best be appreciated by reading between the lines.
July 4, 2016
Copy received from Netgalley for an honest review.
Serena Loomis grew up in poverty but the one light in her life was her Sam Everhart. They were best childhood friends until they hit puberty. For a while, Serena and Sam enjoyed their new intimacy, until Sam started to pull away and eventually broke up with her. Now, years later as they prepare to graduate from high school Sam approaches Serena with an indecent proposal. Would she be willing to work as an exclusive call-girl to a small group of his wealthy Ivy League buddies, with himself as her "manager", in order to solve their financial problems?
This was an intriguing book with lots of potential but ended with some disappointment in execution. First of all, I had to overcome a massive distaste for the Sam's treatment of Serena and the callousness of his business proposal. I might have dropped the book at that point if it were not for my sense of duty to offer an honest review. As I continued to read, I grew to enjoy Serena's Plight, not as a romance novel, but as a human interest study. I loved how Carol Madison explored Serena's motivation to proceed with the proposal. I was also drawn in by Serena's initial experiences with each of her new clients. The guys were so different and each had their own story. There were some elements of disbelief and stereotyping that I was willing to overlook for the sake of the narrative.
Where the execution started to fall apart was towards the end. The story started to drag a little and become repetitive. Can you believe that there was actually too much sex? Yeah, really. There was so much repetition that I wanted to skim through it! Serena offers blow jobs and quickies even when her "dates" aren't expecting them and are willing to give her the night off. And this despite the fact that Serena worries repeatedly about her ability to keep up her schedule with the guys long term. The supporting characters all say that Serena is so sweet and likeable and indeed she that is my impression. I found myself hoping that she can turn this enterprise into a brighter future for herself. But I wish the story would move along more briskly. All the time swimming, and doing chores, and reading and getting ready for her dates can be streamlined. I'm sorry that I can't recommend this book, but it had a lot of promise.
Serena Loomis grew up in poverty but the one light in her life was her Sam Everhart. They were best childhood friends until they hit puberty. For a while, Serena and Sam enjoyed their new intimacy, until Sam started to pull away and eventually broke up with her. Now, years later as they prepare to graduate from high school Sam approaches Serena with an indecent proposal. Would she be willing to work as an exclusive call-girl to a small group of his wealthy Ivy League buddies, with himself as her "manager", in order to solve their financial problems?
This was an intriguing book with lots of potential but ended with some disappointment in execution. First of all, I had to overcome a massive distaste for the Sam's treatment of Serena and the callousness of his business proposal. I might have dropped the book at that point if it were not for my sense of duty to offer an honest review. As I continued to read, I grew to enjoy Serena's Plight, not as a romance novel, but as a human interest study. I loved how Carol Madison explored Serena's motivation to proceed with the proposal. I was also drawn in by Serena's initial experiences with each of her new clients. The guys were so different and each had their own story. There were some elements of disbelief and stereotyping that I was willing to overlook for the sake of the narrative.
Where the execution started to fall apart was towards the end. The story started to drag a little and become repetitive. Can you believe that there was actually too much sex? Yeah, really. There was so much repetition that I wanted to skim through it! Serena offers blow jobs and quickies even when her "dates" aren't expecting them and are willing to give her the night off. And this despite the fact that Serena worries repeatedly about her ability to keep up her schedule with the guys long term. The supporting characters all say that Serena is so sweet and likeable and indeed she that is my impression. I found myself hoping that she can turn this enterprise into a brighter future for herself. But I wish the story would move along more briskly. All the time swimming, and doing chores, and reading and getting ready for her dates can be streamlined. I'm sorry that I can't recommend this book, but it had a lot of promise.
August 10, 2016
When Sam approached Serena with the proposition, she never would have guessed what he would have said. In fact, even though they hadn’t really spoken much in years, she couldn’t have guessed how much her heart would hurt that he thought so lowly of her that she would be willing to do the things that he asked. What she also never would have guessed is that she would agree to it but the way that she saw it was that she could make enough money in four years that if she was careful, she would never have to work again. So she agreed… agreed to have sex with five guys two times a week for four years for money, lots of money. What she didn’t count on was how much she would start to hate it or how much Sam would start to resent it.
I HATE giving bad reviews but, this book… I don’t even know where to start so let me start off by saying that the only reason that I gave it 2 stars was because, one- I finished the book and two-there were some humorous parts that made me laugh with the guys. Trust me I’m being very generous with two. Now for the bad points… I’m not gonna list them all because I would be here all day but here are the ones that bothered me the most. The writing style-horrible! It was honestly like reading something that a child had written at times. The language-I’m far from being a prude and love dirty talk in the bedroom as much as the next person but Serena is an eighteen year old girl for crying out loud! In what world would one talk like she does in this book? I mean come on! Then there is the fact that she’s so stupid (her words, not mine) can barely read and has to sound out words but yet she starts writing a book that she hopes to be published one day. No word processor around is that good people. Last but not least, this series is a trilogy!!! Really? two more books about this crap. I barely got through this one, there is no way I can read two just like it.
I received an ARC from the publisher through Netgalley in return for an honest review.
I HATE giving bad reviews but, this book… I don’t even know where to start so let me start off by saying that the only reason that I gave it 2 stars was because, one- I finished the book and two-there were some humorous parts that made me laugh with the guys. Trust me I’m being very generous with two. Now for the bad points… I’m not gonna list them all because I would be here all day but here are the ones that bothered me the most. The writing style-horrible! It was honestly like reading something that a child had written at times. The language-I’m far from being a prude and love dirty talk in the bedroom as much as the next person but Serena is an eighteen year old girl for crying out loud! In what world would one talk like she does in this book? I mean come on! Then there is the fact that she’s so stupid (her words, not mine) can barely read and has to sound out words but yet she starts writing a book that she hopes to be published one day. No word processor around is that good people. Last but not least, this series is a trilogy!!! Really? two more books about this crap. I barely got through this one, there is no way I can read two just like it.
I received an ARC from the publisher through Netgalley in return for an honest review.
July 25, 2016
I not more than a chapter in and I am already thinking how ridiculous this plot is. The writing isn't terrible, but I'm not feeling any connection between Serena and Sam, whose relationship the entire storyline is based upon. Madison drones in telling the story, there's no build up, relationship details, anything heartfelt to connect the author to the audience, the characters to one another- nothing. Then the big proposal is made, and it's ridiculous and unbelievable that this could realistically occur between these two people.
The fact that Serena felt ok about the arrangement because Sam wanted to 'borrow' 20% of her earnings instead of take them like a regular 'manager' is silly. This entire story is absurd and implausible.
I kept reading, as I wanted to be able to give a thorough review, and Madison's thoughts flowed much better once Serena started her dates, and the sex scenes were detailed and steamy for the most part. I did like that she was endeavoring to improve character 'flaws' in her dates, but
I'm still not feeling Sam's supposed feelings towards Serena, even though he is getting angry and doesn't want to talk about her trysts- there's no connection, no pining, nothing.
He keeps putting himself before her- not only whoring her out, but being in control of her money .. That's not love- it's not even like!
The story jumps around a lot, with Serena buying things for characters who hadn't been introduced yet, and by the end, I'm shaking my head. The writing is shallow, the storyline even more so. I enjoy erotica, but this is so poorly written and disconnected, I can't even fathom that there's going to be a sequel! If you like porn, without much of a plot, this would be up your alley, but for those of us who like some intelligence and connection with our erotica, I cannot recommend this book.
*I received an arc from NetGalley for an honest review
The fact that Serena felt ok about the arrangement because Sam wanted to 'borrow' 20% of her earnings instead of take them like a regular 'manager' is silly. This entire story is absurd and implausible.
I kept reading, as I wanted to be able to give a thorough review, and Madison's thoughts flowed much better once Serena started her dates, and the sex scenes were detailed and steamy for the most part. I did like that she was endeavoring to improve character 'flaws' in her dates, but
I'm still not feeling Sam's supposed feelings towards Serena, even though he is getting angry and doesn't want to talk about her trysts- there's no connection, no pining, nothing.
He keeps putting himself before her- not only whoring her out, but being in control of her money .. That's not love- it's not even like!
The story jumps around a lot, with Serena buying things for characters who hadn't been introduced yet, and by the end, I'm shaking my head. The writing is shallow, the storyline even more so. I enjoy erotica, but this is so poorly written and disconnected, I can't even fathom that there's going to be a sequel! If you like porn, without much of a plot, this would be up your alley, but for those of us who like some intelligence and connection with our erotica, I cannot recommend this book.
*I received an arc from NetGalley for an honest review
September 20, 2016
This book was painful to read for me. I just wasn't feeling Serena's plight. I don't care how good of a friend Sam was, I would not have paid his tuition that way. And Sam he was kind of an idiot too.
February 27, 2017
Serena's Plight
is a very explicit look into a woman with low self-esteem and her attempt to provide for herself. Serena finds her options for a future to be very limited, until her friend Sam proposes a business partnership. I appreciated the thought she put into it before making the decision that would change her life, because it did just that. All of a sudden she was financially sound, living in a wonderful place, even starting a friendship with an interesting neighbor. But it isn’t all rosy. Even though she is enjoying the sexual encounters she experiences with all of her clients, she finds it a fairly empty existence. I thought the struggle she endured during
Serena's Plight
was believable. I found her clients to be interesting and unique. These were good qualities to have in the story. However, I found the friendship between her and Sam to be frustrating. That took some enjoyment out of the story. I also found some of the detail to be a bit much at times, which is surprising as that typically doesn’t turn me away. That being said, I am intrigued by where Serena’s story is going and am interested in reading the remainder of the trilogy. The problem is, I can’t find them available anywhere, or even a word about when they will be released. I am one to like resolution for the characters I read about, and I definitely don’t have that.
Note: I received a review copy of this title courtesy of the publisher, via NetGalley.
Note: I received a review copy of this title courtesy of the publisher, via NetGalley.
September 12, 2016
I really wanted to like this book. The summary given made it seem as though it would be an enjoyable read, but after the first couple of chapters, I felt as though I was reading a book written by a teenager.
First off, the whole deal of Sam 'whoring' out Serena seems unrealistic. Yes, I'm sure it could happen, but if I had a friend who suggested this, that person would definitely no longer be my friend any longer, regardless of how much money is involved. It was obvious he didn't value Serena as much as one would hope. Sam really had no reason to be jealous either since it was his idea to begin with.
Then we read detailed accounts of every sexual encounter Serena had with 'her guys' - was that really necessary? It seemed as though 90% of the book detailed her encounters or was just filler material, so that left very little substance to the rest of the book.
I will say that I liked the way Serena dealt with the guys. She honestly tried to help them overcome their uneasiness and some other issues they had (like public speaking), even if her methods were less than orthodox. I liked the guys as well for the most part and had no issues with their characters, the writing style just left a lot to be desired. Serena was made to look like a complete idiot with no street or book smarts either, so her character was unlikeable from the beginning.
Honestly, the author could have wrapped up this whole story in one book, not three. I'm not sure I'll bother reading the other two to find out what happens since this one lacked depth.
Disclaimer: I was provided an ARC in exchange for my honest review.
First off, the whole deal of Sam 'whoring' out Serena seems unrealistic. Yes, I'm sure it could happen, but if I had a friend who suggested this, that person would definitely no longer be my friend any longer, regardless of how much money is involved. It was obvious he didn't value Serena as much as one would hope. Sam really had no reason to be jealous either since it was his idea to begin with.
Then we read detailed accounts of every sexual encounter Serena had with 'her guys' - was that really necessary? It seemed as though 90% of the book detailed her encounters or was just filler material, so that left very little substance to the rest of the book.
I will say that I liked the way Serena dealt with the guys. She honestly tried to help them overcome their uneasiness and some other issues they had (like public speaking), even if her methods were less than orthodox. I liked the guys as well for the most part and had no issues with their characters, the writing style just left a lot to be desired. Serena was made to look like a complete idiot with no street or book smarts either, so her character was unlikeable from the beginning.
Honestly, the author could have wrapped up this whole story in one book, not three. I'm not sure I'll bother reading the other two to find out what happens since this one lacked depth.
Disclaimer: I was provided an ARC in exchange for my honest review.
July 12, 2016
While the concept or hook for this book was unique, the execution fell apart. Despite Serena's constant reminders that Sam is a great guy who is very smart and who stole her heart, there is absolutely nothing provided to the reader to suggest that he is anything but a loser, who cannot articulate his feelings, be creative enough to find alternate solutions to his financial woes except to use his friend, and demonstrate any intelligence beyond setting up a bank account and struggling to keep up with his academics.
On the other hand, the story slowly shows Serena, who truly believes that she has no value outside of being a good prostitute, demonstrating insights into her clients that propel them to achieve and be better. She has such a kind personality and warmth that people meeting her feel compelled to help her (the women's dress shop clerks, Mrs. Noble, her clients), yet the story does not really develop this plot, which could be empowering.
Because Serena seems blinded to Sam (despite his having no clear redeeming qualities except he looks good in a t-shirt), she does not see how much her clients respect her. Ms. Madison describes some of the well and others become cliches of every generic nerd.
If this novel had explored Serena's self-discovery more, I might have been interested in the series. Since it appears to be a love story with Sam as the hero (as repulsive as he his), I have no interest in reading further.
On the other hand, the story slowly shows Serena, who truly believes that she has no value outside of being a good prostitute, demonstrating insights into her clients that propel them to achieve and be better. She has such a kind personality and warmth that people meeting her feel compelled to help her (the women's dress shop clerks, Mrs. Noble, her clients), yet the story does not really develop this plot, which could be empowering.
Because Serena seems blinded to Sam (despite his having no clear redeeming qualities except he looks good in a t-shirt), she does not see how much her clients respect her. Ms. Madison describes some of the well and others become cliches of every generic nerd.
If this novel had explored Serena's self-discovery more, I might have been interested in the series. Since it appears to be a love story with Sam as the hero (as repulsive as he his), I have no interest in reading further.
October 17, 2016
Serena's Plight by Carol Madison where do I start...Okay. This book was labeled a contemporary, erotic, and psychological romance. It is contemporary, it is a lot of sex, it is not even close or anything resembling a romance. This is pages and pages of Serena doing Sam's friends. Sam the boy she has had a crush on since grade school. He turns out to be her boyfriend briefly in high school, and when he goes to college he decides to be come her pimp. Cause in his works, she is really good at sex and needs money. Wow he is a winner. Was the thought I had about him after he uttered that sweet statement. So he goes on to explain how this can help her, and him too. She does it. Why??? I don't know I think she has a self esteem problem. Cause this character is way better than that. But any how she does it and well that is the whole story. We get pages of her doing his friends, his friends lying to her, and using her. Yep that is not romantic to me. I fail to see the romance in this story. I think if you are looking for a book with a ton of sex, with multiple partners, this is the book for you. If you read the blurb and thought there was a romance like me, you are going to be disappointed. It just is not there. For me I am a romantic at heart and this read really let me down.
November 28, 2016
Serena’s Plight. . . turns out not to be much of a plight at all.
A recent high-school graduate—barely—is offered a business deal by an ex-boyfriend who got into an Ivy League university: she becomes a paid companion—as opposed to out and out whore—he’ll be her pimp, and they’ll both make a lot of money.
This was much better, much more than I anticipated; so much more than just the sex. Love the main character and her sense of humor. I was surprised by her insights, of which there were a lot, as this was first person. Obviously I’ve never wondered what a young call girl thinks of, but the author made me like the character, care about her.
It’s also great how she cares about her boys, helps them with their social anxieties and disorders, especially Bartholomew and James. She’s almost like a therapist with benefits. More than anything else, she’s a good person. Her biggest problem is a couple of her would-be johns are mean to her; she got spoiled by the first couple of nice boys.
It’s not often a book leaves me pleasantly surprised. I look forward to the next.
There’s one booboo: near the beginning Sam says he received a scholarship to be on the wrestling team at Cornell, but Ivy League schools do not award athletic scholarships. But that’s the only nitpick. It doesn’t end in a cliffhanger, but there’s definitely a “to be continued.”
A recent high-school graduate—barely—is offered a business deal by an ex-boyfriend who got into an Ivy League university: she becomes a paid companion—as opposed to out and out whore—he’ll be her pimp, and they’ll both make a lot of money.
This was much better, much more than I anticipated; so much more than just the sex. Love the main character and her sense of humor. I was surprised by her insights, of which there were a lot, as this was first person. Obviously I’ve never wondered what a young call girl thinks of, but the author made me like the character, care about her.
It’s also great how she cares about her boys, helps them with their social anxieties and disorders, especially Bartholomew and James. She’s almost like a therapist with benefits. More than anything else, she’s a good person. Her biggest problem is a couple of her would-be johns are mean to her; she got spoiled by the first couple of nice boys.
It’s not often a book leaves me pleasantly surprised. I look forward to the next.
There’s one booboo: near the beginning Sam says he received a scholarship to be on the wrestling team at Cornell, but Ivy League schools do not award athletic scholarships. But that’s the only nitpick. It doesn’t end in a cliffhanger, but there’s definitely a “to be continued.”
June 22, 2016
I loved and enjoyed reading the amazing and steaming, contemporary erotic, romance story written by the fabulously, talented Carol Madison. I received an ARC from Excessica Publishing through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. The story is so mesmerizing that I found myself unable to stop reading the story once I began.
Serena Loomis fell in love with Sam Everhart, gave him her virginity, spent endless nights together, and thought he was her happily ever after. Sam broke up with her and Serena dated and slept with other guys. Near graduation, Sam has a proposition for Serena and breaks her heart all over again. After thinking over Sam's idea, Serena decides to go along with it. It will help with Sam's tuition, and Serena can earn a substantial amount of money and save for the future. Even though Sam enjoys what she's doing, she didn't realize how hard, demanding and sometimes scary it can be.
Read the highly recommended, a must read novel with a tantalizing story line and captivating characters. Can't wait for the next sequel!
Serena Loomis fell in love with Sam Everhart, gave him her virginity, spent endless nights together, and thought he was her happily ever after. Sam broke up with her and Serena dated and slept with other guys. Near graduation, Sam has a proposition for Serena and breaks her heart all over again. After thinking over Sam's idea, Serena decides to go along with it. It will help with Sam's tuition, and Serena can earn a substantial amount of money and save for the future. Even though Sam enjoys what she's doing, she didn't realize how hard, demanding and sometimes scary it can be.
Read the highly recommended, a must read novel with a tantalizing story line and captivating characters. Can't wait for the next sequel!
July 18, 2016
I received a free copy in exchange for my honest review and to be honest, I want sure is I'd like it. But, after reading some of the other hater's reviews, here's my nicer one without a huge spoiler alert, since I've only read the first book in the trilogy!
You really feel sorry for Serena. The way Sam and her subsequent boyfriends treated and hurt her.
After Serena agrees to Sam's proposal, you get to meet the first three of Serena's "boyfriends".
Her first encounter with Carl is a bit over the top. He's an intelligent adult, even if he's shy and she talks to him like he's mentally incapacitated. Though, her other "dates" seem to go well.
It's actually heartwarming how happy Serena is when she's finally given gifts and made to feel special. And it's funny how she helps each one of them with a problem they're having, while giving them favors.
Sam is obviously jealous. You start to wonder if Sam is the one behinds all her boyfriends dumping her so quickly. But you won't find out in this cliffhanger ending. To be continued...
4 stars.
You really feel sorry for Serena. The way Sam and her subsequent boyfriends treated and hurt her.
After Serena agrees to Sam's proposal, you get to meet the first three of Serena's "boyfriends".
Her first encounter with Carl is a bit over the top. He's an intelligent adult, even if he's shy and she talks to him like he's mentally incapacitated. Though, her other "dates" seem to go well.
It's actually heartwarming how happy Serena is when she's finally given gifts and made to feel special. And it's funny how she helps each one of them with a problem they're having, while giving them favors.
Sam is obviously jealous. You start to wonder if Sam is the one behinds all her boyfriends dumping her so quickly. But you won't find out in this cliffhanger ending. To be continued...
4 stars.
August 3, 2016
I received an ARC through NetGalley for an honest review.
Serena's Plight was an enjoyable, if a little disconnected, read. I did feel for Serena and her plight, but sometimes, well, all of the time, felt as if she was rather disconnected to her life. And that in turn, made me feel disconnected to this story. Perhaps that was the author's wish, as Serena's life wasn't something to feel great joy about.
Each guy she was with had their own quirks and were interesting in their own way. I loved Stanley, he was my favorite. He was so sweet, kind and adorable. I really want to know more about Sam, though, as I am sure he's Serena's ultimate love interest. He's not exactly the nicest guy, but perhaps in the next books(s) he can redeem himself.
I have to say I wasn't thrilled there was a cliffhanger, but I wasn't entirely surprised. I figured out not far into it that there was no way Serena's story could be wrapped up in just one book.
Serena's Plight was an enjoyable, if a little disconnected, read. I did feel for Serena and her plight, but sometimes, well, all of the time, felt as if she was rather disconnected to her life. And that in turn, made me feel disconnected to this story. Perhaps that was the author's wish, as Serena's life wasn't something to feel great joy about.
Each guy she was with had their own quirks and were interesting in their own way. I loved Stanley, he was my favorite. He was so sweet, kind and adorable. I really want to know more about Sam, though, as I am sure he's Serena's ultimate love interest. He's not exactly the nicest guy, but perhaps in the next books(s) he can redeem himself.
I have to say I wasn't thrilled there was a cliffhanger, but I wasn't entirely surprised. I figured out not far into it that there was no way Serena's story could be wrapped up in just one book.
June 22, 2016
WOW- I don't even know what to say about this one. The synopsis had me so interested and this book had so much potential, but honestly it was a hot mess.
For being an "erotic" read, it should have been skokie and all kinds of sexy, but I was way too busy laughing and then getting grossed out from the words used and the descriptions to even enjoy any of it. Plus there was SO MUCH description to each and ever scene. I think I read literally 10 pages about the main character taking a bath or about her schedule. It was just too much.
The reason I am giving this 2 stars instead of 1 is because I actually stuck with it until the end and didn't DNF it- which meant it was entertaining on some level.
This book is part of a trilogy, but unfortunately I won't be reading the other books in the series.
For being an "erotic" read, it should have been skokie and all kinds of sexy, but I was way too busy laughing and then getting grossed out from the words used and the descriptions to even enjoy any of it. Plus there was SO MUCH description to each and ever scene. I think I read literally 10 pages about the main character taking a bath or about her schedule. It was just too much.
The reason I am giving this 2 stars instead of 1 is because I actually stuck with it until the end and didn't DNF it- which meant it was entertaining on some level.
This book is part of a trilogy, but unfortunately I won't be reading the other books in the series.
July 5, 2016
This book didn't work for me for a number of reasons. While it had the basic bones of what could have been a good story, it dropped dead in the water. Yes, I get the idea of Serena's (I'm having trouble uttering the word boyfriend here) friend pimp her out after already breaking her heart once, she rethinks his offer as sees this as a way out her poverty stricken upbringing. Dandy. Plot in place, what was lacking? Any development of character, they were weak, undeveloped and honestly too many personalities for each character. Boyfriend was a total horses a**, along with his own lack. We've all read stories were the male MC is a manwhore/pimp/ et al that endear us to them. We find some redeeming quality in them. Albeit sexual. This guy had zip going for him. This book was a struggle to even finish, it felt unpolished and incomplete.
**arc from Net Galley and publisher**
**arc from Net Galley and publisher**
November 24, 2016
3.5 stars. I was bothered by the aforementioned, typos. Serena's situation is unique, but maybe because I went to Cornell for a year from a poor background...I was willing to go along for the ride. The steamy scenes were a little repetitive; and I was frustrated that the main characters started having relations very young, but that wasn't handled with any real sensitivity. The entire decision to leave Sam a mystery was a distinct choice, although I am not sure how smart of a choice it was. I do not usually like stories with cliffhanger endings, but I received an copy for an honest review of this story. I look forward to the remainder of this unconventional coming of age narrative. 3.5 stars, and if the author could avoid the abbreviations (a-spot; f-spot) that would make the book a bit more relatable for those of us not on the current college slang.
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