“Best Lesbian Romance 2012” Erotic Reading Review
“Best Lesbian Romance 2012” is a new Cleis Press erotic anthology. It is 195 pages long, edited by Radclyffe, and includes 17 different erotic stories. It’s formatted like typical Cleis Press erotica, and it’s a black and white softcover book. It shows two women in sleep clothing cuddling on the front, so it is semi public-acceptable.
As you could guess, the theme for this book is Lesbian Romance, and the book does a good job of sticking with the theme. The book features multiple stories, and all of the stories are about lesbians – usually the two lesbians are not in a relationship, but they discover their love for each other throughout the story. There really isn’t any multiple-person sexual action in this short story erotic collection.
Like all Cleis Press erotic anthologies, Best Lesbian Romance 2012 is a collection of short erotic stories by multiple authors. The stories are all well proof-read, and they are not crass at all – they are still arousing and still use strong language, but it isn’t a crass type of erotica like can be found in other types of erotica and online erotica.
The biggest downside of this book (or an upside!) is the fact that the erotica stories do not seem to be centered on sex. The plots and stories themselves are focused on the relationship between the two characters – the teasing, the seduction, the longing, and the romance. Sometimes, sex is included in the stories, and sometimes, sex tends to be more glazed over in favor of the other romantic aspects of the story. The attention to the characters and their emotions, though, does leave you with warm fuzzy feelings and the sensation that you really got to “know” the character through the story which, if you’re like me, can actually be even better than just getting two characters in bed together.
The Best Lesbian Romance 2012 erotic anthology, there are quite a few good stories. Here are a couple of my favorites:
In “What No One Else Has” by Theda Hudson, the main character is a popular girl who is very popular for play in BDSM circles. When another woman starts checking her out (and asks her out), the main character finds herself just waiting for when this woman will take her bed. It ends with a surprise ending, and while the character acts a bit like a brat, it was still a good read.
In “Note to Self” by Geneva King, the main character’s best friend, who she is secretly in love with, is in a relationship with a girl who is all-too-wrong for her. After a night that shouldn’t have happened, things change between the characters, and it ends in a dramatic ending.
In “Rule 4” by Cheyenne Blue, the main character has a rule against ever dating any of her roommates – that’s how she ends up with owing all of the rent herself when they move out. When her new roommate moves in, and she finds herself emotionally attached and physically attracted, though, she’s having a hard time sticking to Rule 4.
If you get your kicks off of stories that focus on the relationship and the sensuality of the two partners involved in the story, then Best Lesbian Romance 2012 can be just the erotic anthology for you. The stories don’t tend to focus much on the sex aspect of things, but many of the stories leave you with a warm heart, and the teasing and anticipation can sometimes be even better than the sex itself. Thanks to Cleis Press for providing Best Lesbian Romance 2012 for review!
The Erotic Reading Review is a regular column written by Kayla. This column brings you reviews over erotica, instructional, and other types of sex-related books.
