Amazon.com: As Francesca (9780553067545): Martha Baer: Books

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As Francesca [Hardcover]

Martha Baer (Author)
2.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)


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Book Description

January 20, 1997
Elaine, ambitious and hardworking, plays by the rules at the office so well that she's on the brink of an impressive promotion. But in the cyberspace world she visits every night as "Francesca," she plays by a different set of rules. There, her cool mastery gives way to abject obedience, as the mysterious "Inez" seduces her into demeaning--and irresistible--sexual adventures. When a careless mistake destroys the barrier between virtual reality and her corporate life--and suggests a disturbing connection between her nightly degradation and her professional success--Elaine becomes obsessed with finding her real-life paramour. Her speculations about Inez's true identity quickly run wild, and soon all her once-innocent encounters with friends and colleagues are charged with sexual overtones.

In a darkly comic, highly erotic tale for our time, Martha Baer captures the allure of anonymous cyber-sex and the elusiveness of gender definitions and social identity. As Francesca will appeal to all those who have ever been seduced by the power of words--and by their own imaginations.

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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Playing out fantasies that won't effect our daily realities is a potent lure for people who inhabit computer chat rooms. In this mesmerizing novel, Martha Baer talks about that phenomenon and adds the potent element of obsession with an online but otherwise unknown lover. Francesca is the online persona of Elaine, a promising young professional who exhibits much savvy while making her way up the corporate ladder. By night, though, as Francesca, she becomes the willing submissive lover of Inez. When Elaine slips and reveals her true identity, Inez disappears, leaving Elaine searching frantically for Inez--with unexpected consequences.

From Publishers Weekly

A whodunit with an edge, this debut novel, first serialized in the online magazine HotWired, is a mildly spicy one-night read. By day, narrator Elaine Botsch has it all together as she works hard to scale the corporate ladder. By night, using the handle "Francesca," she cedes all control to "Inez," her online dominatrix. These two sides of Elaine's nature coexist tidily: the more roughed up and degraded she is during her online trysts, the better she performs at the office. She's just about to clinch a promotion when a bonehead move (she forgets to use her alias when logging on) breaks down the barrier between her fantasy life and her professional one. Seizing on Elaine's gaffe, Inez hints that she knows Elaine off-screen, and the process of trying to detect Inez's real identity sends Elaine into a personal and professional tailspin. Unfortunately, the alienation of Internet sex (even zany S&M) and keyboard communication does infiltrate the book. Few of the characters become three-dimensional or interact convincingly. As Elaine sorts through the possibilities of who her dominatrix is, it's as if she's flipping through a Rolodex of stereotypes: the geeky librarian who might be a closet whipmaster; the control-freak boss who might secretly let loose. Only Elaine lifts off the page, and even her Dr. Jeckyl and Ms. Hyde dichotomy is reiterated rather than developed dramatically. But Baer's writing is taut, and her entertaining story comments intelligently?and with a light touch?on the nature of degradation. (Feb.) FYI: Baer is executive editor of HotWired and was formerly features editor at Wired magazine.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

  • Hardcover: 288 pages
  • Publisher: Broadway; 1st edition (January 20, 1997)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0553067540
  • ISBN-13: 978-0553067545
  • Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.8 x 1.1 inches
  • Shipping Weight: 15.5 ounces
  • Average Customer Review: 2.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #6,000,051 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

15 Reviews
5 star:
 (3)
4 star:
 (2)
3 star:    (0)
2 star:
 (3)
1 star:
 (7)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
2.4 out of 5 stars (15 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Erotic with an engaging plot and well developed characters, July 22, 1999
By A Customer
This review is from: As Francesca (Paperback)
_As Francesca_ tells an intriguing story of one woman's adventure to find the ultimate sexual encounter. This novel is unusual in that it is simultaneously erotic and plot-driven. The characters are interesting and original. I recommend this book to anyone who has an open mind about sex or wishes they did.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars Easy Entertainment with sex thrown in, June 9, 1999
By 
Elena Alperovich (Burlington, MA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
This review is from: As Francesca (Paperback)
My 4 stars are based on the fact that it's a very entertaining book with some kink and online sex thrown in.... if that's your cup of tea - go for it.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Mesmerizing, November 17, 1997
By 
vaughn@andassoc.com (Greensboro, North Carolina) - See all my reviews
This review is from: As Francesca (Hardcover)
For a first-time effort, Martha Baer does an exceptional job of intermingling suspense and erotica in As Francesca. Her protagonist, Elaine, like so many working women, finds herself in a less-than-perfect career. Elaine finds her only way to move onto the fast track is by stimulating her mental focus through submission to an on-line dominatrix. When she mistakenly logs on using her real name, the suspense begins. Baer's characters are strikingly similar to those I've encountered in my own working life - the icy female supervisor, the unapproachable department head, the gossiping underlings. Readers looking for "juicy" sex will be disappointed - As Francesca is a tale which examines the relationship between the nocturnal and the diurnal, and the consequences when the masks we wear are stripped away.
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