Bliss [Hardcover]

Fiona Zedde (Author)

Product Details

• Hardcover: 297 pages
• Publisher: Kensington Books (2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 073945644X
• ISBN-13: 978-0739456446
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.9 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (34 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,739,085 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Fiona Zedde is a transplanted Jamaican currently living and working in Tampa, Florida. She is the author of six novels - Bliss, A Taste of Sin, Every Dark Desire, Hungry for It, Kisses after Midnight, and Dangerous Pleasures - as well as three novellas (Pure Pleasure, Going Wild, and Sexual Attraction) published in the collections Satisfy Me, Satisfy Me Again, and Satisfy Me Tonight, respectively.

Her short fiction has appeared in various anthologies including Necrologue: DIVA Book of the Dead and the Undead (DIVA), Wicked: Sexy Tales of Legendary Lovers (Cleis), Iridescence: Sensuous Shades of Lesbian Erotica (Alyson), and Fist of the Spider Woman (Arsenal Pulp). In 2006 and 2008, her novels Bliss and Every Dark Desire were finalists for the Lambda Literary Award.

Writing under the name "Fiona Lewis," she has also published a novel of young adult fiction called Dreaming in Color with Tiny Satchel Press.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars (RAW Rating: 4.5) - "This is Good", November 9, 2005

By 

The RAWSISTAZ Reviewers (RAWSISTAZ.com and BlackBookReviews.net) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Bliss (Paperback)

BLISS by Fiona Zedde chronicles a few months of Bliss Sinclair's life as she fights through heartache, discovers herself and finds love. Bliss has a great job as an accountant with a major publishing house. She has a very attractive boyfriend and life seemingly could not be any better. However, for Bliss something is missing. She craves more, but she just doesn't have a clue to what it is. When Bliss thinks she has found the missing link, she finds herself in situations so carnal and taboo that she is unprepared when things come crashing down.

Bliss returns to her childhood home in Jamaica at the invitation of her father to lick her wounds and rediscover herself. Not only does she reconnect with her father, she finds out she has a sister who introduces her to Hunter Willoughby. Bliss is immediately drawn to Hunter; in fact, the sparks appear immediately. The couple takes their relationship slow, but there is no denying their chemistry. From their innocent sightseeing adventures, subtle brushes against one another and lingering looks, there is no way the two can stay away from each other. Yet, they must be prepared to deal with the conflicts involved in their unconventional relationship.

The novel is rich in texture due to the author's ability to bring the lushness, beauty and culture of the Jamaicans to life. Her breathtaking descriptions of the landscape, food, weather and the ocean are vivid and vibrant and help to make this novel standout with a Caribbean flair. Fiona Zedde has written an astonishing account of a woman who discovers who she really is and how beautiful finding true love can be. The story is fresh and well written. The plot is well structured. The characters were ones you could never forget because the author allows readers to connect with them on a very honest and emotional level. At the beginning, the sexual trysts were a bit too taboo and later the intimacy between the main characters was described explicitly; however that is just a portion of the novel. The real story is the discovery of true love by our main character. Readers will have to put their judgments aside and see love from a different point of view. If they are able to do so, they will find this story will resonate long after the novel is finished.

Reviewed by Cashana Seals
of The RAWSISTAZ™ Reviewers

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Blissfully Yours, January 9, 2006

By 

Ms Toni "Readinista Extraordinaire" (Midwest - USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Bliss (Paperback)

Bliss Sinclair is in an unfulfilling relationship with her boyfriend - sexually and mentally. Then along comes Regina. There's just something about Regina that intrigues and stimulates Bliss. Before she knows it, she's sexually involved with Regina - a first for her. Regina unleashes in Bliss things she didn't even know existed. As Bliss' body climbs to new heights sexually, Regina quickly grounds her by announcing the end of their short lived involvement. Turned out and wide open, Bliss doesn't know what to do next with her new-found sexuality.

There's no place like home...

Bliss decides to return home to her native Jamaica to regroup. She hasn't been back there since the sudden death of her mother years prior. She returns to a land and family that has changed over the years. Originally planning to use the time to rejuvenate her soul, Bliss gets more than she bargained for as she discovers new things about her father, mother and herself.

Bliss is one woman's journey to self discovery. Reader beware, the sex in this book is WHOA. Silly me, in reading the synopsis initially, I didn't realize this book featured lesbian relationships. So I went on a new journey myself. Aside from an occasional threesome in other books, my experiences with female/female relationships is limited. Bliss expounds on a relationship beyond just sex. There were some times that the book appeared slow, but overall this was an enjoyable read. As E. Lynn Harris seems to have the male market on lock, if Fiona keeps this up, she'll soon have the female market.

3.5 stars

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars So Seductive, September 1, 2005

By 

Sistahs on the Shelf "The Home for Readers of... (Florida, USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Bliss (Paperback)

The tagline on Fiona Zedde's debut novel, Bliss, reads, "Every woman wants it." If "it" is based on the steamy scenes found within these pages, then Zedde ain't never lied.

Zedde's book is a tasty, colorful journey journey to a woman's sexual satisfaction. Bliss Sinclair, an uptight accountant, lives her life by the numbers. She has the boyfriend, the good-paying job, and a spacious apartment--the things some define as success. But no one knows that her relationship with Yuen isn't as great as it seems. And no one knows how she lays awake a night, suffering from bouts of insomnia.

What's missing in her life is passion: passion about her boyfriend, her job, her life.

That is until she meets Regina, an author who chronicles her sexual experiences through her books. They share a flirtation that leads to Sinclair dumping her boyfriend. Regina teaches Sinclair the pleasure of woman, and opens her up to a buffet of sexual indulgences Sinclair never thought she'd savor. Then as quickly as she came, Regina dumps Sinclair, telling her that a month is her limit with flings. Sinclair is heartbroken, believing that she had found the woman of her dreams, someone who had taken her to sexual heights she'd never climbed before.

To get away from the disaster she calls her love life, Sinclair takes her father up on an invitation to Jamaica. Days later, Sinclair returns home to the roots she abandoned after her mother was killed on the island. After her death, her grandmother took her to the States, and she never looked back. Now she's reintroduced to her homeland--and her father's new wife, a stepbrother, and a half-sister she never knew she had.

Lydia is the daughter her father illegitimately conceived, and the girlfriend of the woman Sinclair finds fascinating. Sinclair would never dream of taking her sister's lover, but Hunter is tantalizing with her perfect ebony skin, sleek body, sensuous lips, and long dreadlocks. Sinclair and Hunter become friends through Lydia, and share a connection.

Everything changes, though, when Lydia and Hunter decide to mutually separate. Soon Sinclair and Hunter slowly act on their growing attraction. It isn't long before their lust blossoms into deep affection. Despite her joy in finding Hunter, Sinclair is still scared--to fall in love and to leave love behind. She'll be returning to America soon, without Hunter. Or does she?

Bliss is a novel you'll want to read in one sitting. Zedde's writing is intensely stimulating, as she brilliantly captures the spirit of the island. And the sex scenes were detailed so vividly, you could envision every touch or stroke. You will root for Sinclair and Hunter, as you can tell they truly belong together. Zedde leaves nothing to the imagination, but with each page page, makes you wish for that "it."