Fairy Tale Lust: Erotic Fantasies for Women [Paperback]

Kristina Wright (Editor), Angela Knight (Foreword)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 6, 2010

Award-winning novelist and top erotica writer Kristina Wright goes over the river and through the woods to find the sexiest fairy tales ever written. Playfully seductive, supernaturally sensual, and darkly erotic, Fairy Tale Lust showcases clever twists to classic tales and introduces new stories inspired by the ever-popular genre. Here, a walk in the forest is likely to lead to an erotic encounter with a mysterious stranger and the silver light of a full moon might illuminate an orgy of sensual delights! Highly imaginative and downright stimulating, these stories take fairy tale erotica to the next level. Top erotica contributors deliver sizzling work, including Janine Ashbless, Rachel Kramer Bussel, Delilah Devlin, Shanna Germaine, and Saskia Walker.

Product Details

• Paperback: 256 pages
• Publisher: Cleis Press; 1 edition (July 6, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1573443972
• ISBN-13: 978-1573443975
• Product Dimensions: 0.6 x 5.6 x 8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.5 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (56 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #965,504 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

36 of 37 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Some gems, some clunkers, overall quite good April 29, 2010

By K. Bunker VINE™ VOICE

Format:Paperback|Amazon Vine™ Review (What's this?)

Funny how marketers seem to have decided that in order to sell a book of erotica, it has to have "for women" in its title. Well I'm a guy, and I not only read this book, but I thought it was pretty good. Does that mean my guy-card is going to be revoked? Anyway, this is a collection of 18 erotic "fairy tale" stories. Some are retellings of classic fairy tales, others merely evocative of the fairy tale genre. Some take place in a contemporary setting, others not. Some begin with "Once upon a time" or "Once there was...", others not. Some use quasi-olde-tyme language, others not. Some are quite well written, others not.

The quality of these tales varies widely, from the plain awful to the remarkably good. I'd say the majority of them are nice little appetizer-sized helpings of cleverness, charm, humor (or melancholy) and sexiness. A few soar above that modest level of success, and a few fall short of it.

"The Obedient Wife" by Delilah Devlin: One of those modestly successful stories. Nicely written, clever and sexy.
"How the Little Mermaid Got Her Tail Back" by Andrea Dale: Rather rambling and unfocused, and while it may seem odd to say this of a story that's a retold fairy tale, its believability is ruined by a glaring hole in the description of a central scene.
"Ducking" by Craig Sorensen: A well-intentioned retelling of The Ugly Duckling, wherein the protagonist comes to realize that she's suffering from a distorted self-image, and in fact is a Total Hottie. Rather unsophisticated writing compared to the better stories in this book, and what are those references to ninjas doing in here?
"Three Times" by Justine Elyot: Charming and funny, with a Happily Ever After lesbian marriage ending....
"Ellie and the Shoemaker" by Louisa Harte: Not bad, but is often awkward and unrealistic in its depiction of the characters' behavior and motivations.
"The Pub Owner's Daughter" by Alegra Verde: Rather clumsily, even ineptly, written. "a thin fellow with almond eyes from the East was chosen." (Yes, but which direction did his nose come from?)
"Sleep Tight" by Janine Ashbless: Probably began its life as a neat little five-page story. Unfortunately someone put it on a rack and brutally stretched it out to eleven pages.
"Her Hair is a Net, Woven" by Shanna Germain: A delightful, mysterious, poetic piece that, from the title onward, uses language exquisately. I only wish I could have figured out what the dang story was.
"Mind your Peas and Qs" by Allison Wonderland: A painfully unfunny, painfully stupid attempt at humor. Filled with lines like "Father chuckles, his eyes crinkling, his pupils twinkling." Ha. Ha. [Barf]
"In the Dark Woods" by Kristina Wright: The best written, most intelligent of the stories in the volume, and coincidentally also the sexiest. Truly a finely crafted story, superficially about an artist having an affair with a married man. Written by Kristina Wright, the editor of this book. Too bad the only other piece of writing that turns up in an Amazon search for this author looks like just an ordinary romance novel.
"Gildi and the Unwieldy, Ineffectual Committee of Bears" by Jeremy Edwards: A clever story with a funny fairy tale connection, reasonably well written and quite sexy.
"Frosted Glass" by Aurelia T. Evans: A lovely, melancholy story about the loss of love. "[The Snow Queen] told me that I could have warmth and die, or I could freeze and cease to live."
"Gingerbread Man" by Carol Hassler: A very nice story, sort of a ghost story with a cinnamon-flavored twist.
"All in a Day's Work" by Saskia Walker: A nice little piece about a magical dominatrix. Well done, but the magical element is quite superfluous to the story.
"Big Bad Wolf" by Alana Noël Voth: Distractingly written in the present tense and a little amateurish. "The wolf regards him beneath the awning in his boxer shorts..." Funny, I would have expected a wolf to wear briefs.
"The Kiss" by Michelle Augello-Page: Written in a highly stylized manner that I found pretentious and off-putting. Others might find it artistic or some such.
"The Return": By Charlotte Stein. A close second for my choice as best story in the book. Wonderfully artistic writing, beautifully evocative in its renditions of mood, emotions and steamy sex. Unfortunately the last few paragraphs puncture the mysterious, magical mood of the story by providing a prosaic (and hugely unlikely) explanation.
"The Stone Room" by A.D.R. Forte: In a fantastical setting, a man finds bliss at the receiving end of a BDSM relationship. "She kept his heart fast, bound with brambles that made him bleed and sigh." Nicely done. Read more ›

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Very Hot book but not what I expected May 15, 2010

By Steph VINE™ VOICE

Format:Paperback|Amazon Vine™ Review (What's this?)

Fairy Tale Lust is an anthology of short erotic and semi paranormal stories. I had high expectations for this book because I really enjoy books by Angela Knight and thought this book would have stories with a similar style. (But I discovered that Angela Knight does not have a story in this book and only writes the forward.) Warning: Even if you like your books a little racy I must repeat these shorts are NOT for the 'vanilla' romance reader.

As mentioned earlier, these stories are not what I expected. Most of the stories are set in modern times and loosely have a sort of fairy tale twist. I thought the stories would be based on common fairy tales set more in a `fantasy' world. (I think, Enchanted: Erotic Bedtime Stories For Women by Nancy Madore did a better job of fairy tale erotic romances) Because of this I felt the shorts were not as interesting as I thought they could be especially since the stories were very short stories and therefore the plots are not very complex.

I think if you are looking for vignettes that are kinky (shocking and titillating) and for the most part set in modern times, then you will enjoy this book. But if you expect stories that really follow a fairy tale theme and have more a plot this book may disappoint. (Although there are a few which do such as a Beauty and the Beast type story by Delilah Devlin.) Because I like the emotional connection between 2 characters and these shorts were brief. I couldn't get into the stories as much as I hoped. But if you are just looking for some inventive and erotic sex stories that are quick `flings' then this book will satisfy.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars I really liked this book May 10, 2010

By Alice in Wonderland TOP 1000 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:Paperback|Amazon Vine™ Review (What's this?)

This book is a collection of eighteen erotic short stories, most written by women, and a few by men. The stories are written around a fairy tale motif, but the authors were allowed wide discretion as to how their stories fitted in with the fairy tale. Some are set in that Other Place and Time, such as Delilah Devlin's The Obedient Wife, a wonderful take on Beauty and the Beast. While others are quite modern and realistic, bringing the fairy tale into the here and now, such Andrea Dale's excellent How the Little Mermaid Got Her Tail Back.

As always with collections of works by varied authors, there will be some that you like and some that leave you cold. As for me, I rather liked the stories in here, with How the Little Mermaid Got Her Tail Back and Ducking by Craig Sorensen. I really liked this book, and I am very glad for the time I spent with it.

(Review of Fairy Tale Lust: Erotic Fantasies for Women)

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Fun, sexy anthology with a range of genres and voices May 8, 2010

By Hedera Femme VINE™ VOICE

Format:Paperback|Amazon Vine™ Review (What's this?)

While the criticism from other reviewers that this book contains no one particular type of erotica is correct: the selection of stories is as fun as it is varied with no emphasis on one style. Readers looking for a specific genre of erotica may be disappointed for the most part when they see their preferred type only once or twice, so consider the book to be a sampling of different voices and predilections with more of a focus on the reworking of fairy tale themes; if the attitude is to enjoy the stories from that perspective, then this book is wonderful!
None of the stories are really hard-core, and while some toy with less mainstream sexualities, none fully delve into that. Because each story is so different, this is a great starting point to finding authors you like, so it's a great starting point into erotica.

The best way for me to review this is to give a little hint of what each story contains, so hopefully that will give you an idea of what to expect and whether or not you want to buy this naughty little read:

The Obedient Wife
Somewhat of a period style, but not quite as far as "ye olde storie", this is about a poor miller with a beautiful daughter who wishes to get the most money from marrying her off. She finds other ways to make her own money on the side while technically maintaining her virginity until the right man proves not only the highest bidder, but something of a beast (literally). Elements of light domination and fairy-tale bestiality (think Beauty of the Beast, not a donkey show). Well-written and a good story in its own right.

How the Little Mermaid Got Her Tail Back
Story of female submission with a touch of kink involving costume play with, you got it, a mermaid outfit. Ok story. Modern tone....

Ducking
A story of the sexual awakening of a woman in her 40's, "Ducking" had a very empowering feel that goes against much of our society's double standard that mocks the so-called "cougar". Great moral to the story with a strong central character finding what she wants, even if a little later in life. Modern feel with a feminist undertone and "take what you want" attitude. Loved it!

Three Times
Set in a vaguely medieval/renaissance period, this is a sort of sleeping beauty/enchanted princess story with the focus on freeing her from a curse. Girl-on-girl focus with some other things (and a man) thrown in the mix, and told in a similar tone as traditional fairy tales, which is charming way to deliver stories. Short and sweet.

Ellie and the Shoemaker
Though the setting and feel is modern, it has a distinctly fairy-tale quality to it that felt refreshing and inventive. Set in Britain (from the subtle language differences), the story is of a young woman who finds temporary work under a shoe cobbler who laboriously crafts high quality, though lackluster shoes by hand. In exchange for the room upstairs and a humble salary, she takes in interest in him immediately, though being too shy to approach him, finds ways to express her affection while playing the part of shoe-fairy, anonymously crafting sexy shoes that boost the business. Sexually pretty straightforward with the hint of a shoe fetish, but not much emphasis on that (oddly enough). Very well-written with a fun story!

The Pub Owner's Daughter
Another story set in a vaguely medieval/renaissance period, this does have some of that "ye olde storie" feel, but not in an overly hokey way. The pub owner's daughter is given the freedom to seek a man who will give her "release", and as she picks one man each week, she cannot quite find him until the end. Some femdom elements, but nothing super hard-core.

Sleep Tight
A maintenance man/groundskeeper has to work on an old abandoned house and finds something unexpected inside. Some supernatural ghost-story type stuff, but nothing overtly worked into the story. Builds up to something, that as it turns out, doesn't quite live up. Not the best one in the book, but ok and fun.

Her Hair is a Net, Woven
Like sleep tight, there are some supernatural elements and a sense of mystery. Also like Sleep Tight, there is a build to something that feels a little disappointing and somewhat vague, though the journey there is amusing enough. Pretty straightforward, sexually speaking, though they are in the water.

Mind Your Peas and Q's
A reversal of the princess and the pea with some slight femdom elements within otherwise vanilla sex. Ambiguous time period with quirky modern stuff within a sense of period. Interesting voice, ok story, and fun overall.

In the Dark Woods
Interesting story of an affair with subtle themes discussing and questioning established religion and morality. Passion as the sacred, fidelity to desire, there are also some allusions to the supernatural, but nothing is really confirmed as such. The story is intellectually provocative, though not overly so, and is well-written and interesting.

Gildy and the Unwieldy, Ineffectual Committee of Bears
Set in a frat house, a young female rocker to play for an event is just looking for a place to sleep. Well not sleep, technically. To get off. Like Goldilocks, she struggles to find that place with those relatively useless boys providing little help. Basically a masturbation story. Ok, but nothing spectacular, the reader shares the protagonists frustration without the satisfaction.

Frosted Glass
Set some time in the past in an icy clime, the story revolves around having one's heart stolen by the Snow Queen. Odd, meandering story with an unhappy marriage and an unhappy woman, some supernatural themes, and mostly vague girl-on-girl sexuality. Ok, but not the best one in the book.

Gingerbread Man
Story of loss, resurrection, the threat of loss again, and ... well, I can't ruin it for you. It has a melancholy, nostalgic feel for the most part but is emotionally compelling. Modern with fantastical feel, well-written, and unconventionally interesting. There's some pun here about vanilla/gingerbread sex.

All In a Day's Work
Femdom set in an office with some fairy tale elements. Short, sweet, and cute.

Big Bad Wolf
Modern setting with a reversal on the traditionally male beast. Sweet and earthy with a happy ending.

The Kiss
Story of a supernatural body thief who uses sex to take his or her new body. Interesting, though not entirely a new concept.

The Return
Very well-written story that stands on its own merits, the author builds tension and suspense when the husband, returning home, is not himself. The wife, filled with fear and apprehension, is at the same time relieved not to see the same man she long ago fell out of love with. Some elements of darker sexuality and fear, but nothing heavy-handed or obvious. Great story!

The Stone Room
Femdom set in a vaguely medieval/renaissance period with an arrogant womanizing prince as the protagonist, and a wily enchantress and her assistant, a giant, who train him to the path of submission and what he has been really seeking in his many exploits. Some man-on-man/giant with a focus on the protagonists submission. Read more ›