No Mercy: Short Stories [Paperback]

Pat Califia (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1, 2000

This long-awaited collection of short fiction by world-renowned leatherdyke author and activist Pat Califia author and activist Pat Califia combines pornography, science fiction, romance, fantasy, fairy tale, and horror into a potent cocktail for queer grown-ups who have been very, very bad and aren't one bit sorry. When Califia opens the doors to her imagination, there is no predicting what might spill out: A submissive female android turns the tables on her abusive master in the very funny and nasty "Dolly"; Little Red Riding Hood gets a millennial makeover; and two 1950s teens discover the front seat of the car is a lot more fun than Your Hit Parade. Continuing the boundary smashing tradition of Macho Sluts and Melting Point, No Mercy is leather-flavored fiction without a safeword-smart, challenging, intellectual, funny, transgressive, and hotter than the gates of hell. For her legions of fans who have been panting for more, Pat Califia is back with a vengeance!

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Not an introductory text for lesbian lifestyles, Pat Califia's latest collection of leathery erotica probably has a built-in readership among aficionados of the S/M underworld. Even those who don't share her kinks will find her among the most original and skillful writers in the field, with a flair for gender-bending scenarios and a particular talent for the one-line putdown--usually of demanding lovers who can't tell their riding crops from their cats-o'-nine-tails. In "Too Much Is Almost Enough," a submissive femme dubbed "Jasmine" by her lover Wolfe is encouraged to share her charms with Wolfe's friends in a sexual rite of passage. In "Incense for the Queen of Heaven," a young butch bottom finds solace in the oddly hairy arms of one of her rejecting lover's previous cast-offs. As usual, Califia also offers a taste of vanilla in "Frankie and Johnny," a '50s romance complete with poodle skirt and slick D.A. No Mercy offers dark and graphic radical sex with a political subtext and a revealing afterword by Califia. --Regina Marler

From Publishers Weekly

The veteran sex-radical author (Macho Sluts; Doc and Fluff) reveals much more than a saucy and scandalous imagination in her 18th book, which depicts expected variations of s&m dynamics and sexual politics as well as breaking new ground in exploring transgender issues. Flexing considerable muscle, many of this collection's most original tales are set in futuristic dystopias. "Dolly" is an android created to exhibit perfectly submissive sexuality in a society that crosses The Handmaid's Tale with The Stepford Wives. Because of one crafty lesbian's subversive programming, Dolly doesn't behave like the machine her sadistic programmer expects her to be. In another, less erotic, but more brilliantly imagined futuristic world, the protagonist of "Skinned Alive" logs on to find the illegal sexual experiences he desires. The twin tales titled "Mercy and "No Mercy" chronicle a more down-to-earth relationship between a loving butch, her imperious girlfriend and a wise, sexy body piercer. And along with the requisite s&m scenario (a pretty submissive proves her devotion to an exacting Master in "Too Much Is Almost Enough"), the author surprises with a canny version of "Little Red Riding Hood" with the heroine recast as a werewolf and dominatrix. Pushing the boundaries of sex writing even further, "Love Sees No Gender" meditates on the complexities and possibilities of sex with a lover who was once female, and is now male. Closing her collection with a candid personal essay, Califia discusses her son; her chronic, disabling illness; the death of her mother; her love relationship with her transsexual, female-to-male partner; and her own gender dysphoria. Revealing her real-life vulnerability and changing politics, Califia's uncommon clarity offers insight into the burgeoning transgender movement, while delivering 11 raunchy, confident tales merging her radical feminist politics seamlessly, if pointedly, with transgressive, graphic sex. (June)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 280 pages
• Publisher: Alyson Books; 1st edition (June 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1555835422
• ISBN-13: 978-1555835422
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.3 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,928,572 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

27 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars a deliciously perverse read, June 13, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: No Mercy: Short Stories (Paperback)

Whether you're an old fan or a newcomer to leather fiction, you're in for a treat. Califia has crafted another collection of short stories that will stimulate the biggest sex organ of all: your brain.

_No Mercy_'s pansexual breadth means there's something for everyone, whether you're a fan of Califia's tough, sweet leatherdykes or the dark SF that the author offered a taste of in _Melting Point_. (The Vesh are back!) Just when we think that leather can't shock us anymore, Califia gives us "The Cop and His Choirboy" (penned with partner Matt Rice), an odyssey into the world of a corrupt police officer and the hustler whose love may redeem him, and "Skinned Alive," a chilling dystopian meditation on barebacking.

Califia's writing is still sharp and shiny, studded with the wry humor that has become the author's trademark. Yet this collection is perhaps the author's most deeply personal, exploring gender, spirit, and the meeting place between love and loss.

As always, Califia's work excites on many levels. So make room on your bedside table for one more book: this one's a keeper.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Burning Hot, April 8, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: No Mercy: Short Stories (Paperback)

I couldn't even believe what a good book this is. I picked up a few books to keep me occupied while my partner was away for awhile and this one earned a place next to my bed. If you want to feel your toes curl I recommend picking this book up.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Much better than Macho Ssssluts!, October 24, 2002

By 

A. Bouardi (San Antonio, Texas United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: No Mercy: Short Stories (Paperback)

This book rocks. I didn't even mind the hetero Frankie and Johnnie, if it was in fact hetero. Dolly was chilling and amusing...very creative, Ms. Califia! I didn't care for the Mercy/No Mercy bit in there...trying to be too clever for my tastes I think. All in all, this book definitely outclasses her Macho Sluts book and is a good purchase...esp. if you can get it for its discounted price on Amazon.

Happy reading, girls!