Sex Noir: Stories of Sex, Death, and Loss [Hardcover]

Jamie Joy Gatto (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 2002

These touching, well-formed stories are a rare combination of the erotic and the tragic that have the satisfying complexity of the literary without spilling over into melodrama. With so much erotica based on pure fantasy, it is refreshing and almost startling to see some that has its wellspring in real-life tragedy, making it a powerful form of fiction. My obsession with sex and death began as a child, after viewing Franco Zefferelli's Romeo & Juliet. I have never let it go. As an adult, I discovered there is no ache, no intensity, quite so exquisite as the pain associated with longing: the yearning for that which has been lost, for those who we lust after.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 160 pages
• Publisher: Circlet Pr (October 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1885865414
• ISBN-13: 978-1885865410
• Product Dimensions: 7.4 x 5.7 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.1 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,859,797 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars As sultry and twisted as New Orleans itself, January 24, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Sex Noir: Stories of Sex, Death, and Loss (Hardcover)

I'm so sick of these "erotica" books where every story is two people meet and then have sex. Yeah, so what? Thank god Sex Noir isn't like that. It's not so much "erotica" in that sense because the stories don't follow formula. Instead they are strong literary creations, with real characters who have conflicts and pains and hangups, and their sexual lives are central to the stories. I really enjoyed a fresh voice, and yes, many of the stories did get me hot, too.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A different kind of erotica, November 8, 2003

By 

Nanette M Wilson - See all my reviews

This review is from: Sex Noir: Stories of Sex, Death, and Loss (Hardcover)

Jamie Joy searches through the facets of humanity, finding Melpomene, the muse of tragedy lurking in the dark corners of the mind ready to explore death on her terms. She creates a dark, deeply intimate glimpse of death for her characters in their moments of ecstasy.

A friend introduced me to Jamie Joy's work in late July of this year. He read "Mastering the Storm" aloud, capturing a godly male voice with such intensity that I had to read the collection of stories. At first I flipped through at random, reading what immediately caught my eye. The more I read though, the deeper she dove. I went back to read the book cover to cover, feeling as though the journey through this sexual darkness was my own.

This is erotica written for all who have loved and lost. No moments are more real than this, in pain or ecstasy. A hurt from longing for someone's return or the memory of knowing a rush of emotion, felt once will never be quite the same again. To give in to the temptations of joy, we wager with death a piece of our soul.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Nothing Like It!, November 5, 2003

By 

Tanya Korsky (Manhattan, New York) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Sex Noir: Stories of Sex, Death, and Loss (Hardcover)

Sex Noir is a unique exploration of dark and erotic themes. This book may be classified as more literary than erotica-- because the writing is so well-developed, the characters are so emotionally deep, and the stories are very diverse. My favorite story is "Dahlia" a horror-erotica piece that combines a hot SM scenario with a very troubled character on the verge of possible insanity. It draws you in-- a real page-turner. I am surprised by some of the negative reviews on this site. They are all anonymous and one liners. When I read something like Sex Noir, so passionate and well-crafted, I want to share the news with other readers. Read the book and see for yourself. Sex Noir has no equal-- there is no other book quite like it. It is dark and sad and intense, and exceptionally well-written.