Order from a Major Online Bookstore
Ultimate Book Price Comparison Engine
Save Your Time And Money
| AnyBook4Less.com | Order from a Major Online Bookstore |
|
| Home | Store List | FAQ | Contact Us | | ||
| Ultimate Book Price Comparison Engine Save Your Time And Money |
||
 |
Title: Naughty, Naughty : They're Bad Boys...Rakes, Rogues, And Men From The Wrong Side Of The Tracks. They Are... by Susan Johnson, Adrianne Lee, Leandra Logan, Anne Marie Winston ISBN: 0-312-97174-5 Publisher: St. Martin's Press Pub. Date: 15 October, 1999 Format: Mass Market Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $5.99 |
Average Customer Rating: 2.8 (15 reviews)
Rating: 1
Summary: This book's stories are neither sexy or interesting
Comment: In reading this anthology, I realized why I tend to stay away from short stories: even good authors may be unable to create a worthwhile story in relatively few pages. There is definitely a talent and also a honed skill needed to accomplish character development and sufficient plot in the space allotted. I initially picked up this book because the title led me to believe that the stories might be fun, funny, amusing...which they are not in any way -- rather the stories are all quite serious and not what I expected (as others have noted the blurbs on the back cover are untrue.) In one story a woman wants to have sex with a male slut she somehow learned about because she thinks she is dying -- how is that naughty? In another, a woman trying to divorce her scary husband has not-very-exciting sex with a stranger in a bar and we then follow them as they try to extricate her from her marriage. The last story about the woman who has sex for the first time with a man who yelled at her for "encouraging" a near rape while sunbathing fully clothed left me cold. Susan Johnson is the first author in the book and recognizing her name and her usually good stories led me to expect a lot more than is delivered here. I usually enjoy her work, but in this case I actively hated the story almost by the 10th page. Johnson takes what I consider her worst characteristic -- a tendency to be a little too anatomically descriptive -- and makes it into the entire story. This piece consists of a couple engaging in constant unemotional sex without any foreplay, which is not of interest, I would think, to most readers in this genre. More importantly, the sex scenes are BORING! Then she throws in some military/political hooha just to give it some kind of plot. The story would have been much more interesting had it acutally followed the plot listed on the back cover in which debutantes make the bet, rather than bored society matrons in Vienna. Save your money and buy a good Susan Johnson book, rather than this anthology.
Rating: 2
Summary: A weaker anthology
Comment: I enjoyed much of "Rough Around the Edges," so it was with some pleasure that I bought this seemingly-similar anthology of stories. Unfortunately, none of the stories in this volume really stands out as particularly erotic or enjoyable.
In theory, Susan Johnson's style should work well in the novella form. Her mix of history and seemingly-endless imaginative sex by well-endowed characters seems well-fitted for the short form, especially considering her particular style doesn't often seem to call for real emotional development between the characters. In fact, her story in "Rough Around the Edges" was one of the stronger in the volume. But her contribution in this volume seemed lacking. There seemed even less emotional development than is even typical for Johnson, and the history didn't seem all that interesting. A disappointment.
Logan's contribution seems the strongest, with decent character and romantic development mixed in with a nice little "suspense" type plot. The erotic scenes were well-done.
I really liked the hero of Adrianne Lee's story, and although I found the heroine's "quest" a little unrealistic, I enjoyed the story.
Winston's contribution is also very strong. It's the story with the most romantic development between the characters.
All in all, there are better anthologies out there.
Rating: 3
Summary: 3 Stars Just For The Sake Of The Lesser-Known Authors
Comment: Although short stories aren't always the truest introduction to an author, I've read enough Susan Johnson to realize that I'm not going to read her anymore. She is the best-known author in this anthology, but her story is the worst. As another reviewer has already pointed out, the book blurb regarding her story is totally deceptive. Her characters are shallow, their relationship unfathomable, and the language used in the sex scenes is jarring, considering the time setting of this story.
The story by Leandra Logan, seemed as though there was too much story trying to be crammed into too few pages, so the story felt choppy to me. The initial sex scene set up as a one-night-stand didn't seem true to the female lead. There were some interesting secondary characters, but the story form is just too short to allow adequate development of that many characters.
I felt that the stories by Adrianne Lee and Anne Marie Winston were the best of the bunch. The characters were better developed, the sexual tension better maintained, and storyline flowed better. I would recommend the book for the sake of these authors. I don't know if they have written anything else, but I'm certainly going to find out.
 |
Title: Rough Around The Edges by Susan Johnson, Dee Holmes, Stephanie Laurens, Eileen Wilks ISBN: 0312965990 Publisher: St. Martin's Press Pub. Date: 15 June, 1998 List Price(USD): $6.99 |
 |
Title: Legendary Lover by Susan Johnson ISBN: 0553578677 Publisher: Bantam Pub. Date: 02 May, 2000 List Price(USD): $6.50 |
 |
Title: Hot Pink by Susan Johnson ISBN: 0425190102 Publisher: Berkley Pub Group Pub. Date: 01 July, 2003 List Price(USD): $15.00 |
 |
Title: Again and Again by Susan Johnson ISBN: 0758204329 Publisher: Kensington Pub Corp Pub. Date: September, 2003 List Price(USD): $6.99 |
 |
Title: Wicked by Susan Johnson ISBN: 0553572148 Publisher: Bantam Pub. Date: 01 December, 1996 List Price(USD): $6.99 |
Thank you for visiting www.AnyBook4Less.com and enjoy your savings!
Copyright� 2001-2021 Send your comments
