If you’re a fan of GLBT erotica, you are no doubt already aware of Catherine Lundoff’s work. She’s been writing top-quality erotic fiction for many years now. Back in 2005, I reviewed her first collection of f/f erotic stories, Night’s Kiss (an ebook from Torquere Press) for the Erotic Authors Association, and it was a real winner of a book. Even now, a couple years down the road, I still find myself thinking fondly about some of the sex her characters have had (those lucky gals!). Now, that’s hot erotica, isn’t it? When it sticks with you like that? Catherine’s second collection of lesbian erotica is now out in trade paper from Lethe Press. And Crave is another winner. What I find most appealing about Catherine’s writing is that she can glide so effortlessly between contemporary storylines, and fantasy and paranormal storylines, and make them all equally believable and equally erotic. In fact, her attention to detail in her more fantasy-oriented work (I particularly enjoyed “Heart’s Thief”) proves her to be a writer with a vivid and very intriguing imagination: the fantastic does not get bogged down in the unbelievable. Her characters, even the ones who are in need of personal growth and searching for some type of sexual awakening, always represent strong females with healthy, unpredictable libidos who are likable and ultimately fearless about sex. They’re women you enjoy reading about, with enough emotional depth that you will most likely find yourself identifying with them on some level. Catherine also has a knack for approaching the topic of sexual fetishes with just the right mix of humor and vulnerability. I thought that “Kink” was a very well-executed story. It follows an unpresuming hetero office worker, Carol, as she stumbles upon her erotic attraction to a pair of high-heeled leather shoes and then moves on to full-length black leather boots, then to a leather biker vest, meets another woman who is also into leather and who owns a motocycle, and then gradually blossoms into an all-out leather dyke, albeit an ultra feminine one who seriously enjoys masturbating in front of a mirror. Personally, I have never been into leather, but upon reading “Kink” I wondered if maybe I might want to re-think that.
She looked at her reflection wearing nothing but thigh-high leather boots and the biker vest. Her fingers found her clit, then her pussy, then finally her asshole, all hot and aching to be filled and touched all at once. When she came, she had to brace one hand against the wall so that she didn’t fall over. Then she went to her big soft bed and rubbed herself off on an old boot, imagining that the biker who had worn the vest was there with her. Imagining the feel of other hands on her nearly naked body, another’s leather-covered body rubbing against her as her fantasy lover took her hard in an orgy of bewitching scents. But there was still something missing. She got up and went into the bathroom. She pulled out her razor and shaving cream and she shaved her pussy down to the bare soft skin. She touched the vest to the delicate flesh and nearly shrieked at the shock that went through her. It made her smile. More importantly, it made her shop...
I’m not sure if I’ll end up indulging this new curiosity about leather or not, since I already have enough hardcore (and expensive) sexual fetishes that compel me to shop. However, my own life aside, “Kink” was a good example of what I like so much about Catherine’s writing: her easy mix of emotional vulnerability, humor, and the reality of how lesbian and bisexual women respond to the lure of sex. If you are a fan of lesbian erotica, set aside some time to read Crave. There are fifteen stories collected in it, each strikingly different from the next. With all these varied and passionate women exploring their own and each other’s bodies, you are bound to find something within its pages that does the trick for you. And, if you’re as lucky as I’ve been, find that some of Catherine’s sexy scenarios are still doing the trick for you several years down the road. Excerpt from “Kink” is © 2007 Catherine Lundoff Review © 2007 Marilyn Jaye Lewis |
