Samhain Publishing, $3.50, ISBN 978-1-60504-807-9
Fantasy Erotica, 2009
Eden Bradley’s The Seeking Kiss is set in 2069, in a post-apocalyptic version of London. Apparently it took Great Britain until 2040 before they decided to violently remove the monarchy (I can only wonder what it was that the two idiot sons of Prince Charles finally did to get those people all riled up and grabbing for their bombs), and now London is like something you’d see in those movies where everyone in the future wore leather jackets, had nose piercings, ride scary black bikes, and look as if they are in a group called Tokio Hotel.
It is amidst this backdrop that our heroine Nissa enters the most exclusive vampire sex club in London, Midnight Playground. Only people under the age of 30 are admitted, and even then, it’s tough to get an invitation. At 29, our vampire groupie Nissa is this close to losing her only chance at being up close and personal with an undead bloodsucking sex fiend, but hey, her friend managed to get her an invitation so here she is.
Hex and his maker Aleron do everything together. One is blond, one is brunette – we need a way to tell them apart when the clothes fall off, after all. When there are women, they do women. When there aren’t women, they do each other. On special days they do everybody and each other. Nissa is certainly not resisting when they notice her and take her under their wings, so to speak. When Aleron offers to turn her into one of them, she feels as if she is sparkling already.
And then, she happens to fall in love with Hex and he reciprocates her feelings. Oops. Will there be trouble in the happy ménage à trois?
Unlike many of Eden Bradley’s works, this is not a BDSM story. This is, however, still an erotic story and oh my, the sex scenes are hot, with or without the bloodletting. Hex and Nissa fall in love way too fast for me to buy their romance, and I find myself more interested in Aleron’s personality. I have to give Ms Bradley credit here – her portrayal of Aleron feels most credible. Aleron really comes off like an immortal who had lived too long and therefore had his share of personal sorrow, and it will be interesting to see more of him in future stories. Still, Nissa and Hex as characters are fine, if a little too saccharine for my liking once they start going into Edward and Bella mode.
The Seeking Kiss is a well-written and nicely paced short story that works very well in my opinion as an erotic romance. The sex scenes are very wickedly fun and Aleron as an intriguing character is a nice bonus. If you are looking for a quick hot read, I’d recommend this one.
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