Menage Monday – The Merry Widow of Tanner’s Ford by Reece Butler

The Merry Widow of Tanner's Ford
Grade-B
Hotness Level-Inferno
Kink Level-Mild/Moderate Kink
Genre-Retro Contemporary
Reviewed by Kate

The year is 1988 and it’s well known that ménage marriages are the norm in the town of Climax, Montana (the old Tanner’s Ford for all of you of the Bride Train series). Marci lost her tyrant of a husband in a house fire that left her with the clothes on her back, a scar on her face, and a fear that the law is after her for murdering her husband. She heads to Climax to live with the only family she has left, her sister Nikki, the town’s doctor. Marci is enjoying her new freedom, although she is leery of strangers seeing her scarred face. She’s also looking forward to exploring her sexual side since her marriage included only dreaded scheduled interludes.

Simon inherited the family ranch and works it along with his twin brother Lance. Lance is down in Texas doing some extra work, so Simon is alone on the ranch when he breaks his leg. When his leg ends up in a cast, Dr. Nikki arranges for Marci to head out to the ranch to take care of stubborn Simon, but doesn’t tell Simon that Marci is her sister. Marci is excited to take care of Simon, and she’s hoping that Simon will “take care” of her too.

Simon and Lance had a fiance a while back who turned out to be a gold digger, so they’ve decided to leave their wife up to fate. Once Simon has Marci on the ranch, he realizes she may just be the one. Now he just has to wait for Lance to come home and hope that Marci is on board with a triad relationship as well.

I admit to falling for Simon a bit myself. Between the twins, he’s the quieter and more studious of the two and there were a few times I found myself just wanting to sigh contentedly. Lance is a force to be reckoned with, as Marci finds out when she finally meets him. He has a forceful and dominant personality that Marci struggles with a bit because of the domineering side of her dead husband. Marci is a rare heroine who actually manages to think with both her head and her heart. So despite the fact that Lance is so dominant, she is able to recognize the differences between Lance and her husband. I  actually enjoyed her character a lot.

Initially I was a little surprised by the 1988 setting of the book. It just isn’t a common period for a romance to take place. I didn’t know what genre to classify the book as. Not really contemporary, but I hesitated to call it historical(because I like most of you, was alive in 1988-and I don’t consider myself ancient yet). So I’m going with retro contemporary (thanks to Kay for that suggestion). I loved running across little things that reminded me of the time frame. Corded phones, valley-girl talk and Highway to Heaven. The references made me smile. At first, I couldn’t figure out what was romantic about 1988, but Reece Butler has shown me in this first book of what promises to be a good series. I anxiously await the next installment.

Touch Me by Olivia Cunning

Touch Me (One Night with Sole Regret, #4)
Grade-B
Hotness Level-Inferno
Kink Level-High Kink
Series-One Night With Sole Regret #4
Reviewed by Kay

Have you ever wanted to prove something to yourself and maybe everyone else while you’re at it? Well, Caitlyn Hanson did. She wanted to prove to herself that she was sexy and that a man or men would want her. With that in mind she, through the help of her friend, gets admission into a sex club.
She wants sex with a random stranger for nothing more than sex sake. She’s never been very experienced and she married the first man she ever slept with. Turns out he was a cheater and she is now single.

For Owen Mitchell, a bass guitarist for the band Sole Regret, a night at a sex club was pretty normal. He loves sex and will try almost anything. So, when he sees Caitlyn, who’s a few years older than him, he thinks his night just got even better. These two talk and decide on what they want from the night. I won’t say exactly what but I was impressed.

I am a fan of Olivia Cunning and loved the first two books of her Sinners series but lost interest with Trey’s book. I had no interest in finishing that series either. Luckily, I had already started this one. I enjoyed Gabe’s and Adam’s books. I wasn’t crazy about Shade’s book or the novella Share Me but this one kind of redeemed this series and Olivia Cunning as an author for me. I hope people will give this novella series a chance and I can’t wait for her new series that features Dare Mills!

The Masters of Falcon’s Fantasies by Cassidy Browning

The Masters of Falcon's Fantasies  (BDSM Menage Fantasies #2)
Grade-B
Hotness Level-Inferno
Kink Level-High Kink
Series-BDSM Menage Fantasies #2
BDSM/Contemporary
274 pages
Reviewed by Kate

Clifftop Fantasies is a B&B that caters to the BDSM world. It is run by Allie, Karl and Brad who are in a polyamorous relationship. Daphne, a famous rock star known for her wildness, is staying at the B&B with her and and manager Finn while finishing her latest project. Finn has harbored feelings for Daphne for a long time now, but decides he must keep the relationship strictly professional. Daphne has wanted Finn, but when her advances go unreturned she acts out in order to get Finn’s attention.

Finn will do anything to curb Daphne’s self-destructive ways. So when he sees Decker (another B&B guest) has a calming influence on Daphne, he asks for advice. Decker lost his wife and slave a year ago in a car accident and has ignored his dominant side since then. He has come to the B&B to slowly get back into the lifestyle. When he sees Daphne, he knows she’s a submissive and just needs a strong Dom to bring her under control. But he can also see the feelings Finn and Daphne have for each other simmering under the surface. Choosing to ignore his attraction to Daphne, he starts teaching Finn new ways to deal with her.

But Daphne is attracted to Decker as well and after watching Allie with Karl and Brad, she’s pretty sure she knows what she wants. But will Decker and Finn be willing to try a poly relationship or will she drive both men away with her request?

Despite not having read the first book in the series, I didn’t have any problems understanding this one. I did find myself with lots of questions about Allie, Karl and Brad’s relationship though. I have added the first book to my TBR list, because I just have to know more about them.

Cassidy Browning is an author now on my radar. She has probably written some of the most realistic BDSM and polyamorous fiction that I’ve run across. The BDSM in this book isn’t used strictly for fun or sexual satisfaction. It’s also used as a means to rein in Daphne’s wild side and to help her grow as a person. I struggled with that a bit. Sometimes the problems that Finn, Daphne and Decker were dealing with were just too real for my escapism reading habits.

How about you? Do you read for realism or escapism?