Booknote: Best Women's Erotica Of the Year, Volume 6

Rachel Kramer Bussel, Best Women's Erotica of the Year, Volume 6. Hoboken, NJ: Cleis Press, 2020. ISBN: 978-1-62778-301-9. (Book release date is December 8, 2020)

 

Get the book via the publisher here.  

Find the book (a bit later) in a library near you via WorldCat.

 

Genre: short fiction

Subgenre: erotica, women's

Format: e-book

Source: review copy provided by book editor in exchange for an honest review

 

Due to the pandemic, I have not read much erotica. This collection of short stories was a good way for me to get back into the genre. Once more, the editor brings a diverse selection of short fiction erotica by women for women. However, don't let the title fool you as this is an anthology anyone can read and enjoy. I'd add this can be a good one for couples to read together. 

The collection includes the editor's introduction and 20 short stories. Most of the stories come in at about 10 to 15 pages. For this anthology, the editor asked her authors to get "adventurous," and the authors delivered. The authors take the concept and run with it. Stories cover topics such as meeting an old crush, reality television shows, mermaids, magical realism, and some kink (OK, maybe just a bit more than just "some"). A strength of this anthology is the variety of topics and explorations the authors offer. Granted, as in many anthologies, some stories are better than others. For me, there were one or two stories that did not quite do it for me, but I am sure other readers may like them better. That is another strength of the book: odds are you'll find a story or more that you'll enjoy and that may stay with  you well after reading them. 

Let me take a moment to highlight some stories I enjoyed from the book: 

• Shelly Bell's "New Year's Chance." This story was a nice opener for this book. I was a bit skeptical about the bad boy biker trope, but the story takes a nice, well written direction as he tells her at one point "you never have to thank me for taking care of you" (11). That's sweet right there. 
• Naima Simone's "Inked On My Skin" is a sweet and interesting take on tattoo reality competition shows. I did find the concept intriguing. The story is also a good example of how contemporary erotica does look at and reflect current times. This is a story where the plot soon thickens as it becomes a story of trauma and healing as well as erotica. The story makes great use of language and imagery. This story had some great lines, but I will stop here and let readers discover this tale. 
• Brit Ingram's "Cooling Off" is another tale set in current events; this time it's the wildfires out in the western states. We get a bit of voyeurism between a firefighter and another volunteer. Quite steamy.
• Olivia Waite's "Cabinet of Curiosities" takes us to the Victorian era (it felt Victorian to me; no time period is specified but the details suggest). It's the story of a high wealthy widow with a passion for collecting curiosities and her female friend trying to avoid a marriage she does not desire. This one has a very satisfying ending. 
• Jane Bauer's "Meat Cute has a vegetarian meeting and fantasizing about her local butcher. Weill she remain a vegetarian? You'll have to read to find out. 
• D.L. King's "Magia" is a magic realism piece, and naturally I had to mention it here. It's a beautiful, well written piece with that aura of mystery you often find in magical realism, with some hot erotic action in the blend. This is a must read in the book. 

Overall, this is a very good and solid erotica anthology. If you've read and followed the series, you will likely enjoy this one as well. If this is your first entry, you'll find much to like here. I do also recommend it for libraries that collect erotica. I really liked it, and I am glad to have read it 

4 out of 5 stars.