Case File #: 00024
The Perp: Summer, Holly
The Crime: The Wicked West
Classification: Historical Erotica (novella)
The Weapons: Widows, sheriffs, erotic flagellation, submission and some moderately rough sex.
The Victims:
- Mrs. Lily Anders: the demure English widow who moves to Wyoming because her recently deceased brother left her his home there. She really likes to be punished and she really wants the Sheriff to have a hand in it.
- Sheriff Tom Hale: has one look at the passive Mrs. Anders and he knows that she’s trouble because he keeps his true desires under tight lock and key. Little does he know that Mrs. Anders can and will pick that lock of his.
The Accessories:
- Mr. Anders (deceased): the really old man that Lily married who showed her the pleasures of obedience and a proper punishment.
- Mrs. Hale (run off): the flighty wife of Sheriff Hale who said he was too rough with her in bed. She skipped off to SF with some wealthy prospector and Hale has yet to divorce her.
- A no-good rustler, because you can’t have a western setting without one!
Violations: I couldn’t not laugh when I read that the line ‘…her fine, pale hand wrapped around his dusky sex.’ Unfortunately, I’m sure that’s not the desired audience reaction at that point (I keep thinking of Hale sitting naked in a tanning bed to get himself nice and dusky, ahem, down there). Oh, and I can’t say that I’m fond of the whole ‘I’m/You’re a whore’ thing…for some reason it feels anachronistic even though I know there were definitely whores at the time…whatever.
Analysis: While I read Dahl’s Talk me Down, I was really curious about the book her heroine, Molly Jennings a.k.a. Holly Summer, had written during the course of the novel. I actually think it was a brilliant marketing idea to actually release the book from within a book and give Dahl’s ‘hardcore’ fans a taste of her versatility.
As for the story itself, I think that it’s pacing really fit the novella format and it had more depth than some of the other erotica stories I have read (this isn’t a fair marker because most of the erotica I’ve been exposed to is from Ravenous Romance…and they are a bit plot light). Dahl really allows for the characters to drive the plot with their insecurities, securities and proclivities. I also really enjoy that her heroine is the one that is comfortable and forward in their arrangement while the hero is rather hesitant until he starts to get the hang of things. Hale’s turmoil makes him more acceptable and Lily’s decisiveness makes her less weak, something I think an audience who does not read this type of story often can appreciate.
Recommended Action: I really enjoyed this story and give it a B+. So go read it (ebook only though…)!
Note: All grading is assigned via a normal ‘bell curve’ distribution comparing each novel to others previously read. The weighted grade for this story in comparison to other works solely by Dahl is an A- (primarily due to the lack of specific plot devices that she tends to favor).