Falling for Summer
by Bridget Essex
Pages: 70
Date: June 8 2015
Publisher: Rose and Star Press
Review
Rating: 4.75 out of 5.0
Read: June 23 2015
I don't actually recall if the other main characters in the stories I've read by Essex are as unstable emotionally as they have been in the two stories I've read today, but I've a vague recollection that it is something of a theme (one was a lonely woman, waiting for her knight in shining armor, other was a woman in a bad relationship, tired of being taken for granted). Not so much unstable, just overly emotional. Maybe. Well, the one in Wolf Queen was. And the one in this one is. Though both have their reasons for their unstableness. I'm not sure unstableness is a word.
So, Amanda has returned to her home town after 20 years. To punish herself. It's been twenty years since her sister died. When the sister was ten, and Amanda was 17. For a while Amanda had monthly nightmares. Recently it's been weekly. She blames herself deeply for the issue. So, naturally, she's overly emotional.
So, this overally emotional woman arrives at Lake George to mourn her sister Tiffany, and punish herself. Arrives to find a woman slide out of the water and grin at her. Then realizes and or remembers that Summer, the name of the woman, was one of Tiffany's friends. So she's abrupt and rude to Summer. And bitchy.
hmms. I guess this is the sex one. Read two stories by Essex today. Both released this month. The other lacked graphic sexual activities. Unless I just missed them somehow. heh. This one isn't lacking said graphic activites.
hehe. Oops. Accidentaly started laughing during the sex scene. Then continued, maybe, because I had started laughing. "Summer tastes of exactly that: summer. She tastes of green grasses . . ." and that's when I started laughing. She tastes like grass. Like . . . grass. hehehehehehe. How'd the rest of the sentence go? Don't know yet. Haven't been able to read it yet. hehehehe. Moooo. 'ooh, you taste . . taste like *licks, gobbles* ooh, like like grass, lovely grass . . ..' Bah. I be insane.
Bah. Another long drawn out story about how being gay in a small town was just not done and . . blah blah blah. mmphs. I just read that. I don't need to read it again. Even if it is true to life, I don't need to keep reading it over and over again.
Well, this time the story lasted up to 90% of the Kindle file (last time it got up to 87%). You know, there's at least one problem with stories like these. They are short, this one's 70 pages, and if I actually like it and the couple I'm kind of stuck. Because that's that. Tortured by their emotions, breaking through them and . . . poof. The end. Would be nice to see them in the happy times, but I guess that's not in the cards.
Like, I've been looking for the supposed sequel to A Knight to Remember for ages now. There is no indication of a sequel for A Wolf for the Holidays, but I've been hoping for one for a while now as well. As I said, that's the problem with these stories. They are so bloody short and then that's it. Ah well.
ETA: oh. I just noticed that the second book in that Knight series already was published. And . . . is another of those series wherein the characters are replaced with a different set. I sad now.
Wolf Queen
by Bridget Essex
Pages: 56
Date: June 19 2015
Publisher: Rose and Star Press
Review
Rating: 3.0 out of 5.0
Read: June 23 2015
Amber works for a gay newspaper in Chicago named "Proud and Windy". There's basically three other people working there, and one's a bird. The kind with feathers. She's 25 and has lived in Chicago for seven years. After fleeing her gay hating (apparently) little town in not-Chicago Illinois (specifically Kankakee Illinois). Her mother's dead, she has a sister, and she was raised by her minimum-wage working father who loved her, but whose love is conditional on not learning that she was this evil fithly gay person. That she was. So, at 18, she was going to move to Chicago. With the woman of her dreams, Stevie.
Except Stevie didn't turn up.
Well, as I said, it's seven years later. Amber's given an assignment to interview the new owner of Howl, renamed Wolf Queen. Who, it turns out, is someone Amber hasn't seen in seven years. That Stevie person who disappeared on her.
I'd already overloaded the first paragraph or I'd have put there that the newspaper that Amber works for is, as the owner of the place calls it (well, Amber's boss, maybe he isn't the owner) - mostly used for it's personels section. And is only in operation because of the advertisements. Oh, and Howl has promissed to put a full page advertisement in, which is one reason Amber's given said assignment to interview the owner.
Ah, stories that start off in "modern times" then suddenly jump elsewhere. Like this one. In which, suddenly, after being shocked into not being able to move or talk by bumping into the new owner of Howl/Wolf Queen - Stevie, we are lead back to Kankakee. Not even as quick a trip as back to that night seven years ago when she was going to leave the town. No, all the way back to when she was ten and saw Stevie for the first time and knew that one was the one for her.
It's vaguely weird when you read about love at first sight. Especially when the people involved are both ten years old. But, meh. heh. Then it's weird to learn that the deeper kind of love wasn't realized until 16. Strange, that. Realized as in, realized loved them that way.
Hmms. And this short story is only 87% of the Kindle file. And . . . just kinda . . ended. What the hell? That's the story? There's no bloody story. Two women were apart for seven years and found each other again. The end. mmphs.
A Wolf for Valentine's Day
by Bridget Essex
Pages: 101
Date: March 3 2015
Publisher: Rose and Star Press
Review
Rating: 5.0 out of 5.0
Read: June 23 2015
My fifth Essex story. And I'm confused. The main character doesn't seem to be a bundle of emotion. Overly emotional. Or whatever. I kid.
So. Single woman. Is given a gift certificate for a week at a yoga retreat. For Valentine's day (I assume the week around it). Sorry, I should have said a "singles yoga retreat" or "yoga singles retreat."
Ah, there we go. Finally dug up the name. Trish. The woman's name is Trisha 'Trish' Dalton. (Sister's name is Jackie, but that's less important).
Trish doesn't want to go but as the gift is given on Christmas day, she has a lot of time to turn it down. So, she ignores it. Until it comes time to go on the retreat and she can't get out of it now. So . . . she goes. 'It'd be stupid not to go.' (p. 13).
-- notes as reading -- she lives in Florida. Retreat is in Boulder Colorado. She doesn't exactly have much in the way of winter gear. Realizes this at last minute - - -
'Okay, so I think I should send my sister more than just a thank you card as I race after the tall chauffeur.' (p. 20). - note: you, apparently, got the "elite package", I assume that being able to leisurely follow your chauffeur is part of eliteness. Don't run after your driver. mmphs. heh.
-- more notes -- the gorgeous woman who walks like wolf is named Kennedy Butler; “'So, what brings you to our retreat weekend?'” (p. 28). - wait, I thought it was a retreat week? I confused.; okay, they said weekend again. She arrived on a Monday.
A retreat weekend that starts on a Monday? I actually went back to the beginning to see if they ever said week; other than stuff about being too busy for a week, and schedule cleared for a week, and see you next week, I don't see that the retreat is actually a week. But, what weekend starts on a Monday? I'm annoyed that I just got pulled out of this story to spend twenty minutes trying to figure out week/weekend issue. mmphs.
'Kitted out like this, I look a little bit like the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man.' (p. 47). - hehe, see, I can find humor in stuff. *nods* - -
'The electricity that has been crackling all over my skin roars through me like a bolt of lightning as we kiss each other now. I shudder against Kennedy as the electric kiss devours the both of us in waves of need. This is not a simple little kiss. This is energy, this is want and desire as our lips merge, as our tongues entwine, hers sneaking into my mouth even as I smile against her, breathing out in a hiss of want.' (p. 64).
'Like she knows what's inside of me, what makes me.... me.' (p. 65). - hmms, that's beautifully put.
hmms. Well. That's kind of embarrassing. Well, I haven't actually said the embarrassing thing yet. And I'm not sure I want to. I'm fairly certain that I don't want to. Course now I'm vaguely curious as to what some reader might think I might mean. hehe. So I'll just blurt it out, since it isn't really anything that should be embarrassing. This story might be the best one I've ever read. I've said that once before, I believe. But, even taking that once before into consideration, I still make the comment. It was a beautiful story. I feel vaguely at peace, content, and happy to have read this story. I'm not 100% sure I can write coherently at the moment, but that's okay. A perfect beginning middle and end.
And this time I'm not completely saddened by the knowledge that I'm highly unlikely to meet these characters again. I'm just happy to have been able to see this glimpse into their lives. Though, if they did suddenly turn up again, I'm almost completely positive that I'd gobble it up. The story.
Hmms. My third Essex of the day. And two of them end up being five star reads. And one of those two feels more than five plus somehow or another. This one. Then the third one which was a 3 star, but I still liked it. Heck, it was the first one I read today, so if I'd disliked it, I'd not have continued reading Essex.
(oh, and I never did found out if it was a weekend or a week retreat, as the story ended before I could find that out)
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