Earlier this month I reviewed some Vampire Erotica, and now I move on to erotica of the non-paranormal variety.  These books might lack the allure of pointy teeth seductively nipping at nether parts, but there is still plenty here to raise your core temperature to a dangerous level.

Trust in Me – by Skye Warren

Mia hasn’t had an easy life.  She was born into poverty, raised by an alcoholic and sexually abusive father, and starved on the streets, only to be rescued by Carlos, an organized crime boss.  But Carlos isn’t a saint, or even a nice guy.  He has provided for Mia, but turned her into a sexual slave to his sadistic desires.  And I don’t mean sadistic as in ‘he tells her that her butt looks fat in those jeans’ either.  He beats her, degrades her, passes her around to his guys.  Mia endures because she has no choice, but when Carlos gets involved in a human trafficking deal, she hatches a plot to rescue the women, even though it may mean her death.  She’s surprised when an old childhood friend, Tyler, appears to handle security for the deal, and is disillusioned that the boy she had such a crush on could be involved in something so heinous.  She’s still attracted to Tyler, but isn’t sure if she can trust him.  Is he just as bad as Carlos, or is he the same kind boy she grew up with?

This book does have graphic scenes of non-consensual sex, which the author clearly states straight out.  These scenes are told in such a frank, honest manner, from Mia’s point of view as a woman who has learned to endure such treatment, that it didn’t bother me.  Don’t get me wrong, it was disturbing, but it lent realism to the novel.    Even if you’re not in to erotica, you should read this book.  It’s graphic, and it’s well written.  Five stars.

Burned (Purgatory Club BDSM Erotic) – by Eliza Gayle

Ruby is a fire inspector and a part time bartender.  She also has a fire fetish, which is one of the reasons she bartends at Purgatory Club.  At the club, she can relax and indulge in her love of fire with likeminded adults.  Zane performs with fire and he has wanted Ruby from the first time she assisted in one of his shows.  There’s a problem though.  Zane is a Dom, and Ruby has no desire at all to be a Submissive.

I loved this book.  I loved how it introduced me to Ruby’s fire fetish, and I especially loved the very adult way the characters discussed the roles of Dom and Sub in the context of their relationship.  This very pragmatic discussion was done so well, it was downright sexy.  There were scenes of vanilla sex, fire work, and more.  Totally hot.  The only thing keeping me from five stars on this one is the strange fainting incident that seemed a heavy handed plot device to get Ruby into Zane’s house.  Four and a half stars.

What I Want (Pages From My Erotic Journal) – by Trinity Jane

This isn’t so much a story as a collection of erotic scenes told in first person from the female’s point of view.  The author says the stories are unrelated, but it feels as though the female and male characters are the same throughout the book, even though at times she’s picking him up in a bar or restaurant where he appears to be a stranger. I read that this was part of the fantasy play.  The scenes are steamy, but with a sort of gentleness about them that really appealed to me.  If you occasionally like to skip through a novel to the “good parts,