Gillian Fitzgerald
Bio Gil
I was the kid who always had
her nose in a book because books could
be depended upon-- and since we moved a
lot ( I was in 8 schools before
graduating from high school, and I've
lived in Connecticut, Miami, Maryland,
Washington D.C., NYC, Syracuse, NY,
north Florida, Atlanta, Maine and
Japan), they gave continuity to my
life. I began to write when I was in
third grade, and haven't stopped since
then. I realized in high school that
there were only three possible careers
for me: English teacher, librarian,
writer. I acquired 2 masters' degrees
along the way, and I've done all
three. I've had stories published in
Dragon, F&SF, Elsewhere, Amazons II,
Heroic Visions II, Friends of the Horse
Clans, Australian Women's Forum,
Prometheus and Ripe Fruit. They range
from straight fantasy to romantic
erotica to kinky erotica. I've also
written reviews and articles
professionally, and my favorite bit on
my resume is the fact that I wrote
horror reviews for Marvel Comics old
B&W Tomb of Dracula.
A true romantic, I've been
married twice. Widowed at 34, I
thought my life was over--but I met a
wonderful man named Ben, and we've been
traveling the world together for over
15 years now. . Currently we're into
SCA (occasionally), LARPing, Goth and
fetish, and I'm a Seriously Elder Goth
(old enough to be most of my friends'
mother). My hobbies include
constructing accurate period costumes,
drawing, embroidery, and, of course,
reading. I'm also kinky, which
explains why I review a lot of erotica.
When I review, I expect the same
qualities in erotica that I do in a
romance, sf, mystery or fantasy novel.
Like most readers, I have certain
things that are instant turn-off and
things which make a book a keeper. I
try not to review books that I know I
won't like from past experience with
the author. And I usually read at lest
two books by an author (anyone can pen
a bad one) before I decide not to read
them again. Some genres annoy me. I
tend to avoid futuristics because I'm a
life-long sf fan, and I prefer there to
be a bit of science in books portraying
the future. Darn it, if there's a pink
sky on that planet, it should be a pink
for a reason other than that the writer
thought it would be pretty or
different. This doesn't mean that I
think futuristics are no good. I don't
care for Civil War or American West
settings. Doesn't mean the books are
bad. It just means *I* don't care for
them. A good reviewer knows her
biases, and is honest with herself and
the reader about them. Sometimes it's
best to NOT review a book if you know
in advance you're very likely to hate
it. Anyway, here's my hit list of
Fatal Flaws in books.
* A heroine who's a dishrag or too
stupid to live. If she has to be an
idiot to make the plot work-- get a new
plot.
* A contemporary heroine who is an over-
age virgin at 28+ without a good
reason. The average age for girls
losing their virginity is 17 and over
50% have lost it by age 19, so it does
make her unusual, although not
necessarily unrealistic. I just want
to know why, and it doesn't have to be
a long-drawn out explanation. But
please spare me the Horny Virgin who
knows more sex tricks than Dr. Ruth and
turns into Ms. Insatiable as soon as
she loses her hymen.
* Supposedly Alpha or dominant heroes
who are really abusers in fancy
clothes. They may not knock the
heroine around, but they usually have a
hold over her so that she can't refuse
them sex. She may be desperately
attracted to him, and under other
circumstances would want to screw his
brains out, but she doesn't have the
chance to refuse--and that makes it
forced sex in my book. Rapists do not
make good heroes IMHO. If I know an
author uses this plot device, I opt out
of reviewing her books. Many women
love this genre. Capture and "forced
sex" are common fantasies. I leave
these books for someone whose taste
runs that way.
* Babies As Matchmakers, or what
Raelene calls The Dreaded Baby Book.
* Inaccuracy. If I plunk down $6 of my
hard-earned cash for a book, I expect
the writer to have done her homework,
which means doing the research
necessary to get the facts right.
Historicals with really dumb errors
annoy me the most, because there's no
point in using an historical setting if
the time period doesn't have a role in
the story. I don't expect people to get
every nit-picky detail right, but they
owe the reader the basics: what people
wore, where they lived, what they ate,
what courtship was like, and some vague
notion of the history of the time--like
getting the name of the king right.
Most of these questions can be answered
by a visit ot the children's section of
the library where you can get a series
of books with titles like "Everyday
Life In____." Respect our intelligence.
* Kinky sex written by people who have
never tried it, and didn't bother to
research it. I'm proud to state that I
am kinky--in fact, I'm a bedroom
submissive, despite my big mouth and
strong opinions and occasional descents
into sarcasm. Very few books by
vanilla writers accurately portray the
reality of a Dom/sub relationship.
It's generally Story of O retold for
the umpteenth time. O is fantasy. It
has nothing to do with reality. Give
people in the lifestyle their due, and
find out what it's really like. You can
usually find a group near you where
someone will be willing to sit down and
talk to you--just do a Net search using
keywords "bdsm organizations clubs
groups" and it's very likely there's
one near you. Or try this link--
http://www.fetishscene.com/fetishscene/
There are also plenty of books on the
subject written by people who do this:
Screw the Roses, Give Me the Thorns;
S/M 101; the Topping Book; The
Bottoming Book; The Loving Dominant.
Most are available through Amazon. And
if necessary, write to me. I may be
able to help.
* One last thing that makes me crazy:
reviewers who sharpen their claws on
other people's books. Maybe it's
because I was trained to do reader
advisory as a librarian--recommending
books to people based on their
interests and tastes, not my own--but I
am appalled when a reviewer savages a
book and uses it as an opportunity to
showcase his or her wit. I don't mean
reviewers shouldn't be critical of a
book. They should. If there are
errors of fact, if the plot is nothing
but one misunderstanding after another,
if the characters are cardboard
cutouts, the 10th century Viking
heroine is tromping around Iceland in a
crinoline, and the dialogue ghastly,
it's the reviewer's JOB to point this
out for the reader. However, this
doesn't have to be done with unholy
glee and wicked relish. I try to
remember that the writer is a person
just like me, with feelings, and I
attempt to make my criticisms helpful
rather than mean-spirited. Maybe it's
the English teacher in me, but reviews
should be helpful, not cruel. Plus,
it's always helpful to remember that
just because YOU don't like the book (
there are some best-selling authors
people rave about that I can't read),
doesn't necessarily make it a bad book.
.
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Reviews
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Sex and the Serial Killer
by Jennifer Skully
"Blazing hot and hysterically funny contemporary"
Courtesy Sensual Romance Reviews
Posted February 2, 2005
Forty-year-old Roberta Jones Spivey has always played it
safe. Her marriage was sexless for the last five years, but
she stayed faithful. Her job is boring, and she's being set
up to take the fall for her boss who's guilty of fiscal
malfeasance, but she's kept on working for him. Read more...
Planet Maccabee
by Jackie Rose
"deeply moving retelling of the Chanukah story in a futuristic"
Courtesy Sensual Romance Reviews
Posted December 22, 2004
Planet Maccabee is home to exiles from Old Earth, a culture
that now follows Natural Law which preaches that the strong
must crush the weak. The exiles were sent to their own
small desert world because their Book and their faith
decrees that the Golden Rules are what should be Read more...
Power to the Max
by J. B. Skully
"Max Starr is back, but this time without the ghost to help her solve the mystery."
Courtesy Sensual Romance Reviews
Posted January 4, 2005
Max Starr returns, the unwilling psychic witness to the
final moments of a faithless husband with a masked woman.
After her birthday party, attended by hot cop Witt Quentin
and his eccentric mother Ladybird, Max and Witt return to
her apartment for a more intimate celebration (Witt gives
her a Read more...
Master Of The Night
by Angela Knight
"Stunningly original version of King Arthur and the origin of vampires."
Courtesy Sensual Romance Reviews
Posted February 17, 2005
Blurb: Using a truly original riff take on the Arthurian
legend to explain her vampires and witches, Knight has
woven an erotic and suspenseful tale wherein a secret
agent heroine and a CIA operative vamp face a difficult
choice which may well decide the fate of mankind as they
struggle Read more...
Kinky Katy
by Dakota Cassidy
"A trip back in time gives her a chance to undo mistakes and win back her husband."
Courtesy Sensual Romance Reviews
Posted January 18, 2005
Poor Katy. As head honcho and resident shrink for Divorcees
Anonymous, she's done a terrific job helping her friends
and co-divorcees put their lives back together--well,
except for Victoria, but she's working on her--but hers is
still a mess. She's still in love with her ex-husband
Garrett, who is about Read more...
Scarlet Cavern
by Vonna Harper
"A scorchingly hot exploration of bdsm—not for the faint of heart"
Courtesy Sensual Romance Reviews
Posted December 30, 2004
Lindsay and Shana were best friends in high school, and
Shana has always protected Lindsay when she could, though
she wasn't able to prevent her rape at the hands of her
mother's boyfriend. She was there to support Lindsay and
even testified against Lindsay's molester in court These
days, Lindsay Read more...
The Irish Devil
by Diane Whiteside
"Combines Western romance with BDSM erotica."
Courtesy Sensual Romance Reviews
Posted October 16, 2004
Viola Ross was raised in privilege, but marriage to a man
her father despised got her disowned. When she was left a
widow, she was forced to go into business with another
widow, running a laundry for the citizens of Rio Piedras -—
but when her friend betrays her off Read more...
Forever Crossed
by A. Leigh Jones
"If you're a fan of Laurell K. Hamilton's Anita Blake, you will love this book!"
Courtesy Sensual Romance Reviews
Posted September 25, 2004
Forever Crossed is the name of the funeral home where
medium Olivia Peters works; they guarantee that Grandpa
doesn't rise as a zombie or a vampire. For a fee they will
also contact the departed in the three day window
between this life and the next -- that's Olivia's job. Read more...
Sacrifice
by Lora Leigh
"Hot sex and a determined hero convince the heroine of the importance of love."
Courtesy Sensual Romance
Posted November 8, 2004
The Club caters to a select membership: rich and powerful
sexual adventurers seeking wild times, although the married
men are monogamous. Kimberley Madison is bound by a clause
in her mother's will that forces her to stay a virgin until
her wedding night - and the man she marries Read more...
I'm Undead and I Vote
by Jackie Rose
"hilarious satire of modern politics - getting out the vampire vote!"
Courtesy Sensual Romance Reviews
Posted September 8, 2004
If Tom Leher, the satirical composer and lyricist of such
ditties as "The Vatican Rag", "Smut" and "The Masochism
Tango" had written romance, he'd have penned something like
this.
Tiffany Golden is just one of an army of volunteers in the
presidential campaign of Senator Felix O'Neill. A little
plump, Read more...
Maxie's Man
by Dakota Cassidy
"Makes you laugh, cry, and reach for the vibrator all at the same time."
Courtesy Sensual Romance Reviews
Posted December 29, 2004
Dakota Cassidy can make you laugh, cry and reach for your
vibrator all at the same time (and that means you need
three hands to deal with her books: one to hold the e-book
reader, one to hold the hanky, and a third for the Magic
Wand). This book is Read more...
Weather Balloons Make Rotten Sex Toys
by Annabelle du Fouet
"Rolling-on-the-floor hilarious spoof of kinky lifestyle study"
Courtesy Sensual Romance Reviews
Posted July 25, 2004
When Annabelle's beloved Uncle Henry disappears and before
Aunt Ruth, obviously maddened by grief, takes off on a
trip
to the Bahamas with the studly Antonio, she calls her
underemployed and over-educated — a Ph.D. in Sociology —
niece Annabelle and asks her to pack up her missing
husband's things. Read more...
Something Wanton
by Jacqueline Meadows
"Desy and Armand are back!"
Courtesy Sensual Romance Reviews
Posted August 8, 2004
Desy is up to her ears in problems in her second outing.
Her P.I. partner is separated from his wife, and confesses
feeling for her. She's trying to catch a cheating wife who
seems to be moonlighting as a Dominatrix. And to make
things worse, the local Witch King Read more...
Warrior's Captive 1: Briseis
by Jackie Rose
"Epic tale of magnificent warrir and his slave woman"
Courtesy Sensual Romance Reviews
Posted July 18, 2004
Locked in her husband's home by her menfolk on their way to
fight the Argives (read: Greeks), poor Briseis is trapped
inside when the town is fired by the invaders. An Argive
raider hears her screams and rescues her, ordering another
soldier to bring her to Achilles. For Briseis, this Read more...
Desperate to the Max
by J. B. Skully
"Max Starr is back in another sizzling mystery"
Courtesy Sensual Romance Reviews
Posted June 3, 2004
If you haven't discovered JB Skully's Max Star mystery
series, you should. Max is a lonely widow with a dark past
who has developed psychic powers after watching her husband
die and being raped and beaten by his killers. The afore-
mentioned husband may be departed but he's not gone from Read more...
The Sex Club
by Jasmine Haynes
"Erotic exploration of a married woman's need for passion"
Courtesy Sensual Romance Reviews
Posted June 15, 2004
Thirty-nine-year old Debbie seems to have it all: loyal
friends, a stained glass business which is doing so well
that she'll be soon be able to quit her day job. A husband
who is her best friend. But that appearance hides a
sad reality: her husband may be her best friend, Read more...
Tales From the Temple I
by Lani Aames, Kate Douglas, Sahara Kelly, Lora Leigh, Ravyn Wilde
"Six HOT novellas -- paranormal, futuristic, and contemporary"
Courtesy Sensual Romance Reviews
Posted March 29, 2004
Like most anthologies this one has some terrific stories
and some not-so-terrific (but still eminently readable)
tales. Overall, I had fun reading it and would happily
recommend it to those who can't get enough of alpha males
and heroines with strong wills and active libidos.
Sahara Kelly's "Joshua 4.0" is Read more...
Rapture
by Brenna Lyons
"Rollercoaster ride of nonstop suspense, plus a heartwarming love story."
Courtesy Sensual Romance Reviews
Posted July 22, 2004
This book picks up where the first left off — they're
really one story in two volumes. Kyla has been kidnapped by
Harris, and Joe forces the traitor in their midst to spill
the beans — but the plant isn't working for Harris but for
another side entirely. There is Read more...
Power Play
by Erica DeQuaya
"Scorching sex , an alpha hero as the right Dom"
Courtesy Sensual Romance Reviews
Posted June 10, 2004
If you'd ever told me that I would thoroughly enjoy a novel
set in the world of pro hockey (probably my least favorite
sport, even though it's the state pasttime of my favorite
state, Maine), let alone one in which a man uses sex to
take revenge on the widow Read more...
Natural Law
by Joey W. Hill
"Lyrically written exploration of the psychological side of bdsm"
Courtesy Sensual Romance Reviews
Posted April 18, 2004
When two men are found shot after being bound to the
footboard of their beds, the Tampa police find that the
only link between the two is membership in a very expensive
kink club called The Zone -- and the fact that their killer
was probably a woman. Both men Read more...
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