Tremble by Tobsha Learner (3 stars)

About Tremble: Erotic Tales of the Mystical and Cynical

Paperback: 400 pages
Publisher: Plume (August 27, 2013)

Erotica for the modern woman: nine tales of the dangerous and divine

From Tobsha Learner, the boundary-pushing erotica author of the international bestseller Quiver, comes TREMBLE: Erotic Tales of the Mystical and Sinister (On-sale September 2013/ ISBN: 9780142180372).

In Learner’s steamy collection, she explores the full spectrum of sexuality peppered with elements of the supernatural. Tremble blurs the line between fantasy and reality, depicting the pleasures of new and rediscovered love, lust, and obsession in a world where passion and magic are interwoven—and where boundaries are pushed beyond expectation.

In a Welsh village, a young woman’s sensuality is awakened by an outrageous inheritance; a drought-stricken Oklahoma town is offered salvation by a travelling rainmaker; a Sydney record producer struggles to satisfy his wife and his mistress—until one of them takes matters into her own hands…

The short stories span the eras, from an eighteenth-century biographer who discovers a magic, erotic ritual to a Sydney record producer struggling to satisfy his wife and mistress. Intelligent and highly imaginative, Learner’s brand of erotica will appeal to both first-time and more seasoned readers of the genre.

Review

I must admit... I'm really torn about this collection of short stories. There were a couple that really held my interest and were quite thought-provoking. Then there were a few I had to skim because either they didn't grab me (and at 400 pages, I decided to only read the ones that did) or they bothered me.

No, I'm not a prude. When I decide to review an erotica book, I'm not turning away in disgust at frank sexual depictions (although I do blush occasionally). However, some of these intense scenes were more about control than pleasure. I don't want to give away any specifics, but there was one "creature" that I found quite disturbing even though I wanted to know more about the poor woman it used as its pawn.

Okay, this review is vague, and for that I apologize. I think this book should have been split into two short story collections. That way the reader could have had time to digest a few of the stories before reading the second book. In a perfect world, I would have read each story and put this collection down for several days and then picked it up again.

And I did want to pick it up again, because the author has a captivating writing style and vivid imagination--in these stories she covered many interesting geographic locations, themes, and times. Rainmaker and Echo were my favorites, because I found the characters and themes the most intriguing. The author has a way of mixing erotica, the mystical, supernatural, and a commentary on society. Not what I was expecting, but not a bad thing.

If you like to read stories that challenge you and push you to think about things in a different light, then this book will be a thought-provoking addition to your library. The short story format is nice, because you can read it in snippets and then take time to really think about the deeper meanings. It's just hard to take that time on a reviewer's schedule.

Rating: 3 stars

About the Author

Born in the U.K., Tobsha Learner has also lived in the U.S. and Australia. She has worked extensively in stage, television, radio and film. She lives in London.

Connect with Tobsha at her website, tobsha.com.

Thanks to TLC Book Tours for my review copy.

Note: I received a complimentary copy for review purposes. A positive review was not requested or guaranteed; the opinions expressed are my own.

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