Wendy the Super Librarian‘s review of No Longer Forbidden by Portia Da Costa
Erotic romance short story ebook released by Spice Briefs 01 July 2009
I’m a huge slobbering fangirl for Portia Da Costa’s brand of erotica and erotic romance, and I’ve been enjoying her Risque Reunions for Spice Briefs. That being said, I knew this third story was going to be a tough sell for me, and it turns out my instincts were right. While Da Costa’s pleasing trademark writing in on display here, I suspect the premise will be a stumbling block for some readers.
School wasn’t filled with fond memories for Annie and the only reason she’s come to her 10-year-reunion is because of her former math teacher, Nicholas Laurence. She had a horrible school girl crush on him her senior year, but it was strictly hands off. Nick is still teaching, and has survived a horrific car accident that has left him scarred. Turns out he was just as attracted to Annie. So when they finally get the nerve to speak to each other, their passion and desire for each other quickly bursts into flames.
The author tap-dances around the ickiness of a student/teacher liaison by making Annie 19-years-old when Nick was her teacher. Still? I found myself squirked out that Annie would teasingly refer to him as “teacher” or “Mr. Laurence” during their encounter. Also, while the author doesn’t come out and tell the reader how old Nick is, the references to his graying hair had me thinking “dirty old man.” Certainly men in their 30s (and 20s for that matter) can go gray, but it’s not what immediately leaps into one’s mind.
Ultimately, it was my unwillingness to “let go” of the teacher/student dynamic that kept me from fully enjoying this story. Annie is a nice girl, Nick is equal parts dark, scarred hero and shy, math geek. The first person narration is as engaging as always. For readers who can roll with the plot premise better than I did? They’re in for a quick, hot read.
Grade: C+
Summary:
Only one thing drew Annie to her ten-year high school reunion: Nicholas Laurence, her former math teacher. As soon as their eyes meet, she knows their forbidden desire is as strong as ever. Only this time, there are no rules keeping them apart…
Read an excerpt.
Other books in this series:
 |
 |
Many thanks for reading NO LONGER FORBIDDEN and taking time to review it. I’m really happy that you enjoyed the writing and I appreciate your thoughts on the premise. It did occur to me that it might not work for some readers.
Hmmm…19…I’m pretty sure I’m okay with that. As long as they’re both consenting adults, it’s really not a premise that bothers me in most cases. It might if he were 20+ years older than her, but that’s only because the idea of being with a much older man creeps me out anyway for reasons I’ve never bothered exploring. LOL
I might just have to try this one. Great example of “different strokes for different folks.” 🙂
JenB: Did you read the other Briefs in this series? If so, and you enjoyed them, No Longer Forbidden will most likely work for you. It really boils down to if the reader can roll with the premise. Da Costa was very smart to make the heroine 19 when she developed her crush, and the story takes place at the 10-year-reunion….so they’re both consenting adults and nothing happened between them when they were student/teacher. Also she never addresses the hero’s age – so it’s easy to imagine that he’s only a few years older than the heroine and not, say, 20 years older. Like you, huge age differences tend to squirk me out.
Portia: You know how it is. Sometimes a premise will work for one reader, and not another. This was an instance where it didn’t work for me. That said, your writing, voice and style are all still on display. So while the plot didn’t “work” for me, I “know” it’s still a good story that others will be capable of enjoying.
Is this a high school reunion? If so, how was Annie 19 years old in high school? Because of issues with the age cut-off for starting kindergarten when I graduated I was about as old as it’ s possible to be without having flunked a grade.
I guess was I’m asking is does the age thing read as reasonable or as simply a sop thrown in to ease the squick?
Lori:
The story takes place in England (Da Costa is English) – and I’m not sure how their school age requirements differ from the US. I know they’re “different” – I’m just not sure in what ways. Which is why I was able to roll with a heroine being 19 her senior year of high school. So yeah, I found it reasonable.
And yeah – the story takes place at a 10-year reunion.
Generally speaking, pupils in the UK are doing A levels from age 16 to 18, so if she redid a year she could be 19, or she could have gone on to do a year’s pre-university course to increase her credits for uni.
I like this setup, so I’m going to check this out.