The Gingerbread Tryst by Nichelle Gregory

PAGAN & PEN REVIEW

Title:  The Gingerbread Tryst

Author:  Nichelle Gregory 

Author Site

Buy Link

Publisher:  Noble Romance Publishing

Genre: Fantasy/Erotica

Length: 22 pgs 

Other:  M/F * M/F/M * Ménage  

Pagan & Pagan Elements: No/Yes

Reviewed by: Brandi

About The Book: Meet Marisa, a restless homemaker who spends her time baking, masturbating and dabbling in magic. Happily married, Marisa only wishes her husband Don could keep up with her insatiable need for sex. She craves orgasms daily and her sex drive has become a sore spot in an otherwise happy marriage.

Determined to find a solution to ramp up Don’s libido, she turns to magic. After trying magical amulets and oils, Marisa discovers a book that contains wish spells. Throwing caution to the wind, she decides to experiment with an incantation that could make her naughty gingerbread man cookie a real flesh and blood man.
 
Taken by surprise . . . literally, Marisa indulges in a delicious sexual rendezvous that ends up going further than she could have ever imagined. This delightfully sexy tale offers up hot thrills sure to please any sweet tooth!

The Review: Nichelle Gregory has created a fairy tale-like story in The Gingerbread Tryst.  It seemed like a cute idea from the blurb, and perhaps could have been a decent title.

Unfortunately, the author failed to follow the first rule of fiction writing: show, don’t tell. The book is a short read but is difficult to get through, as the reader is simply being told about who the main character is and what she likes to do, instead of using imagery or dialogue to tell the story. As a result, the story reads very amateurish: “and then, and then, and then…” If the author had taken the time to provide a few details and dialogue in the first few pages, it would have made this book much more interesting.

The idea of the main character casting a spell to have sex with a cookie is admittedly disturbing and too silly to take seriously. I laughed out loud when said cookie came to life as  a handsome well built man, and began to chase Marisa around the kitchen saying “Run, run, run as fast as you can; I’m going to catch you . . . I’m your gingerbread man!”

The addition of Marisa’s husband to the sex play is confusing, as one minute he is calling her a whore and the next guiding the gingerbread man in a threesome with his wife. The story just seemed to go all over the place.

On the bright side, Nichelle Gregory definitely knows how to write an erotic scene. If we forget about the cinnamon flavored semen and other food-licious descriptions, the sex in this book is well written and very hot. I would be interested to read other titles by Ms. Gregory, as she seems to have a knack for creating a sensual mood.

Pagan Elements: yes – spell casting

Cover (Rated 1-10): 7-The cover is nicely done and includes all elements of the story.

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Disclaimer: Due to FTC regulations, any book reviewed on this site was sent for free by the author to The Pagan & the Pen. We are not paid to give reviews by Author or Publisher. Once review has been made, said books are deleted.

The Curse of the Pharaoh's Manicurist by Angelia Sparrow & Naomi Brooks

PAGAN & PEN REVIEW

Title:  The Curse of the Pharaoh’s Manicurists
Author:  Angelia Sparrow & Naomi Brooks

Author Site: Click author name 

Buy Link
Publisher:  Amber Allure/Amber Quill Press, LLC

Genre: Adventure/Historical Fantasy/Paranormal/GLBT/Menage

Length: 196 pages

Other:  M/F/M * M/M 

Pagan & Pagan Elements: No/yes

Reviewed by: Keri Stratton Alley

About The Book: Charles Doyle, fresh out of journalism school, signs on to be the secretary for suave, debonair adventurer Edward Kilsby, the Lord of Withycombe. Placed in a competition against Edwards’ rival and former fiancé, the two men must conquer the wilds of Egypt, defend themselves from mummies, appease Anubis, and realize their love for each other.

The Review: In a good romance novel, ambiguities in background details can be forgiven because the reader is so in love with the main characters that the rest of the story is mere framing. Angelia and Naomi--I forgive you. 

Edward is the epitome of a romance novel hero. He’s rakishly handsome, adventurous, brave, experienced and underneath his sophisticated veneer he’s a big softie. He just needs someone to take care of him. Enter Charles Doyle. He’s a city boy, longing to move to Paris to write a novel. He’s naïve, innocent, and adorably romantic; he even drags his giant typewriter through the deserts of Egypt. Though he’s never been with a man or woman, his attraction to Edward, a popular war hero, is undeniable. Reading their love story is a delightful romp through the emotional and physical pleasures associated with a new romance.

The background story is a charming adventure that combines a bit of history with some paranormal interactions with Egyptian deities. Edward and Charlie must race Edward’s ex-fiancé, a sadistically cruel woman named Sarah, to find out what happened to an archeologist gone missing during an Egyptian dig. Once in the tomb, they are possessed by the ghosts of the Pharoah’s manicurists, who also happen to be lovers. Charlie is shot by a member of Sarah’s team and must face Osiris and Anubis in order to be returned to his lover. However, once he returns to life, Edward and Charlie discover that they have incurred the wrath of Anubis who refuses to be denied the souls due to him. Fending off attacks from mummies, they battle their way back to England and perform a poignant and endearingly funny sacrifice to appease the Egyptian God of the Dead.

The beginning is a bit difficult to get into; the scene changes are a bit abrupt and could use additional explanation so the reader isn’t lost. But once you’re into the story, there’s no getting out. Each chapter opens with an excerpt from Charlie’s journal that invariably had me laughing out loud and eagerly anticipating the next chapter. The love scenes are both steamy and romantic, with just enough detail to spice it up, but enough subtlety to leave the best parts to the imagination. I loved the way in which the authors concluded the story, and how they interpreted the necessary sacrifice at the end. I grew to hate Sarah as much as the main characters and would have felt a smidge more satisfied to read a “just desserts” style of ending, though. One simple sentence showing a bit of mummy rot on Nigel’s arm would have left me satisfied by a turn of the karmic cycle. With only a vague mention of an illness, the lack of conclusion on that portion of the story line was the only sticking point for me during the ending.

Pagan Elements: possession by spirits, being weighed and measured after death by Osiris, sacrificing to Anubis,

Cover (Rated 1-10): 5

The cover meant so much more after I had read the book, so it is a good depiction of what will be found inside.

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Disclaimer: Due to FTC regulations, any book reviewed on this site was sent for free by the author to The Pagan & The Pen. We are not paid to give reviews by Author or Publisher. Once review has been made, said books are deleted.