Product Description

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #865231 in Books
• Published on: 2000-03-31
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 200 pages

Amazon.com Review
While the editor of this fine annual collection, Marcy Sheiner, argues in her introduction that these stories dwell on "the darker side of sex"--revenge, anger, grief--there is a redemptive quality to passion that often outweighs whatever unworthy motives may have inspired the deed. Although there is plenty of frivolous, one-handed reading in this year's edition, many of the pieces included have the hallmarks of literary fiction; they are not merely about a sexual event, but offer a revelation of character through that event. Lisa Glatt's "Waste," Anne Tourney's "Rope Burn," and Susannah Indigo's "The Language of Snakes" would shine in any short story anthology. Yet even the simplest and most graphic stories here can surprise the reader with their casual illuminations. In Tabitha Flyte's "After Loss," for example, a young woman and her brother-in-law stumble into sex after returning from her father's funeral. When she first feels his comforting arms around her, she reflects on how differently men and women embrace: "When I am hugged by a woman I feel that the arms around me say, 'Yes, you can do it, you can.' When I am held by a man I feel that I am being told, 'No, you don't have to do it, you don't.'" A remarkable volume, evidence of the considerable talent being directed toward erotica in recent years. --Regina Marler

Review
"Happily, this collection knows what it's doing...There's probably a bit of something for every girl." -- The Erotic Review (UK), November 2003

About the Author
Marcy Sheiner is the editor of the Best Women's Erotica series and Ripe Fruit. She lives in Oakland, CA.

Customer Reviews

Wonderful
First, I would like to point out that this anthology seems to be geared toward heterosexual women, although there are a couple lesbian/bisexual stories. If you prefer stories with a lesbian or bisexual bent, then I suggest passing on this and picking up an anthology geared specifically toward lesbian/bi sex. It should also be said that if you are a fan of the erotic anthologies edited by Susie Bright, you may not like this anthology as this book stays away from the shocking just for the sake of being shocking material so often present in Ms. Bright's anthologies.

I've read innumerable erotic anthologies, and this is by far my favorite. Not only are the stories intelligent, but they stay away from the old, boring, technical descriptions of the in/out. If you like an erotic story that is very sexually detailed (like a sports play by play), then you may not like this. Instead, and refreshingly, most of the authors ventured into the deeper aspects of sex.

In the opening story, Nine Seven Zero, the narrator tells us how her boyfriend, as he is leaving her, helped her break free of her destructive sexual binds. In "The C*** Book, we learn the story of John's "Uncle Jacques", who took pictures of women's genitals over the course of 80 years and collected them in a book. Intrigued, the narrator lets John take her picture, and for the first time is able to see herself as a man would see her. In "Just Passing Through" a woman disguises herself as a man and goes to a gay nightclub to find out what sex is like between two men.

I thought the best story was "What the Box Fan Saw", a story of incredibly passionate sex stemming from a fight. This anthology pays as much attention to how things are said as to what is being said. If you enjoy erotica that is intelligent, well written, and aims to get you genuinely aroused instead of merely shocking you, then you'll like this anthology.

Just great
Excellent writing and terrific story-telling. It's clear from this volume that women really trump men in sensual, to-the-core descriptions of the sexual experience.

Best Women's Erotica?
"The Best Women's Erotica," edited by Marcy Sheiner is composed of 18 erotic short stories written by women supposedly for women. It starts out with a sultry story called "Interrogation," by Susan St. Aubin, but heads down hill fast from there.

I have read short stories in English 110 at the local community college that were more erotic than some the of stories in this book such as "Service Entrance," by Kristina Wright or "Jacks Pride," by Emma Holly. It appears to be geared mainly towards heterosexual middle aged women and MEN. I was rather shocked at all of the stories geared towards the stimulation of the characters male counter parts. While there was some cunnilings in the stories, the constant emphasis was on the women pleasing their men. The stories simply were not detailed enough about the art of orally stimulating a woman, as a matter of fact in a couple of them one gets the feeling the writers are almost embarrassed to be writing about it. I found a bit annoying to say the least. As fantasies by women, for women should focus more on women. Not women going down on men in 80% of the stories. Also it had little to NO ethnicity to it. Shame on you ladies in the melting pot of America!

If your a feminine lesbian or a bisexual female looking for a hot story on a cold winters night then I would suggest moving on. As far as the lesbian community goes it had a couple poorly written "Butch" (Yes in the stories the characters refer to themselves as butches, it's not just my observation.) stories worthy of toilet humor at best. After I finished reading it I thumbed back through noting the difference between the detailed writing style on the heterosexual stories verses the couple of butch stories. That totally blew my mind since according to most surveys sex between the average man and woman last between 20 - 30 minutes according to several different surveys (...)