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A review by magsbaggins
Monsters and Mistletoe: A Christmas Monster Romance Anthology by Salem Cross, Cassia Briar
lighthearted
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.5
I bought this book in the hopes of getting some quality monster* content (*the lots of teeth, lots of eyes, lots of claws and other special body parts version, mind you), but if this is what you have in mind as well, best not pick this book up. My enthusiasm for the collected stories started to plummet quite fast as I moved from one story to the next, realizing it was not going to get any better. Most "monsters" in this book are seven feet tall with wings and some cute body paint slapped on top, including a "square jaw" you'd see in any other common romance with regular guys called Hunter. And no, adding horns or wings don't make it any more special. There's barely anything noteworthy in the groin region, either.
The overall Christmas theme is a funny gimmick, but after a while it was somewhat distracting from the monster input they were trying to pull off. The writing could have used a lot of revision as well: I found the stray sentence "I was shaking and crying" rather hilarious, but when multiple writers prove to have a clumsy, it-feels-like-a-horny-teenager-wrote-this writing style as well, it's just a trial to get through the entire book. I skipped a few, I'll be honest. I'm not planning to finish them either.
As for the erotic part of the stories: it was... fine?Best stay away from using that glass bottle as a dildo, though. It works in fiction but it will give you a swift trip to the ER if you try it out for yourself.
At least the Biblical accurate angel was there to spark hope that it could have been better, that monsters beyond human comprehension can be sexy as hell or heaven! But that's just one story with a silver lining amidst a collection of "meh".
In conclusion: I'll keep my hard copy on the shelf as a reminder that my own writing has improved, and that monster fiction deserves a spot in erotic literature. I'll just have to write it myself, though.
The overall Christmas theme is a funny gimmick, but after a while it was somewhat distracting from the monster input they were trying to pull off. The writing could have used a lot of revision as well: I found the stray sentence "I was shaking and crying" rather hilarious, but when multiple writers prove to have a clumsy, it-feels-like-a-horny-teenager-wrote-this writing style as well, it's just a trial to get through the entire book. I skipped a few, I'll be honest. I'm not planning to finish them either.
As for the erotic part of the stories: it was... fine?
At least the Biblical accurate angel was there to spark hope that it could have been better, that monsters beyond human comprehension can be sexy as hell or heaven! But that's just one story with a silver lining amidst a collection of "meh".
In conclusion: I'll keep my hard copy on the shelf as a reminder that my own writing has improved, and that monster fiction deserves a spot in erotic literature. I'll just have to write it myself, though.