You know you want it.
And so does she . . .
So why not give in? Indulge yourself in the hottest lesbian fantasies ever, and make believe its February 14th—every day of the year! Compiled especially for you by bestselling authors Barbara Johnson and Therese Szymanski, this steamy sampler of Sapphic confections is guaranteed to melt in your mouth—and in your hands.
Whether you’re craving sweet kisses or forbidden pleasures—A Perfect Valentine is packed with tasty turn-ons to match your every mood . . .
. . . From the hearts-and-flowers romance of Valentine’s Day to the leather-and-lingerie passions of Valentine’s night;
. . . From secret crushes to second chances; blind dates to long-lost loves;
. . . From her rocker chicks and tantalizing tattoo artists to the “straight” girl next door and the delicious dish behind the deli counter.
Whether you’re looking for a one-night stand or a life-long passion, you’ll find your heart’s desire in A Perfect Valentine.
Featuring 23 new stories from:
| Karin Kallmaker | Cleo Dare | Joy Parks | Melinda Johnston |
| Rachel Kramer Bussel | Sue Molyneaux | Pam Graham | MJ Williamz |
| Vicky “Dylan” Wagstaff | Radclyffe | D.D. Cummings | Cherokee Echols |
| Lynne Jamneck | krysia lycette villon | Barbara Johnson | Nicolette Rivers |
| Ellen Tevault | M.C. Ammerman | Heather Osborne | Denny Evans |
| Kristina Wright | Therese Szymanski | Jennifer Lawicki |
SKIP TO:
Story Excerpt Dedication Introduction Behind the Book
I chose excerpts from my stories for this site so that I don't have to worry about pissing off some other writer or violating copyright. This doesn't mean that my story is necessarily the best, just the only one I can excerpt from.
When the Lights Go Down
by Therese Szymanski
“I want to make love with you,” I said, looking right into her beautiful blue eyes. Her eyes were as deep as the ocean, filled with eternal kindness and understanding. There was a pause as she returned my gaze, and it felt as if our souls were touching. I felt her look as a caress.
She brought her hand up to my face, gently guiding my lips to hers. I felt the soft brush of her lips against mine, the warmth of her breath on my cheek and the sure pull of her arms around me, bringing me in closer to her. I sighed and gave over all control to her.
I closed my eyes and leaned in toward her, letting her guide me down to the couch. Her weight on my body was reassuring, comforting. Even though Val was in incredible shape, her breasts still felt plush against me, her thighs soft against mine. Our bodies intertwined as the kiss continued, my hands exploring her back, pulling her in even closer. Our bodies fit together like Legos. I arched up against the hard thigh wedged between my own legs, pressing against my pussy. I wanted to be naked under her, having her take me.
I wanted her to fuck me—hard. I didn’t care who was watching.
I ran my hand through Val’s thick hair and enjoyed this moment, for that was all it would ever be. For no matter what physical sensations she created within me, even now, with her lips against mine, with her body on top of mine, feeling more right than anything had ever before in my life, some part deep within me was longing for something more, for something else—and we both knew it.
The lights dimmed as the melodic notes of k.d. lang’s “Miss Chatelaine” began to dance through the air. Our kiss deepened, our bodies moved against each other. When the lights were totally out, and applause drowned out the song, we jumped to our feet and ran through the upstage door into the green room.
To all those who love and are loved.
As it appeared in the book.
A Valentine from Bella to You
All You Need is Love
This book is not to be read on the Beltway (one of us tried doing that while perusing submissions, and it didn’t go well).
It’s also not suggested reading for the doctor’s office.
Ditto for at-work reading.
So, when is a good time to read this book? How about in the tub? After all, that’s what it was created for. Beyond that, you should read it whenever you’d like to get turned on and wet. Preferably when you either have a partner to help you satisfy the urge or the time, talent and toys to do so yourself.
❤
If you listen to the literary critics who tell us there are only ten plotlines in the whole of English literature, you might believe it isn’t possible to create a truly original anthology. You might start to think anything written today is merely a rewrite of those ten plotlines, simply exercises in changing the protagonists and antagonists—mixing and matching and recombining. Not so. There are unique anthologies yet to be crafted and enjoyed, and we hope you will think so of the one you are currently holding. However, if you are expecting a collection of stories that try to prove how far we can delve into the realms of kink, this is not the book for you. These stories are not about how many different positions can be used, how many different twists can be thrown in, or how far we can go with literal bloodlust and still claim it’s good sex.
It bothered us that so many stories, and entire anthologies, seem to exist to prove how hip humiliation and degradation can be without one iota of something as uncool as romance and love in the scene.
Frankly, we don’t care what all the other kids on the block are doing. While others attempt something “new and different” by exploring extreme realms of S/M, BDSM, explicit cruelty, and whatever else they can think of, we prefer to focus on quality stories, good themes, and talented writers. We’ll take our stand with stories that fall within loving, hot, and well-written parameters. We’ll tell writers to surprise us—and you. We’ll invest editorial energy in new writers so the future of lesbian erotica can be brighter. We’ll understand that we’re women and it doesn’t have to hurt to be good.
We’re willing to move forward by going back to basics. We’re willing to stand out by giving you new dreams and fantasies to explore. We’ll aim to be extraordinary by honoring the ordinary. We’ll do our part by revering joy, love, hot sex, and downright good storytelling. For us, exploring this genre isn’t a journey to the outer edges, but diving into the center of a lesbian’s heart and mind. And, of course, her body—as often as possible.
We believe love and erotica go hand in hand. Like strawberries dipped in chocolate, you can have them separately, but together they are exquisite—especially when shared with the woman you love.
❤
We believe sex and love are not mutually exclusive—they go together like needle and thread, like red roses on Valentine’s Day, like lube and a really big dildo.
We don’t hold back—we believe in love, and just how fucking hot it can be. And that if you’re in love, you ought to be fucking.
We believe in keeping things simple, so we have. We’ve found 23 stories that show what we wanted to tell you: That sex—and love—is sizzling hot.
It all comes down to the fact that sometimes you need a little ass fucking, and sometimes you don’t. Sometimes you feel like some S/M or a scene with a stone butch, and sometimes you don’t. But if you’re the reader we’re looking for, most of the time you feel like some love and hot sex between lesbians. Simple.
We hope you enjoy this book. It took a lot of time to make this happen, so it’d really suck if you didn’t like it.
Happy Valentine’s Day. We hope you get exactly what you want.
I think this book came to be because Barbara Johnson, who had helped me a bit with line editing on some stories for earlier anthologies, said she wanted to co-edit an anthology with me. I told her okay, and to pick a theme and title.
One plus to editing with her was that her girlfriend, Kathleen DeBold, wrote the jacket copy, and her doing so was really a part of the deal. Kathleen writes fabulous jacket copy. Legend says that Barbara Grier used to tell everyone she had the best jacket copywriter in the biz: Katherine V. Forrest.
Then Barbara Grier met Kathleen DeBold, brought her in to write the copy and said that now she had the best jacket copywriter in the biz.
Anyway, I've now edited twice with Barbara. I remember that, during this first endeavor, I had to walk her through the intro, since she mostly just wanted to do a line edit on it, instead of actually thinking about it.
On this book, Barbara was amazed at how hard I worked on the positioning of stories in the book. She didn’t realize how many factors went into deciding what went where and why. Well, actually, she didn't realize how much work went into each stage of it, since editing anthologies really is a bear.
Of course, there is one story that I wanted to put into the introduction that Barbara wouldn't let me, but this is my Web site, so I can tell it here: When Barbara and I were editing this book, we took the train to New York for the Lammies. We were working in the business car on the train and Barbara and I were discussing the last handful of stories, trying to determine which to use and which not to. So I was sitting with my back to the window, leaning against the wall, and she was turned to face me, with her back to the aisle.
So there we were, talking back and forth about the stories when, at a stop, with a long line of business people queuing up behind Barbara, waiting to get out, she said, “I like this story because it includes anal sex.”
THE PERFECT VALENTINE
© 2006
ISBN-10: 1594930619
ISBN-13: 978-1594930614
And you can buy the book from your local independent/feminist/LGBT or rockin' lesbian bookstore, or any really cool store that might sell books like mine.
Oh, and of course, you can buy it/find out about its availability and such from my terrific publisher, Bella Books.
My books are also available on a veritable plethora of online booksellers, including
all the Amazons in the world:
U.S. Canada United Kingdom Germany
And a whole lot of other places.
Check out all the incredible anthologies on this site: |
     |