Whispers in Darkness, which contains my story, “The Dreams in the Laundromat,” has received some really nice reviews! Two of them mention my work specifically, and I’m going to quote them here.

Amanda Gannon of Adventurotica described Whispers in Darkness as “a rock-solid anthology,” and has written an in-depth review. Here’s what she said about my story:

No description of this story’s particulars can convey its appeal. It is definitely the odd story out; it’s a college story, and the setting and voice are more frankly modern than any of the others. It’s also a sweet story, not horrific at all. And it’s extremely hot.

It’s a beautiful exploration of the vulnerability of revealing yourself to another person – how we are all to some degree alien to ourselves and each other. It’s odd that a Lovecraftian erotica story should be touching, but it really was; terrible secrets, if shared, can lead to great intimacy. And, apparently, mind-blowing tentacle sex. The attention to detail in the sex scene is first-rate. It feels real, and if it doesn’t make you at least a little envious, I will mail you a dollar.

The author took a risk submitting a story that is not meant to be horrifying, and the editor took a chance including it. I am so glad they did, and enjoyed the pleasant surprise.

AncientHistory at Yog-Sothoth also wrote a review, saying of my story:

Short but brilliant, set in the modern day and reads like National Lampoon’s sequel to The Dreams in the Witch House. Actually, this is probably the only story of the bunch I would love to see a sequel to, since the eponymous Laundromat is never visited directly in the story. Reeve’s dialogue and college-think is clever and fun to read, and refreshingly honest for the brand of horny college student we all wish we’d run into. The phrase “Arkham-bad” has now entered my personal lexicon.

One of the other authors in the anthology, Annabeth Leong, described “The Dreams in the Laundromat” as “the sweetest, most romantic tentacle sex story I’ve ever read.” (She includes a nice, lengthy excerpt from her story, “The Artist’s Retreat,” in that post which is well worth checking out, by the way – I love the way she echoes Lovecraft’s writing style, and you can see a lot of that in the segment she’s chosen.)

I’m glad to see that what I was aiming at with “The Dreams in the Laundromat” – weird, sexy, sweet (and more than a little goofy) – seems to have hit the mark with more than one reader. And I’m not gonna lie…the idea of writing a continuation of “The Dreams in the Laundromat” has occurred to me. We’ll see!

I have cover art to share again! Here’s the cover for the upcoming Whispers in Darkness anthology, from Circlet Press, which will contain my story, “The Dreams in the Laundromat”:

Tentacles!

Whispers in Darkness is a collection of erotica inspired by the works of H.P. Lovecraft, and should be available later this month.

Circlet Press’s Sense and Sensuality is finally available for purchase! Hooray! My story in this anthology is called “A Woman of Uncommon Accomplishment,” and follows the adventures of Mary Bennet after the end of Pride and Prejudice, as she takes her interest in ponderous old books in a supernatural direction.

I wasn’t sure I could – or wanted to – write this story when I started, since I’d never done anything historical before and was a little daunted by the research, but I had a hell of a lot of fun, and totally fell in love with my characters. (To the point where I started a novel that picks up where the short story ends, though I don’t know what I’ll do with it when I finish!) My beta readers loved them, too, and I’m proud to say that Mary and her incubus companion, Nick, won over at least one reader who is definitely not a fan of Regency-era fiction.

You can read an excerpt from “A Woman of Uncommon Accomplishment” on your way to purchasing Sense and Sensuality at Circlet Press, or at All Romance Ebooks. The anthology is also available at Amazon.com.

I always mean to write thoughtful, in-depth reviews of the awesome books I read – and then never have time, or when I do have time, I’m babying my wrists with a computer time-out because I just got off a writing binge. But I read two really good books lately, and by god, I’m gonna review them. With as much depth as I can cram into 200 words or fewer each.

Cast the Cards, edited by S.L. Armstrong:

This one has been on my list for ages, because it has one of my buddy Marie Carlson‘s stories in it. And it’s a story that I didn’t see any part of during the draft phases (unusual, for us), so I was looking forward to a nice surprise. I loved it, predictably. “Blazing Star” has had favorable mention in many reviews, for very good reason. Marie has a talent for writing short stories that are self-contained and satisfying, but take place inside what is clearly a richly layered, larger narrative. Whether she’s actually developed more stories in any given world or not, her attention to backstory and world-building is fabulous, and it’s easy to imagine that they’re out there, waiting to be told.

The other stories in the collection were solid and enjoyable, though mostly not to my usual genre tastes. I liked them all, but I suspect they’d resonate better for readers who enjoy contemporary (as in, modern and not heavily speculative-flavored) stories more than I do. The other standout for me was Janine Ashbless’s “The Grief of the Bond-Maid,” which turns out to be the awesome Viking-inspired, symbolism-rich fantasy short that I never knew I always wanted.

Unlocked, by Courtney Milan:

OMFG. To use my friend Marianne’s favorite descriptor: AMAZEBALLS. I often feel like historical romance novellas are either too short or too long – either things happen super-duper fast (instant love!), or else there’s enough material for a really excellent short story…and then a lot of extraneous stuff, too.

But Milan nailed the length perfectly with Unlocked. She chose backstory elements that are familiar enough that she could put the focus on the particular details pertaining to her hero and heroine, making them feel unique and well-developed while still leaving space for the events of the story. And, awesomely, some room for a little growth for background characters, as well. I really want to say more about how thrilled I was by one particular development, but it would be a spoiler, so I’ll desist. (Hint: it’s the last scene before the epilogue!)

Anyway, if you like historicals and enjoy a well-paced shorter read, get yourself a copy of Unlocked. So worth it.

The editor for the Sense and Sensuality anthology, J. Blackmore, emailed all of us a copy of the cover art for the anthology a little while ago, and I just realized I haven’t gotten around to showing it off here.

Pretty, isn’t it? The release date is probably going to be in late July – I’m so excited!