Maybe I am too young to be reading about a forty year old woman but I was incessantly annoyed with Ramon and even Grace. Grace's life seems fine, she is an academic faculty at a University and she has decided not marry. Go you, Grace. Until Ramon, a student wanting to study female eroticism and sexuality, asks her to be his adviser. Ramon is charming, handsome and annoying. He makes Grace feel uncomfortable. After the first meeting Grace is not impressed and hopes to transfer him to another faculty member.
But to her dismay her co-worker, Andrew, says that she has to have Ramon and it will be "good" for her. In the next meeting Grace falls in the rain. Thankfully Ramon is there to save her. Damsel in distress meet your saviour. Grace simpers because he smells so good and blah blah blah. Once they get back to the office Grace is not on guard like she normally is and Ramon takes advantage of this by fondling her leg, dripping water on it and then licking it. No, you read that right, licking her leg. The woman is hurt and the dude is licking her leg. If that wasn't ridiculous enough, Grace likes it. She tells herself she shouldn't be doing it and all those "I'm doing a bad thing" thoughts stupid women think. Luckily for her Andrew calls and interrupts the weird leg porn. Another male to the rescue. Someone please slap all the men in this book for being presumptuous assholes.
What I find most irritating about this dynamic is that Grace is an independent woman and she has a solid career but now she needs to be a sexual beast which only Ramon can help her with. Why can't Grace just want to jump the dude because he is hot?! Why does she need to be sexually weak and insecure? Why can't she buy a vibrator and have at it? As I said she is forty something so maybe I am just a product of my generation.
I finished this book, though it was frustrating, because it wasn't entirely horrible. I do wonder if my response to these characters was the difference in age. I will read the second in the series to see if the strong female characters Kate Belle introduces can remain that way throughout the story, fingers crossed. The sex scenes are well written but the plot well, I'll stop harping on about it. It may appeal to you, it may not and I hope I haven't turned you off it! Give it a shot, it's not a long read.
2/5
xxx
George
Thank you to Net Galley and Random House Australia for the copy!
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10/10/2013 - Got the title mixed up with Bloom. My apologies.