Wet Bliss

An erotic short story collection full of fantasies from the tame to the taboo. 

In “Golf,” Derek doesn’t know what he’s getting into when he winds up playing a round of the titular sport with two very attractive strangers, but he’s more than pleased with the result. Erin, a flight attendant, finds herself attracted to a handsome Air Force captain on her flight and winds up having an unexpected rendezvous with him in the bathroom in “Clouds”; and in “The Salon,” Alex doesn’t expect his hair appointment to wind up with him attending a sex toy bridal shower with his stylist. Other stories explore bondage situations, a surprise nontraditional massage, and a chance encounter in a gym locker room that leads to group sex. Each of these 12 stories provides a quick payoff before briskly moving along to the next one. But although Stone’s tales may get the job done, they’re so abbreviated that even the minimal logic required of short-form erotica seems lacking: Erin and her paramour, for instance, declare their love for each other within what seems like just a few minutes of meeting. Slightly more context might have made these stories more effective. A more nuanced approach to gender would have been helpful, as male characters often think and talk about women callously; for example, one man advises another about how to treat his girlfriend: “Just tell her she won’t get the other present you bought for her if she won’t wear the bikini.” The prose also leaves something to be desired; for instance, there are better ways to describe female anatomy than “the creamy mounds of her perfectly shaped breasts.” That said, readers looking for a quick thrill may find that Stone’s collection does the trick.

A sometimes-clumsy but often effective debut compilation of steamy stories.