It’s an interesting balance between hot and not, and a lot of it is in the expectations. Author Lex Valentine had an awesome post on expectations here (http://flirtyauthorbitches.com/2009/03/28/tensionandexpectations/) that sums it up nicely.
You see, this post is the tale of two books.
The first, Once an Outlaw by Debbi Rawlins, is a Mar 09 Harlequin Blaze. I’m kind of on a historical kick and the fact that this is a time travel seemed especially interesting. And while I very much enjoyed the story, I also think it was a good book in a bad cover.
You see, I picked up the book expecting hot, scorching sex. When I got well past the hundred page mark and there’d been nary a kiss, well, I was getting a bit anxious. Sure, the plot kept me turning pages. I was rooting for the hero and heroine. And I loved the rich detail in this historical world. But where was the sex?
Even when the book finished, I found the sex interesting, and yes, the author did mention a “cock” or two, but really with the writing, this felt much more like a lovely sensual historical (one that I would have loved to be in the longer word count of say the Harlequin Historical line) than a hot, bawdy Blaze.*
The second, Questions of Honor, by Kate Welsh, is a true historical novel. Set in a mining town, I loved the setting, and the plot line, not often seen in historical novels. And although this novel also held a very sensual feel, to me, it really was quite tame. I even laughed when the hero “brought her to the end of love’s journey” because I’m thinking there’s only one end? LOL!!!! Poor heroine didn’t even get to experience multiple “endings.”
In terms of delivering though, this second book hit it perfectly! A deep, intense historical read with a bit of suspense thrown in, a lovely hero and heroine, and I wasn’t left to wonder about anything. Except maybe when the next book (Lord Jaime and Helena maybe?) will be out.
As authors, those are the notes we want to hit. Every single time. Not leaving the reader wondering if the book will deliver on its most basic promise.
Now don’t get me wrong. I loved both of these books. In fact, I bought the related books in the Blaze series. But two different books…two totally different reading experiences.
*I’ve actually found many of the books in the Blaze line to be disappointing on the sex content front. So much so, that now, I tend to skip over those books in favor of other, less sexy ones. Why? Because I know I won’t be disappointed. Because if a book is supposed to be sexy, and oh wait, they don’t have sex until 2/3 of the way into the book…eh, it’s not living up to expectations.
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