Review: Wasteland: The Whore
Rating: 3 out of 5
Date: 08 20, 2010
Wasteland is set in a futuristic, post apocalyptic world where Bryn, a Rose, should consider herself fortunate to have have food, shelter and protection.  Although prostitution is all she has ever known she longs to be in control of her life as well as her sexuality.  When she is rescued by two pirates and given the chance at a different and unknown future she takes it.  In her adventures she discovers a chance to make her dreams of self empowerment come true and then some.Impressions after the first chapter:  Yo, Toto, we're not in Kansas anymore.  This is completely different from anything I've read from Lilli Feisty.  I've actually only read her contemporary erotic romances so this is an interesting change.The Hero: There are two heroes in The Whore.  Xander, a dirty sexy pirate with a soft side who is actually a good guy.  His lover Hawke, was not particularly interesting to me.  I didn't necessarily dislike him, but he was not a stand out character for me.  Xander was the pirate for me.The Heroine: Bryn, appears to be a victim of her life's circumstances forced to work as a whore in a brothel.  She is brave, spirited, yet reserved and longs for independence and self empowerment.  The courage that it took for her to leave the brothel where she is used, but protected, in search of a different life was admirable, especially since she was facing the unknown.What worked: The post apocalyptic world in which the story is based is a dark, dangerous place in which women are mostly powerless. Lilli Feisty did a wonderful job giving the reader a good clear feel for the despair and inner turmoil of the heroine and the overall feel of the dangerous world this novella is based in.What didn't work:  Although the sex scenes are very steamy, consisting of m/m, m/f/m and voyeurism, I never fully bought into the idea that Bryn immersed herself into a fulfilling sexual relationship with Xander and Hawke so quickly.  Granted this is a novella, and I often find that relationships are rushed probably due to limited word count, but Bryn was rescued, and on the ship only a very short amount of time before she was engaged in a threesome with Xander and Hawke.  After living a life of sexual servitude, I would have thought she'd need a little more time before entering into an intimate relationship since that was the way of life she was trying to leave behind.Final conclusion: This type of sci-fi erotic fantasy is not my usual choice of genre, however I very much enjoyed this quick read.  I think overall it was a nicely rounded story, laced with a bit sexy pirate romance, and a heroine that I came to like very much.  What I love about Lilli Feisty's writing is her attention to character development in her heroines. I always come away from reading her stories feeling like I know her heroines well. Although I didn't understand Bryn's need to enter into a sexual relationship with Xander and Hawke so quickly, I still feel like I got to know her and like her very much. I enjoyed this erotic sci-fi fantasy, however I think I prefer Ms. Feisty's erotic contemporaries.  Still, it was fun to try something different than what I'm used to from a favorite author.