Review: Another excellent installment
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 12 31, 2013
All that glittersThis is the third installment in the Naughty Nookie series. I've really enjoyed the first two installments, for the writing, the story, and the interesting moral and sexual questions the series raises. Here's a short recap.Mona is a house cleaner. She used to be in a loveless marriage, but she's on her own now in New York City. She has two friends, but she's not close to them. They all go out to a bar one night where she meets Zane. They have some mind-blowing sex and she goes home thinking about him. But then she finds out that he's married. Not only that, but he's married to a man. Hurt and mortified, Mona tries to forget about Zane, but he's having none of it. After constant phone calls, she agrees to see him again. He tells her that he's not gay or bisexual, but he does very much love his husband, Jake. (See interesting moral and sexual question number one.) He offers her an arrangement. She'll basically be his kept woman in New York, while Jake remains home in [INSERT WHERE THEY LIVE]. She initially refuses, but then her crappy apartment catches fire and she doesn't have anywhere else to live. So she tentatively accepts Zane's offer for at least a little bit. She realizes that she has feelings for him.There's more hot and steamy sex that gets so hot and steamy that they totally forget to use a condom. This means that Mona has to go to a gynecologist's office (and Zane of course, being a gentleman aside from cheating on his husband...see interesting moral and sexual question number two...goes with her. Oh, and did I forget to mention? He's a famous author. Mona and Zane are photographed at the doctor's office, holding hands, and all hell breaks loose. Jake leaves, Zane tries to find him, and Mona is treated like the "other woman" by all of New York.But then, out of the blue, after two weeks have passed, Jake shows up at Mona's door and poses an even more interesting question for her than Zane's. Will she go with him (to parts unknown) to save the marriage of the man she just might love? Interesting moral and sexual question number three.This is where we find ourselves in the first few pages of All that Glitters. Mona goes with Jake to parts unknown (okay, they're known, he takes her Paris) and intrigue ensues. I loved that part of the story and in fact, I wish there had been a few more details about that bit of danger and mystery.But there's one thing missing from All that Glitters. Mona and Jake are gone for weeks. Jake has been missing from the home he and Zane share for longer than that. Yet there's very little contact between the lovers. Jake, by all accounts, has totally hidden from Zane. No contact at all. If my husband went missing, even if I HAD just done something horribly hurtful to him, I'd call the police if I couldn't find him for two weeks. And if my kept woman disappeared from the apartment I paid for, I think I'd know. Despite being in a different city, I think I'd know. I'd certainly talk to her more than Zane does. Now, when you're writing a book, you can't exactly document every moment of your characters' lives. That would be boring. Mona gets up and brushes her teeth. Jake asks her if she wants to order breakfast. Mona declines, etc. Boring. But I would have loved to see more contact between Mona and Zane or a bit more explanation of why she wasn't contacting him.That said, the way this book played out was fascinating. We're in Mona's head the whole time and the transformation she's gone through from the first book to the third is quite well executed and feels natural. She's grown in many ways and we're treated to a detailed look at all of those ways. The ending is hot and steamy and you're left aching to find out what happens next. Interesting moral and sexual question number four.***This review originally appeared at the Author Alliance***