Wednesday, June 29, 2011

Strange Brew

Strange Brew by Magnolia822
Rating: M
Summary:
Soon-to-be college senior Bella Swan needs a summer job. Edward Cullen needs a worker for his new tasting room at Cullen Creek Brewery. She doesn't know much about beer, but she knows how to push his buttons.

This is a completed story with 23 chapters. It took me just over two days to read. Strange Brew is the first story I've read from this author, but I will be checking out her other ones in the near future.

You don't find too many stories in the fandom about beer so this was in interesting change. Bella is a college student looking for a job. Edward and Emmett own a small brewery in Vermont. While Edward is out of town dealing with some personal matters, Emmett takes it upon himself to hire Bella. The first interactions between Edward and Bella are very amusing, especially the tasting Edward sets up for her.

There is an age difference, but it's not a vast one and doesn't play a huge role after the first few chapters. The author either works in the beer industry or did a lot of research. Either way it was impressive. The only downside I had to this story was that  while I loved the ending, I wish there had been more to it.

All in all, this story was an enjoyable read. I give this story 4 out of 5 stars.

Friday, June 24, 2011

Second Chances

Second Chances by lislar
Rating: M
Summary:
Renee is constantly on the move, dragging fifteen year old Bella around with her from one dump to another. Her life takes a turn for the worst. Bella is sent to Forks. Charlie, with the help of an alluring doctor tries to help Bella deal with her past.



I mentioned last time that I'm on this kick with older Edward/younger Bella and this was another foray into that realm. Unfortunately, this was not one of my better choices. I know it's been a while since I've given a negative review, however, with this one it can not be helped.

When I started this story, I thought it had potential. Renee dies of a drug over dose and Bella moves to Forks to live with her estranged father whom she never knew.  Fearing Bella's emotional state after Renee's death, Charlie enrols her in a support group at the local hospital. Edward is the psychiatrist who runs the group.

Apparently, some readers had an issue with Bella being 15 at the beginning of the story and Edward being 25. I'm not sure exactly where those concerns came from considering that all that occurred were some looks. Be that as it may, my biggest issue with this story was pacing. The story got too bogged down in the details of Bella's traumatic life for me.

After reading the first 10 chapters and being completely frustrated with the lack of movement, I decided to skip to the last chapter the author had posted to see if it was worth trying to plow through. Thirty three chapters and I still was not happy with where the story was.

Needless to say, I gave up after that. I give this story 1 out of 5 stars.

Monday, June 20, 2011

The Education of Professor Cullen

The Education of Professor Cullen by sheviking
Rating: M

 
Summary:
College professor Edward Cullen is thoroughly annoyed by his student Ms. Swan. Everything about her bothers him, and he longs for the semester to be over. But what happens when he meets her one night when they aren't in school?

I was feeling the need for some student/teacher romance when I started this one, and I do love geeky Edward when he is done right. lol.

If you are looking for your typical Edward/Bella personalities, you will not find them in this story. Edward is a geeky professor who really knows nothing of the world. He spends his time with his nose in books and even his worldly brother Emmett can barely get him out of the house to socialize. Bella is the complete opposite. At ten years Edward's junior, she has seen more of the world, and had more experience than Edward in just about every way.

The title of this fic is fitting. Bella really does 'educate' the dear Professor Cullen. She brings him out of his shell and into life. But he brings her so much more in return. This really is a story where opposites attract.

There are 25 chapters posted of this story, and according to the author's notes, there is only an epilogue left. The only negative I have with this fic is the amount of smut. After a while it got to be a little too much when I wanted to move on with the plot line.

With only one chapter remaining, I give this story 4 1/2 out of 5 stars.

Wednesday, June 15, 2011

The Cocky and The Cougar

The Cocky and The Cougar by ikiss
Rating: M
Summary:
Credit and Sales - often at war in Corporate America. When Con-Vert's new, young Director of Sales Edward Masen met 38 year-old Director of Credit Bella Swan, it was almost inevitable that sparks would fly.

I wasn't sure how I was going to like this story as I don't typically read fics where Bella is older than Edward, but I decided to give it a try since I enjoy the flip side of that equation.

Bella is at the top of her game in the corporate world. She is known for her take no prisoners approach. To say she is thrown a little off her game when the new 'cocky', and younger,  director of credit starts to work would be putting it mildly. He turns her world upside down.

It took me a while to get into this one. I tend to like my Bella's a little more submissive than she was in this story, however, she grew on me. The biggest downside for me with this story was the rather predictable ending. I would have liked to have been thrown a curve ball somewhere, but that didn't happen.

This is a completed story and I give it 4 out of 5 stars.

Saturday, June 11, 2011

What I'm Reading

Hello all. I hope everyone is well and happily reading. :) I really do need to update this blog more as I've been reading a lot. Today I'm going to see if I can start to catch up.
All of these stories can be found on The Writer's Coffee Shop Library. I read most of my stories there or on fanfiction.net. If you have read any of these stories, please leave your comments and opinions of them. And if you have reading suggestions, leave those too! I'm always looking for more good fics to read.

The Arrangement by ATaletobeTold
Rating: NC-17
Summary:
The arrangement made between kings to keep their countries at peace. The prince refuses, but can the princess change his mind and make him see the err of his ways or will the arrangement be null and void?
http://www.thewriterscoffeeshop.com/library/viewstory.php?sid=4188&ageconsent=ok&warning=3

I can't remember what drew me to this fic originally as I've been reading it for a while now, although it isn't what I expected.
The story starts out leaving the reader hanging and then flashes back to lead the read back to that point. It isn't my favorite way to start out a story, in fact, in most cases it turns me off enough to stop reading. This story, however, once it flashed back, jumped back into moving the plot forward fairly rapidly so it was not a huge issue.

This is a cute story, although I wouldn't say it is one of my favorites. It doesn't dive deep enough into the characters emotions for my taste, however, it is a light fun read and I will most likely see it through till the end. There are currently 10 chapters posted on TWCS. I give this story 3 1/2 out of 5 stars.

Wild by PeppahLouie
Rating: NC-17
Summary:
Recently widowed Bella moves to Seattle to start a new life. Reconnecting with her friend, Bella meets Alice's brother, Chef Edward Cullen. Celibate by choice for 2 years, what happens when Edward finds himself undeniably attracted to a sexy new Bella?

http://www.thewriterscoffeeshop.com/library/viewstory.php?sid=4392

This story has recently received five Sunflower awards, and they are well deserved. The author has done an amazing job with story development. She has created complex characters and added little details that make the difference.

Edward is a well known chef and boy does Bella throw him for a loop when she enters his life, thanks to his sister Alice. I'm not sure if this author is a chef herself or just has a knack for finding recipes that she fits into the story which make your mouth water. I have to make sure I'm not hungry when I start reading a new chapter. ;)

There are 33 chapters currently posted on this story, and I feel it will be coming to an end in the not too distant future. The build up has been great with some aggressive swingers, troubled pasts, and a little mystery to solve. I highly recommend it, and give it 5 out of 5 stars.

slave to My Heart by luvrofink
Rating: NC-17
Summary:
Edward is an experienced slave that serves his Mistress in 24/7 submission. Just as their feelings for each other change, tragedy strikes. With healing comes love and all the kinky deeds in between. AH/OOC Slash
http://www.thewriterscoffeeshop.com/library/viewstory.php?sid=4381

I am not typically a reader of slash and it took several times seeing this one updated before I decided to give it a try. Once I did, I have to say that the slash, while there, is more of a background element to the story. The main one revolves around the relationship Edward has with his Mistress.

This Edward is very different from the one we are used to in cannon. He is a sweet soul who is utterly devoted to his Mistress in every way.

I do not read M/s often, but this story is one that is more of love and devotion than it is of hard core BDSM. I give this story 4 1/2 out of 5 stars.

Sugar Daddy Needed by Jess2002
Rating: NC-17
Summary:
Renee is cutting Bella off. Bella needs money and Edward has a lot of it, but Bella gets more than she expected. Can she handle it or will it be too much? lots of fluff and lemons consensual spankings.
http://www.thewriterscoffeeshop.com/library/viewstory.php?sid=3886

I was on the Twilighted forum one night and found a thread talking about older Edward with younger Bella, and this was one of the stories listed.

It is hard to describe my feelings about this story because I am still not completely sure. lol. Since I started reading this, I've read a few other older Edward/younger Bella stories, and I can say that this is quite different from the others I've come across. Whether that is a good or a bad thing, I shall leave up to the individual reader.

One of the things that I like about this story is the complexity of Edward and their outside relationships. I have to say that I hated Carlisle at the beginning, and I'm still not sure about him.

As the summary says, there are consensual spankings and it is a D/s relationship. Edward has a fetish where he likes for Bella to call him daddy, and it happens often, especially in the bedroom. If you have a problem with this, then I suggest you do not read it.

There are currently 30 chapters posted to this story. I give it 4 out of 5 stars.

In the Skin by ooza
Rating: NC-17
Summary:
"I love my girlfriend more than anything. She's kind, confident, and beautiful. She's also a stripper, and I'm not quite sure how I feel about that." Edward is shy and inexperienced. Bella is an exotic dancer. What happens when they meet at a gentlemen's club? Based on the one-shot A Night of Firsts.
http://www.thewriterscoffeeshop.com/library/viewstory.php?sid=4450&ageconsent=ok&warning=3

The summary of this story is a little misleading, at least it was to me. I expected to jump into a story where Edward and Bella were already in a relationship and dealing with the issues of him dating a stripper; that was not the case. Instead, we start the story on the night of Jasper's bachelor party. The boys go to strip club where we meet Bella who Emmett and Jasper pay to give a virgin Edward a lap dance.

Things pick up from there with an instant connection between the two. The story explores the start of their relationship (at least that is where we are so far in the story).

There are only 4 chapters posted thus far, but I am anxiously awaiting the next one. I give what is posted of this story 4 1/2 out of 5 stars.




Sunday, April 3, 2011

Goodbye - The Fic

Sorry if I gave some of you pause there, but just to clarify, no, I'm not saying 'goodbye'. I'm talking about the one shot I wrote over a year ago for a contest. It is a Breaking Dawn AU of sorts and looks at what would have happened if 1) Edward would not have given into Bella again on Isle Esme, and 2) Bella had not gotten pregnant.

For those of you who've been waiting for me to sink my teeth in another Edward and Bella story, I wanted to let you know that that is in the work. However, I have no idea when the first chapter will be up as I'm currently working on editing my second novel and my time is limited. Yeah, don't ask me why the fic is deciding to bug me now to write it. No idea. It just did.

So the bottom line is that I have no idea when I will post the first chapter, however the one shot I wrote, Goodbye, which will be the opening of the story, is posted on fanfiction.net. I've posted the link here on the blog along with the links to my other stories.

Monday, March 21, 2011

What I've Been Reading

I've had a little down time as I'm waiting to start editing my next novel so I've been doing a lot of reading.

Last Tango In Forks

http://www.fanfiction.net/s/5918985/1/

This story is written by AwesomeSauce76 and is rated M/NC-17. The story is now complete.

I'd heard about this story from so many people that I decided to give it a try. The story opens with Bella deciding that maybe it's time to move out of her father's home. She sees a signed for an appartment for rent in a store window and decides to go take a look. But when she arrives goes to look around the small apartment, she finds much more than she'd ever imagined, a man who with one look makes her forget about everything but him and the way he makes her feel.

If you are looking for good lemons, then this story is one you should definately put on your list. They are pleantiful and well written. I have to say that there was a point in the story where the smut was taking the lead in the story and I found myself starting to skim. Thankfully, the storyline started to move a chapter or two after that.

One thing I feel needs to be said in warning regarding this story is that at the begining of it Bella is engaged to Jacob. If you don't wish to read about cheating, then this tory is not for you.

Overall Last Tango in Forks was a fun read. I give it 4 out of 5 stars.

My Facebook Reunion

http://www.fanfiction.net/s/6291957/1/

This story is written by Eternally Cullen and is rated M. It is a Work in Progress, however, it appears to be winding down.

It was this story's banner that caught my attention, then the summary. The title is a little deceiving as Facebook only places a minor, but important role in the story. Bella and Edward went to high school together and it's time for their 10 year class reunion. They reconnect via Facebook after they both RSVP for the reunion.

This was a cute story. It wasn't one of those fics that knocks my socks off, but it was an fun read. There is some drama in it involving a past relationship of Bella's, but other than that, it is light hearted and full of fluff and romance.

I give this story 3 1/2 out of 5 stars.

Sexual Healing

http://www.fanfiction.net/s/6576272/1/

This story is written by wmrcaz and is rated M/NC-17. It is a work in progress.

I don't remember what drew me to this story, but I have to say that I'm glad at whatever did. This story is one of my favorites right now. It has a unique storyline twist on the badboy Edward I've seen so often in fics. Bella is a sex therapist who has agreed as a favor to Carlisle to see his son Edward. Edward, however, wants no part in therapy. Well, nothing accept for getting into Bella's pants. Although the premise for this sounds 'done before', it really does have well developed characters with faults and insecurities.

There are some lemons in this story, but contrary to the title, it is not all about the smut. It is more about the healing.

I give this story 4 1/2 out of 5 stars.

If you've read any of these stories, please leave a comment. We are all looking for good fics. :)