It’s almost Fourth of July, and whether you’re lying on sandy beach or by the pool, you need something to read. Sistahs on the Shelf is here for you with seven books to add to your summer reading list. Click the logo above to discover seven books sure to light up your summer.
Dying to Live by Harmonie Reigns
Genre(s): Abuse, Drama, Romance
Pages: 224
Website: http://harmoniereigns.wix.com/harmonie#!
Rating: 
Why is it that everyone can see the signs but you? Or do you see and ignore the red flags?
Is it cute how she dotes on you, asks you when you’ll be home, always wants to know your constant whereabouts? Or is it suffocating but you don’t know the way out?
Can she make love to you like no other, toe-tingling, mind-blowing sex that tells you just how much she loves you? Or is that just the calm before the storm, or it’s to make up for the blows she sent to your face earlier?
It was all those things and more for Naomi Harris in DYING TO LIVE, the newest novel from Harmonie Reigns. Naomi is pursued by the charming Sheena at the party of one of best friends, and soon after is enamored of the way she’s treated by the soft stud in the beginning of their relationship. (What she should have done was take stock of how pushy Sheena was in pursuing her at the party.)
Of course, Sheena has her game-face on, sending flowers, cards, candy and jewelry to her office, making Naomi the envy of her friends. It was charming how attentive Sheena is, popping up at work to take her to lunch or to see Naomi’s beautiful face, but Naomi begins to feel suffocated by the attention. And she realizes she’s spending less and less time with her loved ones, her family and group of five best friends: Lynzi, Tina, Star, Dena, and Zela.
Of the five, Zela is one who recognizes Naomi’s predicament and knows something ain’t right with Sheena. She sees the signs of an abusive relationship, because she’s been there. Naomi knows it, too, but writes off Sheena’s behavior as “caring.” “She just doesn’t want to lose me.” “Maybe I was wrong.” Anything to justify Sheena’s atrocious behavior.
Yet after cracked ribs, a broken nose and being cheated on, Naomi finally has enough — and that’s when the real game begins for Sheena. She always told Naomi that if she couldn’t have her, no one else will. And she means it. Which also means that Naomi is in a fight to get her life back, even if she has to take one in the process.
Dying to Live is a very involved book, one that portrays the fallout of an abusive relationship and what it does not only to a woman’s pyche, but how it affects the woman’s family and friends. Naomi is lucky she has a big support system, as some battered women do not. Naomi’s friends, who each have a personality all her own, added life to a story made somber by the dark subject matter. Dying can be a tad melodramatic at times and the writing could be tighter, but Reigns deftly details the emotions and thoughts of a battered woman trying to put her life back together.
Reviewed July 2013
Full Circle by Skyy
Genre(s): Romance, Drama
Pages: 354
Website: http://www.simplyskyy.com
Rating:
This is what happened when I opened my mailbox to find FULL CIRCLE waiting there…
Why the jig? Because Full Circle is the fitting end of a series that began with three best friends – Denise, Cooley, and Carmen – at Freedom University, and finalizes the family they’ve made with Lena, Misha and Nic. What happened in the three previous books – Choices, Consequences and Crossroads – comes completely together in Full Circle and is so good it’s worth the back-and-forth these characters experience page after page.
At first reading, it seems as if everybody is living in the past. Lena, mother to 4-year-old Bria, can’t help thinking about the what-ifs with Denise, only because she’s single and hasn’t had a relationship since Crossroads‘ Terrin. Seeing Denise everywhere – on TV, in movies, on gossip blogs with her girlfriend Farih – only furthers the helplessness she feels about her mundane life. Thus the pining begins…
Denise, the once-college basketball star, is rising actress in New York and also a part of a powerful lesbian couple with girlfriend/model Farih. Dubbed the black Portia and Ellen, their life appears magical, but behind the scenes, Farih is obsessed with reviving her waning career at Denise’s expense. All Farih cares about is being back on top, and it leaves Denise time to wonder why she and Lena couldn’t make it work. Seeing Lena in Atlanta brings those feelings back, and again they circle around one another without landing the plane…
Meanwhile, Cooley is still on the grind as manager to both Denise and Sahara, her long-time girlfriend. Cooley has settled into a great relationship with Sahara, something we never could have predicted based on Cooley’s playa mentality three books ago in Choices. Cooley thinks Sahara is the best thing since sliced bread, and would give her just about anything – her heart included. So when something sinister happens to test Cooley’s love, we find out whether Cooley slips back into her trademark way of using sex as a band aid, or trusts that being in love can help you get over the hurt. Let’s just say the growth from Choices Cooley to Full Circle Cooley is tremendous. She’s not the same, and though she slips, she never falls. Skyy truly shows Cooley’s growth as a character.
Things get more complicated when Misha is back in the picture. Cooley’s first girlfriend, the first one she ever gave her heart to, is back hanging with the Freedom University crew, still married with a husband and son. There are so many things she had to give up to be married – her education, her career, her dreams, lesbian pussy – that she wonders if it’s all worth it. Her husband is stifling her in the worst way, but this is the life she wanted when she left Cooley, right? Right?
Back in Memphis, Carmen is set to walk down the aisle to Nic, her hardworking stud. They’ve settled into domesticity, and along with her tedious job as a teacher, Carmen finds her life boring as compared to Denise and Cooley’s fast-paced, sumptuous careers in entertainment. They can afford things Nic can’t, and though she would never trade Nic for anything, her envy could ruin her impending nuptials. All she wants is the fairytale wedding…
I truly enjoyed this book. Full Circle is just a fun, thoughtful read. It’s a page-turner, and definitely something that will get readers talking. The writing, though slack in parts, is some of the best Skyy’s done.
In this final book, she gives readers what they wanted, and if you’re a true fan of Skyy, Full Circle is a fitting end to a series you’ve followed for six years. Skyy built characters we love for better or worse. Despite their many faults, we’ve trailed from undergraduates to grown women, seen their mistakes, yelled at them when they just couldn’t get it right (yes you, Lena!), cussed Cooley every which way, and shed a tear when love brought them together (here’s looking at you, Carmen & Nic). You can’t ask for much better than that.
I wonder what characters Skyy will create next. She’s got a hard act to follow, but I think she can do it.
Reviewed June 2013
all gifs from mariahgifaday.tumblr.com
Top Ten Tuesday: Books At The Top Of My Summer TBR List
Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme hosted at The Broke and the Bookish.
This week’s topic: Top Ten Books At The Top Of My Summer TBR List
Believe me when I say, I have a lot of books of my TBR (to-be-read) list. So much so, that this summer you will frequently see me with a book in my hands or page-turnin’ on my Kindle (which is really no different from any other time). But these books are ones I want to read in the near future. And by near future, I mean in the next weeks. I have a lot to choose from, and I hope you find something you want, as well. Without further ado (and in no ranking order)…
Full Circle by Skyy
The final book in the Choices series? I get to see if Lena and Denise finally end up together? I’m there!
The Exchange by Nikki Rashan (out June 25)
I’m looking forward to reading another Nikki Rashan book, especially since it’s been 3 years since her last, Cyber Chase.
The Summer We Got Free by Mia McKenzie
This debut novel from Mia McKenzie’s was just recently bestowed with the Lambda Literary Award for LGBT Debut Fiction, but this had long been on my TBR list. The story of Ava Delaney, a wild young girl and a brilliant artist, and how life changes dramatically after a violent event that rocks her entire family, has been lauded by the equally brilliant author Jewelle Gomez of The Gilda Stories.
Gilding the L.I.L.L.(y) by T. Jurrette
Since being enamored with Finding Us, I’ve been waiting for a new T. Jurrette’s novel. Gilding the L.I.L.L.(y) promises romance, murder and family issues rolled into one.
Hersband Material (The Cartel Publications) by C. Wash
Based on the good reviews I’ve seen, this book should be a hot one. Who can resist craziness, drama and betrayal?
GIRL: A Story for Every Les Being by Christiana Harrell
Originally released in 2009, GIRL has been re-edited and re-released with fourteen of the author and fans’ favorites stories. Christiana’s first short story collection introduces you to the life of women who love women. I have been wanting to read one of her books for a while. Better to begin with the one that started it all.
Out of Innocence by Sandi Webb
I’m anticipating good things in this novel about Toni Wells, nineteen-year-old stud, a drug dealer for the LA Bloods by night and worker for her transit job by day. Should be gritty and fast-paced.
On the Come Up by Hannah Weyer (out July 23)
This novel has been getting some buzz before its July pub date. It’s based on a real-life story from indie filmmaker Hannah Weyer, about a 14-year-old pregnant teen trying to survive and ends up becoming an actress. There’s a lesbian element to it, as well.
Happy Families by Tanita S. Davis
Are happy families really all alike? Teen twins Ysabel and Justin Nicholas lead a pretty lucky life. Until their father reveals he’s transsexual, and has been cross-dressing for several years. I’m curious to read about how a Black family deals with such issues.
The Womon by Seconya Y. Bagby
This love triangle between a woman, her female best friend and new male love interest seems intriguing. I want to know whom she ends up. I also enjoy a good romance. Who doesn’t?
Do any of these novels appeal to you? What books are you looking forward to reading this summer? Plan to read on the beach or take a staycation?
It’s Complicated: Misconceptions by Erika Renee Land
Genre(s): Romance, Drama
Pages: 254
Website: http://twitter.com/elandthewriter
Rating:
Why does it seem as if in some lesbian breakups that we never really break up, at least not completely? There’s that unfinished business that gets pushed aside, not resolved, as we move to the next woman.
Enter IT’S COMPLICATED: MISCONCEPTIONS, the debut novel from Erika Renee Land. It’s a whole mess of things going on this book, mostly surrounding Laila Morriston and her 8-year relationship with Victoria. Good as all are relationships are, their romance dwindles due to Victoria’s infidelity. Laila can’t trust Tori, and in my eyes, should have left her a long time ago, but Laila is still holding on to that connection they still have when times are good.
Just when she thinks things are getting back on track, Tori pulls the disappearing acts again. Acting secretive. Leaving the house at all hours of the night. Laila has had it up to here, and decides that Tori needs a taste of her own medicine. Enter Camille, the stripper she meets on a night Tori got missing. What transpires between them was nice, but Tori is still the love of Laila’s life and she wants to put things back right between them.
As always, though, things are good, and then Tori acts shady again. This back and forth causes them to separate, and Laila believes it’s truly over this time. Enter Nadia, another woman Laila meets at a vulnerable time, an assistant to a client of hers, and a dynamite woman. They could talk about anything, and bonded over loved cultural events and books. Nadia was someone she could see herself with – if she weren’t still wondering about and pining for Tori. Dating Camille and Nadia at the same time, both women are smart, beautiful and open up Laila’s eyes to new possibilities. The problem is Laila isn’t truly honest about her unresolved feelings for Tori; neither woman knows just how deep Laila’s feelings still run for her ex.
When Tori returns, what’s a woman to do with the new relationships she’s entered into in the meantime? Is she willing to drop everything for the woman who left her, or take a chance on someone new?
A fast-paced read, there is more to this story than I should put in this review, but trust me, you’ll read all about the deception, heartbreak and betrayal (plus crazed stalkers) in It’s Complicated: Misconceptions. One thing I should say is that everything is not what it appears. What is transparent is that Laila and Tori’s back-and-forth relationship was something that could have been resolved if they were more mature about how they handled each other. But after 8 years of cheating, why was Laila still even with Tori? As 32-year-old landscape architect at a respectable firm (one that is unbelievably tolerant of her messy personal life), she’s smart, but naïve and too into her head. We’ll see if she learns the game in the sequel. Hopefully.
Reviewed June 2013
Broken in Soft Places by Fiona Zedde
Genre: Bisexual, Romance, Drama
Pages: 264
Website: http://www.fionazedde.com
Rating:
Leave it to Fiona Zedde to come up with a tantalizing theme for her latest book – polyamory – a subject that black folks might do, but don’t talk candidly about. Being a part of a couple that openly allows the other to have sex with someone outside their relationship is usually left to whispered conversations. Zedde shows us in BROKEN IN SOFT PLACES that it’s not only possible, but there may be a reason why people engage in or stay away from this type of coupling.
Sara Chambers could never resist the enigmatic Rille Thompson since their first meeting at a college party, Sara as an innocent freshman to senior Rille’s big-lesbian-on-campus status. Sara spent a good amount of time wishing Rille could be hers only, however, Rille resisted being tied down to anything singular in nature, including her lovers – be they female or male. Sara and Rille attempted to find freedom in each other for different reasons, but their feverish connection proves combustible right before Rille graduates.
Fast forward to present day, and the pair found their way back to each other, despite the many wounds Rille inflicted on Sara way back when. Much hasn’t changed, except now Sara is an attorney and Rille is a physics professor. And they have someone else occupying their bed. A man named Steven.
Sara never liked this arrangement from the start, and it weighs on her, never having Rille to herself, a situation Sara has allowed since their college days. The good thing is Sara recognizes why she stays with Rille, a woman with no self-control, and why being with Rille makes her feel somehow feel whole. Or does it? Can she untangle herself from Rille’s dominance as she allows monogamy to pass her by? Will she keep allowing her heart to be baby-sat by a woman someone who doesn’t know what love is?
Layers upon layers disintegrate the more you get to know the people in Broken in Soft Places. I can’t say enough about the flawless writing Zedde endows the reader, words coming together seamlessly and alluringly like Zedde knows how to do. She also dug deep in her portrayal of the war-torn Sara and Steven, and to a smaller extent, Rille. *sigh* Rille is so callous and as I read, she just got under my skin (the sign of a good character). I couldn’t stand how she treated Sara, and really anyone who stood in the way of her pleasure principle (Freud would have a field day with her on his couch). Yet, I did feel some sympathy for her that she couldn’t open up herself to love. And frustrated that Sara couldn’t find the love she wanted and deserved.
Reviewed June 2013
5 Quick Questions for Fiona Zedde about Broken in Soft Places
Polyamory is such a taboo subject in the black community. And you’ve written Broken In Soft Places, such an invasive book about it. What was your motivation? Is it a taboo subject? I didn’t realize that. I know it’s not overtly accepted in most mainstream spaces but I think many people live it. There are women who know about and accept their wife or husband’s other lover. Couples that regularly have threesomes or identify as swingers. Groups of friends with benefits. My motivation for writing Broken In Soft Places as I did came from needing to talk about one of the elephants in the room; something we all know about but seldom explore in fiction. These polyamorous relationships exist but discussing the truth around what happens with the people involved is what can be considered taboo.
What do you say to readers who are surprised by the three-way relations in your novel? That’s a good question. I’ve already had readers express a certain amount of shock by the plot and characters of the novel. My response is that I wanted to write something different, true and challenging. I don’t exactly think of it as controversial, but it could be thought-provoking. I’ll always write lesbian characters (like Sara) but their sexual relationships may not always be monogamous or even easily defined by the constructs of accepted social behavior. And their stories, just like in real life, may not end as expected.
Sara is a fractured soul and Rille is a free spirit if I’ve ever seen one. What did it take to write both characters who seem polar opposites? I started off writing about Sara and all the pain she was suffering. And it was through her “broken” spirit that Rille’s character was born. I wondered what type of woman would Sara be attracted to and why? When the answer came to me, it wasn’t about how this woman would look and identify, but about her attitude in the world. This attitude is what Sara wants to embrace for herself. She desires freedom. She wishes she didn’t care what the world thinks. She wants to be stronger. Rille is the embodiment of all these yearnings.
Have you ever been in a poly relationship? No, I haven’t. I’ve been approached about being in one; it isn’t for me.
If you could have a threesome with any celebrities, whom would they be? Michelle Rodriguez and Eve, but Michelle would have to be tied up. I’ve heard she gets violent.
Pit Crew: How to Survive a Spiritual Pit Stop by Renair Amin
Genre(s): Lesbian Real Life, How to Guide
Pages: 98
Website: http://www.renairamin.com
Rating:
PIT CREW: HOW TO SURVIVE A SPIRITUAL PIT STOP, is both author Renair Amin’s testimony and a gift to anyone struggling with life and its many bumps along the way.
Her life saw tragedies of rape, a miscarriage, and family loss. She experienced being institutionalized, homeless and on drugs. Enduring what she felt God unjustly thrust upon her, Amin started taking stock and realized everything is a pattern, a track so to speak. And instead of letting life keep taking her around and around in confusion, she knew she needed support to get her life back in stride.
Hence the Pit Crew. Crafted from the Disney/Pixar animated movie Cars, Amin’s book revolves around the concept needing a set of trusted people in your life to fix you, uplift you, and check you when you need it. Simply put, nobody can do this life alone, and Amin gives you the tools to see who’s important to your journey.
Amin explains the roles your pit crew plays – from the Crew Chief (God), the Car Chief, the Jackman, the Tire Changers/Carriers, the Gas Man and Utility Man – each one has a special role, and all work together to make you better. Her model doesn’t absolve you of personal responsibility, though. You are ultimately in the driver’s seat, and the decisions you make – especially whom you allow in your Pit Crew – is all on you. She emphasizes this with the thoughtful questions for discussion at the end of each Pit Crew description. You have to do the work. Also, learn to be still and learn your life lessons.
Amin, a minister, motivational speaker, and life coach, writes with honesty and a desire to help women winding around a never-ending track with no finish line in sight. There is a never a time we won’t have issues in our lives, problems in our relationships and troubles on our jobs, but Amin’s book makes the bumps easier. Her own story, as a catalyst to writing this book, is poignant. I admire her courage share this story – her story – with the world.
Thank you, Renair.
Reviewed June 2013
Domestically Cursed: A Story on Partnership Violence by Renair Amin
Genre(s): Lesbian Real Life, How to Guide
Pages: 39
Website: http://www.renairamin.com
Rating:
When your back is against the wall – figuratively and literally – in an abusive relationship, you can either sign your permission slip for the beatings to happen again or you can fight to save your life. Although it took more than one instance for her to decide which way to go, Renair Amin finally figured it out in DOMESTICALLY CURSED: A STORY ON PARTNERSHIP VIOLENCE.
Though the media would have one to believe same-sex abuse doesn’t happen or is not as dire or critical because it’s two women or two men, it is. According to lambda.org, the rates of domestic violence in same-gender relationships is roughly the same as domestic violence against heterosexual women (25%). Amin knows the devastating effects, and Dometically Cursed is her contribution to stop this epidemic…or save a life.
Domestically Cursed is Amin’s time in a relationship she knew from jump would be no good for her. She was 21, dating Chris, a woman twice her age. Amin wasn’t exactly what Chris wanted, but she tried to make it work. Her age and inexperience led her stay in an over-her-head relationship, with many nights of torture from the woman who supposedly loved her.
Hindsight being 20/20, Amin had her instincts about the relationship. Her friends expressed concern. Her mother warned her against it. Even Chris warned her, telling her, “I beat my women.” She brushed these red signs aside. Nothing could deter Amin from being with this woman. Chris’ aggressive nature drew her in, but it soon was used against her to abandon her friends, be talked down to and be beaten on a regular basis. She had signed her permission slip, so to speak, to allow it to happen, but it couldn’t continue.
This is where Amin’s story takes off. Maybe I shouldn’t use the word story because this was her life. She survives the abuse, and fortunately, realized what void Chris filled in her life to allow her stay in such a dysfunctional relationship. Any woman reading Amin’s words can place themselves in her shoes, if they haven’t already been there themselves. She conveys what an abuser really is. She also provides invaluable resources to get help for women stuck in this situation. Because there is a way out.
Amin – minister, motivational speaker, and life coach – can attest to that.
Reviewed June 2013
Top Ten Tuesday Freebie: Memorable Stud Characters
Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme hosted at The Broke and the Bookish.
This week’s topic: Top Ten Memorable Stud Characters (Top Ten Tuesday Freebie)
Studs…that enigma of a woman with masculine sensibilities. They’re handsome, strong, and still vulnerable in their emotions to share with us femmes. Studs are also the topic of today’s Top Ten Tuesday. Since this week was a Freebie topic, I decided focus on Memorable Stud Characters. Join me, will you?
- Denise, Cooley, Nic (of the Choices series by Skyy): The studs in Skyy’s Choices series are women we’ve all dated, desired or dumped. That’s what makes Denise (the sensitive one), Cooley (the playa), and Nic (the supportive one) such great characters. I’ll hate for these studs’ stories to come to an end in Full Circle, out now.
- Symone Holmes (of I Am Your Sister series by Ericka K. F. Simpson): An engaging stud, Symone is intelligent and strong-willed. She can also be hard-headed, as well. But she is, most of all, an honest stud.
- Tee (of The Space Our Love Demands by Kionne Nicole): Funny and full of life, Tee is the best friend of main character Hadiyah Matthews, but she steals the scene. She’s both book smart and street smart, and has a great head on her shoulders. She needs to have her own book now.
- Cleopatra Giovanni (of She Wants Her by Tasha C. Miller): Cleo’s magnetic personality draws women to her like bees to honey. There’s just something about her personality that engages both gay and straight women, but her vulnerability and power to love in spite of her past are her strongest points.
- bull-jean (of the bull-jean stories by Sharon Bridgforth): a rough-talkin’, blue-collar bulldagga in the 1920s, bull-jean is a willing participant in love. bull-jean falls in love faster than greased lightning, and has no problem expressing her feelings to the one she loves. She’s a walking poem.
- Teren Ramsey (of Nothing Short of a Rainbow by Kaution): Teren plays hard as a college basketball star. She loves just as hard. The torch she holds for a college sweetheart is endearing. She gets plenty of action in the meantime, though.
- London Walters (of London Reign by A. C. Britt): Kicked out of her house for being gay, London does what she gotta do to stay alive on the Boston streets. London is a real stud-thug, but you see she has heart.
- Chan Parker (of Dying for a Change by Sean Reynolds): Cool-as-a-fan, Chan Parker is a 33-year-old numbers runner, working her dead-end profession with all the enthusiasm of a broken toaster. When called upon to solve a murder, her boyish good looks and wicked smarts help her get the job done. Amen!
- Rémi Bouchard (of Hungry For It by Fiona Zedde): Remi is smooth — she manages pulls an older woman, her best friend’s mother to be exact. And she’s deep. And sexy. And romantic. And did I mention sexy?
- Lieutenant Perri Stone (of the Inside Out series by Juin Charnell): Charming but tough as nails, prison investigator, Perri Stone has issues in work and at home. She rises above though, and never let her inmates, colleagues, or girlfriend see her sweat.
Who is your most memorable or favorite stud character? A stud character you wish existed in the flesh?
Top Ten Tuesday: Favorite Book Covers of Books I’ve Read
Top Ten Tuesday is an original feature/weekly meme hosted at The Broke and the Bookish.
This week’s topic: Top Ten Favorite Book Covers Of Books I’ve Read
They say pictures are worth a thousand words, and these covers give a great visual to the words inside the book. Based on this compilation, I enjoy books with colorful, creative and sexy images. Some of the covers are older versions, but I enjoyed them nonetheless. It was so difficult to narrow it down to just 10 covers, but according to the rules I had to. Here, in no specific order, are my Top Ten Favorite Book Covers Of Books I’ve Read
The artwork is alluring. The subject matter, about a slave and master’s daughter who fall in love, are just as provocative (and sweet).
I Ain’t Yo Bitch by Jabulile Bongiwe Ngwenya
This gritty sets the backdrop for the story of a female rapper in an all-male crew trying to make it in South Africa while battling her sexuality.
If You Love Me, Come by Claudia Moss
I can’t say enough of this 5-star book, other than love and its many forms are beautiful. As is this cover.
Girl in the Mirror by Alix B. Golden
I love the girly and sensual look of Golden’s book, as well as the color scheme. The cover definitely matches the story, one of a woman facing herself and finally loving what she sees.
Why do I love this cover? Let thee count the six main characters on the front. Skyy’s second novel is the first one where we can finally put faces to the characters we’ve been reading about. The cover has since changed, but I’ll always appreciate this one. Her newest, and last in the Choices series :'(, Full Circle, will be out soon.
Walk Like a Man by Laurinda D. Brown
The cigar, the tie, man’s shirt, and feminine smirk all contribute a good look to Brown’s short-story tome.
The very first Fiona Zedde novel. Striking, vibrant and just as hot as Bliss and Hunter. The sea backdrop is inviting. It takes you away, along with Zedde’s prose. Her newest title, Broken in Soft Places, is out now.
Black Girl in Paris by Shay Youngblood
Who can resist butterflies? Eden’s excursion to Paris was as rich and pleasing as this cover. It’s a timeless novel.
My Got a Girlfriend by James Tanner
This cover is pure eye candy. Voluptuous femme. Handsome stud. You would think the novel was just as sexy cover. Not so much. The book was horrible. I would rather stare at this couple for days on end than read this book again.
Purple Panties: An Eroticanoir.com Anthology edited by Zane
Purple is one of my favorite colors. The fact that both ladies are clad skimpy undergarments in the same shade, clearly doesn’t hurt. The sex between the covers is just as hot.
Tell what you think of these book covers? What’s your own favorite cover art?