2021 (BEW LLC)
Miranda Snow has just relocated to an old drafty house somewhere in remote New England in the middle of winter to begin a new chapter. She´s just come in from Las Vegas where she had enjoyed a career as a professional dancer, and is looking forward to beginning work at a posh new school after the New Year. Intelligent, self-aware, and physically fit, this young woman is also clear on what she likes: older men. She likes the pleasure of being punished by a good Daddy, and being told what to do. She grows quickly tired of having to explain to some of her friends back home about "her Daddy issues". It just gets her off. It´s simple and powerful, a real need.
A connoisseur of tobacco, a blogger, and a widow, forty-something Cyrus McManus is raising a pair of tempestuous twins in their teens. While he continues to hold and protect strong feelings for his deceased wife, those emotional hauntings don´t prevent him from enjoying sex with a number of younger women in the New England area, from a 19-year-old waitress to a twenty-something flight attendant out of Logan airport. Turns out, he likes playing the role of Daddy, gets turned on by the younger women getting turned on by the role.
When the extremely direct and flirtatious Miranda moves in next door during the Christmas holidays, Cyrus´ world begins to irrevocably shift. At first, he tries to ignore the advances of his new neighbor, including resisting her ruse of appearing at his front door half-naked, claiming she accidentally locked herself outside of her front door. Undeterred, however, Miranda´s compaign of seduction swiftly overcomes Cyrus´ half-assed refusals, and the two are soon enjoying an exceptionally hot and sexy series of encounters, characterised by psychosexual dominance and submission. Miranda gets her Daddy, and Cyrus gets to tease, dominate, and spank his "girl". What surprises both of them, however, is how--no matter how each tries to downplay their meetings as being "just sex"--they are quickly experiencing feelings of genuine love and affection for another.
The first of a five-part series that recently became available in a single volume, Snowfall - Part 1: Freeze Watch can also stand on its own as a satisfying erotic novella, especially for readers who enjoy "age gap" and/or "Daddy Dom" relationships. A little bit of BDSM is sprinkled into the mix here, like cinnamon on top of a hot toddy in December, but the heat of the sex scenes here is largely psychological. In Snowfall, once Cyrus and Miranda begin their role-play, their sex is steamy and explicit, their dialogue especially taking readers along for the ride as they climax with their hip-shuddering orgasms.
But author Benson E. Wolf also seems to be aiming for more with this series of smut set in the snowy remote realms just outside of Boston. He has published a number of other stories featuring older men and younger men in erotic romances, but with the Snowfall series he gives himself room to stretch. Alternating between the perspectives of his two protagonists, we get to glimpse some of Miranda´s friendships back home with June and her wife, Spider; as well as to see how Cyrus is raising his snarky and intelligent twin children, Chloe and Cole. These details do not derail the arousal of the sexual scenes, but deepen them: Wolf takes teh time to make these characters believable, with tempers and shortcomings, with moments of tenderness as well as awkward attempts to hide their own secrets.
This is my first introduction to Wolf´s work, but it is a strong one. His writing is confident and clear, and the relationship between Miranda and Cyrus is intriguing enough to make me want to read more.