2019 (Lise Gold Books)
Emily works as a sales manager for a textiles company based in Arizona. She goes to church, has weekly dinners with her parents, hasn´t taken a sick day in years. She works hard at her job, people count on her, but no one really knows. her. Does she do anything besides work? Does she ever "cut loose", let her hair down? When Emily goes to New York for her company´s annual trade show, she expects this trip will be like all of the previous ones: a jam-packed schedule blending sales meetings, networking, and work presentations.
Little does Emily know that during these nights in New York, her entire life will irrevocably change when she meets a mysterious and sexy woman in the hotel bar, who invites her up to her hotel room.
Thus is the opening of The Good Girl, a lesbian erotic novella written by Madeleine Taylor, the pseudonym for the British-Norwegian author of lesbian romance, Lise Gold. An independent author who has published over fifteen books, Taylor´s novella is an exciting example of the variety of themes that can be explored within this genre. Considerable time is spent describing Emily´s world, which feels routine, materially successful, yet ultimately unfulfilling for her personal wants and needs. We care about her, we are invested in her, when she encounters "May" at the bar, a name which she knows is an alias. The reasons why Emily´s lover is using an alias is revealed in a series of surprising twists (which I won´t share here--read the book!).
The sex between these two women is very sensual, steamy, as well as sweet. Through their beautifully described encounters, Taylor charts not only the profound sexual awakening within Emily, but how this begins to impact the rest of her life. She realizes that she has been doing little more than working, for years; what about friends, much less romance and sex with other partners? Isn´t there more to life than just working working working? Taylor is masterful at charting these changes within Emily, who is tired of being "the good girl", and seeks instead to break free of the rules others have imposed upon her.
This is a delightful novella written by a confident and intelligent author who is interested in providing more than just stimulating sex scenes. The Good Girl is about transformation: how sometimes meeting one person can radically change the course of our lives, causing us to re-evaluate everything else we have done up to that point. Within these pages, Emily and May have a beautiful and sexy series of connections with one another, causing both to change in new and unexpected ways. Some may consider them "bad girls", but they´re definitely happier. And isn´t that the point of living?
Highly recommend this book to anyone interested in reading quality long-form erotica.