Reviews with TLC

What He Wants Eden Cole is an erotic short story starring two best friends who reluctantly admit their attraction for each other. I felt pulled into the story as the two struggled with feelings they didn't want to feel let alone act upon. Cole weaves an engaging story of attraction, friendship, and self-discovery to which many people will relate regardless of sexual orientation.

Tamara J. Madison's Kentucky Curdled uses poetry to examine the pain of family secrets and family mythology. All families have stories with a root of truth that have the feeling of being unbelievable. Madison bravely examines the emotions of all involved when a mother kills her own child believing it the best alternative. Her words are lyrical though raw and blunt. She entrances the reader with pure emotion and honest examination without giving in to the impulse to whitewash the story. Kentucky Curdled is a quick, compelling, thought provoking read.

Naseem Rakha packs The Crying Tree with thought provoking situations involving interesting characters the reader struggles to like at times and reluctantly dislikes at other times. Rakha immerses the reader in the grief and depression of the Stanley family after the death of their fifteen year old son, Shep. She examines the destruction wrought by family secrets and how easy it can be to blind ourselves to that which we don't want to see. As each family member deals with the death of Shep in their individual ways, the reader wonders what keeps the family from completely disintegrating. When Irene, Shep's mother, begins a secret correspondence with Daniel Robbins, her son's killer, she begins to see him as human rather than just as Shep's murderer launching her on the process of both healing and forgiving. When secrets reveal more about her son than she ever imagined, she questions her mothering as well as the truth revealed. The Crying Tree grabs hold of the reader ...