Reviewed by London Koffler
About the Book:
This is the sixth volume of stories in this series. This time there is one about the idealized love of a man for a mute wild girl, and another about an older woman who takes a hot young lover. There is one brief essay relating to my own relationship to writing. There are two story sets, one with an older man and young woman, the other relating to a fearsome god. Most are more or less mainstream, but some are fantasy adventure. The shortest story is only 500 words; the longest is 13,600 words. Some are erotic as hell, others not. In short, there should be something here to intrigue or offend any taste.
My Review: 3/5
Most of these stories were about romantic, even erotic, love. While romance is not my typical genre of choice, this collection has stories that also bring in elements of fantasy, which I do enjoy. “Mark of Moloch” and “Mission for Moloch” are about a group traveling through a fantasy world of realms inhabited by different creatures. I enjoyed these the most, as the relationships are more of friendship and companionship than romance, and the story had such a fantastical plot. Though a short chapter, another I enjoyed is “What Am I Writing For?” which explains Anthony’s own relationship with writing. I appreciate his honesty in opening the darker parts of his life to explain his love for and devotion to writing. For me, it was still worth reading the non-fantasy stories because of Anthony’s concepts, some of which are highly imaginative and creative.
As Anthony himself says in the description, some of these stories are “erotic as hell,” and they are unsuitable for younger or sensitive readers. Some descriptions and dialogue are very sexually explicit, and some of the age choices are a bit disturbing to me. One half of each couple is often barely of legal age. However, legal is legal and consent is given. I would recommend this book to lovers of love, erotica, companionship, and even fantasy. Based on this sixth volume in the series, I would gladly read through the others to find the gems I know Anthony is capable of creating.
Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book for free in exchange for writing a review. I was not obligated to give a positive review, and all thoughts are my own.
About the Author:
Piers Anthony is the best-selling fantasy author of the Xanth series, among others. He lives with his wife in Inverness, Florida.
https://www.amazon.com/Relationships-6-Piers-Anthony/dp/1947381059/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1530374120&sr=8-1&keywords=relationships+6