The Mammoth Book of Best New Erotica 12: Over 40 outstanding pieces of short erotic fiction (Mammoth Books) Read online

  Maxim Jakubowski is a London-based novelist and editor. He was born in the UK and educated in France. Following a career in book publishing, he opened the world-famous Murder One bookshop in London. He now writes full-time. He has edited over thirty bestselling erotic anthologies and books on erotic photography, as well as many acclaimed crime collections. His novels include It’s You That I Want to Kiss, Because She Thought She Loved Me, and On Tenderness Express, all three recently collected and reprinted in the USA as Skin in Darkness. Other books include Life in the World of Women, The State of Montana, Kiss Me Sadly, Confessions of a Romantic Pornographer, I Was Waiting For You, and Ekaterina and the Night. In 2006 he published American Casanova, a major erotic novel which he edited and on which fifteen of the top erotic writers in the world collaborated, and his collected erotic short stories as Fools For Lust. He compiles two annual acclaimed series for the Mammoth list: Best New Erotica and Best British Crime. He is a winner of the Anthony and the Karel Awards, a frequent TV and radio broadcaster, a past crime columnist for the Guardian newspaper, and Literary Director of London’s Crime Scene Festival.

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  THE MAMMOTH BOOK OF

  Best New Erotica

  Volume 12

  Edited by Maxim Jakubowski

  Constable & Robinson Ltd

  55–56 Russell Square

  London WC1B 4HP

  www.constablerobinson.com

  First published in the UK by Robinson,

  an imprint of Constable & Robinson Ltd, 2013

  Copyright © Maxim Jakubowski, 2013 (unless otherwise stated)

  The right of Maxim Jakubowski to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by him in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988

  All rights reserved. This book is sold subject to the condition that it shall not, by way of trade or otherwise, be lent, resold, hired out or otherwise circulated in any form of binding or cover other than that in which it is published and without a similar condition including this condition being imposed on the subsequent purchaser.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or to actual events or locales is entirely coincidental.

  A copy of the British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data is available from the British Library

  UK ISBN: 978-1-78033-789-0 (paperback)

  UK ISBN: 978-1-78033-790-6 (ebook)

  1 3 5 7 9 10 8 6 4 2

  First published in the United States in 2012 by Running Press Book Publishers, A Member of the Perseus Books Group

  All rights reserved under the Pan-American and International Copyright Conventions

  This book may not be reproduced in whole or in part, in any form or by

  any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording,

  or by any information storage and retrieval system now known or

  hereafter invented, without written permission from the publisher.

  Books published by Running Press are available at special discounts for bulk purchases in the United States by corporations, institutions, and ther organizations. For more information, please contact the Special Markets Department at the Perseus Books Group, 2300 Chestnut Street, Suite 200, Philadelphia, PA 19103, or call (800) 810-4145, ext. 5000, or e-mail [email protected].

  US ISBN: 978-0-7624-4947-7

  US Library of Congress Control Number: 2013915863

  9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

  Digit on the right indicates the number of this printing

  Running Press Book Publishers

  2300 Chestnut Street

  Philadelphia, PA 19103-4371

  Visit us on the web!

  www.runningpress.com

  Printed and bound in the UK

  Cover photography and design by Ken Leeder

  Contents

  ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

  INTRODUCTION

  Maxim Jakubowski

  GROUNDED

  Nikki Magennis

  THE TENNIS PRO

  I. J. Miller

  THE COPPER HORSE

  Vina Green

  THE READING

  Michael Hemmingson

  ALL MY LOVERS IN ONE ROOM

  Kristina Lloyd

  SATURNALIA

  Vivienne LaFay

  WHORE

  D. L. King

  NEW ORLEANS WHEN IT RAINS

  Maxim Jakubowski

  WHERE I CAN SEE YOU

  Remittance Girl

  THE BLOOD MOON KISS

  Mitzi Szereto

  CONTRACT BETWEEN CZARINA AND HER SUBMISSIVE ANAÏS

  Gala Fur and Véronique Bergen

  VENUS IN EDINBURGH

  Pat McStone

  EXQUISITE CORPSE

  Aimee Nichols

  ALICE BEFORE HER PERIOD

  Emma Becker

  TOURIST

  Angela Caperton

  HERE THERE BE DRAGONS

  Ashley Lister

  SUFFER FOR ME

  Teresa Noelle Roberts

  THE HORNIEST GIRL IN SAN FRANCISCO

  Charles Gatewood

  COUCOU

  Mia More

  MARKS

  Rachel Kramer Bussel

  HALLOWEEN IN THE CASTRO

  Donna George Storey

  SPAR

  Kij Johnson

  ROMANESQUE

  O’Neil De Noux

  FLESHPOT

  Lisabet Sarai

  THE PICK-UP ARTIST

  Alison Tyler

  COME INSIDE

  Mathew Klickstein

  RISK REDUCTION

  Madeline Moore

  FLESH AND STONE

  Sacchi Green

  AGAINST THE WALL

  Catherine Paulssen

  WHAT VACATIONS ARE FOR

  Thomas S. Roche

  LA BELLE MORT

  Zander Vyne

  SUITE 12
26

  Michèle Larue

  LESSONS LEARNED

  Jade Melisande

  THE GRAFFITI ARTIST

  Amanda Earl

  YOU BELONG TO ME

  C. Sanchez-Garcia

  INTO THE BAPTISMAL

  Peggy Munson

  BALANCING THE BOOKS

  Lucy Felthouse

  HINA, THE HAWAIIAN HELEN

  J. D. Munro

  HOLD

  Adam Berlin

  GOLDEN HAND

  K. L. Gillespie

  STELLA

  Saskia Walker

  MAKE YOUR OWN MIRACLES

  Nikki Magennis

  STATUES IN THE SNOW

  Steve Finn

  MY ASS IS YOUR ASS IS MY ASS

  Kristina Lloyd

  APPOINTMENT TEE VEE

  Victoria Janssen

  WE ARE NOT WHAT YOU THINK WE ARE

  Michael Hemmingson

  SOMETHING TWISTED THIS WAY COMES

  Kyoko Church

  NEW YORK SNOW

  Elissa Wald

  Acknowledgements

  “Grounded” © 2013 Nikki Magennis. First appeared in Best Erotic Romance 2013, edited by Kristina Wright

  “The Tennis Pro” © 2011 I. J. Miller. First appeared in the author’s collection Sex and Love

  “The Copper Horse” © 2012 Vina Green. First appeared in The Copper Horse from House of Erotica

  “The Reading” © 2012 Michael Hemmingson. First appeared in Penthouse Variations

  “All My Lovers in One Room” © 2012 Kristina Lloyd. First appeared in Stretched, edited by Tinder James

  “Saturnalia” © 2013 Vivienne LaFay. First appeared in e-book format

  “Whore” © 2012 D. L. King. First appeared in One Night Only, edited by Violet Blue

  “New Orleans When it Rains” © 2012 Maxim Jakubowski. First appeared in Foreign Affairs, edited by Antonia Adams

  “Where I Can See You” © 2012 Remittance Girl. First appeared on the Erotica Readers and Writers Association website

  “The Blood Moon Kiss” © 2011 Mitzi Szereto. First appeared in Red Velvet and Absinthe, edited by Mitzi Szereto

  “Contract between Cazrina and her Submissive Anaïs” © 2012 Gala Fur and Véronique Bergen. First appeared in Edwarda

  “Venus in Edinburgh” © 2013 Pat McStone. Original to this collection

  “Exquisite Corpse” © 2012 Aimee Nichols. First appeared in Little Raven One

  “Alice Before her Period” © 2012 Emma Becker. First appeared as a broadsheet from the UAE British Centre for Literary Translation

  “Tourist” © 2012 Angela Caperton. First appeared in Like the Hand of Time, edited by Bethany Zaiatz Acknowledgements

  “Here There be Dragons” © 2012 Ashley Lister. First appeared in Thrones of Desire, edited by Mitzi Szereto

  “Suffer for Me” © 2011 Teresa Noelle Roberts. First appeared in Best Bondage Erotica, edited by Rachel Kramer Bussel

  “The Horniest Girl in San Francisco” © 2013 Charles Gatewood. Original to this collection

  “Coucou” © 2012 Mia More. First appeared on www.cliterati.co.uk

  “Marks” © 2012 Rachel Kramer Bussel. First appeared in Cheeky Spanking Stories, edited by Rachel Kramer Bussel

  “Halloween in the Castro” © 2012 Donna George Storey. First appeared on oysters&chocolate.com

  “Spar” © 2009 Kij Johnson. First appeared in Clarkesworld

  “Romanesque” © 2012 O’Neil De Noux. First appeared in Foreign Affairs, edited by Antonia Adams

  “Fleshpot” © 2012 Lisabet Sarai. First appeared in Coming Together: Arm in Arm in Arm, edited by Nobilis Reed

  “The Pick-Up Artist” © 2011 Alison Tyler. First appeared in Gritty, edited by Sommer Marsden

  “Come Inside” © 2013 Mathew Klickstein. Original to this collection

  “Risk Reduction” © 2012 Madeline Moore. First appeared in The Swap

  “Flesh and Stone” © 2012 Sacchi Green. First appeared in Thrones of Desire, edited by Mitzi Szereto

  “Against the Wall” © 2012 Catherine Paulssen. First appeared in Duty and Desire, edited by Kristina Wright

  “What Vacations Are For” © 2011 Thomas S. Roche. First appeared in Best Bondage Erotica, edited by Rachel Kramer Bussel

  “La Belle Mort” © 2011 Zander Vyne. First appeared in Red Velvet and Absinthe, edited by Mitzi Szereto

  “Suite 1226” © 2012 Michèle Larue. First appeared in Secrets de Femmes, edited by Franck Spengler

  “Lessons Learned” © 2012 Jade Melisande. First appeared in Cheeky Spanking Stories, edited by Rachel Kramer Bussel

  “The Graffiti Artist” © 2012 Amanda Earl. First appeared on the Erotica Readers and Writers Association website

  “You Belong to Me” © 2012 C. Sanchez-Garcia. First appeared on the Erotica Readers and Writers Association website

  “Into the Baptismal” © 2012 Peggy Munson. First appeared in Stripped Down, edited by Tristan Taormino Acknowledgements

  “Balancing the Books” © 2013 Lucy Felthouse. First appeared in The Big Book of Bondage, edited by Alison Tyler

  “Hina, the Hawaiian Helen” © 2012 J. D. Munro. First appeared in the author’s collection The Strangler Fig

  “Hold” © 2012 Adam Berlin. First appeared on Clean Sheets

  “Golden Hand” © 2012 K. L. Gillespie. First appeared in a different version in The Erotic Review and in the present version in the author’s collection Unlost

  “Stella” © 2012 Saskia Walker. First appeared in Open, edited by Alison Tyler

  “Make Your Own Miracles” © 2011 Nikki Magennis. First appeared in Steamlust, edited by Kristina Wright

  “Statues in the Snow” © 2012 Steve Finn. First appeared at literotica.com

  “My Ass is Your Ass is My Ass” © 2011 Kristina Lloyd. First appeared in Smart Ass, edited by Alison Tyler

  “Appointment Tee Vee” © 2012 Victoria Janssen. First appeared in Morning, Noon and Night, edited by Alison Tyler

  “We Are Not What You Think We Are” © 2012 Michael Hemmingson. First appeared in Fiction International

  “Something Twisted this Way Comes” © 2012 Kyoko Church. First appeared in My Secret Life

  “New York Snow” © 2013 Elissa Wald. Original to this collection

  Introduction

  2012 was the year the erotica and romance literary map changed forever.

  The Fifty Shades of Grey phenomenon, notwithstanding the intrinsic faults of the bestselling trilogy, has proven there is a strong appetite for erotic stories and tales explicitly depicting what I would term non-vanilla sexual activities and tastes. To the extent that we even hear sales of sex aids and toys have increased spectacularly worldwide as a result! And, of course, erotic books have also much benefited from the FSOG tsunami, with authors like Vina Jackson, Indigo Bloome, L. M. Adeline, Sylvia Day, Sasha Grey and Portia Da Costa following in E. L. James’s footsteps onto the bestseller lists, while many of the contributors to our Mammoth series have also seen a significant increase in their sales and noted with a wry smile that publishers now looked upon them somewhat more favourably than before when the erotic field was still something of a popular fiction ghetto.

  This is a well-deserved vindication of my convictions about the artistic and entertainment merit of erotica. After editing this series for now eighteen years I can only applaud this new-found recognition and hope that it is at least partly sustained after the wave of bad imitations and exploitative material that any new phenomenon generates abates and the quality authors rise to the top without being drowned in the sea of “me too” books that are currently flooding us.

  Since I launched this series in 1995 (we featured five unnumbered collections prior to our now twelve annual volumes), I have been proud to introduce hundreds of talented authors, some of whom were and are still active outside erotica too, who have ably demonstrated that writing can arouse, fascinate and enchant. And year after year, they continue to amaze me with the
breadth of their sometimes wonderfully twisted imaginations and the way they renew a subject – sex – that many wrongly think of as repetitive and not worthy of description, analysis and emotion. But if you’ve been reading our collections for years now, I know I’m preaching to the convinced.

  Yet again, this year’s volume features new names and talents as well as returning favourites. Never has so much erotica been published than during the past twelve months; not just novels with the obligatory BDSM background but also a record number of anthologies both in print and digital format and, as a result, I had an embarrassment of choices when it came to selecting this year’s stories and was obliged to neglect many that could well have merited inclusion in a previous volume.

  I am particularly pleased to be able to introduce for the first time writers I’ve long admired such as Peggy Munson, whose novel Origami Striptease I heartily recommend, Elissa Wald (author of Meeting the Master, which I was also delighted to include as a reprint in my digital list of Modern Erotica Classics from this collection’s UK publishers) as well as French author Emma Becker, whose splendid (and realistically steamy) novel Monsieur I was privileged to be able to recently translate and which is now available in the UK and USA (and many other countries too). In addition, award-winning SF author Kij Johnson joins us as do Pat McStone (behind whom hides a rather acclaimed crime author), famed San Francisco photographer Charles Gatewood (who has featured in several of my Mammoth Books of Erotic Photography and some decades ago wrote the wonderful 1993 cult classic novel Hellfire as Charles G. Wood), and I. J. Miller (new to this series but a contributor to my Sex in the City quartet of anthologies).

  With the increased visibility of literary erotica and romance on the bookshelves, I am hoping to welcome many new readers to our collections and can only repeat something I’ve said many times before: if you enjoy the voices, ideas, plots and characters you come upon within these pages, don’t be shy and do continue your exploration by searching for other books and stories by the writers you discover here. You will find them not only rewarding but also liberating – even if it doesn’t point you in the direction of the nearest sex shop for technical assistance!