Book Reviews

Book Blurb

The winter days might be frosty, but a new guy in town is sure to heat up Father Nicholas and Dr. Zach!

Reverend Nicholas Simmons has traveled a bumpy road before landing in the small town of Mindle with his doctor husband. So, when a new, very sexy, very enticing young man shows interest in them both, he’s reluctant to rock the boat.

 

Zach, however, can’t keep the flashes of desire from his eyes. He’d never cheat, of course not, but visions of hot threesomes dance in his mind. Will Nicholas ever agree? If so, what would it be like? How hard would they all come?

 

Brandon isn’t looking forward to his first Christmas in Mindle. He’s alone. Exhausted. Friendless. That is, until he meets the Reverend and Zach. From that first moment he’s equal parts fascinated and turned on by them. Sure, they’re older than he is, but that just heightens his lust and increases his need to get hot, sweaty and naked with them.

 

Will their romance have a backdrop of tinsel and holly? Can three strong, passionate men truly connect with absolute honesty? And on Christmas night, will they each get the ultimate present—one another—under the tree?

 

Book Review

Let’s start with some candor: ‘Mistletoe Menage’, by some standards, would be considered a dirty novel, replete with filthy (but fulfilling) erotica. As a broad-minded reader, this doesn’t necessarily upset me, but it raises an issue of how a reviewer can treat it seriously. Can it be intellectually or abstractly analyzed, its characters and situations properly parsed? Or, do we merely settle for dealing with the various anticipated hormonal responses among would-be readers (chacun a son gôut – roughly translated: to each pig provide it’s preferred serving of slop – as the pseudo literati might say).

 

That the author presents us with two righteous heroes – a small-town vicar and a physician, each in their early thirties, makes that initial sexual appraisal more questionable. The main characters while openly gay, are firmly committed to each other, and have significant physical appetites, they lead upright and private lives. As Lily Harlem somewhat saccharinely says: “Like a walled garden with a secret door, their love and passion was a place just for them.” Ready for more sophomoric talk? “Bliss filled every corner of his body and rushed through every artery and vein.” More than cornflakes are served with excess of sugar! Also: Of all things, there is also very passing reference about Nicholas and Zach being in an interracial relationship – for no decipherable purpose.

 

The novel proceeds to deal with the attraction between an established couple and a twenty-year-old single man. Their blood runs hot for one another, they find practicable ways to privately express their physical needs, and Lily Harlem provides “(e)verything a threesome could offer”. Fittingly, the main characters are easily aroused, almost never satisfied, and at least one seems massively competitive in penal size usual to classic porn heroes. (Does anyone really want to read about a small to average sexual athlete? And imagine the negative emotional effect of that expectation on most of us regular guys! Take Brandon, who’s c*ck “was impressive, big enough to cause pain”. Really!)

 

‘Mistletoe Menage’ also raises an interesting discussion point. When an erotic work features a religious person who in print functions as a lowlife, the eroticism can become exotically magnified. Here, Nicolas is a good guy, and reasonably observant. Does that add to the eroticism? Or rather, does it pose some imbalance or sense of philosophic betrayal? Welcome to the 21st century. Harlem addresses any issue in favor of biology: “The orgasms. The gasps. The wails of delight.” And that’s no church service being described!

 

Dear Reader: Enough. Lily Harlem has provided us with a book that’s the equivalent of a Hallmark movie, but with lots of nice, detailed sex and three-way true love. Enjoy.

 

 

 

 

DISCLAIMER: Book reviewed on this site were usually provided at no cost by the publisher or author. This book has been provided by Pride Publishing for the purpose of a review.

 

Additional Information

Format	ebook
Length	Novella, 134 pages/30432 words
Heat Level
Publication Date	07-December-2021
Price	$3.99 ebook
Buy Link	https://www.pride-publishing.com/book/mistletoe-menage