Book Cover Art

I believe a cover art of the book should be able to convey in a snapshot of the story content and have an overall tone. I like erotic tasteful photography but I myself am not a photographer, I do know what artistically appeals to my sense and frankly the original colour covers for this series leave me cold.

One of the joys of going to Digital Books (Kobo Vox for me) is just because you like the book, doesn’t mean you have to put up with bad book coverart anymore if you don’t want to and want to be a bit creative.

I re-created the five covers for a book series called Knights of the Boardroom by Joey W Hill, using the blurbs and a bit of style.

Book 1 -Board Resolution

Blurb: “Savannah has been groomed since birth to take the reins of her father’s manufacturing empire. Her emotional armor is as tough as the steel used in her factories, and no man is allowed past it. Business partner Matt Kensington realizes that the key to entry is not to ask permission, but to command her submission. Calling on the unique sensual talents of his four-man management team, he engineers an aggressive takeover, determined to rescue the woman he’s always loved from the steel cage she’s manufactured around her heart.”

Love the story hated the bad porno cover......of a bo-hunk laying over the top of a blonde on a boardroom table......Dull and looks like a cheap porno. I chose a washed out photo and converted it to greyscale using Powerpoint. I like the Park Lane Font as it has a sense of Style & Money to it in Grey to compliment the photo style and a pop of Red for the Book Title as the story centers around 2 CEO of large company's and Red is a think is colour for war or power-plays.

Book 2 - Controlled Response

Blurb : “After seeing his boss Matt find the love of his life in the high powered executive Savannah Tennyson, Lucas finds he’s wanting more out of a relationship than just fantastic sex. Then on a cycling trip in the Berkshires, he stumbles on the pin-up fantasy of his life, a beautiful blonde pleasuring herself on her Harley in a secluded glade. Can he have the fantasy and the reality both? When Cassandra Moira reappears in his life a month later as part of a negotiating team on a three-day business deal, he’ll have to use every strategy—including the sensual skills of his own multi-talented team—to convince her the two of them have more than sexual chemistry, before she’s gone from his life again.”

 

 This doesn't have a cover of it own, it part of a Omnibus Story Collection. I wanted a cover for the story. I like book series to have a uniform look to them if I can get them so using the same font format I duplicated the Book 1 Cover Layout and adjusted the Photo. I found this image is quite dark and hard to make out but it a naked guy with a girl draped about his shoulders, I was bit at a loss with what to chose but I thought it went well with the Book Title so I went with this in the end.

Book 3 – Honour Bound

Blurb: “When not serving in the National Guard, Peter Winston is a successful businessman, part of the K&A management team. Like the other four members, he’s also a sexual Dominant, adept at bringing a woman to pleasurable surrender. The night before he heads out on his second Afghanistan tour, he meets Dana, a sexual submissive that gets into his head and heart the way no woman ever has. But Dana is also an Army sergeant. It will be over a year before they see one another again, and when they do, she’s suffered injuries that took her sight and will to live. With the creative use of a corset and the talents of the other K&A males, Peter sets the stage for another special night for them, knowing that only a submissive’s willingness to trust her Master will bring her back to love and life again”

This doesn't have a cover of it own, it part of an Omnibus Story Collection. It’s the story of 2 volunteer Afghanistan war vets. Yes, it’s a inter-racial couple (African American girl & White American man) -the only photo that didn't suck that I found and was tastefully erotic was of Bowie & his gorgeous wife Iman. It’s seems that these images are still taboo on the internet.

Book 4 : Afterlife

Blurb: “Rachel gave up seeking a Master years ago. After a failed marriage and terrible tragedy, she’s walled her soul against going down that dangerous path again. Then Jon joins her yoga class. He’s thirteen years younger than she, but his Dominant nature threatens her shields from the moment she recognizes it. Not only does he understand what her body wants—he knows what her soul craves. Part of the five-man executive team of Kensington & Associates, Jon uses his calm, philosophical nature to defuse volatile acquisition negotiations. He can compel opponents to willingly surrender when he draws the sword that closes the deal. As a sexual Dominant, he employs that same expertise. A spiritually driven Master who enjoys connecting with a woman’s soul, he wins her utter submission with his skills. But with Rachel, it goes beyond that. She’s the submissive his own soul has always hungered to have, and he won’t hesitate to use his talents, as well as that of the other four K&A men, to claim her.”

Bad Mills and Boon Erotica cover. This just had to go. I chose the photo on the basis there's lots of Yoga/Tantric/Spirituality and whilst the story is Alpha Male he is very nuturing approach to this one bitten-twice shy female lead even if the story contains elements of BDSM.

Book 5 – Hostile Takeover

Blurb: “Marcie has loved Ben since she was sixteen years old. He's never behaved toward her as anything more than a protective big brother, a family friend. But now she’s twenty-three, graduated from college, and starting her career as a corporate investigator.  She may be a blood-and-bone deep submissive, but she’s determined to prove to him that she can be the submissive of his heart’s desire. With a Master as tough as Ben, she’ll have to take whatever aggressive measures are needed—even if her deepest desire isn’t a hostile takeover of his heart and soul, but an unconditional surrender to it”

  

 Love the story but hated the glossy penthouse style cover, so this is what I came up with. Used Green as the pop of colour as the male has green-eyed in the story & is definitely a ass man. This is most daring photo choice in the covers I designed mostly I like the image is appropriate to the story content (lawyer, cars, a instigating submissive)

Love to know what you think – have I done better than the publisher’s vision in capturing the overall feel of the stories. 

The Itch

I have a twitch
A itch - I just can't relieve
Please my master
Take this feral agony
With teeth and claw
From betwixt my thighs
It cries for a release
A raw wild brush fire
It rages up my frame
Swirls within my belly
Quickens my beating heart
Like a the endless flick of your crop
Saliva pooling in confines of my mouth
Awaiting to take your steeled heat
Past my spiced vanilla lips
My breath does quicken
Trying to steady my resolve
As my muscles milking
In want of your absence
Driving me to distraction
My concentration is faltering

Fifty Shades Freed Part Three Review & Trilogy Review

Book 3 opens with the couple of Christian & Anastasia honeymooning in Europe and leaving all their problems at home to fester unattended.

On the return home things return to how they were before with Anastasia questioning her decision and dealing with an increasingly overprotective and immovably blind Christian. As he refuses to not only open up to her about this past abut also the current ever increasing threat to their future.

To use a boxing analogy – just when they are appearing to crumble under the weight of the others heavy blows(demands for control vs. independence), along come a Blip of the 10^th round that has both retreating to tend to their respective open wounds and to come out battling with renewed vigour and ferocity.Christian’s past also choose to strike with a three-fold assault determined to tear all their Hopes, Dreams and Future asunder until reaching the earth altering climax.

The last of the books deals a lot with Control, Independence, Stunted Emotional Growth, Revenge and overcoming these issues and looking forward to a future that will be threatened if these issues remain unresolved

To use another analogy that I used in the last review the wind turbine test tunnel has hit Mach 1 in this book, as I was on your edge of my seat as the suspense is interwoven thought out the plot artfully. It’s by no means perfect and the climax is a bit rushed for my liking .But it did to allow the writer to tie up everything in a nice ribbon afterwards.

I noticed that the author eased up on the heavily described sex aspect and had lot of snapshots of sex without the whole shebang, in order to propel the story forward. I really like and appreciate that the author made this sacrifice (not that I am a prude I am all for Steamy Smut or Kinky Fuckery), But I have seen too many authors sacrifice Plot for Sex Scenes in the past such as Laurell K Hamilton, Keri Arthur & Charlaine Harris and have promptly fell out of favour on my reading list for this reason alone.

I finished the book highly satisfied and had read a majority of it in one sitting.

I’m giving the final book a 4 out 5 as I found it a great read

As I read the entire series in less than 14 hours I thought it was highly entertaining, quick read and I can over look many of its faults on repetitive language and disjointed scenes (this was formatting issue with my copy more than the book itself) for this reason.  The Fifty Shades Trilogy a far superior series of books in every way to Twilight Books which was like a dragged leg like a injured dog makes the faults of bad grammar, inconsistent writing, bad plotting and irritating angst characters, all unforgivably in my eyes when the story is dead boring and offers suspense but then doesn’t deliver.

For the trilogy as a whole it gets 3.75 stars out of 5 and I’ve order myself a paperback copy box-set on its release (Twilight didn’t even get a star and I certainly wont by the books EVER).

Fifty Shades Darker Part Two Review

The story begins where the last one has left off but offers a bit of insight into the enigmatic, Mr Grey’s past.This is the first sign you are dealing with more than the standard fanfic fodder.

Much like the second book of its inferior counterpart - The relationship between Grey and Steele is in tatters due to a betrayal.  But the 2 leads dwell on their feelings & their differences before coming to understand that what started as a brief interlude has developed into something unexpected.

It’s after this opening that the story diverges greatly & develops into a story of its own.  I tried to explain the second book without giving away to much plot away the only things I could think of as it’s a story of obsession and dealing with past wrongs. So the following issues of independence, trust, acceptance, submission and, most importantly, unconditional love is all in play. Despite the intensity and conflict the tone remains witty and playful and romantic.

Caught up in the whirlwind of conflicting emotions and her feelings for Christian, Anastasia acquiesces to Christian’s impromptu marriage proposal.

The introduction of several new characters from Christian’s past has Anastasia doubt both her feelings and his for her as she is caught up in this past, that she has not even begin to understand or work through the ramifications of Christian's  past are now directly affecting her happiness and threatening her life with Christian.

The book is heavy on the angst, inner monologue, intense war of battle wills, heavy on sex but light on BDSM .Reading this book was like being in a every steadying wind-turbine test tunnel as it is ramps up towards the final book. My only issue I had was some overly repetitive phase usage as far as physical reactions to things done or said.

If the first book was 2.5, this is most certainly a 3.5 start out of 5. I’m completely addicted

Fifty Shades of Grey Part One Review

Note before I start this . This is purely the opinion of myself and before I get bombarded by rotten fruit for my opinion of Twilight contained within. GO elsewhere especially if its the only book you've ever bothered to read.

First thing that caught my attention in the book shop was the gorgeous covers Random House Vintage Press really uses the most brilliant of images on all their books but other than that I didn't think much of the story line as its not my usual reading material. Then I found out that the  story started it life as a fan fiction for Twilight Trilogy (shudder…Don’t even ask what I think of these books as it isn’t pretty)…) called The Master of the Universe. 

This is not a good selling point for me as I despise the Twilight books and the two weeks it took me to read them was equivalent to fingernails on a chalkboard but I perservered in the hope they would get better, unfortunately they didn't. Anyway I digress.

I then read a excerpt from Random House website and  thought I would give it a go expecting that the excerpt was the best part of the book and I would hate it just as much as the books it is loosely based on but I want to see what the furore was about  and I read lots of Good and very bad fanfiction so I managed to download a soft copy for a quarter of the price.

So I  have read it  and reviewed and made comparison where I think are worthy of note.

 

When I first started reading I picked up on character attributes in some of the characters Anastasia Steele(was obviously Bella Swann), Katherine Kavanagh (Alice Cullen but she’s more like Rosalie ),  Jose (Jacob) , Elliot (Jasper). Here’s where the similarity ends.

WARNING? There is not a vampire in sight and certainly not a sparkly one. So if this is what you’re after skip it.

Christian Grey is a CEO, enigmatic, philanthropic, superior, demanding, abrupt and commanding. He is also quite mercurial.  Personally I find Christian is a much more complex character than Edward Cullen, as I was reading, I kept being reminded of Jonas Cord from Harold Robbins’s The Carpetbaggers.  As a bit of a control freak and tendency to be a soft Dominant-Submissive myself, I have this Love/ Hate Relationship with Jonas, so too are my feelings for Christian. Whilst Christian pursues Anastasia he does so within the boundaries of lawfully, Edward on the other hand is just creepy and illegal sneaking into watch a girl sleep.

Anastasia Steele is a newly graduated & hopeful Publishing Intern. Whilst Ana is innocent and pure she is worldly enough to see Christian’s flaws but also see’s something beyond these outwardly noticeable traits that other’s don’t. She will also stand her ground, poke fun and tease Christian mercilessly.

It’s a story of worldly innocence and hardened corruption and how they both can impact on the other the innocence become worldly and the corrupted are softened. I suppose the closest parallel I can make to the Book that people will understand, if you liked the movie The Secretary you will probably like this.

It also dispels some of the myths surrounding BSDM. Yes, there is quite a bit of sex in it but none if it over the top or overly graphic (well not by fan fiction standards, which sometimes is smut that Hustler magazine would consider blush-worthy). The BDSM so far is all fairly soft and light …bondage, blindfold, spanking without implements. Nothing that those in a sexual relations haven’t contemplated/experimented with unless you’re purely vanilla in your taste.

Whilst reading Twilight, I remembered contemplating taking a hatchet to all and sundry at one point, as the characters are very one dimensional and only seem to have the one emotion prevalent. The main characters in “Fifty Shades of Grey” are more fleshed out and multi layered. Frankly they are easier to relate to.

I even cried in one part, which I have only done in one other book, Jane Austen’s Persuasion.

Overall I really enjoyed this book, the story line wasn’t overly complicated and it is written by a defter hand  than the books that inspired its genesis.  The characters are interesting and the conversations seem flow well. Its written for adults and therefore the subject matter is more adult, even if the characters seem to get a bit angsty at times its adult not teenage angst.  I will probably visit this book again sometime in the future for another read. Whereas I will never put myself though Twilight ever again

I’m giving it a solid 2.5 rating out of 5.

Coming Soon Fifty Shades Darker Part 2 Review

Ending's Beginnings

I believe death is a very personal thing and the below came about as a group of friends and myself talked about the death of a mutual friend by suicide. Each person had a different reaction and felling about what this person had done, some were sad, same angry others just puzzled . So I tried to give each of them a voice. After readings it back I though I was missing the most important voice from this group of friends, that of the departed, so I tried to give them a voice as well.

I

Crimson drops

Porcelain and mortar

Alabaster form

Smeared in red

Never to heal

The open wound

Forever gripping

Stained sword

Dyed water

Spilling on to tile

Coursing red highway

Trapped in hypermnesia

Painful but never forgotten

Just lost in the haze

Hopes and dreams

Unfixable shattered

The windows are glazed

Façade stained with crystalline rain

Clock in the chamber winding down

Then slowing ticking down

Suddenly gripped by fear

Of this unknown - Too late coming

Smiling lips - It'll be fine

As this end comes – so welcome.

II

Why did you do it?

Couldn’t see beyond yourself

Taking you away leaving nothing

But the pain & confusion

Spreading it amongst

Those you claimed to love

That you left behind

Didn’t you care?

Just completely check out

Why didn’t you think?

No one obviously mattered

It was all about yourself

Was it the easiest solution?

To vacate your life

Now just bereaved

Are you at peace?

Within your plot

Aren’t you angry with yourself?

Just like I am

Couldn’t you find the will

To live – Obviously not

Just tossed it away

Like a old single shoe

One second – Was all you took

For you to make up your mind

Thoughtless – Selfish –

It was all about you

_____________________________________________________________

III

I don’t understand?

What truly made you – so desperate?

I loved you but you didn’t love me back

To tell me your fears –

Please come back

We always shared a bond

II would have understood

I could have helped

If you could’ve just talked

Confided in me

We would’ve found a way

To fix all the errors

I mourn your passing

It breaks my heart

To think you were all alone

Feeling no where you could turn

That no words spoken could’ve helped

Did you think – I would’ve understood

I loved you – I could have helped

I don’t think I’ll ever be the same –

IV

Don’t – Why

Don’t want to cry

Don’t want to scream

I’m no longer sure how I feel

Just want to sit still here

Don’t want to think another minute

Can’t seem to mourn your passing

Just sitting staring into space

Want to be blankly vacant

Want to be numbed

Just can’t, can’t, can’t………

Innocent Eyes

In the eyes of the innocent

The memories of the dead

Beating against their cages

Jaded and not yet lost

They speak the words so clearly

But they fall upon the deaf

No truth be told – The future is blurred

The lines are drawn

With the blood of the strong

Waiting – suspended

Breathe

Will they seal our fate

Dooming us to hate

Spilling the blood

Of faceless man

Causing this dissolution

Not seen till too late

STOP!

Take a good look

Tomorrow –

Start deconstruction