Feedback:
We will post trade reviews as and when they appear. Until then this is feedback from journalists, Amazon and readers via private email.
Review: Fiona Russell Powell - journalist, March 2009:
Love the book!
I really enjoyed it and read it cover to cover very quickly. As soon as I started it, I didn't put it down until I'd finished it.
Anything published by the author is almost always awful. Thank God this was the exception!
It is notoriously difficult to write about sex well. I don't think there are any other genres within a genre that get awards for bad writing apart from descriptions of sex in books.
I'm amazed that this is a first effort because it is very confidently written. I particularly liked the fact that Calvert-Toulmin didn't succumb to the temptation of punishing the Kate character for being such a brat; the resolving of her situation was both mature and realistic.
An excellent first novel in a genre that is daunting for a first-time author.
Another thing I absolutely adore is the frontispiece ex libris design - it's great! I wish other books did that.
I'm looking forward to reading My Adventures in Cyberspace now.
Private emails from customers:
"...gave me a hard on within five minutes! I applaud your perfect insight into the mind of a breast fetishist. You are spot on. Believe me, I know!"
"your book has got (name withheld) all worked up. We pick up the book and the juices flow. You should sell the book in Ann Summers as a sex aid, no kidding."
"Our postman knocked on the door at 8.30am with a small brown parcel, too
early to get up so thought I would take it back to bed and take a look.
By page 49 I had come three times, and my husband was a very happy
man!!!
He has stopped me from reading anymore as he wants to wait till we are back
in bed tonight!"
" This book is making me SO horny! (and I didn’t really need any help in that department)"
"To say I was aroused is a bit of an understatement - let's just say I'm glad I live alone."
Review: amazon.co.uk by J.Hewitt 22 January 2008
I bought this book on a recomendation from a friend, they said it was a bit racey. Well, as soon as I opened the cover I wasn't expecting what I read. Not only is explicit, it really does get your wedding tackle tingling, brilliant. I won't spoilt it but it's really well written and will drive you nuts for sex. If you haven't read provocative book then you'll be in for a real treat.
Review: amazon.co.uk by Graham 18 January 2009
If you have ever been stuck in a loveless relationship then you will recognise the characters in this book. From the infidelity of the wife, the repressed sexuality of the mother-in-law and the strength of the son-in-law each plays a part in this simple but very erotic tale.
I enjoyed the interplay between the three main players, each with their secrets and hidden messages written in their behaviors. But even if the overall story leaves your cold, the heat of the passion between Alex and Julia will keep you company while you ponder if this will ever happen to you.
Review:amazon.co.uk by P. Rogers 15 January 2009
You know those bad sex awards for writers? Well Jude Calvert Toulmin won't be getting one any time soon. Sex scenes are notoriously difficult to write, but the ones in this novel are detailed, heartfelt and believable. It was a fast read and hard to put down even for someone who doesn't normally read this kind of novel. If you do read this kind of book you will love it.Review: amazon.co.uk by Brenhines y Cathod 12 January 2009
One of my biggest beefs when I read fiction is unbelievable characters. You know how it is, you'll be reading a novel and you'll think "tchah, he soooo wouldn't have said/done that". I find that really irritating and it unfortunately happens to me a lot lately.
So what I loved most about MILSIL - apart from a plot with which I could identify (how relationships can become stale over time) - was how believable the characters were.
Kate - most of the way through the book I kept thinking: "What a cow!" I wanted to give her a good shake and tell her to grow up and learn how to treat people with respect. Mind you, when she gave her boss' wife a piece of her mind, I laughed out loud!
Colin - really comical, he reminded me of an 80s yuppy a la Delboy Trotter. Could picture him in a stripy shirt and red braces, with a filofax tucked under one arm.
Matt - what a darling. There should be more Matts in the world, seriously. Would've loved to have seen more of him.
Alex - patient, kind, gentle, and getting a really raw deal from Kate. Almost cheered out loud when he finally got it on with Julia!
Julia - how does someone so lovely bring up a child that's such a brat? But it does happen, sadly. Was really pleased for her when she discovered her feelings for Alex were reciprocated.
The book is lots of fun, and like other reviewers have said, I'd like to see it made into a film. A highly believable story, real-life characters, and the sex scenes were very realistic, especially the phone sex chapter which reminded me of my own experiences years ago...
Review: amazon.co.uk by singsing 27 December 2008
When's the film out? Great fun and would make an excellent holiday book - although read it in trunks on the beach at your peril gentlemen! Ahem...
Review: amazon.co.uk by Misha "Mise" 27 December 2008
I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. It's not my usual literary choice, but I came across it on Amazon and thought why not - it was actually the striking front cover which first cought my attention! The characters in it are real and credible, and having dated a Yorkshire man in the past I was warmed by Matt with his conversation in phonetic format. My husband, it has to be said was happy with my purchase also, as I dragged him to bed after reading sections on more than one occasion!!
Review: amazon.co.uk by fanny mae 26 December 2008
Fabulous, funny, horny and witty. If ever a book was written to get onto the big screen this is it. Literary masterpiece it may not be but if you are looking for some light bedtime reading to spice up your love life then this is a top seller. I have bought five copies as Christmas presents and I guarantee that this book will not only put large smiles on many faces but it will also get passed on and read over and over again.
It is hot, spicy and erotic and fills a void in contemporary publishing. Even more impressive, is the fact that the author has broken the mould and decided to self publish. In such gloomy times it is a breath of fresh air and I am sure readers will salute her entrepreneurialism.
Whether the book was intended for male of female readers I am unsure but one thing is for certain my husband is now a very happy man.
It is the literary version of viagra.
Review: amazon.co.uk by Booklover63 26 November 2008
This book was recommended to me by an author friend of mine and I'm glad he did!
This is a highly erotic book, so if you're of a nervous disposition or have a weak heart, then read it at your peril! This book is about relationships both 'normal' and those that maybe we should only fantasise about. The gradual breakdown of a marriage, based on familiarity and boredom will ring true for many readers, as will the attraction that Alex has for his Mother-in-Law, Julia. If my Mother-in-Law was as the author described I may well be tempted myself!
I have read hundred's of books, and I think that one of the hardest subjects to write about is sex. I have found over the years however that women seem to be able to do it better, and this author is one of the best. She writes from both points of view with an incredible insight into the male psyche. The sex scenes are both powerful and sensitive, and even though there are many of them, they are an integral part of the story rather than just filling the gaps like other books I have read.
This is a great read and though it was probably aimed at women, as a red blooded male I thoroughly enjoyed it, not just for the way it turned me on, and believe me it did, but it also had me laughing out loud. It's refreshing to read a story from an author who tells it like it really is, with lifelike characters who the reader can relate to.
This was money well spent, and unlike most other books on your bookshelf, you may find yourself returning to this one time and time again!
Review: amazon.co.uk by Squirrel Nutkin 21 November 2008
This is a book which I would guess was written for women, by a woman. By which I mean to say that the author 'Julia' (not her real name, one presumes), probably tired of the tide of so-called erotica aimed at the male readership, giving a decidedly masculine view of sex and its attendant emotional satellites, has crafted a book which presents a realistic portrait of female (as well as male) sexual frustrations, leading to an unavoidable and achingly erotic collision between two of the protagonists, as their feelings for one another, fuelled by their trapped energies, leak, and then explode, into the open.
Initially, although the book is ostensibly written in the first person by 'Julia', we find ourselves looking through her Son-in-law, Alex's eyes. Indeed, the book gives us the opportunity to 'be' Alex, Julia and Julia's daughter (Alex's wife) Kate. This works very well, and the characters are believably and realistically drawn.
As the book delves, fairly early on, into quite explicit descriptions of sex, featuring the 50-something Julia, this may be off-putting to anyone who A. doesn't like graphic sex scenes or B. doesn't like the idea of 'old' people having sex. For the rest of us, this is a very funny, very erotic book which I am sure most people will find some degree of resonance with.
Far from being just a series of sex scenes hung on the loosest of plots (as with most male-oriented equivalents), MILSIL manages to walk the line between a tragi-comic look at the disintegration of a marriage (Alex and Kate) and the erotically charged development of a relationship (Alex and Julia).
Also drawn into the mix are the obnoxious Colin, habituee of London's fetish scene, with whom Kate is having an affair, and flaxen haired male model Matt (from 'Bratfud') whose pride in his Yorkshire heritage extends to his constant use of dialect words and phrases. The West Yorkshire speech of matt is well-rendered (it's my neck o' t'woods), and written phonetically in a similar fashion to Jeff Torrington's rendition of 60s Glasweigian in 'Swing Hammer, Swing!"
As to the sex scenes, well, all I can say is that they did it for me. So many writers are unable to describe sex as most of us know it, either presenting it as some ethereally transcendent experience, or as something almost brutish and atavistic. 'Julia' manages to describe sex which most of us would recognise, sometimes furtive, in cars and garden sheds, sometimes blissfully abandoned in sunlit bedrooms. It's often described by the characters using the f-word, which is about as offensive these days as 'bloody' was when I was a lad, but this in no way detracts from the real feelings that the lovers find for one another, despite their age difference. People say f***, even in their 50s, whether we approve or not.
I said this is aimed at women. Women of a certain age perhaps, yes (like 25 and upwards!). But I'm a man, and I loved it. I laughed out loud at parts of it (it's absolutely hysterical in places). I genuinely cared about the three main characters, and I defy any straight man to remain physically unaffected by the erotic charge which surfaces frequently throughout the book, like islands over a volcanic hotspot. It's like literary viagra.
Above all though, it's a story about people, not about sex. The people in it are real enough that I could recognise the characters in real individuals whom I've known or know now. It's unpretentious, easy reading and, unlike a lot of the 'chick-lit' brigade, it has a wider appeal than 20 and 30-something middle-class women. The character of Matt, despite his trade as a fashion model, is refreshingly straight, a blunt, intelligent northerner who is amused by middle-class pretensions and intolerant of snobbishness. I cheered when he appeared in the book, and loved the way his 'Yorkshireness' is presented, not for laughs, but as a subversion of the usual order.
At first, you think 'Oh dear, a Yorkshire stereotype' but then you realise Matt is fully aware of how people (including us as the reader) perceive him, and uses it to his advantage and amusement. Matt uses it entirely knowingly and with deliberate post-irony to undermine the prejudices and artifices which he frequently comes across. He's a bright lad, is Matt. Good on 'Julia' for creating a 'real' Yorkshireman.
Anyway, I wouldn't want to give out too many spoilers. Needless to say, MILSIL should appeal to the post-Bridget Jones readership who found that book a bit too twee and tame, and wished for a bit more naughtiness. It'll appeal as well as to anyone who might want to inject some zest into their relationship (perfect xmas present for your wife/husband/partner!). Oh, and if you're a connoisseur of pure erotica, you can always flick through the bits in between the sex scenes. Works for everyone.
Welcome
Hi, I'm Jude Calvert-Toulmin, director of Fleur De Lys Publishing and author of our debut titles, available on Amazon, Mother-in-Law, Son-in-Law and My Adventures in Cyberspace (the first in a trilogy.)
My Adventures in Cyberspace II, Drowning, is due for publication 2013.
Testimonials
Mother-in-Law, Son-in-Law
Fiona Russell Powell, journalist and ex member of legendary 80s band ABC:
Love the book!
I really enjoyed it and read it cover to cover very quickly. As soon as I started it, I didn't put it down until I'd finished it.
Anything published by the author is almost always awful. Thank God this was the exception!
It is notoriously difficult to write about sex well. I don't think there are any other genres within a genre that get awards for bad writing apart from descriptions of sex in books.
I'm amazed that this is a first effort because it is very confidently written. I particularly liked the fact that Calvert-Toulmin didn't succumb to the temptation of punishing the Kate character for being such a brat; the resolving of her situation was both mature and realistic.
An excellent first novel in a genre that is daunting for a first-time author.
Another thing I absolutely adore is the frontispiece ex libris design - it's great! I wish other books did that.
I'm looking forward to reading My Adventures in Cyberspace now.
.
Quote:
From MY ADVENTURES IN CYBERSPACE:
Paul: - 20.18 Thu
In reply to Helsinki Howard:
Has anyone thought that if Dom was to publish this thread or bits of it in a book, she'd be the one that came out looking intelligent and literate? Can anyone else think of a reason she’s bothering to write such detailed posts as opposed to our usual:
> Shut up you're a twat
> No shut up you're a twat
Conspiracy theory? Maybe...
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You won't get spammed, just a monthly newsletter with a genuine news section followed by some light entertainment, "A word from the Fleur De Lys PA, Honey Higgingbotham."
As you'll see from her photos, Honey's a hot redhead and every man's dream PA. She likes whipping off her Jimmy Choos and putting her feet on the desk, and she doesn't mince her words.
A couple of people have already asked when Honey will get her own book. We'll see. Chick lit and novels with curly wurly writing on the cover aren't our thing but we'll think about it.