Review of Tales of the Crimson Succubus, The Demon Chronicles

Reviewed by Melodee Aaron

Whew! Let me turn off this garden hose first. There...that cooled me off!

I have to tell you that after reading the first story in Tales of the Crimson Succubus, The Demon Chronicles I thought I would hate the rest. I'm a science fiction freak. A hard-core sci-fi freak. Hard-core as in Asimov screwed his science up a lot of the time.

I'm not supposed to like fantasy and vampires and demons and all of that. Someone, maybe Niven, wrote that down someplace.

It's not the first time, but I was wrong. So sue me.

After the first vignette, To the Devil, a Daughter, I thought I would hate this collection. Well before I finished the third vignette, In Mockery of the Angel of Death, Carmine had me hooked.

This collection is not for everyone, though. Everything about the stories, no matter if 100 or 1,000 words, is intense. The sex, the language, the graphic violence all grabbed me and slapped me around. More than a little.

And I think I like it!

Carmine's voice is direct and matter of fact. The use of historical references is superb. I'll admit I didn't check every single reference, but the ones about what we think of as ancient Egypt are perfect. The combination of directness and attention to the details shows and makes the stories a joy.

The author draws on some of the darkest fantasies that run amok in our imaginations. He also blends this terror with an insatiable sexual drive and no small amount of tongue-in-cheek humor. The mix had me shivering and watching over my shoulder, quivering with the anticipation of the delicious men in the stories, and giggling like a schoolgirl at some private joke.

My cats know I'm crazy now. They only suspected it before.

Picking a single, favorite story is impossible for me. I like them all! My preferences run to longer works, and I would love to see a novel from Carmine. The collect of vignettes and short stories does offer a huge benefit, though. How long does it take to read 100 words? For most of us, less than a minute.

That's right. In one minute, sixty short seconds, you can have your fix of intense, sexy, horrific romance with a gothic, multi-cultural spin.

I strongly recommend Tales of the Crimson Succubus, The Demon Chronicles to everyone. Just get the garden hose ready to cool off!

Melodee Aaron is a published author of erotic romance, much with a hard-core science fiction tilt. She lives near San Diego, California with her 4 cats and a 3-legged dog. Telling and writing stories since her childhood in the Ozark Mountains of Missouri, and reading Penthouse Forum since she was 16, being an author of romantic erotica seemed like the next step in a logical evolution. You can learn more about Melodee at her web site.