HUNGER! FOOD & EROTICA!

 The writer  Italo Calvino  says;

“In love, as in gluttony, pleasure is a matter of the utmost precision.”


When the innovative M.Christian and Alyn Rosselini suggested food and erotica as a theme for Sizzler’s latest anthology, “A Lover’s Feast, I was reminded of Italo Calvino’s words.


Sex and food. Food and sex. The two are inextricably linked. The stories here celebrate their unique relationship. Whether it’s teen lovers slurping down hot dogs, washed down with Pepsi, or a dinner of the finest cuisine, eaten lovingly by a sophisticated gourmet, we watch each other as we eat.


We bite, we swallow, we lick our fingers, we kiss and taste each other.


Here is what Sizzler have to say about their great new anthology.


"Food and sex – sex and food: two great things that can be even better together! From soothing chocolate to spicy meatballs the stories in this brand new erotic anthology edited by two masters of the genre - M.CHRISTIAN and ALYN ROSSELINI - feature stories by the crème-de-la-crème of sexual and literary cooking and will tickle your sensual taste buds and stir your pot of erotic thrills.

"Basting lovers, cooking orgies, steaming hot encounters, straight as well as queer taste treats ... the stories in HUNGER: A FEAST OF SENSUAL TALES OF SEX AND GASTRONOMY will push boundaries everyone's pleasurable buttons – both erotic and gastronomic: these are stories that will arouse, amuse, amaze, and whet your appetite for more!


"Authors in this so-very tasty anthology include: SUSAN ST. AUBIN, DOMINIC SANTI, GISELLE RENARDE, ERIN O'RIORDAN, OLIVIA LONDON, JESSICA LENNOX, KIRSTEN IMANI KASAI, CÈSAR, SANCHEZ ZAPATA, GREGORY L. NORRIS, HEIDI CHAMPA, and BILLIEROSIE"



And Sizzler’s writers have delivered in quality and abundance. As I read the stories, I think of taste, aroma, texture, moist inside my mouth, crumbling in my fingers; like these stories in “A Lover’s Feast”, playing havoc with my senses. I am gluttonous, as I gorge on these sexy tales.


In “A Meal”, Susan St.Aubin, has Evelyn preparing a meal for the man in her life, her lover Hal and the woman in her life, her lover, Rebecca. The point of view moves between the characters, telling of desire, lust, jealousy. Two girls and a guy, it should have all gone so smoothly, but lust for the flavour of food, overtakes the lust for sex. The salmon mornay, scooped and slurped from scallop shells is too delicious. Susan St.Aubin is talking about the dark side of desire. Evelyn has tried to control desire and it has turned around and bitten her.

But what surprises her most of all, is that Hal is repelled by what Rebecca has in her mouth.



In “Jeb’s Wife”, Dominic Santi gives us three guys and a girl. Kaylee loves to cook. The guys love to eat; they all love to do other things. Through the delectable style of Kaylee’s homemaking skills, the four ravenous friends bring a whole new aspect to the notion of coming together. Whenever I  have read Dominic Santi’s stories, I have always been drawn to, and impressed with the way he conjures up visual images. In “Jeb’s Wife”, he excels at writing spectacle. The orgy in the final paragraph, is loaded, saturated with excess. And it works.


Kirsten Imani Kasai’s contribution to the anthology is “Best Served Cold.” It is a skilful dish of betrayal, love; a haunting mix of recipes turned into a powerful lament. It is a story that stays with you, long after you have read the final paragraph.


In “Une Apetito Rubusto”, Renatto Garcia, has Gwen on holiday in Italy, with her girl friends. It is supposed to be a male free holiday. Gwen has taken a vow of abstinence, more than that; she has sworn off men for life. Then she meets Cristoforo, “with eyes the shape of ripe olives”. They drink wine in a bar; Blanc de Morgex, Petite Arvine, Picotendro. The exotic names are a slow tango of seduction. Cristoforo educates Gwen in the subtle arts of taste, aroma, texture. In a scene of pure, undiluted erotica, Gwen swoons into a bathtub of Italian marble; she is  saturated with wonderful, luscious grapes and red, red wine.


Then there is Giselle Renarde’s tale, “The Sweetest Burn”. A woman becomes a vessel on which to serve Chef’s latest concoction. She is a platter; she also holds the secret ingredient within her skin and Chef’s expert tongue wants to taste and test the balance of flavours. Her sweat and bodily fluids enhance the recipe. The writer draws on the sensation of touch, as Chef laps, sucks and slurps his way over her flesh. “Her flesh was a regular bouquet garni of human aromas.”


And another Chef, in Gregory L. Norris’ “Foodie”. Marcel wakes up in the middle of a crazed fantasy. At least, as far as looming into consciousness and realising that you’re bound and helpless is a fantasy. Marcel is the current “it” man of the TV celebrity chef world. While in bondage, Marcus is feasted upon; his bodily secretions are pronounced as delicious by the “foodie”. Whether it’s a marinade or a glaze; a garnish to a delectable salad or an icy swirling decoration in a frosted glass, Marcus is there to be consumed.


The stories in this fabulous anthology have resonance. Perhaps it’s a moment in a restaurant, a bar, or a café  or sharing coffee and croissants in bed with your first lover. A secluded picnic beneath an oak tree or catching and cooking a plump fish on a barbeque. The smoky aroma drifts and lingers.


Watching your lover cook with his fingers, eat with his fingers and getting turned on. Both of you.


Deep, dark green extra virgin olive oils and fragrant raspberry vinegars, gooey, slippery egg yolks separated from their whites. Oysters swallowed whole, slipping slowly down your throat. Peppery, yellow and orange nasturtium flowers scattered into a salad of green rocket with tiny, ripe, sweet vine tomatoes. Flavour and sensation, bursting on your tongue. Lapiz blue borage flowers crushed into chilled Pimms with chinking chunks of ice. Fragrant, golden honeysuckle flowers decorate an airy lemon soufflé. Pink damask rose petals scattered over a white, linen table cloth. Pomegranate  seeds, staining mouths scarlet, little rubies hinting at the forbidden, bitter and sweet. Runny golden honey, crunchy, dripping, sticky eaten straight from the comb. White of egg, slimy, then whipped into a white, fluffy, crisp Pavlova. And smooth, dark chocolate, silky on the tongue, slowly melting.


And while writing this review, I am reminded of a scene from Tony Richardson’s great 1963 film, “Tom Jones.”


The famous, sex-drenched eating scene between Tom (Albert Finney) and, (all unknowingly) possibly his mother Mrs. Waters (Joyce Redman) begins naturally enough with big steaming pewter bowls of soup. Mrs. Waters leans over the table and lustily slurps big round spoonfuls, her breasts tumbling out of her bodice, with a more-than-come-hither look. Tom, nearly overcome, involuntarily rips a claw off the langouste he has in his hand and sucks happily on it. Drafts of ale, turkey, oysters, pears, and wine are then dispatched with loving attention.


M.Christian and Alyn Rosselini’s  “Hunger!” anthology, has its roots in the spirit of Henry Fielding’s novel, published in 1749 and Tony Richardson’s 1963 film; both entitled “Tom Jones”.

And “Hunger is out now! Shortly to be available at Amazon, you can buy it here at Sizzler!