A friend's review of The Devil's Dance by Johnny Stone!!

Another great review of a Johnny Stone book, The Devil's Dance! Thank you, Julia!

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Not so new explorations - Reading Johnny Stone - Reading the book that actually drew me to the author (November 2013)

The Devil's Dance by Johnny Stone
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Reviewed by Julia O

I honestly don't know where to start but I guess the beginning is as good as anything - I was immediately drawn to this book when I first looked up Stone's author profile a couple of months ago - it was the title, the cover, the description, the everything - I knew, I had to read it. It's been a while since then and I have since learned to appreciate Stone as an intelligent, imaginative, teasing and witty author with an amazing "sixth" sense for the use of his language that tells his stories, he really is a favourite of mine and that does not happen all that often for me.

The Devil's Dance is a very special story - it presents the reader with an opportunity to fantasise along with its characters - What if I had a "Dream Journal"? What if I stood face-to-face with a handsome devil? What if...? More often than not, I put the book down at night and had my mind wander and thought about the endless possibilities for the story. If you know Stone, it may not surprise you that he took the story in the directions that he did, staying true to his own style of erotica but, at the heart of it, was this fantastically original story that made it so very enjoyable to read.

I missed a little something here that would have made it even more perfect in my opinion - Cherry is, among other things, on a journey of self-discovery with some interesting revelations. At times, I would have liked her introspections to go on for longer, I would have liked to know her better psychologically, I would have wanted more. Additionally, a chapter from Sameal's point of view would have been a great addition - I think he goes through some major things too and I feel a yearning to know his story.

But this doesn't mean that this book isn't one of the best I've read in terms of imagination, language and general content - I simply think that Stone has more in him, more to give in many ways as an author.

All that's left to say is one word - chapeau!

*I have the continuous privilege to interact with the author here on Goodreads. To the best of my knowledge this is an objective, fair and honest review.*

A friend reviews Misadventures in Infidelity!!

A review by a friend that I wanted to share! Thank you, Julia! Great review!

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Not so new explorations - Reading Johnny Stone (November 2013)

Misadventures in Infidelity by Johnny Stone 
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Reviewed by Julia O

This was an interesting read for me to say the least. The first story seemed to not really sit with me all that well but, similar to Slave World (the other Johnny Stone read I've managed to find time to enjoy so far), Stone just took his time, setting a rough scene and then playing it out in unexpected ways - not sure if it makes sense, but that's how it felt. In this case, it was one isolated part that I found difficulty with which was more than made up by two additional stories I absolutely loved. All in all each story came with a unique character but built up to a comprehensive understanding of the main character and why she lives the way she does.

The more I read, the more I warmed up to Erin and her story - funny at times, witty, naughty but also filled with unique characters who all brought something interesting to the story. All in all this was about a woman getting everything she needs, some of which happening outside of her marriage. Intentional or not, this made me stop and think at some points in order to read between the lines.

Here's two things I really appreciate about Stone as an author - his writing style is almost enchanting, it is very unique and very intelligent, it is the kind of writing that makes anything worth reading and that has made me step beyond my comfort zones as a reader in the past and surely will in the future. The second thing is that Stone is not scared of taboo, not scared of putting his readers in front of uncomfortable yet interesting topics and I hope he will continue to do so in the future. This book was certainly no exception to how I perceived Stone as an author in the past and I highly recommend it to others as I will be very soon, moving on to another one of his books.

*I have the continuous privilege to interact with the author here on Goodreads. To the best of my knowledge this is an objective, fair and honest review.*