Tyler's erotic collection pushes incendiary boundaries

5.0 out of 5 stars

By Jvstin "Paul Weimer"

Alison Tyler, well known for her "Erotic Alphabet" anthologies of erotica, as well as other anthologies and collections, returns to erotic anthologies here with Playing with Fire

The subtitle of the anthology "Taboo erotica", brings one to mind the "I is for Indecent" anthology from the Erotic Alphabet, but the truth is, the erotica here isn't taboo in that sense.

I think the title might have been called "Incendiary Erotica." Fire and smoke are strong themes in this collection. Stories revolve around fire and the ignition that fire can bring to a sexual encounter. From a female firefighter being turned on by watching practice fires, to the heat of a hot summer day sparking passions in several of the stories, this is a collection wreathed in fire and heat.

Even in stories where fire is not an explicit participant, its a metaphor and a symbol for the passion of the story's characters.As Ms. Tyler puts it in the introduction: "emotional kerosene"

The collection succeeds on all of these fronts. Aside from the matter of the title of the collection, I find little fault in the collection. Tyler has come up with a very good collection of writers working at the top of their game.

In Minnesota in a more than chilly March, this collection was *very* welcome to read to take ones mind off of the weather outside.