Freebie Fiction Friday - Putting the TG in TGIF!

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Get Your Frock On - For Free!

As many of you know, I have had the great pleasure of working with Katie and the team at Frock Magazine for the 30 issues now (wow!), but this month I have finally taken a seat in the big gurl's chair. Yes, this month's issue is edited by yours truly!

You will find all of our usual contributors and regular columns this month, including a gorgeous Frock Drag feature on Drag Race contestant Joslyn Fox, and a very sexy Frock Chick in Antoinette Dickinson.

This month also features a pair of pieces that are a bit more somber and socially relevant, with Katherine Hamilton analyzing fears, phobias, murders, and the sad state of bathroom politics, while Byron Kimball offers up a parallel lesson for trans-Americans surviving in the land of Trump.

Personally, I am especially proud of the wonderful piece on Fire Island that I was able to put together with documentary photographer Susan Kravitz, and I am absolutely delighted to have finally landed Stana (of Femulate) for a guest contribution. As for my regular Frock Books column, this month has a Bold Strokes Books theme going on with Vanessa Clark and Dena Hankins.

If you get a chance to check it out - and since it's free, you really have no excuse not to! - please spread the word and let us know what you thought of it.

http://frockmagazine.com/

Hugs,
Sally

Dora's Box by Walker Long

Dora's Box is a surprisingly touching story that is equal parts comic, romantic, and erotic. Usually, I can guess where these kinds of stories are headed, but Walker Long kept me on my toes with all the twists and turns. Not only that, but he did so while crafting a pair of wonderful, fully-fleshed out characters who you desperately want to see end up together in a happily-ever-after.

As the story opens, Dora has just found out that her work study has been canceled due to budget cuts, leaving her unable to pay her share of the rent, much less tuition for the next semester. Feeling sorry for herself, she sits down with her grandmother's antique jewelry box . . . and discovers the old woman's claims of magic were not exaggerated. Her first wish is really nothing more than an idle comment, but it immediately solves her money woes, leaving her to wonder what else the box can do.

Much of the story revolves around Dora's attempts to be noticed by Kyle, the cutest guy in school, but her poorly worded wishes end up creating a situation she could not have anticipated, leaving her gifted with both a fully functioning penis and the skills of a perfect lover. As her sexuality blossoms, her roommate seizes the opportunity to help her friend gain the confidence she needs to present herself to the world. Julia is the kind of best friend we all wish we had, not because she is beautiful, popular, and wealthy, but because she has a kind heart and an open mind.

Without spoiling things, the evolution of the friendship is truly the heart of the novel, with curiosity, adventure, jealousy, and more all feeding into a wonderfully romantic finale. Dora's Box is a story that certainly has its erotic moments, but they are tastefully done, and in keeping with the overall sense of kink, erotic fun.

Reviewed by Sally

Long Black Veil by Jennifer Finney Boylan

Considering the fact that I have been anxiously awaiting this for about 4 months now, I am absolutely delighted to say Long Black Veil did not disappoint. In fact, this is precisely the kind of story I trusted Jennifer Finney Boylan to tell, full of hope and drama, but also deeply relevant to those of us approaching it from a transgender perspective.

Minor spoiler there, I guess, but if you have ever read anything by Jennifer Finney Boylan, or even have a cursory awareness of who she is, then the cover blurb is all too transparent (no pun intended). A woman whose family and identity are threatened by the secrets of her past, who is a very different person from the woman she is today? That can only mean one thing.

While most reviewers have approached this as a mystery/thriller, I would actually like to stick with that transgender angle. Long Black Veil is a story that explores the question of gender identity, complete with all of the secrets and prejudices that entails. As exemplified by the fact that her chapters are the only ones narrated in the first person, Judith is the heart of this story. It is her identity, her journey, and her circumstances that drive so much of it. She has a difficult choice to make, but either she risks losing the family and life that she has built, or a good friend ends up wrongly imprisoned for a murder he did not commit.

I loved the way the story moved between narrators and time periods, teasing out the core mystery of what happened and to whom. The historical scenes in Eastern State Penitentiary are incredibly creepy, like something out of a Stephen King novel, but that mystery is really just the foundation of the novel. It is the character study and the relationship stories that distinguish this, with a sad, often tragic look at how friendships dissolve and how identities crumble. The climax of the story does feel a bit rushed, and does rely a bit too heavily on a few coincidences, but they lend it an element of black humor that is very much needed going into those final dark moments.

To be honest, I was not sure how Long Black Veil would end, and I really worried about the fate of Judith's story, but Jennifer Finney Boylan does a stellar job of tying up loose ends.

Reviewed by Sally

New and Notable - Trans* Reads

Trans*Am: Cis Men and Trans Women in Love
By Joseph McClellan

Distributed by Consortium Book Sales & Distribution

Available March 2017 from ThreeL Media

Release Date: 03/14/17

A Call for Men to Respect ALL Women

Berkeley, CA — March 1, 2017 — ThreeL Media, publisher of Jiz Lee's Coming Out Like a Porn Star and David J. Ley’s Ethical Porn For Dicks announces a new publication on a timely and sensitive topic for sex educators, therapists, and LGBTQ activists who are battling for humanity against sexual violence, discriminatory “Bathroom Bills,” and radical “feminists.” Teacher and Tibetan Buddhist scholar Joseph McClellan offers its readers some surprising ideas (based in feminist and trans-feminist writings) to consider.

Trans women—assigned male at birth and later transitioned into a female gender—are recently in media because of celebrities and controversial legislation. Therefore cis men—who identify with a masculine gender they were assigned at birth—are now called upon to share their experiences as lovers of trans women. Using theory and personal anecdotes, the author questions the codes that cis men and trans women use to interpret their own and others' gendered and sexed bodies.

I am quite delighted by the subject matter and the approach here, and am looking forward to giving it a read soon. In the meantime, if I can snag an excerpt or a brief interview, you will be the first to know. - Sally

♥♥♥♥♥♥♥

Housewife: Home-remaking in a Transgender Marriage
By Kristin K Collier

Available November 2016 from Abbondanza Publishing, LLC

Release Date: 11/04/16

Kristin K. Collier is a Compassionate Communication Coach, legal spouse of an “out” transwoman and mother. Her recent featured interview on NBC Seattle's Northwest Good Day shares her touching story when her husband told her he wanted to live the rest of his life as a woman about a decade ago. Her roles as a wife and mother were turned upside down, and even her understanding of what it was to be a woman needed rethinking.

Fast forward to the present: Collier’s family now consists of her legally married parenting partner (a transwoman), romantic partner, and two teenage boys living together — harmoniously! —  under one roof. She chronicles her story in her just released memoir: Housewife: Home-remaking in a Transgender Marriage.

“There are a lot of transpeople and transfamilies in the world who aren’t safe. Violence is born .people sharing their stories to shift these feelings around the transcommunity,” says Collier.

I was hoping to share Kristin's story in this month's issue of Frock, but some production issues forced us to hold her story back for the next issue. It's a great story, and a great article, so I can't wait for you all to read it. - Sally

♥♥♥♥♥♥♥

Transitioning Together: One Couple's Journey of Gender and Identity Discovery
by Wenn B. Lawson & Beatrice M. Lawson

Available February 2017 from Jessica Kingsley Publishers

Release Date: 02/21/17

What happens when your partner of 20 years transitions from female to male?

Transitioning Together is the story of Wenn and Beatrice Lawson, a couple with almost 12 years between them, and over 20 years behind them. Mother of four Wenn (then known as Wendy) met Beatrice when she was 32 and Beatrice was 20, and they soon embarked upon a same-sex relationship. More than twenty years later, Wenn decided to transition from female to male.

We’re familiar with young people sharing their experiences of transition, but what about the older generation? This is the first book to explore the impact that transitioning can have on a long-standing relationship, recounting the physical, psychological and emotional highs and lows of a couple facing transition together.

Co-written by Beatrice and Wenn, this unique and candid memoir tells both sides of the story. When so often the focus is on the person transitioning, Transitioning Together offers a rare and compelling glimpse into the mind of the partner who remains physically unchanged.

Wenn and Beatrcie's was another story I looked forward to sharing in this month's issue of Frock, but we'll have to wait one more issue. I think you will all agree it's worth waiting for. - Sally

♥♥♥♥♥♥♥

Freebie Fiction Friday - Putting the TG in TGIF!

Well, if it's Friday, then it must be time to bend our way into the weekend with Freebie Fiction Friday.

Every Friday I take the initiative to search through thew newly free titles on Amazon, and to identify those that might be of interest to readers, fans, and lovers of bending gender and sexuality. Even if you don't have a Kindle, you can still download the titles through one of Amazon's free reading applications, and covert it (if need be) with Calibre. I can tell you I do most of my reading on my tablet, using Kindle for PC, and it works beautifully.

Please do be sure to check the price before downloading anything, though, as most freebies are limited time offers, and some are specific to certain regions.

                        

  Enjoy!

Tinder Surprise by Sakinaa Davies (narrated by Sierra Kline)

Since I have had my eye on the Tinder Surprise trilogy for a while now, I jumped at the chance to give the audiobook a listen - and I am so very glad I did! While there is no doubt that Sakinaa Davies is a wonderful author, with a smart, sophisticated style that resonates so well with the female dominant perspective, it was the sultry, commanding voice of narrator Sierra Kline that really made this come alive for me. While I rarely reread stories once they are done, I could easily see myself laying back, closing my eyes, and listening to this again.

Chastity Awakening, the first part of the story, skips the preamble and thrusts us right into the heart of the affair. Already desperate in chastity, Ethan arrives at Mistress Alexis' hotel room, ready to commit - and, in this case, commitment means bending over, spreading wide, and accepting his first real penetration. As quick as she is to get into the action, however, Davies is in no rush to reach a climax. This is an exquisitely detailed, deliciously drawn-out story, where every moment of tease, temptation, and arousal is captured for the reader's attention.

With the second part of the story, Rosebud Defloration, we skip back in time to explore how Ethan and Alexis met, how he fell under her spell, and to what lengths she went to test his commitment. It is interesting to see how two very different personalities first met, and to watch her transformation from elegant lady in a bar, to dominating Lady in a hotel room. There is a lot of first-time anal play here, something that would be a few quick scenes in most books, but which is satisfyingly explored in great depth. While Davies does not shy away from virginal discomfort, she ensures that Mistress Alexis takes her time, slowly opening her slave, and allowing him to become accustomed to such intimate submission without unnecessary pain to confuse his emotions.

With Orgasm Ruination, we continue on from that second part of the story, ready to see just how Ethan will follow through on his foolish boast of making her feel like a lady not once, not twice, but three times. The BDSM elements of female domination really come into the scene here, complete with handcuffs, blindfolds, ballgags, headphones, and the inventive use of a luggage cart as a restraint table. Mistress Alexis shows her cruel streak here, putting Ethan through his paces as she asks questions he cannot answer, and then punishes him with some pulses of electricity, directly into his manhood. By the time the question of chastity comes about, there is no doubt that he will say yes.

As a story, Tinder Surprise is one of the better female domination stories I have read in quite some time, and probably one of the best pegging stories I have ever come across. I suspect I will be giving her Coffeeshop Dominatrix series a read before long. As an audiobook, it is far-and-away the most pleasurable I have ever listened to - so much so that I already have my eye on a few other titles that Kline has narrated.

Reviewed by Sally

Perils of Paul: Consequences by Valerie Whip and Annabelle Brito

Like so many fans of transgender erotica, I grew up with sites like Fictionmania, Crystal's Story Site, and the Nifty Archive long before I ever got my hands on a Kindle. I have fond memories of those sites, and still revisit them on occasion for both entertainment and nostalgia purposes.

That brings me to Perils of Paul: Consequences, which reminded me very much of that era. It is a simple story of being caught crossdressing, forced feminization, and sexual exploration. Valerie Whip and Annabelle Brito have managed to recapture that simpler, more innocent feel, and paired it with a more polished narrative and some lovely illustrations.

It is a story that takes offers glimpses of Paul's gender exploration over the years, prompted first by a little Halloween experimentation, and then fueled by the delightful feel of feminine silk. He is caught on several occasions by his sister but, rather than shame or embarrass him, she simply photographs the moment for future blackmail and coercion.

The focus throughout is very much on Paul, so it is appropriate that most of the narrative details (and illustrations) are focused on how he looks and feels. The dialogue is pretty simple, without the long-winded speeches that are often found in the genre, and the erotic detail is more R-rated sexy than X-rated explicit. Definitely a fun tale with, we can only hope, more to come!

Reviewed by Sally

SISSY CITY: The Kissing Booth by Adrianna Achella

First off, let me say I absolutely adore the concept of Sissy City - "a strictly adults only space populated by three genders." Here we have a community full of sissy schools, sissy hospitals, sissy factories, and sissy marriages,where women are eager to feminize and re-educate sissy men.

The Kissing Booth is a story somewhat strange in the telling, which certainly took some getting used to. Adrianna Achella approaches the story in the same sort of style as a sissy hypnosis or cum-eating-instruction video, talking to the reader as if they were the sissy being feminized. It is an intimate sort of telling, and there is a certain thrill to it, but it is somewhat disconcerting if you are not prepared for it.

The story itself is delicious, filled with luscious details of dressing and sweetly humiliating dialogue. Most of the story is all in your head, with the erotic elements narrated and discussed, suggesting as much as it shows. Of course, it does all go public before the end, and there is a definite payoff, but it is an wonderfully unique journey getting there.

Reviewed by Sally

Freebie Fiction Friday - Putting the TG in TGIF!

Well, if it's Friday, then it must be time to bend our way into the weekend with Freebie Fiction Friday.

Every Friday I take the initiative to search through thew newly free titles on Amazon, and to identify those that might be of interest to readers, fans, and lovers of bending gender and sexuality. Even if you don't have a Kindle, you can still download the titles through one of Amazon's free reading applications, and covert it (if need be) with Calibre. I can tell you I do most of my reading on my tablet, using Kindle for PC, and it works beautifully.

Please do be sure to check the price before downloading anything, though, as most freebies are limited time offers, and some are specific to certain regions.

                                                      

  Enjoy!