Debra Glass' lucid, wild dreams of a legend

While I’ve covered many romance authors here before, this is the first Erotica author I’ve had a chance to review. The story caught me from the very beginning, though it’s definitely not for the younger crowd—or the faint of heart. Read on, if you dare….

Within the pages of  Debra Glass' latest offering, Lucid, we are introduced to Jayne Shepard, a librarian and bookworm who takes a holiday with friends from her book club. Their destination? Villa Diodati, in Geneva, Switzerland: the very house in which Mary Shelley, Percy Bysshe Shelley, John Polidori and George Gordon, Lord Byron, spent their most famous, creative weekend in 1816. It was here that the immortal works Frankenstein, the Vampyre and others, were born. So being great fans of these authors and poets, Jayne and her reading group simply must visit the castle. Arriving at their destination, Jayne and the girls plan a night of reading and revelry, complete with (somewhat) period clothing and a bottle of authentic absinthe.

While her companions consider the legendary drink . . . shall we say disgusting? Jayne adores its taste and has a little bit too much. Waking up in the middle of the parlor floor, she gathers herself up and heads for the stairs, only to find herself slamming right into a very handsome gentleman, in period garb, no less. A man who resembles, she comes to discover, paintings of Lord Byron, and who, naturally, sweeps her off her feet—just as she had heard the poet was adept at doing.

Jayne finds herself in a very torrid affair with the poet, quoting his own poetry to him, then trying to reconcile the timeline. And she wakes up each morning, exhausted, enchanted, growing ever fonder of the “green fairy” and though confused, and not really sure if the man of her dreams, is an actor, or the real deal—and if so, how—she longs for the reappearance of her late night love. And what nights they are! You can imagine for yourself the content of those meetings. ;)

When I learned that Debra Glass was a friend and blogmate of Tampa Romance author Elissa Wilds (whom we have covered many times here before), I simply had to check her work out. I’m glad I did! (And, let me say thanks to the Ellora’s Cave staff for providing me my review copy). As I said earlier, Erotica’s not for everyone, but neither does Ms. Glass just rely on that. While she is also known for writing historical fiction, she weaves much into this tiny tome, that I think any history or literary buff will find it enjoyable—the setting and name-dropping alone is worth the look. The story inside the pages of Lucid, is torrid, yes, but very lush, and evocative of the spirit of the Romantic era authors she references within the pages of her story. I half-suspect Lord Byron himself would be tickled with Ms. Glass’ imaginative rendering of him!

You might be able to find this one at the local Borders (I’ve seen Ellora’s Cave titles there before); or Barnes and Noble might have a copy. If not, you can order it directly from the Ellora’s Cave site. Wherever you can find it, do check out Debra Glass’ new novella Lucid. I think you may just be surprised by what you learn!

For More on Debra Glass see:

Her Homepage

Her Blog: History for the Taking

Her blog: Creative Life