#the scene in lyonesse is one of my favorite new camelot scenes

[mermaidsirennikita]

just gonna liveblog salt kiss since it’s out anyway and my god the way sierra simone went “mark trevena wanted a baby ash colchester but submissive and he’s gonna get one”

[triviareads]

Thank you.

Can you recommend for me a contemporary romance with kink?

I'm guessing in reference to this ask

Hi! This is a pretty broad ask but I can rec my favorites (some of them are erotic romances btw):

Can I start this list without beginning with Sierra Simone? Nope. Sierra writes erotic romances that have this amazing combination of kink, heart-wrenching emotion, queerness, and religion

Misadventures with a Professor: Might be a good place to start your Sierra journey; Oliver is someone you get the sense needs kink to have fulfilling sex, and possibly a fulfilling relationship. He is very into the professor/student thing (so D/s with a lot of "good student" praise, chastisement, and some teaching) and Zandy is 100% into it too (much to Oliver's shock... poor guy has been kinkshamed in the past and then proceeded to kinkshame himself to hell and back).

Priest: The start of my Sierra journey; D/s dynamic between a Catholic priest and his new congregant. It's almost entirely from Tyler's point of view but I loved Poppy as a character because she was so unabashed about her lifestyle and her desire to be dominated. I'd strongly recommend entire Priest whole series, though book 2, Sinner, is less kinky there are... undertones (that are fully realized in a bonus scene lolol), and book 3, Saint, plays around a lot with chastity..... and cock cages.

New Camelot series: A modern political romance between Ash (King Arthur; the president here), Embry (an unholy combination of Mordred and Lancelot; the VP), and Greer (Guinevere; the First Lady). Ash is a Dom and had a longstanding D/s relationship with Embry, who is a switch, and both men were involved with Greer in the past until they all intersect. This was one of the first books with kink I read and it made an impression, suffice to say.

Thornchapel series: Okay there's definitely a magical/fantasy element to this but it's set in the modern world and I really love the relationships depicted in the series. There's the main throuple which consists of a dom and two subs; Auden is actually taught by his friend how to be a good dom, and that friend, Rebecca, is in a D/s relationship with Delphine (one of the few well-written wlw romances with kink as far as I've seen). There's a looooot of denial in this one; celibacy, orgasm denial, teasing, etc. It makes for GREAT tension on top of the already gorgeous romances.

Try Sierra's Salt Kiss, which is the first in her Lyonesse Trilogy which is based on the story of Tristan and Isolde and Mark (and the only book out so far). For the most part, it's m/m; Mark is a sex club owner and Tristan's dom and boss. Tristan has a breeding kink which goes both ways, in that he wants to breed Isolde, and wants to be bred by Mark.

Sara Cate's Salacious Players Club is a good series to introduce you to kink. All five of the books are kinky to varying degrees. Praise has a D/s relationship with lots of praise kink stuff, Eyes On Me is exhibitionism/voyeurism-forward, Give Me More is about a couple falling for their best friend and vice-verse and has some exhibitionism/voyeurism/bondage, but I think the most interesting point, kink-wise, is that Hunter, the husband, initially thinks he wants to be cuckholded (watching his wife and best friend have sex) but it turns out he's working through internalized homophobia and actually just wants to be a part of a throuple with his best friend and wife. Mercy also has a D/s relationship with an older domme and her best friend's son who is a brat.

Jennie Kew is an Australian author whose Bennett's Bastards series I overall enjoyed. She writes very... earthy heroes and heroines and it makes for an interesting vibe. My favorites are Third Time Lucky, which has a D/s relationship between the main couple (and goes into how kink can be weaponized in abusive relationships). His Own Heaven also has a D/s relationship between the main couple, and it actually falls outside the bedroom too (ex: she sits at his feet and he feeds her).

Priceless by Miranda Silver: Christina initially agreed to sleep with Patrick for money which, for her, is inherently degrading, and then there's more degradation on his part. The kink feels very... natural, If that makes sense. Not a lot of bells and whistles; just two college students figuring it out in a frat house bedroom.

Katee Robert writes a fair amount of kinky romances but I do think her sweet spot might be writing daddy-dom types. Try her Your Dad Will Do and My Dad's Best Friend series if you're looking books with a daddy kink. Also—

Desperate Measures: A grown-up take on Jafar/Jasmine except he's a mobster and she's a mob princess. There's daddy dom stuff, plus some consensual non-consent.

Neon Gods: Hades/Persephone; Hades runs a sex club out of his house and there's a good amount of exhibitionism and voyeurism, also, Hades does have the daddy dom quality even if she's not outrightly calling him Daddy.

I've read a few books by Eve Dangerfield but plot-wise the one that stands out the most is Act Your Age; There's a lot of sleazy step-daddy roleplay so its a good amount of degradation, and some CNC.

Mila Finelli's Kings of Italy mafia series has kink; Mafia Mistress and Mafia Darling (both with the same couple; the heroine is initially engaged to marry the mafioso's son except he wants her for himself) has a lot of daddy (paparino) stuff and some generally rough sex and roleplay, and Mafia Madman (heroine is kidnapped and thrown in a cage on a yacht by the hero) I'd say has an M/s dynamic with both a degradation and praise kink and some CNC. Gia is also a Brat.

Heather Guerre is really good at getting the soft domme vibe right; in Preferential Treatment a billionaire pays his employee to domme him (there's some impact play from what I remember, and orgasm control). What Was Meant To Be is about basically an arranged marriage, and Rain just naturally likes to take charge in the bedroom and Wes is very down, just very much a Good Boy.

Sink or Swim by Tessa Bailey has a pretty unique sexual dynamic imo; Andrew a service top in that he's the more dominant one but he really gets off on Jiya telling him what to do (sexually and otherwise) and as it turns out, so does she. I really like how Tessa subverted the "submissive Asian woman" trope in this book.

Adriana Anders wrote Daddy Crush which is your classic daddy kink romance with an age gap, but it was just written really well. Would recommend.

Dana Isaly and Hannah Murray both write shorter, erotic romances with similar vibes. I liked Dana's Games We Play (mask kink, degradation, bondage, etc.) and Hannah's The Sadist and the Brat (I actually reviewed this one).

[mermaidsirennikita]

Contemporaries where dirty talk is especially hot? Both during sex and maybe also over text? Thank you!!

Sierra Simone, Sierra Simone, Sierra Simone. Her books are often set in a contemporary world, but they're not, as a heads up, "light" contemporaries. Personally, I wouldn't really go as far as to call them dark romance (well. Thornchapel, I would, but I also wouldn't recommend it as a contemporary as it has such strong supernatural elements lol) but they do have some elements of (light) mysticism as some of them are retellings of old myth set in a modern setting. I'd check out:

Priest, Sinner, Saint/"The Bell Brothers": These are three standalones (M/F, M/F, and M/M) that always have a bit of a religion kink. And a by a bit, I mean a lot. Priest is the book where a Catholic priest (who is actually very naturally carnal and only became a priest because of some deep guilt issues and religiosity) meets a woman who tells him ALL the shit she's done in confession. It's naturally dirty, and he naturally falls head over heels into an affair. Sinner is about a business whose best friend's little sister is about to become a nun, and she (on the advice of her convent, naturally) asks him to teach her about sex so she can experience what she'll miss before she really commits. Saint is about a guy who became a monk in a period of deep emotional crisis, whose ex-boyfriend (he left with zero notice) ends up on a tour of monasteries with him for an article he's writing. Temptation ensues.

The dirty talk in these is naturally very tinged with priest/nun kink stuff, it's SUPER dirty, and I love it. They're also just really good.

Her Christmas Notch books she does with Julie Murphy are a little tamer, both focus on this Hallmark-esque company where the leads film these Christmas movies and, of course, fall in love. I really, really love A Holly Jolly Ever After, because the hero is a former boybander (with a dad bod!) who fucks like a demon and also owns a chain of pizza shops, and his sex tape leaks, during which he's pictured absolutely RAILING a woman from behind, slapping her ass, and saying "and THAT'S how you toss the dough" which I personally think is some of the greatest dirty talk I've ever read.

New Camelot: One of my favorite trilogies of all time, MMF, "what if King Arthur was President, Guinevere was First Lady, and Lancelot was VP, and what if they were all in love with each other and entangled in an intense affair and IT WAS AMAZING". I reread scenes regularly. I love it so much. The dirty talk is obscene. You get the very cool "sit, stay, bark" dom dirty talk from one hero and the deranged "I'm going through it and you're going to go through it with me" passionate dirty talk from the other. Our heroine ain't half bad at it either.

Lyonesse Trilogy: The prequel novella and the first book are out now; it's a Tristan/Isolde/Mark MMF retelling. Mark is perhaps like... the dirtiest dirty talker Sierra has written. He's soooooo much. Like, if you want the condescending dom dirty talking hero, he's The One. The alternating between the "look how good you take it" stuff and "you're so desperate it's pathetic" shit. Why not both???

Act Your Age by Eve Dangerfield has a TON of dirty talk, usually in the DD/lg vein. The hero and heroine roleplay dirty stepdad fantasies a lot, and the way they talk to each other is OBSCENE lol. And I love it.

Minx by Sophie Lark has some amazing dirty talk in the pet play realm. The heroine is an escort paid by the hero, and he has her dress up in a catsuit, wear a caller, drink milk out of a bowl while he calls her Minxie and a good girl and shit lol. I was into it. Idk if you'll be into it. Iiiii was into it.

Sara Cate's Salacious Player Club books have good dirty talk. They're sex club books that kind of deconstruct a different kink in each book (pleasure dom/sub in the first one, voyeurism in the second, MMF/bi awakening in the third, and femdom in the fourth... I'd stop after the fourth) and naturally are filled with dirty talk. Eyes On Me (the second book) may especially work for you because the heroine is a cam girl.

Possession by Adriana Anders has a heroine in a PR marriage with her famous husband end up in a kink camp with him after a scandal, and they... explore a lot. Including consensual kidnapping, an MFM threesome, lots of dirty talk... It's a lot.

Preferential Treatment by Heather Guerre has a heroine who becomes her billionaire boss's domme, so naturally there is a LOT of femdom dirty talk. We LOVE to see it.

Heated Rivalry & The Long Game by Rachel Reid make up a duology of hockey romances about the same couple (m/m). What I like about this is that you follow the same couple over like, a decade, starting when they're like 18/19, and they build up...? Their dirty talk? Like in the beginning, their encounters are more awkward, and then by the end they're using sex toys and like mild bondage and really KNOW each other and what turns each other on. Including the talk.

[mermaidsirennikita]

fave age gap romances?

GOOD QUESTION

So for references, I will categorize an age gap romance as a romance with a 10+ year gap. The gap feels more significant, however, when we're 15+ years in. And like, I feel there are books that FEEL like an age gap, and books that adhere to this rule and don't feel like it. I believe Ash is about 10-11 years older than Greer in New Camelot (and Embry is one year younger than Ash, so he's 9-10 years older than Greer) but that series deeply doesn't feel like an age gap series to me. But Mark's 14 year gap with Isolde in the Lyonesse series (he's only like 7 years older than Tristan, who's then around 7 years older than Isolde, I think?) feels like a gap.

So. ANYWAY!

Contemporary:

Act Your Age by Eve Dangerfield. Obvi! This is the one where the heroine accidentally hooks up with her boss (it was dark, he thought she knew it was him, she thought he was someone else) AND realizes they both have a massive daddy kink. It's both super sexy and really pretty emotional? I love the third act breakup in this book. It feels really real in a lot of ways. She's 25, he's 45, I believe.

Mercy by Sara Cate. A lot of Sara Cate books have age gaps, and Praise is good, and I recommend Praise, but I think Mercy is better so I'd like to give it more kudos. This is a smaller gap (12 years) but the heroine is older than the hero, she's friends with his dad (not in a weird way) and she's his domme. I love a good femdom romance, and this one has a bratty hero. We love to see it.

It Seemed Like a Good Idea at The Time by Kylie Scott. This is the one where the heroine had a huge crush on her dad's friend and business partner, basically like, jumped him against his will on her eighteenth birthday, the dad walked in, the friendship was almost ruined, and she was more or less banished for years. She's back at 25 (I believe the hero is 15 years older) for her dad's wedding, the hero resents what she did, and... Yeah... It's messy. But I find the drama delicious.

Dark Romance:

Mila Finelli's Mafia Mistress and Mafia Darling duet—great books, definitely BIIIIG on the age gap (she's 18 and he's 38, daddy kink is very much their thing) and OTT mafia ridiculousness. The heroine is a mafia princess in Canada, and her dad, who's a lower-ranking guy, agrees to pay off a debt by giving her as a bride to an actual Italian don's son. Said don kidnaps her, she's engaged to the son, she's a BRAT and is like "fuck you", and he's like "... never mind she's gonna be my mistress instead of my son's wife". It's campy, it's hot, it's fun.

BUT EVEN MORE SO I would recommend the third book in the series (a standalone, but best read after the first two) Mafia Madman. The age gap is less focused on in that book, but it's still big lol. She's 20 and he's 38, he's kidnapped her to get revenge against the guy in the first book (who is this heroine's brother in law now; she's the little sister of the first heroine) and he's CRAZY. They're one of my favorite romance couples ever. Every time he tries to get one over on her, she's fucking ready. Every time she does something insane to escape or seduce him into compliance, he's iNTO IT. And then there's a followup scene where she dresses up in her old school uniform so he can punish her. We all win.

(For those historical romance readers not in the loop: Mila Finelli is Joanna Shupe's mafia romance pen name, and I recommend everything she writes.)

The Lyonesse trilogy by Sierra Simone. Again, Mark is 14 years older than Isolde, and they kick off the series in Salt in the Wound with their kinky arranged marriage/fake relationship shit. Isolde is... very young in that novella and she wants to be a nun, so she's quite innocent in some ways. and jaded in others. But because things initially end the way they do for those two, you get a very DON'T CALL ME KID DON'T CALL ME BABY vibe that adds to the age gap vibe when they reunite.

Again, this is an MMF romance, and Tristan is literally right in the middle of their ages lol, but tbh he's very naive in a lot of ways and he and Mark feel like an age gap situation. And then his dynamic with Isolde is just... really hot....

Historical:

What I Did for a Duke by Julie Anne Long. Classic, the hero is a jaded duke (39) who wants to ruin an innocent debutante (20) in revenge for her brother cuckolding him lol. But she immediately figures it out and decides to use him to make this guy she likes jealous. JAL books are so funny yet emotional. After Dark with the Duke is also great, wherein a stern war hero (42) ends up having to give a scandalous opera singer he disapproves of (25) Italian lessons to make up for humiliating her. And then they become friends. And then....

Again the Magic by Lisa Kleypas actually has a fabulous secondary romance in which the hero is a jaded alcoholic businessman and the heroine is this much younger woman who's seen some shit but wants to have an affair with him and then like... believes in him... The primary romance is between childhood friends to enemies to lovers who are only a year apart, but both love stories are SO GOOD.

Grace Callaway has a lot of good "mild gap" romances (10-12 years) for those uncertain about dipping their toes in the water—Olivia and The Masked Duke (dad's friend, daddy vibes, brat vibes), Fiona and the Enigmatic Earl (marriage of convenience, both of them have secret identities), and Glory and The Master of Shadows (mentor/mentee, wuxia vibes) come to mind. I'd also recommend Regarding the Duke and The Duke Who Knew Too Much for this, plus The Gentleman Who Loved Me.

Shadowheart by Laura Kinsale uggggh dude. This is a 10-12 year gap I believe, but yeah... It's a villain romance, and he's crazy, and he forces her to marry him for political purposes (first encounter is noncon, to be clear) but then it's like... Oh. She's BRILLIANT. And he's a masochist, while she enjoys dominating him. And she's like... the only person who gets him and wants to learn from him... And she has her own agenda... One of my all-time favorites.

In Which Matilda Halifax Learns the Value of Restraint by Alexandra Vasti. Such a cute romance! The hero is rumored to be a Villain (he's not) the heroine has drawn erotic artwork of him and it left her hands so they end up on the road together... There's some light kink... Really fun.

Joss and The Countess by S.M. LaViolette. I recommend this a lot, check triggers, but it's so great and another rare book in which the heroine is the older one. Joss is around 27 and Alicia is 38-39. He's her footman/bodyguard and a secret former gigolo, she's looking for a lover, he realizes she needs to be DOMMED.... It's supposed to be sex and turns into waaaay more. GOD. GOD. This is also the book in which she touches herself while wearing his gloves, so.

Hyacinth by S.M. LaViolette. I forget how big the gap is here—I think Hyacinth is around 23 while Sylvester is late 30s or early 40s. Anyway, she's in disguise as a man while playing cards to save her family from destitution, he initially has NOOOO idea she's a girl until his valet tips him off, and they begin this like... buddy relationship that also consists of them absolutely demolishing each other in bed... JUST FOR FUN NO EMOTION... Hyacinth is neurodivergent and open about her kinks and desires, and her mom made her feel like a monster for it so she's convinced she can't love. It's actually both super hot and super beautiful and I recommend it to everyone. Selinan also has an age gap, in this case with an innocent virginal heroine who in a series of crazy circumstances becomes the housekeeper to a former rake who recently lost his sight and is a total dick to everyone. It's great. Aurelia, Phoebe, The Postilion, and His Valet also have age gaps, I believe. All good.

Princess is another recent favorite of mine. I believe the age gap is around... 14 years? The heroine is 20 and the hero is 34, she's a princess, he's the palace bodyguard/assassin/spy you know how it is... He was taken in by her parents and has known her... since birth... I'm gonna ignore it........... BUT YEAH. He's been avoiding her since she's clearly in love with him and he can't deal, and she's determined to fuck him before she has to marry this asshole for political purposes. So when she's sent to this safe house after a kidnapping attempt... Welp! Darius must go with her! To protect her!

The virgin lactation book.

[mermaidsirennikita]

Any recs with reallly great dirty talk? Like pearl clutching water gushing dirty talk?

Yesss I love a dirty talking book.

Sierra Simone is, as with most things in erotic romance, one of the best in the business. The Thornchapel serise has some reeeeeally filthy dirty talk, especially from God's favorite idiot, Auden Guest. There's one scene in the third book where he's like... talking his partner through it... And another scene where there's a "hey let's talk through a ritualistic sacrifice but instead of killing we fuck and I talk you through what we'd do" scene, though this time someone's talking to Auden. The series is MMF and FF, and must be read in order.

Obviously, I'll always recommend New Camelot (MMF), which has excellent dirty talk. There's Ash's weird mindfuckery approach to domination, Embry's rough "MINE MINE MINE" shit. WHY NOT BOTH?

And then that'll lead you into Lyonesse, with Salt in the Wound and Salt Kiss. All around excellent dirty talk in those. (I've talked about this before, and I'll talk about it again lol--there's an extra Salt Kiss scene where Mark casually calls Tristan "puppy" and it is one of my favorite dialogue choices EVER.) Mark is like... really good at it. I just opened Salt in the Wound to refresh my memory, and he really went off towards the end there.

….. yeah.

(FWIW, Tristan also dirty talks great. He calls Isolde “honey” a lot, which shouldn’t work for me but occurs in such dirty contexts that I’m like oh right yeah I get it now.)

Priest, naturally, has a lot of sacrilegious dirty talk which is excellent. With holy oil and everything. Sinner and Saint have it too, Sinner of the corruption variety and Saint of the "I'm a monk and you're making me break my vows" variety".

So yes. Sierra Simone. Do it.

I actually just read Kristen Callihan's The Friend Zone, which is a football college romance (well, college is really like over at that point) and the rare friends to lovers that works for me. In part because they have spontaneous phone sex while she's really horny and talking about what she'd want someone to do to her (at his encouragement). It's SO GOOD. (This is also one we can add to the "heroine fingers his ass" list, and he LOOOOOVES it.) Managed, her "uptight rock band manager meets wild girl" book has some good dirty talk too, from what I remember. Perhaps in the scene where he pushes his cum back in her after he comes inside? Always a lovely moment.

Act Your Age by Eve Dangerfield has EXCELLENT DD/lg role play dirty talk, if you are... into that. The heroine likes to call the hero daddy, and he likes to pretend (with her consent, it's all very discussed and planned) that he's a dirty stepfather type who's Corrupting Her. It's filthy but also a surprisingly emotional book with realistic issues to confront?

Kresley Cole's dirty talk is OTT for me but I LOOOOVE it. The heroes are always like "YOU'RE STEALING MY CUM!!!!" which again, not for everyone, but I DON'T GIVE A FUCK. They narrate everything that's happening. I really like the werewolf IAD books for this because the werewolves are always like, beasting out but also like "YOU ARE A GODDESS DIVINE, CAN'T BELIEVE THIS IS HAPPENING TO ME, WILL NEVER TAKE LIFE 4 GRANTED".

In regards to her Russian mafia books, I think The Master has some really good dirty talk. Like, deranged, but really good.

Kings of Italy has some of my favorite dirty talk ever, lol. There is some Italian, which Mila did use a translator for. There is always some stuff that's not going to translate perfectly, but (and take this with a grain of salt as I'm not a native speaker and am extremely rusty) but I enjoy it lol. But yeah, dude, those heroes are always talking super dirty throughout a sex scene. And tbh? The heroines often do too, especially Gia and Emma. We love reciprocation!

Sara Cate writes really good dirty talk. The hero in Eyes On Me is a voyeur, which means he talks the heroine through it a loooot. Give Me More has a lot of dirty talk, as again it's super focused on the watching element, which I think almost always contributes to a great dirty talk moment.

One Good Earl Deserves a Lover by Sarah MacLean is super famous for its dirty talk scene, where the hero talks the heroine through touching herself for the first time. It's great.

The Duke Gets Even by Joanna Shupe has his amazing moment where Nellie is like "you're so proper that you don't even use dirty words" and Lockwood is like so do you want me to touch your pussy, your quim, your cunt, whatever I can go on. And she's like *GASP*.

Grace Callaway writes a really good dirty talker in a historical romance. Olivia and The Masked Duke and Pippa and The Prince of Secrets are great choices on this front.

I love the way Mac talks to Isabella in Lady Isabella's Scandalous Marriage because it's both deeply dirty and deeply fond, because like. They're married lol. He knows her.

Any Duchess Will Do is good for this, particularly because of the "recite my courtesy titles while I fuck you" scene lol. When a Scot Ties the Knot has some hot dirty talk too.

I remember Joss and The Countess by S.M. LaVolette having some very intense "THAT'S HOW YOU LIKE IT HUH?" Dirty talk.

Oooh American Royalty by Tracey Livesay has some good dirty talk, annnnnd it's of the "British prince talking filth" variety.

Kennedy Ryan's The Kingmaker has some good dirty talk, AAAND one of my favorite romance scenes in which Maxim puts his head under Lennix's sweatshirt to suck on her nipples while all their friends and coworkers are on the other side of the door.

Deep by Kylie Scott has some good dirty talk, of the "I'm going to take care of this pussy and nobody else is allowed to do it" variety. Which is something I love lol. For context, the heroine is the hero's bandmate's sister in law, and the hero broke the bro code by fucking her in a one night stand, and then they sort of fall apart immediately after. But actions! Have consequences! And she ends up pregnant. And horny. And nobody can take care of it but him!!!!

Bound to the Battle God by Ruby Dixon has a great fantasy romance dirty talk scene, in which the hero is like, spanking her pussy and is all "WHOSE IS THIS?" (her: FOR SURE YOURS) before they actually make it Official, and immediately after she realizes that everyone in their little band of miscreants heard them talking. And also heard the smacks.

Ooooh Preferential Treatment by Heather Guerre has some amazing femdom dirty talk. The hero is a billionaire who asks the heroine to become his domme, and she certainly does make him crawl.

Minx by Sophie Lark has some dirty talk by way of pet play--the heroine is an escort hired by the hero, and he enjoys some pet play. And by some, I mean her wearing a catsuit and ears and gloves with claws and a collar and him being all "good girl, Minx" lmao.