For Her Pleasure

Popular e-book author Maya Banks brings her imagination and writing skill to the mass public with her very first NY release, For Her Pleasure! Readers of digital books have long had a place for Banks on their auto-buy lists, and it is very exciting to see a writer whose work you admire so much advance to the next level in their career. I have no doubt that the fans born of this new publication will soon be searching out her previous works while awaiting her next NY release.

In this collection of three connected stories, Banks does what she does oh so well - ménage. The first two stories focus on the same three characters, and their evolving relationship together. The third story sees these three in a supporting role as a character we met in the second story stars as the heroine, introducing a new male lead as her hero.

~What She Wants~

Kit, Mac, and Ryder have been best friends since they were kids, but as they matured into adulthood, they began to want more from each other. Kit knows her two male friends have long indulged in that most erotic of female fantasies - ménage, with both men pleasuring one woman. She dreams of experiencing sensual heights with the only two men in the world she will ever trust. Mac and Ryder are all too willing to give Kit what she wants, but Mac wants much more from Kit than she is prepared for...

The first story in this collection kicks it off with a bang! Not only do we have some pretty explosive love scenes between Kit, Mac and Ryder, but the story is rife with suspense and danger as Kit is stalked by the man who raped her just six months earlier. As policeman Mac and bad boy Ryder work as a team to protect her and uncover the identity of her attacker, the attraction between Kit and the two men ramps up to a fever pitch. In addition to the intense sexuality in this story, Banks infuses a hefty dose of love as two friends finally admit what they've really felt for each other all of these years.

~What She Needs~

Kit and Mac are finally a couple, with their best friend Ryder joining them for the occasional threesome. But having taken a step back to allow Mac and Kit to be together, Ryder now realizes his feelings for Kit lean more towards everlasting romantic love than the simple friendship he thought before. While he doesn't begrudge his friends their happiness, he finds it harder and harder to be near Kit and not be able to claim her for his own...

Just when we think the story of this threesome is finished, Banks returns to it immediately showing the aftermath of what happens when Mac and Kit's relationship turns serious and Ryder begins to realize he feels more for Kit than even he ever suspected. His anguish is very real as he tries to do the right thing and step away from his friends so they can be happy together. But as he backs off, the pain he causes both of his friends is more than they can bear, until they all realize they must find a solution that can make them all happy for the long haul.

~What She Craves~

Long ago, Mia Malone loved Jack Kincaid with everything she had, enjoying one night of perfect passion - right before he disappeared without a trace. Now she's reluctantly working as a stripper and he's back in her life, and not one bit happy about her stripping career. But Mia isn't exactly working as a dancer by choice - she has been blackmailed into it, and things are about to get much worse for her. Unless Jack can save her in time, he'll lose her again just when he has finally found her!

Unlike the first two stories, the last stars a different couple, Jack and Mia, who are connected to the first trio through Mia's friendship with Ryder. Although this story focuses on Jack and Mia, our friends from the other tales make and appearance as they help the couple in their most dire hour.

Jack is a Dominant to top all Dominants, and he is reluctant to consummate his love for Mia out of fear that his needs will be too much for the inexperienced young woman. In the very beginning of the story, she breaks through his defenses easily, but is left out in the cold when his job takes him away without warning.

In his absence, Mia finds herself the victim of a scam that leaves her in a much more precarious position than even she realizes. An affable person, she makes the best of her situation, while retaining as much of her dignity and morals as possible. Having resigned herself to the situation, she doesn't believe even Jack can pull her out of it until things turn far more dangerous than she could ever imagine. The danger they face together rebuilds her trust in Jack faster than might otherwise have been possible, paving the way for a very happy ending to this exciting book!

**NOTE** The book description on the book's page here incorrectly lists the name of the hero in the third story as Logan Kincaid. The character's name is actually Jack Kincaid.

WHAT SHE WANTS
Travis "Mac" McKenzie, Ryder Sinclair and Kit Townsend have maintained a special friendship for most of their lives. Mac and Ryder left town for a while but now they've returned and they're interested in starting a more intimate relationship with Kit. Both men are interested in a threesome, but for Mac it's far more personal - he wants to be the one she comes home to every night.

Kit has never had a whole lot of trust in men, but since her attack six months ago she lives in constant fear. The only men she truly trusts, Mac and Ryder, have adapted a protective attitude toward her and she'd give anything to see their eyes filled with lustful intentions again. WHAT SHE WANTS is hot, sweaty monkey sex with her best friends without any romantic entanglements.

Mac's done his best to give Kit time to come to grips with her attack, but he's decided that he's not willing to wait any longer. After a nasty incident at the bar where Kit works she decides that she's tired of the games and sick of being scared. Kit finally admits to Mac that she wants him and Ryder. Plans are made to meet after she gets off work, but an unexpected note and a phone call throw her back into panic mode. She's forced to reveal what happened the night she was attacked and the fact that her assailant is stalking her. Kit's convinced that it has to be someone who knows them, but who?

WHAT SHE WANTS contains the perfect blend of sexually charged scenes, suspense, and emotional turmoil. I adored Mac, Ryder, and Kit's close-knit friendship and envied their `Three Musketeers' attitude.

WHAT SHE NEEDS
Ryder has become uncomfortable with Mac and Kit - not because he doesn't enjoy being with them, but because he's come to realize that he's in love with Kit. While avoiding Mac and Kit, he's taken to hanging out with a stripper named Mia. They'd even considered becoming lovers but then realized that it would be a mistake and ended up getting drunk and exchanging sob stories.

Mac and Kit are living together as a couple and there's no doubt that they are in love but they've noticed that lately Ryder has been distancing himself. His absence from her life is hurting Kit. Ryder and Kit share the same sort of upbringing and she needs him to remain in her life.

Mac and Kit are going to the coast for the weekend and Mac called to invite Ryder along. He declines but later runs into Kit when he stops at the bar for a bite to eat. She convinces him to join them on their trip. Mac wants happily-ever-after with the white picket fence and two point five kids. Kit wants to be loved by her two favorite men. Ryder simply wants Kit. Is there any hope for any real resolution to their dilemma?

WHAT SHE NEEDS is a highly emotional roller coaster of a story which will have readers smiling and cheering the characters one moment and crying the next. If you weren't already in love with Ryder, Mac and Kit from WHAT SHE WANTS this story is sure to endear them to you.

WHAT SHE CRAVES
Mia Nichols has been in love with Jack for as long as she can remember. He saved her from a life of pain and anguish and assumed the role of her guardian while making sure that her needs were met - all except for her need for him.

Jack Kincaid is fourteen years older than Mia. He met her when he took down her father during a drug bust. Jack's been looking out for her and trying to tamp down his attraction to her ever since.

Mia's desire for Jack forces her into taking drastic action and using the spare key he'd given her to his home to join him in his bed while he's sleeping. Jack doesn't have the heart to turn her away and he doesn't regret spending the night with her. Jack's a possessive man and he has no intention of letting Mia go but she may not like what `belonging' to him entails. They agree to talk about it tomorrow but before they have time for a serious discussion, Jack receives a phone call and disappears from Mia's life. Two years later, Jack is back in Dallas but by then Mia is long gone. His friend Kenny offers the first hope of finding her when he drops the bombshell that Mia is a stripper in a hole-in-the-wall town. Instinctively Jack knows that something is very wrong, stripping isn't the sort of thing she'd be doing willingly. Once again Jack's going to go to Mia's rescue and this time he has no intention of letting her go - ever.

WHAT SHE CRAVES is action packed from beginning to end. It's very easy to lose yourself in these characters and their situations and you'll quietly cheer their stamina and determination to triumph over the dangerous situation which Mia's unwillingly involved.

Maya Banks became a must read author for me after I read her very first book SEDUCING SIMON. Her storylines are always full of emotional situations, lovable characters, and kick [...] storylines that will leave you desperate for more. FOR HER PLEASURE is a powerful anthology which will take readers into the lives of Mac, Ryder and Kit as well as Mia and Jack. Each story flows seamlessly into the next for a genuinely enjoyable book full of all the passion, excitement, and suspense I've come to expect from Ms. Bank's storylines. I highly recommend FOR HER PLEASURE for readers who like spicy romances with a suspenseful element - it's definitely a must read!

Chrissy Dionne (courtesy of Romance Junkies)

All in all...eh. If you're not very adventurous or experienced in your sex life, dirty thoughts, reading choices, or videos, then this book will probably be a good starter for you. If you're more experienced in any of those arenas, skip this book. Instead, I'd recommend "Exit To Eden" by Anne Rice if you're looking for some really detailed kinky fantasy-sex.

"For Her Pleasure" tries so hard to be both a romance novel and an erotic novel that it ultimately fails at both. The sex needed to be sexier or the story more interesting, but unfortunately, both are weak. Kit is a dislikably whiny insecure female. Mac is one dimensional - "I love Kit, I protect Kit, me Man, ugh". Ugh is right. Ryder is actually interesting - a rich "bad boy" with a heart of gold. Actually, scratch that, he's a stereotypical dark hero. Mia is kind of stupid, and Jack is a puffed up arrogant ass.

I chose this book for an erotic escape, a little fantasy living. Bad choice.

The backstory for Kit is doom and gloom - a rape, emotional drama with her guys, and hospital stress. Not so fun to read, and it doesn't really lend to the erotic mood when the girl is crying all the time, fighting off attackers, and stressed out. This could have been a lot of fun to read, if the backstory was happier...and if there was more than a handful of sex scenes.

Mia's story is also gloomy - loosing the man she loves, being forced to work as a stripper, living in a squalid apartment. Again, not too erotic.

My biggest dissapointments, though, are both the quality and the number of sex scenes throughout the book. Mia only gets TWO - that's it! Kit has, oh, roughly 7. This is erotica...they should be having kinky, inventive sex after sex, with only about 3 pages of plot in between. Even the "kinky" stuff is woefully vanilla. The girl is tied up and bent over...and no one spanks her?! The girl is 'forced' to be a stripper and it's NOT used as a plot device to get her to have wild public sex involving a stripper pole and a chair? A dominant is having sex with a submissive in a room FILLED with "paddles, nipple clamps, beads...", and doesn't touch a single one of these items? Not to mention - the actual "dominating" sex is so boringly humdrum you only know it's meant to be kinky becasue of the character's thoughts.

Give this a pass if you're looking for a lot of fun dirty monkey sex and light (or zero) plot. If you're looking for a love story with more explicit sex scenes, this is the book.

Maya Banks writes erotic fiction and does an okay job of it. I was a bit surprised to find this book in my state library system, especially as it is classified under "group sex" (weirdly there are three such titles in the group sex classification. I'm all for a diverse library, but this surprises me).

This book is divided into two unequal parts. Most of the book focuses on Kit, Ryder and Mac. They all grew up together in the same small town in Texas and years later they become involved in a threesome love affair which is strictly male on female action. The storyline takes some windy pathways around Kit's rape, the complications of loving two men and in the second part, the three of them are involved with an undercover Texas Ranger and his fake stripper girlfriend Mia. Kat is a whiny character and I didn't warm to her at all. Mac was basically all tough, but soft when it came to Kit and pretty much obsessed by her to the point of BORING. Ryder, the Texas Ranger Jack, and Mia are the characters who are developed the best.

Ultimately, the sex scenes were hot (although if Kit had been tied up, beaten and raped, I doubt her favourite fantasy six months after the fact would be to be tied up), the storyline was so-so and the ending utterly predictable. But, if you read erotic fiction for the storyline, that's pretty much the same as reading Playboy for the articles.

This book gets two stars because the sex scenes are long and detailed, better than some other books I've seen. However, the writing is bad (I've read better stuff for free on the internet), and the sex scenes seem unrealistic. I wonder how much sex the author has actually had. It was distracting to read little details that just seemed to be off.

Then there's the issue that beyond the sex scenes there is a whole novel that is really, really bad. I bought this for my wife and we were laughing at it because the two guy characters keep talking about "that night," and all this other stuff that never gets explained. I think this back story is supposed to appeal to women, but how well can it appeal when it's so terrible?

Don't buy it.

I love this author and anything she writes so this book was no exception. Service was excellent and the book arrived in excellent condition. Maya Banks writes wonderful stories and draws the reader into the world she creates for her characters to play and grow in. I find this book to be no different. You are involved in the lives and problems of the characters and can't wait to see how everything works out. Not for the faint of heart or those who don't like hot, explicit sex that will make your temperature rise.

Love all of Maya Banks erotica novels

i enjoy reading her books. They are never boring.Her storys make you feel like your there. Very interesting. I love romance books. She knows how to write them.

If you're like me and are of fan of good erotica, then this is a good bet. It's quite up to par with others in its category and real yummy read. I would like more this this!! I also suggest another frm Maya banks, [[ASIN:042522404X Be With Me]].