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Take Me There
In mainstream media, the erotic identities, sex lives, and fantasies of transgender and genderqueer people are often oversimplified, sensationalized, or invisible. Take Me There is an erotica collection unlike any other that celebrates the pleasure, heat, and diversity of transgender and genderqueer sexualities. The power of seeing and being seen is a central theme in the anthology; it’s not simply about passing or not passing (an idea often explored with transgender characters), but about being acknowledged and desired in a sexual context.
The book takes you from San Francisco to Israel, from heartache to lust, from stranger sex to a 10 year anniversary, from ballet shoes to butt plug bondage tables, from fumbling teenagers to leatherclad bears, from MTF and FTM—and in between and beyond.
Featuring renowned authors Kate Bornstein (Gender Outlaws: The Next Generation), Patrick Califia (Speaking Sex to Power), S. Bear Bergman (Butch is a Noun), Ivan Coyote (Missed Her), Julia Serrano (Whipping Girl), Laura Antoniou (The Marketplace), Helen Boyd (My Husband Betty), Rachel Kramer Bussel (Gotta Have It), Toni Amato (Pinned Down by Pronouns), Alicia E. Goranson (Supervillianz), filmmaker Tobi Hill-Meyer, musician Rahne Alexander, songwriter Shawna Virago, bloggers Andrea Zanin and Sinclair Sexsmith, and more.
The book takes you from San Francisco to Israel, from heartache to lust, from stranger sex to a 10 year anniversary, from ballet shoes to butt plug bondage tables, from fumbling teenagers to leatherclad bears, from MTF and FTM—and in between and beyond.
Featuring renowned authors Kate Bornstein (Gender Outlaws: The Next Generation), Patrick Califia (Speaking Sex to Power), S. Bear Bergman (Butch is a Noun), Ivan Coyote (Missed Her), Julia Serrano (Whipping Girl), Laura Antoniou (The Marketplace), Helen Boyd (My Husband Betty), Rachel Kramer Bussel (Gotta Have It), Toni Amato (Pinned Down by Pronouns), Alicia E. Goranson (Supervillianz), filmmaker Tobi Hill-Meyer, musician Rahne Alexander, songwriter Shawna Virago, bloggers Andrea Zanin and Sinclair Sexsmith, and more.
293 pages, Paperback
First published October 1, 2011
62 people are currently reading
1230 people want to read
About the author
Tristan Taormino
70 books568 followersTristan Taormino is an award-winning writer, sex educator, speaker, filmmaker, and radio host. She is the editor of 25 anthologies and author of seven books, including her latest, The Feminist Porn Book, 50 Shades of Kink: An Introduction to BDSM, The Secrets of Great G-Spot Orgasms and Female Ejaculation, The Ultimate Guide to Kink: BDSM, Role Play and the Erotic Edge and Take Me There: Trans and Genderqueer Erotica, winner of a 2012 Lambda Literary Award. As the head of Smart Ass Productions, she has directed and produced twenty-four adult films. She is the producer and host of Sex Out Loud, a weekly radio show on the VoiceAmerica Network.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 33 reviews
January 11, 2013
I was really enjoying this book, until I came to Dixie Belle By Kate Bornstein.Why a white woman thinks it's her place to protest the removal of a slur from a book is beyond me (actually it isn't). But the repeated use of the n-word in a story that supposed to be erotic makes it anything but. (Let me tell you nothing makes my bits colder) It honestly soured the whole book for me after that. I'm bothered both by the fact that Kate would do that and that Tristan Taormino would allow that. I had enjoyed Kate's Books in the past and now they're all somewhat ruined for me. Other stories in the book were great and I would recommend the authors, just not this book.
October 18, 2011
If you’re a regular reader/visitor, you’ll know I don’t normally interject a lot of hyperbole into my reviews. Generally, I try to keep them well-grounded and professional, with just enough personality to add a little colour and (hopefully) make them a more interesting read. With that in mind, I beg your indulgence for just a moment, as I try to sum up Tristan Taormino’s Take Me There: Trans and Genderqueer Erotica in a few words:
Absolutely amazing. Beautifully breathtaking. Compellingly creative. Deliciously diverse.
I could go on – after all, there are 22 letters I haven’t alliterated yet – but you get the point. On a list of my top 10 reads for the year, Tristan is looking down upon her peers from a very high perch indeed!
As she states in her introduction, this is a collection of “erotica by, for and about transfolk, FTMs, MTFs, genderqueers, gender outlaws, as well as two-spirit, intersex, and gender-variant people.” Almost immediately, you notice these are stories where gender (in all its forms) is almost taken for granted, without the ‘surprise confession’ or ‘shocking reveal’ common to mainstream erotica/porn, and without the arbitrary focus on simply passing or being acknowledged. This is a collection where trans lovers can feel intimately and comfortably at home amidst stories of being treasured, loved, desired, and adored.
Considering the wide variety of authors, genders, and subjects explored, I’m pleased to say there’s not a single story here that didn’t, on some level, resonate with me. Indeed, they are all wonderful, but there were certainly some stand-outs that I must call attention to:
"The Therapist and the Whore" by Giselle Renarde - Giselle at her romantic and thought-provoking best, turning the tables on our expectations with a kind, lovable, transsexual whore who serves as a remarkably effective bedroom therapist.
"Shoes Are Meant to Get You Somewhere" by Dean Scarborough - Plays to the clothes fetishist in me, complete with ballet slippers, stockings and garters, and a tightly laced corset, but it's also a remarkable literary dance of gender exploration.
"Taking the Toll" by Kiki DeLovely - Deliciously naughty and provocative, a tale of a young woman who is aroused by Sunday morning church bells, and her genderqueer lover who is only too happy to put her in a schoolgirl uniform and hear her confession.
"Dixie Belle" by Kate Bornstein - A gloriously genderqueer sequel to Huckleberry Finn, with young Huck settling quite contentedly into a new career as Miss Sarah Grangerford, high-class N'awlins whore. It's been years since I last read Tom Sawyer or Huckleberry Finn, but Kate recaptures the magic perfectly.
"The Visible Woman" by Rachel K. Zall - This is a story that begins with an in-your-face fantasy of public confrontation, settles into a lovely domestic scene of transsexual bliss, and ends with the lovers playing to the voyeuristic public outside their apartment window.
"Canadian Slim" by Shawna Virago - Still erotic without being overtly sexual, this is the heart-warming story of a transsexual who has tired of being the fetish/freak secret partner, and who has found love with a fellow transsexual who fits her perfectly.
"Self-Reflection" by Tobi Hill-Meyer - Trippy and bizarre, this is one I'm cautious of saying too much about, but it doesn't get much sexier or self-aware than a post-op transsexual visiting her pre-op transsexual self for a little show-and-sell.
"Face Pack" by Penelope Mansfield - This is a bold, blatantly sexual story that challenges the pornographic mainstream, claiming the bukkake experience as a visual validation of the narrator's new-found femininity. It takes an act most would seem as vulgar or degrading, and transforms it into something cleansing and rewarding.
Not only are the stories contained here erotic, imaginative, and exciting, but they are also beautifully written. As Tristan asks in her introduction, “our language is severely limited when it comes to describing the bodies of transpeople,” and there is a significant challenge in writing stories that are both erotic and respectful. Fortunately, the authors here have the words to do so, and the talent to use those words well.
I’d like to leave you with a brief passage from Rachel K. Zall’s "The Visible Woman" that sums it up better than I ever could:
A stranger looking at us now would call us “MTFs” instead of women, would name us by our genitalia—“pre-op,” “nonop”—would call us trans before they called us anything else, if they did call us anything else. A stranger would call our bodies gender ambiguous: her cock about to enter me, my clit poking out of her fist, her tiny breasts on her large rib cage and the shadow across my cheeks and chin. A stranger would say that, and that stranger would be wrong: our bodies aren’t ambiguous at all, only the meanings people misapply to them. She’s a woman and her beautiful body is a woman’s body; I am a woman and seeing how beautiful her body is makes me think my body might be beautiful too.
Take Me There indeed . . . I just hope, somewhere down the line, Tristan chooses to take us there again.
Absolutely amazing. Beautifully breathtaking. Compellingly creative. Deliciously diverse.
I could go on – after all, there are 22 letters I haven’t alliterated yet – but you get the point. On a list of my top 10 reads for the year, Tristan is looking down upon her peers from a very high perch indeed!
As she states in her introduction, this is a collection of “erotica by, for and about transfolk, FTMs, MTFs, genderqueers, gender outlaws, as well as two-spirit, intersex, and gender-variant people.” Almost immediately, you notice these are stories where gender (in all its forms) is almost taken for granted, without the ‘surprise confession’ or ‘shocking reveal’ common to mainstream erotica/porn, and without the arbitrary focus on simply passing or being acknowledged. This is a collection where trans lovers can feel intimately and comfortably at home amidst stories of being treasured, loved, desired, and adored.
Considering the wide variety of authors, genders, and subjects explored, I’m pleased to say there’s not a single story here that didn’t, on some level, resonate with me. Indeed, they are all wonderful, but there were certainly some stand-outs that I must call attention to:
"The Therapist and the Whore" by Giselle Renarde - Giselle at her romantic and thought-provoking best, turning the tables on our expectations with a kind, lovable, transsexual whore who serves as a remarkably effective bedroom therapist.
"Shoes Are Meant to Get You Somewhere" by Dean Scarborough - Plays to the clothes fetishist in me, complete with ballet slippers, stockings and garters, and a tightly laced corset, but it's also a remarkable literary dance of gender exploration.
"Taking the Toll" by Kiki DeLovely - Deliciously naughty and provocative, a tale of a young woman who is aroused by Sunday morning church bells, and her genderqueer lover who is only too happy to put her in a schoolgirl uniform and hear her confession.
"Dixie Belle" by Kate Bornstein - A gloriously genderqueer sequel to Huckleberry Finn, with young Huck settling quite contentedly into a new career as Miss Sarah Grangerford, high-class N'awlins whore. It's been years since I last read Tom Sawyer or Huckleberry Finn, but Kate recaptures the magic perfectly.
"The Visible Woman" by Rachel K. Zall - This is a story that begins with an in-your-face fantasy of public confrontation, settles into a lovely domestic scene of transsexual bliss, and ends with the lovers playing to the voyeuristic public outside their apartment window.
"Canadian Slim" by Shawna Virago - Still erotic without being overtly sexual, this is the heart-warming story of a transsexual who has tired of being the fetish/freak secret partner, and who has found love with a fellow transsexual who fits her perfectly.
"Self-Reflection" by Tobi Hill-Meyer - Trippy and bizarre, this is one I'm cautious of saying too much about, but it doesn't get much sexier or self-aware than a post-op transsexual visiting her pre-op transsexual self for a little show-and-sell.
"Face Pack" by Penelope Mansfield - This is a bold, blatantly sexual story that challenges the pornographic mainstream, claiming the bukkake experience as a visual validation of the narrator's new-found femininity. It takes an act most would seem as vulgar or degrading, and transforms it into something cleansing and rewarding.
Not only are the stories contained here erotic, imaginative, and exciting, but they are also beautifully written. As Tristan asks in her introduction, “our language is severely limited when it comes to describing the bodies of transpeople,” and there is a significant challenge in writing stories that are both erotic and respectful. Fortunately, the authors here have the words to do so, and the talent to use those words well.
I’d like to leave you with a brief passage from Rachel K. Zall’s "The Visible Woman" that sums it up better than I ever could:
A stranger looking at us now would call us “MTFs” instead of women, would name us by our genitalia—“pre-op,” “nonop”—would call us trans before they called us anything else, if they did call us anything else. A stranger would call our bodies gender ambiguous: her cock about to enter me, my clit poking out of her fist, her tiny breasts on her large rib cage and the shadow across my cheeks and chin. A stranger would say that, and that stranger would be wrong: our bodies aren’t ambiguous at all, only the meanings people misapply to them. She’s a woman and her beautiful body is a woman’s body; I am a woman and seeing how beautiful her body is makes me think my body might be beautiful too.
Take Me There indeed . . . I just hope, somewhere down the line, Tristan chooses to take us there again.
October 31, 2011
In the introduction, Tristan Taormino talks about how transgender or genderqueer people have always been either sensationalized or ignored — they’re either treated like freaks or just don’t exist. For the majority of people, the concept of gender dysphoria is an uncomfortable one. Our language is sadly lacking in ways to express all of the nuances involved in describing the fluidity of gender respectfully and with understanding.
The authors who contributed to this book have managed to find the right words to bring the reader into the story, feel the characters, become invested in their conflicts, and cheer for their happy endings. Though there’s a wealth of styles and subjects in the 29 stories that comprise the anthology, all are excellent representations of erotica.
When reading an anthology, I usually expect to have maybe a couple of the stories make an impact on me. The others are good, dirty, fun reading, but that’s it. That was not the case with "Take Me There". All of the stories, in one way or another, elicited an intense response from me. Beyond the usual intense response, of course. My favorite was:
-“The Therapist and the Whore” by Giselle Renarde – Manny is lying to almost everyone in her life: her therapist, her girlfriend. The one person she doesn’t lie to is Star, the MTF prostitute she’s been seeing. There is much more than a business relationship between Star and Manny, it shines through what they say and what they don’t say. Showering together after a very satisfying time in the bedroom, Star shows why she’s the best possible therapist for Manny.
If you are interested in a longer, more comprehensive review, including that of other singular stories and a summary of my thoughts on the anthology, you can find it at: http://arketipo187.com/2011/10/31/boo...
Enjoy!
The authors who contributed to this book have managed to find the right words to bring the reader into the story, feel the characters, become invested in their conflicts, and cheer for their happy endings. Though there’s a wealth of styles and subjects in the 29 stories that comprise the anthology, all are excellent representations of erotica.
When reading an anthology, I usually expect to have maybe a couple of the stories make an impact on me. The others are good, dirty, fun reading, but that’s it. That was not the case with "Take Me There". All of the stories, in one way or another, elicited an intense response from me. Beyond the usual intense response, of course. My favorite was:
-“The Therapist and the Whore” by Giselle Renarde – Manny is lying to almost everyone in her life: her therapist, her girlfriend. The one person she doesn’t lie to is Star, the MTF prostitute she’s been seeing. There is much more than a business relationship between Star and Manny, it shines through what they say and what they don’t say. Showering together after a very satisfying time in the bedroom, Star shows why she’s the best possible therapist for Manny.
If you are interested in a longer, more comprehensive review, including that of other singular stories and a summary of my thoughts on the anthology, you can find it at: http://arketipo187.com/2011/10/31/boo...
Enjoy!
February 22, 2013
I really wanted to like this a lot more. I ordered a library copy of it in hopes that it would impress me, get me and my lovers off, and earn a place on my "owned" bookshelf. Granted, I didn't get through every story in the collection, but of the eight or so that I did read, I felt merely drawn in to about half of them, and never as aroused as I'd like to be from reading good erotica.
From the beginning, I had mixed feelings about a cis woman editing an anthology of trans and genderqueer narratives. I do love many things Tristan Taormino has done, but over and over I've seen her put out "definitive experts' guides" on various kinds of sex, fill them with cis-sexist, gender essentialist language, and then try to sell herself as an ally to trans folk. If I had a copy of the book handy still, I'd cite some of the lines in the intro that made me wince, and some of the themes and scenes that turned me on the most.
My biggest suggestion to future editions or similar anthologies would be: add trigger warnings and "tags" at the tops of each story so the readers can look for things they're into as well as avoid topics that enter some of the stories without warning and could be traumatizing. That is how I search for erotica in places such as literotica.com and I don't seen how it could take anything away by giving some topical descriptors.
From the beginning, I had mixed feelings about a cis woman editing an anthology of trans and genderqueer narratives. I do love many things Tristan Taormino has done, but over and over I've seen her put out "definitive experts' guides" on various kinds of sex, fill them with cis-sexist, gender essentialist language, and then try to sell herself as an ally to trans folk. If I had a copy of the book handy still, I'd cite some of the lines in the intro that made me wince, and some of the themes and scenes that turned me on the most.
My biggest suggestion to future editions or similar anthologies would be: add trigger warnings and "tags" at the tops of each story so the readers can look for things they're into as well as avoid topics that enter some of the stories without warning and could be traumatizing. That is how I search for erotica in places such as literotica.com and I don't seen how it could take anything away by giving some topical descriptors.
December 28, 2011
One of the first times I've ever seen myself in a piece of writing.
Read
January 13, 2013Two sentence summary:
Collection of short stories with trans and genderqueer characters. Some amazing stories and some I refused to finish.
Reviewed as I read...
So far I'm not overly impressed with this anthology because the stories are definitely more porn than story. Yes, I should've realized that when read the word "erotica" in the title, but I was hoping it'd lean more toward erotic romance - you know, with actual stories involved - and not simply smut for the sake of smut with a gender twist. Nothing wrong with pure erotica, mind you, but it wasn't what I was hoping for in purchasing this rare collection of genderqueer and trans stories.
The stories so far:
Cocksure - Just smut
Now Voyager - 4 stars, coming out and being accepted/loved
Hold Up - 2 stars, confusing
All-Girl Action - just smut; might've been more interesting from the sub's POV
The Therapist and the Whore - (first 3rd POV story) 4 stars, I'm completely confused about the ending/character roles. I suspect that might've been intentional, and I like that technique, but it didn't work for me on this story. The MC intrigued me, as did the therapist and whore relationships she had throughout the story.
Shoes are Meant to Get You Somewhere - Just smut (second 3rd POV story)
On Hys Knees - Just smut. Also, I'm not into "Daddy" stories, or rude "sweet talk" like faggot
There are more stories, and I'll add notes as I read them. I am struggling to read not only because I've only found a couple I've enjoyed so far, but also because this publisher only offered the ebook in PDF format. While there are conversion tools out there to get it on a Kindle, the formatting always gets messed up during that process. I know it's a little extra work, but publishers who can't bother to offer popular formatting choices come off as not caring about their customers. I'll continue when I'm up for translating the formatting again.
Next batch read:
Tel Aviv - Just smut
Taking the Toll - mostly smut
Dixie Belle - Tom Sawyer fanfic. No thank you. Will not read.
That's What Little Girls are Made Of - No "Daddy" stuff. Will not read.
Sea of Cortez - 3 stars. Interesting in that it's written in 2nd POV, such a rarity that this story is a gem for handling that well. The story itself dragged a bit, but overall one of the better stories in this collection because the author did well with the 2nd POV style.
The Perfect Gentleman - 5 stars. My favorite so far. Sexy, sweet, and vulnerable, this is a one-night stand but with the personal/internal romance of understanding and accepting not just a lover, but one's own self.
Update, most of these stories have been first person POV. Between that and the smuttiness of most stories, I can't help but feel like I'm reading Playboy forums for the transgendered reader.
Payback's a Bitch - 2nd POV, just smut, and not particularly titallating smut.
Femme Fatigue - 1st POV, excellent, 5 stars.
Small Blue Thing - 1st POV that read like a blog entry, incomplete and unfulfilling
The Visible Woman - Very good 1st POV. Mostly smut, but an enjoyable 4 stars.
Somebody's Watching Me - This one failed for me on so many levels. First, the writing style confused me. For example, how does his anus "ratiate pleasure"? And how (or why do I need to know) that "she rises over him using only her calves"? Thighs, maybe, and only if it's important that the character's other body parts are occupied. Second, the character had amazing potential with the way she shut herself into her own mind only looking ten-feet out from herself and ignoring the rest of the world, yet nothing really came of that, nor of her creepy stalker ex. The whole story just felt like a rambling incomplete excuse to write a scene with a dildo.
Punching Bag - Stop reading as soon as I realized it was leading to the MC craving getting the crap kicked out of him for sexual titallation.
You Don't Know Jack - I stopped reading when piss games were mentioned.
I feel like I'm really beating this book up, and part of me wonders if I had expectations that were way too high given how excited I was to find a collection of trans and genderqueer stories. Have I been looking forward to this for too long? Putting it up on a pedastal that it was destine to fall from in my hopes for a dozen or more beautiful transgender lovers?
Canadian Slim - It was written more like a blog entry, and all tell, no show, but despite this, I felt drawn in, curious about the narrator's struggles. Then it suddenly ended, leaving me wondering what I missed... or rather that something was missing. Despite the anti-climatic ending, because I enjoyed the narration of self-discovery, 3 stars. Expanded to a full story, this author could easily create a five star read.
The Hitchhiker - Just smut
Out On Loan - - DNF, still wary of experimenting with BDSM authors
From Fucktoy to Footstool - Ugh, another "daddy" story? I figured I wouldn't like it based on the title anyway, but I didn't get far enough to see if it was humiliation too.
Self-Reflection - Not sure what to think about this one. Future post-op self meets pre-op self to show her what a post-op pussy looks and feels like. Pre-op self fucks post-op self, and then vice versa. It's rather narcissistic, but also a curious exploration of the decision between pre-op and non-op.
Face Pack - Must be just smut since buttake is mentioned in the opening sentence. I'm not interested in finding out if I'm wrong.
The Boy the Beast Wants - It starts "i want a boy to beat on." Not interested. I only read abuse stories when recommended by trusted friends who are fans of that sub-genre.
Big Gifts in Small Boxes - I was enjoying this one until it suddenly switched POV. When writing in 1st POV, a sudden switch is confusing, and I couldn't figure out what the heck was going on. I was willing to forgive that right up to the point that one character demanded the other lick his boots. Too bad, it had such potential to be a really good story, but that's just nasty. DNF
Note: the lack of rating on the "just smut" stories was intentional. It's not a bad or good rating, but an intentional neglect because I don't read smut for smut's sake very often, so I can't honestly judge it. I find it mostly lacking because I prefer a solid storyline that could be carried if the sex was removed from the story.
Overall, the diversity of characters, genders, identities, and acceptance throughout these stories kept me reading. There are not enough authors out there willing to tackle genderqueer or transgender characters. Kudos to each and every one of these for that alone.
Collection of short stories with trans and genderqueer characters. Some amazing stories and some I refused to finish.
Reviewed as I read...
So far I'm not overly impressed with this anthology because the stories are definitely more porn than story. Yes, I should've realized that when read the word "erotica" in the title, but I was hoping it'd lean more toward erotic romance - you know, with actual stories involved - and not simply smut for the sake of smut with a gender twist. Nothing wrong with pure erotica, mind you, but it wasn't what I was hoping for in purchasing this rare collection of genderqueer and trans stories.
The stories so far:
Cocksure - Just smut
Now Voyager - 4 stars, coming out and being accepted/loved
Hold Up - 2 stars, confusing
All-Girl Action - just smut; might've been more interesting from the sub's POV
The Therapist and the Whore - (first 3rd POV story) 4 stars, I'm completely confused about the ending/character roles. I suspect that might've been intentional, and I like that technique, but it didn't work for me on this story. The MC intrigued me, as did the therapist and whore relationships she had throughout the story.
Shoes are Meant to Get You Somewhere - Just smut (second 3rd POV story)
On Hys Knees - Just smut. Also, I'm not into "Daddy" stories, or rude "sweet talk" like faggot
There are more stories, and I'll add notes as I read them. I am struggling to read not only because I've only found a couple I've enjoyed so far, but also because this publisher only offered the ebook in PDF format. While there are conversion tools out there to get it on a Kindle, the formatting always gets messed up during that process. I know it's a little extra work, but publishers who can't bother to offer popular formatting choices come off as not caring about their customers. I'll continue when I'm up for translating the formatting again.
Next batch read:
Tel Aviv - Just smut
Taking the Toll - mostly smut
Dixie Belle - Tom Sawyer fanfic. No thank you. Will not read.
That's What Little Girls are Made Of - No "Daddy" stuff. Will not read.
Sea of Cortez - 3 stars. Interesting in that it's written in 2nd POV, such a rarity that this story is a gem for handling that well. The story itself dragged a bit, but overall one of the better stories in this collection because the author did well with the 2nd POV style.
The Perfect Gentleman - 5 stars. My favorite so far. Sexy, sweet, and vulnerable, this is a one-night stand but with the personal/internal romance of understanding and accepting not just a lover, but one's own self.
Update, most of these stories have been first person POV. Between that and the smuttiness of most stories, I can't help but feel like I'm reading Playboy forums for the transgendered reader.
Payback's a Bitch - 2nd POV, just smut, and not particularly titallating smut.
Femme Fatigue - 1st POV, excellent, 5 stars.
Small Blue Thing - 1st POV that read like a blog entry, incomplete and unfulfilling
The Visible Woman - Very good 1st POV. Mostly smut, but an enjoyable 4 stars.
Somebody's Watching Me - This one failed for me on so many levels. First, the writing style confused me. For example, how does his anus "ratiate pleasure"? And how (or why do I need to know) that "she rises over him using only her calves"? Thighs, maybe, and only if it's important that the character's other body parts are occupied. Second, the character had amazing potential with the way she shut herself into her own mind only looking ten-feet out from herself and ignoring the rest of the world, yet nothing really came of that, nor of her creepy stalker ex. The whole story just felt like a rambling incomplete excuse to write a scene with a dildo.
Punching Bag - Stop reading as soon as I realized it was leading to the MC craving getting the crap kicked out of him for sexual titallation.
You Don't Know Jack - I stopped reading when piss games were mentioned.
I feel like I'm really beating this book up, and part of me wonders if I had expectations that were way too high given how excited I was to find a collection of trans and genderqueer stories. Have I been looking forward to this for too long? Putting it up on a pedastal that it was destine to fall from in my hopes for a dozen or more beautiful transgender lovers?
Canadian Slim - It was written more like a blog entry, and all tell, no show, but despite this, I felt drawn in, curious about the narrator's struggles. Then it suddenly ended, leaving me wondering what I missed... or rather that something was missing. Despite the anti-climatic ending, because I enjoyed the narration of self-discovery, 3 stars. Expanded to a full story, this author could easily create a five star read.
The Hitchhiker - Just smut
Out On Loan - - DNF, still wary of experimenting with BDSM authors
From Fucktoy to Footstool - Ugh, another "daddy" story? I figured I wouldn't like it based on the title anyway, but I didn't get far enough to see if it was humiliation too.
Self-Reflection - Not sure what to think about this one. Future post-op self meets pre-op self to show her what a post-op pussy looks and feels like. Pre-op self fucks post-op self, and then vice versa. It's rather narcissistic, but also a curious exploration of the decision between pre-op and non-op.
Face Pack - Must be just smut since buttake is mentioned in the opening sentence. I'm not interested in finding out if I'm wrong.
The Boy the Beast Wants - It starts "i want a boy to beat on." Not interested. I only read abuse stories when recommended by trusted friends who are fans of that sub-genre.
Big Gifts in Small Boxes - I was enjoying this one until it suddenly switched POV. When writing in 1st POV, a sudden switch is confusing, and I couldn't figure out what the heck was going on. I was willing to forgive that right up to the point that one character demanded the other lick his boots. Too bad, it had such potential to be a really good story, but that's just nasty. DNF
Note: the lack of rating on the "just smut" stories was intentional. It's not a bad or good rating, but an intentional neglect because I don't read smut for smut's sake very often, so I can't honestly judge it. I find it mostly lacking because I prefer a solid storyline that could be carried if the sex was removed from the story.
Overall, the diversity of characters, genders, identities, and acceptance throughout these stories kept me reading. There are not enough authors out there willing to tackle genderqueer or transgender characters. Kudos to each and every one of these for that alone.
February 12, 2017
This book is a milestone in queer erotica, covering a plethora of genders, orientations, identities, expressions, and attitudes. Depending on the story, and the reader's personal perspective, this collection of 29 tales is ready-made to titillate, educate, and pontificate about what it means to be queer in today's trans-layered world, and what it means to challenge the normative narratives of arousal.
It is hard to recommend this as a book of erotica, per se, because unless you can achieve a zen-like state of pan-sexuality, you are not going to connect with all the permutations in this book. But it works on a meta-level if you redefine "arousal" as: being seen for who you are, while also walking the tightrope between being comfortable in your own skin and pushing the boundaries of your expectations and your identity. So I'm giving it 5 stars even though not all the stories were to my taste, and even though I thought some worked better than others.
My only reservation in this recommendation is that there seemed to be more BDSM/violence-as-sex in these stories than one might expect from just the title. I don't know if there is a correlation between pushing at the boundaries of gender/body presentation and pushing at the boundaries of pain/pleasure or safety/abuse, but I personally would like to see more erotica that involves gentle touches and tender moments, particularly in the trans narrative, which suffers much violence from outside at the hands of our current cultural climate. But this is just my personal perspective and Your Mileage May Vary.
For anthologies I like to give at least a blurb about each short story, to help people find stories or at least get a taste of what they are getting into. For this one I debated about trying to describe the physical/identity interactions going on in each work. (So for example, if you were interested in reading all the stories that featured women-born-men that have not opted for surgery, etc.) But in the end, there is too much going on, too many paradigms being challenged. Even those baseline descriptions could be misleading at best, just plain wrong/misinterpreted at worst. So I've gone for trying to describe the flavor of the stories; this will help my own rating, at least, and hopefully paint a picture of the tone of the book.
Cocksure by Gina de Vries - 5 stars - Plays a lot on the ideas of what makes a "cock" and what it means to be "sure". The narrative is playful banter, the scenes are playful, forward, and beautiful.
Now, Voyager by Rahne Alexander - 4 stars - Intimate, instructional, vulnerable relationship story.
Hold Up by Ivan Coyote - 4 stars - Confessions and ruminations, and the attraction of finding someone who "gets" you.
All-Girl Action by Helen Boyd - 4 stars - A soft introduction to trans-woman transitioning, and being welcomed/desired.
The Therapist and the Whore by Giselle Renarde - 4 stars - Sexually intense exploration of multiple gender expression, the pressures to hide who we are, and - a personal favorite - therapy! Couldn't get past the use of the word "stench", though. What a turn-off!
Shoes Are Meant to Get You Somewhere by Dean Scarborough - 5 stars - Intimate BDSM portrayal that I thought worked really well, despite it not really being my thing. Intersex positive. The last sentence was beautiful.
On Hys Knees by Evan Swafford - 4 stars - A little rough for me but lovingly explicit in its exploration of identity and anatomy. Another reminder that cis-erotica ignores details almost entirely and assumes that all narratives are the same (big, hairy, angular men like to pursue soft, round, receptive females). Because these genderqueer narratives have to be spelled out, it gives the lie to the idea that cis narratives are really that simple.
Tel Aviv by Jacques La Fargue - 4 stars - Fun turns of phrase and playfulness; interesting use of second person narrative to put you in the story. Connecting with with the characters was still a weakness for this story.
Taking the Toll by Kiki DeLovely - 4 stars - The situation is fairly cliche, but it was done well and with a lot of personal touches.
Dixie Belle by Kate Bornstein - 3 stars - Fairly authentic voice for Huckleberry Finn, but that whole yay for the Confederacy thing is not my cup of tea.
That's What Little Girls Are Made Of by Toni Amato - 4 stars - A well written and intimate look at loving someone post-surgery, but this stuff still makes me a bit squeamish. Good medicine for that.
Sea of Cortez by Sandra McDonald - 5 stars - Wow, this felt like literary fiction. Impressive. I was really drawn into the story and the characters and grew as they grew. Surprised it was written in second person and I forgot all about it.
The Perfect Gentleman by Andrea Zanin - 4 stars - Great writing, a little wishy washy.
Payback's a Bitch by S. Bear Bergman - 3 stars - Fun, but a bit much!
Femme Fatigue by Anna Watson - 5 stars - Beautiful, intimate story of being "seen" and relaxing into yourself with someone.
Small Blue Thing by Julia Serano - 3 stars - Interesting, but not much to it.
The Visible Woman by Rachel K. Zall - 4 stars - Solid storyline, maybe too much activism and objectivity in the narration; a little more characterization would have helped.
Somebody's Watching Me by Alicia E. Goranson - 2 stars - Something wrong with this one. Also, can't tell what's going on , what they are to each other.
Punching Bag by Rachel Kramer Bussel - 3 stars - I'm not big on domination, though this was clearly consensual. I appreciated that they addressed the race question.
You Don't Know Jack by Michael Hernandez - 3 stars - Confusing (maybe on purpose?), a little superficial, but age positive.
Canadian Slim by Shawna Virago - 4 stars - Wacky narrator, strange time/topic jumps, abrupt over-sexualized ending, but an interesting and informative narrative of dead-end experiences.
The Hitchhiker by Sinclair Sexsmith - 4 stars - A bit too cis-pornographic in terminology, rough/misogynistic, and yet it is a free-spirited, affirming story. Loved the inclusion of the beach.
Out On Loan by Arden Hill - 4 stars - Again, outside my comfort zone re: BDSM, but well orchestrated and free with gender play.
From Fucktoy to Footstool by Zev - 3 stars - Interesting, possibly funny, but too much for me.
Self-Reflection by Tobi Hill-Meyer - 4 stars - Quite a mind-fuck, should be 5 stars, but it was a little bit WTF?...
Face Pack by Penelope Mansfield - 2 stars - Well written, good info of lengths gone to to remove hair, but something is so wrong about being the center of a circle jerk as a rite of womanhood.
The Boy the Beast Wants by Skian McGuire - 3 stars - Wow, this saying something about self-loathing, but it's not very hopeful or loving to be honest.
The Man with the Phoenix Tattoo by Laura Antoniou - 4 stars - Compassionately told love story, great analogy of tattoo for surgery, but wow, why does everyone beat and whip each other to feel love??
Big Gifts in Small Boxes: A Christmas Story by Patrick Califia-Rice - 5 stars - Wow, what a compassionate, honest, and saucy story that was! Still can't figure out why everyone likes bondage so much, did I miss the memo? There isn't actually any explicit BDSM activities in this story, it is just alluded to off camera.
It is hard to recommend this as a book of erotica, per se, because unless you can achieve a zen-like state of pan-sexuality, you are not going to connect with all the permutations in this book. But it works on a meta-level if you redefine "arousal" as: being seen for who you are, while also walking the tightrope between being comfortable in your own skin and pushing the boundaries of your expectations and your identity. So I'm giving it 5 stars even though not all the stories were to my taste, and even though I thought some worked better than others.
My only reservation in this recommendation is that there seemed to be more BDSM/violence-as-sex in these stories than one might expect from just the title. I don't know if there is a correlation between pushing at the boundaries of gender/body presentation and pushing at the boundaries of pain/pleasure or safety/abuse, but I personally would like to see more erotica that involves gentle touches and tender moments, particularly in the trans narrative, which suffers much violence from outside at the hands of our current cultural climate. But this is just my personal perspective and Your Mileage May Vary.
For anthologies I like to give at least a blurb about each short story, to help people find stories or at least get a taste of what they are getting into. For this one I debated about trying to describe the physical/identity interactions going on in each work. (So for example, if you were interested in reading all the stories that featured women-born-men that have not opted for surgery, etc.) But in the end, there is too much going on, too many paradigms being challenged. Even those baseline descriptions could be misleading at best, just plain wrong/misinterpreted at worst. So I've gone for trying to describe the flavor of the stories; this will help my own rating, at least, and hopefully paint a picture of the tone of the book.
Cocksure by Gina de Vries - 5 stars - Plays a lot on the ideas of what makes a "cock" and what it means to be "sure". The narrative is playful banter, the scenes are playful, forward, and beautiful.
Now, Voyager by Rahne Alexander - 4 stars - Intimate, instructional, vulnerable relationship story.
Hold Up by Ivan Coyote - 4 stars - Confessions and ruminations, and the attraction of finding someone who "gets" you.
All-Girl Action by Helen Boyd - 4 stars - A soft introduction to trans-woman transitioning, and being welcomed/desired.
The Therapist and the Whore by Giselle Renarde - 4 stars - Sexually intense exploration of multiple gender expression, the pressures to hide who we are, and - a personal favorite - therapy! Couldn't get past the use of the word "stench", though. What a turn-off!
Shoes Are Meant to Get You Somewhere by Dean Scarborough - 5 stars - Intimate BDSM portrayal that I thought worked really well, despite it not really being my thing. Intersex positive. The last sentence was beautiful.
On Hys Knees by Evan Swafford - 4 stars - A little rough for me but lovingly explicit in its exploration of identity and anatomy. Another reminder that cis-erotica ignores details almost entirely and assumes that all narratives are the same (big, hairy, angular men like to pursue soft, round, receptive females). Because these genderqueer narratives have to be spelled out, it gives the lie to the idea that cis narratives are really that simple.
Tel Aviv by Jacques La Fargue - 4 stars - Fun turns of phrase and playfulness; interesting use of second person narrative to put you in the story. Connecting with with the characters was still a weakness for this story.
Taking the Toll by Kiki DeLovely - 4 stars - The situation is fairly cliche, but it was done well and with a lot of personal touches.
Dixie Belle by Kate Bornstein - 3 stars - Fairly authentic voice for Huckleberry Finn, but that whole yay for the Confederacy thing is not my cup of tea.
That's What Little Girls Are Made Of by Toni Amato - 4 stars - A well written and intimate look at loving someone post-surgery, but this stuff still makes me a bit squeamish. Good medicine for that.
Sea of Cortez by Sandra McDonald - 5 stars - Wow, this felt like literary fiction. Impressive. I was really drawn into the story and the characters and grew as they grew. Surprised it was written in second person and I forgot all about it.
The Perfect Gentleman by Andrea Zanin - 4 stars - Great writing, a little wishy washy.
Payback's a Bitch by S. Bear Bergman - 3 stars - Fun, but a bit much!
Femme Fatigue by Anna Watson - 5 stars - Beautiful, intimate story of being "seen" and relaxing into yourself with someone.
Small Blue Thing by Julia Serano - 3 stars - Interesting, but not much to it.
The Visible Woman by Rachel K. Zall - 4 stars - Solid storyline, maybe too much activism and objectivity in the narration; a little more characterization would have helped.
Somebody's Watching Me by Alicia E. Goranson - 2 stars - Something wrong with this one. Also, can't tell what's going on , what they are to each other.
Punching Bag by Rachel Kramer Bussel - 3 stars - I'm not big on domination, though this was clearly consensual. I appreciated that they addressed the race question.
You Don't Know Jack by Michael Hernandez - 3 stars - Confusing (maybe on purpose?), a little superficial, but age positive.
Canadian Slim by Shawna Virago - 4 stars - Wacky narrator, strange time/topic jumps, abrupt over-sexualized ending, but an interesting and informative narrative of dead-end experiences.
The Hitchhiker by Sinclair Sexsmith - 4 stars - A bit too cis-pornographic in terminology, rough/misogynistic, and yet it is a free-spirited, affirming story. Loved the inclusion of the beach.
Out On Loan by Arden Hill - 4 stars - Again, outside my comfort zone re: BDSM, but well orchestrated and free with gender play.
From Fucktoy to Footstool by Zev - 3 stars - Interesting, possibly funny, but too much for me.
Self-Reflection by Tobi Hill-Meyer - 4 stars - Quite a mind-fuck, should be 5 stars, but it was a little bit WTF?...
Face Pack by Penelope Mansfield - 2 stars - Well written, good info of lengths gone to to remove hair, but something is so wrong about being the center of a circle jerk as a rite of womanhood.
The Boy the Beast Wants by Skian McGuire - 3 stars - Wow, this saying something about self-loathing, but it's not very hopeful or loving to be honest.
The Man with the Phoenix Tattoo by Laura Antoniou - 4 stars - Compassionately told love story, great analogy of tattoo for surgery, but wow, why does everyone beat and whip each other to feel love??
Big Gifts in Small Boxes: A Christmas Story by Patrick Califia-Rice - 5 stars - Wow, what a compassionate, honest, and saucy story that was! Still can't figure out why everyone likes bondage so much, did I miss the memo? There isn't actually any explicit BDSM activities in this story, it is just alluded to off camera.
November 18, 2011
Tristan Taormino, former editor of the annual Best Lesbian Erotica series, has always preferred the kind of erotica that features unconventional gender roles, toys and BDSM to “sweet romance.” There have been a few anthologies of transgender erotica before now, but they are still very rare compared to the steady deluge of erotica for gay men, lesbians and bisexuals.
Through her experience as a sex educator, an editor and the partner of a transman, Tristan Taormino has access to a large “genderqueer” community, including erotic writers. She has collected stories that are sexy, poignant, suspenseful and witty, but never disrespectful to those who identify as something other than the gender on their birth certificates. There are transgender performers and educators in this mix, including Kate Bornstein and S. Bear Bergman, who co-edited a non-fiction anthology, Gender Outlaws.
What does “genderqueer” sex look like? In these stories, it takes any form that qualifies as “safe, sane, consensual.” As the gay-male narrator of Patrick Califia’s Christmas story, “Big Gifts in Small Boxes,” says to the female-to-male trick who has nervously invited him home: “I think you’re handsome as all perdition, and I like you besides, so I figure that ought to be enough for us to figure out something we can do that’s more fun than not.”
The sex in these stories is usually the result of personal negotiation, and it seems especially intimate for that reason; nothing can be taken for granted.
A surprising number of these stories are set in the past, when the terms “transgender” and “genderqueer” would not have been widely understood. “Sea of Cortez” by Sandra McDonald is a stunningly evocative study of men on a ship during the Second World War, and “Dixie Belle” by Kate Bornstein places Mark Twain’s character Huckleberry Finn in a New Orleans whorehouse during the American Civil War. War creates social upheaval, and in these stories, those who have never fit comfortably into a rigid gender role can find space to breathe amidst the turmoil.
This collection of stories really deserves an award for the courage and imagination that went into it. This reviewer looks forward to more from this largely-hidden continent of experience.
--------------
Through her experience as a sex educator, an editor and the partner of a transman, Tristan Taormino has access to a large “genderqueer” community, including erotic writers. She has collected stories that are sexy, poignant, suspenseful and witty, but never disrespectful to those who identify as something other than the gender on their birth certificates. There are transgender performers and educators in this mix, including Kate Bornstein and S. Bear Bergman, who co-edited a non-fiction anthology, Gender Outlaws.
What does “genderqueer” sex look like? In these stories, it takes any form that qualifies as “safe, sane, consensual.” As the gay-male narrator of Patrick Califia’s Christmas story, “Big Gifts in Small Boxes,” says to the female-to-male trick who has nervously invited him home: “I think you’re handsome as all perdition, and I like you besides, so I figure that ought to be enough for us to figure out something we can do that’s more fun than not.”
The sex in these stories is usually the result of personal negotiation, and it seems especially intimate for that reason; nothing can be taken for granted.
A surprising number of these stories are set in the past, when the terms “transgender” and “genderqueer” would not have been widely understood. “Sea of Cortez” by Sandra McDonald is a stunningly evocative study of men on a ship during the Second World War, and “Dixie Belle” by Kate Bornstein places Mark Twain’s character Huckleberry Finn in a New Orleans whorehouse during the American Civil War. War creates social upheaval, and in these stories, those who have never fit comfortably into a rigid gender role can find space to breathe amidst the turmoil.
This collection of stories really deserves an award for the courage and imagination that went into it. This reviewer looks forward to more from this largely-hidden continent of experience.
--------------
June 14, 2016
I feel like I should have reviewed this book ages ago, but better late than never. This anthology has been out for five years now, and my first question is, why are there not more than 14 reviews at Amazon.com and none before mine at Amazon.ca? Not that that 14 is not a goodly number, but this book deserves more of them. I suspect the answer is that there are so many crappy erotica books out there that the good ones get buried amongst the dreck. And even when the good books are not exactly buried, they do not necessarily gain the prominence they deserve.
This is one of the ones that deserves such prominence. And let me not hesitate to say, even five years after its publication, work like this is still very much needed. This is a snappy and well written collection of transgender erotic tales which are in no way lacking in three-dimensional character development. Taken all together, these stories seem to amount to a kind of mini education in the world of hot transgender sex. This is a work that goes way beyond simply presenting characters with various manifestations of transgender identity or what they do in bed: it shows them as individual human beings, and not as two-dimensional erotic “types” such as “dick chicks,” and so on.
This is a text that radicalizes and re-imagines how we look at our own genitals and bodies and how they connect to who we are. The stories range from hot, but realistic tales to hot but more fantastical narratives, such as one of my personal favourites here: “Dixie Belle the Further Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” by Kate Bornstein, who is probably best known for her ground breaking book, GENDER OUTLAW (1994). Written in the style of Mark Twain, the story postulates Huck Finn becoming a sex worker in drag and loving every minute of it. And this is not just a cute idea, by the way, but marvellously well executed, with a genuine feel for Twain’s prose.
One really does not need to be transgendered, by the way, to enjoy these stories. Hot sex and the human psyche. What more can you ask?
This is one of the ones that deserves such prominence. And let me not hesitate to say, even five years after its publication, work like this is still very much needed. This is a snappy and well written collection of transgender erotic tales which are in no way lacking in three-dimensional character development. Taken all together, these stories seem to amount to a kind of mini education in the world of hot transgender sex. This is a work that goes way beyond simply presenting characters with various manifestations of transgender identity or what they do in bed: it shows them as individual human beings, and not as two-dimensional erotic “types” such as “dick chicks,” and so on.
This is a text that radicalizes and re-imagines how we look at our own genitals and bodies and how they connect to who we are. The stories range from hot, but realistic tales to hot but more fantastical narratives, such as one of my personal favourites here: “Dixie Belle the Further Adventures of Huckleberry Finn” by Kate Bornstein, who is probably best known for her ground breaking book, GENDER OUTLAW (1994). Written in the style of Mark Twain, the story postulates Huck Finn becoming a sex worker in drag and loving every minute of it. And this is not just a cute idea, by the way, but marvellously well executed, with a genuine feel for Twain’s prose.
One really does not need to be transgendered, by the way, to enjoy these stories. Hot sex and the human psyche. What more can you ask?
November 28, 2012
I have waited my entire life for a quality book of erotica focused on trans people (well, trans women really, but you can't ask for the world... yet), and even beyond the fact that I'm in it (*ahem*), this is the book of my dreams. Tobi Hill-Meyer, Gina de Vries, Julia Serano, Alicia Goranson, Toni Amato, Kate Bornstein... this book is basically "all the trans writers I admire and adore write really hot pornography."
May 20, 2025
I wasn't loving this collection even before I read "Dixie Belle" by Kate Bornstein, an erotic retelling of The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn in which Huck discovers her transfemininity through sex work during the Civil War. In seeking to replicate the style of the original work—and presumably to protest the publication of a censored edition of the novel in 2011—Bornstein uses the n-word throughout the story, to refer to specific Black characters and enslaved African-Americans more generally. Perhaps more disturbingly, Bornstein elides the anti-slavery message of the original text, having her Huck declare that she'd rather shoot a Union soldier than a Rebel.
The inclusion of "Dixie Belle" and the use of anti-Japanese slurs in "Sea of Cortez" by Sandra McDonald reveals a disturbing lack of racial awareness in the editing of this collection. It's unclear how many of these authors are people of color, given that many of them write under pen names, but certainly the vast majority of the characters are white or of an unspecified race. The inclusive project this collection strives to be only serves to highlight this absence. In the introduction, Taormino notes that few of the stories feature post-op trans women and encourages the erotica community to write more of those stories. I agree—but how can you point out that lacuna and not notice the overwhelming whiteness of the collection? The characters who use slurs are the protagonists: if this collection was created with the specific aim of allowing trans people to see themselves in erotica, does that imply that this collection considers racists valued members of the trans community?!
My other major issue with this collection was the inclusion of a story by Patrick Califia, a former (if not repentant) pedophilia advocate. I personally really, really hate daddy/DDLG/underage erotica, all of which feature in this collection. I find that the argument that pornography which mimics pedophilia "doesn't affect the real world" particularly falls apart when a real-world advocate for "boy lovers" is the author of that collection's final story.
TLDR: if you aren't going to seek out diverse authors, at least try not to include any open racists or pedophiles. Jesus Fucking Christ.
The inclusion of "Dixie Belle" and the use of anti-Japanese slurs in "Sea of Cortez" by Sandra McDonald reveals a disturbing lack of racial awareness in the editing of this collection. It's unclear how many of these authors are people of color, given that many of them write under pen names, but certainly the vast majority of the characters are white or of an unspecified race. The inclusive project this collection strives to be only serves to highlight this absence. In the introduction, Taormino notes that few of the stories feature post-op trans women and encourages the erotica community to write more of those stories. I agree—but how can you point out that lacuna and not notice the overwhelming whiteness of the collection? The characters who use slurs are the protagonists: if this collection was created with the specific aim of allowing trans people to see themselves in erotica, does that imply that this collection considers racists valued members of the trans community?!
My other major issue with this collection was the inclusion of a story by Patrick Califia, a former (if not repentant) pedophilia advocate. I personally really, really hate daddy/DDLG/underage erotica, all of which feature in this collection. I find that the argument that pornography which mimics pedophilia "doesn't affect the real world" particularly falls apart when a real-world advocate for "boy lovers" is the author of that collection's final story.
TLDR: if you aren't going to seek out diverse authors, at least try not to include any open racists or pedophiles. Jesus Fucking Christ.
October 20, 2017
Okay, while there are way too many variations included in these stories to be a nonstop arousal fest, there's probably something in here for everyone. And tbh, I liked reading those variations. Won't lie, some of it was educational / instructional (not intentionally but by default), and this may be a good book to pick up for the curious. The tone ranges from lighthearted smut to dark & kinky to bordering on literary, so quite a range in the writing styles.
Standouts for me (as they appear chronologically):
"The Therapist & the Whore" by Giselle Renarde - two main characters of color! Plus lies and exploration are hot.
"Shoes are Meant to Get You Somewhere" by Dean Scarborough - about a universal moment where someone finally lets you get as close as you want to be. Beautiful.
"Taking the Toll" by Kiki de Lovely - ummmmmmmmm this one was the hottest story, for me. Taking the twisted religious fantasy to a new level.
"Sea of Cortez" by Sandra McDonald - this one is just the BEST story in the whole collection. Period piece from WWII Pacific theater about being not just closeted gay but closeted trans, before there was really a word for it.
"Femme Fatigue" by Anna Watson - honorable mention for exploring the dynamics of a poly couple and queerness.
"Face Pack" by Penelope Mansfield - the sweetest story ever about bukkake. Didn't even know that was possible, lol.
"The Man with the Phoenix Tattoo" by Laura Antoniou - made me wish it was a longer piece.
Standouts for me (as they appear chronologically):
"The Therapist & the Whore" by Giselle Renarde - two main characters of color! Plus lies and exploration are hot.
"Shoes are Meant to Get You Somewhere" by Dean Scarborough - about a universal moment where someone finally lets you get as close as you want to be. Beautiful.
"Taking the Toll" by Kiki de Lovely - ummmmmmmmm this one was the hottest story, for me. Taking the twisted religious fantasy to a new level.
"Sea of Cortez" by Sandra McDonald - this one is just the BEST story in the whole collection. Period piece from WWII Pacific theater about being not just closeted gay but closeted trans, before there was really a word for it.
"Femme Fatigue" by Anna Watson - honorable mention for exploring the dynamics of a poly couple and queerness.
"Face Pack" by Penelope Mansfield - the sweetest story ever about bukkake. Didn't even know that was possible, lol.
"The Man with the Phoenix Tattoo" by Laura Antoniou - made me wish it was a longer piece.
April 25, 2018
Un libro di cui Tristan Taormino è unicamente editor e che mi aspettavo molto più splatter ed esplicito, invece nella selezione di racconti "erotici" queer (per mancanza di altra definizione), si trova la necessità di esprimere la sessualità, il desiderio e le fantasie in prima persona , con la propria voce e con il carico emotivo che non può essere raccontato da chi non lo ha vissuto. Una buona raccolta che sicuramente colma uno spazio vuoto.
May 4, 2019
Though there were a couple of stories that I didn't finish and one which continues to disturb me, I love that this collection exists and thoroughly enjoyed reading it.
It made me happy to read this, to see so many different representations of transgender and genderqueer people and relationships.
I can't wait to read it again.
It made me happy to read this, to see so many different representations of transgender and genderqueer people and relationships.
I can't wait to read it again.
February 23, 2024
A pretty powerful erotica series featuring transgender and genderqueer people with lots of different sexual acts and different kinks. It's not complete and perfect by any means but representation matters and this book is a big step forward. Some of the pieces I just finished for the sake of it (which others would love, I'm sure) but most of them were great and pretty hot tbh.
February 21, 2018
Loved this collection. Every story good, some hit me harder than others (emotionally or heat). And very happy to see stories from Pat Califia and Laura Antoniou again, it's been years since I've read either of them.
May 18, 2023
Honestly I was really disappointed in this book. As another reviewer pointed out, there repeatedly were racial slurs and other racially insensitive language in some of the stories. I was hoping this collection would be affirming but I generally did not find it to be.
September 7, 2019
One star taken away for offensive language that was completely unnecessary.
April 20, 2020
I bought this for Pat Califia, Ivan Coyote, and Sinclair Sexsmith.
Pat Califia's "Christmas Story," about a small town trans guy who finds his handsome, big city Daddy for Christmas is one of my favorite short stories of all time ever. I reread it several times a year and curl up inside it because what trans person doesn't go through dry spells where no one treats us like a sexual or romantic prospect for years on end?
What I also got was notable piece-of-shit Kate Bornstein's n-word filled "erotica" set in the Antebellum south.
So as a whole it's a decidedly mixed bag.
Pat Califia's "Christmas Story," about a small town trans guy who finds his handsome, big city Daddy for Christmas is one of my favorite short stories of all time ever. I reread it several times a year and curl up inside it because what trans person doesn't go through dry spells where no one treats us like a sexual or romantic prospect for years on end?
What I also got was notable piece-of-shit Kate Bornstein's n-word filled "erotica" set in the Antebellum south.
So as a whole it's a decidedly mixed bag.
July 12, 2012
So… I read this book right after suffering through "50 Shades of Grey" so some of my enthusiasm may be in response to that, but the stories in this anthology were amazing! I realized that trying to list out my favorites was a pointless task when the list became essentially the table of contents.
There is a staggering variety of people of all different genders doing extraordinarily erotic things to each other. Gender is not a crisis: some of the characters are nervous but there is no agonizing over coming out or horrified responses from partners. Also missing is the all-too-common fetishization of trans bodies - all you'll find here is a celebration of all bodies and the remarkable things we can do together.
This compilation does have some particularly tantalizing and unique stories. "Shoes Are Meant to Get You Somewhere" by Dean Scarborough is story of feminization filled with beautiful submissive reverence. Anyone with a religious fetish will adore "Taking the Toll" by Kiki DeLovely. "Self Reflection" by Tobi Hill Meyer gives an entirely new (and delicious) spin on "go screw yourself." If you appreciate rough, gritty, nasty sex, check out "Punching Bag" by Rachel Kramer Bussel, and I may just have to act out the scene in "From Fucktoy to Footstool" by Zev.
If you want a great change of pace from the usual erotica fare, definitely check this book out, just make sure you have lots of fresh batteries on hand!
There is a staggering variety of people of all different genders doing extraordinarily erotic things to each other. Gender is not a crisis: some of the characters are nervous but there is no agonizing over coming out or horrified responses from partners. Also missing is the all-too-common fetishization of trans bodies - all you'll find here is a celebration of all bodies and the remarkable things we can do together.
This compilation does have some particularly tantalizing and unique stories. "Shoes Are Meant to Get You Somewhere" by Dean Scarborough is story of feminization filled with beautiful submissive reverence. Anyone with a religious fetish will adore "Taking the Toll" by Kiki DeLovely. "Self Reflection" by Tobi Hill Meyer gives an entirely new (and delicious) spin on "go screw yourself." If you appreciate rough, gritty, nasty sex, check out "Punching Bag" by Rachel Kramer Bussel, and I may just have to act out the scene in "From Fucktoy to Footstool" by Zev.
If you want a great change of pace from the usual erotica fare, definitely check this book out, just make sure you have lots of fresh batteries on hand!
February 27, 2012
I really wish we could do half stars, because I really want to give this anthology 3.5.
First, I am extremely thrilled that an anthology like this exists and I was thrilled to be able to get a hold of it.
I have never read a in the erotica genre (gay, straight or any other fashion thereof), and I was a bit apprehensive at first because I imagined the type of stories you find in cheap paperbacks with men with long hair and open shirts on the covers holding women in ripped bodices. I was very surprised that that is not what I found.
"Take Me There" is filled with some wonderful stories all involving trans and genderqueer erotic stories. Now, like with all anthologies, there were some stories that I absolutely loved and really wanted to see more of the characters beyond what was there; I wanted more substance to the story, and then there were some stories that I just didn't like, that I felt weren't written well. One or two stories I skipped completely because I didn't care for the particular 'kink' in the story, not bad, but just not my cuppa.
But this was a very enriching, enjoyable read. Perfect for anyone who is looking for any kind of trans or genderqueer fiction, or someone wanting to understand the culture and lifestyle better.
First, I am extremely thrilled that an anthology like this exists and I was thrilled to be able to get a hold of it.
I have never read a in the erotica genre (gay, straight or any other fashion thereof), and I was a bit apprehensive at first because I imagined the type of stories you find in cheap paperbacks with men with long hair and open shirts on the covers holding women in ripped bodices. I was very surprised that that is not what I found.
"Take Me There" is filled with some wonderful stories all involving trans and genderqueer erotic stories. Now, like with all anthologies, there were some stories that I absolutely loved and really wanted to see more of the characters beyond what was there; I wanted more substance to the story, and then there were some stories that I just didn't like, that I felt weren't written well. One or two stories I skipped completely because I didn't care for the particular 'kink' in the story, not bad, but just not my cuppa.
But this was a very enriching, enjoyable read. Perfect for anyone who is looking for any kind of trans or genderqueer fiction, or someone wanting to understand the culture and lifestyle better.
July 24, 2012
This anthology is hands down the most deliciously sexy compilation of erotica shorts that I have ever read, and I admit to having read a lot of smut. Not a single one of the characters in these stories are cardboard cutouts or stereotypes. From characters who have been sure of their sexual identity and orientation from a very young age (though not necessarily born with the typically associated bits) to characters whose gender is as fluid and changing as the seasons, to those who just don't fit into any one simple category, they all have one thing in common: they are all amazingly sexy. There wasn't a single story in the collection that didn't turn me on.
I had originally planned on making special note of some of my favourites, and quickly discovered that I just couldn't choose, they all had so many reasons for me to love them, and artfully put together so that you couldn't help but keep going once you started. I didn't put this book down until I'd finished the whole thing, then I picked it up and started all again. Thank you, each and every author who contributed to this book, for giving me many, many happy dreams.
I had originally planned on making special note of some of my favourites, and quickly discovered that I just couldn't choose, they all had so many reasons for me to love them, and artfully put together so that you couldn't help but keep going once you started. I didn't put this book down until I'd finished the whole thing, then I picked it up and started all again. Thank you, each and every author who contributed to this book, for giving me many, many happy dreams.
January 16, 2015
Good Points:
LOTS of different sexualities and genders!
Loooooots of different sexual acts
Explores sex with both pre-op and post-op transsexuals as well as genderqueer individuals who augment their own bodies in order to feel right.
Surprising amount of plot/characterization for an erotica anthology
That being said, a number of short stories which despite their length were fully-fleshed out and I would love to have read more of.
Bad Points:
No ace representation (some of you may be saying ‘duh’ but I feel like if I state there is a mix of sexualities and genders BUT there are no asexuals it’s important to point this out, I also don’t think there were any stories featuring someone who was agender)
There are a LOT of stories with BDSM tones which isn’t necessarily a bad thing but I didn’t pick up this book intending to read a lot of D/s.
Some of the stories feature humiliation kink + slurs.
It is an erotica anthology, so your mileage may vary and some stories won’t be your kink.
Pretty sure I’ve read 3 of the stories in the anthology before, whether in another anthology or bought off Amazon on their own IDK.
LOTS of different sexualities and genders!
Loooooots of different sexual acts
Explores sex with both pre-op and post-op transsexuals as well as genderqueer individuals who augment their own bodies in order to feel right.
Surprising amount of plot/characterization for an erotica anthology
That being said, a number of short stories which despite their length were fully-fleshed out and I would love to have read more of.
Bad Points:
No ace representation (some of you may be saying ‘duh’ but I feel like if I state there is a mix of sexualities and genders BUT there are no asexuals it’s important to point this out, I also don’t think there were any stories featuring someone who was agender)
There are a LOT of stories with BDSM tones which isn’t necessarily a bad thing but I didn’t pick up this book intending to read a lot of D/s.
Some of the stories feature humiliation kink + slurs.
It is an erotica anthology, so your mileage may vary and some stories won’t be your kink.
Pretty sure I’ve read 3 of the stories in the anthology before, whether in another anthology or bought off Amazon on their own IDK.
December 31, 2011
There are so many varieties of people in these stories that I think most readers, genderqueer or not, will find at least one story that works for them.
(My full review can be found on Glorified Love Letters.)
(My full review can be found on Glorified Love Letters.)
October 6, 2012
This is again the Manual that Tristan brings into existence for a certain kind of Sexual orientation, this time it's about Transsexual and Gender queer person, these kind of people feel lucky that Tristan thinks about them, well in fact sexuality is not a sin and difference is not a crime so to judge.
August 7, 2012
Decently sexy, although the majority of the stories were too short.
February 19, 2012
Eye-opening, something rare...I've only found a taste in other stories of the twists and turns gender and kink can take. Within this book is a veritible feast.
Read
February 25, 2012great book, will definitely read it again, highly recommended
Read
April 26, 2013hi
July 25, 2013
Steamy stuff.
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