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Blue Valentine
Book by Alison Tyler
- GenresRomance
255 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2002
1 person is currently reading
63 people want to read
About the author
Alison Tyler
264 books402 followersAlison Tyler is an American author, editor and publisher of erotica, living in Northern California. She has authored over 20 explicit novels, hundreds of short stories and has edited more than 30 erotic anthologies.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
March 14, 2015
I shelved this as romance because it says that's what it is on the cover, but I really didn't feel like this was a love story as much as the diary of a very ambivalent girl.
Alison Tyler has used the diary concept to much better effect in Dark Secret Love and the Story of Submission series sequels. But then this is a much earlier book of hers and the dozen years have made a big difference.
The structure and writing is unconventional, with fluid time and a lot of flashbacks. This wasn't a huge problem for me.
The book is erotica so every scene revolves around sex, either in action or reaction. Also not a problem.
The story is a love triangle, between Alexandra's live-in bf Justin and her friend-with-fantasies Connor. The main mystery is whether Justin is straying and that's what's heating up his sex life with Alex, and the irony that the better the sex with Justin gets, the more intense Alex's fantasies of Connor become. Alex ends up compulsively doing a bunch of stuff she's ashamed of in order to deal with this messy situation.
Because we see Justin only in bed and Connor in other situations (because they're friends, and flirting), he comes across as a lot more interesting. The one who seems most intrigued by Justin is the interviewer asking Alex about the pictures she took of him for a photography show. That Alex takes picture of herself and her partner during sex as her artwork is o...kay. It's hard for me to imagine how these all come out fantastic but the larger problem is that she's deeply connected to Justin (we see this all the way to the end) but we really don't know why.
If it's only sex, then that makes Alex uninteresting and shallow. And if it's more, that part is crucial and missing. Either way, the ultimate "breakup" (read the book if you want to see whether it lasts) has no real punch, and the rebounding Alex does after is just really silly and an excuse for a lot of "bad dating" stories that don't fit with the love triangle storyline.
Alex's sex-crazed BFF? She's an imitation of Samantha from Sex in City but without any of grit, humor and loyalty that made Samantha redeemable, at least to some fans. I found her aversive.
The real problem was that Alex herself was so wishy-washy that she couldn't hold the story together. There were glimpses of greatness in there, a soul so to speak, but not enough to sustain the heart of the story.
All this changes with the Submission series, which I love. It has an honest, compelling narrator in erotic writer Samantha, a purpose to the parade of boyfriends until she meets "The One" and a singularity in its focus on that relationship's expansion into wild and erotic places that's remarkable.
Basically, this book feels like a rough draft of Samantha's, which has brewed over the ensuing years into a deeper, darker and richer story. Which is why this book held my interest, even if I didn't enjoy it.
Alison Tyler has used the diary concept to much better effect in Dark Secret Love and the Story of Submission series sequels. But then this is a much earlier book of hers and the dozen years have made a big difference.
The structure and writing is unconventional, with fluid time and a lot of flashbacks. This wasn't a huge problem for me.
The book is erotica so every scene revolves around sex, either in action or reaction. Also not a problem.
The story is a love triangle, between Alexandra's live-in bf Justin and her friend-with-fantasies Connor. The main mystery is whether Justin is straying and that's what's heating up his sex life with Alex, and the irony that the better the sex with Justin gets, the more intense Alex's fantasies of Connor become. Alex ends up compulsively doing a bunch of stuff she's ashamed of in order to deal with this messy situation.
Because we see Justin only in bed and Connor in other situations (because they're friends, and flirting), he comes across as a lot more interesting. The one who seems most intrigued by Justin is the interviewer asking Alex about the pictures she took of him for a photography show. That Alex takes picture of herself and her partner during sex as her artwork is o...kay. It's hard for me to imagine how these all come out fantastic but the larger problem is that she's deeply connected to Justin (we see this all the way to the end) but we really don't know why.
If it's only sex, then that makes Alex uninteresting and shallow. And if it's more, that part is crucial and missing. Either way, the ultimate "breakup" (read the book if you want to see whether it lasts) has no real punch, and the rebounding Alex does after is just really silly and an excuse for a lot of "bad dating" stories that don't fit with the love triangle storyline.
Alex's sex-crazed BFF? She's an imitation of Samantha from Sex in City but without any of grit, humor and loyalty that made Samantha redeemable, at least to some fans. I found her aversive.
The real problem was that Alex herself was so wishy-washy that she couldn't hold the story together. There were glimpses of greatness in there, a soul so to speak, but not enough to sustain the heart of the story.
All this changes with the Submission series, which I love. It has an honest, compelling narrator in erotic writer Samantha, a purpose to the parade of boyfriends until she meets "The One" and a singularity in its focus on that relationship's expansion into wild and erotic places that's remarkable.
Basically, this book feels like a rough draft of Samantha's, which has brewed over the ensuing years into a deeper, darker and richer story. Which is why this book held my interest, even if I didn't enjoy it.
January 22, 2015
This is one of the best written erotic stories I've ever read, clunky final pages not withstanding. Basically, your lead character is a photographer who is explaining the stories behind each of her photographs to a reporter at her opening night. Within those explanations you find and follow the plot the story. We're introduced to her beautiful long time boyfriend, an actor who she finds herself following and photographing covertly. Next, there is her hilariously promiscuous best friend who lives to pull our protagonist into risqué situations and is a bit of a red headed Samantha from Sex and the City. Finally, there's the handsome and good natured grocery store owner who always manages to get there right in the nick of time. Oh, did I mention there's a ménage a trois in there with a world famous rock star? There is.
Overall, the story telling is solid. The structure is engaging in the way it gives you a moment of her life and then swings back into the present at the gallery showing. There's a decent twist toward the end that you will see coming from a mile away if you pay attention. And the action is HOT. No distracting flowery prose here. The descriptions are raw and exciting and a more than a few adult writers could learn a thing or two from Allison's straightforward writing style.
This is an obscure little gem that I like to pull off the shelf every now and then for some good heart pounding entertainment.
Overall, the story telling is solid. The structure is engaging in the way it gives you a moment of her life and then swings back into the present at the gallery showing. There's a decent twist toward the end that you will see coming from a mile away if you pay attention. And the action is HOT. No distracting flowery prose here. The descriptions are raw and exciting and a more than a few adult writers could learn a thing or two from Allison's straightforward writing style.
This is an obscure little gem that I like to pull off the shelf every now and then for some good heart pounding entertainment.
October 14, 2015
Not nearly as good as some of the others I like in this genre - Kristen Ashley, Lauren Dane, Gabriel's Inferno etc.
September 29, 2011
Generally well-written with an interesting (but not particularly unpredictable) twist. Intrigued by the comment by another reader about this being filmed??? Strange idea, even if it's very visual, I don't think it would gain by being spelled out with "i"s dotted and "t"s crossed, but should remain in the mind's eye of the reader.
March 18, 2011
Without giving anything away, I liked how the author set up each chapter. I'm curious to see how they adapted the book to the big screen.
October 2, 2018
Blue Valentine’s rawness is painful. But I personally think that’s what Cianfrance, who also co-wrote the script with Joey Curtis and Cami Delavigne, wanted to give to the audience: pain. It wasn’t a story that involved convenient conflicts and twists – a fatal disease or an accident. Rather, the story tackles inner doubts and battles that the outside persons fail to win over.
Cindy and Dean’s relationship mirrors many other people’s relationships – flawed but real. But no matter how much love you pour into a relationship, there will always be times when you just get too exhausted to even hope for something better to come.
Blue Valentine strives to tell a story of loneliness and desperation – which became the foundation of the two leads’ marriage – only to find themselves more miserable in the process.
Cindy and Dean’s relationship mirrors many other people’s relationships – flawed but real. But no matter how much love you pour into a relationship, there will always be times when you just get too exhausted to even hope for something better to come.
Blue Valentine strives to tell a story of loneliness and desperation – which became the foundation of the two leads’ marriage – only to find themselves more miserable in the process.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews