Heartscapes

by M.J. Williamz

Jesse Garrett still grieves the death of her partner four years ago. The only thing that makes her feel alive are the nameless women with whom she shares her bed. And her art. When the opportunity arises for her to travel to Paris to study art, Jesse agrees to leave her dead-end job and take her chances in Paris.

Odette owns a café across the street from Jessie’s dorm. Jesse frequents the café, mostly to see Odette with her silver hair and deep green eyes. It’s attraction at first sight.

Their love burns hot until Odette has a stroke, leaving her unable to remember Jesse. Will Odette ever remember her or must Jesse spend the rest of her time in Paris alone?

Genres: Erotica

218 pages, Paperback

First published April 12, 2016

About the author

MJ Williamz was raised on California’s Central Coast which she still loves, but left at the age of seventeen in an attempt to further her education. She graduated from Chico State with a degree in Business Management. It was in Chico that MJ began to pursue her love of writing. Since 2002, she’s had over a dozen short stories accepted for publication, mostly erotica with a few romances thrown in for good measure. MJ lives with her wife, Laydin, and their son in Houston.

Reviews

[Catherine · Rating 1 out of 5]

When given a book by the publishers through NetGalley I am always so grateful and therefore always determined to finish the book even if it isn't my favourite. Unfortunately I just wasn't able to do that with this book. The issues I had was that the first quarter was spent following Jesse who lost her partner 4 years ago and is now a selfish player who is disrespectful to women. The concept of a player in lesfic is nothing new and not something that I have a problem with but this character was so disrespectful that you just got that feeling of a sleazy player that I wanted nothing more to do with. She wasn't upfront about what she wanted from the women she picked up, she just assumed and then treated them like crap.

The other part of the first quarter was spent on her getting back to her art which she hadn't done since her partner died. This too was not done well. No emotion even though what the character was going through was so emotional. One minute she can’t go near art and then she was so excited about getting back into art.

I just got so frustrated with the dialogue of this character and the way she acted that I just couldn't continue to read another word.

I was given this book by NetGalley for an honest review.

[Naima · Rating 1 out of 5]

** I received this book from NetGalley and Bold Strokes Books, Inc. in exchange for an honest review**

DNF @52% (Spoilers, I guess, but everything that happens in the book is in the summary anyway.)

I think I should preface this with the fact that it was marketed as a lesbian romance novel and was more lesbian erotica. From the summary, you would have no idea that every time Jesse meets up with a woman they have explicit sex together. I eventually stopped reading it because (well, it wasn't what I was reading it for) it was poorly written. I think I should also follow up with the fact that all of the lesbian erotica was both unrealistic and seemingly more for male readers than any women who love women. Women have quick, successive orgasms with little to no prompting all while contorted in positions I can't even keep up with, as the reader? Yikes. The constant reaffirmation that Jesse looks like a man (small breasts, muscular legs, "butch" look) during these scenes and the male-gaze-y way she assesses women makes it seem like this was definitely not intended to reach the hands of a girl that likes girls.

The fact that Jesse doesn't sleep with exactly (1) woman of every woman she meets (and that's her best friend) reminds me a lot of how sexualized queer spaces are, particularly those for lesbians. Jesse barely functioned outside of having sex with random women at the club- and getting offended when any of them even insinuate that they want more. At a point, she calls Chanelle (who she'd had consensual sex with the night previous, and just sees her in the same lesbian bar again) a stalker. ("Chanelle wasn't sitting there and hoped she'd found someone new to stalk.", 13%). Firstly, that's really making light of people who have actually been stalked (which is something that is joked about a lot in this book... uncomfortable), secondly it's demonizing women who are actually looking for a relationship with another woman. It's like Jesse doesn't actually enjoy being with any of these women- she just uses them for sex and assumes they don't have feelings. She treats most of them like shit after she's slept with them, and that doesn't have to be wholly consensual either. She coerces Katie into having sex ("I can't believe I'm doing this." "Doing what?" "I don't know anything about you. How do I know you're not an axe murderer?" "Would I have a friend like Liza if I was?" "How should I know?" "Besides [...] What do you need to know about me? You want me. I want you. What's to know?", 13%), and talks about molesting Chanelle while she's driving them home (no shit, either. "Jesse fought the urge to molest Chanelle in the car on the way home.", 4%). Again, I fear for partners Williamz has had, if this is how she thinks lesbians/women loving women should act. This isn't having casual sex without strings, it's predatory behavior with no concern for your partner.

Now, onto the the plethora of misogyny in here. Like, not even on a textual level. It's in the narrative, and I can only assume that the author shares these views as well. Slut-shaming at 2% "And you think sleeping with every woman in town is being true to her?". Random pettiness over a random woman's clothes at 3% (plus the added bonus of the word butch again) "The woman was wearing sagging, baggy cargo pants and a shirt at least two sizes too big. Jesse was thankful that hadn't been the style when she was a baby butch.". I won't copy and paste that same sentence again, but the assumption that women that want deeper relationships (and are even polite about it) are stalkers. Another example: "Good. I don't want you to have a stalker." "Not even a rich, gorgeous one?" "Not even." (37%). The 'weak women in relationships are the worst' trope: "You're not that type, are you?" "Not so much." "Good. I don't like weak women." (basically, not liking feminine women for their 'femininity'. It's one thing to have a preference, and another to denounce an entire type of woman). It's not just once, either. "So do you [on smelling nice]. In a masculine kind of way. But I like it. There's nothing girly about you. That's so wonderful." (28%).

Something that deserves its own paragraph: the juvenile writing and poorly-executed plot. It's really weird that, after months (implied years) of sleeping with random women, Jesse suddenly meets one that Changes Her Whole Life by being an art collector that sees promise in her... enough to send her to Paris. (Side note: the whole reason I picked this book up was because I thought it was going to be a cheesy, hurt/comfort, feel-good kind of novel. No such luck.) The plot is stilted, and I even made a note in my Kindle that the majority of it is based around the both of them either drinking, with them (meaning Liza and Jesse) going out to eat. The way Jesse's passion for art is just kinda thrust on us (no pun intended) made me really uncomfortable. It was just There. I even filed this under 'tell not show' because that's all this writing does. There's no finesse to how Williamz just drops character descriptions or a main character's passion for something that she only does once or, even, how Jesse's late partner (Sara) died. "Jesse looked at her best friend of twenty years and marveled again at how different they were. Liza was tall, blond, and thin. And very feminine. All things Jesse was not." (2%) (Not to mention this is inaccurate, because Jesse is also thin, though bottom-heavy, and apparently tall as well. All for the sake of a tongue-in-cheek comparison.) I honestly laughed out loud at some of the nonsense we were just supposed to accept like it was normal: "Liza, those one-night stands are what keep me gong. I'm numb all day every day. The only time I feel anything, anything at all, is when I'm in bed with a woman. Then, and only then, do I feel alive. But I don't want more than that brief moment, because anything else would be untrue to Sara's memory." (2%) Uh... Am I supposed to just think that's a phrase that comes out of someone's mouth? Because it definitely wouldn't.

Do you see that "french people not acting french" tag at the top? Yeah, the fact that there are so many of these books like this that romanticize everything French is why I even need a shelf like that. I won't make assumptions of Williamz's sexuality, sure, but I know she definitely didn't go to France. First thing is that Jesse can't understand the waitress' accent. That's not something that would happen- if she's going to a café, particularly a popular café like she insists, the waitresses would be able to speak English. Rather well, as well. She isn't the first English-speaker to come to France, they've had experience with Americans before and are going to learn how to speak understandably in their time there. Second, goddamn "how do you say". Honestly, if I had a penny for every time I see this in a book with French people, I'd have enough money to purchase all the books I want to read. People who are speaking a second language won't just bust out 'how do you say' in the language they're trying to communicate in (I would know, I speak four different languages). There's either 1. a pause while they try to think of the word or 2. they ask themselves in their native tongue what the word is. There's no way the person they're trying to talk with will know what they're trying to say, and the 'how do you say' phenomenon is from American movies translating the French phrase "comment dit-on" (how do you say). It's unnatural, and the fact that Amelie says "It's, how do you say, common here." (44%) is Ridiculous because 1. it's a goddamn cognate (commun, in French) 2. the only other word to say the same thing is a cognate (ordinaire). Also "Tonight is what you Americans call Jazz. You like Jazz?" (48%). ??? Jazz was founded in America, and everywhere else (no matter the language) calls it jazz as well. It's literally 'le jazz' in French.

Other quotes that bothered me:
* "Some people thing food, water, and shelter are basic needs," she said. "So is the touch of another. And good sex is my favorite kind of touch." (2%)
* "She dressed in black jeans and a dark purple golf shirt that accentuated her eyes." (3%) (My Immortal flashbacks, anyone? Btw, how does a golf shirt accentuate your eyes?)
* "drunchies." (17%) (You know, like munchies.)
* "My name is Constance. Constance Moriarty." (26%) (I literally laughed at that name. It's so Ridiculous. It's like someone's Sherlock OC.)
* "I'm sorry. I don't have any wine to offer you."
"You're not much of a drinker?"
"I'm more the beer type."
"Ah, of course. No worries. Sit with me, handsome." (28%) (The implication that not drinking is strange and the reinforcement that Jesse is Not Like Other Girls)
* "Jesse, you hate your job. I think you'd be a fool not to go to school." (Honestly, we're never actually told where she works or why she hates her job. Just a side note.)
* "While Jesse liked Amelie's attitude, her butch feathers got a little ruffled." (44%)
* "Jesse seldom danced ballroom style, as she called it [...]" (49%) (Or, you know, what the rest of the world calls it. Yes, she is referring to the dance style.)
* "Jesse woke the next morning feeling melancholy." (50%) (I laughed. That's literally 5th Grade writing right there)

All in all, how dare you deceive me into thinking this wasn't just lesbian erotica with a barely coherent plot. I can't believe I had to force myself through pages and pages of poorly written, inaccurate sex to try and get some semblance of plot advancement (which usually revolved around them going out to eat for no discernible reason). Not everything with lesbians has to be sexual, and the fact that Jesse was modeled in such a predatory way was disrespectful to women who love women- just because she's a player and has lots of casual sex doesn't mean she has to disregard consent or her partner's needs. Juvenile writing style and an even younger perception of what relationships are supposed to be, Williamz has made an enemy in me with this book.

[Alicia · Rating 1 out of 5]

Wow this wasn't great at all due to everyone Jesse ever met she kept saying the same thing over and over. You are so beautiful, she gets hot just by thinking what the night might bring. It's like she was meeting the same woman over and over and then she says she don't do repeats but she does with the Art dealer. The book just was all over the place and then there is the ending.

Arc given by NetGalley for a honest review

[Lila Hunter]

DNF @36%

The blurb for this story is really interesting, and it's the reason I requested to review this story. Unfortunately, I didn't have the chance to read about Jesse's life in Paris because, at this point, she was just starting to get her things together to travel.

I didn't connect with the MC, and the one-night stands scenes were repetitive and too many even when trying to establish Jesse as a player. She is an artist, but we don't get the chance to see her vision beyond some simple strokes. There are no descriptions of her environment or how she sees the world around her.

The story structure and dialogue are simple, making the book read as mundane. There's nothing to look forward too.

I wanted more, but I didn't feel like I'd get it if I continue reading.

[Amanda · Rating 1 out of 5]

I have been working on this book for a bit now. I kept stopping to read something else, because I just wasn’t getting into the story. I think my biggest issue with this read is that it is improperly categorized. This is to say it is categorized as romance when it should be erotica. I love a well-placed, well-written sex scene but obviously this can be too much. Not that book provided either. Just poorly written, over placed sex scenes. When you choose to read erotica, you expect pages of sex scenes. This book had a sex scene before I even knew the characters. I quickly found myself skipping over pages of book because it wasn’t needed for the story. When the reader is skipping pages it is obvious a problem has occurred. I was not particularly attached to the characters. I found that when I was not skipping sex scene pages, I was thinking Jesse complained a lot. For me this book was a miss. I have to admit defeat and finally just stopped reading. I honestly think that some of the dislike and poor reviews could have been avoided if an erotica grouping instead of romance better informed the reader.

[A.W. · Rating 2 out of 5]

It's been four years since Jesse lost her partner and hasn't had a stable relationship since then. The most she can do are one night stands. When she picks up art again, she meets an art dealer who has an offer she can't refuse. Jesse ends up going to school in Paris to learn more about art and encounters a woman at a cafe, Odette, who happens to own it.

I thought too much was written about Jesse's one night stands and would've liked to have read more about her time in Paris and learning more about art. I didn't feel connected to the main character and thought that she was quick to accept that it was more than a one night stand with Odette. The conflict that put a wrench between Jesse and Odette left little to be desired.

Of the secondary characters, Liza was the one that stuck out and thought that she was a supportive friend.

Sadly to say, Heartscapes is not a book I would reread.

Review also posted here: http://wp.me/p4Pp9O-gx

I was given a copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

[Affire · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have to say I that I found Jesse to be too obsessed with her late lover, her one-night stands, and her dead-end job. Throughout her angst over these things, she did nothing to change. She didn't seek help in dealing with her grief, she didn't stop being a player, and she didn't find another job. When her best friend convinces her she needs a hobby, she returns to her art after a four-year absence, and the friend convinces her to enter a local amateur outdoor art show where she meets an art dealer who wants to be her patron and send her to art school - in Paris. On her first day there, she meets Odette, an older woman, who, within a week the player known as Jesse falls in love.

There way too many coincidences - too many things happen that are inconsistent with Jesse's life-style and personality. For instance, she leaves her dead end job that she has clung too for years with little or no thought to move to Paris where she doesn't speak the language (and makes no attempt to learn it) and within days fall in love with an older woman.

This book would have been strengthened by a strong editor who would have cut a lot of the redundancy, tightened and added better dialogue, and dealt with all the inconsistencies, and either delete characters or suggest not to leave them out on a limb (i.e., the art deal who thinks Jesse has so much talent she agrees to be her patron. When the art dealer shows up in Paris for Jesse's first student show, she is taken aback by who Jesse is dating and disappears from the book).

[Carolyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Older woman, younger woman.

Four years after losing her wife, an artist gets the opportunity to study in Paris. After years of one night stands she Mets the owner of a restaurant who motivates her to move forward to a serious relationship. But a stroke causes Odette to forget Jesse. Can love find its way home? Recommend.

[AL · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really liked this story, however there are some moments that i could not see the chemistry of the two main characters. But definitely it has a nice plot and was very enjoyable to read.

[Leslie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review, so here goes:

Jesse Garrett’s partner, Sara, died four years ago and though she plays the field, Jesse still isn’t over it. When an art dealer offers Jesse the chance to study in Paris and the prospect of making a name for herself in the art world, she decides to give up her less than exciting job and give it a shot. Almost fresh off the plane, Jesse meets local diner owner Odette, and sparks fly. As the two get to know each other, Jesse’s commitment fears begin to fade away, but when Odette suffers a stroke that leaves her unable to remember her new-found love, will she be able to find her way back to Jesse?

I’m not going to lie, I was sold when the summary mentioned Paris.What better place for an artist’s love story than one of the most romanticized places in the world? Paris may have drawn me in, but the characters kept me interested, and the book was a quick and enjoyable read. Like any romance novel worth its salt, it’s heavy on the sap and the sex, in a good way.

I thought that the made source of dramatic tension came a bit late in the book and would have liked to see that develop a bit more. Likewise, I loved Odette and would enjoyed a bit more of her background. I feel like we get to know her pretty well for this moment in time, but I guess I’d like to spend more time with her reminiscing on earlier times, but with her guarded personality, it makes sense that we only know what Jesse needs to know about her. Overall, however, I enjoyed the time I spend reading this one. I would have liked to see more of the development of the relationship between Jesse and Odette. There is some great stuff as it develops, but I guess I feel like I would have enjoyed more communication early on. That said, I did enjoy what was there.

It’s a great choice for someone looking for a bit more mature of a romance (and doesn't mind lots of sexy times, heads up, this is not a G or PG rated romance). I really enjoy love stories with older characters, and sadly, I only come across a handful here and there, so in that department, this was a treat. The text isn’t light on the sex, either, so if it’s a hot read you seek, look no further. It’s not erotica or anything, but Williams doesn’t shy away from depicting the more realistic, intimate aspects of a new and passionate love affair. Check it out if you need some sweet romance in your life.

[Christine Close · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was sent this book by Inked Rainbow Reads in exchange for an honest review.

A romantic novel with a touch of erotica. I found this novel easy to read and constructed in a definite way, it had a beginning a middle and an end and each part carefully and successfully linked together.

Unfortunately I also found it very repetitive and tending to pander to stereo types particularly concerning the French and French culture. I was also disappointed in the lack of vivacity particularly given the circumstances and setting. I felt the energy did build up at the latter part of the book regrettably by then my interest was waning.

Great setting, interesting concept and plenty of sexual encounters, unfortunately a little unsatisfactory for me personally.

[Kimsiang Lim · Rating 1 out of 5]

I received an e-arc from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
I dnfed this. Just ew. If I were to rate the part id read which is less than 10 pages, it'd be one star. I just can't.