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Finger's Breadth
The city is terrified. Someone is haunting the streets of near-future San Francisco, drugging queer men and amputating the tip of their little finger. But worse than this is how the terror transforms the men of the city. For what's worse—a monster, or that something can, all too easily, turn any of us into something even more horrific?
Erotic. Terrifying. Fascinating. Disturbing. Intriguing. Haunting. You have never listened to a book like Finger's Breadth. You will never look at your fingers, or the people around you, the same way again.
Erotic. Terrifying. Fascinating. Disturbing. Intriguing. Haunting. You have never listened to a book like Finger's Breadth. You will never look at your fingers, or the people around you, the same way again.
Audible Audio
First published November 28, 2010
41 people want to read
About the author
M. Christian
135 books80 followersM.Christian is - among many things - an acknowledged master of erotica with more than 400 stories in such anthologies as Best American Erotica, Best Gay Erotica, Best Lesbian Erotica, Best Bisexual Erotica, Best Fetish Erotica, and many, many other anthologies, magazines, and Web sites.
He is the editor of 25 anthologies including the Best S/M Erotica series, The Burning Pen, Guilty Pleasures, The Mammoth Book of Future Cops and The Mammoth Book of Tales of the Road (with Maxim Jakubowksi) and Confessions, Garden of Perverse, and Amazons (with Sage Vivant) as well as many others.
He is the author of the collections Dirty Words, Speaking Parts, The Bachelor Machine, Licks & Promises, Filthy, Love Without Gun Control, Rude Mechanicals, and Coming Together Presents M.Christian, Pornotopia, How To Write And Sell Erotica; and the novels Running Dry, The Very Bloody Marys, Me2, Brushes, Fingers Breadth, and Painted Doll.
He is the editor of 25 anthologies including the Best S/M Erotica series, The Burning Pen, Guilty Pleasures, The Mammoth Book of Future Cops and The Mammoth Book of Tales of the Road (with Maxim Jakubowksi) and Confessions, Garden of Perverse, and Amazons (with Sage Vivant) as well as many others.
He is the author of the collections Dirty Words, Speaking Parts, The Bachelor Machine, Licks & Promises, Filthy, Love Without Gun Control, Rude Mechanicals, and Coming Together Presents M.Christian, Pornotopia, How To Write And Sell Erotica; and the novels Running Dry, The Very Bloody Marys, Me2, Brushes, Fingers Breadth, and Painted Doll.
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
August 1, 2016
Updated review to include the audiobook edition.
The narration of this edgy erotic audiobook is spot on and provides added layers of dread and verisimilitude to an already intense story. A. A. Ron deftly navigates the challenges of differentiating multiple voices, frequent locale hopping, and exposition advanced through emails, news stories, police reports, etc. This would be an excellent choice as a group listen, for discussing it's dark theme afterward and for minimizing paranoia during. ;-)
Ebook Edition:
Finger's Breadth is an erotic noir mystery ostensibly about a psycho that terrorizes the S.F. gay community by drugging men and surgically removing the tips of their pinky finger on one hand. As the story progresses a sort of collective psychosis grips the Bay Area gay scene that is manifested in myriad ways, including copycat cutters, widespread risky activities, glamorizing victims and even the body mod becoming a popular fad. This is a fascinating and unique scenario that while somewhat bizarre is also totally plausible. It is easy to imagine the ripple effect from the cutter's actions playing out similarly in real life. Highly recommended.
The narration of this edgy erotic audiobook is spot on and provides added layers of dread and verisimilitude to an already intense story. A. A. Ron deftly navigates the challenges of differentiating multiple voices, frequent locale hopping, and exposition advanced through emails, news stories, police reports, etc. This would be an excellent choice as a group listen, for discussing it's dark theme afterward and for minimizing paranoia during. ;-)
Ebook Edition:
Finger's Breadth is an erotic noir mystery ostensibly about a psycho that terrorizes the S.F. gay community by drugging men and surgically removing the tips of their pinky finger on one hand. As the story progresses a sort of collective psychosis grips the Bay Area gay scene that is manifested in myriad ways, including copycat cutters, widespread risky activities, glamorizing victims and even the body mod becoming a popular fad. This is a fascinating and unique scenario that while somewhat bizarre is also totally plausible. It is easy to imagine the ripple effect from the cutter's actions playing out similarly in real life. Highly recommended.
June 18, 2018
I am generally bored with the extensive sex scenes in a contemporary romance genre but I love gay erotica, the cradle of the boys' love genre and all LGBTQ sub-genres that have been resulted from the
We can have long discussions about broad disparities between the genres and sub-genres and their missions but, without appearing too vulgar, no doubts, the main target of erotic literature is to arouse the reader sexually.
Though I personally don't like when the genre will be reduced just to:
To write GOOD erotica is not easy, don't underestimate it. Not only sexual fantasy has to be impressive in its own way, but the PLOT itself and the WRITING have to be in harmony with each other. M. Christian with his Finger's Breadth met all the criteria for a fascinating erotic novel. Not what I expected, but it made this book even more impressive.
I won't qualify it as horror, but I read not too many horror books to be judge. There is a touch of romance, suspense, psychological thriller and a social satire. It is kinky and philosophical. Erotic. Terrifying. Fascinating. Disturbing. Intriguing. Haunting.
A gay community of San Francisco is terrified, anxious and insecure. A maniac is at large with an eye for mutilation. No one is save from him. He drugs his victims and cuts off the top of their little fingers. Cops and freelance agents are hunting him but all they have are dead-end leads. The number of gay men with nine and a half fingers grows up, and with it a spirit of solidarity. You have still 10 fingers? Maybe you ARE the Cutter?
We learn different couple, different men and the way they deal with the fears and handle their lives in these gloomy times. It is like an analogy of a short stories that in some way are connected with each other. But WHO does it and in the first place WHY. Don't expect a clear statement at the end, don't hope too early that you get it, and you know what is going on here. Very intriguing.
I listened to an audio book, and I would like particularly to mention an extraordinary writing style that A.A. Ron, the narrator, emphasizes even more.
It has an invisible strong rhythm that is SIMPLY impossible not to hear . Very creative and captivating. A.A. Ron did a fantastic job. I have to admit, it was not love from the first tone. His style appeared a bit robotic. But once the story started to unfold, his voice grew on me and I asked myself how I couldn't have seen it from the very beginning.
I'm glad to discover M. Christian , a new interesting writer of erotica genre. My fist but for sure not the last book by the author.
***ARC provided kindly by the publisher to GBR in exchange for an honest review.***
February 11, 2014
Most men are within a finger's breadth of being mad. - Diogenes
A lunatic is loose in San Francisco, seducing gay men, drugging them, then slicing off the tip of one of their fingers at the first joint. At first, terror grips the city. Bars and clubs catering to the gay community close; no one dares venture out at night, for fear of encountering the Cutter. A chance hook-up with an attractive stranger could make you the next victim.
As time goes on, though, and more men join the ranks of those with nine-and-half-fingers, the mood shifts. Fear morphs into a sort of desperate heat. New venues open, more vibrant and raw than ever. Men with all their fingers intact become objects of suspicion – perhaps they are the one responsible for the plague of mutilation. The gay community develops new rituals to deal with the horror. But who is the Cutter, and why does he pursue his macabre crusade?
In Finger's Breadth, M. Christian has created a creepy and compelling narrative that, like so much of his work, defies categorization. The book offers elements of horror, erotica, science fiction and social commentary. Christian's San Francisco is recognizable but weirdly skewed from the real city. Its dark streets are haunted by free-lance cops and merciless predators, newly-outed kids fresh from the boonies and jaded veterans of a thousand blow jobs.
There's no single hero. The novel proceeds as a series of vignettes, views of the world through the eyes of various men affected by the explosion of violence. Snippets from newspapers and radio programs move the plot forward. Each character holds a piece of the truth without necessarily being aware of that fact. By the end, the reader has a pretty clear idea of what's going on, but Christian never actually comes right out and explains.
M. Christian understands the dynamics of fear as well as the fascination of extremes. He transcribes chilling Internet chat sessions, between a man who might or might not be the Cutter, and a man who longs to be.
TRANCHERMAN191: I'll only ask one more time. Why do you hope it's me?
CONRADICAL02: i don't know!
TRANCHERMAN191: You do know. You just won't say it.
CONRADICAL02: i want more. i want something different. Is that why you do it?
TRANCHERMAN191: Answer my question or stop bothering me.
CONRADICAL02: i want something different. i want 2 do what you do.
TRANCHERMAN191: Because?
CONRADICAL02: i want it to mean something. Sex, i mean. Or something like that. It doesnt do anything. Its fun. But it doesnt last. It's what everyone else does. Its not special. i like it, but i mean, its like what everyone else does. Is that what you mean?
TRANCHERMAN191: Go on.
CONRADICAL02: i dont know. Fuck. Its not enough. ive done it all kinds of ways but its not...it doesn't stay. Thats not right. Fuck, i dont know. i want to feel more. i want to be more. i dont want just tricks. i want risky. i want to do more than fuck and suck. i want to feel real big real powerful. Nasty. i want to be different like you.
TRANCHERMAN191: You don't know anything about me.
Finger's Breadth is simultaneously terrifying and arousing. M. Christian has tapped into the subterranean founts of desire, where the primal urges - lust, anger, fear, hunger - flow together. At the same time, the book dwells on more existential issue - the need for meaning and recognition, the urge to belong to a tribe. Like his previous work, the controversial novel Me 2, this book considers how far one might go today in order to fit in.
If you're looking for an easy, sunny, sexy book with a happy ending, don't pick up Finger's Breadth. If, on the other hand, you want a scary but enlightening ride through the twisted labyrinth of the human psyche, I highly recommend this book.
Breathtakingly original, creepy and compelling - a novel that defies categorization. Part science fiction, part thriller, part social commentary, FINGER'S BREADTH offers a potent message on the nature of fetishism and the yearning to belong.
A lunatic is loose in San Francisco, seducing gay men, drugging them, then slicing off the tip of one of their fingers at the first joint. At first, terror grips the city. Bars and clubs catering to the gay community close; no one dares venture out at night, for fear of encountering the Cutter. A chance hook-up with an attractive stranger could make you the next victim.
As time goes on, though, and more men join the ranks of those with nine-and-half-fingers, the mood shifts. Fear morphs into a sort of desperate heat. New venues open, more vibrant and raw than ever. Men with all their fingers intact become objects of suspicion – perhaps they are the one responsible for the plague of mutilation. The gay community develops new rituals to deal with the horror. But who is the Cutter, and why does he pursue his macabre crusade?
In Finger's Breadth, M. Christian has created a creepy and compelling narrative that, like so much of his work, defies categorization. The book offers elements of horror, erotica, science fiction and social commentary. Christian's San Francisco is recognizable but weirdly skewed from the real city. Its dark streets are haunted by free-lance cops and merciless predators, newly-outed kids fresh from the boonies and jaded veterans of a thousand blow jobs.
There's no single hero. The novel proceeds as a series of vignettes, views of the world through the eyes of various men affected by the explosion of violence. Snippets from newspapers and radio programs move the plot forward. Each character holds a piece of the truth without necessarily being aware of that fact. By the end, the reader has a pretty clear idea of what's going on, but Christian never actually comes right out and explains.
M. Christian understands the dynamics of fear as well as the fascination of extremes. He transcribes chilling Internet chat sessions, between a man who might or might not be the Cutter, and a man who longs to be.
TRANCHERMAN191: I'll only ask one more time. Why do you hope it's me?
CONRADICAL02: i don't know!
TRANCHERMAN191: You do know. You just won't say it.
CONRADICAL02: i want more. i want something different. Is that why you do it?
TRANCHERMAN191: Answer my question or stop bothering me.
CONRADICAL02: i want something different. i want 2 do what you do.
TRANCHERMAN191: Because?
CONRADICAL02: i want it to mean something. Sex, i mean. Or something like that. It doesnt do anything. Its fun. But it doesnt last. It's what everyone else does. Its not special. i like it, but i mean, its like what everyone else does. Is that what you mean?
TRANCHERMAN191: Go on.
CONRADICAL02: i dont know. Fuck. Its not enough. ive done it all kinds of ways but its not...it doesn't stay. Thats not right. Fuck, i dont know. i want to feel more. i want to be more. i dont want just tricks. i want risky. i want to do more than fuck and suck. i want to feel real big real powerful. Nasty. i want to be different like you.
TRANCHERMAN191: You don't know anything about me.
Finger's Breadth is simultaneously terrifying and arousing. M. Christian has tapped into the subterranean founts of desire, where the primal urges - lust, anger, fear, hunger - flow together. At the same time, the book dwells on more existential issue - the need for meaning and recognition, the urge to belong to a tribe. Like his previous work, the controversial novel Me 2, this book considers how far one might go today in order to fit in.
If you're looking for an easy, sunny, sexy book with a happy ending, don't pick up Finger's Breadth. If, on the other hand, you want a scary but enlightening ride through the twisted labyrinth of the human psyche, I highly recommend this book.
Breathtakingly original, creepy and compelling - a novel that defies categorization. Part science fiction, part thriller, part social commentary, FINGER'S BREADTH offers a potent message on the nature of fetishism and the yearning to belong.
June 6, 2011
To be effective, the act of literary intercourse between horror and erotica should be deeply unsettling. It should leave the reader feeling excited by uncomfortable, overwhelmed by equal parts dread and anticipation.
If you’ve ever read any of his work (and shame on you, if you haven’t) M. Christian understands this better than most. With his latest, he has woven a tale that permits the reader but a finger’s breadth of space between fear and arousal. His deft control of the story makes us feel the blade of the assailant, but it’s his subtle manipulation of our emotions that makes us desire the cut of the victim.
The story starts out with simple, if deliciously perverse, premise. A mysterious figure is haunting the underground community of San Francisco, abducting young gay men and cutting off the tip of their little finger. That’s it. No other torture or mutilation, just that missing tip of a finger. With his ounce of flesh taken, they’re free to go.
As creepy and unsettling as the abductions are, it’s what comes after that comprises the bulk of the story. Suffice to say, things get weird, for both the abductees and the community at large, as the story develops in directions that you can’t begin to imagine. It’s a testament to M. Christian’s writing skill that we never question what happens, no matter how weird it gets. Instead, we’re encouraged to embrace the guiltiest of pleasures by indulging in the tale, until we’re so deeply involved that we can’t pull away from the final horrors ahead.
I had a chance to give this an early read (I’m actually quoted on the publisher’s website, which is very exciting!), and only a desire to take a break and collect my thoughts prevented me from reading it in one sitting. If you’re at all intrigued, then I urge you to give it a read – you won’t be disappointed.
If you’ve ever read any of his work (and shame on you, if you haven’t) M. Christian understands this better than most. With his latest, he has woven a tale that permits the reader but a finger’s breadth of space between fear and arousal. His deft control of the story makes us feel the blade of the assailant, but it’s his subtle manipulation of our emotions that makes us desire the cut of the victim.
The story starts out with simple, if deliciously perverse, premise. A mysterious figure is haunting the underground community of San Francisco, abducting young gay men and cutting off the tip of their little finger. That’s it. No other torture or mutilation, just that missing tip of a finger. With his ounce of flesh taken, they’re free to go.
As creepy and unsettling as the abductions are, it’s what comes after that comprises the bulk of the story. Suffice to say, things get weird, for both the abductees and the community at large, as the story develops in directions that you can’t begin to imagine. It’s a testament to M. Christian’s writing skill that we never question what happens, no matter how weird it gets. Instead, we’re encouraged to embrace the guiltiest of pleasures by indulging in the tale, until we’re so deeply involved that we can’t pull away from the final horrors ahead.
I had a chance to give this an early read (I’m actually quoted on the publisher’s website, which is very exciting!), and only a desire to take a break and collect my thoughts prevented me from reading it in one sitting. If you’re at all intrigued, then I urge you to give it a read – you won’t be disappointed.
November 25, 2016
I love noir. I love noir movies. And I was pleasantly surprised by M. Christian’s Finger’s Breadth. Not that I was surprised that it was good, having already read and positively reviewed his Bionic Lover. But I did not think it would be this good. I was surprised to see a complex noir plot so deftly handled. Finger’s Breadth has a great many characters and different story lines in it, and it is difficult to write such a novel without putting the reader off. The risk is that just as one story line gets interesting, another one is picked up and the first line is awkwardly interrupted.
Not so with this book. M. Christian takes us through a gay San Francisco some time in the not too distant future where gay men are being tricked and attacked in an unusual way I will not discuss for fear of spoilers.
The plot is tense, the characters well drawn, and the suspense is strong. The text is certainly erotic, but for me the primary interest was in trying to decipher the mystery: what was going on, and who was doing it, and why. Also, the effects on the gay community add a deeper dimension to the book not usually present in a whodunit. A terrific read.
Not so with this book. M. Christian takes us through a gay San Francisco some time in the not too distant future where gay men are being tricked and attacked in an unusual way I will not discuss for fear of spoilers.
The plot is tense, the characters well drawn, and the suspense is strong. The text is certainly erotic, but for me the primary interest was in trying to decipher the mystery: what was going on, and who was doing it, and why. Also, the effects on the gay community add a deeper dimension to the book not usually present in a whodunit. A terrific read.
September 30, 2017
This book was Erotica at it's best, while simultaneously being a little dark and twisted. I wasn't sure how I would feel about it at first, but the further I got the more difficult I found it to put down this amazing Erotic tale.
February 27, 2019
DNF as I didn’t like the story.
Read
December 30, 2011M. Christian started with a mystery and ended with a psychological thriller. There is a mad man out there picking gay men, drugging them and cutting their pinkie finger. Nothing else. It doesn’t seem a great crime, but it’s still a crime, and the police had to investigate. Problem is that the only main trait of all victims is to be gay, aside from that they are black and white, young and old, poor and rich. People is scared, private clubs close down every day and in the meantime, day after day, a new victim joins the club… since now, being a victim of the Cutter is trendy, if you are not one, then probably you have something wrong. Now it’s not only the police that is searching for the Cutter, they are the same victims who WANT to be found. In a kind of ironic twist, the villain becomes the hero, and the reader starts to understand that everyone can be the villain, as everyone could have been the victim.
There are various life intertwining their destinies, Fanning, the freelance cop who wants to find the Cutter, but maybe he is not searching for justice; Varney, the first victim, a newspaper reporter who is now following the case and who apparently is the only one who can see that being a victim is not a great thing; Taylor, the only victim who escaped with all his intact fingers, but who is not more scared than before; Trancherman0191, who trolls the gay chats in search of “victims”… but in the end, all of them can be a victim and all of them can be the Cutter, and truth be told, you will realize it’s no more important to know who is the Cutter, because he realized what seemed impossible to achieve, he levelled all men to the same point, he allowed the shy to be bold, the bold to be scared, the victim to be aggressor and the aggressor to be victim. Removing that "finger's breadth" that separate men from madness, he also removed the reason why they were different.
Not all the men in this story will find their balance, but I think some of them did. I have high hope for Varney and Taylor, that they will be able to understand what is really important in life and that maybe they will give a chance to love, a chance that till now they were too scared to see.
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1934841463/?...
There are various life intertwining their destinies, Fanning, the freelance cop who wants to find the Cutter, but maybe he is not searching for justice; Varney, the first victim, a newspaper reporter who is now following the case and who apparently is the only one who can see that being a victim is not a great thing; Taylor, the only victim who escaped with all his intact fingers, but who is not more scared than before; Trancherman0191, who trolls the gay chats in search of “victims”… but in the end, all of them can be a victim and all of them can be the Cutter, and truth be told, you will realize it’s no more important to know who is the Cutter, because he realized what seemed impossible to achieve, he levelled all men to the same point, he allowed the shy to be bold, the bold to be scared, the victim to be aggressor and the aggressor to be victim. Removing that "finger's breadth" that separate men from madness, he also removed the reason why they were different.
Not all the men in this story will find their balance, but I think some of them did. I have high hope for Varney and Taylor, that they will be able to understand what is really important in life and that maybe they will give a chance to love, a chance that till now they were too scared to see.
http://www.amazon.com/dp/1934841463/?...
May 30, 2012
What an extraordinary story! At the start of the book, someone is drugging gay men and removing the tip of their little finger. The book is almost a collection of short stories as we meet different characters who have been affected, either directly or indirectly. Gradually, the mutilations acquire a new meaning and fears transform into something else completely.
November 7, 2011
Good story, but a little confusing a times with so many different characters and goings-on. Full review to come at The Future Fire soon.
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews