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Bliss
A WOMAN WHO HAS NEVER BEEN TRULY SATISFIED…Bliss Sinclair’s life of boring routine takes an electrifying turn when she meets Regina, a provocative writer who introduces her to a world bursting with sensations and flavors beyond her wildest imagination. But this newfound excitement quickly turns into poisoned lust and disappointment.Determined to break free from Regina's toxic hold, Sinclair embarks on a journey to Jamaica, her birthplace, seeking solace in the tropical sun and in the family she never knew. But she soon discovers that the island holds both ghosts from her past and strangers who will challenge everything she’s known about life and love.From steamy hidden grottos to gritty streets where danger lurks around every corner, Sinclair must fight for the love and satisfaction she deserves. Here, on this island of paradise and peril, will she finally discover what she's been searching for all along?
342 pages, Kindle Edition
First published August 1, 2005
53 people are currently reading
726 people want to read
About the author
Fiona Zedde
59 books414 followersJamaican-born Fiona Zedde is the author of several novellas and novels of lesBiQueer love and desire, including the Lambda Literary Award finalists, Bliss and Every Dark Desire. She loves French pastries, English cars, Jamaican food, and currently lives in Spain.
Her novel, Dangerous Pleasures, received a Publishers Weekly starred review and won an About.com Readers' Choice Award for Best Lesbian Novel/Memoir. Her latest book, Just Like Her, is out now. Find out more about her catalog of 30+ books at www.FionaZedde.com.
Her novel, Dangerous Pleasures, received a Publishers Weekly starred review and won an About.com Readers' Choice Award for Best Lesbian Novel/Memoir. Her latest book, Just Like Her, is out now. Find out more about her catalog of 30+ books at www.FionaZedde.com.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 35 reviews
February 5, 2019
In the beginning this novel feels like it’s pure erotica with Bliss Sinclair’s meeting and total infatuation with Regina making her realise she’s not as straight as she thought. Then in an effort to escape from herself she decides to return to Jamaica for a holiday to see her father whom she hasn’t seen in 20 years. This part of the novel is much more of an exploration of Sinclair’s relationship with her family and Jamaica itself. It settles into what ends up being a good romance surrounded by a lot of realism.
I enjoyed both parts of the book but I’m struggling to connect them as one in my head. Regina is a powerful character and has a marked impact on Sinclair and the reader (in this case, me). Hunter has a much longer and far steadier appearance but not the same presence and for much of the novel I felt like Hunter was temporary or even worse, second best.
I am a fan of Zedde’s writing, so even when I’m not sure where I stand on the story line, I still enjoy the way it is written; the directness, the explicitness and pushing of boundaries. Hunter and Sinclair appear in a short story in Language of Love - A Flirty, Festive Anthology and I would have had a much greater appreciation for that story if I had read this first.
(Note: there are two instances of homophobic violence in the novel.)
Book received from Netgalley and Red Hills Publishing for an honest review.
I enjoyed both parts of the book but I’m struggling to connect them as one in my head. Regina is a powerful character and has a marked impact on Sinclair and the reader (in this case, me). Hunter has a much longer and far steadier appearance but not the same presence and for much of the novel I felt like Hunter was temporary or even worse, second best.
I am a fan of Zedde’s writing, so even when I’m not sure where I stand on the story line, I still enjoy the way it is written; the directness, the explicitness and pushing of boundaries. Hunter and Sinclair appear in a short story in Language of Love - A Flirty, Festive Anthology and I would have had a much greater appreciation for that story if I had read this first.
(Note: there are two instances of homophobic violence in the novel.)
Book received from Netgalley and Red Hills Publishing for an honest review.
February 9, 2017
TRIGGER WARNING - male violence towards women
Bliss Sinclair is a manager in an office in a city in America. She has a bland boyfriend and a good personal assistant at work, and not much else in her life. It is all a bit drab really. Then Regina walks in and turns Sinclair's life upside down. Seduced by the amazing sex, in public and private, Sinclair breaks up with the boyfriend and starts skipping work. When Regina calmly tells Sinclair that her month is up, Sinclair is left pulling the pieces of her life back together.
A trip is in order, back to see her father in Jamaica. She hasn't seen him for 20 years, so she's really going back to meet her roots as well as heal her soul.
Sinclair is an interesting character, and the first part of the book reads like an erotic novel. There is a complete shift however, when Sinclair goes to Jamaica. It really does feel like two books rudely crushed together. Either one would work, but together they clash so badly in style and content that it is a rude shock when Zedde takes the story to Jamaica.
The second part of the story is quite interesting, and has a lot of detail about how the culture changes the relationship of people to their families, and how poverty affects the nation. The descriptions of food and life were well drawn, and had enough detail to paint a picture without overdoing the detail.
What I found confronting was how much sexual violence was normalised, and the threat of gang rape and murder was so common as to be barely mentioned, even though the main character is forced to defend herself from such violence twice in the book. This is just considered part of life for lesbians in Jamaica, and culturally accepted enough that mobs of people will stand around and watch men attack lesbians and do nothing to stop it. That I found profoundly shocking. I know from reading news reports that Jamaica is very strongly opposed to any sort of LGBTIQ rights, but the normalisation of such extreme violence towards women is horrible to read. It certainly isn't entertaining, which is what I thought I was getting when I bought the book.
I really needed this to be two books. The first part, erotic fiction, works well enough on it's own to be a novella. The second part is much more complex, and more interesting. The culture shock and the family dramas would be enough to situate the book in a drama category. The romance isn't enough of the book to warrant classifying it as such. As painted by the author, the threat of rape and murder is such that the characters don't even need to leave their houses for this to be a real possibility.
This book has two completely different moods, and needs to be read as two different books. I guess if I were to split them up I'd give the erotic fiction a 3 for creativity, and the drama a 3.5. As a combined book, I don't think it works very well, and I didn't enjoy it, so 2.
Bliss Sinclair is a manager in an office in a city in America. She has a bland boyfriend and a good personal assistant at work, and not much else in her life. It is all a bit drab really. Then Regina walks in and turns Sinclair's life upside down. Seduced by the amazing sex, in public and private, Sinclair breaks up with the boyfriend and starts skipping work. When Regina calmly tells Sinclair that her month is up, Sinclair is left pulling the pieces of her life back together.
A trip is in order, back to see her father in Jamaica. She hasn't seen him for 20 years, so she's really going back to meet her roots as well as heal her soul.
Sinclair is an interesting character, and the first part of the book reads like an erotic novel. There is a complete shift however, when Sinclair goes to Jamaica. It really does feel like two books rudely crushed together. Either one would work, but together they clash so badly in style and content that it is a rude shock when Zedde takes the story to Jamaica.
The second part of the story is quite interesting, and has a lot of detail about how the culture changes the relationship of people to their families, and how poverty affects the nation. The descriptions of food and life were well drawn, and had enough detail to paint a picture without overdoing the detail.
What I found confronting was how much sexual violence was normalised, and the threat of gang rape and murder was so common as to be barely mentioned, even though the main character is forced to defend herself from such violence twice in the book. This is just considered part of life for lesbians in Jamaica, and culturally accepted enough that mobs of people will stand around and watch men attack lesbians and do nothing to stop it. That I found profoundly shocking. I know from reading news reports that Jamaica is very strongly opposed to any sort of LGBTIQ rights, but the normalisation of such extreme violence towards women is horrible to read. It certainly isn't entertaining, which is what I thought I was getting when I bought the book.
I really needed this to be two books. The first part, erotic fiction, works well enough on it's own to be a novella. The second part is much more complex, and more interesting. The culture shock and the family dramas would be enough to situate the book in a drama category. The romance isn't enough of the book to warrant classifying it as such. As painted by the author, the threat of rape and murder is such that the characters don't even need to leave their houses for this to be a real possibility.
This book has two completely different moods, and needs to be read as two different books. I guess if I were to split them up I'd give the erotic fiction a 3 for creativity, and the drama a 3.5. As a combined book, I don't think it works very well, and I didn't enjoy it, so 2.
September 9, 2017
IDK, it was ok for me I guess. After the NEW NEW NEW wore off at the beginning, the middle bit just kinda fell flat for me. I found myself not really caring what happened to the MC or the story. Shrug. Can't love em all I guess.
September 19, 2017
Review originally appeared in The Lesbrary. This book is a finding-your-place story as much as it is a love story; or you could say it’s a love story between a woman and the self she’s supposed to be or the type of life she’s supposed to be living. It’s also highly erotic, reveling in the sensuality of its characters’ bodies, but in a respectful and almost reverential way that elevates ordinary body parts to a sort of glowing, visceral divinity.
Bliss Sinclair, a Jamaican-American woman who goes by Sinclair in honor of her dead mother’s surname, has been living a fairly tropey “money can’t buy you happiness” existence as a high-powered accountant on the gazillionth floor of a fancy building. She doesn’t really have friends who mean anything to her and she tolerates her boyfriend’s affection because it’s what you do. Lesbian identity is sitting on her emotional front porch stoop playing on its phone but she hasn’t quite had the courage to open the door yet.
When she finally does get a chance to figure out that she’s really only attracted to women, she gets taken advantage of by a woman who is pushy and misleading. The inevitable happens, at which point she heads back to Jamaica for an extended vacation to see her father and meet his new wife and kid.
She quickly winds up introduced to the local lesbian community and has to learn everybody’s old drama as she’s also getting used to being around her family again. I found most of the supporting characters and the relational world Zedde sets up for this story really appealing–there’s an immense sense of interconnectedness that includes the dead characters we never get to meet in person as well. Zedde also gives us a rich, vivid, and easy to picture world of tropical plants, Jamaican food, what kinds of things there are to do in Jamaica if you’re there on vacation, and what kinds of jobs the locals do. Whiteness hovers in the background as a clueless, absent employer but is never really present on-screen.
There is a lot of sex in this book, but there are also a lot of scenes of the main character playing tourist on beaches and historic buildings, going to parties or restaurants, enjoying time with her family, etc. I just feel like if I had been counting the sex scenes I would have run out of fingers (and yes, I phrased it that way on purpose :P )
This is not a book that ignores the violent reality that anyone visibly queer in Jamaica may encounter, but because Zedde is writing from the inside and not from the point of view of some privileged white non queer writer, both the book’s scenes of attempted sexual violence from the hands of multiple strange men are:
1. foiled, completely and utterly
2. take up a very brief space in the narrative; they occur over the course of a page or two, are fended off, are processed emotionally with tears or a day of quiet or whatever else is necessary, and then we move on
3. they are not intended as a rejection of Jamaica. This is important. Over at WritingWithColor, we all get questions from people outside various marginalized groups trying to write about the ways that group mistreats vulnerable folks within its own LGBT community. I prefer to leave this narrative to people in the overlap of both groups, because comparing what Zedde writes to what some of these privileged writers write you can see the difference — at one point, one of the Jamaican lesbians even says “you have to love Jamaica anyway.” This is home; the food, the culture, the scenery, the history, the music. The problem is recognized but it’s not enough to drive them out and away into other places that may very well be just as physically dangerous.
I found the main character herself more appealing as a person than any of her love interests, honestly — obviously the first one was pushy beyond belief, but one on the island came on really strong as well and I had to just believe in Sinclair’s immense attraction to her being what wore down her initial “I have a broken heart and you come on super strong, meep” feelings.
Another topic about which Zedde writes much better than a privileged person trying to write about a marginalized community further marginalizing its LGBT members, is Sinclair’s father’s reaction to her lesbianism. I was stunned at how well this was pulled off because I’d never seen a character come around so realistically and so quickly. He’s upset, but a few pages later he dials it back and says that a lot of his upset is probably unfair. Can white, non-queer people trying to write about “oppressive” non-white or non-American parents please take a lesson from this book?
Anyway, aside from that issue I thought it was a great and realistic and familiar depiction of what happens when a parent who loves their child has discomfort with their choice of partner or sexuality but is trying to work around it. We don’t see too much of that in LGBT fiction; I’ve seen a lot of either ultra-acceptance (realistic for some of us, and even those who aren’t need some wish fulfillment) or ultra-disgustingness (cathartic and important to write from the inside; tragedy porn and sometimes not even written in a way that rings true, when writing from the outside.) A family that invites a girlfriend over for dinner and no horrible “I knew you’d ruin the evening!” argument happens even though one of the members feels negatively about the idea of a gay daughter is another way to be realistic, and belongs on the page. And it’s not like you as a reader are constantly made aware of his negativity, either.
Some choice quotes, so you can get a feel for the book’s snappy dialogue and evocative descriptors:
Sinclair: “Do you come downtown often?”
First girlfriend: “If you’ll let me, I’ll come at least two times today.”
Waitress: “Can I get you two anything to drink today?”
One of the main characters, about the other main character: “Some manners for her.”
Island love interest about the first girlfriend: “If she was worth half your sighs she would have been here with you on her knees apologizing for hurting you.”
Description of main character’s young stepmom: “short reddish hair that stood up around her head like a tamed flame”
Overall, the story tells itself; it flows really well and makes you want to keep reading. This isn’t the kind of book where you read a paragraph and then have to read it again because you didn’t catch what happens. In other words, Also, kudos to Zedde for using the phrase “maggot-white penis” to refer to a naked white guy in a BDSM club, because it reminded me of those posts pointing out how nobody talks about whiteness with the kind of evocative overscrutinizing detail usually afforded to darker skin in fiction.
Trigger warnings: two foiled attempts at sexual assault by multiple men in the Jamaica half of the book. The second time the women beat up the men pretty badly; it’s over quickly and you can skip the second time if you nope out for a couple of pages when they get to a place in the woods with tons of pretty tropical flowers.
Also, the first girlfriend’s behavior is borderline abusive in the sense that she puts Sinclair in situations she doesn’t want to be in and basically demands a veto as negative consent instead of asking if things are okay beforehand, and I’m talking big deal things like surprising her with orgies or kink clubs. Sometimes they are okay and sometimes they are not and Sinclair takes steps accordingly each time. Plus, she’s the kind of person who says “You’re an incredible fuck. Yet you’re so naïve. You’re like my lost childhood. My virginity.” which I know someone who had that said to them in real life and I’ve always found it super creepy (so does Sinclair.)
Bliss Sinclair, a Jamaican-American woman who goes by Sinclair in honor of her dead mother’s surname, has been living a fairly tropey “money can’t buy you happiness” existence as a high-powered accountant on the gazillionth floor of a fancy building. She doesn’t really have friends who mean anything to her and she tolerates her boyfriend’s affection because it’s what you do. Lesbian identity is sitting on her emotional front porch stoop playing on its phone but she hasn’t quite had the courage to open the door yet.
When she finally does get a chance to figure out that she’s really only attracted to women, she gets taken advantage of by a woman who is pushy and misleading. The inevitable happens, at which point she heads back to Jamaica for an extended vacation to see her father and meet his new wife and kid.
She quickly winds up introduced to the local lesbian community and has to learn everybody’s old drama as she’s also getting used to being around her family again. I found most of the supporting characters and the relational world Zedde sets up for this story really appealing–there’s an immense sense of interconnectedness that includes the dead characters we never get to meet in person as well. Zedde also gives us a rich, vivid, and easy to picture world of tropical plants, Jamaican food, what kinds of things there are to do in Jamaica if you’re there on vacation, and what kinds of jobs the locals do. Whiteness hovers in the background as a clueless, absent employer but is never really present on-screen.
There is a lot of sex in this book, but there are also a lot of scenes of the main character playing tourist on beaches and historic buildings, going to parties or restaurants, enjoying time with her family, etc. I just feel like if I had been counting the sex scenes I would have run out of fingers (and yes, I phrased it that way on purpose :P )
This is not a book that ignores the violent reality that anyone visibly queer in Jamaica may encounter, but because Zedde is writing from the inside and not from the point of view of some privileged white non queer writer, both the book’s scenes of attempted sexual violence from the hands of multiple strange men are:
1. foiled, completely and utterly
2. take up a very brief space in the narrative; they occur over the course of a page or two, are fended off, are processed emotionally with tears or a day of quiet or whatever else is necessary, and then we move on
3. they are not intended as a rejection of Jamaica. This is important. Over at WritingWithColor, we all get questions from people outside various marginalized groups trying to write about the ways that group mistreats vulnerable folks within its own LGBT community. I prefer to leave this narrative to people in the overlap of both groups, because comparing what Zedde writes to what some of these privileged writers write you can see the difference — at one point, one of the Jamaican lesbians even says “you have to love Jamaica anyway.” This is home; the food, the culture, the scenery, the history, the music. The problem is recognized but it’s not enough to drive them out and away into other places that may very well be just as physically dangerous.
I found the main character herself more appealing as a person than any of her love interests, honestly — obviously the first one was pushy beyond belief, but one on the island came on really strong as well and I had to just believe in Sinclair’s immense attraction to her being what wore down her initial “I have a broken heart and you come on super strong, meep” feelings.
Another topic about which Zedde writes much better than a privileged person trying to write about a marginalized community further marginalizing its LGBT members, is Sinclair’s father’s reaction to her lesbianism. I was stunned at how well this was pulled off because I’d never seen a character come around so realistically and so quickly. He’s upset, but a few pages later he dials it back and says that a lot of his upset is probably unfair. Can white, non-queer people trying to write about “oppressive” non-white or non-American parents please take a lesson from this book?
Anyway, aside from that issue I thought it was a great and realistic and familiar depiction of what happens when a parent who loves their child has discomfort with their choice of partner or sexuality but is trying to work around it. We don’t see too much of that in LGBT fiction; I’ve seen a lot of either ultra-acceptance (realistic for some of us, and even those who aren’t need some wish fulfillment) or ultra-disgustingness (cathartic and important to write from the inside; tragedy porn and sometimes not even written in a way that rings true, when writing from the outside.) A family that invites a girlfriend over for dinner and no horrible “I knew you’d ruin the evening!” argument happens even though one of the members feels negatively about the idea of a gay daughter is another way to be realistic, and belongs on the page. And it’s not like you as a reader are constantly made aware of his negativity, either.
Some choice quotes, so you can get a feel for the book’s snappy dialogue and evocative descriptors:
Sinclair: “Do you come downtown often?”
First girlfriend: “If you’ll let me, I’ll come at least two times today.”
Waitress: “Can I get you two anything to drink today?”
One of the main characters, about the other main character: “Some manners for her.”
Island love interest about the first girlfriend: “If she was worth half your sighs she would have been here with you on her knees apologizing for hurting you.”
Description of main character’s young stepmom: “short reddish hair that stood up around her head like a tamed flame”
Overall, the story tells itself; it flows really well and makes you want to keep reading. This isn’t the kind of book where you read a paragraph and then have to read it again because you didn’t catch what happens. In other words, Also, kudos to Zedde for using the phrase “maggot-white penis” to refer to a naked white guy in a BDSM club, because it reminded me of those posts pointing out how nobody talks about whiteness with the kind of evocative overscrutinizing detail usually afforded to darker skin in fiction.
Trigger warnings: two foiled attempts at sexual assault by multiple men in the Jamaica half of the book. The second time the women beat up the men pretty badly; it’s over quickly and you can skip the second time if you nope out for a couple of pages when they get to a place in the woods with tons of pretty tropical flowers.
Also, the first girlfriend’s behavior is borderline abusive in the sense that she puts Sinclair in situations she doesn’t want to be in and basically demands a veto as negative consent instead of asking if things are okay beforehand, and I’m talking big deal things like surprising her with orgies or kink clubs. Sometimes they are okay and sometimes they are not and Sinclair takes steps accordingly each time. Plus, she’s the kind of person who says “You’re an incredible fuck. Yet you’re so naïve. You’re like my lost childhood. My virginity.” which I know someone who had that said to them in real life and I’ve always found it super creepy (so does Sinclair.)
January 14, 2022
4 stars. This was messy but in the best way possible. While I did really like the main character, Bliss Sinclair, I side eyed the hell out of her for because ew. I could never. Anyway, besides that bit of trifling mess I did really like her relationship with Hunter. Hunter was charming and funny and I adored her to pieces. Her and Sinclair really worked well together. Though I will admit that I liked Regina a lot as well even though she was a fuck girl. She breaks Sinclair’s heart and everything but I loved her regardless. Don’t look at me.
The writing was really good and it is well paced. I loved the Jamaican setting and Sinclair’s family. The ending was super sweet and wraps up nicely. Plus, the sex scenes in this are top notch. So good. I had a lot of fun reading this. It’s very entertaining and I loved the character growth that Sinclair goes through. I’m looking forward to reading more by Zedde really soon.
The writing was really good and it is well paced. I loved the Jamaican setting and Sinclair’s family. The ending was super sweet and wraps up nicely. Plus, the sex scenes in this are top notch. So good. I had a lot of fun reading this. It’s very entertaining and I loved the character growth that Sinclair goes through. I’m looking forward to reading more by Zedde really soon.
May 27, 2011
I would have rated it higher than 3 stars, but like I mentioned in an earlier post the author gets carried away with all the descriptions of minute things, i.e. the different types of flowers in Jamaica. Some readers may fancy this style of writing, but I find it overly distracting. However, I was still able to set aside some of the distractions and visualize the scenery and paint the picture in my mind. The story really picked up its pace during the last few chapters, and this was the only time I considered it a page turner. Bliss in my opinion, is somewhat of a romance novel and I was delighted with the ending.
August 13, 2018
Not a lot of authors are able to use language like Fiona Zedde does. Her writing is like a strong erotic poem and I envy her so much for her gift.
March 7, 2017
This story is a hard one to rate. Some of the plot had me hovering on 5 stars, others parts barely three stars.
Its almost told in two parts. Life before Regina and life after Regina. The first 1/3 of the book focuses on the heroines steamy affair with Regina. And boy oh boy was it a sizzling hot affair, complete with an off the charts group sex scene!
Sex aside, I found myself riveted to the relationship between these two, Regina was so care free I loved her spirit. I actually was routing for these two to become a monogamous couple.
The author has a beautiful style of writing. Every smell, every home, every painting, every plant, is described in vivid detail. However, it was a little overdone for my tastes. The best way to put it is someone showing you an image of a scene that takes your breath away. Then a little while later they show it to you again and you are still captivated. But, by the tenth time the image is thrust under your nose you try to push past it. Which I found myself doing, in the form of skim reading those parts.
The relationship between the heroine (forgotten her name) and the woman she meets in Jamaica is a slow burn for various reasons. For one her father is an homophobe and rather judgmental. I found this rich coming from a man who had to be at least 50 possible closer to 55 (given the heroine was 33) was now married to a 22 year-old woman and they had a 4 year old son together. Doing the maths she must have been barely 17 when he started banging her, and that's okay? Talk about double standards.
4.5 star for the first half of this book. 3 stars for the long drawn out second half. Overall rating 3.75 stars.
EDIT to the above - Doh, as per the title the heroines name is Bliss, Bliss Sinclair! Silly me, lol.
Its almost told in two parts. Life before Regina and life after Regina. The first 1/3 of the book focuses on the heroines steamy affair with Regina. And boy oh boy was it a sizzling hot affair, complete with an off the charts group sex scene!
Sex aside, I found myself riveted to the relationship between these two, Regina was so care free I loved her spirit. I actually was routing for these two to become a monogamous couple.
The author has a beautiful style of writing. Every smell, every home, every painting, every plant, is described in vivid detail. However, it was a little overdone for my tastes. The best way to put it is someone showing you an image of a scene that takes your breath away. Then a little while later they show it to you again and you are still captivated. But, by the tenth time the image is thrust under your nose you try to push past it. Which I found myself doing, in the form of skim reading those parts.
The relationship between the heroine (forgotten her name) and the woman she meets in Jamaica is a slow burn for various reasons. For one her father is an homophobe and rather judgmental. I found this rich coming from a man who had to be at least 50 possible closer to 55 (given the heroine was 33) was now married to a 22 year-old woman and they had a 4 year old son together. Doing the maths she must have been barely 17 when he started banging her, and that's okay? Talk about double standards.
4.5 star for the first half of this book. 3 stars for the long drawn out second half. Overall rating 3.75 stars.
EDIT to the above - Doh, as per the title the heroines name is Bliss, Bliss Sinclair! Silly me, lol.
Read
June 22, 2011Hot, I loaned it to a friend and she loaned it to a few others, I got it back a year later.
August 28, 2015
The detailing of Jamaican lesbian life in Bliss, from the pervasive threat of violence, to the impossibly small dating pool, was enlightening to say the least.
February 15, 2019
I'd been wanting to read this for a while--ever since I saw a review of it maybe two years ago (I think it was Shira Glassman's) mentioning it being set in Jamaica and showing the setting really well, as well as great characterization. Since then, I've read two other Zedde books. Unfortunately this might be my least favorite of the three, though I still think it's a pretty good read.
I liked Sinclair, the main character's, complicated web of relationships throughout the book. Her "probably just sex but still so intense" relationship with Regina, the first woman she's ever hooked up with. Her relationship with her family, so estranged that it now has members she's never even met because she's been gone from Jamaica for twenty years. Her UST with Hunter is high-quality--Hunter is her sister's girlfriend so you're wondering for a long time if they're gonna get together or if they're just going to be friends with a ton of tension. Even her posthumous relationships with her mother and grandmother play a role.
I also did like the portrayal of Jamaica. The setting feels rich and alive and beautiful, yet at the same time you can see why people (like Sinclair) want to leave--people are poor and desperate, and especially for a gay woman it can be a dangerous place. (By the way, content warning for violent sexual assault.) Sinclair is conflicted over her feelings for this place, the place of her birth and childhood that is not so much her home anymore since her move to America but still holds so much of her heart and identity. It's a good source of tension, and as someone who knows very little about Jamaica, it was also a learning experience!
What I didn't like so much about this book is that it sometimes feels too long. There are so many scenes of Hunter and Sinclair or Sinclair and her friends or family just hanging out, and the pace can get a little slow. I also would have liked Hunter to have a little more depth; she's definitely seen through Sinclair's very sexualized view of her for the majority of the book, and I would like to get a better idea of her beyond her romantic relationships. But oh well. I still liked Hunter, overall.
So, it's definitely a unique book! Like I said earlier, content warnings for sexual assault and for some minor consent issues in Sinclair's relationship with Regina . I received a review copy through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
I liked Sinclair, the main character's, complicated web of relationships throughout the book. Her "probably just sex but still so intense" relationship with Regina, the first woman she's ever hooked up with. Her relationship with her family, so estranged that it now has members she's never even met because she's been gone from Jamaica for twenty years. Her UST with Hunter is high-quality--Hunter is her sister's girlfriend so you're wondering for a long time if they're gonna get together or if they're just going to be friends with a ton of tension. Even her posthumous relationships with her mother and grandmother play a role.
I also did like the portrayal of Jamaica. The setting feels rich and alive and beautiful, yet at the same time you can see why people (like Sinclair) want to leave--people are poor and desperate, and especially for a gay woman it can be a dangerous place. (By the way, content warning for violent sexual assault.) Sinclair is conflicted over her feelings for this place, the place of her birth and childhood that is not so much her home anymore since her move to America but still holds so much of her heart and identity. It's a good source of tension, and as someone who knows very little about Jamaica, it was also a learning experience!
What I didn't like so much about this book is that it sometimes feels too long. There are so many scenes of Hunter and Sinclair or Sinclair and her friends or family just hanging out, and the pace can get a little slow. I also would have liked Hunter to have a little more depth; she's definitely seen through Sinclair's very sexualized view of her for the majority of the book, and I would like to get a better idea of her beyond her romantic relationships. But oh well. I still liked Hunter, overall.
So, it's definitely a unique book! Like I said earlier, content warnings for sexual assault and for some minor consent issues in Sinclair's relationship with Regina . I received a review copy through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
July 8, 2024
This is the type of book you read when you want to escape and just be mindlessly entertained. I love escaping into the Black lesbian world and even more so in the Black lesbian Jamaican world. I left Jamaica as a child and this was comforting.
February 15, 2021
One of my favorites
The story of Bliss and Hunter is one of my favorites by Fiona. It's a story of heartbreak, self-discovery, reconnecting, love and rediscovering home. It's a delicious story of how love finds Sin and Hunt.
The story of Bliss and Hunter is one of my favorites by Fiona. It's a story of heartbreak, self-discovery, reconnecting, love and rediscovering home. It's a delicious story of how love finds Sin and Hunt.
August 25, 2016
This was the first book of Ms Zedde that I read. I absolutely loved the characters, she has such a way with words and have been a fan of hers every since.
March 20, 2020
I loved this book. I have to admit I am a big fan of Fiona Zedde’s work and erotic writing but I also enjoy reading books about other cultures. Zedde elaborates on her own Jamaican culture in this book—the food, the landscape, and family and neighborhood relations. I thought she did a fine job showing what it’s like to be queer in Jamaica which is very different from Bliss’s experience in America. In addition, the reader gets a clear picture of a woman coming back to her home after living the successful life in America and how she is with family and her new love. The homophobia in the greater society as well as among acquaintances is explored. The warmth of family and friends, too. Fiona Zedde writing pulls me in and her lesbian erotica is simply beautiful. I also recommend her book To Italy with Love.
July 19, 2024
Award-winning f/f romance set in Jamaica (author is Jamaican). The first part of the book is the heroine's sexual awakening (first time with a woman) and subsequent heartbreak. The second (and main) part of the book is about her travelling "home" to Jamaica after many years in the US, reacquainting herself with the island, meeting old and new family members, and eventually falling in love. Zedde's writing is engrossing and she writes about Jamaica with love without shying away from its problems. I enjoyed it a lot!
April 1, 2021
A lovely romance taking place in a stunning setting. It took me a bit to get invested in the story, but once Sinclair gets to Jamaica, I was hooked. The rich, beautiful descriptions and the complex relationships kept me glued to the pages. I loved this book and I'm going to try out Fiona Zedde's other novels.
June 10, 2021
Returning to the First
This was my first LGBTQ read when I first started writing. I was given this book by a total stranger when she heard I was a writer. I'm so glad I c as me across this novel again after losing my original copy. This author is definitely going places and I'm glad to follow her journey
This was my first LGBTQ read when I first started writing. I was given this book by a total stranger when she heard I was a writer. I'm so glad I c as me across this novel again after losing my original copy. This author is definitely going places and I'm glad to follow her journey
December 25, 2025
regina arc was somehow a bore and lowkey problematic. sinclair lacked appeal, personality, and morals til she visited her family in Jamaica. enjoyed the candid exploration of Jamaican culture (the good bad and ugly of it all) more than the love story
May 3, 2018
Very provocative and an eye opener on sexual relations with bi-sexual and non-bisexual people and working women finding themselves in a place where they are not accepted.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 9, 2019
This was a fun and rompy romance with only a smidge of drama happening inside. I really liked all the female leads but i wish there had been more of a build-up with the girl she has a fling with at the beginning and her assistant. These were the only characters that felt wafer-thin and weak when compared to the rest of the book. The setting of Jamaica was well explored and Zedde really helped create the island setting on the page.I would definitely pick up another romance by this author as this was such a fun read.
I received this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
I received this book from Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
January 7, 2021
Nice
This is a great love story. The main characters meet when one is on vacation. They are immediately attracted to each other. There are great love scenes and a nice ending.
This is a great love story. The main characters meet when one is on vacation. They are immediately attracted to each other. There are great love scenes and a nice ending.
February 12, 2022
Every chapter is better than the previous one...
Read
March 10, 2022
Trigger & Content Warnings
Queermisia
Queermisia
May 8, 2023
One of my favorite books by you.
January 2, 2009
Bliss Equals Pleasure
Fiona Zedde delivers the sexually erotic story of Bliss Sinclair, also known as Sinclair. Sinclair has what a lot of women dream of having - a wonderful and beautiful boyfriend, a stable career, and options of being whatever she wants to be in life. Sinclair soon finds out this dream is not hers. She falls for a beautiful writer, Regina, and leaves her boyfriend to venture into what she feels is something that has to be done. After a whirlwind romance, Sinclair is left feeling lonely, abandoned, and insecure.
Sinclair begins her healing process with a four week trip to her roots of Jamaica. After rekindling her relationship with a father that she hasn't seen in over twenty years and his new family - her much younger stepmother Nikki and her stepbrother Xavier, Sinclair also learns that she has a sister, Lydia, from an affair that her father had while he was with Sinclair's mother. Feeling as though she has embarked on yet another wave of turmoil, Sinclair meets Lydia's girlfriend Hunter. There is an attraction that each woman feels is mutual but because of the circumstances, they try to settle on just being friends. After what seems like a lifetime span only equals to days of Lydia and Hunter separating and opening the door for Sinclair and Hunter to see what their attraction will eventually lead to.
Fiona opens your mind and heart to the lesbian lifestyle showing not only the love that two women share with each other but also how modern day time still has a closed mind to anything other than heterosexual commitment. Fiona did an excellent literary job of capturing the love of both women; but for me skimming through the more erotic scenes kept me interested in reading from beginning to end.
Reviewed by: LaDonna
Fiona Zedde delivers the sexually erotic story of Bliss Sinclair, also known as Sinclair. Sinclair has what a lot of women dream of having - a wonderful and beautiful boyfriend, a stable career, and options of being whatever she wants to be in life. Sinclair soon finds out this dream is not hers. She falls for a beautiful writer, Regina, and leaves her boyfriend to venture into what she feels is something that has to be done. After a whirlwind romance, Sinclair is left feeling lonely, abandoned, and insecure.
Sinclair begins her healing process with a four week trip to her roots of Jamaica. After rekindling her relationship with a father that she hasn't seen in over twenty years and his new family - her much younger stepmother Nikki and her stepbrother Xavier, Sinclair also learns that she has a sister, Lydia, from an affair that her father had while he was with Sinclair's mother. Feeling as though she has embarked on yet another wave of turmoil, Sinclair meets Lydia's girlfriend Hunter. There is an attraction that each woman feels is mutual but because of the circumstances, they try to settle on just being friends. After what seems like a lifetime span only equals to days of Lydia and Hunter separating and opening the door for Sinclair and Hunter to see what their attraction will eventually lead to.
Fiona opens your mind and heart to the lesbian lifestyle showing not only the love that two women share with each other but also how modern day time still has a closed mind to anything other than heterosexual commitment. Fiona did an excellent literary job of capturing the love of both women; but for me skimming through the more erotic scenes kept me interested in reading from beginning to end.
Reviewed by: LaDonna
February 27, 2025
Use the following link to see the video review:
https://youtu.be/AkK710S1lLo
I enjoyed this book from a clinical standpoint in that a gave me a glimpse into the mind of a lesbian. Fiona Zedde takes us on a journey of realization, discovery, acceptance, and finally ...bliss.
I must admit, that I was engrossed, as the main character removed herself from a tedious relationship with a man to be turned out completely by an Uber lesbian. Only to find her heart shattered and then realize that many of the problems that she was faced with in a relationship with a man apply to having one with a woman as well.
The tale then slowed down for me a bit, as the main character then ran home to Daddy (which I found a bit ironic) to lick her wounds and patch her soul. Although, the imagery that Zedde paints of Jamaica and it's people is vivid and enlightening, the book dragged a bit as Bliss finally finds true love.
As far as erotica goes though, Zedde is no joke. You won't be disappointed with her sex scenes even if you don't swing that way. Girl on girl. Girl's spanking girls. An orgy with girls from every race. Ohhh my! I do believe that I need to take a trip to the bathroom and finish reflecting on my most favorite parts of the book....
Euftis Emery
Revenge - Between my lovers legs...
https://youtu.be/AkK710S1lLo
I enjoyed this book from a clinical standpoint in that a gave me a glimpse into the mind of a lesbian. Fiona Zedde takes us on a journey of realization, discovery, acceptance, and finally ...bliss.
I must admit, that I was engrossed, as the main character removed herself from a tedious relationship with a man to be turned out completely by an Uber lesbian. Only to find her heart shattered and then realize that many of the problems that she was faced with in a relationship with a man apply to having one with a woman as well.
The tale then slowed down for me a bit, as the main character then ran home to Daddy (which I found a bit ironic) to lick her wounds and patch her soul. Although, the imagery that Zedde paints of Jamaica and it's people is vivid and enlightening, the book dragged a bit as Bliss finally finds true love.
As far as erotica goes though, Zedde is no joke. You won't be disappointed with her sex scenes even if you don't swing that way. Girl on girl. Girl's spanking girls. An orgy with girls from every race. Ohhh my! I do believe that I need to take a trip to the bathroom and finish reflecting on my most favorite parts of the book....
Euftis Emery
Revenge - Between my lovers legs...
October 19, 2016
I'm so sorry that I forgot to leave my review upon finishing this book, big lapse in memory. I really enjoyed this novel. Bliss is full of life...all aspects of it. It's rich with color and texture as Bliss explores who she is and what it is she really wants. Bored with her boyfriend, she takes a short walk on the wild side and then feels suddenly drawn to go back to Jamaica to visit and reconnect with her family. I've visited Jamaica a couple of times but never got to see the "real" Jamaica as Fiona so accurately and beautifully describes it. Fiona tells it like it is and doesn't whitewash the seamier side of life, the wondrous ups and downs of true love, the complexities of family life, and the entire spectrum of life in a big city and then in Jamaica. Bliss is a well-written book and one I will undoubtedly read again later on.
February 4, 2021
Bliss Sinclair is leading a regular life. Working in the accounts department of a publishing house, dating a guy she likes. A chance meeting with Regina, one of their authors, sends Sinclair’s life into a tailspin. Regina aggressively comes on to Sinclair and barely three days later, Sinclair finds herself breaking off from her boyfriend. Regina introduces Sinclair to all sorts of sexual experiences and a month later, calmly announces that their time together is over. To get over her heartbreak, Sinclair accepts her father’s oft-extended invite to visit him in Jamaica for a month. In Jamaica, Sinclair meets her step-mom – twenty-two year old Nikki, a twenty-five year old sister, Lydia and Lydia’s darkly wicked, seductive girlfriend Hunter. Hunter and Sinclair end up together soon.
Read the full review @https://bestlesficreviews.blogspot.co...
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 35 reviews