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Location: United States

Member Since: March 22, 2010

Jody Faltys

Smashwords book reviews by Jody Faltys

Hidden Depths on Oct. 30, 2011

Hidden Depths is an intriguing paranormal story with a diverse group of paranormal creatures written by the Queen of Steam, Emma Holly. It focuses of the unique world of the wereseals, a world full of magic and mythological creatures. Their world has some similarities to ours and is ruled by royalty. Into this magical world, the Forsters' are thrown. And with a marriage that was looking for a little something to spice it up, they get more than they expected. James and Olivia are extremely loving but are open-minded to other possibilities. They don't see these other possibilities as damaging to their relationship though. They're secure enough in their bond to experiment. Enter newly-crowned King Anso. He feels the weight of his new responsibilities at the same time as his body's need to mate with the one nature chooses for him. It's led him to kidnapping Olivia and bringing her to his world to become Queen. Up until now, his only sexual experiences have been with men per their culture. Once he finds Olivia though, he has no intention of giving her up. No amount of political maneuverings or other's jealousy will sway him. He's lucky to have his long time lover Ty to support his decisions and to add strength to his new relationship. Both of these men are strong and sexy and I can understand why Olivia and James became so enamored with them. Anso is the more serious of the two with a wall surrounding him. Ty is the joker, thought of as lower class because of his lineage and long list of conquests, but he's extremely likable and loyal to his true love Anso. Olivia and Anso get together immediately upon meeting and it's extremely hot, as is every other time they're together. James and Ty also get together quickly. Their scenes are steamy as well and even though things happen quickly they're still believable. All the sexual interludes are hot and vary between m/f, m/m, m/f/m, and a menage amongst all four of them. These scenes occur frequently and at times overwhelmed the storyline. I wish there was a bit more character development, particularly with the villain who was very stereotypical and one-dimensional, and a bit less sex. The world of the wereseals is unique and eye-catching. It has some elements of the human world but is much more exotic. There's magic and dragons and other kinds of creatures existing in their world who try not to enter the human realm. Once Olivia is made Queen though the interactions have to happen since they have a daughter. This opens up all sorts of storyline possibilities for future books. This was a sexually intense book set in a visually intriguing world. The sexual interludes are steamy and creative and very unique to Ms. Holly. This book is part of a series but it can easily be read on it's own. For those looking for something a bit out of the ordinary look no further than Hidden Depths.