Amber Lloyd

Usually I'm disappointed reading erotic stories, like porn movies, the bulk of them tend to have weak characters, weaker stories (if any at all) and tiresome sex scenes. While Ms. Lloyd (the author, not the book character) could use a little more ingenuity in the sex scene part, I thought she did a fine job putting together an interesting cast of characters, an interesting story line, and, most importantly, plausible interactions with the characters.

Newly divorced Amber is given quite an offer - a fabulous apartment, all paid, a generous monthly stipend, and pretty much any material thing she could want for agreeing to service 5 guys, all part of a contract. The guys all have issues, from sexual dysfunction to hyper-sexed. The main protagonist, Steve, doesn't ever even have a quickie with her. Meanwhile, Amber takes her job seriously and strives to address these issues in her patrons; consulting doctors and the like. The "contract" comes crashing down when one of the signers spills the beans to his wife, but the elusive Steve pretty much sets her up for life, and for the second novel in the series. For once in this genre I'm looking forward to the next one.… (meer)

For erotic fiction, this was fairly vanilla.
Amber has lived her life as an unsatisfied wife to a selfish husband. Upon her divorce she changes her name and moves to a new town.
Down on her luck, and funds quickly dwindling, Amber comes across a strange ad for a 'House Mother'.
The situation is clear, be mistress to five men and they will cover all your expenses, give you a place to live and a car to drive. Her apartment is voice controlled, her neighbour is a Madam and becomes a good friend.
The men come with problems.
One wants to cheat but can't, except for phone sex and foreplay. Amber eventually gets him to cheat and this made me uncomfortable, because she gave him an ultimatum to have sex when it was clear he didn't want to. This ultimately leads to him falling in love with her and confessing everything to his wife.
One is a borderline sex addict who has sex with Amber in a way she didn't consent to (she didn't say no wither which apparently makes it OK) and he didn't really apologise for it in a genuine way.
One can't get it up, one comes too early and one she doesn't really get to see because he is always called away for work.
Amber essentially becomes a sex therapist to these men, going above and beyond what is expected of her.

Until the last part of the book, it isn't mentioned that before following her husband, Amber had been studying to be a therapist. Which makes her incessant need to 'fix' these men seem a lot like she is returning to the woman she was in her marriage.
Amber is obsessed with vaginal orgasms and masturbating in her shower and even though she is with, or thinking of different people, these scenes become repetitive. The sex scenes are weird with the way they are written, the oral sex and ejaculation scenes especially.

The idea of this book is good, but there is a factor I can't put my finger on that makes me uncomfortable, and not in a prudish way.
The "House Mother" title given to Amber is problematic for me because it lends a juvenile quality to these grown men. Typically a house mother is a carer for a sorority or boarding school and is some respects she fulfils this by mothering these men.
Her transformation from sexually repressed housewife to horny mistress unrealistically happens overnight and there's even a little one-sided lesbian scene thrown in for good measure.

Consent is an issue for me in this. Amber never really says no, even if it's something she is uncomfortable with, except one scene with a guy who she says no to because she is contractually obligated to these specific five men. It's disappointing that a character who found her moxie after leaving her husband winds up so beholden to people for friendship, money and orgasms that she loses her voice again.… (meer)