This was a fantastic read of erotica collection and just seeing trans people as well as their partners just being sexy and sexual with one another. There’s a good balance of contemporary and speculative fiction in the mix. As with all anthologies, I have found some stories that were my favorites and others that weren’t my thing. Overall, this a perfect anthology for anyone that just wants to read about trans people have a good time.

Like any book with short stories by multiple writers, some are always better than others. I am going to tell yall of the ones I liked.

Past Midnight, Before Dawn, Stray. Something's happening to Rylen, The Pink Lady and the Social Club, and Immersed.

I highly recommend reading these stories and I honestly enjoyed them.

The others were not bad really, just a bit boring and boring is not what you want to see when you are reading erotica.

***Thank you NetGalley for this ARC***

I really enjoyed this anthology of short stories, and I do mean short. Quite a few of them feel like the beginning of a really great story and ended too soon for me. It leans into Sci-fi/Fantasy/Paranormal far more than I expected it to so if you aren't a fan of those themes this won't be for you. I also felt like a lot of the stories could have used much more show and less tell, for me good erotica has a nice blending of both. But a few stories fell short for me.

I enjoyed seeing a mixture of pronouns and various kinds of relationships. Though it did feel very heavy with AFAB characters paired with male characters. But that didn't bother me too much but something that might be a flag for others.

Overall it was a good read. Definitely different from the mainstream erotica.

Unfortunately I DNF-ed this read as I just couldn’t get into it. As a queer person, I usually love queer stories but I felt the ones I read in this anthology were very lacklustre. It just didn’t seem very well edited. A wonderful premise though!

Absolutely loved this anthology! The stories were spicy and varied. I adore all the positive queer and kink rep in the stories. Not your cookie cutter smut. Will be posting in depth review on Amazon when book releases.

I enjoyed this collection of naughty shorts. There were more paranormal elements than I (perhaps naively) expected, which is not generally my preferred flavour of romance, but I still enjoyed most of the tales. A few did feel a little under-developed, due to their required length. I was really enjoying 'The Pink Lady' but it felt like it ended too early and abruptly. I'd like to see that expanded into a longer tale.

Stand-outs for me were "Something's Happening to Rylen" and "Redgum", as I felt the strongest emotional connection between the characters in those entries.

There are some truly tough reviews for this collection, and unfortunately I have to agree with them. I went into this really, desperately wanting it to be so good- but the stories are truly hit or miss. The introduction of the story, written by Mx. Nillin Lore alluded to a truly different collection than I actually experienced. As the desired audience of this book (queer, non-binary, enjoyer of sex, underrepresented in a lot of ways) I wanted more than was given. Mildly disappointing, though I suppose the sheer creativity(?) and outlandish story premises should be complimented on? Overall, the stories were very short, often jumbled, and questionably edited. It was not what I expected, and other reviewers have made some great points that should be taken note of if there are publications of future collections.
Thank you to NetGalley, and the publisher, for allowing my access to an eARC.

NetGalley ARC Educator 550974

A truly remarkable book of erotica. You'll be dazzled, awed and maybe turned on. The stories cover all ranges of intimacy and sex. Hopefully this won't be the last of the installment.

This was a fun and interesting read! I love reading erotica but have never seen stories focused on trans or nonbinary people, so I was really excited to read this. I also have never read a fiction book that's made up of a bunch of short stories, so this book was a first for me and several ways!
I loved the fantastical elements to some of the stories. It made it super fun and interesting to read! The short story format is not my favorite, but it worked in this context to give the reader a taste for several different themes and romantic partners.
If you're looking for nonbinary or trans erotic stories, this is definitely for you!
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for a free ARC!

First of all, full disclosure: I did not finish this book. I will put it down to my own asexuality though rather than the content or writing. I did get around 100 pages in though. It's good, it's gritty, it's honest, and it has a lot of scenarios. For me, I couldn't vibe with it because I need a strong connection with characters before I care about anything else. Each story is about 2 pages long, so it didn't give me the opportunity I needed to become invested. I know that's not really the point of the book though, so I'm still rating it highly. I think it does what it set out to do, I just didn't get what I wanted from it. I liked concept of some of the shorts and I would probably recommend this to some of my friends who might enjoy it more than I did. It's diverse, genderqueer sex which is underrepresented, so I still appreciate this book.

I was looking forward to this anthology because Chace Verity, one of the contributing authors, is one of my all time favorite authors, but I’m happy to say I enjoyed every story in this anthology, where only Chace and Rien Gray were familiar-to-me authors. I’m going to describe this book as a sexy hug because it’s so affirming and lovely and sweet, while also being extremely sexy and arousing, a perfect blend. There is something so intrinsically queer in every story, and that fills my heart with such joy. I loved all the different gender expressions and the different iterations of kink and the various ways characters interacted with their bodies. I really had a lot of fun with this anthology, and I’m so extremely glad it exists, and hope many folks needing more trans and nonbinary erotica in their life find it and enjoy it as well!

The spice in this books was amazing. As someone so used to a heteronormative spice scene, I loved reading about trans and non binary.

Definitely a fun read with the different authors and writing styles!!

I'm so glad this book exists!!!!!!

As the intro states, this isn't the first collection of trans a nonbinary erotica, and I sincerely hope it is not the last. The stories had a lot of variety and elements at play so there's going to be something for (almost) everyone in here. I had a great time reading this, and hope to see more collections like this in the future. I will absolutely be submitting this for addition to my library's collection as we could definitely use more diversity and variety in this genre.

So.
How „good“ smut is obviously mainly determined by personal preferences. How many details you want, which words are used, if/which kinks are included, the interplay between characters – there really isn't an exact formula. For short stories, there are some general guidelines to help make them good. Not too explosition-heavy, use your word count wisely, sparse but effective worldbuilding...


Therefore, I was surprised at how... average this anthology is.
First, so many of these pieces feel rushed which is just not the experience you want to have while reading. Second, I don't feel many of these stories were actually that erotic. Maybe it's my bias but I have read some incredible pieces by queer authors, some even included in here, that were better than what was presented in this. There was no place to feel sexy because of often quite terrible writing.
Many of the authors do not have any titles listed on Goodreads which only supports my assumption that they have written few if any short stories before...


Aside from the queer rep, we don't have much other diversity.
The POV characters are usually, thin white, and conventionally attractive (or the narrative simply does not contradict my assumption). The body types are all pretty similar and characters seem to easily pass if they want to. There are few characters of colour. There is no religious or disabled character. And many of these stories tended towards having the trans AFAB person on the bottom which is not really that groundbreaking?


For an anthology like this, I wish there had been content notes in the back for every story since I am of the opinion that your hard limit should not be a surprise. It would have been so easy to include the list of kinks.






A full breakdown of the stories, couples and my opinion behind these spoilers.
Idle Hands & Dirty Minds by Jaymie Wagner | ★★★✩✩
(f/f/f, two witches summon a succubus)
A little bit of a mixed start. Sarah and Dina had great chemistry together and I loved the lighthearted atmosphere but I felt like the sex came in the way of the plot which is the opposite of the problem I want.


Welcome Aboard by Quenby | ★★★✩✩
(x/x/x, kinky pirates welcoming a friend back into their midst)
This one had a lot going on, mostly to its detriment. I was not really feeling the established dynamic at play, I would have needed a bit more info on their relationship for that but it still works for this escapist fantasy if a little juvenile.


Only the Good Die Young by Ash Reilly | ★★★✩✩
(f/x, planning and executing a heist with your bratty lover)
Maybe a little too heavy on the non-sexual plot? Or maybe I just loved their teasing so much I wanted it to be a stronger focus.


This Fragile Little Affair by Kelvin Sparks | ★★★★✩
(f/m, another private meeting in the library)
Okay, this one really got to me – I love it when a couple has different sexual needs and both choices are treated with respect. Adding in this frenemies/colleagues setup that had them sniping at each other? Ticked all my boxes.


Past Midnight, Before Dawn by Anne Stagg | ★✩✩✩✩
(m/x, comfort sex)
This was so exposition-heavy. This did not read like an established couple being comfortable with one another but like a 101 class on communication. The author overexplained every little detail as if we would not pick up on it otherwise. The tonal shift was also terrible, starting a short story with a nightmare about queer-related fears only to go straight to sex is – a choice.
I read this one twice because it has explicit ace rep but, uh, Stagg did not convey what I think this was supposed to be.

The Earth Within Me by Lilith Hill | ★★✩✩✩
(m/x, rope play with a ghost)
To quote the story: this felt like a bad movie.

Stray by M.J. Moréo | ★✩✩✩✩
(m/m, roleplay in the forest)
I could not get lost in the fantasy because the author had to remind me every two pages that yes, this was all negotiated beforehand. I understood it the first time, thanks.
The setup was so elaborate but the end result is, once again, time. Why not do actual catboys.

The Devil You Blow by Rien Gray | ★★★★✩
(m/m, gym buddies, fuck buddies)
I should not have been afraid cause I can count on Gray to actually deliver what this anthology promises: great smut. There is actual buildup, the small wordcount used wisely to create tension and


Something's Happening by Mx. Nillin Lore | ★✩✩✩✩
(f/x, the partner is going through a furry transformation)
The entire flashback could have been cut to actual give us the monsterfucking we were promised? I am confused, how did this happen.
The fact that this was written by the editor explains a lot.

redgum by Ash Orlando | ★★★★✩
(m/x, kinky camping getaway)
a pretty good mix of background information that grounded the story and emotions without treating the reader like an idiot.

The Pink Lady Bar And Social Club by Sam McAuliff | ★★✩✩✩
(m/f, time travel to a speakeasy)
Boring. Where was the passion?
Didn't help that this has two things I actively dislike.

Immersed by Chace Verity | ★★★✩✩
(f/f, meeting a mermaid)
This is exactly what I expected from them but you can tell this is either too short or too long. It does not really fit in this book.

Better By Half-Elf by Sally Bend | ★✩✩✩✩
(f/x, a public sex show)
This has way too much unnecessary worldbuilding, the most confusing/graphic depiction of a sex change and a gender reveal as shock factor. This is what I would point to when trying to explain to people that simply including sex into your story does not make it erotic. Ironic.

Forbidden Fruit by Sienna Saint-Cyr | ★✩✩✩✩
(x/x, tentacle rape fantasy turned reality)
Why build tension when the main character could just go shopping instead. And I am begging for author to learn how to make negotiation sexy. It's possible, I swear!
This CW is also incorrect because CNC actually means the partner will stop. If this alien can't, why are we discussing safewords and why did the author not commit to their premise.
The asexual comment in this one is fine?

Sex With Your Ex by Quinn Rhodes | ★★★✩✩
(m/x/m, negotiated hatefuck)
Nothing mindblowing but it could have been worse.



When I hear #ownvoices trans erotica, I do not expect a 101 guide on safe sex practices and the basics of transitioning, hormones and such. I do not expect so many other things that the erotic content takes a backseat.
Aside from Ash Orlando, Rien Gray and maybe Kelvin Sparks, the other authors really missed the point of this.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for offering me an arc in exchange for an honest review!

I greatly enjoyed some of the stories in this book, and some of them were not for me. This is to be expected of a short story collection with many different writers and types of stories, but some of these stories I could not enjoy even with the stipulation that they just might not be for me. I did enjoy that a lot of these stories contained an element of sci-fi or fantasy as that added depth to the story and the characters. However, I wish there had been more diversity in the bodies and presentation of the characters and their positions, and I also wish I had felt more chemistry between most of these pairs. Of course, that could be down to a difference in writers- some couples I felt a lot of chemistry from, others I did not feel much.

Honestly, I'm so glad this collection of short stories exists, simply to have had the pleasure of reading 'Redgum' by Ash Orlando. I felt transported to the Australian outback, and I loved the relationship and chemistry between these two characters. Although I applaud the mission behind the collection, to gather gender diverse erotica written by Own Voices authors, I wish there had been a little more diversity of internal experience and presentation amongst the characters. With one or two notable exceptions, many of the stories lean on somewhat tired tropes, and I was hoping for something a little more fearless. With that said, I think this anthology offers a strong jumping-off point for readers looking to dip their toe into trans and nonbinary erotica.

I am grateful to the publisher and NetGalley for providing an ARC of 'Heckin' Lewd: Trans and Ninbinary Erotica'. These opinions are my own.