Jennifer Paris’ erotic take on The Beauty and The Beast fairy tale will flush your cheeks as the Beast and our Beauty engage in some pretty heavy BDSM behavior. It takes quite a lot to make me blush while reading, but Paris accomplished this in spades. What I immediately noticed about this novella is the level of detail that Paris goes into while describing intimate and non-intimate interactions. My reading pace slowed down considerably. I wasn’t just speeding through another novel, I was absorbing ever word, every page in this written indulgence.
At first I found myself hating the Beast for acting like such a stubborn animal and hating Amarantha for allowing herself to be subjected to such treatment from the Beast, but when I got to the end of the novella, I found myself hoping that their relationship worked out. All of the beauty and pain in Amarantha and the Beast’s relationship came into clear focus and suddenly made sense.
Paris is an amazing writer who has the ability to slow down time and pull you into a world that you thought you knew. I urge everyone to buy this insanely amazing novella. I look forward to reading more erotica by Paris. Hopefully she has more twisted fairy tales for us to indulge in.
5 Questions with Jennifer Paris
1. What inspired you to write Petals and Thorns?
I saw a call for an anthology of “Red Hot Fairytales” and I thought, oh, I should write this Beauty and the Beast story that’s been rattling around in my head for so long. I saw the French version when I was a kid, which was very dark. There was this whole element about her not leaving her bedchamber at night because there were going on. I always wondered what the Beast wanted to do to Beauty, once he had her locked up in that castle.
2. What is your favorite scene in the novel?
I kind of love the “ball.” Where he covers her in rose petals and dances with her. In some ways, that scene of the two them dancing, cements their love for me. It’s like the couple who dances in a crowd, feeling totally alone and intimate. I like how this scene is in some ways more emotionally naked than all of the extremes they’ve experienced together.
3. Who did you enjoy writing about more – Amarantha or the Beast?
Oh, Amarantha. The story is really from her perspective. Though the Beast’s past and curse drive the story, it’s really Amarantha’s fantasy. That’s important to me, that this is a female BDSM story. It’s easy with male-dominant BDSM to make it be about what the male wants, but in this case, he has to find what she wants. And then he ruthlessly uses it to seduce her, which is wonderful on many levels.
4. What was the most exciting thing that happened to you while writing Petals and Thorns?
This feels like a loaded question! I loved how fun it was to explore their seven days together. I find it delicious to write. I wake up in the morning, which is when I write, with these lovely dreams of the Beast and his claws… and, erm… well, it’s all very exciting. Really, the best part has been the after. So many readers have said how much they love the story, that it makes me feel all warm and fuzzy. In some part of my heart, Amarantha and Roland are living out their lives, throwing lavish balls and doing kinky things afterwards. I love that other people have them there, too.
5. Are you working on a new novel? If so, can you tell us a little about it?
Actually, I have a new BDSM – a contemporary this time – called Sapphire.
It’s about a career-driven “Ice Queen” and the colleague who breaks down her barriers – at first, by handcuffing her to the rail of a yacht! It gets much more intimate after that. A fabulous editor at a pretty wonderful publisher likes it but asked for a few revisions. All of which were really smart. I’m excited to think it might enter the world soon!
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