Chef's Kiss: A BDSM Romance Short

Chef's Kiss
A BDSM Romance Short
by Giselle Renarde
ISBN: 9781005491642
Word Count: 7,000

Holly wants more than just an autograph from TV’s sexy Chef Burley. Every time she watches the celebrity sweating over a hot stove, her imagination runs wild. Holly’s not usually the kind of woman who would throw herself at a man, but she’s willing to make an exception for Chef Burley.

Every woman at the book signing wants a piece of the sexy celebrity chef. How will Holly stand out from the crowd?

Fast-paced fiction from award-winning author Giselle Renarde.

Previously published as “Seducing the Sexy Celebrity Chef.”

Buy Now from Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1159960?ref=GiselleRenardeErotica
Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/books/details?id=vXuAEAAAQBAJ
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0B9C5V23D?tag=dondes-20
Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/ca/en/ebook/chef-s-kiss-2

Find more retailers with the Universal Book Link: https://books2read.com/ChefsKiss

The Fantasy of Romance

Note: originally posted in 2014

Here's something you should never admit when you work in this industry: I'm not a romantic.

But that's my truth.  I soured on romance early in life because I never felt represented in Disney-esque storylines.  I'm queer and I'm weird.  I was never a princess and I never wanted a prince.  Romance as a genre did not speak to me.

Apart from being queer and not identifying with heteromance (which struck me as prescriptive and ridiculous in terms of what's considered acceptable and appropriate behaviour in establishing a relationship), I also found the idea of the happy-ever-after a little... well, unrealistic.  Fantastic, in other words.

Romance is a fantasy.

A couple months ago, there was a hashtag on Twitter that had something to do with romance readers' guilty confessions.  I noticed a lot of readers tweeting that they didn't care how a story resolved itself so long as the lovers lived happily ever after.  They didn't care if the romance was realistic.  They just wanted to feel warm and fuzzy at the end.

Of course, not everybody following the conversation agreed.  Some readers want the plot to resonate, or at least to... you know, make sense.  For myself, I'd rather watch everything fall apart.  That's reality.  I'd rather see real, deep troubles between people--troubles that aren't easily or ever fixed.

But the fantasy of romance must have wriggled its way into my writing brain. I happened to be writing a fluffy bit of erotica, at the time, called "Seducing the Sexy Celebrity Chef"--now renames "Chef's Kiss."  I intended it as a hardcore romp--a woman's sexual fantasy of getting it on with a domineering TV chef. 

But as I wrote my Chef story, its intention began to morph.  I was trying to write a story that was all about sex, and suddenly it was infusing itself with romance.  Suddenly, my famous chef wanted even more than my star-struck woman.

I tried editing out all that fantastic romance, even as I wrote it.  For some reason, I couldn't stop myself.  Romance overpowered me.  When I handed the manuscript over to my girlfriend, who is also my contract editor, I asked her, "Is this too far from reality?"  I really hoped she'd tell me it was.  I hoped she'd advise me to change the story and remove some of that gushy, far-from-life romance.

But she didn't.  She liked it.

What is it that's so satisfying about the fantasy of romance?  Even as I reread that story and told myself, "This would never happen--not in a million years!" I couldn't change it.  Maybe even the most jaded among us maintain the fantasy of an easy love, an easy romance, an easy life.

That's not reality.  Maybe that's why we (yes, even the cynics and the pessimists) need a fictional shot of happy every once in a while.

Hugs,
Giselle

Other Talents

I find my happy place in graphic design. My partner's constantly asking me why I don't offer up my services, if it's something I enjoy so much.  I was thinking about this as I designed myself a new book cover just now, and that's when I remembered this post I wrote a few years ago for a writers' blog I belonged to.  

It still seems apt, so I'm sharing it here:

(c) cocoandwifi

My grandmother is terribly proud of the new kitchen light my uncle installed for her. "He's such a perfectionist," she told me. "But he takes his time. He enjoys the work."

"He could make some extra money as a handyman now that he's retired," my mother said.

"No, no. He'd never do that. If this was a real job with pay and clients, then it would feel like work and he wouldn't want to do it anymore."

Same thing with me and graphic design.

I've mentioned before that cover art was, in my mind, a barrier to entry to the world of self-publishing. I knew I couldn't afford to commission quality cover art, but I also didn't know how to create it myself.

That was a big hurdle, but the less I earned in royalties from small presses, the more I realized I needed to make a change--and self-publishing was the best change for me.

I'm a self-taught cover designer. It's a skill I've acquired by trial and error. I won't say it's a "talent" necessarily, because I know some spectacular graphic designers and my covers really don't stack up.

From time to time, I do commission covers from people I consider "real" graphic designers, but the truth is that I've grown to love playing with my design program. Even after four years using it, I learn something new with every cover I create.

I was an artist, as a kid. Teachers told me I'd grow up to be a writer but I never believed them. I only wrote stories so I could draw pictures to go along with them. Maybe cover art is my adult version of book illustrations.

But there's a reason I don't offer up my skills for cash, and it's the same reason my uncle will only do handiwork around my grandmother's house and his own: once you're working for pay, working for clients, it's a job rather than a pleasure.

I want to retain graphic design as my pleasure. I want to keep learning and keep enjoying.

The Birthday Gift is Back! #Summer #OutdoorSex #GroupSex

The Birthday Gift is the first story I wrote that was ever released as an ebook.  A small (now defunct) publisher called Dark Eden Press put it out back in 2008.  I've written about the extensive editing process it went through back then, and how much I learned about writing from my first editor, in a post you can read here.  

The Birthday Gift has been through a number of revisions since that time, and now it's back on the market in all its small-town pansexual group sex glory. It's also available as a paperback for the first time ever!

The Birthday Gift

by Giselle Renarde

Meredith is a cake-baking, apron-wearing small-town Canadian. Her guiding principle in life is, “What would June Cleaver do?” That is, until a curious set of circumstances cause her to crash an outdoor gathering where she stumbles upon a pair of delicious hunks getting a little hands-on with each other. Surely June Cleaver would have headed for the hills! Not Meredith. This relaxed get-together really heats up when one man’s wife appears on the scene... and encourages Meredith to join in!

Hot stuff! But the story’s not over yet. There’s still the tropical vacation, the confinement in foreign prison, the trial for freedom... and, hey, where’s Meredith’s husband in all this? It is his birthday, after all...

Buy now from Nook: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/birthday-gift-giselle-renarde/1102494848
Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/ca/en/ebook/the-birthday-gift-13
Apple: https://books.apple.com/ca/book/the-birthday-gift/id6443243906

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0B8F32PP5?tag=dondes-20
Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1158592?ref=GiselleRenardeErotica
Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/books/details?id=xaZ-EAAAQBAJ

Find more retailers with the Universal Book Link: https://books2read.com/BirthdayGift

Stripping My Son's Sleeping Girlfriend (or Lesbian MILF Takes the Taboo Tramp)

My taboo sleep sex smut story, Stripping My Son's Sleeping Girlfriend, is back and it's got a new cover as well as a new name.  

Actually, it has two names.

Sorry to be confusing.

The last time this story was published, its title got it banned by Amazon. 

So this time I created an alternate title for Amazon: Lesbian MILF Takes the Taboo Tramp.

Same story, different names.

As a taboo dubcon title, this ebook ain't gonna see wide distribution.  So far, it's pretty much only available at Smashwords:

and Amazon:

A Little Burlesque #lesbian #historical #erotic #romance

If you enjoy sapphic sensual fiction, you're in for a treat!

A Little Burlesque was originally published in 2010 as "The Little Burlesque by the Sea." It's been overhauled at least once since then, and I went over it just last week before publishing it again. I hadn't looked at this novella in a while, and, to be honest, I didn't have high hopes when I picked it up. When I got into it, I was pleasantly surprised. It's a great little book: lots of secrets, lots of stripping, lots of sex! 

A Little Burlesque

By Giselle Renarde

Madame Mireille's ocean-side parlour, Les Trois Dames Jouissantes, is one of the last houses holding to the tenets of classic burlesque. They specialize in raunchy comedy sketches, undulating fan dances, chorus lines and, of course, the striptease. In post-war Maritimes, Madame’s burlesque house enjoys notoriety thanks to an all-female cast combining the smart with the sensual.

It was this reputation that attracted the troupe's two newest members. Ginger, the saucy redhead, has been around the block a few times. She might come on strong, but she’s a master of the comedy striptease. Orchid is young, new to the stage, and embodies all that is innocent—or so she'd have you believe!

Secrets abound behind the scenes, and it’ll take more than slippery fingers to bring them to the surface.

Historical lesbian romance with an erotic edge.

Buy Now from Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0B74NCRQ9?tag=dondes-20
Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1156686?ref=GiselleRenardeErotica
Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/books/details?id=-3J8EAAAQBAJ

Nook: https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/a-little-burlesque-giselle-renarde/1109567817
Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/ca/en/ebook/a-little-burlesque-2
Apple: https://books.apple.com/ca/book/a-little-burlesque/id6443186984

Find More Retailers, plus the paperback and hardcover editions, with the Universal Book Link: https://books2read.com/burlesque

The Big Annual July Smashwords Sale is Back!

It's been a big half-year for publishing, over here at Giselle Renarde Erotica. I got my rights back from Excessica Publishing when they closed up shop, and I started republishing those books on January 1st. 

Honestly, I thought I'd be done by now. 

Practically, that's not how things have worked out.  It's taken much longer than anticipated.

The focus on publishing has taken time away from creative work (by which I mean writing new books), and I'll tell you right now: that gets me antsy and out of sorts.  It's incredible how much I rely on writing for my mental health.

I guess I'm in a chatty mood today, because what I really came out here to tell you is that the big annual July sale at Smashwords is on right now. 

The sale is on for the month of July, and it's a great opportunity to pick up copies of my books at a discounted price.

This year, I've discounted most of my books by 25%, 50%, and 75%. 

You can also snag some free titles, like ONE IN THE HAND, the first story in my Wedding Heat series. Hopefully you'll get hooked and buy the rest of the series, as many readers are currently doing.

Explore my titles at Smashwords: 

https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/GiselleRenardeErotica/authors#published

Stock up and save!

Cherry's Back! #NewAdult #OMYW #Erotica #BeachRead

Nearly ten years ago, I wrote an incredibly smutty book called Cherry. It was published by eXcessica, but since I felt it was one of my absolute best pieces of erotic writing, I decided to make it available for free on the following platforms:

Radish https://radish.app.link/ae4HpIQLRqb
Wattpad https://www.wattpad.com/story/119783265-cherry

Thousands of readers have enjoyed this nasty piece of smut online, and now it's back as an ebook, paperback, and hardcover.

Why buy a copy when you can read Cherry for free? Buy it to support me and my writing business! Or buy it because you prefer other formats over online reading. I just want to make sure you know you can read Cherry for free OR you can buy yourself a copy. The choice is yours!

Oh, and the new version has a new cover!

Cherry

A New Adult Novella
by Giselle Renarde

Late nights by a roaring fire, star-gazing with the cute park ranger, lazing around the balmy beach—sounds like a perfect summer vacation, doesn’t it? Cherry loves camping so much she doesn’t even mind spending a week with her parents. Anyway, camping is kind of their family tradition.

That’s why Cherry’s so upset when her father invites his recently-divorced friend, Phil, along. A geeky guest intruding on their vacation? Not fair!

But when Phil arrives at the campground… WOW! Was he always so cool? No, definitely not. When she was younger, Phil had been just another dorky dude. Now he’s stylish and fun and even pretty hunky! Divorce suits him nicely, as far as Cherry’s concerned.

Phil is the last man in the world who should turn Cherry’s head, but that makes their love so much tastier. The forest isn’t big enough to keep these two apart… even if they’re totally wrong for each other.

Buy from Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0B4B5Z9LR?tag=dondes-20
Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/books/details?id=PkR1EAAAQBAJ
Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1151812?ref=GiselleRenardeErotica

Find tons more retailers with the Universal Book Link: https://books2read.com/CherryNovella

Get the Hardcover: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0B3LH3M1D?tag=dondes-20
Get the Paperback (this version has the older cover): http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/cherry-giselle-renarde/1119662247?ean=9781499730654

Stacy's Dad Has Got It Going On #OMYW #NewAdult #BestFriendsFather

I wrote Stacy's Dad Has Got It Going On one summer, thinking I'd put together a nice little fluffy sex romp about a geek girl and her roommate's father. And, in essence, I suppose that's what it ended up being, plot-wise, but I didn't expect the characters to take such firm hold. I didn't expect them to flesh out quite so fully. But they were insistent.

After I'd written this book, I realized it wasn't just for the nerdy girls who want to express themselves sexually in a non-Girls Gone Wild sort of way (like me) but it was also very much for those who grew up with addiction in their households (...like me).

There's something that stays with you all your life if you were raised by a parent or guardian with an addiction. It's a quality of trepidation, an immediate mistrust not only of people but of the potential impact of all substances. In this book, Savannah, the girl who falls for her roommate's dad, is all about clean living, and probably more out of fear of what alcohol and other things might do to her... or make her do.

But she really resents the assumptions other people make about her based on her choice not to drink or do drugs--people ask her to her face if she's a recovering alcoholic, or if she's a religious nut. She's been so focused on school and high achievements that she hasn't given much thought to guys, even though GOD does she love to get laid when the opportunity arises.

Against all odds, and much to my bewildered satisfaction, this book blossoms into a romance when Savannah, who is so like me in so many ways, finds someone who understands the quirks leftover from childhood are still a driving force of her life and personality. Let's just say it surprised me, and I always love it when a book can do that.

(This blog post was originally written when the first edition of Stacy's Dad came out in 2011.)
 

Stacy's Dad Has Got It Going On
By Giselle Renarde

When Stacy's dad shows up unannounced at her apartment, her roommate Savannah is smitten. Eric's career in humanitarian relief makes him college-girl catnip, and his good looks and hot body only sweeten the deal.

Eric doesn’t often visit, but after catching his wife with a younger man he doesn’t know where to turn for consolation. Stacy does her best to cheer him up, but no amount of daughterly compassion is going to heal his bruised ego. He needs a special woman to lick his wounds.

Too bad nobody warned Savannah that Eric would bring more baggage than she'd bargained for...

Excerpt:

“I’m not going to the hospital.”

“Yes you are,” Eric replied simply. But instead of pulling off his pajama pants and pulling on his jeans, he collapsed beside her on the couch. “Just give me five more minutes.”

She sighed and reached again for the remote, this time with more care. “See?” she said, turning down the volume. “As long as I don’t move too quickly, I’m fine. I’ll just put another round of ice on my ankle and in the morning I’ll be healed.”

Eric’s eyes popped wide open at the mention of ice. “You know, that’s not a bad idea.” Pressing both hands down on the couch, he pushed himself up and hobbled to the kitchen. He sighed as he opened the freezer. The cold seemed to revive him. He brought the tray out and snapped it back and forth before dumping the ice into a metal mixing bowl. Even before leaving the kitchen, he picked up one piece and traced it along the base of his jaw and down his neck. “That’s better,” he said. “Nothing like ice dripping down your neck to wake a guy up.”

“If you say so.” Savannah chuckled. “That’s never been my game.”

He brought the ice to the TV room and sat on the coffee table before placing the metal bowl on her ankle. She flinched, but she didn’t move her foot away. Anything so unnerving must be a help.

“How does that feel?” Eric teased.

“Like hell.”

He moved the bowl from her ankle and set it on top of a magazine. From it, he swiped a single cube. Savannah cringed as she watched it coming for her, but when the ice made contact with her skin, she was surprised it wasn’t painfully cold. If anything, it tickled.

“How about this?” Eric asked, tracing the cube around her slightly swollen ankle. “How does this feel?”

The ice melted quickly between his fingers and her flesh. Droplets of water trickled down her foot and dripped from her heel onto the throw pillow underneath.

“Good,” she said. To her surprise, it was true. “It feels really good, actually.”

“What if I do this?” Eric asked, picking up a fresh cube and tracing it up the inside of her calf. Shifting her robe aside, he circled it around her knee before drawing it slowing up her thigh. The cold made her tremble now. She felt its effects more between her legs than she had against her ankle. A whole line of water droplets tumbled down her inner thigh, soaking the terrycloth beneath her. She knew where he was going with this, and she wanted to show him she was on board.

Savannah untied her belt and let her robe fall open at the front. Her breasts were warm and soft with sleep. “Do my tits,” she bid. “With the ice. Make them hard.”

A churlish grin bled upon Eric’s pink lips. “You want me to?”

Buy your copy now from Amazon ebook: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0B1N1942J?tag=dondes-20
Hardcover: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0B1B7CRB7?tag=dondes-20

Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1147896?ref=GiselleRenardeErotica
Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/books/details?id=WVxwEAAAQBAJ
Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/ca/en/ebook/stacy-s-dad-has-got-it-going-on-3

Chapters Indigo: https://www.chapters.indigo.ca/en-ca/books/stacys-dad-has-got-it/9781005478988-item.html

And here is the Universal Book Link for more retailers: http://books2read.com/StacysDad

Narcissist Seeks Narcissist: A Lesbian Romantic Comedy

This is a book I wrote because, like 86% of the planet, I've got a huge crush on Joanna Lumley. So I fictionalized her, turned her into a lesbian, and put her in this erotic comedy. 

Ahh... how one can dream...

Narcissist Seeks Narcissist
by Giselle Renarde

Szuszu the former model has survived on women and scotch since she was just a teenager. All these years, she's had her best friend Babette by her side, but now that Babette is married and setting off on a world tour, Szuszu feels utterly abandoned. As a pre-departure joke, Babette writes up a silly and snide little personal ad, which narcissistic Szuszu posts in hopes of attracting a woman who looks just like she did when she was young.

Naomi thinks Szuszu's post is hilarious -- what a great sense of humor! She can hardly believe the centrefold she stole from her dad's collection way back in the day is looking for love. It's not like her to answer a personal ad, but for the infamous Szuszu she'll make an exception. She thinks Szuszu looks fantastic, and Szuszu (who refuses to wear her glasses) thinks Naomi looks just like her. What could ensue but sex, love, and a whole lot of comedy?

_____________________________________________________

Buy Now from Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/1144178?ref=GiselleRenardeErotica

Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09YVVL8DW?tag=dondes-20

Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/books/details?id=MNVsEAAAQBAJ
Kobo: https://www.kobo.com/ca/en/ebook/narcissist-seeks-narcissist-3
Indigo: https://www.chapters.indigo.ca/en-ca/books/narcissist-seeks-narcissist/9780463372456-item.html

Universal Book Link: http://books2read.com/Narcissist