Tea and Spices

Rating:
Summary: A wonderful look at a steamy colonial life
Review: I bought this book so that my wife and I could add some fun in our personal life. We usually enjoy reading "improper" stories off the Web when we find the ones written by good authors. So I figured this book should give us more of the same.

After we got it, we read it in 2 days. We had a lot of fun reading this one. We're still re-reading it once in a while, and it never fails to excite us again... There's no violence, rape, or any unordinary perversions. Just a good story with good adult people having fun. :) All mixed in a decent and sensuous historical setting.

We love the characters, especially Deborah. Her husband is sketched out a little too harshly, in my male opinion. Oh well, what else is new. I don't take it personally. I can only wish someone would make it into a movie.

Rating:
Summary: A bang-up story
Review: I bought this book with the expectation that it would be an enjoyable, sexy story (as opposed to Great Literature), and it definitely delivered. The story of a British woman who goes to India and gets involved in colonial society is well-done and interesting, with (yes) plenty of sex - it is, after all, erotica! Don't buy it if you're puritanical. Read it for escapism and enjoyment as opposed to philosophical discourse, and you'll pass time with lots of pleasure.

Rating:
Summary: A Steamy Romance During The British Raj
Review: Nina Roy's "Tea And Spices" is set in Calipore, Uttar Pradesh, 1925, during the British Raj. Devora Hawthorne has just come out from England to be with her colonial diplomat husband Gerald. The two have been married a little over a year, during which time they have spent six months apart. Unlike most of the British colony, Devora develops an interest in India - her people, culture, art, religions and food. She also has a difficult time adjusting to the strict class structure and rules of the British community. Gerald is a stickler for the rules. He makes it clear from the beginning that one does not have personal contacts with the Indians. It just isn't done. Of course, this only holds true for the British women. Gerald thinks nothing of having sex with the local serving girls. The theme here is a common one in novels of the British Raj. The British think their culture is by far the superior, and that they bring civilization to the natives, who are looked upon as lower class -- even the Indian royalty. This is a period of political strife and sedition in India with the Independence Movement in full gear.

Devora is a sensitive, artistic woman and the heat and color of her exotic surroundings liberate her sensuality, rather than stifle it. She finds herself retreating from the formality of her station. She is invited, along with her husband and his colleagues to dine at the palace of the local Maharaja, a man of questionable morals. He is intrigued by her and invites her to a Hindu temple to view the religious and very erotic art. She also visits him alone at his palace a few times, and a sexual relationship begins between them. It is a very brief relationship, however, as the man lives up to his cruel and perverse reputation.

Rohan, the head servant of the Hawthorne household is an educated man from a good family. He was forced to become a servant due to circumstances beyond his control. He is an aloof, introspective person, and, at first seems disapproving of Devora. There is tremendous tension between the two initially. She believes it to be over who holds sway with the servants and the house. As Devora begins to know Rohan - she hears him playing the piano and has some interesting discussions with him - the two begin an affair. There is a strong chemistry between them, on more than just a sexual level. Gerald discovers the relationship and only agrees to try to salvage the marriage if Devora will accuse Rohan of rape.

This is a short but well written novel. I think it does the book a disservice to label it erotic. There are no really explicit scenes here and although the storyline is trite at times, there is more focus on plot and character than on sex. "Tea and Spices" is light and enjoyable reading.
JANA

Rating:
Summary: Fabulous read
Review: Romantica of the best kind. So glad I picked this one off the shelf! The plot of Devora Hawthorne's romance with the Indian servant Rohen was intricately woven around sensual scenes that are both hot and tender. I kept picturing a young Shashi Kapoor in the role of Rohan with black hair and eyes that are a million fathoms deep. Although I wasn't crazy about Devora's husband Gerald, I have to admit that he was pretty intriguing when it came to the bedroom. He also fits a perfect profile of the colonial Brit. Sensual, complicated women, strong men, an exotic setting of colonial India, all create a highly satisfying (ahem!!) read. I will be recommending this one to select close friends. I only hope that the author is coming out with a new book soon.

Rating:
Summary: Fabulous read
Review: Romantica of the best kind. So glad I picked this one off the shelf! The plot of Devora Hawthorne's romance with the Indian servant Rohen was intricately woven around sensual scenes that are both hot and tender. I kept picturing a young Shashi Kapoor in the role of Rohan with black hair and eyes that are a million fathoms deep. Although I wasn't crazy about Devora's husband Gerald, I have to admit that he was pretty intriguing when it came to the bedroom. He also fits a perfect profile of the colonial Brit. Sensual, complicated women, strong men, an exotic setting of colonial India, all create a highly satisfying (ahem!!) read. I will be recommending this one to select close friends. I only hope that the author is coming out with a new book soon.

Rating:
Summary: No choice at the beginning....
Review: Since I have been waiting and waiting for the next Natasha Rostova Black Lace book (I hate it when authors don't produce as quickly as I would like them to), I decided to read this book to tide me over. I wasn't sure what to expect since I am such an avid fan of Rostova's Black Lace series, but this book delivered as fantastically as her others. It is a historical novel of the British in India, telling the story of a British woman who experiences a number of....well, experiences!

One of the main reasons i like Rostova's novels is that she creates fully 3-dimensional characters, both male and female. The men are not reduced to dogs, the women not to vapid airheads. Admittedly, I didn't find the male character Gerald (Devora's husband) as interesting as the male characters in the Black Lace books, but he holds his own. The excellent writing and the story are vintage Rostova. Now if she would only hurry up and write another.

Rating:
Summary: BORING
Review: This book is not erotica. Danelle Harmon and Lisa Kleypas (main-stream romance writers) write more graphic erotic loves scenes than this book . The book is well-written, so I won't give it one star. I don't recommend this book if you are looking for something sexy. Actually, I don't recommend this book at all. It was depressing and filled with lots of unpleasant characters. Just pass this one up.

Rating:
Summary: BORING
Review: This book is not erotica. Danelle Harmon and Lisa Kleypas (main-stream romance writers) write more graphic erotic loves scenes than this book . The book is well-written, so I won't give it one star. I don't recommend this book if you are looking for something sexy. Actually, I don't recommend this book at all. It was depressing and filled with lots of unpleasant characters. Just pass this one up.

Rating:
Summary: Great erotica
Review: THIS IS ONE OF THE BEST EROTICA BOOKS I'VE READ....THE STORY IS BEAUTIFUL, THE WRITING TOP-NOTCH (HOW OFTEN CAN YOU SAY THAT ABOUT EROTICA)....I BOUGHT MORE JUST TO GIVE AS GIFTS SO THAT PEOPLE KNOW THAT EROTICA CAN BE SENSUAL AND BEAUTIFUL, NOT JUST POROGRAPHIC...THE SCENES BETWEEN THE WOMEN ARE EXCEPTIONALLY WELL DONE....THIS WAS A REALLY GREAT READ...THINK I'LL GO READ IT AGAIN....