Review: Friday Afternoon

Friday Afternoon by Sylvia Ryan

My rating: 3 of 5 stars



Children are the death of a sex life. Many times the baby's first wail is the death keel to a lover's bond. Many marriages dissolve as children replace the spot reserved for a lover. Can this book get any more depressing? Oh wait, this one monologue below from Mia captures how having children will destroy a person's life.

For me, their birth marks the threshold that took a deliriously happy, newly married me to
a violent end, to a cessation of everything. My career, my marriage, who I’d always been as a
person. It was like falling down while water-skiing, bone-jarring and suffocating. Despite the
sheer joy of my new baby girls, their birth created the tiniest gap in what has subsequently grown
into a rift between Levi and me. (p. 7)

Reading this passage only affirms my decision not to have children. These parasitic money pits seem to wreak havoc without a thought. Levi and Mia have been married for a long time. With twin daughters, their previously exuberant sex life slowly disappeared until it died a quiet death. The start of this book is excessively demoralizing. Mia hold her own self-pity party as she creates psycho stories in her head regarding her husband cheating on her. Women like Mia disappointment with their juvenile behaviours and inability to communicate effectively with their husband. Why people think their lover is a mind reader never fails to baffle me.

Fortunately, Mia married a sane man with the heart of gold. Instead of leaping to a defensive stance, he helps his wife feel sexy again. Because it's his job to make it right, not her job to make him feel wanted. Did you see how that works? I applaud Ms. Ryan with her subtle writing because it's exasperatingly accurate to real life. The first third of this book is very difficult for me personally to get through because I'm feeling pity for the beleaguered husband. Too many of my male friends experienced this at the hands of a batty wife. Not sure if I could continue with this story, I plow forward.

Ms. Ryan quickly switches over to some hot afternoon delight. What she's written isn't a 101 on how to get your groove back on, but it's pretty damn close. For lovers who've lost their spark, check this book out. It's an easy guide on how to jump start a mostly dead sex life. Ms. Ryan also injects her funny sense of humour. One particular discussion between Mia and her best friend about shaving can cause a reader to do a spit take. Read that section with a drink at your own risk.

“I’m just sayin’ men prefer baby smooth, not pussy-fro.” (p. 28)

Pussy-fro? This is a phrase I need to remember.

Ms. Ryan does a great job of showing how two lovers can reconnect. It's not just the sex. It's the quality time spent together which makes the difference. Building the bonds back through trust and intimacy makes a difference. It even impacts their attitude and others can sense it. Good sex is a great confidence booster. Kinky sex just cranks it up a notch. Levi's increasingly kinky play is hawt and so enjoyable to read. His dom qualities reappear and this erotic contemporary romances ends on a high. It leaves the reader wanting more. What will happen now that a bet has been won? Curious readers want to know! This short romance tale is recommended for lovers who need a little catalyst to spark their love life back to existence.


*provided by Manic Readers


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